Guest Blog by Zoë Archer - December 13, 2011

Please welcome Zoë Archer to The Qwillery. Zoë's latest novel is Devil's Kiss, the first book in her new Hellraisers series.


“Brethren before harlots.”

That’s the unofficial motto of the Hellraisers, a group of 18th century rakes who spend their nights traversing London in search of excitement and pleasure. These five men have wealth, privilege and power. Only one of the five Hellraisers isn’t of genteel birth, but all of them earn their name through their wicked exploits.

I love reading romance series that are about men who join together in the spirit of a common good. We’ve had some incredible books about soldiers, former soldiers and spies. Even vampire warriors can band together for the sake of justice. The men don’t always have to like each other, and sometimes their methodology is a little questionable, but they’re united by their cause to do right.

As much as I love to read about these groups of men, I started to think about what it would be like to have a group of friends united in the cause of badness. All these men want to do is raise hell, and they don’t care what or who stands in their way, or how many hearts they break.

DEVIL’S KISS is the first book in my new paranormal historical romance series, the Hellraisers. In it, James Sherbourne, Earl of Whitney, and his four close friends find themselves living up to their name in a way none of them ever anticipated. When the Hellraisers inadvertently free the Devil from his prison, they are each granted a magical gift. I don’t want to give away exactly what powers Whit and the other Hellraisers receive, but the Devil is clever enough to know precisely what might tempt each man. By seeing into their wicked hearts, the Devil offers the Hellraisers their most sinful desires.

For all its darkness, DEVIL’S KISS is definitely a romance. Whit’s sole pleasure in life is gambling. He’s never met a woman who thrills him as much as a high-stakes game of cards. All that changes when he meets Zora Grey. It’s an unlikely attraction—Whit is a nobleman. Zora is Romani. Whit has several estates and a splendid house in London. Zora travels with her tribe in a caravan and sleeps in a tent. Whit is a gambler. Zora earns her living telling fortunes.

Yet the moment Whit and Zora meet, they are both fascinated by the other. Whit’s never met a woman with Zora’s fire, a woman who challenges him and his Hellraiser mindset. And Zora knows that behind Whit’s cultivated boredom is a man of intelligence and depth. Neither of them know, however, that their lives are about to be entwined in a most diabolical way.

So tell me in the comments, if you were offered any power, what would tempt you the most? I’ll pick a winner to receive a signed copy of DEVIL’S KISS.


About Zoë's Books

Hellraisers

Devil's Kiss

Hellraisers 1
Zebra, December 6, 2011

Read and Excerpt

A Handsome Devil

1762. James Sherbourne, Earl of Whitney, is a gambling man. Not for the money. But for the thrill, the danger—and the company: Whit has become one of the infamous Hellraisers, losing himself in the chase for adventure and pleasure with his four closest friends.

Which was how Whit found himself in a gypsy encampment, betting against a lovely Romani girl. Zora Grey’s smoky voice and sharp tongue entrance Whit nearly as much as her clever hands—watching them handle cards inspires thoughts of another kind...

Zora can’t explain her attraction to the careless blue-eyed Whit. She also can’t stop him and his Hellraisers from a fiendish curse: the power to grant their own hearts’ desires, to chase their pleasures from the merely debauched to the truly diabolical. And if Zora can’t save Whit, she still has to escape him…

Amazon : Barnes and Noble : Book Depository : Books-A-Million

Demon's Bride

Hellraisers 2
Zebra, May 1, 2012

Hell To Pay

Leo Bailey may have been born to poverty, but ruthless business sense and sparkling intelligence have made money worries a thing of his past. It doesn’t hurt that the Devil himself has granted Leo the ability to read the future.

But even infallible predictions are a déclassé commoner’s trick to some members of the ton. They’ll never see Leo as their equal—one good reason to prove himself their better. And a noble marriage is an obvious start.

Bookish Anne Hartfield, daughter of a baron, is hardly the flashiest miss on the marriage market. But her thoughtful reserve complements Leo’s brash boldness in an attraction neither can deny. A whirlwind courtship sweeps Anne and Leo into a smoldering marriage before either can believe their luck. But happiness built on Leo’s dark powers can’t last. Soon, Anne will have to save her husband…or lose her heart…

Pre-order - Amazon : Barnes and Noble : Book Depository : Books-A-Million

The Blades of the Rose

Warrior

The Blades of the Rose 1
Zebra, September 7, 2010

To most people, the realm of magic is the stuff of nursery rhymes and dusty libraries. But for Capt. Gabriel Huntley, it’s become quite real and quite dangerous…

In Hot Pursuit…

The vicious attack Capt. Gabriel Huntley witnesses in a dark alley sparks a chain of events that will take him to the ends of the Earth and beyond—where what is real and what is imagined become terribly confused. And frankly, Huntley couldn’t be more pleased. Intrigue, danger, and a beautiful woman in distress—just what he needs.

In Hotter Water…

Raised thousands of miles from England, Thalia Burgess is no typical Victorian lady. A good thing, because a proper lady would have no hope of recovering the priceless magical artifact Thalia is after. Huntley’s assistance might come in handy, though she has to keep him in the dark. But this distractingly handsome soldier isn’t easy to deceive…

Amazon : Barnes and Noble : Book Depository : Books-A-Million

Scoundrel

The Blades of the Rose2
Zebra, October 5, 2010

The Blades of the Rose are sworn to protect the sources of magic in the world. But the work is dangerous—and they can’t always protect their own…

Ready For Action

London Harcourt’s father is bent on subjugating the world’s magic to British rule. But since London is a mere female, he hasn’t bothered to tell her so. He’s said only that he’s leading a voyage to the Greek isles. No matter, after a smothering marriage and three years of straitlaced widowhood, London jumps at the opportunity—unfortunately, right into the arms of Bennett Day.

Risking It All

Bennett is a ladies’ man, when he’s not dodging lethal attacks to protect the powers of the ancients from men like London’s father. Sometimes, he’s a ladies’ man even when he is dodging them. But the minute he sees London he knows she will require his full attention. The woman is lovely, brilliant, and the only known speaker of a dialect of ancient Greek that holds the key to calling down the wrath of the gods. Bennett will be risking his life again—but around London, what really worries him is the danger to his heart…

Amazon : Barnes and Noble : Book Depository : Books-A-Million

Rebel

The Blades of the Rose3
Zebra, November 2, 2010

On the Canadian frontier in 1875, nature is a harsh mistress. But the supernatural can really do you in…

A Lone Wolf

Nathan Lesperance is used to being different. He’s the first Native attorney in Vancouver, and welcome neither with white society nor his sometime tribe. Not to mention the powerful wildness he’s always felt inside him, too dangerous to set free. Then he met Astrid Bramfield and saw his like within her piercing eyes. Now, unless she helps him through the harsh terrain and the harsher unknowns of his true abilities, it could very well get him killed…

And The Woman Who Left The Pack

Astrid has traveled this path before. Once she was a Blade of the Rose, protecting the world’s magic from unscrupulous men, with her husband by her side. But she’s loved and lost, and as a world-class frontierswoman, she knows all about survival. Nathan’s searing gaze and long, lean muscles mean nothing but trouble. Yet something has ignited a forgotten flame inside her: a burning need for adventure, for life—and perhaps even for love…

Amazon : Barnes and Noble : Book Depository : Books-A-Million

Stranger

The Blades of the Rose 4
Zebra, December 7, 2010

He protects the world’s magic—with his science. But even the best scientists can fall prey to the right chemistry…

Looking For Trouble

Gemma Murphy has a nose for a story—even if the boys in Chicago’s newsrooms would rather focus on her chest. So when she runs into a handsome man of mystery discussing how to save the world from fancy-pants Brit conspirators, she’s sensing a scoop. Especially when he mentions there’s magic involved. Of course, getting him on the record would be easier if he hadn’t caught her eavesdropping…

Lighting His Fuse

Catullus Graves knows what it’s like to be shut out: his ancestors were slaves. And he’s a genius inventor with appropriately eccentric habits, so even people who love him find him a little odd. But after meeting a certain redheaded scribbler, he’s thinking of other types of science. Inconvenient, given that he needs to focus on preventing the end of the world as we know it. But with Gemma’s insatiable curiosity sparking Catullus’s inventive impulses, they might set off something explosive anyway… 

Amazon : Barnes and Noble : Book Depository : Books-A-Million

8th Wing

Collision Course

8th Wing 1
Carina Press, April 4, 2011

Mara Skiren is a scavenger, a black-market dealer. Blackmailed into helping Commander Kell Frayne infiltrate a treacherous corner of the galaxy, Mara learns that her biggest danger is from her sexy, by-the-book partner. She’s a loner with more than a few battle scars on her heart, but something about Commander Frayne stirs up her long-buried need for an intimate connection.

An ace pilot for the elite Black Wraith Squadron, Kell’s mission is to rescue a lost pilot and ship. Unable to deny his attraction to the beautiful, rebellious woman , he decides bedding her would cool his ardor. But one taste is not nearly enough, and he finds himself sharing more of his real self with Mara than he has with anyone.

With deadly criminals on their heels and an increasingly dangerous assignment to complete, he’s starting to wonder…. If they survived, could he let her go? And will Mara want to stay?

Carina Press : Amazon Kindle : Barnes and Noble Nook

All Romance : Lybary.com : Audible (audio book)

Chain Reaction

8th Wing 2
Carina Press, January 9, 2012

Elite 8th Wing pilot Celene Jur was taken captive after a mysterious device temporarily disabled her ship's controls. Three solar months later, when Celene receives intel on the man who built the device, she's ready to get the bastard. Only problem is, the higher-ups think her mission partner should be Nils Calder, a tech-head who can understand the disabling device. The attraction between them is electric, but Celene needs a soldier who can watch her back as she exacts her revenge.

Nils knows his department is nicknamed NerdWorks. Pilots like Celene think the closest tech geeks come to combat is all-night Nifalian chess tournaments. But behind the NerdWorks insignia on his sleeve Nils is an able fighter, ready to prove himself and gain Celene's trust.

The desire between them is unexpected, but with the fate of thousands hanging in the balance, the hotshot pilot and the tech genius must succeed in their mission—no matter the cost.

Pre-order - Amazon Kindle : Barnes and Noble Nook : All Romance

About Zoë

Zoë Archer is an award-winning romance author who thinks there's nothing sexier than a man in tall boots and a waistcoat. As a child, she never dreamed about being the rescued princess, but wanted to kick butt right beside the hero. She now applies her master's degrees in Literature and Fiction to creating butt-kicking heroines and heroes in tall boots. She is the author of the acclaimed BLADES OF THE ROSE series. December marks the beginning of her new paranormal historical romance series, THE HELLRAISERS. Zoë and her husband, fellow romance author Nico Rosso, live in Los Angeles. Please visit her on the Web at http://www.zoearcherbooks.com/

Zoë's Links

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The Giveaway

THE RULES

What: 

1. One commenter will win a a signed copy of Devils's Kiss (Hellraisers 1) from Zoë Archer. US/Canada Mailing Addresses Only.
2. In addition, one commenter will win a copy of Devil's Kiss (Hellraisers 1) from The Qwillery. No geographic restriction.

How:  Leave a comment answering Zoë's question:

If you were offered any power, what would tempt you the most? 

Please remember - if you don't answer the question your entry will not be counted.

You may receive additional entries by:

1)   Being a Follower of The Qwillery.

2)   Mentioning the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter. Even if you mention the giveaway on both, you will get only one additional entry. You get only one additional entry even if you mention the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter multiple times.

3)   Mentioning the giveaway on your on blog or website. It must be your own blog or website; not a website that belongs to someone else or a site where giveaways, contests, etc. are posted.

There are a total of 4 entries you may receive: Comment (1 entry), Follower (+1 entry), Facebook and/or Twitter (+ 1 entry), and personal blog/website mention (+1 entry). This is subject to change again in the future for future giveaways.

Please leave links for Facebook, Twitter, or blog/website mentions. In addition please leave a way to contact you.

Who and When:  For the signed copy of Devil's Kiss from Zoë you must have a USA/Canadian mailing address. For the unsigned copy of Devil's Kiss from The Qwillery you must have a mailing address.  Contest ends at 11:59pm US Eastern Time on Tuesday, December 20, 2011. Void where prohibited by law. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 years old or older to enter.

*Giveaway rules are subject to change.*