Initial reviews for The Valde: Water are in, and it’s been interesting – a real mix of  “heck yeah!” and “…what?” which, despite the fact that it isn’t 100% glowing, is actually quite helpful for me. This book was a challenge, coming up with a completely new mythology as it were, and so I am grateful for the reviews, both good and bad, to help me understand what is working and what isn’t as I craft the rest of the series.

 

Being still somewhat new to the world of publishing and romance, I must say that I find the fact that a lot of official reviews sites give nothing BUT rave reviews a little surprising. Not that I don’t grin and stand a little taller when I get positive feedback… but when everyone gets the same review, it has a tendency to make me feel like… hey… maybe they didn’t mean it when they said they loved it!

Which is one reason why I really enjoy reviews on individuals’ blogs so much. Because I trust they’re going to give me the “real scoop,” for better or for worse.

So, to all those out there who not only voraciously read yum-yum gay sci-fi/fantasy, but take the time to share your thoughts with others… THANK YOU! :)

Anyway, here’s the round up of The Valde: Water reviews so far!

Literary Nymphs – Thank you Scandalous Minx!

Emmyjag –Thanks for reading and honestly reviewing!

Rain on the Roof – Hey, where are the accompanying nekked man pictures, Sarah? :) Thanks!

Elisa Rolle’s Review – Thanks so much… your description is far more eloquent than the book itself! :)

Well-Read – Thank you Jenre! I appreciate honest feedback.

Madame Butterfly – MB (Leah) … heh… “commando” rating cracks me up…

More info on The Valde: Water is at Loose Id

Oh, look how the dude in my icon is pining!

He is so sad, floating in that water with that red right hand! He is waiting!

What is he waiting for?

He is waiting for YOU to buy the book he is suffering tetanus on!

That's right, it's midnight(ish) on April 21, which means The Valde: Water is for sale today! 

For a mere $4.99 you too may know the great mysteries of the deep blue ocean. Okay, that's a lie. For a mere $4.99 you too may read my latest urban fantasy romance! (much more like it).

An excerpt is now available on Loose Id's website. And if you read the book, come back here and tell me what you think. Drowning boy and I want to know!

All the best,

Astrid.

I've got the cover art for my new novel, Water, which will be released by Loose Id sometime next month. See the banner below.  Despite its appearance, I promise you, my novel does not contain Mermen. That's a commitment I've made as an author:

I, Astrid Amara, promise you, the reader:

No Mermen;
No Nazis;
And no Nazi Mermen.

To prove it, I've gone ahead and uploaded an excerpt! You can view it on my website. Give it a read and let me know what you think!

So what's it about, if it isn't about fascist aqua sapiens? Well.....

On Joel Passaro's birthday, he watched his lover Charlie drown while saving Joel's life. Since then, no other man has been able to match the erotic chemistry the two of them once shared.

But a year later Joel is shocked to discover Charlie alive and well, looking as mysterious and attractive as ever.

However Charlie is different. He has new, arcane superpowers. He doesn't seem to remember Joel at all.

And he murders people with his bare hands.

Suddenly Joel finds himself on the run from both his lover, and a frightening group of dangerous individuals who can wield the elements at will, and who are determined to kill him to keep their secret safe.

But the smoldering looks Charlie gives Joel remind him of their former, heated passion, and even with Charlie's new homicidal tendencies, they discover that their bodies remember what their minds may have forgotten....

 Okay,  I have something to confess.

I have an attention span problem. Ergo….

I get bored easily.

What does that mean in the context of my novels?

It means I try never to write the same thing twice. Every story has to be different, either in tone, setting, or style, because otherwise I may start crying tears of boredom.

Depending on your point of view, that is either a good or bad thing. Good because you’ll get variety. Bad because you may have loved the way I wrote contemporary romance, but will hate the way I write angsty futuristic cyborg war. 

I guess some authors create pen names for different styles. I’m too lazy to reinvent myself that much.

So what am I saying? A warning. Expect something different every time. It’s why I went from an epic high-fantasy with swords to a futuristic prison of brooding interrogators to a glossy planet with sexy doctors to burning cops to a modern romance set in a quiet suburban neighborhood.

The only consistency I can promise you is that there will be two men falling in love, and there will be a happy ending. Every other variable is up for grabs.

That said, I have a new novel coming in April from Loose Id, called Water. This is not going to be anything like Holiday Outing.

It’s more like… supernatural chase scenes with lots of sex involved. :)

I'm really excited about the series it is part of, and will share more shortly. A blurb is currently up at my website.

So I hope you are like me, and enjoy variety in your romance!
 

Do you read?

Are you sick of vampires yet?

Are you really, really, sick of vampires yet?

In your efforts to avoid vampires, did you get suckered into reading werewolves?

Do you find it somewhat unappealing to imagine having sex with a dog?

Do you sit back and think to yourself, “why is werewolf sexy? It’s a guy whose skin splits open and grows hair?”

Do you wonder if werewolves get older and their back hair becomes such a problem that when you spoon them, you are actually 8 inches from them?

Do you see this when you think of werewolves? 

Now are you sick of werewolves too?

Do you wish oh wish oh wish someone would invent their own kind of superhero with a dark past? Something original?

Me too. 

That’s where the Valde come in. My new superheroes.

The first book will come out next month.

Details coming soon.