I found out this morning that all three of my books are now available for the Kindle, which makes me very excited.
Books by R. F. Long available for Kindle
Also, I now have an Amazon Author page.
Other than that I have no news. Except for a new tv obsession with the show Desperate Romantics. I’m working away on rewrites and starting sketching out the opening of The Wolf’s Destiny (part 3 of Shan and Jeren’s story).
So, back into the writing cave I go…
I’ve been a busy poster of late. I’ve also been editing a novella, participating in Romance Divas Not Going to the Conference Conference and generally faffing about on the internet.
Found this. It’s been posted elsewhere. I saw it yesterday (er… I think) and its wonderful. (Anyone with sensitive ears beware. She swears a little bit. No really, she does!)
Another thing I’ve been obsessing about is the “live” radiocast of the Apollo 11 moonlanding mission.
And the most recent mission. Actually I spend a fair amount of time on the Nasa site. No really. I do. I blame the obsessions of my other half. And as if I needed to prove to the world how nerdy I really am deep down inside, yesterday I tweeted about Copernicium. Couldn’t help it. It wasn’t the periodic table per se, because frankly that’s just so much gobbledegook to me, but I like Copernicus. And its kind of cool.
Finally, as mentioned above, Romance Divas are holding the Not Going to the Conference Conference. There’s tons going on and I’m late mentioning it, but there is still time. (And all the posts are still there to read). Click on the banner. You can join today (its free and a goldmine of information).
(Linnea Sinclair’s presentation is particularly AMAZING! And there are more to come! SQUEE!)
So that’s it. Lots to do while I try to finish this rewrite. And most of it (apart from Copernicium) writing related. Kinda.
Like magic? Like UF?
Then you’ll LOVE Genny!
The wonderful Suzanne McLeod’s The Cold Kiss of Death officially releases today. Let excitement and bouncing elephants reign supreme.
I’m reading the first volume in this series The Sweet Scent of Blood (What? I’m a slow reader! Give me a break!) and its awesome.
Don’t believe me? (How could you doubt me?!)
Kimberly at Darque Reviews has given The Cold Kiss of Death a starred read!
‘Ms. McLeod outdoes herself, and takes her fictional world to new levels. The Cold Kiss of Death is a refreshing escape that will keep readers glued to every page.’
‘Great writing, enough sass to make [Genny] believable and above all a tale that makes us all want to visit to see the “hidden” side of this ancient city. . . making [Suzanne] perhaps Britain’s premiere Urban Fantasy Author.‘
Lovevampires.com** has given The Cold Kiss of Death 
!
‘The Cold Kiss of Death [is] an exciting and satisfyingly complex read. Throw in an imaginatively realised fantasy London with demons, sorcerers, satyrs, vampires, necromancers and a wide variety of faery beings and it’s clear that this book is a sure-fire winner for fantasy fans.’
Go on, you know you want it! Make sure to hop over to Suzanne’s LJ and congratulation her!
which also doubles as a method to show off more pictures.
I mentioned a little while ago that Madrid inspired me. Many of the places I have visited have. Andalusia gave me much of the architecture of River Holt, which Mdina in Malta still epitomises Ithian in my mind, despite the fact it isn’t a port like Klathport. The forest walks nearby in Wicklow could easily be those in Soul Fire and the forests of the realm in my WIP May Queen. And of course Moy Tura Echoes (another infamous WIP) is mainly set in Dublin.
So I thought you might like to see the latest photos that have the plotbunnies leaping around the place. This is Kilruddery House and Gardens in Bray, Co. Wicklow.
And just for fun, a link to Anna Netrebko singing, for background music.
Enjoy… 
It’s Excerpt Monday time again. Since Soul Fire released on Tuesday 7th, it only seems fitting to have another sneak peak at it, this time from Daire’s point of view.
The links to other Excerpt Monday posts are underneath my excerpt, so click through a few and see what wonderful writing is available for you this month. (If any of them don’t connect right away, don’t panic. It’s international, so come back later)
~~~
Daire took his sword and plunged it into the soft earth, feeling the blade bite deep and hold. Then he knelt beside his brother.
Aidan moaned as Daire slid his arm under his shoulders, preparing to lift him. “If you can hear me, brother, listen. I’m going to try something. We’ll need to act at once when I do.”
“You shouldn’t move him,” said the girl, her voice more strident than he would have expected. She had been terrified, helpless, and now she decided to argue. Now, when he needed her to be silent and obey, she argued.
Daire bit back a snarl. There was no time. His strength was failing in this mortal world and Aidan’s was almost spent. If they were to have any sort of chance, it had to be now.
“I do what I must. Get to your home and be safe. Forget what you have seen. This is no place for the likes of you.” He lifted Aidan, holding him as gently as he could.
“The likes of me?” she exclaimed, pushing her unruly hair back from her face. “What is that supposed to mean? Just what do you…?”
Her voice fell to shocked silence and the air around them stilled abruptly. Daire cursed beneath his lead-weighted breath and within him an ancient instinct sighed, “Too late.”
Aynia glided from the tree line on artful feet, beautiful and sleek, a huntress. Lorcan trailed behind her like a dog. Four of her other guards flanked her. Daire’s sense of danger grew. Not from her guards. He could handle such scum. It was Aynia. Her face remained calm, but he could see the glint of triumph in her violet eyes. She shook back her hair, glossy and dark like a raven’s wing, and smiled her cutthroat smile.
Daire gripped the sword and unleashed his power. Magic spiralled down the bronze blade, the entire store of magic within his heart, crackling against the metal and burrowing into the soil, driven by his will.
The ground reared up under his opponents as root and vine erupted, seizing her guards and tossing them left and right.
Only Aynia stood unaffected, the calm at the centre of his world-storm, her hair billowing out behind her. Once he had run his fingers through that hair, whispered words of love while his lips had brushed against her flawless skin. Before she turned traitor.
“You’re weaker than I remember, Daire.” She stretched out her hand. Something thudded against his stomach, almost bowling him backwards, but he kept his footing, holding Aidan and trying to push all the remaining energy at his disposal through the sword and into an attack. But it was slipping away, his strength fading. Cursing the mortals, their world and their iron, he strained to renew his efforts, but the magic within him spluttered and failed. The garden and the forest beyond it started to calm and Aynia’s companions picked themselves up.
Daire swore as his vision blurred. He was weakening. The putrid air and the frailer nature of this world not only drained him, but made the environment more difficult to control.
“Two princes of the Seelie Court,” Aynia gloated. “Our rewards will be without measure. And what entertainment you’ll both provide. Take them.”
Before the Dark Sidhe could move, the mortal woman reached out and closed her hand over Daire’s where it rested on top of the sword hilt. Her palm felt like something carved from ice. The jasmine-and-orange-blossom scent of her overpowered him again, and with it came something else, something totally unforeseen.
Power flooded his system, glowing through his eyes, through the pores of his skin, warm and blinding, speeding his heart and wringing breath from him. Such fire could not be wasted, would not allow itself to be wasted. It seized him with an imperative all its own.
Rushing to obey while its power burned hottest, he turned it directly on Aynia. She screamed in fury, falling back against the onslaught. The Dark Sidhe dissolved to shadows once more.
“What did you do?” the woman gasped.
“What did I do?” He pulled his hand clear of both her and the sword. His skin tingled where she had touched him, glowed everywhere else. “I used whatever you just gave me, woman. But we haven’t much time. I must get him to safety.”
He hadn’t expected her aid, but she moved without his say-so and between them they lifted Aidan and retrieved the sword. Was it his imagination that the hilt still felt warm, or that the back of his hand itched with a need he couldn’t define, a need to feel her touch again? Madness. And thoughts that did not become a prince of the Sidhe.
Daire led the way, swiftly as he dared, through the woods to the stone circle where the veil parted. Evening wore on and the moon would soon rise. With sun or moon falling on it, the gateway would not budge without the most powerful enchantments – magic far beyond him – and he needed to get his brother to safety.
The woman, brown haired, solemn eyed, helped him carry Aidan through the forest without a word of complaint. For that Daire felt grateful because he couldn’t be sure he would have been able to carry him alone. He needed whatever help she could give. She staggered under the weight of the unresponsive body, her body still bearing the hallmarks of one left dazed from such a powerful casting. She would sleep sound tonight, if the nightmares let her. Even so, Daire could not allow her, a mortal, to see the way back. The old saying was ingrained in his memory, as much a part of his early lessons as how to count or write in ancient ogham.
Iron born and iron bred.
Trust not iron, it will see you dead!
On the banks of a stream, within easy reach of the slope leading to the circle, he stopped and laid Aidan on the ground.
“My thanks, milady,” he told her with a bow. “But you must leave us here. I am sorry for any distress my brother and I might have caused you.”
“But…but who are you?” She gazed at him with eyes bright as amber and pushed her hair out of her face with a trembling hand. An attractive thing, though her looks were nothing like the beauty of the Sidhe. Frail and mortal, a mayfly existence, yet beautiful nonetheless. In another time, another place, he might have-
Daire shook his head, dismissing that fantasy for once and for all. With another man, perhaps… Aidan had been right and Daire could admit it. He had not been made for love.
He caught her face in his hands, cradling her for a moment. She jerked back, but not so far as to escape. Beneath his touch, with glamour flowing from his palms, she stilled, gazing at him in wonder. Her soft skin warmed him. Part of him wanted to linger there, but it was impossible, impossible. He leaned forwards, brushing his lips to hers, letting her gasp of surprise fall against his mouth and he released a final spell, one of forgetting. He relinquished her with an unexpected tinge of regret.
“Go,” he told her. “Shut your doors and turn your iron keys. You’ll be safe at your own hearth. The moon has almost risen and we must be gone.”
She nodded solemnly as the enchantment encircled her, or perhaps she truly understood the gravity of the situation. It would be nice to think so. It was only after she had gone that he realised he hadn’t asked her name. A small discourtesy, but less so than seeing her become a toy of the Dark Sidhe. Still, it grated.
Aidan came to as they reached the veil, groggy and with legs as wobbly as a newborn lamb. He groaned, trying to pull away and stand alone, but he wilted a moment later. Daire caught him before he fell.
“Are you ready for home then?” asked Daire with a laugh, pulling his acorn key out from his shirt and closing his hand around it to activate the spell. Only one Sidhe at a time could pass through the veil and the key, this tiny pendant in the form of a golden acorn, was the Seelie Court’s chief defence against infiltration by the Dark Sidhe.
Aidan reached inside his collar for his own key. His face turned the white of a swan’s wing. “It’s gone,” he whispered, his voice hoarse and pained. “My key’s gone.”
Behind them, Daire could feel the light of the moon creeping through the trees. Briefly he wondered if the young woman was safe, if she had made it home. But the problem at hand loomed larger: one key, two Sidhe, one of whom was hurt. Time had just run out.
“Damn it Aidan, you’d better send help fast!”
Daire wrenched the key over his head and slid the chain around Aidan’s neck. He pressed the golden acorn into Aidan’s hand and pushed him through the shimmering mists of the veil.
The gateway to their world snapped shut, leaving Daire alone in the mortal realm. Moonlight enveloped him and his strength, such as it remained, gave out.
~~~
Other Excerpt Monday excerpts – Please note these are just a small selection and I have not personally checked them all. Please be aware that they are rated by the authors, and click accordingly. For a full list of excerpts this month go to the Excerpt Monday site.
Mel Berthier, Urban Fantasy (PG 13)
and
Bria Quinlan, Rom Com (PG)
Joining us this week:
Kinsey W. Holley, Paranormal (PG)
Caitlynn Lowe, Epic Fantasy (PG)
Dara Sorensen, Paranormal (PG)
Babette James, Fantasy Romance (PG13)
Christina DeLorenzo, YA (PG 13)
Nika Dixon, Romantic Suspense (PG 13)
Bryn Donovan, Paranormal Romance (PG13)
Kaige, Historic Romance (PG-13)
Julia Knight, Fantasy Romance (PG 13)
Adelle Laudan, Contemporary Romance (PG 13)
Jeannie Lin, Historical Romance (PG13)
Rebecca Savage, romantic suspense (PG 13)
Crista McHugh, Paranormal Romance (PG 13)
Leigh Royals, Historical Romance (PG 13)
I’m guestblogging over at Killer Fiction about Folklore and using it in fiction. Come over and have a look, (and leave some comments pleeeease!)
Its a gorgoeus day today so we’re going to head off to the Gardens of Kilruddery House to look for some fairies. 
So delighted to read this. What a way to start the day?!
From ParanormalRomance.org
“No question about it, Soul Fire is monumentally thrilling and exotic. I couldn’t put the book down. A rare treat for me, I devoured this story from beginning to end in one sitting and I want more! … An out of this world paranormal romance/fantasy story that will have readers clamoring for more, Soul Fire is one hot read I will be recommending to all of my friends.” — Amanda Haffery, ParaNormalRomance
The full review is on ParaNormalRomance.org
*Drumroll*
As picked by Random.org
Commenter No. 3 – Judy Cox
and
Commenter No. 14 – blodeuedd
Congratulations – I’ll be in touch shortly to check what ebook format you need and the address for the pendant.
Thanks so much for playing everyone. If you’re still on the lookout for a win, check out My Favourite Books where a very similar competition is still underway and will be until the 14th! (oh, and you can read me waffling on about writing too. Such a bonus!)
~~~
~~~
I’m delighted to announce the release of my paranormal romance Soul Fire today from Samhain.
Iron born and iron bred.
Trust not iron, it will see you dead.
Rowan Blake could really use a magic wand to keep her struggling art gallery afloat. But the faerie key she stumbles across is far from a lucky charm. It’s a magnet for danger, and by touching it she’s unwittingly put herself in the middle of a war between the forces of light and dark. And in the arms of its rightful owner, Prince Daire.
While searching for his brother, Daire finds himself trapped in the Iron World with a mere mortal woman who ignites his passion like no other. Each stolen kiss deepens their attraction and sends him spiraling closer and closer to the edge of his inherent dark desires. Desires that act as a homing beacon for the Dark Sidhe, who are intent on forcing him to fight on their side.
The longer he lingers in her arms—and in her bed—the closer his enemies get to her door. And the greater the risk that the gateway to the Faerie Realm will shift, destroying not only his power to protect her, but his very life.
Warning: Contains enchantments, danger, some very scary monsters, a trip to the dark side and hot, soul-transforming sex with an immortal prince.
Genre: Paranormal Romance, Fantasy Romance
ISBN: 978-1-60504-619-8
Length: Novel
Price: 5.50
Cover art by Anne Cain
Soul Fire started off life as To Regain Heaven. It was one of those stories that just flowed. It knew where it was going and I was largely along for the ride. I did have great help from all my friends on Livejournal, where the question “if lots of evil supernatural/fairy creatures were attacking your house, what would you do?” prompted some spirited debate with the merits of milk, iron filings, horseshoes and submachine guns all coming into play. Alas not everything made it into the story.
But some of it did.
So, where is all this going? Well, it being release day, I have giveaways.
Daire and his brother Aidan wear enchanted acorn pendants which act as a key, allowing them to travel between our world and theirs. I’m lucky where I live. Like Rowan, my garden backs onto a wood and overhanging our rather battered fence is an ancient oak tree. After finishing Soul Fire, I found a few of these enchanted pendants lying around, their magic largely spent now, but beautiful, nonetheless.
Over the next few days I’m going to be gathering comments here (I hope) and two winners will be selected using Random.org. The prizes are one ebook copy of Soul Fire, and one pendant. I’ll also open it to those who post about Soul Fire and the pendants on their own sites as long as they let me know.
And keep your eyes out elsewhere too. There may be some others lying around too.
Hi all
got back from Madrid over the weekend with lots of inspiration for future stories. That’s always the way when I travel, even for work. I was there for a weeklong conference but that didn’t preclude some sight seeing, as the pictures below will attest.
A beautiful city (although I would have prefered to visit at a cooler time of the year!!!), lively, friendly and filled with stories, many still to be told I suspect.
