Category Archives: Ashleigh Raine

Ashleigh Raine, New Releases

Forsaken Talisman now available in paperback!

It’s been out of print for several years. It’s been completely rewritten with approximately 20,000 more words added. It’s got a shiny, gorgeous new cover. And it’s finally available in paperback again. Yay!

Nationally bestselling author Anya Bast gave us a great cover quote for this book, and I can’t thank her enough for it: “Forsaken Talisman is a romantic, action-packed adventure you won’t want to miss, filled with characters the reader will care about from the first paragraph. Ashleigh Raine delivers a thrilling story that will have you turning pages well into the morning hours.”

Forsaken Talisman, book two in the Talisman Bay series, is Dusty and Skylar’s love story, but you also get to spend time with many other characters you met in book one of the series, Lover’s Talisman, as well. More mysteries are unveiled, surprise relationships are evolving. If you haven’t read the series yet and you enjoy paranormal romantic thrillers with hot sex, we hope you’ll give this series a try.

Read the blurb and excerpts.
Buy at Amazon (currently 25% off)
Buy at Borders
Buy at B&N (currently 27% off!)
Buy at Book Depository (15% off and free shipping worldwide!)

Ashleigh Raine, This and That, writing

Beautiful May

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Last month I posted a day late, so I decided to average it out by posting a day early. I think that works, right?

May has been a rockin’ awesome month so far. One of those months that my face is permanently locked in a smile. Why? A couple reasons that all add up to me feeling darn good.

After six months of bundling up in layers, with my numb fingers trying to find the right keys on my laptop, the weather has finally turned around. It’s warm. Gloriously so. I’d go so far as to say it’s hot. Today, for the first time, I’m wearing my favorite denim capris and a short-sleeved cotton tee that have been tucked away in my closet since last October. I took a walk today, enjoyed the feel of the sun soaking into my pasty white skin. I’m enjoying it now since within a month or so it’ll be hitting temps in the high 90s and low 100s and I’ll be avoiding outside as much as possible. But for now…for now, I’m opening the windows and enjoying the breeze.

Another reason May has been so good? Lisa and I are writing, really, honest-to-God writing, again. Now, for the last few months we’ve been trying to write a novella, and we were getting words on the page, but it was going ridiculously slow, even for us. We were suffering some serious writer constipation. Finally, we sat down and talked and realized that although we loved the idea behind the story, clearly it wasn’t what we were supposed to be writing since we’ve never suffered that type of challenge before in getting a story written. We put the novella to the side and pulled out the book of our heart. The book we get more fan mail requesting than any other. Eternal Talisman is back in progress. And all I can say is why the heck did we wait so long? In the last few days Lisa and I have written more than we managed in the last few months combined. The fire we’d thought had burned down to an ember has blazed up again. Not only do we want to write, but we love what we’re writing. We love writing so much we’re going without sleep to write, we’re skipping meals, we’re staying attached to our computers. The reason I’m writing this blog post now, a day before my scheduled blog day here at After Midnight Fantasies, is that I sent the scene in progress to Lisa, and figured I’d spend the time waiting for her to send it back to me taking care of my blogging responsibilities before diving right back into Talisman Bay as soon as Lisa sends it my way.

Is this what addiction feels like? Although addiction has such nasty negative connotations. I think this is pure and simple happiness. And you just can’t beat that feeling. So here’s wishing you and yours happiness, in whatever form pleases you most.

Ashleigh Raine, New Releases, Our Websites

April for Ashleigh Raine

Ack! I forgot to post yesterday. Can I blame spring fever?

April’s been a great month so far for us. Why you ask? The redone, spit-shined, hot, happy and yummy Forsaken Talisman was released a week ago from Samhain Publishing.

Between all the contests and chats and other release-day stuff we’ve been doing, Lisa and I have been making progress on what we hope will be our next release, which is a novella based in the Talisman Bay world. I can’t really say too much more about it than that, other than we’re in love with the heroes and wish we could be the heroine.

Keep an eye on Ashleighraine.com this week. We’ll be posting a new contest, and we’re going to begin posting quite a few deleted scenes from Forsaken Talisman. We’d also love to start chatting with readers more, so make sure to come on by and post comments on our blog. If there’s anything you’re dying to know, any questions you want to ask, we want to hear from you!

Ashleigh Raine, Contests

Only three weeks left…

Only three weeks left until Forsaken Talisman is being released from Samhain Publishing. Lisa and I are bubbling over with excitement that release day is almost here. When we contracted the book with Samhain, we looked at what we’d originally written and were really unhappy with it. We’d grown a lot as authors and the book didn’t reflect where we are now as writers. So we scrapped the book and started over. It’s still Dusty and Skylar’s love story, but rewritten from beginning to end.

So to celebrate the upcoming release of the brand-new version of Forsaken Talisman, we’re having a contest. We love this book and hope you’ll love it too when it comes out on Friday, April 3 at Samhain Publishing. Mark the date! Although, we’ll remind you. 😉

But more about that contest. We’re giving away lots of awesome stuff–seven chances to win! 4 necklaces, a purse and two ebook copies of Lover’s Talisman.

And a little tease of one of the prizes we’re giving away.

And that’s just one of the prizes. You can find all the details on how to enter on our contest page. So go forth and enter the contest. Have fun and good luck!

Ashleigh Raine, Covers, This and That

So much

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There’s so much going on right now that I can hardly believe it’s been a month since my last blog post. Lisa and I got and finished our edits on Forsaken Talisman, and now it’s off to the final line editor. Phew! That’s such a great feeling.  This book is so much different–so much better–than the original version that released five years ago. It’s still Dusty and Skylar’s love story, but we really developed the story and their romance beyond the original–developed so much more that we added 20,000 words to the story. It’s coming out April 3 from Samhain Publishing. And I absolutely love, love, love the cover.

Forsaken Talisman by Ashleigh Raine
Forsaken Talisman by Ashleigh Raine

It’s a perfect representation of the heroine and the book, really. I get chills when I look at it.

What else has happened over the last month? Well, it’s been a strange month. Things keep breaking. I’ve had to replace my son’s computer, have my dryer fixed, and just one hour ago my oven died. I’ll be calling a repairman tomorrow–the oven came new with my house, and I’ve only lived here 4 1/2 years, so darn it, that shouldn’t be breaking too.  Do things in the home break in threes, like celebrities die in threes? I hope this is it. I’m waving the white flag of surrender, and offering up prayers to the gods of appliances that this is it. That I will be good to all my appliances in the future, cleaning them properly and offering them appropriate thank yous for taking care of me.

On the writing front, Lisa and I are hard at work on our demon novella. It’s loosely tied to our Talisman Bay series, and we’re having a fantastic time with it. We spent time on the phone today ironing out a few kinks we hadn’t figured out yet, and the story just clicked in that moment. It became real. This is the point where the book usually writes itself–at least until we hit another kink, but for now, I’m enjoying the flow.

Oh, and totally off-topic, but I want to share because I’m totally proud and excited for her, Lisa started her own business making jewelry and purses. If you’re interested in fun and gorgeous handmade goodies–she never makes any two alike–you should check out her two online shops.

http://rinaslayter.etsy.com

http://twilightsfancy.artfire.com

I swear I’m one of her biggest fans. I want every necklace she makes and every purse she sews.

Oh, it’s started snowing again! I’m going to go outside and spend a few minutes enjoying the snow coming down. I’ll catch up with you all next month!

Ashleigh Raine, This and That

New Year, Fresh Start

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Did you hear cheers and hollers on December 28? That wasn’t New Year’s celebrations starting early. That was Lisa and I celebrating sending our book off to our editor. After many delays–all our fault–we finally finished our book, and what a relief it was. We were able to celebrate the New Year in style, knowing that come 2009 we were going to be starting a brand-new project.

I love those words. Brand-new project. They encompass so many possibilities. There’s a certain amount of freedom–and yes, fear–in staring at the blank page, wondering what words are going to fill it. We have so many ideas, so much we want to write. This year we hope to increase our production. We don’t want to be one-book-a-year authors, and we’re hoping to remedy that. We’re going to try things a little different and see if it increases our production. We’re going to work on multiple projects at once. I know that works for a lot of people, and it worked for us in the past when we first started writing, so we’re keeping our fingers crossed that it works for us again.

So this week we’ve begun fleshing out the outlines, character sketches, etc., for three projects: Eternal Talisman–which we started writing years ago, and now we’re looking at it with fresh eyes and deciding what to keep and what to rewrite; the next novel in our Hollywood Heat series, and a novella we’re submitting for an anthology project. Three completely different stories with vibrant casts of characters that I’m excited to spend more time with.

Hopefully this time next year we’ll be celebrating the completion and publication of all of the above. Wish us luck!

Ashleigh Raine, New Releases

Lover's Talisman–Now available in paperback!

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Lover's Talisman by Ashleigh Raine

Originally released in 2003, Lover’s Talisman is back and better than ever. When Lisa and I had the chance to tackle this book again, we had several more years of writing knowledge under our belt, so we put on our rewriting and revising hats and polished the heck out of Lover’s Talisman. We loved getting a second chance to work on this book, to spend time with these characters who we love and adore. We are so damn proud of this story now–and we hope the readers enjoy spending time in Talisman Bay as much as we do.

And what makes this day even more special is that Jaci Burton, one of the coolest damn authors on the planet, gave us an incredibly awesome cover quote.

“Pulse-pounding suspense, riveting action, demons around every corner and smokin’ hot sex, Lover’s Talisman has it all. I loved this book!”

Could we get any luckier? Jaci rawks!

Lisa and I hope you’ll fall in love with the Shadow Walkers–like we have–and check out Lover’s Talisman.

Welcome to Talisman Bay, where all hell breaks loose on a daily basis, especially when you fall in love.

Book one in the Talisman Bay series.

For twelve years Stephan Rashleigh has lived in the shadows, patrolling the city streets as leader of the Talisman Bay Shadow Walkers. The danger of his world leaves no room for a woman in his life. Until now. It should have been easy–rescue Mariah, then let her go. Except once she’s in his arms, he can’t walk away. Vibrant, breathing life into him, she makes him feel again.

Mariah DeSilva isn’t interested in falling in love, even with the gorgeous hero who rescued her from a brutal attack. When her best friend is kidnapped, she turns to the only man she can trust to help. The more time she spends with Stephan, the less she can hide her growing feelings for him. There’s so much more between them than an explosive romp between the sheets, against the wall and everywhere in between.

As they search for Mariah’s missing friend, a sinister evil is revealed, someone who’s been watching, waiting for Stephan to reveal his greatest vulnerability–falling in love. This enemy will stop at nothing to wipe out the Shadow Walkers and claim Mariah for his own.

Warning, this title contains the following: Bondage and knife play (don’t worry, no one gets hurt). A fantasy ménage scene—two brothers loving one woman, yay! Magical orgasms. Pleasure sparks. Lots of demon killing, lots of cursing while killing demons, and even more sex (without the demons).

EXCERPT: Mariah Meets Stephan
EXCERPT: First Kiss

CLICK HERE TO BUY FROM AMAZON

CLICK HERE TO BUY FROM B&N

CLICK HERE TO BUY FROM BAMM

Oh, and after you run out and buy your copy of Lover’s Talisman, make sure you head on over to our website and enter our contest. There’s just a couple days left to enter, and you don’t want to miss out on all the fantastic prizes we’re giving away.

Ashleigh Raine, Uncategorized

Furry presents

This morning, not too long after I woke up, when I was still suffering from pre-coffee morning brain, I heard my son squealing (he’s only 8, he’s still allowed to squeal) from downstairs. I couldn’t tell if it was a “yay” squeal, or an “I cut off a body part” squeal, so worry-mode kicked in. But before I could get downstairs I heard the loud thumps of my son racing up the stairs. Since he was running, I assumed he wasn’t at death’s door, and I met him at the top of the stairs as he yelled, “Mommy, kitties!”

When my hubby backed out of the driveway this morning to go to work, he was met with a surprising sight in front of his car. Five little kitties, sleeping in a huddle. Hubby’s face was pale white–the first thing he said to me when I made it outside was, “I could have run over them. I had no idea they were there.” The little things were shivering in the cold, so I grabbed a box and one of my son’s old blankets and put the little ones inside to warm up. I know the momma and daddy kitties–they’re wild cats in the neighborhood we leave food out for–but we haven’t been able to capture them to take them in to get fixed. I’d thought I’d be able to leave the kittens in the box on my front porch, but as soon as I came inside, the momma kitty came up and took one of the kitties away–this time back under my car. Since I’m terrified these kittens are going to end up road kill, or coyote food, which happens all too often in my neighborhood (and is what happened to the two kittens this momma kitty had previously), I brought all five kittens into the house, where they’re currently camped out in my bathtub. I bought some catmilk at the grocery store–which all five kittens have sampled–and they seem to be doing okay. Momma kitty just glares at me when I go outside–which makes me feel a little guilty–but better Momma kitty be mad at me but her kittens safe and alive, then the alternative.

So here’s the five new members of my family. My sister’s already claimed one, and I’ll probably keep one, but I’ll be looking for homes for the other three.

Five kitties in a bathtub
Five kitties in a bathtub

Aren’t they adorable? Guess how I’ll be spending my day today? Yup, playing with kitties…

Ashleigh Raine, Contests, This and That

A week of highs

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The last week has been absolutely amazing on so many levels. For those of you who’ve been following Lisa and I on Twitter, you’ve had a sneak peek of what’s happened, who we got to meet at Comic Con, and some of the awesome events that have transpired. Lisa and I plan on talking in more detail about all this wonderful goodness on our website over the next week or so. Lisa’s hard at work organizing all the photos we took at Comic Con, and sizing them for the website. Pics of John Barrowman, Gareth David-Lloyd, Corey Feldman, Neil Patrick Harris and many others. Make sure you keep checking back here. We’ll get the photos up soon.

In the meantime, we have some fantastic news to share. Driven to Distraction, which just came out in paperback earlier this month, has gotten a 4 1/2 star review from Romantic Times magazine. We’ve been really blessed with the reviews we’ve gotten for this book, but I have to admit I’ve been nervous for months waiting to see what RT would say.

4 1/2 stars! “Raine creates a fast-paced tale with lots of action and extremely hot sex. Blaina acts on one speed — and that’s full speed ahead. Jay is a man any woman would want. Raine will make you laugh and cry and touch all of your emotions. Once you start, you won’t want to put this book down.”

Thank you to Jill Brager for the fantastic review!

I celebrated the review by going to my local Barnes & Noble and signing the copies of Driven to Distraction they had on the shelves, then I went and got a scoop of chocolate peanut butter ice cream at Baskin Robbins. Yum!

Don’t forget to enter our contest to win Comic Con goodies. The contest ends Thursday night. We picked up a lot of stuff at Comic Con–I have four bags of stuff sitting in the middle of my office floor–and I’ll be sending a bunch of stuff to whoever wins.

Keep checking www.ashleighraine.com the rest of the week. We’ll be updating often with our Comic Con photos and memories.

Ashleigh Raine, New Releases

Driven to Distraction is now available in paperback!

Driven to Distraction by Ashleigh RaineCan I just say YAAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!!?

Jen and I are so thrilled to finally see Driven to Distraction available in print. It seemed like a long road to get it there, but now that it has arrived, good golly, we’re so stoked!!!!!

And the cherry on top of our release day sundae? We have two awesome quotes from authors we love and respect.

“A fabulous talent, Ashleigh Raine never fails to satisfy.”
~Cheyenne McCray, New York Times bestselling author

“Original…erotic…emotional, Driven to Distraction is an absolute must read!”
~Lucy Monroe, national bestselling author

Driven to Distraction is now available online in paperback at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and Borders, as well as brick and mortar stores everywhere.

Want to learn more? Read an excerpt: Roadside Attraction, Garage Rendezvous, After Race Romp, Helicopter Stunt

Still want to learn more? Over on my personal blog, I wrote about the various inspirations for the book and the scenes. Come on over and check it out!