I
was very pleased when I finished writing The Gift of Surrender. It was
the sexy fantasy romance with a hint of bondage – a very twisted
yarn in the spirit of Lord of the Rings. I was very happy indeed. I
certainly wasn't planning on writing a sequel. But something bothered
me. Actually, two things bothered me. First, I am loathed to make my
characters suffer. It broke my heart to have to tear the Sons of
Ritvala (Prince Nikulainen and his half brothers) apart, because it
made Niku sad. I really hate making hot men sad. Secondly, I realized
that I couldn't allow the fall of Prince Armas to stand as a matter
of logic. King Magnus and Lady Reija had a household that was filled
with love and laughter. Despite the rivalry between the brothers and
the danger from Lady Reija's kin that threatened everything, the
three brothers were generally happy souls. I couldn't see Armas
remaining estranged from such a family forever.
A
few months after the release of The Gift of Surrender, the first
first scene of The Price of Surrender was popped into my brain demanding to be written. As often happens, I
see a scene in my head very clearly around which the whole story is
built. In this case, it was a scene from To Kill a Mockingbird that really scared me as a child
that inspired this one. I brought back the assassins from the first
book. This time, they are hunting Armas in a dark and spooky forest as he tries to reach safety
with Niku and Sarianna who are now rulers of her kingdom. In that frightening and nearly tragic scene, Sarianna and her two young children along with a
visiting royal are caught up in the attack. Prince Alkarin, Niku and
Sarianna's six year old son is the one who saves his mother and
sister. Princess Laurilla is saved by Armas who nearly dies in the
effort – thus launching another love story. That attack is only the
beginning of the danger that engulfs all of the surrounding Kingdoms
in a lethal, dark magic that no one has seen for generations.
Three
is excitement galore, for sure, but I really loved Price of
Surrender, because of the redemption of Armas and the reunion of the
brothers. My husband said that I would be content to write a book
where an interesting group of people simply hangs out together doing
nothing in particular. I admit that there is a lot of hanging out
amongst the characters, but this happens while many other things are
going on in the background. Armas has to recover from the assassin's
attack. He is barely on his feet when the vengeful queen behind the
attack arrives at Niku and Sarianna's realm for a conference of
rulers. Grave danger stalks everyone Armas loves, including the
princess who has claimed his heart.
This
book is my favorite book in many ways, because of the camaraderie of
the brothers, the budding romance between Armas and Laurilla and the ongoing romance between Niku and Sarianna six years and two children
after their marriage. In fact, the heat of romance is evident in
couples in two generations. I really enjoyed writing the humorous
banter as much as I enjoyed writing some very imaginative love
scenes. I actually found myself crying when I wrote the last pages. I
really hated to leave these characters.
But
don't take my word for it. Take a look at these sample chapters from
both books.
For
The Gift of Surrender, go HERE.
For
The Price of Surrender, go HERE:
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