Verum (The Nocte trilogy #2)
    by: Courtney Cole

Publication Date: Feb. 2, 2015
Publisher: Lakehouse Press, Inc.
Genre: Dark Psychological Romantic Suspense
Age Group: New Adult
Source: e-ARC provided by InkSlingerPR in exchange for a  fair and honest review.
Page Count: 221 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 4/5 stars

The truth shall set you free.

My name is Calla Price and I’m drowning.

My new world is a dark, dark ocean and I’m being pulled under by secrets.

Can I trust anyone? I don’t know anymore.

The lies are spirals. They twist and turn, binding me with their thorns and serpentine tongues. And just when I think I have it figured out, everything is pulled out from under me.

I’m entangled in the darkness.

But the truth will set me free.

It’s just ahead of me, so close I can touch it. But even though it shines and glimmers, it has glistening fangs and I know it will shred me.

Are you scared?

I am.

  

 

 

This will probably be a super short review, because there is so much I cannot tell you to avoid spoilers. Like its predecessor, there isn't a ton of action in this book. However, Cole is planting all of these easter eggs for you to find and just when you think you might have something figured out- BAM. She sweeps the rug out from under you. I am still twisting and turning that ending over in my brain and I'm completely at a loss.

 

Dare plays an even bigger role in this book, as he is keeping a pretty big secret from Calla. She needs to discover this secret on her own as everything has its own order of things. Naturally, she is incredibly frustrated over this because she desperately needs stability in her life. Her life has been thrown into chaos where the line between reality and insanity is extremely hard to distinguish between. She craves Dare and his closeness, but she needs to distance herself from him as well if she wants answers.

 

The push and pull between them is so overwhelming and frustrating. I just wanted him to tell her the secret and be done with it! Their relationship can best be described as unsettled in this book. Calla needs answers, Dare can't give them and is contradictory with his words. He is at war with himself because he knows something she doesn't and yet he wants to be able to protect her because he loves her.

 

We are introduced to new some characters as well and I found myself unable to trust any of them. I think being in Calla's mind has made me paranoid of EVERYTHING and EVERYONE. I kept wondering what their ulterior motives were and if they were out to harm her already fragile state.

 

I love the mystery in this one, as well as trying to figure out what was real and what wasn't. My heart aches for Calla because she's endured so much and is struggling to keep hold of her sanity in a place where there are so many secrets and things being kept from her.

 

After that ending, I am dying for the final book Lux. I am desperate to know what happens and I am utterly terrified as well. Regardless, I know Courtney Cole is going to bring her A-game and I am excited to see how she will mess with our minds next!

 

 

 

We are absolutely over the moon about this Release Day launch for Courtney Cole's VERUM!!

 

 VERUM is a New Adult dark romantic psychological suspense novel and the second book in Courtney's The Nocte Trilogy!

 

To celebrate the release NOCTE is on sale for only $.99 through tomorrow! Grab both now! Thank us later.

 

 

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The truth shall set you free. My name is Calla Price and I’m drowning. My new world is a dark, dark ocean and I’m being pulled under by secrets. Can I trust anyone? I don’t know anymore. The lies are spirals. They twist and turn, binding me with their thorns and serpentine tongues. And just when I think I have it figured out, everything is pulled out from under me. I’m entangled in the darkness. But the truth will set me free. It’s just ahead of me, so close I can touch it. But even though it shines and glimmers, it has glistening fangs and I know it will shred me. Are you scared? I am.

 

Together, we float to the surface, still intertwined. We break through the top and I suck in a breath and Dare is staring into my eyes. There’s tension here, but not the bad kind. It’s the kind that ignites you, the kind that intoxicates you, the kind that once you taste it, you’ll crave for the rest of your life. I’ve forgotten that I was going to be careful, that I was going to reject him on every level. All I can remember, all I can focus on, is how very alive Dare DuBray is making me feel in this moment, how alive he always makes me feel. For a girl who has been surrounded by death her entire life, this is a very big deal.

“I’m a little afraid of you,” I blurt honestly, and Dare still has his arms around me. Our treading water motions keep our legs rubbing together, the friction still there. Hot, Hot, Hotter.

Dare smiles, but there is no humor in it. “Good.”

“Why?” My honesty makes me seem innocent, but I don’t know how to play games. I have no experience with the opposite sex at all.

“Because that makes you feel something.” But he’s hesitant now and he looks away. There’s something he wants to say, it’s balanced on the tip of his tongue, but he swallows it.

“What is it?” I ask softly. “Just tell me.” He wants to, I can tell. His secrets are killing him. He just wants to be normal, he’s just acting out a role. I don’t know why I feel like I know this. It’s just there, suddenly resting on my heart. “You don’t have to be someone you’re not,” I murmur quietly. His dark eyes snap up to mine and he pulls his hands away. There’s something in his eyes now, something guarded, and our easy afternoon has come to an end.

“What makes you think I am?” he snaps. “Pretending to be something I’m not, I mean.” I’ve somehow annoyed him, and I don’t answer because I don’t know what to say. “I’m not being someone I’m not, Calla,” he says coolly as he strides from the water. “I’m being who you need me to be.” I’m utterly confused, and I’m dripping wet. “We don’t have towels,” is all he says when I follow him. My clothing soaks up the water and it is a very cold ride back home. Dare doesn’t say another word and I leave him in the garage. I don’t see him at dinner, and I don’t see him the rest of the night. But as I lay in bed around midnight, I see his car leave the garage. I don’t see him come home, and I’m awake for half the night waiting. I have no idea where he goes when he slips away. Somehow, I think he wants it that way.

There’s a fork in the road and even though I see it, I can’t avoid it. One road goes left, one goes right, and neither of them end well. I feel it in my bones, In my bones, In my bones. I sing a song of nonsense, and it sings back. The notes echo and twist in the air, and I swallow them whole. “

Come out,” I call behind me, because I know they’re there. I can’t see them, but they’re always watching. Eyes appear, blood red, and they blink once, twice, three times.

“I can see you,” I announce and there’s a growl and then I’m crushed beneath the dark, beneath the weight, beneath the oppression.

“You don’t scare me,” I lie. There’s savagery here, there’s grace. But above all, there’s oblivion and no matter what I do, I will be sucked into it. I know it. I feel it. I’m crazy. And it doesn’t matter. I’m the rabbitrabbitrabbit and I’ll never be free.

Don't miss the first book in the Nocte Trilogy...

 

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ABOUT COURTNEY COLE: Courtney Cole is a novelist who would eat mythology for breakfast if she could. She has a degree in Business, but has since discovered that corporate America is not nearly as fun to live in as fictional worlds. She loves chocolate and roller coasters and hates waiting and rude people. Courtney lives in quiet suburbia, close to Lake Michigan, with her real-life Prince Charming, her ornery kids (there is a small chance that they get their orneriness from their mother) and a small domestic zoo.  

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Nocte (The Nocte Trilogy #1)
   by: Courtney Cole

Publication Date: Nov. 3, 2014
Publisher: Lakehouse Press, Inc.
Genre: Dark Romance
Age Group: New Adult
Source: Purchased
Page Count: 277 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 4/5 stars

My name is Calla Price. I'm eighteen years old, and I'm one half of a whole. My other half-- my twin brother, my Finn-- is crazy. I love him. More than life, more than anything. And even though I'm terrified he'll suck me down with him, no one can save him but me. I'm doing all I can to stay afloat in a sea of insanity, but I'm drowning more and more each day. So I reach out for a lifeline. Dare DuBray. He's my savior and my anti-Christ. His arms are where I feel safe, where I'm afraid, where I belong, where I'm lost. He will heal me, break me, love me and hate me. He has the power to destroy me. Maybe that's ok. Because I can't seem to save Finn and love Dare without everyone getting hurt. Why? Because of a secret. A secret I'm so busy trying to figure out, that I never see it coming. You won't either.

  

 

 

I honestly don't even know how to classify this one. Is it paranormal? Is it a thriller? Is it a mystery? Is it all of the above?! Whew. This book really threw me for a loop. While I was reading, I found myself analyzing every little tidbit trying to figure out what was really going on. Then I got thinking... maybe I'm reading too much into it and it's nothing really big after all. Trying to figure out this secret along with Calla is TORTURE you guys. I mean, seriously. I was getting upset because I couldn't read fast enough to find out WTF was going on!

 

I came kind of close to figuring out the secret. Kind of but not really. I love books that completely take me by surprise and this one did just that! Mad props Courtney Cole. You totally had me fooled. Going back afterwards, I had that 'ohhhhh ok' moment. She is very subtle in her clues though. I can't really say this one was super action packed or that a ton was going on. Honestly? It was a big mind game. I really liked that!

 

Calla and Finn are twins and are very close to one another. Growing up with a mortician for a dad, they would get teased and not make friends easily. They sought comfort in one another and as long as they are together, they can get through anything. Or can they? Finn is struggling with his insanity and is getting worse by the day. After having seen his journal, Calla is truly frightened for Finn as his thoughts are beyond dark... they're morbid. She can't lose her other half, but doesn't want to out him either until she figures out what is going on with him. Finn loves Calla dearly and knows he needs to let her live her own life without him hindering her. He knows that splitting up to go to separate schools is for the best, because he can't bring her down.

 

With Finn dealing with his crazy and Calla dealing with her grief, it really makes for a rough time for these two. Dare DuBray is the one bright spot in Calla's life and even though he oozes mystery, she can't help but want to get to know him. Being with him makes her feel light and free, instead of weighed down by guilt and regret for things she cannot change. However, just when she starts to really enjoy herself, she remembers that she's not supposed to be happy in spite of everything that's happened. It made me really sad for her because she doesn't deserve to shoulder everything she does.

 

I liked Dare. I was definitely curious about him. He is pretty closed off in sharing details about his life, so he was hard to get a read on, and I had to wonder if he was there in a harmful or helpful capacity. The romance is slow building in this one and it was meant to be that way, so the swooning doesn't come until later. But there be swoons!

 

Overall, I am excited to see where Cole is going to take the series. We do figure out the big secret before the end of the first book, but the ride is just beginning. There are still unanswered questions and one of the biggest ones is asked at the very end of the novel.... only to be continued in the next book, Verum!

 

 

 

 

 

We are beyond excited to bring you the Release Day Launch for Courtney Cole's NOCTE! NOCTE is a New Adult dark romantic psychological suspense novel. Hang on tight because this book will blow you away...

 

 

Barnes & Noble ** Kobo ** Amazon ** iBooks

 

 

EXCERPT:

 

Glancing up, I suck my breath in when I find dark eyes connected to mine, eyes so dark they’re almost black, and the energy in them is enough to freeze me in place. A boy is attached to the dark gaze. A man. He’s probably no more than twenty or twenty-one, but everything about him screams man. There’s no boy in him. That part of him is very clearly gone. I see it in his eyes, in the way he holds himself, in the perceptive way he takes in his surroundings, then stares at me with singular focus, like we’re somehow connected by a tether. He’s got a million contradictions in his eyes….aloofness, warmth, mystery, charm, and something else I can’t define.

 

He’s muscular, tall, and wearing a tattered black sweatshirt that says Irony is lost on you in orange letters. His dark jeans are belted with black leather, and a silver band encircles his middle finger. Dark hair tumbles into his face and a hand with long fingers impatiently brushes it back, all the while his eyes are still connected with mine. His jaw is strong and masculine, with the barest hint of stubble. His gaze is still connected to mine, like a livewire, or a lightning bolt. I can feel the charge of it racing along my skin, like a million tiny fingers, flushing my cheeks. My lungs flutter and I swallow hard. And then, he smiles at me. At me. Because I don’t know him and he doesn’t know better.  

 

Book Trailer:

 

   

 

NOCTE Synopsis:

 

SAVE ME AND I'LL SAVE YOU....

 

My name is Calla Price. I’m eighteen years old, and I’m one half of a whole. My other half-- my twin brother, my Finn-- is crazy. I love him. More than life, more than anything. And even though I’m terrified he’ll suck me down with him, no one can save him but me. I’m doing all I can to stay afloat in a sea of insanity, but I’m drowning more and more each day. So I reach out for a lifeline. Dare DuBray. He’s my savior and my anti-Christ. His arms are where I feel safe, where I’m afraid, where I belong, where I’m lost. He will heal me, break me, love me and hate me. He has the power to destroy me. Maybe that’s ok. Because I can’t seem to save Finn and love Dare without everyone getting hurt. Why? Because of a secret. A secret I’m so busy trying to figure out, that I never see it coming. You won’t either.

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

ABOUT COURTNEY COLE: Courtney Cole is a novelist who would eat mythology for breakfast if she could. She has a degree in Business, but has since discovered that corporate America is not nearly as fun to live in as fictional worlds. She loves chocolate and roller coasters and hates waiting and rude people. Courtney lives in quiet suburbia, close to Lake Michigan, with her real-life Prince Charming, her ornery kids (there is a small chance that they get their orneriness from their mother) and a small domestic zoo.  

 

   

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Welcome to my stop on the Until We Fly blog tour hosted by InkSlingerPR!

Today I am excited to share my review as well as a giveaway with you all!

Until We Fly (Beautifully Broken #4)
    by: Courtney Cole

Publication Date: July 7, 2014
Publisher: Lakehouse Press Inc.
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Age Group: New Adult
Source: e-ARC provided via InkSlingerPR in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Page Count: 227 pages
Order Links: Amazon | B&N
My Rating: 4/5 stars

Ex-Army Ranger, Brand Killien, has always been good.

A good friend, a good soldier, a good everything. .
The problem is, good hasn’t gotten him anything but a crushed heart.

So after licking his wounds, he decides to move on. And moving on doesn’t include being good anymore.

Bad sounds so much better.

Jaded and detached, Brand is determined to never open himself up to anyone again. It’s not worth the pain. Instead, he becomes closed, hardened, aloof.

But then he’s called back home for a family emergency… a family that he is estranged from. A family that he put out of his mind a long time ago for very good reasons…reasons that involve secrets and pain. Reasons he tried hard to forget.

But home is where the heart is, and it just might be where Brand finds his again.

Why? Because home is where Nora Greene is. A fiery, red-headed spitfire, Nora is a thing from his past. A beautiful, feisty thing. When Brand left, she was away at boarding school.

But she’s back now.

And she wants Brand, scars and all.

 

 

 

Praise for the Beautifully Broken Series:

"I loved If You Stay. Like, really really loved it. The kind of love that kept me reading until 2:40 am and left me crying, smiling, devastated, and elated. The best kind of book love." - Andrea, The Bookish Babe

"Beautiful, raw, gritty, emotional and breath-taking are just a few of the words I can find to describe this book...reading this book was one of the best experiences I have had." -Amanda, Globug and Hootie Need a Book

"In If You Leave, we continue the wild ride Courtney Cole started us on in If You Stay. This raw story of heartbreak and hope solidifies Cole's standing as a rising star in hot contemporary romance." --- New York Times Bestselling author of Down to You, M. Leighton"Another raw, gritty masterpiece with a sexy-as-hell Army Ranger to swoon over." --- K.A. Tucker, author of Ten Tiny Breaths

 

 

 

Sigh. Brand. Brand. Brand. I've been waiting for his story ever since we met him in If You Leave. I was devastated that he was not the male lead in Before We Fall, but upon finishing, realized it was for the best. I am so happy we got to discover who the real Brand is as well as the hardships he's had to endure throughout his life.

 

Pacing: I am having some trouble pinpointing my feelings on the pacing. I can't decide if the book felt too rushed or if it just flew by because I was that engaged. Honestly? I think it's a bit of both. Cole has an incredibly engaging, fluid writing style and I devour her books. However, I do feel out of all of the relationships she's developed, this is the one I was the least emotionally invested in. I think a large part of that is due to the nature of how Brand and Nora came about and I just felt like I missed some critical development in their relationship.

 

Storyline: I have to give Cole mad props. I had NO idea this story would go in the direction that it did. We see early on that Nora has some issues and fears that stem from working for her father's company. However, Nora's fears run much deeper than she lets on and my stomach was a churning mess by the time we find out the true scope of the horrors she's endured.

 

Nora has had a crush on Brand for years. Being four years younger than him, he never really took notice of her. But she certainly did him. She almost has a case of hero worship when it comes to him. After Brand is forced to return home and an incident brings the two together, she can't help but still idolize the sweet, caring boy turned sexy, protective man. However, Brand is determined to get out of town as soon as he's able and knows it wouldn't be right to give Nora the no strings relationship she desperately wants. However, as the two spend time together and get to know one another, it's only a matter of time before his resolve comes crumbling down....

 

Characters: Nora, as I said, has some pretty heavy issues and fears to deal with. We get an idea of what happened, but do not truly find out the extent of it until much later. She knows that Brand embodies everything a GOOD man should be and her attraction to him only fuels her need to be with him. She shamelessly throws herself at him and he thinks she comes across as a bit desperate. He doesn't want a no strings relationship with her, as he feels she's worth more than that. Because of his protective nature, she believes he can make her good again and chase away the demons she's barely keeping at bay.

 

It has been ingrained in her to 'do what a Greene must' in order to uphold the family name. She feels bound to her obligations to her father and his company, sacrificing what SHE really wants in order to do this.

 

Brand's protective nature and need to save people is due in large part to his own past. After tragedy struck at a young age, he carries the weight of guilt no child ever should and has had to endure that from his parents all his life. He was especially protective of his best friend's younger sister, Jacey, and had come to think of her as more. However, Jacey was a very self-destructive individual and constantly kept running to Brand, as she knew he would always be there to save her. This is part of the reason he doesn't want to let Nora in. He knows their time is limited and doesn't want to end up hurt again, having felt like he just wasn't enough to 'save' or keep her.

 

Final Thoughts: I do feel the events following the big reveal with Nora towards the end wrapped up a bit too easily for me. Brand definitely empowers her and she knows she is safe with him, but I have a hard time believing that everything is right in her world now. I would have thought there would be more of an emotional struggle after finding out all she did. We readers didn't see that and instead are immediately fast forwarded to the epilogue.

 

I do think the epilogue was a beautiful one and very fitting for the storyline, however. It has come full circle from when we first met Brand, and I liked being able to see that for not just him and Nora, but also for Jacey and Gabe as well.

 

Cole has a knack for writing beautifully broken characters and I have loved seeing her dissect them and then put them back together. Each one has faced an emotional journey of their own and it is so fulfilling to watch them get from where they once were to the point they are now.

 

 

 

And don’t miss the other Beautifully Broken, now available:

 

IF YOU STAY

IF YOU LEAVE

BEFORE WE FALL

 

 

 

 

Courtney Cole is a novelist who would eat mythology for breakfast if she could. She has a degree in Business, but has since discovered that corporate America is not nearly as fun to live in as fictional worlds. She loves chocolate and roller coasters and hates waiting and rude people.

 

Courtney lives in quiet suburbia, close to Lake Michigan, with her real-life Prince Charming, her ornery kids (there is a small chance that they get their orneriness from their mother) and a small domestic zoo.

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This week we are highlighting Cadmus from The Bloodstone Saga!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In these four books, one girl is confronted with lies, treachery, magic and myth. She learns how strong she really is and what sacrifices she is truly prepared to make for those that she loves. Heartbreaking, poignant and emotional, these books will tug at your heart-strings and leave you breathless for more.

 Here is what critics say: 

The Supernatural Snark says: “Overall, Every Last Kiss is a thoroughly enjoyable start to the Bloodstone series, the world of Cleopatra’s Egypt dazzling our imaginations as the joy and tragedy of love and death plays the keys of our emotions with mightily deft fingers.”

The Caffeinated Diva says this about Fated: “Once again, the author weaves actual mythology and legend and real people with the fictional and it is absolutely seamless. While the first explored ancient Egypt and its mythology, this book delves into Greek mythology. Her ability to maintain the integrity of the true mythology while also layering her own with it is amazing and makes for a very absorbing read.”

My Vamp Fiction says this about The Bloodstone Saga: “I just have to say this author keeps blowing me away with these books. I’m totally and completely infatuated with them. I’d even go as far as to say that they may just be my favorite series of the year.”

And the Goodreads reviews are in!

Tanya Maries says: “The Bloodstone Saga is pure literary magic!!!! This is my new literary chocolate -- my new literary gold!!!”

Carrie says: “I feel like this whole series can be described with words like rich, exquisite, romantic...the history of the stories and the world that was created by Ms. Cole are all of those things and more! Her descriptions are like a delicious banquet for the mind.”

  

 

Buy Links:

The entire Bloodstone Saga is available as a boxed set for $9.99!

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Hasani was gone when I woke and I squeezed my eyes shut against the light from the flickering wall sconces.  He must have lit them for me before he left and even in my grumpy morning mood, I had to smile at his consideration.  I pulled the covers over my head and rested my cheek against the comfort of my pillow for a few minutes longer before I finally sighed and emerged into the reality of daytime.

It couldn’t be much past daybreak, since the orange fingers of the sun were just starting to curl around the horizon.  Hasani must have risen early to run drills with his soldiers before the Alexandrian heat rolled in.  Antony was probably with him.

I got up quickly, tying a soft white scarf around my waist and putting on a jeweled golden brassiere.   As I pulled my hair away from my face and fastened gold earrings into my ears, I briefly pondered my older body.  As Charmian, I may be thirty-nine, but my body was as svelte as a teen’s.  Fascinating.  It probably had a lot to do with the fact that ancient Egyptians didn’t have French fries or ice cream.

Sitting down at my vanity table, I pulled out the multiple jars required for my daily skin care and cosmetics application, sighing as I did.  As Macy, I was a very low-key, low-maintenance person. Charmian’s intricate, Egyptian beauty regime was tiresome.  But I had to admit that it was effective.  I had a perfect complexion.

Dipping my fingers in a jar of scented oil, I glanced back into the mirror as I began to apply it.  And froze with my fingers at the base of my neck.

A woman, pale and beautiful, sat on the bed behind me as though she belonged there.  Her eyes were ice blue and her long hair was so blonde that it was snow white. I whirled around to face her.

“How did you get in here?” I demanded.  “How did you get past the guards?”

She smiled peacefully at me, but didn’t answer.

“Can you speak?” I asked.  “Who are you?”

She studied me again, unmoving and silent from her perch on my bed.  She wore silvery robes embroidered with rich blue which were spread around her and her long fingernails were silver.  They sparkled in the muted light from my window.  She reminded me of what a fairy would be like.  An odd sensation began to build in my chest and I hesitated.

“Who are you?” I whispered again.“

You know who I am,” she said gently, as she rose from the bed.  She was so graceful that it seemed as though she floated as she walked toward me.

“I don’t,” I argued, as she came to a stop behind me.

“You do,” she insisted softly, as she placed her hands on my shoulders.  And in that instant, the second that her hands touched me, I did.

I was standing face to face with Lachesis, the middle sister of the Fates.  Terrifying and powerful, the last time I had seen her, she had been an ancient, stooped hag.  My eyes flew in amazement to her lovely, young face.

She smiled.

“I can appear as I wish, Charmian,” she said lightly.  “You are beautiful.  So, of course I wanted to appear beautiful, as well.  I have no wish to scare you.”

“Then what is your wish?” I asked quietly, keeping my eyes locked on her face.S

he reached past me and picked up the jar of oil, dipping her long fingers into it. Picking up my arm, she gently began rubbing the scented oil into my skin as she spoke.

“You are one of twelve, Charmian.  Did you know that?” I shook my head, instantly intrigued.

“Yes.  Twelve very important people were chosen so long ago to assist us throughout the millennia.  You were chosen for your bravery and your heart.”

She turned my wrist over and fingered my scar.“I placed the mark of the phoenix upon your wrist myself.  The phoenix is sacred to the order, Charmian.  It symbolizes re-birth and life, the very thing that we stand for… the things that we protect. And we gave you that mark.  It is an honor.”

I nodded.  “Yes, of course it is.”

“Then why have you been doubting us?” she turned her large blue eyes to me, beseeching me.

“I haven’t!” I protested. “The priest Annen has tried to convince me of his theories… but being a member of the Order is all I know.  I have no wish to believe him.”

“But you’ve wondered.”

She stated it as a fact, watching my face as she absently held her open palm out to a butterfly that had flown in from my window.  The delicate yellow wings quivered as it crawled onto her hand and sat still.“

I know your heart, Charmian.”

I sighed.  “I couldn’t help but wonder how much truth was in what he said.  But I have no wish to believe him. I’ve put his claims out of my mind.”

“As you should,” she instructed with the first trace of a harsh tone.

She watched the butterfly for a moment more, her blue eyes glinting, before she snapped her hand shut, crushing the delicate insect between her fingers.  I gasped as she put it in her mouth, chewing calmly as she contemplated me.

“You are one of the best we have, Charmian.  Yet you’ve lost your bloodstone.”

My heart dropped into my toes.  I couldn’t deny it.“Yes,” I admitted in a whisper, my head bowed.

“Get it back,” she hissed, her face clouding over and for a split second, one brief moment, I saw a glimpse of the ancient hag that she was.  I sucked my breath in, waiting for a storm.

She calmed herself, resuming her tranquil tone, her face regaining its youth and beauty.

“Our bloodstones are powerful, as you know.  They are the keys to everything.  That sniveling eunuch will not be able to use it- because it was made for you.  But the bloodstones were made from one stone. One. When one is lost, we all suffer.”

I stared at her intrigued, as she pulled her own bloodstone out of her robes.  Hers was larger than mine and set in an intricate setting surrounded by rubies, but it had clearly been cut from the same mother stone… glistening blood-red, with black veins.

“Our power as a whole should not be diminished because of the carelessness of one, should it?” she purred, sliding her hands smoothly over my shoulders and stopping with her fingers wrapped lightly around my neck.

I gulped, then shook my head quickly.

“Then, fix it,” she instructed pleasantly, removing her hands.  “No matter what you need to do to repair your error, you have my support.  Do you understand?”

Did I? Was she saying that retrieving my bloodstone using any means necessary was more important than restoring history?

Before I could speak, she nodded.  “I see that we’ve come to an understanding.  You’re such a bright girl.”

Confusion flooded through me as I watched her adjust her clothing.  How could this be happening?   My entire being was dedicated to enforcing the plan of the Fates.  Never had we deviated before, under the threat that chaos would ensue.  How could we deviate now?  Unless the threat was just that… an idle threat.  I had forgotten that my thoughts were not safe around her, until she snapped me from my reverie with a growl.

“Do not question us again, Charmian!  There are times when the Plan is not as important as protecting the Order.  It is as simple as that.  And I will not explain myself to you!”

But she just had.  The Order had a weakness.  The Bloodstones.  And nothing on earth was as important as keeping them.  I quickly blanked my thoughts so that she couldn’t read them again and nodded.“

Yes, Lachesis.  I’m sorry.  Rest assured, I will fix this…” My voice trailed off hesitantly.

“But?” she prompted.

“But can I just ask one thing?  Can I just know one thing… because I know I will not remember it in my next life anyway.”

She studied me quietly, reading my thoughts and hearing my unspoken question.  Her face an unreadable, lovely mask.“

In each life your memories from your previous lives are wiped clean for your own benefit,” she finally explained.  “It benefits you in many ways.  If you were able to remember the sadness from your previous lives, it would drive you to insanity.  You would lose your effectiveness as a Keeper.”

I nodded.  Ahmose had been right.“

And you forget the gifts you are capable of through your bloodstone as a safeguard,” she added.  “The power that we are able to harness is exquisite and enormous.  Too much burden for any one person to be aware of, life after life.”

“But you…”

“My sisters and I have each other to keep us in check.  You have no one.  But your Aegis.”

Realization settled upon me like a cloud.  So, Ahmose wasn’t just there to assist me…  he was there to keep me firmly in place.

“So, now you know.” She stared at me.  “For now.  You’ll forget it again soon enough.”

That thought was not comforting.

“Charmian?”

I looked up at her.“Yes?”

“Be good.”

And she was gone.

I took a shaking breath and sank into my bed, allowing the softness to comfort me momentarily.  I wasn’t sure what to think.  She had just confirmed that at least some of the things that Annen had told me were true… but since she openly admitted them, didn’t that mean that the Order had nothing to hide?  I was at a loss.

My hand brushed against a rolled up papyrus on my bed.  Staring at it suspiciously, I picked it up.  How had she left it?  I hadn’t seen her with it at all.

As I unrolled it, the yellow butterfly that I had just seen Lachesis eat flew from the confines of the paper and out my window.  I watched it fly away in shock, alive and well, before I turned my attention to the paper in my hands.  Delicate, feminine writing flowed across the page in English.

There are things you were never meant to understand.

You will have to trust me.

Before I even had a chance to ponder its meaning, the cryptic message burst into flame and I dropped it to the stone floor, watching it burn on the stone.  Within a minute, it had disappeared completely… as though it had never existed.  

 

Courtney Cole is a novelist who would eat mythology for breakfast if she could. She has a degree in Business, but has since discovered that corporate America is not nearly as fun to live in as fictional worlds. She loves chocolate and roller coasters and hates waiting and rude people.

Courtney lives in quiet suburbia, close to Lake Michigan, with her real-life Prince Charming, her ornery kids (there is a small chance that they get their orneriness from their mother) and a small domestic zoo.

 

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This week we are highlighting Dante Giliberti from Dante's Girl, the first book in the Paradise Diaries! And it just so happens to be $.99 right now!

 

 

 

I have spent every summer since I was ten years old with my father in London. Every summer, since I was ten years old, has been uneventful and boring.
Until this year.

And this year, after a freak volcanic eruption strands me far from home, I have learned these things:

1. I can make do with one outfit for three days before I buy new clothes.
2. If I hear the phrase, “You’re not in Kansas anymore, Toto,” even one more time, I might become a homicidal maniac.
3. I am horribly and embarrassingly allergic to jellyfish.
4. I am in love with Dante Giliberti, who just happens to be the beautiful, sophisticated son of the Prime Minister of a Mediterranean paradise.
5. See number four above. Because it brings with it a whole slew of problems and I’ve learned something from every one of them.

Let’s start with the fact that Dante’s world is five light-years away from mine. He goes to black-tie functions and knows the Prime Minister of England on a first name basis. I was born and raised on a farm in Kansas and wear cut-off jeans paired with cowboy boots. See the difference?

But hearts don’t care about differences. Hearts want what they want. And mine just wants to be Dante’s girl.

My heart just might be crazy.

 

 

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“Why do you look sad?” I ask. 

“You live in a beautiful country with the world at your fingertips.  Your dad is amazing and nice and you’re a billionaire.  What could possibly make you sad?”

Dante studies me, his cobalt eyes serious, his expression unreadable. “Let’s go for a walk,” he finally says.  “Someplace quieter.”

A quiet place with Dante?  Yes, Please!

I scramble to my feet and walk with him through the crowd again, this time oblivious to the stares.  He has a huge stride and I find myself hurrying to keep up, two steps for every one of his.  He weaves us through the people and out the doors in record time. 

Before I know it, we are on a terrace. 

In the dark. 

Under the stars.

With Dante.

This may as well be Heaven. In fact, it might actually be.  Have I died and didn’t realize it?

I flex my fingers and poke at my thigh. My mind is fuzzy and I feel like I am moving slower than I actually am.  Is life in slow motion right now or is it me? 

I blink hard then poke myself again.

“Are you alright?” Dante asks, watching me curiously. 

I nod. "Yep. I’ve just never had three glasses of champagne before.  In fact, I’ve never even had one.  Until now.”

I giggle at the thought and Dante smiles.  “Okay, drunk girl.  Let’s sit you down.” He guides me to a lounger and eases me onto it.  I clutch at his arm, not wanting to let him go.  He stares down at me.  “You really have had too much to drink, haven’t you, little sunflower?”

The name warms my heart and I decide that he is the handsomest person in the world. 

“Is handsomest a word?” I ask him. 

He looks at me blankly.  “I don’t know,” he answers slowly.  “Why?”

“You’re the handsomest person in the world,” I announce. 

“I don’t care if it’s a word or not.  You are it, one way or another.”

Dante smiles and runs a hand through his hair, as though he’s trying to decide what to do. “Oh.  Okay.  Um, thanks?  What am I going to do with you?  You’re adorable when you are drunk.  But I made you drunk, even if it was an accident.  How was I supposed to know that you’re such a lightweight?”

He sounds like he is waging some sort of battle with himself.

“Who exactly are you arguing with?”I ask, the champagne clouding my thoughts in a very thorough way. “You will get no arguments from me tonight.  No matter what.”

He sighs, a husky and ragged sound. It’s sexy. I scoot closer to him and drag him down until he is sitting on the lounger with me. 

His warmth feels nice out here because the air has turned cool.  It’s dark and I feel like we’re in our own little world.  I run my fingers over his arm, then grip at his shoulders. “You’re so strong,” I tell him.  “And your fingers are so long.”

I don’t know what that has to do with anything, I just feel like pointing it out.  Because his fingers are long.  I pick up his hand and slide my own against it.  His hand is at least a full inch longer than mine.  Probably more.  I curl my fingers around his and hold tight to his hand. 

I look up at him. He is so devastatingly beautiful in the moonlight. I tell him so. He stares at me, his dark gaze unwavering.  Except for my knees.  It definitely wavers my knees, if that is possible.  I know I wouldn’t be able to stand up if I tried. Which I’m not going to. 

I’m staying right here…with Dante. “Kiss me,” I whisper.  “Please.”

Dante is silent, his blue eyes frozen on me.  And then he lowers his head and his soft lips are upon mine. And I might seriously die this time.

For real.

I’m kissing Dante.

Kissing.

Dante.

The thoughts won’t stop running through my head as Dante kisses me in the most romantic and soft kiss I’ve ever experienced.  My thoughts blur together and all I can do now is immerse myself in the moment. 

The world actually seems to explode for a second. 

This is the most amazing kiss in the history of the world.  

 

 

My name is Mia Giannis.
I am seventeen years old.
I live in Valese, Caberra.

This has become my mantra and my lifeline, having recently lost my memory due to a scary natural disaster.
Yeah. I have amnesia. Messed up, right?

You don't know the half of it.

Not remembering anything has turned my world upside down. My parents try their hardest to “remind” me of who I was, but it doesn't feel right. Or, if what they're saying is true and that really was me, I'm not sure I like that person very much.

And then there’s my love life. Apparently, Gavin Ariastasis is my oldest and best friend in the world. Also, apparently, we’ve never dated. But now, noticing him for what feels like the first time, he’s making my heart do somersaults. He knows me inside and out—the real me. Plus, he’s sexy and charming as hell. Sounds perfect, right?

But then... there’s the new guy. Quinn McKeyen – tall, gorgeous and deliciously American. His mischievous grin and slow Midwestern drawl turn my insides to mush in two seconds flat making me question who I really am and what I really want.

Seriously. What am I supposed to do with all that?! I feel torn between them, but I barely even know who I am, let alone what I want.

I just hope my indecisive heart will clue me in. And sooner rather than later…before I lose what little of my mind that I have left.

  

 

 

Courtney Cole is a novelist who would eat mythology for breakfast if she could. She has a degree in Business, but has since discovered that corporate America is not nearly as fun to live in as fictional worlds. She loves chocolate and roller coasters and hates waiting and rude people.

Courtney lives in quiet suburbia, close to Lake Michigan, with her real-life Prince Charming, her ornery kids (there is a small chance that they get their orneriness from their mother) and a small domestic zoo.

 

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