Bonded by Blood by Arial Burnz #booktours #authorpost

Midnight Conquest

Masked in a Gypsy guise, Broderick MacDougal hides his vampiric identity while seeking to destroy the man who slaughtered his family. When an old Clan rival ensnares Broderick in a trap using an enticing widow, he is compelled to discover if she is bait or an accomplice, and the cinnamon-haired beauty is his next conquest.

Widow of an abusive husband, Davina Stewart-Russell clings to the only image that gave her strength during those dark times—the Gypsy rogue who stole her heart as a youth. After nine years, she is finally face-to-face with him again, but reality clashes with fantasy as she is confronted with Broderick’s passionate pursuit.

When Davina’s past returns to haunt her, Broderick is forced to reveal a dark secret worse than anything Davina thought possible. The challenge before them has fatal risks and neither of them is prepared for the sacrifices expected for the sake of eternal love.

Read an excerpt from Midnight Conquest –

Davina marched to the door and put her hand upon the latch. “If you don’t leave, I will scream for—”

“Not necessary, milady.” Broderick sauntered toward her, slow, deliberate, as if trying to show her he would make no sudden moves. He stood so close to her, she could feel his breath against her cheek. Staring up into his emerald eyes, Davina pushed back against the hardwood door. The scent of incense drifted off his clothes and through her senses. His hand cupped her cheek and his warm skin held an underlying scent of lavender. She dared not disappear into the wonder of him, but kept her eyes fixed on his. Yet, she could still almost see his muscled form standing in the tent, the firelight shimmering on his bare chest, incense swirling around him. He smiled, bringing out his tempting dimple, and Davina’s cheeks bloomed with heat as she knew he read her thoughts. Before she could protest his presence, he closed the small distance by encasing her in his arms. Her breath held in her chest when his lips stopped just short of hers. She gazed into the emerald depths of his eyes, expectation thundering through her heart.

“Tell me you want me to go,” he whispered against her mouth.

“I…I want you to go.”

The Gypsy smiled and dropped his gaze to her lips. “Nay, you do not. You cannot bide another moment for me to kiss you.”

“You are arrogant and conceited.” Her voice held no conviction.

“But I am right.”

Midnight Captive

Cailin MacDougal has lived a dangerous life being the adopted daughter of vampire Broderick “Rick” MacDougal, so she had no choice but to learn to fight in order to protect herself. However, such behavior is hardly desirable in a dutiful wife who’s supposed to embroider and run a household. This aggressive side of her behavior should be easy enough to hide from her betrothed…shouldn’t it?

After being away at fencing school for seven years, James Knightly has returned as a master swordsman, ready to captain his own ship and finally wed his childhood sweetheart, Cailin MacDougal. What he finds waiting for him is a dagger-toting hellion for a bride, an immortal father-in-law, and an enemy bent on extracting revenge by threatening the family James holds most dear–the MacDougals.

Broderick MacDougal is lured away from his family with the promise of-at last-learning a way to protect those he loves from his clan enemy, Angus Campbell. Broderick knows he’s headed for a trap, but the bait is too tempting to resist…and he unravels the beginning of a prophecy that will lead to redemption for all vampires. The cost of such redemption, though, may be the very soul of the woman he would die for…his wife, Davina.

Read an excerpt from Midnight Captive—

Throwing his cloak back over his shoulders, he revealed a broad chest that rippled under the thin material of his black shirt as he reached across his hip for his sword.

Cailin blanched. Not many men carried swords on their person in the port city of Leith—daggers were the weapon of choice and easier to conceal—and those that did rarely matched the craftsmanship of this blade. This was not a cheap, decorative sword. Out of one mess and into another. She swallowed her fear and stood her ground.

“I suggest a wager.” He winked.

“I am not a gambling woman.”

Tilting his head back, he laughed and Cailin clenched her jaw, her cheeks blooming with heat again. Amusement twinkling in his eyes, he ignored her comment. “A challenge. If you win, I shall let you walk free.”

“And if you win?”

The amusement in his eyes transformed into smoldering desire. “I shall have to take you in hand and see you submit…” His eyes raked her body. “To the proper authority.” He folded his arms in front of him, the blade of his sword sweeping up and standing erect from his fist.

Cailin’s breath left her in a rush and fire surged through her body—from the fluttering in her stomach to the tingling in her toes. She did not miss his twofold meaning, and drew a deep, steadying breath, biting her tongue; though keeping her tongue proved more difficult to manage. “We shall see about this, sir.”

Top Ten Favorite Books of All Time and Why
By Arial Burnz
Being such an avid reader, I’ve probably consumed over a thousand books or more since my teens (I know…I’m still working on updating my GoodReads list…*sigh*). That’s thirty years of reading fiction and non-fiction. It makes choosing my favorite quite difficult because I like so many books for so many reasons. I’ll narrow the choices down by those books that left their mark on me as an author. In no particular order, here they are…
1. Dracula – My favorite part about this book was the way Bram Stoker slowly revealed his iconic character through journals, newspaper clippings and letters. When I first dove into Dracula, I had no idea it was NOT written in the usual novel format. It was brilliant! It was like I had been given a pile of documents, all put in an order that best unveiled the story. Even though I knew what Dracula was and the general storyline, I was at the edge of my seat learning about him as the story unfolded. What a treat! I’ve reread it several times through the years.
2. The Vampire Lestat – Anne Rice is the reason I became an author. Her characters and unique take on the lore of vampires was so seductive, I just couldn’t help but fantasize about what it would be like to be immortal and enjoy the forbidden taste of blood. I liked Interview with the Vampire enough to continue to the next book, but when Lestat told his side of the story, I was hooked! Lestat was dynamic, bold, daring, ballsy. I just couldn’t get enough of him and his immortal adventures. This is another book I’ve reread several times.
3. Ariel – by Steven R. Boyett. I absolutely adored this novel when I read it back in high school and I’m reading it to my husband now and I still love it. I liked the totally unique take on the post-apocalyptic world Boyett created where magical being emerged from the shadows and technology ceased to function. The rules had changed…and unicorns could not only talk, Ariel actually cussed! LOL! It’s a wonderful story of fantasy, friendship, survival and battling the odds. In fact, I loved this book so much, it’s where I got my pen name. (Arial is numerically aligned with my birth date, ergo the different spelling.)
4. The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings – My mother used to read J.R.R. Tolkien to my sisters and me before bedtime, so this partially has sentimental value. My favorite element of this ongoing story was the ordinary hobbit, Bilbo Baggins, lured away from his home on an adventure of epic proportions. Of course, Frodo’s journey is even more so. All of that frames the true quality of these tales—characters you can’t help falling in love with, root for and want to be like. Humble heroes. Additionally, it taught me about crafting a fantasy world with layers, history and depth.
5. Temple of the Winds – This is the third book in Terry Goodkind’s Sword of Truth series. I thoroughly enjoyed the first five books (after that, Goodkind’s editor seems to be on vacation), but Temple of the Winds was one of those books that kept me up until (literally) 3 a.m., frantically turning the pages. I thought, “I know they’re going to get out of this…somehow, but I just can’t imagine HOW!” I learned about creating detailed layers to plots and characters that unfold during a series, and I hope I’ve succeeded in doing that for my Bonded By Blood Chronicles. Goodkind has been an inspiration to me.
6. Name of the Wind – Patrick Rothfuss is the only person I’ve seen master switching from third-person omniscient to first-person point of view with total and complete logic needed to tell his tale. I was entranced with his main character Kvothe—all wise, experienced and down-to-earth, but troubled by some unknown danger looming in the future. I adored the science Rothfuss put behind the magic in his fantasy world, which appealed to the geek in me. And I love the way he respects the intelligence of the reader. He leaves clues and unfolds mysteries by showing bits of evidence, but never telling us these things are important. You just innately know they are and tuck them away, waiting to see all the pieces fall into place. There’s an element of triumph I felt as a reader I came to my own conclusion and felt as if I helped Kvothe solve the mysteries. Another inspirational writer for me.
7. The Princess Bride – Yes…William Goldman’s well-loved tale of Wesley and Buttercup was originally a book, and published in 1973. The fun little trivia about the title: It states, “S. Morgenstern’s Classic Tale of True Love and High Adventure.” But no such ‘classic tale’ by this fictional author exists! If you loved the movie, you’ll adore the book as you get to hear more about Inigo Montoya and Fezzik’s tales before they met. But what I liked most was how evil and devious Prince Humperdink really was. The movie makes him out to be quite a coward comparatively speaking. Did you know…? William Goldman is the screenplay writer not only for The Princess Bride, but other unforgettable movies such as Marathon Man, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, The Stepford Wives, All the President’s Men, Misery (yes, Stephen King’s story), and sooo many more! He’s one of my literary heroes.
8. The Pirate and the Pagan – This was the very first historical romance novel I read and it opened with: “What a beautiful cock!” she murmured under her breath. I thought, “Holy bananas!” Virginia Henley had my hook, line and sinker with this one for almost a full page when you find out the heroine’s a poor, hungry girl who’s found dinner…a rooster! The shock value of this novel is what propelled me into the world of historical romance and it is undoubtedly one of the major influences to my writing today…along with many of Ms. Henley’s other delightful books.
9. Gentle Rogue – Johanna Lindsey is the next author who introduced me to historical romance, this particular book was my second foray into this beloved genre. Broderick was definitely modeled after James Malory, Lindsey’s larger-than-life alpha male ship captain and ex-pirate. James discovers his new “cabin boy” is actually the heroine, Georgina Anderson, and I adored the way he set out to seduce her by teasing and taunting her into finally admitting she was a woman. It created such a delicious opportunity for sexy interludes and allowed them to learn about each other in more than just a sexual way. Masterfully done and I’ve read every one of her Malory Family stories because of it. This novel taught me the value of creating a winning series.
10. The 90-Day Novel: Unlock the Story Within – This is a non-fiction book by Alan Watt and one I cannot stop talking about or recommending to any author I come in contact with. If it wasn’t for this book, I wouldn’t have found the true motivation of my characters in Midnight Captive and everything I’ve written since. LOVE this book!
Thank you so much for having me as a guest and letting me pontificate about the books that have inspired me as an author. Are these favorites for anyone visiting? If so, for the same reasons? Or different? Can you share at least one other book that has inspired you as a person, reader, author or otherwise?

Arial Burnz has been an avid reader of both paranormal and fantasy fiction for over thirty years. With bedtime stories filled with unicorns, hobbits, dragons and elves, she had no choice but to craft her own tales, penning to life the many magical creatures roaming her mind and dreams. And with a romantic husband who’s taught her the meaning of true love, she’s helpless to weave romance into her tales. Now she shares them with the world. Arial Burnz lives in Rancho Cucamonga, California, with her husband (a.k.a. her romance novel hero)—who is also a descendent of Clan MacDougal—along with their dog and two cats.

Website: http://www.arialburnz.com

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Buy Link (Amazon Author Page where all my books are listed and available): http://amazon.com/author/arialburnz