Please welcome Allison Merritt to my home away from home
today. Be sure to read her special guest blog and excerpt below.
I got my start reading westerns when I was a teenager. Louis L'Amour is my favorite western author. That man could write magic into his scenes. When reading a L'Amour, you're right there in the Old West with the characters.
I got my start reading westerns when I was a teenager. Louis L'Amour is my favorite western author. That man could write magic into his scenes. When reading a L'Amour, you're right there in the Old West with the characters.
For a long time, I was a western purist. I knew other people
wrote about weird things happening in westerns. There's a horrible movie you
might remember called Wild, Wild West. I'm still trying to figure out what kind
of blackmail was used to get the actors to be in that movie. I was horrified by
the rule bending that kept the movie from being a true western. The Verne-esque
quality of the original TV show didn't do much for me either. I think the idea
of the US being a simpler place was what appealed to me.
And then in 2003, I saw The League of Extraordinary
Gentlemen, and I fell in love with the idea of "weird" things in the
Victorian era. It was several years before I'd start writing steampunk romance
though. As I got into that, the weirder, the better.
Wystan was the first solid character I had in mind for The
Heckmasters series. I found the name on a tombstone at a mall kiosk (of all
places--so weird) and I knew that anyone walking around with that last name was
going to be a serious badass. A seriously hot demon-slaying badass. Not only
that, but a hot, demon-slaying badass who's at odds with his own demon heritage
and the sacrifices he's made to keep a world he doesn't necessarily like safe.
Add in his two brothers--one who wants to be human more than anything, and the
other who's a natural-born slayer, but is the most likely to go rogue demon and
kill them all. Then toss in a schoolteacher who's on the run from something
worse than cranky Wystan, her sassy little sister, and a lust demon possessed
ex-whore just to make it interesting.
I toyed with the idea of connecting the Heckmasters with my
steampunk series, but I decided to go all-out paranormal instead of
incorporating strange technology this time.
I learned a long time ago that never say never is a good
rule to follow. I never thought I'd stray from straight-laced historicals and
fall into the seductive arms of paranormal historical romance. I never thought
I'd write one of my own. But the Heckmasters have taught me to be a little more
open-minded.
Sure, the series is weird. Sure, it doesn't follow many
rules of Victorian or western conventions, but it was awfully fun to work on
and I've seldom had more fun creating characters.
We all like tried and true, but I'm glad I reached out beyond
the norm to write a paranormal historical romance. I hope you all like Wystan
and Rhia's story too.
About the Book:
Title: Wystan (The Heckmasters)
Length: 228 pages
Pubisher: Samhain Publishing
Publication date: October 21, 2014
Blurb:
Her search for safety lands her in a totally new kind of
danger.
The Heckmasters, Book 1
Certain that an ad for a job in a small New Mexico Territory
town is the answer to her prayers, Nebraska schoolteacher Rhia Duke packs her
sister into a rickety wagon and heads west.
Except when they reach the near-deserted town, she learns
the truth. There is no job, no future, and no welcome in the bleak blue eyes of
the handsome sheriff.
The minute Rhia’s runaway team thunders into town, Wystan
Heckmaster feels the change in the air. One of three sons of a demon who dared
love a human, he keeps watch over a Pit guarded by seven seals, and slays any
Hellbound demon that attempts to free the master imprisoned within.
With a gut full of regret and a forgotten town filled with
reformed demons, Wystan is certain of one thing: he can’t be the man Rhia
needs. But when the truth behind Rhia’s flight from Nebraska comes to light,
Wystan must open his soul—and pray there’s enough love between them to overcome
the darkness rising from the Pit.
Warning: Contains a
take-no-prisoners sheriff, a woman who can’t outrun her supernatural secrets,
and a dusty town where hope is as thin as dust in the wind. Author recommends
keeping a glass of cool spring water at your elbow while reading.
Excerpt:
Something
changed in the air the moment the wagon crossed the town’s border. Too
early to be a supply train, and there was no way in hell it
was visitors. Berner didn’t host
town fairs, theatre troupes, peddlers, or bible thumpers.
Wystan
Heckmaster slapped his battered Stetson on his head, collected the keys to the
jail, then stepped out the door. The first thing he saw was
a pretty woman with hair the color
of maple sugar—a rich brownish-blonde. The frown on her face
spoke volumes, and the air
around her pronounced trouble. She made a straight path for
him.
“Mr.
Heckmaster. Or should I call you Sheriff? Or Mayor? I need to discuss the ad in
the Lancaster County Republican with you. Someone placed an
ad, but your brother tells me
there is no school here. I’m sure there has to be a mistake.
There’s only one Berner in New
Mexico Territory. I’m very capable at reading maps. If I
wasn’t, I would be ashamed to call
myself a teacher.”
He doubted
she had taken more than two or three breaths during the speech. If she
made talking in rambling paragraphs a habit, no wonder she
looked so peaked.
“Teacher?”
He glanced along the street, but it was deserted as usual. “Lady, we don’t
have a school here. Certainly no need of a teacher.”
Her hands
balled into fists that settled on her hips. The dress she wore was patched—
the egg yolk yellow faded into something even more
disgusting. It had little flowers dotting
the material, but they looked as worn as her scuffed black
boots.
“Then what
was the purpose of placing an ad in the Lancaster County Republican?”
She spoke with the fierceness of a mama bear warning
predators away from her cubs.
Wystan
reached into his shirt pocket and drew out a toothpick.
“I didn’t
place any ad in any Lancaster County anything.” He looked past her, expecting
Eban to saunter up the street. Eban had to be the brother
she’d referred to since Tell was still
on the trail.
“Someone
did,” she insisted. She fished a crumpled and much-folded piece of newsprint
out of the pocket hidden by the folds of her skirt. “See?
Right here it says, ‘School teacher
wanted for spring term at Berner Schoolhouse. Wages paid
based on experience. Room and
board provided. Apply in person at City Hall, Berner, New
Mexico Territory.’ I’m sure my
eyes don’t deceive me.”
Wystan
stared at the clipping, then back at the woman. A galaxy of freckles spattered
across her nose and cheekbones, making her look younger than
her eyes said she was. Full
figured and sure as shittin’ a grown woman. The wariness and
worry darkening her hazel
eyes gave her away as one with a lot of trouble on her
plate.
“I can
read.”
She pulled
the ad away from his face, folded it, and returned it to her pocket. “Where
would you suggest I look for an explanation, Mr.
Heckmaster?”
Fussy
little thing. “I assure you that no one in this town did. There’s been a
mistake.
Sorry to inconvenience you, Miss Schoolteacher. Now turn
around and head home.”
A flush
colored her cheeks. “I can’t head home! I have no home to return to. My little
sister and my friend are waiting at the doctor’s office for
me to straighten this mess out. The
ad says that room and board will be provided. I’d expected
to move into a room, sir.”
“You left
them with Eban?” That explained his absence.
“Beryl is
ill, Sheriff. This is the first town we’ve seen in days and it was past time
for her
to get some attention.” Despair crept into her voice.
Wystan
shifted his weight and transferred the toothpick to the other side of his
mouth.
“Eban’s not
exactly trained in human medicine.”
The woman’s
mouth opened into an O. She shook her head and seemed to regain her
senses. “He’s a veterinarian? He seemed certain he could
help Beryl.”
Wystan
cleared his throat. “Sure, animal doctor. I’m sorry for your misfortune, lady,
but as you can see, Berner’s about run into the ground.
There’s nothing here for you or your
friend. Might be best to move along.”
She seemed
to deflate. “Move along.” Her lips moved, softly forming the words, but it
was as though she didn’t comprehend them. “We’ll move along,
right down the trail into the
next town where there won’t be any teaching jobs either.
Sylvie, Beryl, and I will starve to
death on the side of the road with no one in the world to
care.”
Buy links:
Amazon - http://amzn.com/B00L501TJK
About the Author:
A love of reading inspired Allison Merritt to pursue her
dream of becoming an author who writes historical, paranormal and fantasy
romances, often combining the sub-genres. She lives in a small town in the
Ozark Mountains with her husband and dogs. When she's not writing or reading,
she hikes in national parks and conservation areas.
Allison graduated from College of the Ozarks in Point
Lookout, Missouri with a B.A. in mass communications that's gathering dust
after it was determined that she's better at writing fluff than hard news.
Social media links:
Blog – http://havenovelwilledit.blogspot.com
Facebook – http://facebook.com/allisonmwrites
Twitter – http://twitter.com/allison_merritt
G+ - http://gplus.to/allisonmerritt
Goodreads – http://goodreads.com/AllisonMWrites
Pinterest - http://www.pinterest.com/allisonmwrites/
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1 comment:
Thanks for having me today, Ashley!
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