A
Touch of Darkness
Key
Series, Book
One
Yelena
Casale and Tina Moss
Genre: Urban Fantasy / Paranormal
Romance
Publisher: City Owl Press
Date of Publication: 3/2/2015
ISBN: 978-0-9862516-0-3
ASIN: B00QJKUAUU
Number of pages: 295
Word Count: 75k
Cover Artist: Tina Moss
Book Description:
Cassie Durrett dreams of the
darkness. And lives the nightmare. She's working for a tightwad boss at a
pretentious NYC diner, dealing with paralyzing pain that doctors can’t
diagnose, and trying to hide her hands that glow purple whenever she ...well,
whenever.
So, when mystery man, Gabe, walks
out of her dreams and into her life to spout some nonsense about her being a
mythical creature, she chalks it up to one more crazy thing to add to her
it’s-a-crappy-life list. Yet, when his predictions start to come true, she'll
need his help to beat back the darkness-spawned creatures invading her reality.
Pretty soon Gabe has her running
half way across the country in search of answers. As a bond grows between them,
Cassie worries not about losing her mind to the paranormal madness, nor her
life to hellish monsters. Rather her deepest fear is surrendering her heart to
a powerful man fallen from grace.
FIRST
PLACE in 2014 Readers' Crown Award for urban fantasy.
FIRST
PLACE in Central Florida RWA's Touch of Magic
contest
for paranormal romance.
Available at
Excerpt
Cassie moaned as
the remnants of the attack wore off. She opened her eyes to stare into her
dream man’s gaze. Oh, just great. I need to dream about him again? Her body
already tingled with pleasure at the familiar vision. A trench coat molded to
his tall frame. Across his chest, droplets of water clung to a black shirt,
then dripped down to run over his dark jeans and heavy boots. Gabe. The name
came to her. How do I know his name’s Gabe? Reality flooded back with a
vengeance, the whole encounter snapping into focus as if the picture emerged
from a snowy TV. What she didn’t recall was what happened after and why this
man was now here, in her apartment.
Her gaze darted
around the room, looking for something to use as a weapon. Bookcases lined the
far wall with plenty of thick books inside, but she’d never make it past him to
reach the shelves. A tiny statue of a marble angel stood on top of the old TV
just a foot out of her reach. Next to the TV sat an opaque yellow vase with a
couple of long-stemmed white calla lilies. Neither the statue nor the vase, she
decided, would be adequate for the job. When she couldn’t find a satisfactory
weapon, she opened her mouth to yell.
Before she could
utter a sound, Gabe moved so fast she saw him in nothing more than a blur. His
hand covered her mouth and he breathed into her ear. “You fainted. I had to get
you home, off the street. Please don’t scream. I mean you no harm. I promise.”
As if to punctuate his last words, he took his hand away.
Cassie suppressed
the rising terror as she considered the situation and chose anger instead. She
narrowed her eyes and curled her hands into fists.
“How did you find
out where I live if I was unconscious?” she said, her body tensing in the fight
or flight response.
“Your wallet. I
went through it.”
“Oh...” Her hands
remained fisted.
“You’re a strong
woman, but you shouldn’t direct your anger at me.” He went to touch her shoulder,
but she flinched away. “Look,” he said. “There’s something we need to talk
about. But first tell me, how long have you had these headaches, this pain?”
“How do you know
about them?” Her voice raised an octave higher.
“I just know. I
also know what they mean. Do you?” He seemed eager to hear the answer.
“I’ve had these
episodes forever,” Cassie said, unsure why she answered him. “They’ve been
getting worse lately.” Her head titled to the side. “Are you a doctor or
something?”
“And have you ever
felt any other feelings or sensations during or after the headaches?” Gabe went
on, ignoring her last question.
“Yes...Maybe...But
how on earth would you know?”
“Tell me more,”
Gabe insisted, his voice flowing smooth like water.
She pressed her
lips together and shook her head. “Enough. I’m not telling you anymore until
you tell me what the hell is going on, who you are and what you want from me.”
Cassie heard him
whisper under his breath, “Easy...” It seemed more instructions to himself than
to her. She ignored it and waited for his answer.
“Cassie, I know
everything I’m going to say will sound crazy to you, but you’ve got to listen
to me. Haven’t you ever wondered at all the weird things happening to you over
the years, at the feeling you get with the headaches, the energy?” She was
about to interrupt but he raised his hand to silence her and continued, “This
is not going to be easy for you to understand but...there’s more to you than
you think.”
And I thought I
was crazy. Cassie started to tremble. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Well...you’re not
exactly...technically...you’re not...” He struggled with whatever he was trying
to get out.
“Just say it.”
Gabe locked his
gaze with hers. She didn’t look away. She couldn’t.
“You’re not
completely human.”
About the Authors
Yelena Casale is an award-winning
author of urban fantasy and paranormal romance. Born in Kiev, Ukraine, she
moved to New York at thirteen. Being very curious, she has been a devoted
reader and writer since childhood. As a 2nd degree black belt and instructor in
Shotokan karate, an avid traveler, and history and art enthusiast, she weaves
universal themes with martial arts philosophies into her stories. She lives
with her amazing, supportive husband and the best Siamese cats. In her spare
time, she reads, paints, watches cool shows on TV and tries to get more sleep.
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Tina Moss is an award-winning
author of urban fantasy, paranormal romance, romantic suspense, and New Adult
novels. She lives in NYC with a
supportive husband and alpha corgi, though both males hog the bed and refuse to
share the covers. When not writing, she enjoys reading, watching cheesy horror
flicks, traveling, and karate. As a 5'1" Shotokan black belt, she firmly
believes that fierce things come in small packages.
Interview
Please welcome A Touch of Darkness authors Yelena Casale and Tina Moss to Diane’s Book Blog.
If you were stranded on a desert island which
of your characters do you want by your side?
Yelena: I would say Rafe. He’s resourceful, hot and has a great sense
of humor.
Tina: I’m going with Cassie. She may be a city girl, but she loves
nature and I feel like she’d have some secret survival tricks.
What inspired you to write your first book?
Yelena: I have been writing since I was a child, but took a long break
from it by the time I met Tina. When we became friends and realized both of us
loved to write, we figured why not? We had a good idea and the passion to forge
ahead.
Tina: I wrote poetry first, then short stories, then picture books,
then plays, and finally in my twenties I gathered the courage to write a novel.
It was, however, years of life experiences that pushed me at last to write my
first book.
What books have most influenced your life?
Yelena: Reading was my first passion and I’m as passionate about it now
as I was when my parents and grandparents started reading me books when I was
little. I’ll name three books that have been some of the most influential in my
life: Master and Margarita by Michael Bulgakov, The Three Musketeers by
Alexander Dumas and The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. Books by
Jeanine Frost and Ilona Andrews were very inspirational to me in terms of
writing Urban Fantasy.
Tina: Too many to name. But, Tolkien’s classics, The Hobbit and Lord
of the Rings, definitely have stuck with me through the years. 1984 by Orwell,
Master and Margarita by Bulgakov, anything by Austen or Shakespeare, and all
the Greek myths are major sources of inspiration. Modern day works include
Rowling’s Harry Potter series (always and forever), and urban fantasy and
paranormal romance authors and powerhouses: Nalini Singh, Gena Showalter, J.R.
Ward, and those Yelena mentioned.
What is your typical day
like?
Yelena: I leave for work at 7 in the morning, read during my 1.5 hour
commute, go to the karate school where I train and teach (my hubby’s business)
after work and come home around 10 at night. I try to find time to write during
lunch breaks or while waiting to teach my classes. On the days that I get to go home early and on the weekends,
I write, catch up with my favorite TV shows and spend time with my hubby and two
Siamese kitties. It’s a very busy but fulfilling life.
Tina: Oh boy. Well, I work with students with learning disabilities,
so no day is ever truly “typical”. I face new and unique challenges daily. And
I love it! However, I work from 8am - 5:30pm at the day job, then I come home
and work. Work at home includes writing, graphic design, formatting, editing,
managing the operations for our publishing company, and studying for my
doctoral degree. Unfortunately, it doesn’t leave me much time for karate, so I
am non-practicing for the past few years. But, Yelena is trying to get me back
during the summer.
What book are you reading now?
Yelena: I just finished Burn For Me by Ilona Andrews, the first novel in
their brand new series. Now I am now reading Alienated by Melissa Landers, a YA
sci-fi novel.
Tina: Cursed by Evangeline Anderson. It is the thirteenth book in her
sci-fi romance series about the Kindred. If you haven’t checked out her books,
I HIGHLY recommend them. Fun, sexy, and steamy romance in space.
Do you have anything specific that you want to
say to your readers?
Yelena: We love you and appreciate you more than we can say.
Tina: You rock! We’d love for you to join Team Ninja, so we can thank
you with giveaways just for our ninjas. :D http://www.tinamoss.com/p/street-team.html
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Thank you for having us on today!
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