Wills, Estates and The Silk Series

Silk & Scandal available HERE

Hi peeps! 

The third book in The Silk Series continues to kick my behind as I struggle to get Gwen and Edward’s story down, but the second book is done, dusted and in edits so I thought I’d chat a bit about Silk & Scorn, Book 2 of The Silk Series.

Silk & Scorn is the tale of Sarah Wetherall and Arthur Davenport, childhood enemies who find themselves thrown together as adults when Sarah requires Arthur’s legal expertise. The family of Sarah’s late husband is challenging her right to his estate, even though Sarah’s husband died without writing a Will which, due to succession law, means Sarah as his wife inherits everything. However, her husband’s father is furious at this determination and bull-headedly fights for what he perceives to be his rightful inheritance. At her wits’ end, Sarah seeks the help of Arthur, who is a solicitor specializing in matters pertaining to Wills and Estates, and then, the sparks fly…

So…wow. That’s a bit of legalese right there. Luckily, The Day Job actually deals with these matters so I pestered the Estate Planning lawyer in my office with questions about the whole situation. As Australian Law is based upon and aligns closely with English Law, it was a cinch. Also, luckily, not much has changed in 200-odd years and so what is true today was true in Sarah and Arthur’s time (Early Victorian, for those playing at home). It made researching a bit easier to be able to talk to an expert, let me tell you!

As The Silk Series features people involved in lawyerish-type things, it’s going to be invaluable to have a lawyer available for my questions. Yay for Day Jobs!

Thanks for hanging with me, peeps.

Cassandra Dean 

THE SILK SERIES, BOOK 1

Eight years ago…
Thomas Cartwright and Lady Nicola Fitzgibbons were friends. Over the wall separating their homes, Thomas and Nicola talked of all things – his studies to become a barrister, her frustrations with a lady’s limitations.

All things end.
When her diplomat father gains a post in Hong Kong, Nicola must follow. Bored and alone, she falls into scandal. Mired in his studies of the law and aware of the need for circumspection, Thomas feels forced to sever their ties.

But now Lady Nicola is back…and she won’t let him ignore her. 

Available NOW

Decadent Publishing

Amazon: US | UK | Canada

Barnes & Noble | Smashwords | All Romance eBooks 

Cassandra grew up daydreaming, inventing fantastical worlds and marvelous adventures. Once she learned to read (First phrase – To the Beach. True story), she was never without a book, reading of other people’s fantastical worlds and marvelous adventures.

Fairy tales, Famous Fives, fantasies and fancies; horror stories, gumshoe detectives, science fiction; Cassandra read it all. Then she discovered Romance and a true passion was born.

So, once upon a time, after making a slight detour into the world of finance, Cassandra tried her hand at writing. After a brief foray into horror, she couldn’t discount her true passion. She started to write Romance and fell head over heels.

The love affair exists to this very day.

Cassandra lives in Adelaide, South Australia.

You can find Cassandra at:

CassandraDean.com ~ Cassandra and Lucy ~ Facebook ~ Twitter

Goodreads ~ Tumblr ~ Pintrest ~ Amazon.com

Writing a story that scares you

By Cate Masters

Sometimes an idea for a story hits out of nowhere. More and more cool elements begin to add in and fit together so well, they seem as if they were made for each other. Soon you're jotting notes all over the house. The more you think about it, the more it seems like a killer story.

Almost too much of a story, beyond what you normally write. It's a little scary. Maybe a little beyond your capability? You begin to think of other writers who could do the story justice.

But could another writer have invented all these unique characters? Their abilities? This world? Possibly, but not the same way you could. Plus, the damn story won't get out of your head. It's demanding you write it.

So you give in. Start assembling those notes, researching a bit more for setting, character background, history, and other elements.

Once you finally begin writing, it's like your fingers are addicted to the keyboard. The story's playing in 3D in your head, and it's all you can do to keep up. You can't stop until it's finished. Even then, you realize it's not finished. This world keeps calling you back, and the characters keep on doing what they do until you give in, pay attention and start taking notes all over again. Soon you're back at the keyboard again, and another story's in full swing.

But even when that's finished, it's still not over. There are issues to resolve. Other characters that want their say. A world that needs to be put to rights. So you get to work on the third story.

Still beyond you? Maybe, but that's a good thing. Scaring yourself. Challenging yourself. Reaching for more.

Buy Cursed HERE

That's what happened with Cursed. It started out as a 15k story, but a storm broke out in my head after I subbed it. It wasn't done. So I pulled the sub. (Thank you, Decadent editors, for being so patient!) Even at almost 30k, there was still more to be told. So I wrote Charmed, which (yay!) Decadent accepted, and it's now in final edits. But it still wasn't over. Claimed is the final installment -- for now. Subbed, and fingers crossed.

And I admit, I was a little bit afraid to write this series. I envisioned it as a bestseller in another author's hands. It has so many amazing elements. And no, I'm not patting myself on the back. Sometimes I think stories are gifts - they come to us, some assembly required, and it's our job to put it all together in a way that makes sense.

I hope I was able to do that. I hope you'll read it and let me know.

Tourwide giveaway!

By the way, Cursed is now on tour! I hope you'll visit me along the tour stops. Don't forget to enter the Rafflecopter giveaway! Find it on this post at Jessica Subject's blog (thanks for hosting me, Jessica!): http://www.markofthestars.com/wp/?p=14403

Blurb:

Ten days of freedom. That’s all Fate had allotted me each year. In the streets of Venice, I could walk among them. Mingle. Belong.

During Carnevale, they had no idea who I was. What I was.

For ten days, it didn’t matter.

Until I met her.

Bruno diCesare lives alone by necessity, not choice. An experiment performed by Leonardo da Vinci, who believed having a dual DNA would grant a person immortality, used magic to render Bruno a chimera – the head of a lion, body of a dragon. The only time he can mingle with people is during Carnevale, ten glorious days of masked anonymity, frivolity and intimacy.

Melina Weaver learned fire dancing to enliven her dull existence. A scientist, her long hours at the lab leave no time for a social life. For ten days at Carnevale, she can pretend to be someone else. Someone sexy and daring, who lives on the edge.

Once she meets Bruno, her wish comes true, but everything goes terribly wrong. Beneath Bruno’s costume lurks an alpha male, but is he dangerous? Worse, can she return to an employer who sells her research to the military to make an army of efficient killers? Her only hope may lie with the man she’s just met and never seen.

And I hope you'll check out the book video, Casting Call (who I imagined as Bruno, Melina and more), reviews, excerpt and more on my blog: http://catemasters.blogspot.com/2013/04/cursed-vitruvian-man-book-1-paranormal.html

HAPPY RELEASE DAY to BURNING SAGE!

By Deena Remiel

I am so thrilled and over the moon to present to you, BURNING SAGE! I am a fan of all things paranormal, but my heart belongs to the focused idea of immortality. Luckily for me, I was asked to write a story for the new Decadent Publishing TEASE line, with no parameters save for creating another alpha male to add to my healthy pack. Happily, I agreed, and Emmanouel, my immortal, was born.

While researching the setting for this story, I discovered that the much fabled lost city of Atlantis has been linked to the island of Santorini. This was definitely my kind of place! As I dug deeper, I came to find out that Santorini is actually settled on the jagged cliffs of a dormant volcano’s crater rim. Thing is, the volcano isn’t exactly silent. On the smaller islands of the caldera, steaming vents exist.

It got me thinking. How do people live day to day on Santorini, knowing they live ON a volcano? We’re not talking about living a few miles away, like Pompeii is from Vesuvius. I mean RIGHT ON THE RIM overlooking the crater filled with water from the Aegean Sea! It boggles my mind. And then I look at the photographs of the island, and I know why. It is so beautiful, it nearly hurts the eye. The brilliant blues of the sea and sky, the whitewashed homes and buildings resting precariously on the cliffs, and the warm breezes combine to create a heaven on earth.

Here’s a taste of BURNING SAGE to TEASE you…

Sage Wilcot, an accomplished scientist, has set her sights on her lifelong obsession, studying the volcanos of the island of Santorini. Once there, though, she gets more than she bargained for. The dormant volcano is waking and shaking things up in the process.

 

An enigmatic stranger from a mythical ancient city comes to her rescue and challenges her to believe in the unbelievable. Will she take the huge leap of faith for love’s sake or stay cloistered in her fortress of certainty and solitude?

Would you like another taste? Here’s a bit more…

“Well, now what?” She brushed the sandy grit off her hands and sloshed her way to drier land. “I’m here. On a grumbling volcano. Alone. What the hell was I thinking?” She shook her head at her own audacity and stupidity.

“You were thinking of me, perhaps? I can only hope.”

Sage spun around at the sound of the low-timbred voice. “Emmanouel?”

He stepped out of the shadowy darkness and outstretched his arms in a welcoming gesture. “In the flesh. And you, Sage, are too, I see. Looking splendid.”

“Yes, much less dusty and grimy. It’s amazing what a shower and some clean clothes can do.” Really, Sage? That’s your big comeback?

He laughed lightly and sauntered closer to her. “So were you?”

“Was I what?”

“Thinking of me.”

“In a way.”

“In what way?”

“Annoyance, actually.”

“Why is that?”

“You disappeared on me earlier. You were following me out of the hole we were in, and then when I went to introduce you to a colleague, you were gone. I could have used some backup on my story about my face being injured and how you fixed it with that watery stuff of yours. See? It’s all gone. No cut, no bruise….”

“Just beautiful, soft skin that I long to touch.” His husky voice sent thrilling pulses through her body and a tingly sensation across her skin. He reached out, and with the back of his hand, tried to caress her cheek. Barely controlling her burgeoning lust, she stepped back.

“Now cut that out. I’m trying to be angry with you.”

“I’m sorry. Go ahead.”

“Well, I can’t now. You kinda fizzled it out of me.”

“Oh, good. So now I can touch you, yes?”

“No!” she huffed, and stepped farther out of his reach. “You can tell me where you went and why you’re here now. How did you know I’d be here?”

 “I never left. I can never leave.”

BURNING SAGE is available now from Decadent Publishing, and ALL your favorite eBook retailers like Amazon, B&N, and ARe

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