Saturday, March 23, 2013

Kele Moon

Enter the rafflecopter at the end of the post to win a signed copy of one of Kelle Moons books or your choice of one of her ebooks. This contest is for 18+ readers, international readers can enter to win the ebook copy. 




A freckle-faced redhead born and raised in Hawaii, Kele Moon has always been a bit of a sore thumb and has come to enjoy the novelty of it. She thrives on pushing the envelope and finding ways to make the impossible work in her story telling. With a mad passion for romance, she adores the art of falling in love. The only rules she believes in is that, in love, there are no rules and true love knows no bounds. So obsessed is she with the beauty of romance and the novelty of creating it, she’s lost in her own wonder world most of the time. Thankfully she married her own dark, handsome, brooding hero who has infinite patience for her airy ways and attempts to keep her grounded. When she leaves her keys in the refrigerator or her cell phone in the oven, he’s usually there to save her from herself. The two of them now reside in Florida with their three beautiful children, who make their lives both fun and challenging in equal parts—they wouldn’t have it any other way.
Links: Goodreads Kele Moon Twitter Facebook 


Interview:
1. Your Battered Hearts series is really good, I absolutely love the modern day Romeo and Juliet story in Star Crossed. Was it fun writing this one with all it's similarities?
It was a lot of fun! I have this thing for tying old and new stories/concepts together. . . I did it in a way with Beyond Eden too and the comparisons to the Garden of Eden. I have a few other stories on my hard drive where I’ve done the same thing. Not sure why I love it, but I do!
And with Star Crossed. . . I was shocked at how the pieces began fitting together, both large and small, when I started working on it. For example I had picked the named Moretti for Romeo’s brothers because I was looking for a certain feel and sound to it knowing both Tino and Nova would have their own books. And Jules’s last name of Conner was also just on a whim as I hadn’t decided the Romeo and Juliet theme until the end of writing Defying the Odds.
It wasn’t until later I realized the connection between Jules being Jules Conner (Juliet Capulet) and Romeo’s side of the family being Moretti (Montague). The connection of them having last names that started with the same first letter didn’t occur to me until almost the end of the book and I was so thrilled when I put it together and it was so cool that it happened by accident. . . Of course, no one noticed, LOL! But it entertained me nonetheless.

2. When will we be getting the delicious third book in the series? I have a feeling this one will be angsty, I am so excited.
I’m hoping by summer some time. . . I’ll admit to this novel being a challenge for a number of different reasons mainly because so much of the story takes place when they are younger. A lot of what makes Wyatt and Tabitha who they are not just as people, but as a couple is because of their youth and trying to get the pacing right on this one as an erotic romance is harder than most. I’ve never believed in sacrificing the true story for the sake of sex. I believe erotic romance is an amazing genre because it allows us to tell the whole story. To show what happens when the door closes, but it’s still a section of the romance market where beautiful love stories can unfold. It’s not supposed to be sex for sex’s sake. . . So their story is important to me. I want it to be told right and I don’t want to sacrifice the important scenes so the reader doesn’t have to wait as long for the sex. . . but, I understand it is a genre with certain expectations and so finding that fine line is taking me a little more time.
And yes. . . It’s angsty. Their story is very sad to me. They have a very rare connection, a very pure connection in a lot of ways, yet life ripped them apart and neither of them were able to move on from the loss.

3. Beyond Eden was one of the most beautiful and heartwrenching stories I read in 2012. It seemed everyone was talking about it. What did you think about your readers responses?
Beyond Eden was my first book. I hadn’t originally intended for it to be as controversial as it ended up being. The characters just sort of took over and wrote themselves. I remember when I wrote the scene with Danny and Paul on the driveway and I realized what a truly dark relationship the two of them had. I had this moment where I thought. . . Do I go there? Do I toss the idea of mainstream aside and just write this story the way it’s supposed to be?
So needless to say. . . I went there. . . I let the characters tell the story they needed to tell and I’m glad I did. Love isn’t always pretty and sweet. It doesn’t always fit into the box society wants it to fit into and writing that was important to me. I’m very proud of Beyond Eden. Even if the dark nature of the book does draw a certain amount of negative feedback, the positive support far outweighed it and I’m so thrilled and honored by that. Writing books that touch people is the very best part of this job!

4. Danny Boy is a favorite book boyfriend of mine, I love Paul Guy too, but something about Danny Boy rang more true to me, he seemed more real. In your head who do you visualize as Danny Boy?
A lot of Danny was based on my husband. LOL! So he was easy to write personality wise.
As far as visual, I never had a certain actor in my head, but I do see him a lot, particularly in those very intense ads for designer clothing lines like Versace and Calvin Klein. He’s very classically beautiful. Tall, cut, with a strong jaw and a dark, intense gaze. He could’ve easily been a model. . . I actually find Paul much harder to place. I’m always looking for him. LOL!

5.  Evie Girl’s art was written so well it seemed so vivid to me, like you were describing it from a real painting. I wanted all of them. Have you had any fans send you drawings of their interpretations of her art? Or have you had a go yourself?
I haven’t had anyone send me drawings. . . I would probably freak out if they did because I would love to see a real life version of them. If I could draw them myself I probably wouldn’t leave the house.

6. Where is the strangest place you have lost or misplaced something?
I left a matching shoe at home once. I walked out of the house with two different shoes. One of mine and one of my husband’s and they were vastly different shoes. I was going to the library for a book sale and I was so excited I never noticed until my husband looked down and was like, “Oh wow! You need to walk quietly out of the library and don’t make eye contact with anyone. I’ll pay for your books.” I laughed the whole way to the car. That was pretty bad even for me!

7.  What music do you listen to when you write?

I make playlists that match the book I’m writing. For example the Eden books have very dark music like Nine Inch Nails’ Closer to God.
The Battered Hearts books have all sorts of different music because I’d listen to different things depending on the characters. Scenes with Tino would be bouncy club music. Scenes with Romeo would be songs like Gym Class Heroes’ Fighter. Where as Jules would have girl power songs like Bitch by Meredith Brooks. One of Clay’s main songs is Pumped Up Kicks and Wyatt always tends to go more country even though it’s not my favorite genre. Though I will say Golden Slumbers by the Beatles is one of my Wyatt and Tabitha theme songs. So is P!nk’s Just Give Me A Reason.
LOL! Making play lists is a very intense and serious thing to me. So much so, when a certain song plays I’ll associate to a certain character so much it makes me want to run and write them. Which does help when I have to pick up a manuscript after a long time. It kicks me right into that mindset.

8. What book are you most looking forward to reading this year?
Hands down. . . The next Heroes of Olympus book, The House of Hades. I’ve been dying for it since I turned the last page on The Mark of Athena.


Books:
 Battered Hearts Series

When struggling waitress Melody Dylan gives a handsome, lonely stranger a simple gift she has no clue her life is about to take a drastic turn. The stranger ends up being Clay Powers, a famous UFC heavyweight fighter. Clay’s large build and dangerous fists have always intimidated. People in his hometown keep their distance and Clay is fine with that. Everything changes when a new waitress at the local diner buys him a piece of pie on thanksgiving. Touched by the gesture when it’s obvious she can barely afford to survive, her warm smile and lush body churn up powerful feelings that leave Clay wanting more from her than pie. Melody is running from her past and the small, country town of Garnet is the perfect hiding place. With an ex-husband after her and scars from her abusive marriage etched deep, the last thing she expects is to fall for a man who makes a living with his fists, but she can’t resist Clay or the tender connection they share. Finding love in the most unlikely of places, the passion is undeniable, but Clay and Melody know their haunted pasts and unpredictable futures leave the odds stacked against them. Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual situations, graphic language, and material that some readers may      find objectionable: violence. 


Heavyweight MMA fighter, Romeo Wellings comes from the hard streets of New York where his family ties to the mafia cause him nothing but pain. His life takes a surprising detour when he crosses paths with the twin sister of his long time enemy. After a steamy one-night stand, he faces the fight of his life, but it’s not in the cage. The secret relationship that blooms between Romeo and his real life Juliet has him battling his family and a dark past rather than let her go. 

 The only lawyer in her hometown of Garnet, Jules Conner is also a volunteer Sheriff’s deputy and co-owner of a successful MMA training center. Strong and dependable, Jules is always there for those who need her. Until one forbidden night in Las Vegas with Romeo leaves her feeling so alive she can’t stop reaching out to the sexy, bad boy of MMA, even knowing the forbidden love affair could jeopardize everything.

 As the tide rises against them and the people they love work at keeping them apart, Romeo and Jules hold onto a dream for a better life together and vow to go down fighting rather than accept a tragic ending.




Eden Series:
 
Three lifelong friends find themselves tangled in a web of love, pain and dangerous secrets in this erotic Garden of Eden tale. Tall, dark and handsome Danny Carlow has always gotten whatever he wants except for the two he wants more than anything-his best friends, lovers Paul and Eve. Determined, he waits like a snake in the grass, poised for the right moment to offer them a temptation too delicious to resist. Artist Eve Everton makes the painful decision to leave her true love Paul for the siren call of New York City. Ten years later, with her life in shambles, she returns. When Paul's waiting arms aren't available, Eve falls for Danny's charm and finds herself a willing accomplice in the dangerous games Danny plays. Former college football star Paul Mattling is now a successful attorney with a bright future ahead of him. But behind those brilliant blue eyes are secret desires for a taste of the forbidden. Will he play it safe or give in to Danny and Eve and bite the apple? Reader Advisory: Not for the faint of heart, the pain in this story is vivid and real, the emotions even more so. Haunting and poignant, Beyond Eden presents a darker side of BDSM. You might gasp. You might cry. You might find yourself reading it again and again
                                             .5 of 5 stars false Review Goodreads Amazon 

  Book two in the Eden series. Handsome, angry and spoiled, Danny Carlow struggles to find his place in the world when his hatred for authority makes survival difficult. The only thing keeping him from completely giving up and turning to a life of crime is his friendship with clean-cut Paul Mattling. More than his conscience and best friend, Paul's also the one Danny secretly pines for with every ounce of his being. Paul is a natural over-achiever with a football scholarship and straight A's to boast about. Yet he's haunted by an abusive childhood that's left him more scarred than anyone realizes. Looking for an escape from his demons, Paul has his own deviant secrets, ones he doesn't want anyone, especially Danny, to know about. When dark desires are accidentally revealed, Danny and Paul end up coming together in a clash of wild passion more tumultuous than either of them could have anticipated. Tasting the forbidden is sweet, but it turns the tables on their relationship, putting everything, even their lifelong friendship, in jeopardy. Reader Advisory: This story visits the dark side of BDSM, where the only thing more intense than the scenes the characters participate in, is the love they have for one another. Please note there is a very brief F/F encounter.




Stand Alone:

 

  Dark and brooding firefighter Brad Archer has spent months denying his attraction to his roommate, Police Officer Gavin Connolly. Gavin is just the kind of guy he likes, tall, tough and buff enough to actually handle Brad’s big size and rough nature. To hide his real feelings Brad holds the handsome, seemingly straight cop at arms length until a shooting at work leaves Gavin a little too vulnerable to ignore. What starts out as a simple attempt to comfort his roommate blows up into something wild, sexual and wholly unexpected when Gavin wants more from Brad than a strong, firefighter’s shoulder to lean. The sexual magnetism drawing the two of them together forces secrets to be revealed and though the sex is mind-blowing it may not be worth weathering the storms their relationship could stir up. In order to protect him Brad realizes he loves Gavin enough to let him go. The problem is—The stubborn cop may not let him. 


 

On the island where they first met two lovers from opposite sides of the tracks are reunited. Now jaded and broken, Alex and Matt still can’t deny their sizzling connection or the memories of one perfect, uninhibited year together. At twenty-two, Matt Tarrington is rich, good-looking and destined to be powerful, but behind that confident exterior lurks a man who resents the life his family thrust upon him. Desperate for an escape, Matt heads to Mirabella Island off the coast of Florida for a year of relaxation and some wild nights with vacationing party-girls. Matt never expected to find real passion in the arms of Alex Hunter, a handsome, laid-back local. Alex is gay, but closeted. Matt should be completely off limits, but Alex finds the deeply in denial rich boy too tempting to ignore. Especially when a bet has them working together, fighting the heat in the rundown, beachside cafe where Alex sweats for every dollar. Their love felt inevitable until youth left them vulnerable to hatred and greed. Now after six years of hating the lies they live, Alex and Matt will have to risk it all for the second chance they both desperately need.


 

Dr. Clara Evans' life has taken a turn for the worse. With a failed marriage behind her, Clara has only a bottle of wine and a romance novel for company on New Year's Eve while waiting for the dreadful year to end.Her lonely celebration is disrupted when her best friend Jackson Philips shows up and she couldn't be more delighted. Tall, muscular and handsome, what's not to love about the bighearted firefighter?It's not until she steals a desperately needed kiss for luck at midnight that secret desires and hidden heartaches rise to the surface, igniting an inferno of passion that burns hot enough to overwhelm even the most seasoned firefighter.





 



Despite wanting her forever, Dray has vowed to protect Mercy, even from himself. Then his mating heat is triggered, leaving only two choices—fuck or die. And luscious Mercy is suitably equipped—and determined—to save him.











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Accidentally Married to...a Vampire? 18+

The following review is for 18+ readers.
Accidentally Married to...A Vampire?  (Accidentally Yours, #2)
3 of 5 stars false
“If you love her, set her free. If she comes back, she’s yours. If she doesn’t…Christ! Stubborn woman! Hunt her down, and bring her the hell back; she’s still yours according to vampire law.”
- Niccolo DiConti, General of the Vampire Queen’s Army.
THE DETERMINED VAMPIRE: Niccolo DiConti has faithfully served as leader of Her Majesty’s army for over a millennium, but he’d rather sunbathe in the Sahara than spend another grueling day under his demented queen’s command. However, no one has ever left her side and lived to tell. So when a powerful goddess prophesies he will meet his salvation—a human woman he must turn into a vampire with her consent—he eagerly rises to the challenge. After all, how hard could it be to seduce a human female into taking the immortal plunge? Harder than he thinks. Because his mate won’t be born for another three centuries, and when he wakes up in the goddess’ tomb, not only is his life a mess, but his destined female isn’t about to settle for a coldhearted vampire. Can he win her over before it’s too late? Not if his enemies have anything to do with it.
AN UNWILLING BRIDE: On the night Helena Strauss meets the fierce, devastatingly handsome vampire who saves her life in the jungles of Mexico, she knows her world will be forever changed. Because an attraction this mind blowing only comes along once in a lifetime—or existence. And when he claims she is his one true mate, destined to be his for all eternity, it’s a fairytale come true. So what if her knight in shining armor is a vampire? Nobody’s perfect. But discovering the powerful, overbearing immortal doesn’t “do love”? Deal breaker. Helena will flee and set out to accomplish the impossible…sever the otherworldly bond between them. And it turns out, Helena is just the leverage Niccolo’s enemies need to break the mighty warrior and wipe out his people.

Review

***NetGalley provided me with a copy of this book for my honest review***
Funny!! I do not think we get enough funny paranormal romances.
“Any day now?” Viktor prodded. “Sì, sì. Do not get your…” Niccolo paused to recall the exact phrase. “Get your balls in a bunch.” Viktor shook his head. “Panties.” Niccolo frowned. “Why would you wear panties? Aren’t those for females?” Viktor growled. “Can we go now?” “Yes, but I insist you tell me more about your man-panties later.”
This wonderful book is riddled with hilarious lines like this, I was amused form beginning to end.
We really have a mythological smorgasbord of characters in this book, and as per usual their strings are all being pulled by the pesky gods.
The whole be careful what you ask for philosophy really needs to be taken into consideration when asking goddess of the underworld Cimli for any sort of favour. She is controlling feature in this book and has her thumb in all sorts of pies. Niccolo, our leading vamp, approaches her to be rid of his position of executioner of the crazy and cruel vamp queen Reyna. She immediately sees a solution for Niccolo, but it involves him taking a human mate, something that he doesn't really have a taste for. Having no choice being human mate or die, he goes for door number one. Cimli sets the gears in motion, however she doesn't tell him that he will be put to sleep for three hundred years or....well, other things that will spoil the story.
Three hundred years later, Helena is having a bad holiday , lost and without her luggage she is lead into the jungle by a floating light. It leads her to a ruin where Niccolo is waiting to be awoken from his slumber. Cimli tricks her into waking him with a kiss and with that, unbeknown to Helena, their bond is forged, mates have met.
The rest of this book is a fun read. Even the tension bits are laced with humor. It is fast paced and easy to consume, I finished it in one sitting. Niccolo, is an interesting character, whose assimilation into the 21st century is hilarious to read. His struggle to understand the world around him a definite plus for me in the book.
There was a sexual tension throughout the book, hampered by Niccolo's need to follow the rules and the prophecy to ensure his future. I could completely understand Helena and her frustration with his cave man view of the world.
All in all, I liked this book, it was enjoyable and really entertaining. I loved the different take on all the mythological creatures and that it wasn't as heavy and depressing as some books in this genre can be. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.    

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Claim Me( #2 Stark Trilogy) 18+

The following review is for 18+ readers.
Claim Me (Stark Trilogy, #2)
4 of 5 stars false
For Damien, our obsession is a game. For me, it is fiercely, blindingly, real.
Damien Stark’s need is palpable—his need for pleasure, his need for control, his need for me. Beautiful and brilliant yet tortured at his core, he is in every way my match.
I have agreed to be his alone, and now I want him to be fully mine. I want us to possess each other beyond the sweetest edge of our ecstasy, into the deepest desires of our souls. To let the fire that burns between us consume us both.
But there are dark places within Damien that not even our wildest passion can touch. I yearn to know his secrets, yearn for him to surrender to me as I have surrendered to him. But our troubled pasts will either bind us close . . . or shatter us completely.
Release Me is an erotic romance intended for mature audiences.
Review
***NetGalley provided me with an ARC of this book for my honest review***
"No," he says. "I want to be clear. I don't want our arrangement to end. You're mine, and there are rules. And I want our game to continue."
Damien Stark and Nikki Fairchild are back to wind us up with tension in this second installment of the Stark Trilogy.We come in around where the last book ends up, the deal, 1 million dollars to pose for a nude painting with bonus's, is almost at its end.
Nikki is without a doubt in love with her billionaire, willing to do anything to please, she is his completely. Damien he keeps his feelings and secrets under lock and key, his need for control is as sure as his need to breathe. This couple are a dynamo together and are sure of each other, but with secret enemies, Damien's shady past and their lives exposed by the paparazzi, their relationship struggles to survive.
A slow paced start to this book, we are slowly brought back into the seductive world of Nikki and her billionaire Damien Stark.
Damien's dark passions set fire to the pages and I was feeling hot under the collar within the first few chapters.
The pacing for the first half of the book was slower and it was like a traps were being laid. Things to lead your mind in different directions, so when the action fully kicked in the second half of the book, I had nothing but questions and suspicions about everything. It was great, I love not knowing, it keeps me on my toes!
We finally get some answers about Damien and his past, needless to say , it makes you completely understand him as a person, the need to control his universe comes from an earlier inability to control anything at all.
Of course his control also leads to a multitude of amazing fantasies come to life on page, I am simply in lust with this man; and since this is an erotic romance that is fine with me.
"Damien," I say , surprised that my words sound normal. "What are you doing?"
"What I want", he replies, and though the words do not answer my question, a swell of relief washes over me, followed by delicious anticipation.
Delicious anticipation describes perfectly my feelings while reading this book, I was in a constant state of "delicious anticipation", hah.
The troubles for the couple in the book were very much real, coming from an outside source, rather than the couple and to me that is more enjoyable, it made it more suspenseful and less frustrating. Nothing worse than constantly wanting to slap your main characters upside the head for ridiculous behaviour. I love how Nikki in particular handled everything, she is one of my favourite leading ladies, even with her problems, she feels strong.
I highly enjoyed this book, it suckered me in, J . Kenner has me enchanted with her words.
She has also made two characters that although have similarities to others, surely comparisons will be drawn (fifty shades etc), to me have been made individual enough to stand on their own two feet.Their personalities feel whole, and their actions seem realistic based off their pasts and who they have become. The last half of the book completely flew by for me, before I knew it I was at the end and ....well, all I will say is that I am dying for the next book to see how they will get out of their current predicament. Stay strong Mrs Fairchild and Mr Stark, I have every faith in you!!! Great book, loved it.   

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