Marooned with a Pirate #MFRWHooks #MFRWAuthor #PNR

MFRW Book Hooks logo

I’ll be featuring my paranormal stories and novellas at the blog for Halloween month. Today, my historical, paranormal romantic short story, Marooned, featuring a wayward witch and a sexy pirate.

Marooned graphic

“Must you tell the entire crew?”

He stopped pacing to look at her. “Do you have any idea of the position you’ve placed me in? The ship’s articles prohibit bringing a woman on board.”

“You did not bring me on board,” she argued. “I was already here.”

“A technicality. Besides, the articles also prohibit keeping secrets from the other members of the crew, subject to punishment by marooning.”

Heather flinched. Marooning meant a slow death from hunger and thirst on a deserted island. “Then you have no choice, do you? You have to tell them.”

He rubbed a hand over his eyes. “You appear to be a lady of means. Is there anyone who’d pay ransom for you?”

“No. My father died a few months ago. I own our sugar plantation now, but there are no other assets, at least none you have not already stolen by taking this ship. My father lost everything at the gaming tables.”

“So that is why you were traveling with your uncle.”

“Another lie,” Heather admitted. “The man who died was my husband, Roger Parnell.”

Adam stared at her. “Your husband. Then who was the blond woman?”

“Kitty Foxton, his mistress,” Heather said flatly. “She was supposed to be acting as my maid, but it was she who shared his bed.”

Adam shook his head. “Not many ladies would put up with that.”

“Better her than me. I despised him.”

Adam’s brows quirked. “Then why did you marry him?”

“I had no choice. He’s the one who ruined my father by cheating at cards. Da was so downcast, he shot himself. I was left with nothing. Nothing. Then the blackguard who destroyed my life offered to marry me. Last night, I learned that he and Kitty planned to kill me once he’d established himself as master of the plantation. Your Mr. Gower did me a favor by killing them.”

Adam stood, walked around the desk and reached for her hands. “What an extraordinary tale.”

She laughed, a little hysterically. “It is, is it not? And now even more so since I have been captured by pirates.”

“Most well-bred ladies would have fainted by now. I applaud your courage and resourcefulness.”

Heather stood to face him, her hand still in his. “I am made of sterner stuff than most ladies.”

“I see that. There is, perhaps, one solution to this dilemma. I could claim you as my share-and-a-half from the Sea Rover.” He let go of her hands and pulled her to him, one arm around her waist. His other hand grabbed hold of her hair and tugged her head back. She looked up into his face and saw that his eyes were green flecked with gold. They glittered with desire.

Blurb:

Marooned coverHeather Parnell is traveling from England to her home in Jamaica with her new husband, Roger, a man she detests. She performs a banishing spell with unintended consequences. When their ship is attacked by pirates, Roger is killed. Heather, disguised as a boy, joins the pirate crew.

Pirate captain Adam Langworth suspects there is something odd about the new lad. When he discovers she is a woman, she begs him to keep her secret, a violation of the ships’ articles. When her identity is discovered, Adam and Heather find themselves marooned on a deserted island with nothing to do for the rest of their lives but make love.

Disclaimer: This is a 12,000 word steamy romantic short story, not a full-length novel. Previously published by Amber Quill Press. Contains a sexy pirate, a naughty witch, cussing and fornicating. They are pirates, after all.

Only 99 cents at: Amazon US, Amazon AU, Amazon CA, and Amazon UK; and Smashwords.

As always, click on the Linky List below for more fabulous #MFRWHooks!

Lyndi Lamont

Happy Howloween! #Werewolf Lore & Romance #free #PNR

free Oct 28-Nov 1

Two more days to pick up your copy of Ilona’s Wolf, free at Amazon through Nov. 1!

For your Happy Howloween reading pleasure, I’ve delved into my research notes for a little werewolf lore I discovered while writing my paranormal romance, Ilona’s Wolf.

When I was a kid, werewolves were villains of horror movies, not heroes in romance novels, so why the change? I wonder if it has something to do with restoring wolves to wild areas, like Yellowstone Park, and the resulting awareness of these beautiful, magnificent animals.

running wolf

Yes, they are predators, but they have proven immensely useful in controlling the deer population and in some areas the ecosystem has benefited from the re-introduction of the wolves.

But back in the Middle Ages and earlier, people were terrified of wolves and of the idea that some humans could transform themselves into wolves and attack. Hence, the popularity of the Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale, inspiration for Ilona’s Wolf. Wolves were hunted relentlessly in Europe and to extinction in the British Isles.

Some of the ancient beliefs about werewolves are…

Lycanthropy is the term for transforming from man to wolf and it dates back to Roman times, probably no surprise since the brothers who supposedly founded Rome, Romulus and Remus, were said to have been suckled by a she-wolf, a lupa, as babes.

During the Middle Ages, people believed that witches practiced lycanthropy. Alternately, witches were charges with riding werwolves during their rituals, and thus were werewolves associated with magic, a fact I took advantage of in Ilona’s Wolf.

We’ve all heard of the witch hunts of the 16th and 17th centuries, but did you know there were also werewolf hunts in the same time period? In France, there were over 30,000 cases of supposed werewolves. Some were executed; others confined due to insanity. For more information and possible real causes of werewolf-like symptoms, see http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/werewolf5.htm.

Werewolf means “man-wolf” though there are varying theories of the evolution of the term. In Old English, the word wer(e) meant man and not in the general, human sense. In Norse, the term varg had two meanings: a wolf or a godless man. Each country had a different term. In France, werewolves are loup-garou; in Spanish hombre lobo; and in Italy lupo mannaro. And there are many others.

In the Middle Ages, people believed that the werewolf’s hair grew inward and the skin reversed during transformation. Talk about itching under the skin! I don’t think I’d like that.

Werewolves are known to have superior strength, nocturnal vision and a preternatural sense of smell, just like real canines. In addition, thanks to the transformations undergone, they are immune from aging, and thus nearly immortal, except when in their more vulnerable human form. My hero, Sir Rolf, usually shifts into wolf form when danger threatens.

The notion that werewolves transform at the full moon is attributed to medieval chronicler Gervase of Tilbury, and is now an almost immutable fact of werewolf lore. I chose to ignore it for my book in favor of letting my hero shift at will. (Much more useful, plot-wise.)

Ilona's Wolf coverBlurb for Ilona’s Wolf:

Princess Ilona is rescued by a wolf that transforms into a handsome, naked man. Cursed by an evil wizard, Rolf was trapped in wolf form until he tasted the blood of a royal. Now he must escort the princess on a hazardous journey to the castle. Passion flares between them, but both know there is no future for a princess and a werewolf. Or is there… in a world where magic and passion combine?

Ilona’s Wolf is free at amazon.com running through Nov 1! If you’re looking for a hot read on for Halloween night, this story is for you!

Bonus: The second installment of the Kingdoms and Legends story, Tova’s Dragon, is currently marked down to 99 cents!

Warrior Maiden grapnic

Lyndi