Friday, June 13, 2008

Secured Mail and a bonus...



I know you might be thinking, hey! that's the cover for PLANET Mail not the new spicy intergalactic viking love fest SECURED Mail and you would be right...I haven't got the new cover yet (grr) but I thought the old one was worth another drool over. I'll let you see the new one and share the release date as soon as I have them:

The book, however, is all spanking new and contains the usual riot of outrageous sex scenes, tall hunky Vikings and determined kick-ass Earth women determined to set them straight. Lots of readers asked me to write a book about Sven, the stern red-headed chief bodyguard of the Queen Douglass and I eventually got around to it.

Here's the blurb and a short excerpt all about pizza and sex...:

Sven Magnusson’s stuck on Planet Earth sexually serving his queen, Douglass and dealing with a culture where women don’t seem to want a man’s protection. As he struggles to understand Earth females, the queen encourages him to get laid. Of course, Thea Cooper, the only woman who appeals to him, thinks men are useful for one thing and on a one night only basis. Despite their clash of sexual cultures and the fury of their heated erotic encounters, can Sven find a way to convince Thea that her future belongs with him on Planet Valhalla?

“Are you married?”
Sven’s smile faded. “No.” He drank more beer and then picked something off his slice of pizza. He held it out to Thea. “What is this?”
She squinted at the object and then sniffed. “It’s an anchovy, why?”
To her astonishment, he started to blush. “An anchovy. That is good to know. Thank you for telling me.”
“What about it?”
His gaze dropped to his plate. “Nothing, I just wondered what it was. The taste reminded me of…something else.”
She squinted at the tiny fish. “What?”
He sighed. “This is a business meeting, yes? Then I cannot tell you or you will accuse me of getting personal.” He sucked the anchovy into his mouth, his expression considering. “Mmm…”


* * * * * * * *
He knocked quietly; half-hoping she wouldn’t answer. “Thea?”
To his amazement the door opened an inch. He held out the gloves.
“You left these in the vehicle.”
“Oh, she sounded out of breath. He waited as she stuck her hand through the narrow gap. “Thank you.”

He inhaled the sharp scent of her arousal and before he could think further he grabbed her wrist and brought her fingers to his lips. With a groan he carefully sucked each finger into his mouth and tasted her cream. His cock throbbed and hardened with each subtle taste of her desire.

“I have denied you release. I have denied you your woman’s pleasure.” He pushed at the door and it opened easily. Thea sat on the floor. His heated gaze fell to her pants which were unzipped and he groaned.

“Oh damn, you weren’t supposed to see that.” Thea’s fingers fumbled with her zipper but Sven caught her other hand.

“I was right, anchovies do taste like a woman.”

Before she could speak, he had her on her back, shoving down her already open pants. His large hand pressed over her silk-covered pussy and her thick cream soaked through her panties and pooled in his palm. He struggled to breathe.

“Let me do this for you. Let me give you pleasure.”




And just because I love you all-I do have a new cover to show you for my upcoming Regency erotic romance SIMPLY SINFUL from Kensington Aphrodisia in late October. It doesn't 'exactly' shout Regency at me, but it is very blue and the guy is very beautiful and does remind me of Peter Howard my hero.

I'm also going to include the masterful back cover blurb from Kensington and my insertions which hint at why the first three chapters of the book have no heroine in them at all. :) Subversive, me? Or as esteemed former Lustie Kristina Lloyd put it "Georgette Heyer on crack."

A wicked proposition...

Forced to wed at a young age, Abigail Beecham is tired of living in a sexless marriage. She longs to succumb to the delicious pleasures of pure carnal lust that she has only read about. And if her husband James can't satisfy her erotic needs, (s)he's ready to find her a man who can.

A Wild Past

Peter Howard is accustomed to unusual sexual requests. His seven years as a slave in a Turkish brothel left him skilled in sensual delights. But there is little that actually arouses him-until he meets James and Abigail. Maybe now he'll finally experience that exquisite feeling of bliss he so desperately desires.



So do covers influence your buying decisions and would you be pissed if you read a blurb that fudged the sexual issues a little?

17 comments:

Janine Ashbless said...

A sexually ambiguous blurb would be pretty intriguing, I feel!

Now,according to Donald Maass the mega-agent, covers do not determine whether a book sells well - word of mouth is the big factor.

Which is sorta odd, because the cover picture is the one thing that'll make me look at a book. Then I read the blurb on the back. Then I look at the first page. Which is why it's annoying when you get a cover that has nothing to do with the contents, or a blurb that is wildly inaccurate.

Erastes said...

Lovely excerpt, Kate.

I like both covers equally, Ellora's Cave seem to be improving in that regard, but you are right, there's nothing regency about the blue cover.

A cover will still influence me strongly, very often to the point of not wanting to read click on a link and read the blurb. A classic case was Lee Rowan's "Ransom" which has a horrible cover until one day I saw that it was lumped toghether with Standish on Amazon "buy the two together for..." and then I was curious so I clicked on the link and found a great gay historical. I wish more publishers would take this into consideration. Also, a book cover is its own advertising - and if someone is too ashamed to take your book onto the bus or train, then that "free advertising" is completely wasted.

Jeremy Edwards said...

Ooh, that scene at the door was as delicious as ... as ... uh, ahem, er ... That scene at the door was delicious. ; )

Unknown said...

Janine, well I hate to disagree with Donald Maass, but if I'm signing at a book fair, people will make a detour to come by my table if they see that "Planet Mail" cover-and they'll often buy it-although I also agree word of mouth is very important.

Unknown said...

Hi Erastes! I recently bought Ann Herendeen's "Phyllida and the brotherhood of Philander" I thought the cover looked vaguely familiar and realized that the new trade edition of Georgette Heyer's "False Colours" has basically the same cover art-now that made me laugh :)

Unknown said...

Hi Jeremy! Glad you liked the excerpt-twice!

Unknown said...

Would you believe I got the cover for "Secured Mail" in my inbox this morning?? How weird!
It needs a minor tweak and then I'll post it next week.

Nikki Magennis said...

I must be very deeply shallow. I've bought TONNES of books just for the cover. Especially that sort of eggshell finish, you know, the satiny sheeny kind? Silly, really.

Kate - Secured Mail sounds like an absolute riot - love the anchovy flavoured excerpt! Congrats!

Portia Da Costa said...

I really like that Simply Sinful cover, but if I didn't know it was a Regency, I certainly wouldn't think so from the image.

It's lovely though... :)

I don't think I'm particularly influenced by covers. I usually buy books that I've read about or heard about, and which sound interesting. So I've probably made my decision before I see the cover.

Unknown said...

Nikki-I'm like you-I'll always pick up something with a great cover just to take a little ooksie-I particularly like yellow and red covers

Unknown said...

Portia, I like it too but I was a bit surprised, although Simply Sexual doesn't look Regency either and that one's done okay.
I know art depts have terrible trouble finding appropriate historical images for covers.

ev said...

He needs a nipple ring.

Unknown said...

ev-yes he does, doesn't he...
yum

Unknown said...

of course he has one in the book...

TeresaNoelleRoberts said...

I have to admit that the Kensington cover might put me off if it were by an unfamiliar author. Since it's you, I know it'll be good, but Olivia Newton John on the cover of a sexy Regency doesn't say "Must Buy" to me.

The odd blurb, on the other hand, would intrigue me.

AuthorM said...

The cover(s) are both lovely but the blue one doesn't scream Regency, you're right. The blurb, however, would have me picking it up right away! :)

M

Unknown said...

Olivia Newton John! That's it! I've been wondering who she reminded me of :)

and which blurb would make you pick it up? My amended blurb or Kensington's??