Syphon’s
Song
Mayflower
Mages, Book
One
by Anise
Rae
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Lyrical
Press/Kensington
Date of Publication: March 3,
2014
ISBN: 978-1-61650-211-9
ASIN: B00IPQWVYE
Number of pages: 359
Word Count: 98,000
Cover Artist: Renee Rocco
Available at: Amazon
Book Description:
Legends say a syphon can drain a
mage dry. He’ll brave the danger. Will she?
Someone’s playing pranks. The
body of the late Casteel patriarch has been stolen and gifted to the family’s
enemy, the powerful Rallises. As far as Bronte Casteel is concerned, they can
keep it. She hasn’t spoken to her family in thirteen years, not since they
exiled her from society for her lack of mage power. But she’s a syphon mage,
able drain another mage’s power. Syphons’ destinies are always the same: death
by fiery stake. She hides her secret by living among the Nons--powerless humans
and the lowest class in the Republic. When her family orders her to go plead
for the body’s return, she comes face to face with the one man who knows her
secret.
Colonel Vincent Rallis isn’t
letting his syphon get away this time. Not when she’s under suspicion of
body-napping and aiding anti-mage terrorists. He’ll prove her innocence whether
she wants him to or not, and then convince her they belong together...forever.
Vincent’s help comes with a steep
price: Bronte must reveal her power. The inevitable ensuing witch-hunt and
trial would be bad enough, but even a tough girl might buckle if her
prosecutors are her own parents.
CONTENT WARNING: Hot, steamy
nights with the colonel’s magic touch
A Lyrical Press Paranormal
Romance
Excerpt:
Bronte faced the
senator. “I’m here to ask for your help.”
“Help with what,
Bronte?” The gruff, hoarse words came from behind her, accompanied by a flood
of vibes.
She wouldn’t
have recognized his voice except for that energy pouring into her. She wrenched
around in her seat to see the lion prowl out of the shadows.
His gaze
targeted her like she was prey that might escape. “Tell us how we can help you.
And then you can explain why you ran away from me.”
Her mind
recorded him like a pencil scratching away at paper to save his image—his dark
hair clipped short, eyebrows that formed stark lines with a skeptical bent near
their ends. A crease pulled between his brows that hadn’t been there before.
His rugged face had weathered storms his brother had avoided. Those storms had
chiseled away any softness.
She closed her
eyes, stopping the mental sketching—a necessity to save her sanity. She turned
her whole body back toward the senator and only opened her eyes when she knew
Vincent wasn’t in her line of sight.
“Vin!” Happy
surprise colored every note of the senator’s voice. “How long have you been
standing back there? Your energy is so subdued I didn’t even sense you until
now.”
“I didn’t
either.” Edmund’s voice was equally surprised. “Miss Casteel, your beauty has
distracted us.”
Bronte fought to
keep her calm mask intact. Her heart boomed like the senator’s voice and
threatened to shake that mask right off her face. She couldn’t let that happen.
Diplomatic words and composure were her only weapons in this battle, a quick escape
her only viable strategy. She stood, one move closer to getting to the door. At
her cue, all the men stood as well.
The closer
Vincent came, the more his energy reached out to her. It touched her, filled
her in places she’d forgotten were empty. Dangerous memories spilled back. If
she knew how, she’d dump his vibrations out of her hidden vessel, turn it over,
and sit on it like a metal bucket until it sank into the dirt with the force of
her weight. She’d seal her hollow spaces shut and keep him out forever. To do
otherwise would only invite death to creep close.
Vincent strode
toward her.
She held her
ground and looked him in the eye. “I do not need your help. I am simply the
messenger. Here on behalf of the Casteels.” She cleared her throat to try again
and turned to the senator. “Senator Rallis, my family requests your
assistance.”
The senator’s
wise gaze locked on Vincent, his expression thoughtful and full of silent words
Bronte lacked the power to hear. Curiosity lit the dark depths of his gaze as
they landed back on her.
Vincent leaned
toward her. “And they sent you as their messenger?” His voice was soft, a
caress against her skin. “The most vulnerable and weakest of them all, to fight
their battles.”
“I am not weak.”
She risked a quick glance at him. “I have plenty of strength to fight whatever
battles I need to.” She bit her tongue to stop her aggressive tone. Arguing
would not help her cause.
“Vincent, you
are making our guest uncomfortable.” The senator’s tone went quiet. Deadly. The
boom was much safer, she realized.
“No, I’m not. At
least not with my vibes, Granddad.” Vincent’s reply was matter-of-fact. He held
all the power between them, and he was going to use it. Running for the door
would not help her now.
“My mage vibes
do not make her uncomfortable.”
Her hold on her
tongue wasn’t tight enough to stop her gasp. She’d messed up. Goddess, but
she’d messed up. She closed her eyes for a moment at the realization. Instead
of drinking Vincent in, she should have faked a reaction to his power, imitated
the jittery anxiousness Nons felt around a mage who wasn’t suppressing his
energy. Maybe that would have saved her.
“Vincent. She’s
a Non. Of course you’re making her uncomfortable.” The senator’s reprimand was
deceptively soft.
Bronte stared at
Vincent as desperation swirled inside her. “Please. Don’t.”
“She’s not a
Non.” Vincent’s words shattered her hope of escape.
Let's learn a little about Anise Rae
What is your writing environment?
My favorite writing spot is my screened-in porch,
surrounded by trees and chirping birds. However, I do flit from spot to spot depending
on my mood…or the weather. Somedays I’m happier writing in the chair in the
corner of the living room or the couch or my bed. The key is silence. I wish I
could write in noisy environments, but I’m easily distractible!
Who is your perfect hero and why?
If we’re talking about the perfect hero from a book,
I’d say Rhys Trahaearn from Meljean Brook’s The
Iron Duke, a Victorian steampunk romance. Rhys is strong and capable and he
respects his heroine, including the fact that she has a job and she’s darn good
at it.
If we’re talking movie heroes, I vote for Thor. Naturally,
one can’t go wrong with the entirely hunky Chris Hemsworth. Thor is captivated
by Dr. Jane Foster, an astrophysicist. Though they come from two different
worlds and have two different approaches to solve their problem, he respects
her work. (Apparently I have a thing about that!) The romance between the two
is sweet and tender. There’s one kiss at the end when he promises to come to
back for her. Oh, be still my heart!
What authors have caught your interest lately and why?
Lately I’ve discovered Jenn Bennett’s Roaring Twenties
series. It’s a paranormal romance (mediums, death spirits, etc.) that’s heavy
on mystery. There are only two in the series so far, but they’re fabulous. I
love the worldbuilding. Setting the story in the 1920s is a unique twist.
I’m also a fan
of Jeffe Kennedy’s Rogue’s Pawn and Rogue’s Possession in her Covenant of
Thorns series. They’re romantic fantasy…rather dark. The main character
accidentally transports herself to Faerie and winds up with magic that she must
learn to harness. I’m anxiously awaiting the September release of the third
book.
What type of book have you always wanted to write?
I want
to write a sci-fi that takes place on a space ship and has everything from soul
mates to dying gods to futuristic battles. I have the beginnings of the story
so clearly in my head. I’d love to tackle it, but for now it has to go on the
TBW…the to be written list.
Top 3 things on your bucket list?
Vacation in a tree house.
Take my kids some place where we can see the stars.
They have no idea of the potential of the nighttime sky.
Go sailing or paddling on the lake that’s in my
neighborhood on my own little boat.
How did you get the idea for this particular novel?
The Mayflower Mages series poofed into creation during a
daydreaming session. The necessity of daydreaming is one of the absolute best
things about being a writer. I have an excuse for sitting around and staring
into space while my mind departs, slips the confines of common sense, and plays
with the impossible. On this particular day, I was playing ‘what if.’ What if
it wasn’t Puritans who sailed on the Mayflower to the New World seeking freedom
from persecution? What if it was witches? Fast-forward three hundred years or
so and voila! Welcome to the modern day Republic of Mage Territories.
What is your favorite scene in your new release?
One of my favorite scenes is when Bronte walks into
her hero’s house for the first time. She slowly paces through, exploring and
discovering little hints about his character from the items in his house. He
stands behind her, watching and commenting, handling her very gently because he
doesn’t want to spook her and scare her away. I love his sweetness in that
scene.
What are you working on now and when can we expect it
to be available?
I’m working with my editor on Enchanter’s Echo, book two in the
Mayflower Mages series. It stars Edmund, the brother of Syphon’s Song’s hero. I
don’t have a definite release date yet, but I’m hoping it will be winter or
spring of 2015.
What do you like to do when you are not writing?
Read! That’s not a surprising answer for author-types
though. Let me try to think of something more original…I do love to play ping-pong
and Frisbee and badminton anytime I can convince my kids to play with me. (Play
with your kids, you guys. Eventually they get big and then you have to wheedle them into playing with you instead of
the other way around.)
What would you consider a perfect date?
I’m a simple girl at heart. My perfect date is a
picnic with yummy food at our local lake’s little beach. I’d wear a dress, a
pretty one I could move in. (I’m a practical girl, too.) We’d cap off the
picnic with a sunset sail around the lake.
What is one interesting fact about you that readers
don’t know?
I ran two marathons. Running a marathon is a lot like
writing a novel. You have to want it
with all your heart because there will be days when the training sucks and it’s
the last thing you want to do. But you go do it anyway because you want this
goal, darn it!
That’s it about me! In those moments when I have time
to read, I’m always looking for new books. Would you be so kind to leave me a
comment which books have caught your attention lately?
About
the Author:
Anise Rae grew up among the
cornfields and soybeans of Ohio, dreaming of being a ballerina, an astronaut,
and a romance writer. Thanks to her soul deep love of chocolate and a lack of
natural grace, her ballerina dreams floated away as high as the moon,
equidistant with the astronaut aspiration. She stuck with writing.
Now transplanted to the south,
Anise lives in the suburbs of Atlanta with her kids and a dog gifted with the
power of finding dirty socks.
Syphon’s Song, a 2012 Maggie
Award of Excellence finalist, is the first book in the Mayflower Mages series.
Tour
giveaway:
2 e-copies of Syphon’s Song
1 $50 Amazon gift card
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Thank you, Booklover Sue, for having me on your site! If anyone wants to chime in about books that have caught your eye, I'd love to hear!
ReplyDeleteAnd one more thing...I'd love to hear everyone's perfect date too!
ReplyDeleteThis books sounds like an awesome read and I would love to read it. A nice date for me would be dinner and a movie. entering under the name of Virginia
ReplyDeleteA classic date night, Quilt Lady Virginia! Can't go wrong with that one. Good luck in the giveaway!
ReplyDeleteI love the sound of this book! It has a hint of the tv show Salem, which I am loving right now. My perfect date would be something fun, like a fair or themepark!
ReplyDelete