Samhain Publishing

Caught in love’s undertow…

Rescue swimmer Ethan Thorn is used to pulling people from the swirl of the ocean, but he never expected to pull a woman straight out of his past. Denae Button was the first woman who meant more to him than great sex, until he realized she was his brother’s fiancée. Now the one woman he hoped never to see again is back—with the three-year-old son he never knew he had.

Denae knows she’s made her share of mistakes, especially when it comes to the Thorn brothers. Royally screwed up by her religious-zealot parents, now she just wants to be a good mother. She doesn’t want anything to do with Ethan—and she knows the feeling is mutual—but she can’t deny him a chance to know his son. Even if facing the Thorn family means confronting a past she’d rather leave behind.

A resurging riptide of love drags Ethan and Denae back into each other’s arms. But exposing the secrets that nearly destroyed the Thorn family could tear them apart for good.

Riptide Love’s story video and excerpt can be found here.
http://melissa-lopez.com/book_riptidelove.html#excerpt
Ethan’s (Riptide Love’s hero) has a character interview here.
http://melissalopez.livejournal.com/
address for the contest is mel @ melissa – lopez .com (no spaces)
A online excerpt can be found here.
http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/riptide-love
Visit Thorn Station:

http://melissa-lopez.com/thorns/index.html

Thanks for letting me share!
~Mel

I’m so thrilled to announce Dark Sentinel has been released and is live for readers!

Their love could give him a second chance at life—or condemn her to an eternity of damnation.

Yanked from his tortured existence in Netherworld and dumped naked in the Louisiana Bayou, Lash could swear he’s died and gone to heaven. Except for the fact that a millennium ago he died a condemned soul, forever barred from Paradise. His new life feels like the next best thing, full of small miracles. Like silence. And ice water. And the company of a beautiful, compassionate woman.
Teva is a woman with a taste for heavy-metal music, an inherited talent for magic, and a trusting heart. She knows nothing about the mysterious stranger she’s taken in, only that he needs her help. And the fact that he’s gorgeous hasn’t escaped her attention. She can’t see Lash as anything other than a sexy, gentle man who soothes her nightmares away.

Then Lash learns the real reason for his reprieve from Netherworld—he’s been sent to corrupt Teva’s soul with sinful pleasures. Starved for tenderness and aching with desire, Lash yearns to accept the loving embrace Teva offers. But he can’t give in to passion without tainting her, condemning her to the horrors of Netherworld.

The ultimate battle between good and evil is brewing, and Lash stands caught in the middle between Teva, who owns his heart—and Satan, who owns his soul.

http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/dark-sentinel

Dark Sentinel is the first in my paranormal Netherworld series.

http://nether-world.net/

~Mel getting my groove on in happiness

Melissa Lopez
http://melissa-lopez.com/
JOURNEYS OF LOVE every woman needs to take.

I’m giddy to finally be able to announce the release of Boomerang Love! I’m so completely thrilled to see it come alive for others.

Boomerang Love is an contemporary romance with a Red Hot/erotic heat level set in Australia.

Boomerang Love tells Cohen Thorn’s story. I so hope to have more Thorns share their tales. I adore Aussie men.

Mercy gang, was it ever difficult deciding what to blog about this first time out. After much consideration and oodles of tossed out topics, I’m going with an introduction.

What better opportunity to get to know a little bit about me?

I started writing seriously shortly after 9/11. Up until that tragedy while I’d always enjoyed my life I’d lived more for my family than myself. I’d always made sure they all knew how our lives are precious. I’d made sure they made the most of every opportunity handed them. Life is about dancing and setting goals.

Until then, I’d bounced around in several college majors, psychology, sociology, criminal justice, science, and history. But, creative writing was what always called to me. My professors and teachers encouraged me to pursue writing. They all said I had a good “voice.” At the time, I had no clue what they were talking about, though, I did have plenty of characters whispering their tales to me.

Days after 9/11, it was my wonderful husband who spurred me to try my hand at following my dream of writing romance. Since that day, I set about learning how to write romance because no matter what you hear writing is a craft. And, you have to learn the structure of written storytelling. I completed five stories while I was getting a hang on my voice and the writing craft. They are contemporary romances very dear to me. I hope to one day have the time to clean them up.

Early on, while I was figuring things out, I cut my teeth in fan-fiction. I wrote for about five years on Sherrilyn Kenyon’s official fan-fiction groups. I not only gained some of my bestest friends, but I mastered characterization, including those big, strapping, yummy alpha males. Fan-fiction was a great learning experience for me as well as a place to get instant feedback.

June of last year, I pitched DARK SENTINEL the first of my NETHERWORLD series to Crissy Brashear in person. I received a request! I was (still am) so completely thrilled when I received a contract offer from my Samhain editor. There’s just something special about a first. I’m so thrilled to be part of Samhain!

DARK SENTINEL is a dark urban fantasy romance set in Louisiana outside of New Orleans. I’ve just recently contracted another story also to Samhain. This one is titled BOOMERANG LOVE. This is the first of the Thorn brothers’ trilogy and is a contemporary romance set in Australia. Both series fall under red hots. I’ve been given tentative early 08 release dates. I’m looking forward to sharing my worlds with you all.

Hm…I guess I just hit on my writing life, but my website has all kinds of tidbits. So, feel free to explore.

Until later~
Mel