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Thursday, June 20, 2013

Goddess Fish Tour: Vampire Elite by Irina Argo

 Please welcome Irina Argo, and her new book, Vampire Elite! Check out the giveaway at a Rafflecopter giveaway
Follow the rest of the tour over at the Twitter hashtag:

#GF_VAMPIRE




At the beginning of the twenty-first century of our era, a millennia long war between two immortal races was coming to an end. The Vampire Elite, the strongest among vampires, forced the race of immortal beings, the Amiti to become their blood suppliers, called bloodstock, locking them in their underground cells and treating them like livestock.

The surviving free Amiti make a final attempt to strike back. The Queen of Amiti is proclaimed a traitor and is executed. Her death signifies the rise of a new Queen, her young daughter Arianna who becomes the last hope of her dying race. Arianna totally embraces her mission and is ready to fight for her people to the last drop of her blood but encounters an unexpected challenge—the vampire King Tor.

They both are captured into a trap of love where they had to make an ultimate choice; to kill the loved one or to let their races die.

Vampire Elite is the epic story of a bitter conflict between two peoples, and the effect of that conflict on everyone living in its grip. The characters are driven to love and betrayal, vengeance and sacrifice in a world without easy black-and-white answers.

Based on an ancient Egyptian legend, packed with action and intrigue, Vampire Elite will pull you into the entrancing world of immortals and open new portals into their hidden universe.

Exerpt:
As the auctioneer spoke, two Sekhmi in eveningwear—a male carrying an elegant dagger and a female girl.
“She’s barely eighteen, ladies and gentlemen. That’s a good three years younger than the youngest bloodstock you’ll usually come across. Look at her; she’s stunning, simply stunning, and as you can see, we’ve kept her well conditioned, in excellent health.”

The auctioneer paused as the male Hunter grasped the Amiti’s hand and held it above the tray. The girl showed no resistance, her only display of anxiety the butterfly fluttering of her thick eyelashes. He raised his other hand, and the dagger flashed in the light as with a swift motion he slit the Amiti’s palm.

The dark, intoxicating scent of fresh blood filled the room as it poured into the vials. Simone’s gums began to itch and burn, and she covered her mouth with her hand so no one would see her fangs punching down. It was considered terribly rude to expose one’s fangs in public, even among other vampires.

But she needn’t have worried; everyone’s attention was riveted to the stage and the blood flowing from the girl’s wound. The room vibrated with bloodlust and sexual arousal.

 Sekhmi approached Simone’s table, offering the Royal Pride the first of the blood samples. Knowing that all eyes were on her, Simone forced herself not to hesitate and took a small sip—and was immediately flooded with euphoria.

“For this magnificent specimen, we open the bidding at ten million U.S. dollars,” announced the auctioneer.

*** 
Irina Argo is a combined pen name for two authors, Irina Kardos and Jo-An Torres.


 Irina

Irina’s world is dark. She works as a clinical psychologist in a Juvenile Correctional Facility dealing with the extremes of human behavior on a regular basis and takes care of her paralyzed husband who suffered a stroke several years ago. To bring light into her life she writes. Writing has always been her passion. She is originally from Russia where she was employed as a TV journalist.



Jo-An

Jo-An is a Leo, a lioness who has emerged to follow her dream, to someday write a book of her own. She owned a costume shop for 15 years and was able to satisfy and excel in her creative nature. She is an over-achiever and believes that anything is possible if you believe in yourself and ignore the nay-sayers.  Her philosophy is based on Shakespeare "It is not in the stars to hold our destiny, but in ourselves." She currently resides in California with her 5 cats and 1 husband.


 

Monday, June 17, 2013

A perfect party.

Last Saturday, The Charming Man and I finally threw the "Party on the Patio" party we had been wanting to throw for years. With the construction of my Grandmother's Memorial Garden finally complete, we invited over all our friends  from belly dancers, writers, co-workers, and activists.  The weather cooperated, the grill produced amazing food, and our friends brought over food, drink, and legal smokables.
 
Purple Nancy, Pierre, Jake, and Sarah.


Sarah, The Charming Man, Gema, and Glenn observe Kathy trying a hookah for the first time. She said the tobacco tasted of apricot, and that was her nickname for the rest of the night. :)

From the center, going to the left: Kathy, Nancy, Jake, Sarah, Gema, Gerd, Brian the Headless Wonder, and Gary's Elbow.

Brian the Headless Wonder, with his head.

Gema Sanchez. She and I determined that someday, we will both decorate our bathrooms in Turkish tiles. We got everyone looking at pictures of the Turkish baths. I told my tale of experiencing the hamam, and she shared her trip to the Alhambra.
Jim Wilburn, president of Orlando  Construction, and his honey Paul Chamley. Jim was in charge of the deck project. I'm pretty sure people wanted to hire him after seeing the work he did here.
Dr. Snickerdoodle aka Brent, The Charming Man, and Mike Butry. Sorry about the goofy expression Mike. I'll get a better picture next time.
Brent brought Lemon and Saffron Marinated Chicken Kabobs - a Persian recipe for a Persian inspired back yard! 


Co-worker Michael Ewan.
Lynda Ewan, Queen of all She Surveys.
Co-worker Beth Gordon.
Lisa Gumm, pretty, pretty girl!
Amber, Beth's friend and fiber nerd extraordinaire!

And Thank You to all the lovely people who kept me too busy to take their pictures!