Spindrift Gifts: A Holiday Sequel to The Klockwerk Kraken MLR Press | Amazon | iBooks | All Romance eBooks | Kobo | Barnes and Noble When his memories begin endangering his happily-ever after on Celos, Jimenez is forced to choose between forgetting his lover Teo, or accepting the sometimes painful gifts of Spindrift. Scars and a tattoo may be the only physical reminders from his years as a slave, but when Jimenez suffers a setback in his medical treatment, the only option is a therapy that will wipe away all his memories of the past including his time with Teo. Teo, torn between supporting his lover's decisions and the good intentions of his family, sets out to teach Jimenez about Spindrift Gifts and how memories are celebrated on Celos even when they are painful. Can Teo and Jimenez weather the storm to find their happily-ever-after on Celos?MLR Press | Amazon | iBooks | All Romance eBooks | Kobo | Barnes and Noble
Excerpt:
“Is it a memory box?” Teo set it on the table with a clack. “Same principle. It's our Spindrift gift for the rev. We each put a memory in one to add to the family collection. And then at the gala they all glow on the lighted tree.” “Tree? Do you grow trees on Celos?” Teo chuckled. “Not really. It's a light-painted representation of a tree, like one of those from old Earth. It's a family tree. Each branch holds the most important memories for the rev from that branch of the family.” “A shared memory?” Jimenez ran a finger along the smooth top of the tiny cube. It blushed a delicate pink at his touch. “No. It's personal, a gift, a painful or a pleasant one. One you share because it hurts, and you smooth the edges by giving it away, or one of your favorites you want others to experience. But you give one from the past rev.” Their conversation grew hushed. Teo attempted to lighten the mood. He grabbed the leftover paper from his package and folded it into the shape of a little boat. “I've been trying to think of one that would be suitable for family viewing.” He wiggled his eyebrows. Jimenez glared at him. “That's not the all we've done this rev.” He picked up the cube and activated it. Teo stared transfixed as Jimenez pulled it close to his mouth and breathed a puff of air over it, his fingers whitening at the tips as he remembered. Teo wondered which memory put that serene smile on his lover’s face, smoothing the furrows lining his brow. Was it onboard his ship in the Nothing? Or maybe one with Teo on Switchpoint? “What did you record? Can I see it?” He whispered, unwilling to break the spell of Jimenez's memory. Jimenez opened his eyes, and his fingers clutched the small cube. But he smiled at it like it held a secret. “I'm not sure this is one to give away. Do you have extra cubes?”
Character Bios
Teo Kevin Rettinger is the visual model for the Pod, Teo, the bartender of the Klockwerk Kracken who falls for a spacer and then takes him home to meet his family and celebrate the Celosian holiday of Spindrift. Teo, like most people on Celos has four tentacles in addition to his human standard body. These extra arms are a result of his ancestors undergoing genetic modification in order to give them advantages when settling the planet of Celos. He left home after finishing school and bummed around the galaxy before settling on the Switchpoint Waystation where he opened his bar, The Klockwerk Kraken. Although most people on Celos rarely leave planet, Teo yearned for a little adventure. Some of that was a result of the stories his godfather told him—Teo’s godfather is a two-armed human who came to Celos as a visiting scientist but stayed when he fell in love, marrying into Teo’s extended family. Teo has a smattering of his mother’s talent for painting, all the kraken paintings on his old bar were painted by him personally. When he bought The Klockwerk Kraken, it was an old warehouse on the edge of the port. He fixed it up and made it a safe place for customers to have a drink near the docks. He offered food because he learned to cook from his Dad who’s an amateur foodie on Celos. Teo grew up playing several instruments (although he’s no professional like his sister Carlsa) and has a very nice baritone singing voice. One of the things he loves to do on Celos is go swimming. There were several bacteria outbreaks in the pools on the Switchpoint Waystation so he was afraid to swim there. He is one of only four children in his family (considered an extremely small family on Celos). He is also the only one of his siblings that is not married with children. But since meeting Jimenez, that might change in the future.
Jimenez
Iker Casillas Fernández is my visual model for the spacer Jimenez, a man tortured by his past and trying to make a brighter future for himself. Jimenez was born a slave in a crèche where children are bred from anonymous germ cells. Slave behaviors were grown into his brain and taught during his childhood. At adolescence the pleasure centers of his brain were connected to a tattoo above his ankle, designating him a body slave. He was sold to a miner on a distant outpost and used not only for sex but also as a laborer. He was freed after a takeover of the colony company by an abolitionist corporation. The new company cleaned out the slave population. At this point, Jimenez was so injured by his master that he was sent to Celos both for reprogramming and for rehabilitation. He’d been mutilated and nearly died. During his treatment, a nurse asked him what he wanted to do as a free man and he said he wanted something as far away from people as he could get. As a Celosian loneliest thing she could think of was away from family and friends, hauling cargo through the Nothing, a blank part of space near the galaxy arm. He liked the idea of the solitude, so he asked for navigation ports to be placed in his brainstem. He then spent several revs as navigation crew on various cargo ships until he’d saved enough money to get his captain’s port and buy his own ship, The Freedom’s Wing. He learned to fight during his time as a nav operator for a small fleet. Hand to hand martial arts were a hobby of one of his shipmates who taught him so that he’d have a sparring partner. The first time Jimenez ported into a ship’s navigation system was the first time he could envision the future. Space was so wide and he was able to go anywhere. He learned to read as an adult via download, however, it’s still not his most proficient skill. As a result, he’s a poetry lover because poems use small words with big meanings and the cadence of the words is calming. The Klockwerk Kraken: Book 1 Amazon ~ Barnes and Noble ~ iBooks ~ All Romance ~ Kobo ~ MLR Press Synopsis When the right space pilot walks into his bar, a desperate bartender uses all his wiles (and tentacles) to talk the man into business and his bed--but the spacer is still enslaved by his past and isn't sure he can deal with a two-handed lover, much less one with six. As the supply shipments stop coming, Teo Houdin needs all his tentacles to keep his waystation bar open. Facing a riot by thirsty miners stranded in the backwater of the galaxy, Teo helps a greenie space pilot buy a ship in return for a regular haul of liquor. But he longs for the courage to invite the enigmatic spacer to fill his lonely bed as well. Still smarting from his newly implanted navigational ports, Jimenez knows owning his own ship will prevent him from ever being bought and sold again. For a former slave, transporting cargo through the emptiness of space sounds like paradise, but after meeting the compassionate and sexy Teo, his heart feels empty, too. At the edge of the galaxy's spiral arm, can Teo convince Jimenez that the heart has its own tentacles and theirs should be entwined forever?
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Hope's Toy Chest At thirty-one, Kingsley Mathews has been named the head of the pediatric oncology department at one of the best children’s hospitals in the country—Cedar Grove Children’s Hospital. His life is dedicated to his patients—until one Christmas when he learns there’s more than his work. Chelsea Waters lost her daughter two years ago on Christmas Day to a rare form of childhood cancer. Her career was over, then her marriage. Now all she has left is Hope’s Toy Chest. The toy drive she started in the memory of her daughter has become her everything. When she ends up flat on her back in a pile of snow, she begins to wonder if there’s room in her heart for anything more. Could the doctor who worked so feverishly to save her daughter bring the meaning of Christmas back into her heart? Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble ~ iBooks ~ Kobo ~ All Romance Ebooks ~ Smashwords Destiny's Wish Single mother Nora Horton has the weight of the world on her shoulders. After her husband died while serving his country, she was left alone to raise their beautiful daughter, Destiny. She was able to pick up the pieces and move on for her daughter, but when Destiny’s cancer returns, Nora isn’t sure she can handle it any longer. She’s not certain she can be strong for her daughter while she’s falling apart inside. Doctor Brian West is a pediatric cardiologist at Cedar Grove Children’s Hospital and has seen many sick children during his years there. He’s always been able to do his job without letting it get to him because he knows that if he’s distracted for even a minute, someone could die because of him. When he stumbles upon Nora, the recognition is instant and he can’t distance himself from her or her sick little girl, especially not when the little girl tells him her wish. A sick child’s dying wish isn’t meant for her mother’s ears this time…because she wants her mother to have someone to love. Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble ~ iBooks ~ Kobo ~ All Romance Ebooks ~ Smashwords Leena's Dream Country singer Leena is doing a charity concert to raise money for the Cedar Grove Children’s Hospital and to honor her sister, who died of cancer when they were children. Deeply involved in her career, she’s starting to realize there’s more to life than signings, concerts, and studio recordings. She’s just not sure if she can give up her music career to get what she truly wants. Is finding a compromise asking for too much? After a long day in the law office, there’s only one thing Turner Hightower looks forward to, and that’s going to visit the children in the hospital. He’s devoted to Hope’s Toy Chest and the patients who don’t have anyone else. Years ago it was him in one of those hospital beds, alone and afraid, with no one to visit him. He’s determined no one else should have to go through what he went through alone. While he can’t take the pain away, he’s doing his part to help ease their fears. Two people, both missing something in their lives, are drawn together. Can they put their prejudices and attitudes aside to help the children, families, and staff at Cedar Grove Children’s Hospital? Amazon ~ Barnes & Noble ~ iBooks ~ Kobo ~ All Romance Ebooks ~ Smashwords About the Author Born and raised in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area, Marissa Dobson now resides about an hour from Washington, D.C. She’s a lady who likes to keep busy, and is always busy doing something. With two different college degrees, she believes you are never done learning. Being the first daughter to an avid reader, this gave her the advantage of learning to read at a young age. Since learning to read she has always had her nose in a book. It wasn’t until she was a teenager that she started writing down the stories she came up with. Marissa is blessed with a wonderful supportive husband, Thomas. He’s her other half and allows her to stay home and pursue her writing. He puts up with all her quirks and listens to her brainstorm in the middle of the night. Her writing buddy Cameron (a cocker spaniel) is always around to listen to her bounce ideas off him. He might not be able to answer, but he's helpful in his own way. She love to hear from readers so send her an email at [email protected] or visit her online at http://www.marissadobson.com. Website ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Pinterest ~ TSU The Nature's Destiny series finale is here!
Death. Destruction. Demons. War was officially declared. Blade’s rebirth into the world became something we truly weren’t prepared for. And I felt guilty. Blaming myself for not getting to Lara in time. She was gone. Nature’s Destiny was grieving. In the midst of our woes the battle was brewing. Incubi kept coming. Hell beasts were slaying. And the demon master was another step closer to winning. With an army of supernatural beings in my arsenal I was optimistic that we were enough. We had the prophecy and my fortitudo on our side. Whatever happened there was one thing I knew for certain. The end had come. RELEASE DATE 17th February 2016 EXCERPT The beast taunted me, stalked me like I was its prey. Its coal-like skin, straight from the mouth of hell, sizzled brightly with streaks of orange. The lava of its home. I never stood a chance in this war, I was one wolf against an army of demons; they kept me distracted long enough to ensure there was nothing I could do to jeopardise their hostile takeover. I soon learned that distraction was their greatest tactic, their only worthwhile weapon. But still, there were little acts of heroism I could partake in; chained and bound in a cage granted me little freedom. I was the hell beasts’ toy, to scratch, to bite, to chase when dull moments had them bored. Compared to my torment, I was sure death would be a gift as inviting as a freshly picked bouquet of flowers. I no longer wanted to endure such heinous, criminal, apocalyptic affairs. I wished for death, and the devil laughed in my face. ADD TO GOODREADS GIVEAWAY £5 Amazon GC. Open International. All the Pretty Lights is now Live!** Warning ** This book is intended for those over 18 years of age due to mature and sexual content. Have you ever wondered what it's like on the other side of the lights? On the other side of the camera? Better be careful what you wish for. Daphne Baker is a struggling designer living in a third floor walkup that she can barely afford in Tribeca. When she has the opportunity of a lifetime to travel to L.A. and meet with a world-renowned designer interested in her work, the weekend leads to her surprisingly meeting one of the most famous men in the world. He's sexy, he's talented, he's rich, he's got it all, right? Colton Webb is only thirty and yet he's on the verge of becoming "washed out," having seen it all and done it all with the most famous of the in crowd. He's the quintessential Hollywood bad boy. Nothing surprises him anymore, nothing seems real. That is, until he meets Daphne. Could she be just what he needs to help find himself again, to find something he never thought existed outside the blockbuster films he makes? To find something... real? They come from two different worlds, from two very different places. Can she find her way through the chaos to see him for more than the carefully constructed publicity machine he's been made into? Can she hold her own in The "A" List crowd he leads? Is he worth it? Like the ending of every one of his mega successful movies, will Colton and Daphne find their real life happily ever after, or will it be a tragic love story gone wrong? Love's safe when watching it play out on screen. It's something very different when you're living it. Daphne's about to find out exactly what it means to be a part of The "A" List. Can she find a way to stay true to herself along the way, or will she end up like the rest of them? Preorder your copy today and be one of the first to find out, in this full length stand-alone novel with NO CLIFFHANGER. All preorders will include a bonus chapter of book 2 in The "A" List series, THE HARDER THEY FALL.
You can now purchase All the Pretty Lights on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/All-Pretty-Lights-List-Book-ebook/dp/B016WZLTQ0/ref=as_sl_pc_qf_sp_asin_til?tag=authortaraoak-20&linkCode=w00&linkId=ISPWMOTMPXGW3AIJ&creativeASIN=B016WZLTQ0
More About Tara Oakes Tara is a thirty something newbie author from Long Island, New York. She's a voracious reader, a passionate writer and obsessive junk T.V. aficionado. When she's not doing one of those three things she is attempting to garden, hanging with her hubby or partaking in some retail therapy. She enjoys connecting with her readers and is having a blast entering into this new world of publishing. Twitter: https://twitter.com/Lil_Oakes Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Tara-Oakes/e/B00N71SH18/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_1 Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tara-Oakes/1468537190061965?ref=hl Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8390968.Tara_Oakes Website: https://www.authortaraoakes.com Newsletter Sign-Up: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/193TYpuqLhzP9opN5WUqz3VeQnoNaURPw6mMB68108W4/viewform |
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