Elin Gregory

Since the first in Anna’s Shield series – Gyrfalcon – is one of my favourite reads so far this year, I’m tickled to death that the sequel is released today [and plan to be reading it, right now] and am equally tickled to be hosting a guest post from the author and details of her forthcoming blog tour with some spectacular prizes!

Welcome Anna!

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I’m delighted to be here today to tell you a little about Heart Scarab, the second book in the Taking Shield series.

The series charts the life and loves of Shield Captain Bennet, who has an exciting job in the Shield Regiment infiltrating enemy bases and leading raids into enemy space. Bennet is from Albion, the last known colony of Earth, and humanity is fighting a war to the death against an alien race it has never even seen. All the humans ever come across are fighter drones, cyborgs animated by a small cluster of neural cells.

In the first book of the series, Bennet commandeered his father’s dreadnought, Gyrfalcon, for a behind-the-lines mission to gain priceless intelligence about their enemy, the Maess. Bennet got the data he was sent for, and he also got Fleet Lieutenant Flynn—an encounter that has turned his life upside down. But Bennet and Flynn parted at the end of Gyrfalcon, never expecting to meet again…

About Heart Scarab

In Heart Scarab, set more than a year and a half after Gyrfalcon, Bennet’s Shield unit is evacuating a colony in imminent danger of being overrun by the Maess. Telnos is an unpleasant little planet, inhabited by religious fanatics in the festering marshlands and unregistered miners running illegal solactinium mines up in the hills. But the Maess want Telnos, and Shield Captain Bennet’s job is to get out as many civilians as he can. The enemy arrives before the evacuation is complete. Caught in a vicious fire fight, Bennet is left behind, presumed dead.

His family is grieving. Joss, his long-term partner, grieves with them; lost, unhappy, remorseful. First Lieutenant Flynn has no official ‘rights’ here. He isn’t family. He isn’t partner or lover.

All he is, is broken.

Heart Scarab by Anna Butler
Published: Wilde City Press, 22 July 2015
c 98,400 words

Excerpt

Flynn liked kissing. In fact, Flynn considered himself something of an expert in the art. He’d tried it in all its forms, from the first tentative pressing together of juvenile lips that had you wondering what all the fuss was about, to the discovery that if you just opened your mouth and, you know, kind of moved everything, your tongue suddenly had a lot more positive uses than just allowing you to articulate clearly and swallow things without choking. Flynn got the hang of it, ran with it, and never looked back.

Soft kisses and hard kisses; kisses that were wet and slobbery with people who didn’t know exactly how to hold their lips to get the best and sexiest effect, and wet and sexy kisses with people who did. Kisses that turned the blood to molten lava and kisses that cooled you as you came down. Kisses that inflamed and kisses that soothed; feverish kisses and languid after-sex kisses. Kisses that meant only good fellowship and casual affection, and kisses that were desire incarnate.

Flynn had not only tried them all, he’d made them his own. He was considered by all the relevant authorities to be rather a specialist in the area.

Flynn really liked kissing. He had been gratified by the discovery that Bennet liked it too. Because now he could add slow kisses to the repertoire. Kisses so leisured and intense the world came to a stop while a hot tongue moved over his lips, explored each and every tooth down to the last molar, while teeth pulled at his bottom lip, biting it gently until it was swollen and hot and heavy, and he had to lick his lip to cool it and met Bennet’s tongue with his. Only then, would Bennet’s mouth close over his and start a real in-earnest kiss that lasted several more centuries. Those were kisses Bennet seemed to specialise in.

Flynn was always willing to take tips from another expert. A man should always try to extend his technique.

Buy Links
Initially, from Wilde City Press as an ebook (the paperback will follow)

By mid August, from an Amazon near you (Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk links)

Giveaways
Comment here and win an ebook version of FlashWired, a gay mainstream sci-fi novella. [Elin: I’ve read it – it’s a cracker!]

Follow Anna’s promotional tour with Pride Promotions, just click on the graphic below, and you can win Rafflecopter prizes of a $50 Amazon giftcard, or your choice of a Heart Scarab iPad case or Kindle case, or a Gyrfalcon iPad case.