Caressed by Ice

 

Alt Text: Quote from Caressed by Ice - "God, you're sexy when you talk Psy."

Hands up if you're a member of the Arrow Fan Club.

~Ashwini

Happy holidays & a gift

Wishing each and every one of you a wonderful holiday season!!

Thank you all for your support of my work over the past year. I hope you enjoy the following short story - it'll be up permanently on the short stories page of the website with the next set of updates.

I'm taking a short blogging vacation over the holidays - I'll be back January 2nd, 2012, so see you then!

~

A glimpse into Judd and Brenna’s life when they have a night to themselves, no Pack business to handle and no enemies at the door. This story slots in a few months after Caressed By Ice ( not long before Branded By Fire).

Movie Night

Nalini Singh

“Do you want to go out for dinner?”

Brenna hid a smile at the question she knew Judd had asked only because he was trying to be a good mate. He hated eating in restaurants. Regardless of the fact that he was a master of subtle disguise, he spent the whole time tensed up, on alert for threats.

“No,” she said, “let’s stay in and watch a movie. I have a couple of frozen pizzas I can throw in the oven, and the salad won’t take long.”

His smile was slow, quiet, wonderful. “Which movie do you want to watch?”

It made her heart ache that he hid nothing from her, though he was a man who’d been taught never to trust anyone. “You pick.”

“You like the dramatic romances that make you cry.” The last words were slightly puzzled.

Pulling out the pizzas and setting them on the counter, she shook her head. “No, I want you to choose something you like.” A small, many would say inconsequential thing, but those people didn’t understand that her mate had lived his life in the shadows, been forced to submerge his personality under a layer of ice—that ice had melted for her, but that didn’t mean it hadn’t left scars. Fun was still a new concept for Judd.

Now, not saying a word, he went to the comm panel and pulled up a list of recent releases. He was so serious, she wanted to reach out and kiss him stupid. Which would get her naked very quickly. Because in one arena, Judd definitely had the idea of fun down to an art—though he still refused to divulge his research sources.

“Here.” He input a choice on the large comm screen he’d moved so it hung on the wall in front of the couch.

Walking over, she put her hands on her hips. “Really? You want to watch a tearjerker romance set in the time of the Territorial Wars?”

“Yes.”

“Liar.” He’d just chosen something he thought she would enjoy. “It has to be your choice.”

“How do you know I don’t like the same movies as you?”

He was digging his heels in. She knew him in this mood. If she pushed him wrong, he would flat-out refuse to change his mind—that was the thing with Judd. He was sexy, strong, loved her until she felt the power of it in every cell of her body, but the man had a core of intractable stubborn. “Sweetheart, come here.” Cupping his face in her hands, she met the bitter chocolate of his gaze, the flecks of gold pieces of sunlight. “I want you to enjoy this.”

A softening in his expression, his hand coming to settle on her waist. “I enjoy being with you.”

“I know.” Woman and wolf, both parts of her adored  being cuddled up next to him, too. “I guess I want to see what you like as well.” Discover another hidden facet of the beautiful, complex man who was hers.
Judd paused. “I don’t know what I like.”

“That’s okay.” Sliding her hands down to his chest, she stole a small kiss before she went to the screen and pulled up a sub-menu. “These are considered boy movies. As you are a boy, choose one you think looks interesting.”

A glint in his eye, he went to the screen, went carefully through the choices. “This one.”

The promotional image was of a guy in a rainforest, with a machete, and a snake coiled around his arm like some kind of macho armband.

Brenna laughed. “Right, that’s the one.”

The movie was terrible. Awful. Everything that could go wrong did in terms of the direction, the production, the setting, the acting—though the leads weren’t helped by atrocious lines such as, “I’ve got to suck out the venom from the bite on your breast, doll. It’s your only chance of survival, so just lie back and let the expert get to work.”

Even the snakes couldn’t save it. According to Judd, and she didn’t know how he knew this, the reptiles being used as the super scary monsters weren’t the least bit poisonous. She had a stitch in her side by the time the movie was over. “At least he had beautiful abs,” she said, wiping away her tears as the credits rolled.

A slight raising of eyebrows from the man who sprawled on the sofa next to her—a sofa that had somehow survived his Tk. She knew that look, too. It said: Why are you admiring another man’s body? 

“Oh come on,” she teased. “Don’t tell me you didn’t notice the rack on his co-star?” A co-star whose primary job had been to fall out of her indecent bikini—why she was wearing a bikini in the Amazon was another thing—and scream like a banshee. “Especially when he had to ‘save’ her by heroically sucking on her boobs.”

“I noticed her rack never moved,” Judd said in a cool tone. “There’s no excuse for that with the low-cost cosmetic procedures currently available.”

She choked on the wine she’d just sipped. Her mate, eyes laughing, though his lips were only faintly curved, patted her gently on the back until she could breathe again. Pointing at him, she said, “That was a funny, Judd Lauren.” And some people thought he had no sense of humor. Hah!

Reaching for the remote, he tugged her to his side so she could snuggle close, and began to go through the menu again. “This one.”

“Oh God,” Brenna muttered in mock-horror when she saw the same guy they’d just watched fend off “deadly” mutant snakes, this time baring his teeth against—improbably—a saber-tooth tiger, “I’ve created a monster.”

Judd kissed her hot and hard. “You know you want to.”

She shamelessly arched her neck for another kiss. “Yes, I do.” Snagging the remote, she started the movie and settled in, one hand spread over his heart.  There was no place she’d rather be, and no one else she’d rather be with.

Copyright (c) 2011 by Nalini Singh

UK, Australia & NZ Kindle Readers

The Kindle pre-order link for Archangel's Consort is now up! So is the Mine to Possess Kindle pre-order link. Both will be available February 10th.

And Caressed By Ice is now available on Kindle. Judd! :-)

Edited to add: The above links are to Amazon UK. If they don't work for you, these links to the U.S. Amazon site should. (Thanks to Kerry for the heads-up).

Archangel's Consort
Mine to Possess
Caressed By Ice

NB: Just a reminder that there is another writer also now publishing under the name Nalini Singh on Kindle, so please always double-check my website to make sure I'm the author before you buy anything thinking it's by me. Or you can email me to check (nalinisinghwritesATgmailDOTcom). :-)

Cover Goodness!

How gorgeous are these covers?!

These are for the UK/Aust/NZ editions being brought out by Gollancz. I had a chance to see this cover art in progress while I was in London and I'm so delighted to be able to share it with you all now!

Look, more gorgeousness!


And yes, I have more! Check out Lucas and Judd!

I love them!!!

I'm fascinated by the differences in cover art across different countries - it's always such a thrill to see the final product. Thank you, Gollancz for these beautiful covers!

Thai Release & Other Fun Things

For my Thai readers - Caressed By Ice will be out in Thai at the end of this week. Follow the link to read more.

The website has been updated, and there's a contest up to win an advanced reading copy (ARC) of Blaze of Memory.

The Borders True Romance blog has just launched and the lineup of guest authors this week includes Linda Howard, Julia Quinn, and someone whose name begins with N. ;) My post will be up on the 21st, and there will be a chance to win books and an ARC of Blaze of Memory!

And a question for those of you who live in Germany - anyone in Frankfurt? I'll be passing through on a flying visit later this year. Email me if if you'd like to do coffee :)

How is the week treating everyone so far?

Thai Cover: Caressed By Ice

First, a heads-up: We're going to have a very special and truly international guest on the blog tomorrow, so make sure to drop by. Hint: if you speak German, you definitely won't want to miss this. Oooh, who can it be?

~

And now onto today's post!

Check out the incredibly gorgeous cover of the Thai translation of Caressed By Ice. Isn't it stunning?! I absolutely had to share this - huge thanks to my Thai publisher, Kaewkarn Publishing for sending it to me!


The Friday Book Club returns next week, so get reading! :-)

Patricia Briggs & Website

I have some wonderful news to share! Patricia Briggs, author of the rocking Mercy Thompson series, had this to say about ANGELS' BLOOD!

"...it was simply awesome. Powerful, terrifyingly, passionately awesome."

Whee!!

~

Also, the website has been updated, and included in this month's updates is a deleted scene from Caressed By Ice, as well as an "extra" scene between Lucas and Sacha. Enjoy! :-)

The Hostage to Pleasure Spoiler Thread

This is the thread where you can freely discuss HOSTAGE TO PLEASURE and the previous books in the Psy/Changeling series. *SPOILERS* allowed, so if you haven't read HtP yet, click away! This link will take you back to the main blog.

So, if you're sure this is where you want to be....let the discussion begin!

Also, if you're looking for the Caressed By Ice Spoiler thread or the Mine to Possess Spoiler thread, follow the links.

For those of you who aren't bloggers, you can still comment - just choose the Anonymous option and sign off the comment with your name if you'd like folks to know who you are.

NB: This thread is for readers, so if you have a question specifically for me, email me at nalinisinghwrites AT gmail DOT com.

Book Binge & Book Smugglers

I'm over at The Book Binge today, talking about how I choose (or how the characters choose!) who to write about next in the Psy/Changeling series. Swing by and leave a comment - I'm picking a random winner to get a copy of The Magical Christmas Cat.

Also, The Book Smugglers have kicked off a Nalini Singh Extravaganza (I like the sound of that *grin*) with a review of Caressed By Ice.

More reviews of Hostage to Pleasure have come in - I'm hoping to update the sidebar with them in the next few days :)

RT Reviewers' Choice Award

I'm very excited to announce that Caressed By Ice has won a Romantic Times Reviewers' Choice Award for Best Paranormal Action-Adventure Romance!! Woohoo!!

Mine to Possess Spoiler Thread

This is the thread where you can freely discuss Mine to Possess and the previous books in the Psy/Changeling series. *SPOILERS* allowed, so if you haven't read MtP yet, click away! This link will take you back to the main blog.

So, if you're sure this is where you want to be....let the discussion begin!

Also, if you're looking for the Caressed By Ice Spoiler thread, follow the link.

For those of you who aren't bloggers, you can still comment - just choose the Anonymous option and sign off the comment with your name if you'd like folks to know who you are.

NB: I might pop in now and then as time allows, but this is really for readers. If there are specific questions you want to ask me, email's better. Have fun!

Email & Ten Things

A quick note to say that I'm a bit backlogged re emails, so if you've emailed me and haven't heard back yet, gimme a few more hours. I'm going to try to clear the decks before I dive back into Hostage to Pleasure.

And a question for you all - on the right sidebar, I have a link to the Caressed By Ice Spoiler Thread. A few weeks after Mine to Possess comes out, I was thinking of doing one for MtP as well (no spoilers till then please!). What's your preference? Should I simply turn the CBI thread into a general Psy/Changeling thread? Or should I set up a new one for MtP?

Also, have you guys seen the Ten Ways To Tell If A Book Was Written By Me meme that authors have been doing around the blogsphere? I haven't had time to do up my own list but here are links to the ones I've seen - Gena, Jill, Jaci, and several of the authors on Fangs, Fur & Fey. Go check them out! :-)

Good News!

My head is spinning. Why?

Publishers Weekly reviewed Mine to Possess and called it "...paranormal romance at its best..." Squee!!!!

I was still walking on air over that when I found out that Romantic Times gave MtP a 4.5 star Top Pick!!!!

But wait, there's more. Caressed By Ice was picked as one of the Hottest Books of 2007 by Michelle Buonfiglio's Romance B(u)y the Blog at Lifetime TV; and as I was about to write this blog, I was told that CBI's also been nominated for a Romantic Times Reviewer's Choice Award!!

Hence the head spinning (and excessive use of exclamation marks)! I think I need to throw a cyber-party to celebrate. So, pull up a chair, bring your drink of choice and tell me what's made your head spin lately. :-)

CBI's on TV & RWNZ Conference Photos

I'm so excited! Check out what Gina Bernal, editor for Rhapsody Book Club had to say about Caressed By Ice on Romance Novel TV!

Follow this link!

Also, as promised, here are a couple more photos from the RWNZ Conference!

First up, two more angels! Sharbee on the left, and Maree on the right. Maree was my roomie and a fabulous one at that!


And this is one of me with our fabulous speakers, Jenny Crusie and Anne Stuart. If you ever have a chance to hear either Jenny or Anne speak, grab it. They're just fantastic!

Caressed By Ice Quiz Contest Winner

I want to say a huge thank you to everyone who took part in this contest. In the final count, there were over a hundred entries, which is just amazing!

And the name you've all been waiting for....the winner (picked randomly) of the $50 Amazon voucher is: Li.

Congratulations to Li, and hope you all enjoyed doing the quiz. :-)

Quiz Contest & Reader Interview: Kate

The CBI quiz contest is now closed. The entries came in via a number of ways (including this blog and my Myspace blog), so give me a little time to double check I have everyone's names in the hat so to speak. I'm hoping to announce the winner tomorrow.
____________

And now onto today's Reader Interviewee - Kate, who takes her chocolate seriously (my kind of woman)! If you'd like to participate (you know you want to) the details are here.

1. Tell us a bit about yourself.

I am from New Jersey, right near NYC. I am just entering my 30th decade (oh my!) I work in the television/video production industry. I am a die hard book reader, reviewer and love to write overall. I am also a true redhead at almost 6'0... well actually 5'10.

2. Are you a hoarder or do you give your books away?

I hoard like crazy but I am one to give books away to my local library or if there is a book I love to rave about, I will let my loyal friends borrow it.

3. What author might tempt you into turning stalker?

Stephen King

4. How susceptible are you to chocolate?

I smell it and I go crazy. If you put a plate of brownies in front of me I will eat all of them and probably the plate also!

5. Favorite book? Why?

Wuthering Heights. My name is Catherine just like the heroine! I think this book is the ultimate in romance, even though the hero is a bit of an obsessive freak, but man oh man the love he had for Cathy was all consuming and heartwretching even after death.

6. If you knew you were going to be stuck on a desert island, what three things would you take with you?

A crate full of gum, hair clip and soap

7. What did you eat for breakfast?

Oatmeal with strawberries

8. How many books in your current to-be-read pile?

20, no joke!

9. Describe your idea of a perfect hero?

Kind, sweet, intelligent, good in bed. LOL

Weekly Catchup (Updated)

Lots of things happening today:

I'm doing a mini world-building workshop over at Sandra Barkevich's blog. Feel free to come on over and throw questions at me.

Thanks to Shelley, I now know that Caressed By Ice is available as an ebook! I know many of you prefer that format, so yay!

A reminder that the Caressed By Ice Quiz contest closes Sunday, so if you haven't entered yet, you only have a few days left.

Also, at some stage today, my post for Sara Hantz's online launch party is going to go up. I'll try to update this blog once it does. Post is now up!

Okay, your turn! Catch me up on what's happening over in your corner of the world.

Champagne time!

Caressed By Ice is now officially out!! Time to celebrate!

And as promised, the spoiler thread for CBI is now open. If you don't want to read spoilers about the book, resist the temptation! If you've already read the book and want to speculate, discuss, sigh over Judd (wait, that might just be me *g*), head thataway.

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The link won't disappear anytime soon - it'll be in it's spot (in the right-hand-side column, just above the cover of CBI) for a long while yet, so if you read it later, you can still jump in and join the discussion.

CBI News

A comment in yesterday's thread reminded me I need to put up a spoiler thread for Caressed By Ice. Since I don't want people stumbling onto it accidentally, and this seems the easiest way to ensure that, I'll backdate it and put a link in the sidebar.

But, since CBI isn't officially out yet, would you prefer I wait until after Sep 4 to put up the thread? Is it too much temptation? Let me know! (I admit it, I sometimes can't resist reading spoilers if they're there for the reading).

There is one other option - that I set up a yahoogroup specifically for discussion of the series and folks can just put a spoiler warning on their posts if necessary. I need a show of hands - what do you guys prefer?

Also, some GREAT news - CBI is going to be a Featured Alternate of the Rhapsody and Doubleday Book Club! Whee!! :)

Caressed By Ice Quiz

Contest Now Closed.

Caressed By Ice is about to be released (yay!) so it's time for another competition. Not only will it promo CBI, it'll give you easy peasey content for your blogs etc. So really, it's a win-win situation!

What's up for grabs?

A US$50 Amazon voucher. (If you win and live outside the States, I'll swap that for an online book retailer in your country).

What do you have to do to be in to win?

1. Go and do the Which Psy-Changeling Hero Is For You? quiz and paste the result into your blog, livejournal or myspace etc.

2. Leave a comment on this post telling me you've done it and including the web address where it's posted. (If you can't comment for some reason, just email me at nalinisinghwrites @ gmail.com (without the spaces).)

3. Do all this before midnight Sunday 9th September 2007 (P.S.T)

While I'd love to take credit for the quiz idea, it came from Jane over at Dear Author. I, however, will take credit for the puzzle itself so you can blame praise me for it *grin*

The results will look something like this. Enjoy and tell everyone you know!

Which Psy-Changeling Hero Is For You?

Your Psy/Changeling Hero: Judd

Quiet, lethally contained and almost impossible to know, Judd Lauren is a Psy with incredible power. It will take one determined woman to melt this man of ice...but the rewards will be well worth the effort. Are you up to the challenge?Find out more about Judd and the series at http://www.blogger.com/
Take this quiz!








Quizilla