Shira Anthony

Shira Anthony's "Into the Wind" Blog Tour

 

 

     I'm so excited about today's post! My good friend and author extraordinaire, Shira Anthony, is here! YEA!!!! She is the author of two of my favorite series, the "Blue Notes" series and the "Mermen of Ea" series. Today she is sharing her latest release, "Into the Wind", the second in her "Mermen of Ea" series. She is also having a giveaway to celebrate, so check it out. And now, without further ado, Shira Anthony.

 

 

 

 

When I grow up, I want to be a merman!

Thanks, Jase, for hosting the Into the Wind Blog Tour today! I wanted to remind readers that I have a great Into the Wind Blog Tour giveaway on Rafflecopter. Here’s the link to the giveaway widget: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/cf0ba93/ Grand Prize is an amazing handmade merman tail fluke pendant, 1st Prize a Mermen of Ea Goodie Basket (includes autographed copy of Stealing the Wind paperback, t-shirt, and lots of other fun stuff), 2nd Prize is a $10.00 Dreamspinner Press gift certificate, and 3rd Prize is a paperback copy of Stealing the Wind (Mermen of Ea #1) – or for non-US winners, a $10 Dreamspinner Press gift certificate. Readers can enter daily by tweeting, commenting, and liking!

 

I’ve loved fantasy stories since I was a little kid and my dad read the Lord of the Rings books to me and my little sister. From there, I discovered the original Star Trek, and I branched out to include science fiction in the mix. I also loved romances, and I would tear through as many as I could get my hands on. The best stories for me? Stories that combined both fantasy and romance. Which probably explains why my favorite stories ever are from Marion Zimmer Bradley’s "Darkover" series. Those stories are set on an alien planet where humans and aliens had interbred to create a caste of people who had psi abilities (telepathy being the simplest of their abilities). Darkovans rode horses and fought with steel. Their society was ruled by kings and sorcerers. There were so many wonderful layers to those stories—To this day I still reread them for writing inspiration.

 

I have no doubt that my love of fantasy fueled my creative soul, and that my brain is wired to imagine and create. I’ve been inspired to write stories based on dreams I’ve had, and I’ve dreamed about stories I’m writing and have awoken with great ideas for those stories. I was always one of those kids who had her head in the clouds. I remember, at age 10, how I used to walk to the library wearing the Trek science officer uniform my mother had made me, hoping and praying Scotty truly would beam me up! Years later, here I am creating the universes from my imagination on paper and loving every minute of it. And the universe in the Mermen of Ea Series is such a joy to play in!

 

It doesn’t take much to understand the appeal of mermen. Getting certified in scuba has opened an entirely new universe to me. When I’m under the water, I want to stay there forever, which really doesn’t work with a limited tank of oxygen and a little thing called a "surface interval" (humans’ bodies need to slowly off-gas the buildup of nitrogen that occurs when diving by spending a set amount of time above the water between dives—this is related to the painful and often fatal condition known as "the bends" most people have heard about). Human bodies simply aren’t made for extended time underwater unless they’re in a pressurized environment like a submarine.

 

What a wonderful fantasy to be able to exist both on land in human form, as well as in the ocean, in merman form! Truly the best of both worlds. Not that I’d like to be caught in the middle of a merfolk civil war, or a battle at sea, like the heroes of the Mermen of Ea Series. But in a perfect universe, it would be lovely, wouldn’t it?

 

I hope you’ll join me on the epic adventure of mer-shifters Ian and Taren, beginning with Stealing the Wind, and continuing into Into the Wind. The last book in the series, Running with the Wind, will be released sometime in 2015. I’ll leave you with an excerpt from the second book—a bit of sexy romance under the waves, in Ian and Taren’s shifted forms. Happy reading! –Shira

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Blurb:

  Since learning of his merman shifter heritage, Taren has begun building a life with Ian Dunaidh among the mainland Ea. But memories of his past life still haunt him, and as the threat of war with the hostile island merfolk looms ever closer, Taren fears he will lose Ian the same way he lost his beloved centuries before. Together they sail to the Gateway Islands in search of the fabled rune stone—a weapon of great power the Ea believe will protect them—and Odhrán, the pirate rumored to possess it.

After humans attack the Phantom, Taren finds himself washed up on an island, faced with a mysterious boy named Brynn who promises to lead him to Odhrán. But Taren isn’t sure if he can trust Brynn, and Odhrán is rumored to enslave Ea to protect his stronghold. Taren will have to put his life on the line to find his way back to Ian and attempt to recover the stone. Even if he does find it, his troubles are far from over: he and Ian are being stalked by an enemy who wants them dead at all costs.

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Excerpt from Chapter 2 of Into the Wind:

 

They swam out from land as they held each other, tails beating the water in tandem as they spiraled in a dizzying dance. More than anything, Taren found the Ea mating ritual a beautiful thing. Ian’s Ea body was also beautiful. In this form, Ian’s chest was broad and the muscles of his belly and arms more powerful. As a human, Ian was strong. As an Ea, he possessed strength and surprising grace few others did. Taren loved to watch Ian swim, watch the sinews of his body ripple as he moved his tail, watch his hair twist in the current. More thrilling, perhaps, was the knowledge that Ian was his, that Ian desired him above all others, that Taren held Ian’s heart.

Ian released Taren as they glided over the sand at the bottom. Large schools of silver fish followed the contours of their bodies, calling to mind the shimmer of moon across the waves. Here, many feet below the surface, the pressure of the water created a warm cocoon around Taren and drove the warmth in his chest to his extremities, making his fingers more sensitive.

Taren flicked his tail to propel him around so that he and Ian swam toward each other, arms extended, then moved upward as they laced their fingers together and floated perpendicular to the sea floor. They kissed and their tongues entwined. Ian tasted of the ocean and of the promise of Taren’s new life. Their former incarnations, Treande and Owyn, had been equals in everything. Partners, friends, lovers. Taren both relished and feared the power of his connection to Ian and the unexpected turn of fate that had brought them together, as well as the revelations of their past.

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Book Buy Links:

Dreamspinner Press: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4975&cPath=55_484

 

AllRomanceEbooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-intothewind-1496001-143.html

Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00K4PX4BS/ref=rdr_kindle_ext_tmb

 

Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/stealing-the-wind-shira-anthony/1116395006?ean=9781627980531

 

 

 

 



     Thank you, Shira, for taking the time to come and share with us! It's been such a pleasure having you! If you haven't taken the time to read the first book in the series, "Stealing the Wind", please do. You will love it!! And with a cover this gorgeous, how could you not snap it up!

 

 

     As was mentioned, she is doing a giveaway to celebrate. Here is the information you need as well as the other stops in the tour:

 

Blog Tour Giveaway Info:

Contest starts 5/5 (release day) and ends at midnight on 5/31. Prizes include:

Grand Prize: Handmade Merman Tail Fluke Pendant

1st Prize: Mermen of Ea Goodie Basket (includes autographed copy of "Stealing the Wind" paperback, t-shirt, and lots of other fun stuff)

2nd Prize: $10.00 Dreamspinner Press Gift Certificate

3rd Prize: Paperback copy of "Stealing the Wind" (Mermen of Ea #1) – or for non-US winners, a $10 Dreamspinner Press Gift Certificate

Here’s the Rafflecopter link:

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/cf0ba93/

 

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Blog Tour Participants:

5/5 Release Day – Smoocher’s Voice (Interview with Shira)

5/6 Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words (Inspiration for the Mermen of Ea Series)

5/8 Mrs. Condits and Friends (Merman Sex 101)

5/9 Tali Spencer’s Brilliant Disguise (Series and Worldbuilding: Recreating the Merman Myth)

5/10 Prism Book Alliance (Character Interview with Ian Dunaidh)

5/13 Joyfully Jay (Character Interview with Taren Laxley)

5/15 Book Suburbia (Tired of Vampires and Werewolves? How About Mermen?)

5/16 Jase’s Athenaeum (TBA)

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     Again, I want to thank Shira Anthony for taking the time to visit! And I want to thank all of you for coming and visiting as well! It means so much to me to be able to share this with all of you!! Hope you have an incredible day! **HUGS** :)