Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

Last week the theme was break ups and this week we’re making up. I’ve picked a snippet from my paranormal romance Currents Run Deep. Our hero and heroine are orca shifters and their respective tribes are sworn enemies. The hero has lost his memory and thinks he’s married to the heroine. They’ve argued after he called her a “fish” and didn’t believe he was an orca shifter too.

Currents Run Deep by Shelley Munro

She walked up to where she’d left her clothes. They were gone. Asia kicked at a pile of sand. Childish. Stupid. All because she’d told him the truth. She stomped up the footpath and wrenched the door open.

“Roman?” She slammed the door and stormed through the open-plan living area to the kitchen. “Roman!” He’d left. Figured.

“In here,” a masculine voice called.

Asia halted. “Roman?”

“In the bedroom.”

Asia reached her bedroom in three large steps. She stood in the doorway and stared at the naked male, relaxed and at ease with his unclothed state.

“I’m sorry. I still don’t remember anything, but I came to the conclusion you wouldn’t lie to me. Not about this.”

“Thanks.” Asia leaned against the doorjamb, trying not to focus on the family jewels. “I think.”

A slow grin crept across his face. He’d noticed exactly where she was looking.

“Wanna make up?” His dark brows waggled up and down. “How about it?”

“On one condition.”

“Which is?”

“That you never call me a fish again.” Asia folded her arms over her chest and met his gaze with a challenging one of her own. “Well?”

“Fair enough, since you insist I’m one too.”

Asia straightened and padded over to the bed. An arm snaked out, jerking her off balance. She landed with a soft oomph. He held her firmly, aligning their bodies until she felt every inch of him caressing her body.

Roman rolled without warning, grinning down at her.

“You’re an orca, the same as me. That’s part of why I didn’t push you about seeking medical treatment. We can’t see doctors in case our differences are noted. None of us want to be treated like lab rats.”

Roman traced his fingers across one breast, following the fine network of veins beneath her skin. His eyes were dark and serious when he looked at her again. “I can understand shapeshifters wanting to maintain secrecy. Do you think my conditioning kicked in and I instinctively refused medical attention?”

“Yeah. I do.”

“Why were we separated? Was there someone else involved? I noticed all my clothes are in the other bedroom.”

And the questions became harder and more difficult, the lie tightening around her neck like a noose. The clothes belonged to family members and some wouldn’t fit him. “I…” Asia shrugged helplessly, her stomach bucking up and down with nerves. The truth. She needed to tell him the truth. “We aren’t—”

Roman’s hand covered her mouth. “Wait. Let’s take this situation as a second chance. Maybe that’s why it’s happened. An omen.”

Asia’s breath eased out against the palm of his hand. Relief shot through her.

A second chance. Stupidly, she found herself nodding when she knew nothing good could come of taking the pretence further. Sooner or later Roman would regain his memory and find himself in bed with the enemy.

Purchase Currents Run Deep from Ellora’s Cave or Amazon Kindle

To read more Snippet Saturday excerpts follow the links below:

Shelley Munro
Vivian Arend
Taige Crenshaw
McKenna Jeffries
Lauren Dane
TJ Michaels
Ashley Ladd
Mandy Roth
Mari Carr

Some of my titles are now available on Kindle. Ellora’s Cave have a huge backlist of titles, and it’s taking a while, but all titles from A – C are now available at Amazon in Kindle format.

Several of my Middlemarch Mates series are now available on Kindle.

Here’s the link to my available Kindle titles – go forth and shop for Christmas!

The theme for this week is villains, and in particular a meeting between the main characters and the villain. My scene is from Currents Run Deep, an orca shapeshifter novella. This is the first encounter with the villains, and they don’t say anything during this quick meeting. In this scene Asia is meeting Roman for a date. They come from opposing tribes, and Asia is a little apprehensive yet excited as well. After all, what harm will one little date cause?

Currents Run Deep by Shelley Munro

Asia slipped out the side door and paused to allow her eyes to adjust to the dimmer light. At the far end of the small alley, illumination from a streetlamp spilled in from the main street. Asia heard the rumble of a car before it turned into the adjacent street and faded, leaving a throbbing silence.

Fumes from rotten food rose from the large rubbish bin between her and the exit of the alley. A shadow shifted, separating from the brick wall of the nightclub. Roman was waiting for her. A combination of relief and excitement fizzled through her veins. Asia paused to take a deep breath, knowing she was running a risk yet unable to withstand the temptation. A woman would need to be stark raving mad to turn down a date with Roman.

A metallic clang broke the night. A shout. The smack of fist against human flesh. Asia rounded the bin at a sprint and saw three dark-clad men attacking Roman.

“Hey!” she hollered. “Stop that!”

Two of the men paused while the third slammed a fist into Roman’s belly and kicked him viciously. Roman fell, his head colliding with the footpath with a sickening thump.

Asia rushed forward, screeching at the top of her voice. “Fire! Fire! Someone help. There’s a fire!”

One of the men spoke in a low, guttural voice—too low for Asia to catch the words. She kept running and almost turned her ankle in a pothole. Damn high heels!

“Fire!” she shouted, righting herself and ignoring the pain in her panic to stop them hurting Roman.

The three men melted into the darkness but not before one of them kicked Roman several times in the ribs. Asia leapt at him, ready to do some damage of her own, but he was too strong and thrust her away like an unwanted piece of litter. Her butt hit the footpath with enough force to jar her entire body. Jagged pain snaked up her spine, making her eyes water.

“Oh,” she muttered, moving gingerly to discover the extent of the damage. Bruised, she decided, but there was nothing broken.

The side door she’d exited through burst open, pummeling the brick wall with a bang. Excited voices neared from behind, and she heard the rapid retreat of footsteps. Bother and damn. They’d escape before anyone could do anything. She had no idea what they looked like either since they’d worn stocking ski masks to hide their faces.

Asia clambered to her feet and dragged her aching body over to Roman. A nasty gash on his forehead and another on his left cheekbone marred the previous perfection of his features. Blood dripped down his face from a cut above his eyes, giving him a grotesque appearance. Asia checked his pulse. Still breathing, but he didn’t seem conscious.

“Roman, can you hear me?”

Asia was aware he shouldn’t go to a hospital. The last thing any of them needed was a curious doctor or lab technician. The Resident Orcas probably had their own healer, the same as her tribe. Asia eased out a frustrated breath, wondering what to do. Damn, she couldn’t take Roman to their healer, either. That would be more dangerous than the hospital.

A groan dragged her mind away from the dilemma. His eyes flickered.

“Roman,” she whispered.

Purchase your copy here

Check out some of the other wonderful Snippet Saturday posts featuring villains by following the links below:

Leah Braemel
Victoria Janssen
Shelley Munro
Anya Bast
Cynthia Eden
SJ Day
Jaci Burton
Michelle Pillow
Juliana Stone
Moira Rogers
Sacha White
TJ Michaels
Lacey Savage
McKenna Jeffries
Jody Wallace
Eliza Gayle
Kelly Maher
Vivian Arend
Taige Crenshaw
Beth Williamson

In our local paper today I read that one in four owners of black vehicles are likely to have speeding convictions. The next color of car mostly likely to have speeding convictions were gray ones. Following that were silver, blue and brown. Well, the drivers of the cars have the speeding convictions, not the cars themselves! This info was collected by an insurance company in England. So, does this hold true for you or people you know?

Next week I have two wonderful guests visiting me. First there’s Helen Hardt on Monday and on Tuesday (Wednesday New Zealand time) debut New Zealand author Maree Anderson is visiting. And speaking of Marie, she did a post about Kiwi hunks this week. We grow some cuties down this end of the world. Check out her post and see if you agree with me.

I received my first review for Currents Run Deep. Here’s what JERR had to say: It’s not often that I get the chance to be so entertained by a story and enthralled by a book. This book is so well done that the line between you as the reader and the characters becomes blurred. I found myself in tears laughing as Asia was embroiled by many of the same situations that I often find myself in…a bossy mom, interfering siblings and lusting after the bad boy I shouldn’t….Currents Run Deep is the first book by Ms. Munro that I have had the pleasure to read. With this as an example, I can’t wait to explore more. 5 stars.

I watched the final episode of the first series of True Blood today. I’ve really enjoyed the series and think the writers, directors, producers and actors have done a great job translating the Sookie books to screen.

Here’s a question for the paranormal fans out there – do you think demons are the new vampires? Do you still enjoy vampire stories or do you look for a different paranormal creature to haunt your reading material?

The winners in May’s blog participation contest are:

Suzanne and Cheryl K
Congratulations! I’ve emailed you both about your prize.

When I used to work in an office and at the bank I wore makeup – usually the full works. These days I’m lucky if I manage lipstick. I always wear a moisturiser, and I choose one with a SP15 or more. The New Zealand climate is pretty unforgiving and a sunscreen is necessary during summer and winter. I have freckles popping out like…like… Actually I’m not sure what to compare these cheeky freckles with but there’s a lot of them.

I don’t even use perfume these days, preferring scented body lotions instead – namely Body Shop’s Body Butter. It’s my favorite.

I put on lipstick, tinted moisteriser and brushed on a mineral type powder when I went to the mall on Saturday. The lipstick tasted funny, and when I thought about it, I decided I’d had it for a while. It’s way past time for me to go through my makeup and toss most of it because it’s old!

I came across this online article about choosing a foundation. I thought it was quite helpful so I’m adding the link for you all to check out.

Do you wear makeup, and if so, which products do you use on a regular basis? If you had to choose one item of makeup to wear, what would it be? (Let’s say you’re on a desert island or some place similar)

Helen Hardt was nice enough to invite me to visit her blog. My interview is up today. Here’s the link to my interview about Currents Run Deep. Thanks, Helen!

It’s release day! Currents Run Deep comes out at Ellora’s Cave today.

A sultry nightclub singer accepts a date with the enemy in this Romeo and Juliet type plot. Two shifters from opposing tribes meet in unusual circumstances and find love…

Purchase, blurb and excerpt link.

And because I have the whole Romeo and Juliet theme going on, here’s an appropriate song and movie to celebrate my new release.

This month Christina Phillips and I are over at Coffee Time Romance. We’re taking part in Coffee Write. I’ve written the first paragraph in a paranormal space opera, and all you have to do is write a few lines to add to the story, taking it in any direction you like. To play along and have a chance to win a prize, you’ll need to register at the Coffee Time forum. It’s fairly painless and free. Christina is in charge while I’m away on holiday, so go over to Coffee Time and keep her company.

My father and sister suffer from hay fever. I’ve always thought I escaped this curse, but I’ve noticed during recent years that when I go outside, I get a runny nose. Mostly it’s not a problem, but it means when I’m riding my bike I sometimes have to breath through my mouth. Why is it that the minute I open my mouth all these kamikazi bugs fly right in? I swallowed two bugs today before I knew what hit me. Ack!! Does anyone else have this problem?

I have a new release out this week called Currents Run Deep. This is another shifter book, but instead of my normal felines I’ve ventured into orca whales. The story has a sort of Romeo and Juliet theme to it, or at least my take on two enemies getting together. Reader Fran Lee made a book trailer for my upcoming release. Thanks so much, Fran!

When hubby and I visited Vancouver Island last year we did a whale watching trip with Five Star Whale Watching. They have a blog where they post daily photos of their trips. The photos are of whales and also birds, seals and other scenery. I always enjoy my glimpse of nature. They mentioned a documentary on whales, which sounds really interesting. Here’s the trailer for it.