Blogging with Patsy - Sounds like a country western song

Good morning everyone. It's Friday - TGIF! - and next week I'm on vacation. Going camping to the beautiful Sawtooths near Stanley, Idaho. This is a yearly campout and the family gathers. Lots of fun, great fishing and so relaxing.

Anyway, I'm the guest blogger for Friday, July 11. Thank you, Anna, for inviting me and, though I'm nervous, I hope to be a good influence on the participants.

I began my writing career just over two years ago. I have a vivid imagination and I would make up these stories and tell my husband and he kept at me to write them down. One day, he went out, bought a computer, brought it home and said "Now you don't have an excuse." Shortly after that, in January of 2006, I was watching the Discovery Channel about the Urumchi Mummies of the Taklamakan Desert in Northern China, and "Fiona" came into fruition (that sounds authorie). I finished her in August of 2006 and contracted for publication with The Wild Rose Press in late December 2006 or early January 2007. In February, 2007, I finished my second novel, "Riley's Journey", and submitted that one as well to TWRP and it was immediately accepted. So began my career.

I have since contracted for my third novel, "Aimee's Locket," which, although a time travel, will be released as a Cactus Rose, and a shorter story, "Heart of the Sorcerer." I have also submitted a short story to the free reads program and it is slated for publication soon, "Prophecy's Bride." Stay tuned for publication dates. I am currently working on my fourth novel, a vampire story.

As to my first three novels:

FIONA

Love survives the ravages of time. Set against the backdrop of the Taklamakan Desert, Fiona, a beautiful, modern young woman of Celtic heritage, finds herself transported to ancient China, to a time of barbarian warriors, marauding nomads from the northern steppes, and at what was then a crossroad between East and West. Fiona finds a new way of life in the arms of the handsome warrior, Kellach, a man of noble stature and a leader among the Celtic settlements ringing the great desert.
Desperate to return to the present and struggling against her mounting feelings, Fiona finally accepts her fate, exulting in the rapture and delights of Kellach’s love, only to have Voadicia, a beautiful seductress, destroy that dream of happiness. Kellach’s soul searches the mists of time, yearning to be reunited with his one love.


EXCERPT:

There it was again, Fiona thought, I definitely heard something this time. She slowly turned around and gasped. She was definitely hallucinating now. It appeared to her muddled mind that horsemen were standing in a line behind her. Because of the sun’s positioning and her injured eye, she wasn’t able to really see them clearly, but from their outline, they almost looked like Indians. But, no, the sun glinted off what appeared to be shades of blonde, red and brown hair. Perhaps they were from the Festival, they certainly looked the part. It was all just too confusing and she couldn’t grasp the significance of what was occurring.

Kellach’s men recoiled. The crone’s visage was a nightmare to be sure. The left side of her face was a mass of purplish bruises and her left eye was swollen shut. Dried blood covered the right side of face and her lips were swollen and cracked. She appeared to be ancient, so bent over was she. A shawl covered her head, and strands of dirty white hair hung around her face. Her clothing was filthy and torn in a good number of places. From a quick perusal, Kellach could see that she had tied her left arm to her body and was leaning heavily on the stick she carried.
Fiona dropped to her knees, “Thank god,” she croaked, “I had almost given up. What took you so long?” She almost didn’t recognize her own voice, it was so hoarse and gravelly sounding.
Kellach looked around the group, “Do any of you understand what she said?” They all looked blank.


RILEY'S JOURNEY

The research project was only supposed to be for an “extended period.” No one said anything about forever! So Riley’s journey begins. Sent back 40,000 years to be the mate of a man she had never before met, Riley struggles to understand and adjust. Her journey will take her into a world fraught with dangers - a world made more treacherous by savage beasts, primitive Neanderthals, and the incursion of the aggressive Cro-Magnon man.

Surviving alone for five years in this vast wilderness, Nathan, along with his enormous dog, Demon, carve out a life in the perilous environment. Though thrown together by forces beyond their control, love grows between Riley and Nathan – but will they survive?

EXCERPT:

Nathan bellowed a war cry and jumped into the fray, slashing and whirling in a lethal dance of death. More than one newcomer instantly fell beneath his onslaught, but more entered the battle. Riley’s hand fastened on her war club and, gripping it tightly, she moved into position behind Nathan, protecting his back as he dealt blow after blow on the now surprised and defensive warriors.

Moving in time with Nathan, Riley matched his ferocity, enraged by the unwarranted attack and fighting as though demons snapped at her heels. They fought as one, joined by their will to survive amidst overwhelming odds. Had Nathan had the opportunity to enjoy the spectacle, he would have applauded the intensity and determination with which she landed every blow. She was an Amazon woman of myth, a Valkyrie of the Asgaard, or a Warrior Queen. The months of combat training and warfare techniques drilled into her on a daily basis came into fruition, culminating in this single moment. She defended her position well, holding out against the rampaging aggressors, meting out vicious blows to those who ventured too close.

COMING SOON - AIMEE'S LOCKET

The antique ivory locket was the key! Exquisite and enchanting, it drew Aimee like a magnet. Though the locket cost every spare penny she had, it was money well spent – or so she thought! Catapulted back to the year 1847, Aimee finds herself alone in St. Louis, Missouri, the jumping off site for the Oregon Trail. The much touted slogan “Go West Young Man” takes on new meaning. Seattle, her home in the present, was a distant dream, and unless she found a suitable male willing to marry, Aimee would be left behind when the emigrant train departed, bound for the Oregon Territory.

Jake Marshall, scout for the Markham Party, was the perfect, if unwilling choice. Undaunted by his overt rudeness, Aimee entices Jake to the alter, promising her diamond earrings as payment for a marriage of convenience. Properly wed, she thereby secures passage on the wagon train, and embarks on a chain of events that would ultimately culminate in the far reaches of the great American West.

EXCERPT:

“Will you go anywhere near Seattle, Washington?”
“I told you before, I’ve never heard of Seattle and Washington’s east, but if you mean the Oregon territory – yes, we end up there, in the Willamette Valley to be exact.”
Aimee rapidly absorbed the meager information. “How long does the trip take and what does it cost?”
“Takes at least five months if nothing goes wrong - and it costs way more than you have. Why?”
“Oh . . . nothing. I just wondered.” Aimee turned to leave, lost in thought.
“Sure you don’t want to take me up on my offer?” He tried one last time.
“You wish!” Aimee growled, stalking out, forgetting to check the hallway first and barely avoiding running into a boarder who happened to be walking by. A lascivious leer replaced the boarder’s previously blank expression, his eyes devouring her lightly clad form.
“Looking for customers?” He smacked his lips loudly, reminiscent of a flapping sucker fish. “I just might be interested.”
Aimee’s shoulders drooped in disgust. “You are soooo sickening,” she spat angrily. “How about you get out of my face before I ream you a new orifice?”
Startled, the man’s mouth flew open as he gaped in surprise.
Jake stepped into the hallway, his voice ominous in the ensuing silence. “The lady was just returning to her room. I suggest you do the same.”
The hapless man, taking note of Jake’s stiff and threatening countenance, and the fact that Jake was a good head taller, scurried down the hall, happy to escape unscathed.
“Thanks . . . again! Seems like all I do is thank you for one reason or another.” Aimee mentally reviewed her dismal day. “I’ve had more creepy offers from more creepy men in one day than I’ve had in my entire lifetime!”
“If you keep running around in your underclothes, it’s pretty much what you can expect,” he said unnecessarily.
He followed her across the hall. “Stay in there and don’t answer the door, and if anyone bothers you – scream. I’ll hear it.”
Stepping into her room, Aimee turned. “Why are you helping me?”
He shrugged noncommittally. “Guess it’s because I’m a gentleman at heart.”
“Are you?” She asked. “Are you a gentleman?”

A tiny smile creased his lips. “I can be when I need to.”  

Best close this or I will have written another novel. Have a good day and I'll be blogging.

Patsy

P. L. Parker

www.plparker.com