2024 COVERS

2024 covers

Welcome to the Dark Side!

We are writers mainly from Australia and New Zealand who write speculative fiction with romantic elements. Be it fantasy, paranormal, dark urban fantasy, futuristic and everything in between.

Tuesday 31 October 2017

DarkSider News for October - part four!


Welcome to more DarkSider News on this Halloween day!

Click the links to view October News part onepart two and part three.



NEW RELEASES

Breaking Ice by Delwyn Jenkins is book two of The Jendari series. It was published by Evernight Publishing on the 26th September.



When Winter Nayar goes undercover to expose the Humans for Earth Coalition, she doesn’t expect to discover a kidnapped alien. Jeopardizing herself and her story, she helps him escape—and complicates her world in ways she could never imagine.

Kasim Ta’nehr is desperate to get out of the hell-hole lab. He has no reason to trust Winter, but he’s in no position to save himself. Wary of being lured into a trap, he has no choice but to join forces with her.

It’s not long before he realizes Winter is something special. Smart, sexy, and generous—she’s everything Kasim longs for but knows he can never have. His scars run too angry and too deep to risk any kind of emotional intimacy. Keeping his heart cold and frozen is the only way Kasim survives. He can’t afford to break the ice—not even for the woman he’s grown to love.




Details of book one, Tempting Flame is in the Previous 2017 Releases section. 



Non-speculative fiction title

Home for Christmas by Fiona Greene is featured in the anthology A Very Country Christmas. It was published by MIRA on the 1st October.



This collection of heart-warming Australian stories is full of the joys of the season and guaranteed   to brighten your Christmas.

Home For Christmas is for the FIRST time in Print.

When Sergeant Tate McAuliffe, stationed in Afghanistan, opens his Christmas care package from Australia, he is stunned by both its contents and the sender, Layla Preston. Little could Layla know that this impersonal-but-cheerful holiday gift is set to be the start of something big…


Buy links are available from Harlequin Australia.





PRE-ORDERS

Non-speculative fiction title

Nothing to Fear by Claire Boston is book one of The Blackridge Novels. It is expected to be published by Bantilly Press on the 18th November.



The gifts were innocent… at first.

All Hannah Novak wants to do is to live a simple life, but her traumatic past refuses to let go. Her trust in men is at an all-time low, but when she becomes the target of a dangerous stalker she’s forced into close proximity with the sexy new cop in town.

Ryan Kilpatrick has travelled across the country to get away from his manipulative ex-wife. Now, all he wants is to build a stable, loving home for his son. The last thing he needs is to be attracted to the secretive Hannah but he’s duty-bound to protect her.

As the stalker’s gifts turn nasty, and time is running out, Hannah must face her fears and learn to trust again. Because if she doesn’t, she may not get a second chance.



Pre-order links are being added to Claire's website.





PREVIOUS 2017 RELEASES


Tempting Flame by Delwyn Jenkins is book one of The Jendari series. It was published by Evernight Publishing on the 3rd May (initially as DJ Michaels).



Jasmine Teale will do anything for the sick kids she works for, including handcuffing herself to the security desk at Hope Towers – headquarters of the newly-arrived aliens. When a Jendari warrior decides to handle her demonstration personally, Jasmine realizes she’s in way over her head. 

Tallis Ba’reah has no interest in the humans whose planet his people now share, and he’s done with the endless anti-alien protests. Until he confronts a soft, sexy, protest-of-one and he becomes far more interested than he should be. Interspecies relationships are forbidden, and Tallis does his best to avoid temptation. But when Jasmine is put at risk because of her ties to him, he’s forced to admit his heart is in charge – not his head. 

Tallis may not be able to claim her for his own, but he’ll do whatever it takes keep her safe. 






Non-speculative fiction titles

Anna Hackett has published book four, five and six of the Treasure Hunter Security series in 2017.

Finding undiscovered treasures is always daring, dangerous, and deadly. Perfect for the men and women of Treasure Hunter Security.

Unfathomed is book four and was published on 24th January.


Long, tall, and deadly Morgan Kincaid enjoys her job at Treasure Hunter Security. Raised by a tough Marine father, she loves her guns and knives, and never backs down from a fight. She’s yet to find a man who can keep up with her and after a string of first dates, she’s not feeling hopeful. Assigned to an underwater archeological expedition on the trail of a long-lost shipwreck, Morgan finds herself protecting the very hard, delicious body of a certain globe-trotting archeologist. A smart rogue with a wide smile and a boat-load of charm.

Dr. Zachariah James has information leading to a shipwreck filled with history and treasure. After growing up with nothing, he’s forged a stellar career for himself, but history is more than just a job, it’s his lifeblood. So Zach is amazed to find himself as excited by a woman as he is by his dive. Dangerous Morgan fascinates him, and he’s eager to see what she’s hiding under her tough exterior.

As they dive the azure waters off the coast of Madagascar, they uncover a sizzling attraction and clues to an impossible artifact, but soon they are under attack by dangerous black-market thieves. Among traitors, kidnappings, and ancient temples, Zach and Morgan will need to put everything on the line to have any chance at surviving.


Untraveled is book five and was published on 7th August.



After a mission gone terribly wrong, former Navy SEAL Hale Carter has made a good career for himself at Treasure Hunter Security. He gets to use his engineering skills designing new gadgets, his SEAL skills providing security for exciting expeditions and treasure hunts, and he enjoys a variety of ladies on his downtime. He might still be plagued by nightmares, but all in all, life is good. Then he volunteers for a dangerous undercover mission into the Kalahari Desert, alongside a cool, attractive FBI agent who challenges him at every turn.

Special Agent Elin Alexander is driven to bring down the deadly black-market antiquities ring Silk Road. She's experienced firsthand how they destroy lives and she's vowed to end their greed and killing. After months of undercover work, she's eager for the mission to find the Lost City of the Kalahari. What she wasn't expecting was six-feet-three inches of former Navy SEAL as her partner. Hale is too handsome, too sexy, and isn't inclined to follow orders.

As the pair infiltrate the Silk Road hunt, Hale and Elin find themselves fighting a scorching attraction as they work to discover just what the lost city is hiding. But stuck in the bowels of a legendary ancient mine, Hale and Elin must put their trust in each other, to not only save the day, but to get out alive.


Unmapped is book six and was published on 5th September.



Former Navy SEAL and CIA agent Ronin Cooper is used to living his life in the darkness. A loner by nature, he enjoys his work at Treasure Hunter Security, stays busy on the road, and never lets anyone too close. That is until he notices a mystery redheaded woman spying on him and his colleagues. Then he finds himself sucked into a dangerous rescue mission to Antarctica with a fiery, outspoken woman who pushes every one of his buttons.

Peri Butler will do anything to save her sister. The experienced polar guide knows the deadly black-market antiquities ring, Silk Road, has her twin, but Peri isn’t sure who she can trust. She wants to believe Treasure Hunter Security can help, and soon finds herself facing off with the dark, intense, enigmatic Ronin.

As their mission takes them into the frigid ice and snow of Antarctica, Peri and Ronin’s intense attraction generates a lot of heat. Drawn irresistibly closer, they work to track down Silk Road and Peri’s sister, but what they find buried in the ice could threaten everything. Ronin will sacrifice it all to protect Peri, while she will take every risk, not only to save her sister, but to break through the protective shell around Ronin’s heart.


Buy links for the series are available at Anna's website.




Place to Belong by Claire Boston is book four of The Flanagan Sisters series. It was  published by Bantilly Publishing on the 20th January.



Sean Flanagan has spent a lifetime alone and rejected, constantly hiding who he really is.
With a father who deserted him and a mother who despised him, Sean didn’t think things could get much worse … until he was kicked out of home for being gay. Now he’s discovered he has three half-sisters on the other side of the world. This might be his last chance to find people who will love and accept him. But he’s terrified that if they find out who he really is then they’ll reject him like the rest of his family.

Sean arrives in Houston and is stunned by the warm welcome he receives from his sisters. He begins to hope that maybe this time things will be different. That’s when he meets Hayden Johnson. To follow his heart means risking everything with his newfound family.

Hayden is tired of endless dating. He’s looking for a man to love, someone to spend the rest of his life with. His boss’s new brother ticks all the boxes on the attraction scale, but there’s just one problem – he’s not gay.

Will Sean let his fears rule him, or will he let in the chance of love and find a place where he belongs?


Buy links available from Claire's website. 



You can now also get The Flanagan Sisters by Claire Boston as an omnibus collection with all four books in it.



Buy links available from Books2Read.








WEBSITE UPDATES


Updated pages since the last DarkSider News: D.D. Line, Daniel de Lorne, Cheryse Durrant, Anna Hackett, Peta Crake, Nicola E. Sheridan, Fiona Greene, Claire Boston, Delwyn Jenkins, and S.E. Gilchrist.



Congratulations to all our DarkSiders!

Have a Spook-tacular Halloween!


Saturday 28 October 2017

Darklight On ... Shelley Russell Nolan

Today's Darklight is on ... Shelley Russell Nolan

Welcome, Shelley



A Fascination with Death

On the 1st October I published the third book in my Reaper Series, Silver Reaper, which continues the story of a young woman who is recruited by the Grim Reaper after she is murdered. In return for being resurrected, she must work for him as a reaper, and soon discovers her new boss has a hidden agenda that could make her second chance at life short lived.

I feel I have now completed Tyler’s storyline and am ready to work on other projects, but apparently my fascination with stories that include resurrection or rebirth in some form is a strong element in much of my writing. I have the first book in a YA series written that also has my main character dying in the first chapter. Mattie is lucky in that it is a handsome young scientist who revives her, but like Tyler she has to struggle to cope with the changes brought about by her second chance at life.

The concept of life after death also makes a small appearance in another story of mine, due to be published in 2018. So, what is it that draws me to write about characters coming back from the dead?

I had a long think about it and realised that for me it is more about redemption and second chances than the actual death of the character. It is a way of jolting them out of their comfort zone and forcing them to realise they now have a choice. They can go back to their old life or they can find the strength within themselves to move on and seize the opportunity to become the person their old life was preventing them from becoming. It’s about finding their true selves, being happy with who they are and not who they, or those around them, think they should be.

I’ve also realised the theme of redemption plays a part in all of my stories, even when I’m not killing the main character in the first couple of pages.

So, what about you? Do you have a recurring theme that plays out in all of your stories, or do you pick and choose according to each individual project? 

If you'd like to win a paperback copy of Silver Reaper, click here to enter the Goodreads Giveaway!
Good luck!



Silver Reaper Blurb

How far would you go to save those marked for Death? 

When the call to reap uncovers a new threat to Easton and its inhabitants, Tyler is drawn back into a world she thought she’d left behind. 

Forced to face her greatest fears, she seeks to uncover the identity of the rogue reaper murdering men employed by her former ally. But the search leads her to a conspiracy decades in the making. 

With the line between friends and enemies blurring, Tyler begins to question her loyalties as she fights to stop the storm threatening to engulf Easton. But when the Grim Reaper offers the last hope, death might be the least of her problems. 

Who can Tyler trust when even her allies want her dead?

Buy Links:  Amazon AU / Amazon US

About the Author: Facebook / Website / Goodreads / Twitter

~~~

Thanks, Shelley


Monday 23 October 2017

DarkSider News for October - part three!


Welcome to another DarkSider News for October! 
This is part three. 

Click the links to view part one and part two  





NEW RELEASES

Ash by Anna Hackett is book 14 in the Hell Squad series. It was Indie Published on the  3rd October.


In the middle of an alien invasion, will the bad boy berserker catch the geeky tech genius?

Computer genius Marin Mitchell is doing her part to help humanity survive the raptor invasion, working tirelessly to decrypt alien data. She spends her days working and drooling over a certain tattooed, biker berserker from Squad Three. But Marin knows the rules: geeks do not snag sexy bad boys. She spends her nights playing her favourite computer game where she is a kick-butt badass, and a match for her mysterious online fight partner, SuperSoldier3.

A member of the Squad Three berserkers, Ash Connors knows that whenever he reaches for something good, life slaps him back down. He gave up on his dreams a long time ago, and instead, focused on running his motorcycle club with his best friend. But after the alien invasion, he does what he does best, fight and take down the aliens. When cute, smart, and sweet Marin catches his eye, he tries to steer clear, but can't seem to stay away...online or in real life.

When Marin discovers information about a central alien data hub, her skills are needed to hack into the system. That means a deadly mission deep underground, right into the heart of alien territory. That throws her right into Ash's tattooed arms. As the sexy berserker fights to keep her safe, he also vows to show Marin that while she might follow the rules, he likes to break them.

Note to readers: This sci fi romance contains a lot of action (dangerous missions and deadly aliens), tough warriors (the badass berserkers of Squad Three) and a steamy romance (lots of sexy times between a sexy former biker and a smart, geeky gamer). So if you like it fast, and gritty, and sexy, this is for you!


Available from Amazon US | Amazon Aus




Army Boots and Stilettos by Carlie Simonsen is the first book in the Space Adventures series. It was published by C.M. Simpson Publishing on 20th October.




Cord thought boarding school was a long way from home—until she was chosen for a traineeship with Bluebirds Mining. After that, who knew where home might be? Or how to get back to it? Or even if she could. With her mind playing tricks on her, and her best friend in the same boat, Cord is in it, but deep. Now, all she has to do is find a way out.



Available from Smashwords | Amazon US | Amazon Aus 



Inheritance of the Blood by Imogene Nix was published by Loves Books Publishing on the 1st October.


In the darkness evil waits... 

As a young bride Kira was whisked away from everything and everyone she knew, including her new husband and became Christina, an operative of the Displaced Persons Unit.

As the danger grows she sees an opportunity to save her husband Vasya and sister Serina. But nothing is the same. Serina is grown up—married and pregnant.

Vasya too is older and darkly forbidding. Trusting Christina doesn't come easily until a catastrophic event takes place. Now, knowing the truth everything he thought he knew is changed. But at a very high cost.

The four must work together to defeat the Demon, Zuor and the stakes are higher than they imagined and all could be lost.


Buy links available from Imogene's website.





Secrets, Spells, & Murder by Janni Nell is book one of the Little Shop of Spells series. It was published by BOCHOK Publishing on the 22nd September.



Small-town witch, Maddie Goodcharm, is in trouble. Someone is hexing the inhabitants of Silver Moon Falls and Maddie is the main—make that only—suspect. When one of the townspeople dies in suspicious circumstances, Maddie is accused of murder.

With the help of her friend, Autumn, Maddie struggles to clear her name. But facing a murder charge isn’t her only problem. Sometimes spells go wrong and Maddie has accidentally bespelled a hiker. Jason’s not in a good place, literally, and Maddie has to come up with a reversal spell ASAP. Which she can’t do if she’s in prison. The only way out of her dilemma is to find the real murderer.

Now Maddie is on the trail of a killer and magic may be the only thing that will save her.


Available from: Amazon US | Amazon Aus | Google Play | Kobo





COVER LOVE

The Magician's Keeper by Nicola E. Sheridan will be published by Escape Publishing on the 4th November.


A brand new steamy paranormal romance about learning to love all of yourself.

In a world where people judge one another by exacting standards of size and style, being a big girl like Eudora Splat was never going to be easy.

Though trouble is brewing between magic folk and human purists who would see them all destroyed, Dora, a half-giant, tries to eke out a quiet, unnoticed life for herself, but it’s hard to be subtle when you’re over seven feet tall.

Losing her job as a gardener due to human complaints, Dora is recruited as a prison guard, where she’s enlisted to protect the magician Evander “Bear” Gordon from human purist attack. Bear encourages her to embrace her power and celebrate her heritage, introducing her to a world where she can be extraordinary and not just weird.

But after years of hiding and shying away, can Dora find the strength to grab onto a new life — and hold on to the man she’s falling in love with?


Read an excerpt here

Buy links are available from Escape Publishing



Beast by Anna Hackett is book 7 in the Galactic Gladiators series. It will be Indie Published on the 31st October.


Beast man. Blue. Vek. Our next Galactic Gladiators book stars the wild, blue-skinned alien rescued from the underground fight rings and small, blonde spaceship pilot Mia.


Read an excerpt


See the three previous releases in this series below in the previous 2017 releases section...




PREVIOUS 2017 RELEASES


The Contract by Ellie Moonwater is the first book in the Mentraden Training Centre series. It was released in July by C.M. Publishing.




Blackmailed into a course on being a submissive, Eunice plans to do everything she can to keep her mother and sister safe from her greedy employer, but when she encounters the Mentraden brothers, she discovers not only a whole new world, but a whole new meaning for the word ‘trust’. The only question is: Can she trust them to look after her the way dominants should, and, more importantly, can she trust them to save her family, too?

WARNING: The Contract contains light bondage, slave-capture fantasy, multiple partners, bondage, and explicit, kinky and consensual sex. It is not suitable for readers under 18 years of age.


Available from: Amazon US (print) | Amazon Aus | Smashwords



Blood Chance by Mel Teshco is a novella that was revised and published by Totally Bound on the 1st August.


To save her dying mother, Kia must suppress her loathing of everything vampire to track down the oldest and most deadly bloodsucker of them all.

All dhampir Kia Montana has left in the world is her mortal mother, and Kia will do everything in her power to save her mum from dying. She sets off to track down the Ancient One, Sean Maximillus. He is the one and only vampire capable of reversing her mother’s condition.

Instead she finds Ronan, a gorgeous and mysterious man who promises to take her to the Vampire Lord…after he’s taken her to bed. But Ronan seems to know too much about Kia—things she never told him, and she is soon drawn deeper into his world, where he will reveal secrets that will change her life forever.


Available from:  Totally Bound | Amazon US | Amazon Aus | Google Play | iBooks | Kobo | B&N



Dead Lady Vanishing by Janni Nell is book two of the Bolde and Baulsey Mystery series. It was published by BOCHOK Publishing on the 22 February.


I’m Natasha Bolde and I see ghosts, well one ghost anyway: Clover Skye Baulsey, PI. In life, she was my best friend and mentor. In death, she’s been my rock, my conscience, my shelter. I’d follow her anywhere, but I really wish I hadn’t followed her to Britain’s Wildfinch Hall, because that’s where she disappeared.

The last thing she did was call for my help. Since I don’t know much about the spirit world I called Joe Nettleford, who moonlights as a ghost hunter. He’s good as what he does, but it’s kind of awkward since I refused to date him. So now I’m not sure what’s going to be more difficult: working with Joe or untangling the secrets of Wildfinch Hall and its ghosts. Still I’d better find a way to succeed at both. If I don’t, I’ll never see Clover again.


Buy links available from Janni's website.  


Catopia by J.L. Addicoat was Indie published on 28 June.



How far would you go for the one you love?

Conrad longs to give his wife the child she desperately craves. Rendered infertile by a mutated virus in early childhood, Conrad has undergone numerous tests and trials only to fail time after time.
Learning of an experimental fertility serum trial taking place at the University where he works, he races to the department to be placed on the list. Finding no one around, he locates the serum and injects himself.

What could possibly go wrong?


Buy links are available from J.L's  website.




Starline, with bonus novella The Star of Ishtar
 by Imogene Nix is book 1 of Warriors of the Elector series. It was Indie Published on 1st May and is a reissue.



One man, one woman, one psychotic alien. The race is on to save humanity. Past, present, and future.

Mellissa Davis is your average bookstore owner and aspiring romance author until one day an electronic bookpad slides through the mail slot of her small store. Now all she has to worry about is a sexy, time-traveling stealth ship captain, staying out of the way of the bad guy, and saving the universe. Not much to ask...

Duvall McCord, an up-and-coming space captain, travels to the past to stop the Ru'Edan leader's plans to destroy the Earth Empire before it can be formed. His mission? Retrieve the handbook for the Elector. He doesn't count on saving a woman who intrigues him or having to bring her back to his time in order to keep her safe.

Time is running out. They must do whatever they can to stop the plot, but will it be enough


Buy links are available from Imogene's website



Protector by Anna Hackett is book 4 in the Galactic Gladiator series. It was Indie Published on the 26th February.


Fighting for love, honor, and freedom on the galaxy’s lawless outer rim… 

Cool and driven Madeline Cochran made a successful career for herself as civilian commander of a space station orbiting Jupiter…until the day it was attacked and she was abducted by alien slavers. 

Her organized existence shattered, Madeline suffered during her captivity, but since her rescue by the tough gladiators of the House of Galen, she’s struggling to assimilate to her new life. As she navigates the desert world of Carthago and the gladiator city of Kor Magna, she desperately misses her teenage son back on Earth and throws herself into finding another human, space marine Blaine, still kept captive by the slavers. She also finds herself working harder than ever to avoid a certain charming showman gladiator who is far too attractive and far too tempting. 

Gladiator Lore Uma-Xilene is a protector at heart and a sucker for a damsel in distress…although he’s well aware that the hard-shelled and sad-eyed Madeline wouldn’t appreciate the title. He knows what it feels like to be ripped from the family you love and have your life destroyed, and he wants to help Madeline heal. As the two of them go undercover into the dangerous world of underground gambling, Lore knows he’ll need all his patience, passion, and a whole lot of stubbornness to not only keep Madeline safe but to melt the icy shell around her heart. 




Champion by Anna Hackett is book 5 in the Galactic Gladiator series. It was Indie Published on the 26th March.


Fighting for love, honor, and freedom on the galaxy’s lawless outer rim…

Space marine Blaine Strong enjoyed being a composed, controlled member of space station security…until he was abducted by alien slavers. Forced into underground fight rings and pumped full of drugs, he’s now seething with anger and out for revenge.

Rescued by gladiators and fellow humans on the desert world of Carthago, Blaine is fighting to be the man he once was. But when the House of Galen is attacked, he must focus on joining the gladiators to fight back. That means teaming up with a tough, competitive female gladiator who not only challenges him at every turn, awakens a fierce desire he’s never felt before, but a woman who can sense the churning emotions inside him.

Gladiator Saff Essikani is the best net fighter in the Kor Magna Arena. Raised from young to fight, she bows to no man and uses her empathic abilities to win at whatever cost. With her House targeted and people under their care threatened, she’ll stop at nothing to find those responsible. But then she finds herself face to face with a big, tortured man from Earth who affects her like no man before. As Saff and Blaine head into the desert to uncover a conspiracy, their incendiary desire flares hotter than the desert suns. But as Blaine’s angry emotions rage out of control, Saff knows that unless he learns to embrace the man he is now, he has no chance of survival.


Barbarian by Anna Hackett is book 6 in the Galactic Gladiator series. It was Indie Published on the 26th June.



Abducted by alien slavers, experimented on, and left blind, the last thing doctor Winter Ashworth needs is a big barbarian gladiator in her life, especially an annoying one who thinks she’s small and weak.

Rescued by gladiators on the desert world of Carthago, Winter is doggedly working to embrace her new life. But two of her friends are still missing and she’ll do anything to help get them back…even if she has to work alongside Nero Krahn: hunter, barbarian, gladiator. The scowly, brooding man is too big, has too many muscles, and pushes all her buttons.

Nero is the House of Galen’s best hunter and tracker. Raised on a barbarian world, where strength and might are prized, he was bred to hunt and fight. Now the arena is his home and his loyalty is to his imperator. He knows he can use his skills to find the two lost women, even if that means protecting a small blind woman who takes every chance to misjudge his words and lash him with her sharp tongue.

But as they follow a dangerous trail to save their friends, a new enemy emerges—one who wants Winter. The pair find themselves reluctantly attracted to each other, uncovering a scorching desire that shocks them both. As Nero fights to protect Winter, the barbarian gladiator will discover the true meaning of strength from the small Earth woman he wants to claim as his.


Buy links for each Galactic Gladiators title is available on Anna's website.




WEBSITE UPDATES



Updated pages since the last DarkSider News: Carlie SimonsenEleanor Maine, Ellie Moonwater, Madeleine TorrImogene Nix, Mel TeshcoNicole Strickland, and J.L. Addicoat.




Congratulations to all our DarkSiders!

Tuesday 17 October 2017

DarkSider News - more for October!


Welcome to more DarkSider News for October!


NEW RELEASES



Fate in the Sun by C.M. Simpson is a science fiction short story. It is Indie Published by C.M. Simpson Publishing on 6th October.



On Canon V, the colonists live underground—those that can, anyway. Those that are born unable, I help guide to the surface, and then I try to warn them of the creatures that come from beyond the rifts. Some listen. Most run away screaming. With the creatures coming more often, the last thing any of us expected was for corporate intervention. Now, we just have to work out if they’re offering a deal worth taking, or if we’d be better off in the caves.





Chasing Taz by Khloe Wren is the third book in the Charon MC series.  It was Indie Published on 3rd October.


The dramatic conclusion to the Charon MC Trilogy is here…

He lived his life one conquest at a time. She calculated her every move… until she met him.

Former Marine Donovan ‘Taz’ Lee might appear to be a carefree Aussie bloke living it up as a member of the Texan motorcycle club, Charon MC, but the truth is so much more complicated. With blood and tears haunting his past and threatening to destroy his future, Taz is completely unprepared for the woman of his dreams, when she comes in and knocks him on his ass. Literally.
Felicity “Flick” Vaughn joined the FBI to get answers behind her brother’s dishonorable discharge and abandonment of his family. Knowing Taz was a part of her brother's final mission, she agrees to partner with him to go after a bigger club, The Satan’s Cowboys MC.
However, nothing in life is ever simple and Flick is totally unprepared to have genuine feelings for the sexy Aussie. When secrets are revealed and their worlds are busted wide open, will they be strong enough to still be standing when the dust settles?


Available from Amazon | Amazon Aus | iBooks | Kobo | B&N | Google Play

You can also see the first two books in the trilogy below in the previous 2017 releases section.




Grave Robbing Gone to Hell by Cassandra L. Shaw is the second book in the Grave Robber series.  It was Indie Published in October. 


Available from: Amazon USAmazon Aus





PRE-ORDERS

Cloud Door by C.M. Simpson is a science fiction short story set in the Mack and Me universe. It will be Indie Published by C.M. Simpson Publishing, expected on 3rd November.




So, we’ve done this job, and I’m checking our tails are clear, and I find they’re not—and then I find the only way to kick clear is to find the Cloud Door. Only trouble is the Cloud Door’s a legend, and Mack? Well, he’s not too fond of chasing legends. Fortunately, this one’s a no-brainer: we want to live, and that’s got to be enough to make anyone chase a legend, right?


Pre-order at: Smashwords | iBooks | Amazon US | Amazon Aus





PREVIOUS 2017 RELEASES

Since we missed out on some of our releases during the year, we'll will continue to feature some every issue.


Ashes Reborn by Keri Arthur is the fourth book in the Souls of Fire series.  It was released in September by Berkeley Books (US) / Piatkus (UK).


 


The next blazing-hot installment of the Souls of Fire series from the New York Times bestselling author of Flameout

The clock is ticking as Emberly--a phoenix capable of taking human form--races to take revenge against the sadistic and mysterious Rinaldo. The elusive rebel leader threatens to keep killing until he is given all of the research about a plaguelike virus derived from vampire blood.

Forced to reach out to the Paranormal Investigations Team for help, Emberly and her partner, Jackson, must decide who to trust as they follow the trail of dead bodies. When classified information is leaked and their safe house is ambushed, Emberly's suspicions are confirmed--someone at PIT has betrayed them.

A final battle looms and Emberly will need to command all her powers--or watch the world turn to ash....

***Trigger Warning: Rape Scene***


Buy links are available from Keri's website. 



Necessary Alpha by Khloe Wren is a short story and is book 4.5 in the Fire & Snow series. 



These shifter mates must fight together to save their Leap family from its evil Alpha. 

Shifter male Finn has spent his last year unsuccessfully searching the globe for his destined mate. Now Finn has returned home to England, and despite his parents warning him to stay away from the Devon Leap with its nasty Alpha, Alastair, Finn knows he must search the area for his one and only.
Choden, the original shifter, approaches Finn to tell him that he’s certain Finn's true mate is indeed inside the Devon Leap. He also tells Finn he’s destined to be the next Alpha of the Devon Leap, and as such, he must act quickly to not only save his mate, but the whole leap from devastation. For Alastair is more than nasty, he is evil to his soul. He has taken to killing his own shifters to steal their mates for himself.

Shifter female Brooke is over waiting for someone to come to her Leap’s rescue. Her cousin has fallen victim to the cruel alpha, and if no one else has the courage to defy Alastair, Brooke will do it herself. But when he uses his power to freeze her in place, Brooke is trapped. Will Finn and Choden arrive in time to save her from Alastair's foul plans?

And can the three work together to save their leap?

(This book is set after Fire and Snow Series Book four, Fierce Guardian, however it can be read as a stand alone story.)


Buy links are available from Khloe's website.




From Ferret with Love by Astrid Cooper is book nine in the Monsters Ink series.  It was released in January by eXtasy Books.


Love will find a way. Star-crossed mates, torn apart by enemies, find that the cost of love may be too high.

Fabian, a ferret-shifter with wolven blood, takes a walk on the wild side and is rescued by Ashley, a cop who would rather go home alone to his cat, than play nursemaid to a runaway. Soul-mate recognition intervenes. When Fabian’s alpha, together with the pack enforcer, arrive to drag Fabian home, a deadly battle ensues – one that leaves Fabian soul-wounded and Ashley destroyed.
Three years later, Fabian Ferret, private investigator for the blood-kin, is summoned to Monsters inK to work a cold case.

Left for dead by unknown assailants, Ashley has slowly recovered, but has no memory of the events leading up to his bashing. He has found a new life as a member of Monsters inK.

When Fabian and Ash are re-united, Ashley doesn’t remember his mate, and Fabian knows that to reveal the truth will set Ash free, but damn Fabian and their love forever. Ash decides that the little shifter is too much trouble, but Fabe has ingenious ways to ferret out the truth. So begins a teasing and dangerous game of seduction – one that may see them united or divided by love.


Available from eXtasy Books | Amazon US | Amazon Aus | iBooks 





Alien Resistance by Marie Dry is book four in the Zyrgin Warriors series.  It was released 2nd June by Black Opal Books.



In a bleak future where government systems are breaking down and poverty and violence reign, Madison Johnson is about to qualify as a doctor, after years of study and backbreaking work, in order to keep the promise she made to her dying sister, only to have an arrogant alien take over the hospital and decree that she would no longer be allowed to practice medicine. Hassled by the resistance group that’s trying to recruit her and exhausted from working impossible hours, Madison struggles to convince the disturbingly sexy alien, who always watches her, to let her be a doctor. As she and Viglar grows closer, Madison worries that she’s falling in love with one of the aliens who caused her brother’s disappearance—an alien who does not know how to love…






Non spec fiction releases... MC Love...

Inking Eagle by Khloe Wren is the first book in the Charon MC series.  It was released in April and was Indie Published.




The sins of her father will be her undoing… unless a hero rides to her rescue. 

As the 15th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks nears, Silk struggles to avoid all reminders of the day she was orphaned. She's working hard in her tattoo shop, Silky Ink, and working even harder to keep her eyes and her hands off her bodyguard, Eagle. She'd love to forget her sorrows in his strong arms.
But Eagle is a prospect in the Charon MC, and her uncle is the VP. As a Daughter of the Club, she's off limits to the former Marine. But not for long. As soon as he patches in, he intends to claim Silk for his old lady. He'll wear her ink, and she'll wear his patch.
Too late, they learn that Silk's father had dark secrets, ones that have lived beyond his grave. When demons from the past come for Silk, Eagle will need all the skills he learned in the Marines to get his woman back safe, and keep her that way.


Buy links are available from Khloe's website. 



Fighting Mac by Khloe Wren is the second book in the Charon MC series.  It was released in June and was Indie Published.


She’s no sleeping beauty, but then he’s no prince—just a biker warrior to the rescue.

For the past three years Claire ‘Zara’ Flynn has been at the mercy of narcolepsy and cataplexy attacks. But after she witnesses a shooting by the ruthless Iron Hammers MC, her problems get a whole lot worse. She’s now a marked woman, on the run for her life.

Former Marine Jacob ‘Mac’ Miller has a good life with the Charon MC. He works in the club gym and teaches self-defense classes - in hopes of saving other women from the violent death his sister suffered. When the pretty new waitress at a local cafe catches his attention, he wants her in his bed. But there’s a problem. She’s clearly scared of all bikers. Wanting to help her, he talks her into coming to his class. Mac soon realizes he wants to keep her close in more ways than one. But can he, when his club’s worst enemies come after her?

When Zara disappears, Mac and his brothers must go to war to get her back. Because this time, she wakes up in a terrible place… surrounded by other desperate women, and guarded by the Iron Hammers MC. Can her leather-clad prince ride to the rescue in time to save her from hell?


Buy links are available from Khloe's website. 




Hooked by Christina Phillips is the first book in the Viking Bastards MC series.  It was released in February by Entangled Publishing.



Zach…



I like my sex dirty and disposable. I'm not into commitment or chicks who want more than one night. My brothers and club come first, second and last.

Until she walks into my life. Classy, rich and so out of my league it's crazy. A week together should get her out of my system, but this good girl is so bad when we're all alone and I can't get enough of her.

I don't do forever, but she's hooked me so bad I don't ever want to let her go. Except there's no way a princess can live in my world and I sure as hell won't live in hers...

Available from: Amazon  |  Amazon Aus | iBooks  |  B&N  |  Kobo  ~ also available in Print



Payback by Christina Phillips is the second book in the Viking Bastards MC series. It was released in May by Entangled Publishing.



Gage…

I don't fuck girls who work for me, but as soon as Amelia turns those big green eyes on me I know she's trouble. I can't keep my hands off her, and the almost-but-not-quite-sex we share in the kitchen is the hottest thing I've ever had. Except she calls it quits, before we've even started.

Instead of moving on, she’s all I can think about and that's bad news. I'm breaking all my rules for her, and don't even care.

Until I find out who she is and what she really wants. She's after payback, but there's no way she's going to get it. No way in hell...


Available from: Amazon  |  Amazon Aus | iBooks  |  B&N  |  Kobo  ~ also available in Print




WEBSITE UPDATES



We continue updating pages on the website. You can find updated pages for Shelley Russell NolanEleni Konstantine, Christina Phillips, Khloe Wren, Efthalia, Marie Dry, Astrid Cooper,  and C.M. Simpson




AROUND THE WEB

Juanita Kees was a guest at the ARRA blog earlier in the month, and Under the Shadow of Doubt was also reviewed.







Congratulations to all our DarkSiders!



Thursday 12 October 2017

Magic Thursday: What do the DarkSiders write?

by Eleni Konstantine


We state on our website that the DarkSiders are writers mostly from Australia and New Zealand who write speculative fiction with romantic elements. Be it fantasy, paranormal, dark urban fantasy, futuristic and everything in between.

Let's break this down.


What is speculative fiction?

According to Wikipedia, "Speculative fiction is an umbrella genre encompassing narrative fiction with supernatural or futuristic elements. This includes the genres science fiction, fantasy, superhero fiction, science fantasy, horror and supernatural fiction, as well as their combinations."


That's a pretty good and broad definition.

You can see the attraction of the genre when it includes everything from myth and magic, space travel, discovery of new planets/worlds, ghosts, monsters, zombies, dragons, wizards/witches, scientific discoveries, 'Evil', survival, disasters, and even different societal structures, some to the extreme.


What is romance?

Again, according to Wikipedia "The romance novel or romantic novel...place their primary focus on the relationship and romantic love between two people, and must have an "emotionally satisfying and optimistic ending." There are many sub-genres of the romance novel including fantasy, historical romance, paranormal fiction, and science fiction."


You can see the attraction of being able to have a satisfyingly happy ending to a journey filled with conflict for two characters who are deeply in love.



The DarkSiders

Since we are a group affiliated with the Romance Writers of Australia, most of us also have romance or romantic elements in our work which usually contains speculative fiction.

The combination of speculative fiction and romance is a strong one and can attract a variety of readers.

You can see our members categorised by genre on our website. Of course some of these overlap, which is part of the joy of writing genre fiction, but also it made it difficult for publishers and book sellers to know exactly where to place these stories. With the rise of e-books and digital publishing, multiple 'shelving' with categories and keywords has allowed these cross genres to find a home easier.


Let's check out all the sub-genres in the speculative fiction umbrella we DarkSiders write...


  • Dark Fantasy
  • Dark Urban Fantasy
  • Dystopian Erotica
  • Epic Fantasy
  • Erotic Paranormal Romance
  • Fantasy
  • Fantasy Romance
  • Flash Fiction
  • Futuristic
  • Futuristic Romance
  • Gay Fiction
  • Historical with Spec Fiction Elements
  • Horror
  • Humour
  • Male/Male Romance
  • Middle Grade
  • Mythological Romance
  • NA - New Adult
  • Paranormal 
  • Paranormal Adventure
  • Paranormal Romance
  • Post Apocalyptic
  • Romantic Erotica
  • Romantic Fantasy
  • Sci Fi
  • SFR - Sci Fi Romance
  • Short Stories
  • Space Opera
  • Speculative Fiction 
  • Speculative Fiction Romance
  • Steampunk
  • Supernatural
  • Sword and Sorcery
  • Time Travel
  • Urban Fantasy
  • YA - Young Adult

That definitely is a broad range as is our non-speculative fiction areas.


Non Speculative Fiction
  • Children's Stories
  • Contemporary Erotica
  • Contemporary Romance
  • Contemporary Romantic Suspense
  • Contemporary Suspense
  • Erotic Romance
  • Inspirational 
  • Junior Fiction
  • Mystery
  • NA - New Adult
  • Poetry
  • Romance
  • Romantic Suspense 
  • Rural Romance
  • Non-fiction


While we concentrate on the speculative fiction side on the DSDU, we want to also celebrate the non-spec fic that our authors also write, so hence why you see us talking about this as well.


If you enjoy reading any of the above genres, you've come to the right place!


~Eleni



All images courtesy of Pixabay.

check out all our books on our dsdu-books shelf:
DarkSide DownUnder's book lists (dsdu-books shelf)