Monday, June 22, 2015

SOLACE: Fae Warriors Book 1

Very excited. Just got my world-wide release date.
AUGUST 5TH 2015


    Solace Goodeve, one of Mother Nature’s favorite Fae Warriors, is assigned to Earth to help save the planet. Reptile invaders, disguising themselves as humans, are waging a takeover—and Mother is mad enough to eat asteroids. Solace is ready to prove herself as a warrior, but having a human for a partner is not in her battle plan—even if the man is rugged, ripped, and ready for action.

    Army Ranger, Tanner Jackson, has seen his share of black op missions. The last one took a toll on both body and soul. Tanner isn’t looking for love, even though his new partner is six-foot-tall and drop dead gorgeous. However, after Solace shows him a new meaning to working undercover, he may have to reconsider that possibility.

    As the Reps plan to sabotage NOAA, Tanner and Solace must learn to trust one another. But as they're trying to save the world, Solace and Tanner might just lose their hearts—and that takes the most courage of all.


WWW.GINIRIFKIN.COM


Thursday, June 11, 2015

A sheep, a duck, and rooster went up in a hot air balloon


 
           I think Man's urge to fly started when
              the first man (or woman) saw the first bird.


     And thanks to my adventurous and generous sister, several family members and I got the chance to experience what it is like to be a bird
                                                                   



We arrived at the Fair Winds take-off site EARLY in the morning.
 They readied the baskets. 
Lots of ropes and lines to sort out.


Our balloon, flat and forlorn, waited nearby as we munched on delicious snacks and juices.


                        Finally it was time. First the balloon is filled with ambient air blown in by a fan. 

Before long, it had enough air 
     for one of the crew to walk around inside of it. 

Then the winds came...

Unfortunately, that meant they had to let all the air out 
and the waiting began. Because we were so excited to take-off, it seemed longer than it really was. But soon the process began again. Once the balloon was refilled with "normal" air, the basket (turned on its side) allowed them to blasted hot air in from the propane tanks. 
The balloon was HUGE 



and we were ready for take-off.
                                  UP, UP, and AWAY

 I don't like heights, but there was no way I was going to miss this event. After all, in my romance novel Victorian Dream, the heroine is kidnapped by the villain and forced to take a balloon ride (saved midair by the hero of course) so how could I put her through that harrowing experience and not try it too?



It was so exciting. A bird's-eye view of life, and except for the roars and growls of the tanks breathing fire like a dragon, it was totally silent.  


With the mountains as a backdrop, it was a breathtaking view.

                                         We went up, 
                                     and we went down, 
                                   why we even turned around,
   seeking a breeze to send us eastward to our landing site. 


Just a shadow, silently passing by. 

We weren't ready for the wonderment to end, but 
an hour later, we made our decent. 
Right over the highway, YIKES 

The landing was totally exciting, hopping along the ground.

The chasers found us quickly, and after we 
got our "sea-legs" back 
we helped them pack up the equipment. 
Bye bye basket. 

What a unique and memorable experience!
Thanks Kathy, and thanks Mary for the great photos, 
especially the Us-ies.



                                    For a bit of history,
                and cool photos of  unusually shaped balloons, 
                                    please keep reading. 

    The Chinese launched unmanned lanterns and military signals a thousand years before Rozier and Montgolfier came on the scene. But these two men, in 18th Century France, perfected the long standing theories offered by so many scientists before them. 
                                Pilatre de Rozier.jpg






The Montgolfier brothers worked in paper manufacturing and noticed ash rising in the heat of fires. They are credited with sending the first non-human creatures up into the air. It almost sounds like a stand-up comics joke."A sheep, a duck, and a rooster, go up in a hot air balloon." Actually the animals were chosen with some degree of logic. The sheep was close in size and human physiology, the duck could already fly to high altitudes, and the the comparison animal a rooster was also a bird but flightless. The trip lasted about 8 minutes went 2 miles, was witnessed by Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, ending with a bumpy but successful landing .


Later de Rozier and Laurent went up 500 feet and traveled about 5½ miles before landing safely 25 minutes later. Balloons were powered by hot air and then gas. Rozier and Romain lost their lives crossing the channel when the gas they used ignited. 

The material for the balloon itself started out as silk lined with paper, 



In 1836, the “Royal Vauxhall” balloon which was used as a pleasure balloon in Vauxhall Gardens was used by Charles Green with two crew and after 18 hours came down safely at Weilburg in the German Duchy of Nassau, setting a record unbeaten until 1907.













Sunday, June 7, 2015

VICTORIAN DREAM at TCRW's Romancing the 8, June 2015


                Hi and thank you for stopping by.



                            My excerpt today is from
                              Victorian Dream


“You gave me one heck of a start, little lady, the way you suddenly materialized right in front of me.”

“I gave you a start? You nearly scared my hair gray sneaking up behind me.”

“That truly would have been unforgivable.” 

   He gazed at the curls framing her face, his expression one of consideration. All the while, his arm held fast, keeping her close, so close she could smell the bayberry soap with which he had washed. So close she could feel the hard muscles of his body and the warmth of his breath. It felt much nicer than when Lucien had held her.

“Your hair is just the right color,” Walker added, with conviction.

“And what color is that, pray tell?”

“The color of chestnuts in the fall, the color of good rich earth that will grow anything a man’s heart desires.”

    Well, she’d never been compared to nuts and dirt before, but somehow the way he said it made it sound like the most sought after compliment in the world.


                        VICTORIAN DREAM 
                 available now e-book or paperback
                                         AMAZON.COM
                         BARNES AND NOBLE 
                        THE WILD ROSE PRESS


 Please visit these authors today for a peek at more romance stories you're sure to love. 

       Linda Carroll-Bradd
       Lori Power