Afton Locke Newsletter #18
April 2017

Greetings! I have several projects in the works, including my very first serial, Drunk on Men! What a challenge. With 8 novellas, every task took 8 times as long to do. But I've always loved ongoing T.V. dramas, so I can't wait to click Publish once a month (Between the day job and writing, I'm never bored.) I'm also putting my self-published titles, including the Oyster Harbor series, into print. Finally, D.L. Jackson joins us to share her latest release.

 

New Release

Drunk on Men
Drunk on Men serial - Volume #1

Blurb:

You may think it’s sloe fizz gin
But honey we’re sober, just drunk on men

When three African-American women meet at a resort on the Jersey Shore in the 1920s, they say goodbye to their old lives. Finding men as intoxicating as bootleg liquor, they pin their futures on happily ever after. But love can be worse than a hangover when the men’s flaws threaten to destroy them.

Hannah knows it’s time to replace her fiancé who died in the war, but the abrupt white man who rescues her from rough surf hardly fits the bill. Belle longs to ditch her latest meal ticket, but is the rich African-European owner of an upscale hotel out of her league? And while Edie struggles to face her upcoming arranged marriage, a rugged Hispanic-white fisherman decides to stake his own claim on her.

This 8-volume serial is a heady romance cocktail stirred with addiction, abuse, betrayal, and scandal. These women aren’t perfect and neither are their men. If you think you can handle it, read on and watch three steamy interracial relationships explode across the pages.

Excerpt:

Hannah looked down at herself. It was even worse than she imagined. Sand caked her wet feet and legs. She’d never be able to put her stockings and shoes back on without ruining them. And her frock… Lord help her, it clung to her in a very provocative way. Or at least it would if she weren’t so thin. So why did his gaze heat her skin to the point of frying?

“Where are you staying?” he prompted.

She glanced across the boardwalk at her hotel. To her dismay, it appeared grander than ever against the pearly sky with its dark cedar siding set off by white trim. Grooved columns with curly things on top ringed the large porch, making it resemble a mansion.

“Wilmott Hotel,” she replied.

His head reared back as he laughed. “Wilmott Hotel? You’ll make quite an entrance soaking wet. Whatever possessed you to do such a thing? Young ladies who stay at the Wilmott don’t usually—”

“I don’t know what came over me. I’ve just never seen the ocean before.”

His lips curved into a semi-smile. “Never?”

“My aunt is sure to be looking for me, sir.” She glanced at the hotel again. “I’m going to try to return to my room, without getting thrown out.”

He adjusted his hat. “You need a blanket to cover you. Ah, there’s one.”

“No,” she called out after him as he headed toward it. “It belongs to someone. Probably those women bathing over there.”

“A few years ago, you could have been arrested for exposing bare legs.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Not that I agree with such a useless law, but—”

“Arrested?” Hannah exclaimed. “I had no idea.” That would be worse than death.

Even Esther had never been arrested.

She nibbled her fingernails as he approached the ladies. Her ocean adventure got more embarrassing by the minute. After an exchange of conversation she couldn’t hear, he picked up the blanket, carried it to her, and wrapped it around her body. Her skin warmed even more. How could she let a white man put his hands all over her, especially where everyone could see?

“What are you doing?”

“Those kind ladies agreed to let us borrow their blanket for a few minutes,” he replied. “Long enough for me to get you upstairs to your room.”

“You?” Hannah sputtered as sea water dripped off her hair onto her face. “You can’t go to my room.”

“Don’t worry,” he said as he tightened the blanket and lifted her in his arms. “I don’t plan to do anything inappropriate. My hotel is serving the midday meal in five minutes, and I don’t want to be late.”

Hannah opened her mouth, but too many words churned inside her head to choose from. “You can’t—”

But he was. Although not muscular, he carried her as if she weighed less than a small chicken. He cradled one arm around her back and the other behind her knees. The warm contact through the blanket pressed her wet clothes against her skin. The combination of heat and cold made her dizzy.

Drowning had to be easier than this.

Even Morris had never touched her so…familiarly. Her reputation as a decent Christian girl was as smudged as her dirty, wet frock. Morris’ memory didn’t fare much better.

“Put me down!” she yelled. “I don’t want you and the rest of the world staring up my dress.”

“I’m sure there’s nothing there the world hasn’t already seen, generally speaking.”

Forgive me, Morris. I don’t dare slap a white man, so I’ll turn the other cheek.

Buy Links:

Amazon Kindle   Nook   Kobo   iBooks  

See the Drunk on Men series page for links, character list, excerpts, and more.

Release schedule (first Saturday of each month):

Volume 1 - April 1
Volume 2 - May 6
Volume 3 - June 3
Volume 4 - July 1
Volume 5 - August 5
Volume 6 - September 2
Volume 7 - October 7
Volume 8 - November 4

 

Guest Author: D.L. Jackson

He Sphinx I'm Sexy

Afton: D.L. Jackson joins us to share her April 4th release. I love this cover. Makes me want to go to Egypt. Right now!

  Buy Links:

Amazon Kindle
BookStrand
Smashwords

Blurb:

One night. One party of a lifetime. One deadly secret that could end it all.

All hybrids must die.

Not your average alien visitor, Lucas Saar has lived on earth for years, and there is only one reason he relocated to the green planet, to hunt down hybrids. These half-Terran, half-Saarian men and women could expose the existence of his world and his people, something that must never happen. He’s never failed a mission until Alaska, a year before, and now he’s determined to get back in his leader’s good graces by taking down a woman he’s tracked halfway across the globe.

When he discovers his target has signed up for the same dating service he tried to use in Alaska, he decides to use it again as cover to get closer to his prey. After all, the archeologist isn’t hard to look at, and there is something about her he can’t resist. Too bad he has to kill her when the date is over.

No more dating within my profession.

Doctor Nadia Crane is in Egypt, guiding her final class through a dig. She’s had bad luck with men and worse with her health. After a recent physical, her physician has determined her cells are mutating and she could be dying. Nadia signs up for Madam Eve’s 1Night Stand service, in hopes she may experience one night of bliss before she dies. A prearranged evening might get her what she desires, except, Lucas Saar isn’t what she asked for on her application. He’s an archeologist, and exactly the kind of man she didn’t want to date. Worse, her gut is sending up all kinds of red flags.

Now Doctor Nadia Crane isn’t sure if she should jump him or dump him. Only one night will tell.

Excerpt:

“What the hell are you getting at, Lucas?”

“You’re not from Earth. You’re Saarian.”

“You’re crazy.”

“No, not crazy.” He let the color of his eyes shift from fiery topaz, to green, bright violet, and back to amber. “And you are one of us. More to the point….” He ran his hand up and down her arm. “Mine.” No, he’d never been one to leash his dominant nature. She’d have to learn to deal with it—courtship or not.

“Yours?”

“Mine.” He gave her a satisfied smile.

“You lied to me about being my replacement. Who the hell are you really?”

“Lucas Saar, a Saarian tracker, and you, Miss Crane, are my mate.”

“Huh.” Nadia took the opportunity to ram her knee into his testicles, and, like any other male with a package in the south, he dropped to the floor, completely incapacitated. “Help!” She ran for the elevator.

Lucas lifted his head from the tile. Help? Was she f___g kidding? His eyes started to water, and even though she’d put him in a bad position and a great deal of pain, he couldn’t help but chuckle. Okay, so she’d thrown down the gauntlet. Nothing like a little pursuit to get the blood pumping. Let the hunt begin.

Afton: Love the sparks flying between those two. What inspired you to write it?

DJ: My second story in the 1Night Stand series with Decadent Publishing was called This Endris Night. For several years, readers have asked me to write Lucas’s story. What happened to by bad boy hunter? Did he have a match out there?

This Endris Night - Amazon

The answer is yes.
In He Sphinx I’m Sexy, you will meet the one woman who can bring Lucas Saar to his knees.

About the Author:

D. L. Jackson is a writer of urban fantasy, science fiction, military romance and erotic romance. She loves to incorporate crazy plot twists, comedy and the unexpected into her worlds. As a U.S. Army veteran, she naturally adores men in uniform and feels the world could always use more. She does her part by incorporating as many sexy soldiers in her novels as she can. When she isn't writing or running the roads, you can often find her online chatting with her peers and readers. Grab a cup of iced coffee, pull up your virtual chair and say hi. She loves emails and blog visits from her readers.

D.L. Jackson web site
Backward Momentum blog

 

News

Rebel's Claw, Black Hills Wolves series - Book #22, is now in audio!

Rebel's Claw (#22) - audio
Alpha in Disguise (#9) - audio

 

Travels

IRAE 2017

In May, I'm heading to the Interracial Romance Authors Expo in Daytona Beach!

Don't miss the book signing, games, and pool party.


I love visiting Ocean City, Maryland -- inspiration for Drunk on Men -- in the fall. We went last October and it was 75 degrees.

 

Coming Soon

Turning the Tide: A Siren's Revenge - mermaid shifter romance for Decadent Publishing's Wiccan Haus series (now contracted)

plus another book for the Oyster Harbor series and I'm dreaming up a new interracial series!

Afton Locke is a USA Today Bestselling Author who prefers romantic fantasies to everyday reality. Fantasies take her to different times, races, places, and beyond. She lives with her husband, several unnamed dust bunnies, and a black cat that can be scary or cuddly, depending on the current book. When she’s not writing, Afton enjoys hiking, cooking, reading, and watching retro T.V.

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Thank you for reading! Feel free to email any comments or suggestions.
Until next time...

© Afton Locke 2017