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Brexit Wounds

6/28/2016

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Ever since the very early hours of Friday 24th June I've had all these words raging in my head. All these emotions. Hate, disbelief, shock, despair, anger, hope, confusion, hysteria...It's just been a babble. A mess. I voted Remain. I thought Remain would win because...because I just did. Because the Leave campaign was full of lies. Because I couldn't believe that many people would let this man speak for us. Because I believe that, whilst the EU has its flaws, we are stronger together and that we have a responsibility as people - not as Britons but as people - to help each other. I still believe that, and yet here we are. Brexit is happening.



Since Friday, I've consumed so much news, so many opinions, seen so much outpouring of feeling on both sides, and I'm exhausted and heart-sore. There has been a sharp rise in incidents of hate crime since the result, such as Polish families in my own county receiving signs reading "No more Polish vermin" through their doors. I'm sickened that this result has opened the doors for that kind of bigotry and racism, that we've become a country that has mainstreamed it and validated it. When did this happen? That is not the world I know. Then again, I'm lucky to be relatively sheltered in Cambridge, working for the University. We thrive on international partnerships, like many universities around the country. So maybe I'm just out of touch with the rest of the country, or at least with roughly half of it.

I've never had a strong sense of national identity, because I grew up travelling all over the UK and Europe, I think, and because I grew up in a generation used to free movement around the continent. But I do love England...or at least the image I had in my head of England. I can't identify with people who scream abuse at immigrants in the street, or talk proudly of "sending them home" in our village shop. I can't feel any kinship with people who would rather destroy the country than share it. I thought we were better than that.

Nor can I identify with people who can happily ignore the economic impact of Brexit. Their shortsightedness astounds me. It's clear the Leave leaders had no plan in the event of a victory, and now they're rushing to assure us everything will be the same. But of course it can't be, and it's a fantasy to think we can have all the benefits of being in the EU whilst paying none of the fees. It terrifies me to think Boris Johnson may be the man leading us into the exit proceedings. But then, the idea of a general election terrifies me too, knowing that huge numbers of people in this country support Ukip and Nigel Farage.

So here we are. There is no plan, presumably because Leave didn't really expect to win. I imagine they thought this would just be a good way to put the wind up David Cameron, and that afterwards they could sit in their parlours, smoke their cigars, and brag about how they shook up the status quo. Well, congrats, because you really did and now you don't know what to do. And we pay the price in uncertainty and hatred.

Meanwhile, "Bregret" kicks in. I can't tell you how many petitions I've seen circulated for a second referendum. I even signed one, although in my heart of hearts I don't feel that's the solution. We could have referendums forever. The fact is, the referendum result is not legally binding, so another one doesn't particularly help. From those not feeling "Bregret," I'm told that this is democracy, get over it. As if there's a time limit on democratic debate. I'm told the people have spoken and that we're going to make this country great again. Obviously nobody actually knows how. The only people I have seen confidently and blithely assuring me that everything's going to be great - exciting, even! - are rich old men. And even they don't seem to have a clue how to make it so, beyond issuing ludicrous demands to the EU that can't possibly be fulfilled.

Ever since Friday I've been anxious, unable to focus, and full of anger that has nowhere to go. I've signed all the petitions, joined all the groups, written to my MP, and read all the news articles, and I still have no idea what I can do. I can't quietly sit back and accept that this divided, broken, bitter landscape is my future, or the future of the people I love. I can't stand the thought of my niece growing up in a society where this is acceptable. So I need to find ways to keep standing up for what I believe in, even if it's bloody futile. Because I do still believe that we as people, regardless of where we're from, can do better than that. And that we need to.



So to my Muslim boss, our doctors from Poland, Holland, Belgium, Japan, Turkey, Switzerland, India, Brazil, and all over the UK and Ireland, to the nurses from all over the world I see every day here in Addenbrooke's working to save lives, to the taxi drivers of all nationalities who ferried me and Remic all over Cambridge in May and earlier this month, to the nurses and doctors from Spain and the Middle East who helped Kyle through his surgery on Saturday...Well, I value you all. I love some of you. You're my friends and workmates and neighbours, you've improved and enriched my life and I'm sorry, so sorry, that you're experiencing this.

To the Leavers - I'm sorry if you're one of those who now regret your vote. I'm sorry you were lied to, that you believed your vote didn't count. I'm sorry our media and government have taught you that. If you're one of those who has no "Bregret," then I'm sorry you think the political, economic, and social troubles facing us now are worth it. I'm sorry you felt so unheard and disenfranchised that you now feel the only way forward is hatred and further division. I'm sorry you still believe in Good Old Britain, that you don't see or don't care how harmful those colonialist, imperialist notions are. I'm sorry that you're dragging the rest of us into a quagmire of unrest because you don't like having Polish neighbours. I wish you were better than that, like I assumed you were.

And I'm sorry, but no, I won't shut up and get over it.


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LIONESS HUNTING is unleashed!

6/27/2016

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What better way to start the week than with a new release? LIONESS HUNTING is the sequel to WAKING THE LIONESS, and picks up Lara, Tate, and Zane's story after their return to Malkin Ridge. It was great to continue their story, and I hope everyone enjoys the next chapter of their romance! I've also set the stage for at least one more book in the series...But let's not get ahead of ourselves. First off, let me tell you what LIONESS HUNTING is all about.

Lara Carey is settling back into life in Malkin Ridge with her two passionate lovers, Zane and Tate, and she's keen to prove that she belongs - both back in her old home and in her mates' bed. When a chance encounter with a teen tiger-shifter reveals the presence of a dangerous predator in town, Lara and her mates are forced to take action. With an innocent life at stake, can they hunt down this monster in time? And when the dust settles, will the trio be stronger for the experience?
Be Warned: menage sex (MMF), public exhibition

Sounds good, right? Right! You can buy LIONESS HUNTING now from Evernight Publishing, All Romance Ebooks, Amazon US, and Amazon UK. And if you haven't read WAKING THE LIONESS yet,it's available from all those places too as part of Evernight's Romance on the Go line, which means it's short, sweet, and very sexy. Happy Monday, and happy reading, whatever you're reading!
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Sex Up Your Sunday with Frey Ortega!

6/19/2016

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Happy Sunday, everyone! It comes too quickly, doesn't it? :/ I've just had a four day weekend that I mostly spent finishing up a dark romance novella, that I've now submitted. This was one of those stories that was not planned. It hit me out of nowhere and demanded to be finished now, so I put everything else aside and cracked out over 20k in about nine days. For me, that's pretty epic, when you factor in my day job and my rotator cuff syndrome. So I'm feeling pretty pleased with myself despite it being a Sunday. That story, Mr Red, is now submitted and I'm taking a day off writing to rest my knackered wrists. So I'm delighted to leave you with Frey Ortega and his new m/m release, MERCENARY TRUST. Let's go!
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MERCENARY TRUST
a new series by Frey Ortega

Out June 9, 2016!

Get it on Evernight

Get it from All Romance eBooks

Amazon

Or Bookstrand



Two years ago, Daniel Walsh’s life had gone to shit. He found out his boyfriend of six years was actually cheating on him. He was also laid off from his job. So Daniel, no longer having anything tying him down to the city, decided to travel the world…

…But then reality reared its ugly head. Now twenty-six, with no work and no money, Daniel moved back to the city where a visit to his mother brings him face-to-face with a certain Nicolas Castillo.

Nick is a thirty-year-old ex-marine just trying to live a civilian life after military service… or so he says. The truth is that he’s a member of an elite, black ops mercenary team called Unit Alpha.

When a mission brings Nick closer to people in Daniel’s past, he can’t believe the good-natured man has ties to some nasty people. But it also unleashes a protective instinct inside him unlike any he’d ever felt before.

With so many suspicious happenings in Daniel’s past, just how will he earn the mercenary’s trust?

Read on for an excerpt...


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Well, that was bullshit.

Daniel Walsh could almost hear the sound of the bouquet of flowers he was holding falling down to the floor with a loud thud.

Thwack. Petals. Petals everywhere on the carpet. That was going to be a bitch to clean up.

Thank God he wasn’t going to be anywhere near here in five minutes.

Life just had a crappy way of springing things on you, didn’t it?

He didn’t need to stay more than five seconds to figure out what had seared into his memory. No matter how many times he was going to wish he wanted it erased from his mind, Daniel was going to keep repeating the same five seconds over, and over, and over until he vomited from how horrible it made him feel.

In fact, his insides lurched already. “Oh God,” Daniel cursed to himself. Please, please, please let this all just be a dream.

A slam of the door and a quick stride to the elevator. He kept pressing the down button, hoping the damn thing would open in time and things wouldn’t get too awkward. It’s not like he was equipped to run all the way down the twenty flights of stairs to the lobby. No, he just wanted to get the fuck out of here, and fast.

Never mind that he had just left his home, where he had been living for three years with his boyfriend, Thad.

Thad, who had ensnared his heart as soon as they’d met in college, six years ago.

Thad, who had pursued him for so long and made Daniel feel like he was attractive, and whom Daniel had poured all of his love into for all those six years.


Thad, whom he’d just caught, naked, with another person in their bed.


Memories flooded into Daniel’s head. His lips quivered as he fought back the tears. No, no, this isn’t happening. This is just a dream. You’re going to wake up from it, and things are going to be fine.


No, it isn’t, a contrarian voice piped up from somewhere inside him. Things are going to shit. It’s probably your fault. You’re the one who forgot that yesterday was your anniversary. But you were working! At his father’s company. Forgetting shouldn’t have been that big of a problem!


Even with his eyes closed, he could still see the image of his boyfriend—ex-boyfriend—balls deep inside a person Daniel didn’t even know. On their bed.


Maybe he shouldn’t have entered the bedroom when he’d already heard was what happening inside.

The squeaking of the bedsprings, the guttural moans, that high-pitched whimpering from a woman who seemed like she was clearly faking it—not that Daniel knew when a woman was faking it, he’d never done anything remotely sexual except kiss that one kind of cute girl in band camp when he was ten—with a combination of sounds like that, Daniel already knew what he was going to be seeing.
Unfortunately, that didn’t stop him from peering inside and then slamming the door when he confirmed what he needed to know.

Yup, that’s Thad. Yup, he’s cheating on me. Yup, he was on the cusp of orgasm. Who knew he still had it in him?


The fact that the person Thad was currently hilted into was a woman didn’t even register in his mind. Cheating was cheating, and the mere sight of skin-on-skin contact was enough to make Daniel dry heave in a bad, bad way.


“Daniel!” He heard someone exclaim behind him, trying to call his attention. No, no, anyone but you, Daniel said to himself, frantically pressing the button to the elevator. “Daniel, wait, baby, I can explain—“


“Oh, no no no no.” Daniel shook his head. Every instinct inside him was clawing at him, telling him to let loose and punch Thad in the face. “We’re not going to do that little dance here. We’re not going to go into that whole cliché conversation. How are you going to explain your dick inside that woman, Thad? How are you going to lie to me, to my face, about how you weren’t just fucking another person in our bed, where we used to sleep together? Where we were building a life together?”


Nope. This was definitely not going well. Not for Daniel’s self-control, anyway. He was a hair’s breadth away from slamming his fist into Thad’s stupid, Adonis-like, chiseled fucking face.


Unfortunately, he couldn’t quite control himself.


“M… M…” Anger was rolling through him. Bubbling. Seething. It felt like he was about to explode. He couldn’t even finish what he was about to say.


Thad tilted his head. He raised his eyebrow. “Look, baby, I—”


“M … mail, motherfucker!” His fist flung outward and straight up into Thad’s gorgeous, yet dishonest face. There was a satisfying crunch as knuckles came into contact with nose, before the elevator bell dinged and the doors flung open.


What the fuck? Daniel didn’t know what came over him. His eyes widened, and a spreading sense of shame, more than he ever felt before, unfurled inside him. That’s the best you could come up with? No Hasta la Vista, baby? No? Okay.


“Ow! Motherf—” Thad brought a hand to his face, stunned and standing there with an angry scowl. “Son of a bitch! That hurt!”


“I hope you like bleeding all over your date. Enjoy the rest of the night. If you have any shred of human decency left, you’ll put my stuff in a box and I’ll pick it up from the doorman.” Daniel’s voice was curt and low, and exceedingly polite for how infinitely volatile he was feeling.


“Daniel, wait! Please! Hear me out!”


You don’t get the satisfaction, Daniel thought bitterly. But at least I got to smack the shit out of you.


About the Author:

Frey Ortega writes erotic romance, primarily of the gay (both M/M and happy) variety, and basically anything that catches his whimsy. He lives in what a friend affectionately calls “the south-easternmost part of Spain,” which is an archipelago known as the Philippines. He’s a graduate of the University of Santo Tomas (the Royal, Pontifical, and Catholic University of the Philippines!) with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology. Also, he’s so excited to share his stories with all those willing to read them!

He loves writing about people, especially men of all different backgrounds, cultures, and nuanced personalities, falling in love. You might also find him playing video games from time to time! His favorite ones are MMORPGs, and role-playing games in general (and not just the ones in the bedroom.) If you happen to see him in a video game, come say hi!

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The Second Battle of the Grotesque Bulge

6/17/2016

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When we last left our fearless hero, Sir Remic of Littlebrain, he'd returned from the vet's after surgery to have his Bulge removed, and was on strict instructions to behave and not tear open his stitches. That was about a month ago. He's spent that time living on a bed of newspaper with a cereal box for a hide, having antibiotic injections, and being watched like a hawk to see if he poops normally. I never thought I'd be so invested in snake poop, but here we are. The Bulge was attached to his gut area, so the vet had to cut into that slightly to remove it, then stitch him all back together, so there was a chance of Rem not functioning properly as a result. I'm pleased to announce that he is pooping just fine, and let us never discuss his poop again.

So! Today was the big day. I packed Rem up in his duvet once again, and we went back to the vet to have the stitches checked and removed. He actually wasn't that keen on coming.






So here's my tip for handling a snake that doesn't want to be handled: put the cereal box over his head so he can't see you, then handle the snake as you wish. It works without fail. And of course, once he was safely tied up in the duvet, he had no choice in the matter anyway.

The vet was delighted to see "Sweetie Pie" again, and very pleased with how the surgery incision looks, so he whisked Remic off to remove the stitches. He was back five minutes later to announce that Rem was stitch-free and "getting a bit annoyed." Still! He gave me permission to put all Rem's normal ornaments and bedding back in his vivarium, and all we have to do now is check that the wound doesn't re-open in the next few days. He'll have a sexy, mysterious scar which he could use to impress lady snakes with, if he knew any. The only thing we really need to keep an eye out for now is the last few bits of dead skin around the scar from his last shed. Apparently surgery often triggers skin-shedding in snakes, but because Rem had nothing to rub against and help get the skin off, there are a few bits still clinging to him. Hopefully those will naturally fall away now he has bark to rub against. If not, we need to give him a bath and gently remove them ourselves.

We returned home triumphantly. Remic did make a break for freedom in the taxi on the way back, but the nice thing about having a snake in a duvet is you can just shake him away from the opening whenever he tries to sneak out.


I will say that I'm definitely going to buy a proper reptile carrier sometime in the future. I sincerely hope we won't need to take Rem or Ket anywhere any time soon, but it never hurts to be prepared. And now Remic is back in his usual environs, having a good old nose around his hide and branches, and seems very content with life. Huzzahs!



And sitting in his water bowl, because he's not clever. So, for now, his epic adventure is at an end. I say "for now," because there is always a chance the Bulge will return. Basically, either it was benign or malignant. If it was malignant and the vet managed to fully remove it, we should be fine. If any tendrils got missed, it could come back. And even a returning benign tumour can be dangerous if it presses on vital organs. It's difficult to really know much about cancer in snakes, because most diagnoses come post-autopsy, sadly.

So we just don't know. Going forward, all we can do is check him carefully for any lumps and bumps and keep our fingers crossed. I'm hopeful, because that's just how I am. I would tell you to stay tuned for the Further Adventures of Remic, but with a little luck, there won't be any!

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Sex Up Your Sunday with April Zyon!

6/12/2016

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Happy Sunday, everyone! Today we're going out of this world with some sizzling sci-fi romance from the lovely April Zyon. Who's ready for Space Wars? I know I am!
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Chevon's Mate

Space Wars 5

by April Zyon
Published by Evernight Publishing
Cover and Banners by Simply Defined Art by Jay Aheer

About Chevon's Mate:
Laura Troxell was a Craegin woman who had everything in place for a long and loving life. She was engaged to the man of her dreams, had a brother that adored her and a position she absolutely loved. Well, that was until her world fell apart and the truth about her brother and fiancé came to light. Dumping her ex had her taking a nice long trip on a pleasure cruise around the Craegin universe, including traveling close to the neutral zone with Imarian space. It was thrilling and fun all in one. It was a non-stop party until someone decided to dump her like the proverbial trash, thankfully they, at least, dumped her in a life pod instead of just shoving her out of an airlock.

Chevon von Janus was a man who held his duty to train the next soldiers very seriously. He was a man that was a stickler for the rules, even when it came to an unknown life pod coming toward them from the neutral zone. Everything went by the letter in saving whoever was in the pod, he just never expected for the person to be a woman, a Craegin woman at that, but more than anything he hadn’t expected her to be his soul bonded mate. Talk about a surprise to the by the books commander.

The combustion between the two was felt immediately. However Laura had another secret to tell him, one that she was certain the Craegin’s wouldn’t want the Imarian’s to know about and when she did it certainly did heat up the war that was already sizzling between their peoples.

Chevon first has to keep Laura safe from his crew and then he has to work with old friends to figure out how to keep all of them safe. Life was going to get very interesting for these two very quickly. But no one ever said that love was easy, at least not when you were from two different cultures, cultures that happened to be at war.

Good thing that they had such amazing friends ready to go to the mat for them or their love would never know the light of day.

** read to the end for a link to the complete first and second chapter of the book **

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General Purchase Links for my books:
All Romance Ebooks
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Bookstrand
Evernight Publishing
Smashwords
iTunes

About April: 
April is a lover of all things romance, and a writer with an imagination that goes on for miles and miles. Writing for Evernight Publishing is a dream come true for her and something she wants to continue for the rest of her life.

Living in the great state of Indiana I'm now 42, married with 2 children aged 20 and 18 as of 2016 so life is always going. I live with the husband, both kids, my mom and her (our) puppy as well. :)

I work third shift and work odd hours and days so generally when I am awake no one else is, so I write :)

That's about it for me!

My Social Media Links:
Blog – https://april-zyon.blogspot.com/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/april.zyon.author
Facebook Fan Page - https://www.facebook.com/april.zyon.fan.page/
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Reddit - https://www.reddit.com/user/aprilzyon/
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Website - http://april-zyon.com/
** Sign up for my newsletter for exclusive content, giveaways and more! http://eepurl.com/01Eef **
The books of Space Wars...


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*** Coming sometime in 2016 The Royal Mate, the final book of the Space Wars series. ***

Read the complete first and second chapter of Chevon's Mate by clicking here... (use password AprilZyon)




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WOLF'S HUNT Giveaway!

6/8/2016

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As always, I am slightly disorganised when it comes to this sort of thing, but at last, it's time to celebrate the release of WOLF'S HUNT with a giveaway!
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And here's what's up for grabs:

A 10ml bottle of Follow Me Boy perfume from Common Brimstone Fragrances. An earthy base of Bourbon vetiver is blended beautifully with sweet flag, rich rose, light bergamot, and a shot of licorice. This is the perfume I imagine Clea wearing. It's based on an old hoodoo anointing oil recipe, which seems perfect for a New Orleans lady like Clea.

An adorable biker girl pendant from Shakespeare's Sisters, because this is an MC romance after all.

And an Evernight giftcard, because books. BOOKS.

All you have to do to enter is choose one or more of the Rafflecopter options below! The giveaway is live now and ends on 13th June, so there's plenty of time to be in with a chance of winning!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Oh, and PS - if you haven't read TANNER'S WAR yet, it's currently just 99 cents over on Evernight, so you can start the series dead cheap!
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    Welcome to the virtual home of Amber Morgan - writer of contemporary romance, MC romance, and paranormal romance. Cat-keeper, snake-charmer. Chaotic good.
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