Last excerpt from Maid of the Midlands

I had an agent refuse to represent this book because the
hero wasn't a knight or lord and the heroine a lady. But I found the working
class characters more colorful to write about and much more appealing. I hope
the readers will also. And for those readers who like this book, there is a sequel already written about Matilda's and Jondalar's three children, set in the time of the Gunpowder Plot, and Guy Fawkes is my historical character in that one.

Excerpt:

Unmindful that she wore no
gown, the maid ran headlong down the stairs and flung herself upon the
prostrate guard. Her hands feverishly
examined his muscular chest, seeking the source of his wound, and touched the
leather thong about his neck. And when she saw the medal hanging from it in the
fold of his tunic, she knew at once he loved her still.

“Jondalar,” she wept
profusely, “speak to me. Please do not
die. I would not want to live without
you.”

Willy Douglas shook his head
in bewilderment. Then, seeing the maid
was in a state of undress, he placed his cloak upon her shoulders to spare her
further shame.

Jondalar groaned weakly.

“He lives,” Matilda said
joyously. “We must tend his wounds at
once before all his blood is drained.”

She tore a strip from her
clean white underskirt and sought to staunch the copious flow from his
side. Another shot had grazed his head
and sticky crimson mingled with his copper-colored hair making it impossible to
separate the two.

“My dearest,” she
crooned. “I will take care of you. All will be well.”

“Huh?” the guard opened his
eyes and seeing Matilda so close to his face, blinked as if to verify the
vision.

“Jondalar, please speak to
me,” she entreated once more.

“Me luv,” he whispered, “. .
. save the . . . queen.”

Dancing With Fate - Romantic Fantasy

Good Morning everyone. First of all I would like to thank Judy and Marianne for hosting the Goddess Fish Release Party, and for inviting me to be here. I hope everyone has a wonderful day.

A bit about me:  I'm a Welsh writer currently living in a small village in England.  I love the outdoors, all animals, especially horses, and write Fantasy and Futuristic Romance, with a 'sweet to spicy' rating.

I have just re-released my fantasy 'Dancing With Fate' through Smashwords.  The  novella was originally published by The Wild Rose Press as part of their 'Song Of The Muses' series.  The landscape and legends of my native Wales helped inspire the story, although I needed to do quite a lot of research into Greek mythology as well.  I featured two of my horses, Hari and Sal in the story.


 Here's the blurb:

When Terpsichore, the Greek Muse of Dance, is assigned to revisit 5th Century Wales, and help the people regain their love of dancing, her task seems simple enough. She is unaware there is a hidden agenda. Before she can return to Olympus her path crosses that of the mysterious Myrddin, and her heart is lost.

But Myrddin is promised to another. His mind is set on the dangerous task that lies before him, and the woman he has sworn to save. Nevertheless, he cannot deny the growing attraction between him and the beautiful stranger he meets along the way.

Terpsichore and Myrddin face a deadly force that threatens to part them forever. Is she destined to lose the only man she has ever truly loved? Is there nothing she can do to save him? Finally, when all seems lost, in desperation she finds herself DANCING WITH FATE.

Excerpt:

She was the loveliest woman Myrddin had ever seen. Spellbound, he watched her step from the falls. He should have turned away but he found it impossible not to watch her as she dried herself. When she started to dance, he was captivated by her grace and the eloquence of her movements. 

She seemed unconcerned about her nakedness. Not that she had anything to be ashamed of; such exquisite beauty should not be covered. Long, dark red-brown hair fell like a veil of silk to below her knees. Her skin was smooth and flawless; her breasts were firm and high, full but not heavy, above a tiny waist.  Her rounded hips undulated sensuously in time to her singing, while her upper body remained perfectly still, apart from the expressive movements of her arms. Her legs were slim and very long and she moved on tiptoe, her small feet scarcely seeming to touch the ground. Between her fingers, she held a long piece of silky material, which she swirled around her, until it seemed almost like a living thing.

Myrddin watched, enthralled. He'd never known anyone to dance as she did. The way she swivelled her hips had him mesmerised. Her voice was soft and clear, with a haunting quality. It reminded him of the musical bells of Maes Gwyddno, the civilization that now lay drowned beneath the sea. At times of danger, if one listened hard enough, one could hear the bells ringing from beneath the waves. Moreover, it may have been a trick of the light, but she seemed to radiate a soft glow, pure and shimmering. He shook his head in disbelief. He must be imagining it. He'd eaten nothing since dawn, this was surely a vision brought on by weakness from hunger.

Myrddin crept closer and a twig cracked underfoot. Before he could take cover, the beautiful dancer stood motionless. Her eyes, green as the depths of the ocean, looked directly into his.

I will be giving away a copy of Dancing With Fate
--so leave a comment and be entered to win!

PURCHASE HERE 


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