Release Blitz: THE BURLINGTON MANOR AFFAIR by Saskia Walker

A legendary family estate.
A mutual longing.
A bargain struck.

Carmen Shelby wants what's been left to her—the valuable estate that she once called home. Rex Carruthers is the heir to Burlington Manor, a ruthless playboy who enjoys playing games, and all he wants is for Carmen to surrender. There can be only one winner...

"Walker deftly spins a captivating tale that will have readers holding their collective breath until the last page is turned.”—Publishers Weekly on The Libertine

"Saskia Walker is one on the top erotic writers of the millennium." - Alison Tyler

Buy links:

Amazon UK

Amazon com

Direct from Harlequin US (only $3.99 direct price)

All Romance Ebooks

Direct Mills and Boon UK (out now)

"As the kiss deepened, her body trembled—which only made his grip on her tighten. He wanted to keep his little bird…make her sing out with pleasure." –The Burlington Manor Affair, Saskia Walker

Excerpt:

“The trouble with this arrangement,” Rex commented as he walked across the room, “is that I’m enjoying it rather too much.” He watched her reaction.

Carmen stopped dead, standing on the patterned rug in the middle of the room. “What are you saying?”
Rex sat down in a winged armchair.  “For a month you do everything I want, every weekend, absolutely anything and everything.” He paused, allowing his message to sink in. “And in return for that you get my half of the property.”

“I told you I’d pay.”

Those eyes of hers, such defiance. How delicious it was to see her fire.

“That won’t be necessary. You will have earned every tiny part of the property by the time I hand it over. Don’t worry about the money.”

She knotted her fingers together. “You’re trying to embarrass me. That wasn’t part of the bargain.”
“I don’t agree. Mostly because I don’t seem to have to try very hard before you get embarrassed. I think you’re embarrassment trigger and your arousal trigger are very close together.” He lifted his shoulders in a shrug. “I can’t help that, and neither can you.”

She pressed her lips together. She was clearly annoyed, and yet he could also see that she was acutely aroused. The hands-on treatment he’d given her out in the grounds had her poised for action. She was taut and watchful, barely waiting to be instructed.

Rex took a deep breath and savored the heady atmosphere of sexual anticipation.

When she noticed, she hissed as if in objection.

Rex lifted an eyebrow. She lowered her eyelids, but watched him from beneath her lashes. Rex laughed. Had Carmen Shelby always had these withheld submissive desires? It hadn’t been obvious before, of that he was certain. And the constant battle she was having with her needs—was that part of the package? Or was this dilemma of hers because she’d revealed her trigger to him, perhaps inadvertently? Whatever the reason, neither of them could put it back in the box now. No way. Now that he knew her little kinks and foibles he intended to play them out to their full extent.

“So what is the problem?” she demanded after he left her standing there in silence while he admired her.

“A month might not be enough.”

She glared at him.

“It’s day two and I’m loving every moment,” he continued. “Seems such a shame to put an end date on it.”

“You’re winding me up.”

“I’m being honest.” He was. This was too good.

“In which case you lied to me. If you don’t intend to stand up to your end of the deal, I’m walking out of here right now, and if I have to do that I promise you I will only deal with you through a solicitor!”
Angry Carmen was hellishly hot.

“Is this the ballsy businesswoman speaking now, or are you saying you can’t handle more than a month of this?”

Her eyes blazed.

“Seriously, aren’t you enjoying our time together?”

“You know I am, in some weird fucked-up way.” She folded her arms across her chest. “But I want a limit on it, for the sake of my sanity.”

Sanity? What did that really mean? He’d find out, all in good time. He knew he’d pushed her on the terms. “Fair enough. I suppose I’ll have to stick to my word.”

“It’s only sex,” she blurted, as if it was an afterthought.

“It is…and I must say I’m liking these kinky sex games of yours.”

“Mine?”

“Yes. Yours. Okay, let’s begin.”

She rolled her eyes.

“I’d like you to prove to me how much you want the house and how hard you’d work to get it.”

“Now you really are trying to humiliate me.”

“Not at all. You said it made it easier for you when I took charge. Although I do think there’s a part of you that likes that…the humiliation.”

Oh, how her cheeks flamed.

Rex smiled. “Strip for me.”

Long bio:

Award-winning British author Saskia Walker first dreamed of writing her own stories when she discovered a handful of romance novels stashed away in her school library. An avid reader, she lapped up the adventures and the life-affirming emotion of these stories, but always felt dismay when the bedroom door closed the reader out. She vowed that in her stories all the passion would be right there on the page!

Saskia began writing in the late 1990s. By that time she'd traveled the world, gained a B.A. in art history, an M.A. in literature and the visual arts and she'd worked in several diverse careers—but the stories in her head simply had to be written.

It is the combination of potent eroticism and strong storytelling that has become the leading characteristic of Saskia's work. Fascinated with seduction, she loves to explore how and why we get from saying "hello" to sharing our most intimate selves in moments of extreme passion. She writes across genres, often incorporating elements of history, the paranormal and the fantastic in her work. As well as many novel- and novella-length publications, Saskia's work has now appeared in more than seventy international anthologies. Her debut novel received the Passionate Plume award for the Best Contemporary Erotic Romance of 2006, and two of her novels have been nominated for a RT Book Reviews Reviewers' Choice Award.

Nowadays Saskia is happily settled in Yorkshire, in the north of England, with her real-life hero, Mark, and a houseful of stray felines. You can visit her website for more info.

http://www.saskiawalker.co.uk

https://twitter.com/saskiawalker

http://www.saskiawalker.blogspot.co.uk/

https://www.facebook.com/saskia.walker.965

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/saskiawalker_news/info

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/104558.Saskia_Walker

Erin O'Riordan's Note: Saskia Walker and I have stories in an anthology together. That anthology is Strange Love, edited by Selena Kitt. My m/m paranormal romance between a priest and an angel is called "Angels Would Fall." Saskia's story is called "Where the Heart Is."

Find it here: Strange Love

These Kindle Books Are Free - 1 Day Only

Hurry and get these for your Kindle/Kindle for PC - free for one day only!

These three are paranormal romance anthologies of short stories:

Divine Matches

Strange Love

Wonder

This one is an erotica anthology of short stories:

Love Bound

New 'Heartache' anthology out from eXcessica; sale at Melange Books

I'm pleased to announce the eXcessica Publishing's semi-annual erotica anthology is out, and once again it contains an Erin O'Riordan. This original, never-before published story is called "The Witch's Tale." It has a witch - and werewolves! The anthology's title, and theme, is Heartache.

A snippet of "The Witch's Tale:"

...At the darkest hour of the night, all the wolves seemed to go away. Except one. His howling kept me awake. I went to my window and looked; it was a big brown male with honey-colored eyes.
I went to the door and opened it. "Come in, Milos," I said.

The big wolf trotted in and lay on the rug in front of my fireplace, whining. I brought him the remains of the bread I’d eaten for dinner (unlike the wolves, I ate no meat). He ate the bread. I sat beside him and stroked his fur until he fell asleep.

I fell asleep stroking the wolf. I awoke to find the fire had died out, and I was lying on the floor with only a naked, sleeping Milos to keep me warm.

"I was lonely," he said when he woke up. "I am alone in my den now. You were always kind to me and my people."

"You’re welcome to visit," I said, staring hard at the pattern on the rug and trying not to see his well-muscled body.

"I want to stay," he said.

"I don’t think you should," I said, drawing my conclusions about his intentions. "Milos, you’ll find another mate. One of your own people. A woman who can give you children that are like you."

"I know," he said. "But it will be many seasons before another single female becomes mature. I can’t wait that long. I got too used to Svjetlana, and then the babies, lying beside me. I won’t stay forever. Only let me stay for a few nights."

He lifted my chin so that I stared into his honey-colored eyes. They were both innocent and wild, sad and hopeful. I wanted to comfort him, especially after all the times I failed to help him. Still touching my face, he brought his lips to mine.

The gesture stunned me; in truth, it was my first kiss. I’d devoted so much of my life to aiding the sick and injured on this strange isle, I’d neglected finding a mate of my own. Milos, however, seemed to know exactly what he was doing. His thumb stroked my cheek as he kissed me, his tongue begging entrance into my mouth. The effect of his naked body, so near to me and so affectionate, was dizzying. I wasn’t thinking straight; it was as if I’d swallowed one of my medicines. Milos wanted more…and so did I. I parted my lips.

The official blurb: "Erotic, romantic, poignant and wistful, this anthology collection from Excessica authors will thrill you, touch you, and stay with you. These stories dare to explore the pleasure and pain of a lover gone, the one that got away, the forbidden affair, a true love existing on borrowed time. These are tales of passionate affairs that cannot last, but they are exquisite gems while they do, and like the star that burns brightest, these stories burn fast, dazzle and smolder in the memory."



Heartache is my 6th anthology with eXcessica. I also wrote stories in:

Divine Matches



Happy Endings



Love Bound



Strange Love



Wonder



Sale at Melange Books: For the month of January, take 10% off every e-book at Melange Books, in honor of the publisher's first anniversary! That includes books by Erin O'Riordan: the crime thriller The Smell of Gas and the Hearts of Tomorrow anthology, which contains my take on the French fairy tale of Melusine.

To get the e-book discount, use the promo code 4P096350 at check-out.

Buy This Book: Strange Love

The latest special anthology from eXcessica Publishing is titled Strange Love, and you can get it now for $3.99.

The Official Blurb: This world is full of the strange and unusual, from shapeshifters to anthropomorphic characters to genies to robots - check out these stories of unconventional love from the authors at Excessica! Strange never seemed so hot before!

Stories by Morgan Sierra, Elliott Mabeuse, D.B. Story, Wynter O’Reilly, Sam Kepfield, Amicus, Annette Gisby, Erin O’Riordan, Bekki Lynn, Jennifer Campbell, Saskia Walker, Sommer Marsden, M.E. Hydra, Madeleine Drake, and Kiera Thomas.

My contribution is "Angels Would Fall," a brand-new paranormal M/M erotic romance never previously published. Well, sort of male/male; one of the lovers is an angel. It begins thus:

"The angel moved through the garden, disguised as the wind. Father Diego Alba, knelt on a bright green pad in front of the peas, concentrating on the weeding. He noticed the fragrance from the delicately pink blossoms, but paid little mind to the breeze carrying its scent, even as the breeze ruffled Diego’s dark auburn hair.

"It was still early, and the heat of the day was just beginning to bother Diego. He scanned the bed of peas again, making sure he hadn’t left any weeds behind, then swept the pile of pulled weeds into his hands and deposited them on the compost heap. He shook the loose dirt from his hands, then went inside the rectory.

"The angel followed him, first as the warm wind, and then in the intimate fashion to which the angel was accustomed, as the very breath Diego drew.

"Diego went to his small, plain bedroom on the rectory’s second floor and took off his work clothes, placing his gardening clogs at the foot of his bed. He had no masses to say that day, and so he dressed casually, in an off-white guayabera shirt and dark blue slacks. He owned only one other pair of shoes, so the black loafers were a given. He went to the sink and splashed a little water on his face, rubbing the back of his neck to rid himself of the last of the garden soil and sweat that clung to him."

The title was inspired by my all-time favorite Melissa Etheridge song:



(Yep, one of the angels in the video is Bob Harper, the trainer on The Biggest Loser.)

A priest, an angel and a very pure love. Get the book now and find out which other strange tales of love await.