Friday, May 29, 2015

~ Symposium: The Right Man ~


Hello Everyone! Welcome to my May Symposium!



This month is all about our leading men. Do you go for the bad boy, the silent and brooding guy or the sweet and caring type of man?

I thought I’d asked my friends and fellow authors to give everyone a little inside peak at what their favorite type of heroes are and why. Read on and find out what everyone had to say!



LAURIE ROMA: I love variety when it comes to my leading men. Sometimes, I love the bad boy. Then again, I also love the sweet, caring kind of guy. Other times, I enjoy the slightly jaded brooder. But something that they all have to have in common is their honor and integrity. My type of hero doesn’t have to be perfect, but he has to be a good man under it all. He has to know how to love, and have a balance of possessive and protective qualities…and not have too many stupid male moments. :)

Katra Tesera is a female Dragon Warrior on a mission. Unsatisfied with the life her family wishes for her back on her home world, she seeks something more for her own future. When the opportunity to visit Earth arises, Katra is eager for the excitement and adventure of traveling the stars. She believes she is ready for whatever lies at the end of her journey, but nothing can prepare her for meeting her mate…the dark and dangerous Tarin warrior, Lord Jaden Tor.

Warlord Jaden Tor is a dedicated leader who is fighting a civil war to save his people. He has always known his path in life, but everything changes the moment he meets the dark-haired beauty with glowing silver eyes. Jaden wants to claim her for his own, however, there is more at stake than his own happiness… 

When legacies are challenged, and with Tartarus in turmoil, can Jaden and Katra find a way to be together, or will their love be shattered by the chaos that threatens everything around them?

BUY LINKS:
AMAZON | B&N | ARe | SMASHWORDS

EVANGELINE ANDERSON: The longer I write, the more interest I have in twisted, complex characters with shadowy, painful pasts.  I suppose they represent more of a challenge to write than your average good guy in a white hat. My hero, Laish, in Ruby Shadows, the third book in my Born To Darkness series, is such a character. As a fallen angel he has seen the best of Heaven and the worst of Hell and he has been scarred and hardened by his experiences. The reader may feel he is past redemption but then Laish gets called to the Mortal Realm by my heroine, Gwendolyn, who happens to come from a long line of Creole witches. What follows is an unforgettable trip through Hell itself. Laish is cast in the role of protector and he must keep Gwendolyn safe not only from all the dangers of the Infernal Realm, but also himself. He is drawn to her, though he cannot understand why and in the end he has to make a terrible choice between betraying her to save her life...and losing her forever.

Nothing is for free when it comes to demons…a fact that Gwendolyn LaRoux finds out the hard way when she summons Laish, a minor demon from the Shadow Lands to help her cook up a little black magic. Unfortunately black magic has a way of growing and soon Gwendolyn finds herself drowning in darkness. Still, she’s determined to clean up her own mess. But when a creature from the Abyss enters our world and threatens her beloved grandmother, Gwendolyn has to admit she needs help—which means summoning the infuriating Laish, even though she swore never to call on him again.

Answering Gwendolyn’s incantations in a moment of boredom was a mistake for a demon who keeps what little heart he has left under lock and key. Laish immediately fell for the Creole beauty with jade green eyes and creamy, café au lait skin and now he’s determined to have her—no matter what the cost. And thanks to Gwendolyn’s sticky dilemma, the price just went up.

When it turns out that the intrepid witch must travel through the Shadow Lands and close the door she left open to the Pit, she knows at once she can’t make the dangerous journey on her own. Of course Laish is more than willing to act as her escort and bodyguard…for a not-so-small fee. Gwendolyn doesn’t want to use her body as a bargaining chip but the lustful demon will accept no other form of currency. And since her grandmother’s life is at stake, she has no choice. Little by little she must give in to his demands.

As Gwendolyn and Laish travel further and further into the interior of Hell, will he be able to keep her safe? And will she be able to keep her innocence? Or with they lose themselves and each other among the… Ruby Shadows?

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N.J. WALTERS: When it comes to reading romance, we all have our favorite kind of hero—billionaire, cop, military veteran, cowboy, biker, the guy next door, Viking, Regency lord, warlord—the list is endless. My favorite to read and to write is the wounded hero. This is the man who has been through hell and doesn’t want to be anyone’s hero. All he wants is to be left alone. This tortured soul can be anyone from a cop who has seen too much and become disillusioned with the system, a military veteran who can’t forget the horrors of war, to an eternal shape-shifting warrior who feels he has lost his soul to the darkness. This man may not always do what other people think he should, but he has his own code and he lives by it. When the chips are down, he does the right thing, even at great cost to himself.

Now that the five-thousand-year curse that kept him and his fellow shapeshifting warriors trapped in animal form has been lifted, Mordecai doesn’t quite know what to do with himself. He is free—in theory.

Hell left its stain on his soul, and his relationship with the warriors who once trusted him is uneasy. The only bright spot in his life is Jessica, whose shining innocence he dare not taint with his inner darkness. But it’s getting harder and harder to stay away from her.

Jessica longs for the days she and Mordecai shared an easy friendship. Now he seems as distant as the stars. He denies there’s a problem, but she’s determined to penetrate his shields.

Hades has been plotting his revenge from his prison. He can’t harm Mordecai without harming himself. But there’s nothing to stop him from wreaking havoc by hurting the one woman Mordecai would give his life to protect—Jessica.

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LACEY THORN: I have a tendency to write alpha males. I like the type of man who steps up and takes charge. I don’t want him to be an asshole. He can have a moment here or there, but I don’t want it to be his personality. He needs to be the protector. He has to understand his woman’s worth and never forget what she brings to him. Respect is key. Love is mandatory. Faithfulness? Not even an option. If he cheats, he’s out. He can be the biggest badass out there, but when he takes his woman in his arms, he needs to become weak with need and hunger. That’s the man I envision when I write. Some are more outspoken. Some are quiet. They all are willing to step up to the plate and be the man their woman needs.

Legend awakened...

Reno has known there was more to him since he awoke in the hospital, alive when he should have died. Only one thought consumed him. Find Tah. Watch over him. Protect him. Then everything changed.

A tempted tiger...

A mission gone wrong brings him face to face with a woman who tempts his tiger from hiding. He wants her with a fierce hunger that consumes him and shocks him with the possessive nature she awakens.

Mine

Amia belongs nowhere. Not with the Blane family of hunters she was born into, and not with the dominant man who kidnaps her and turns her world upside down. She runs. She fights. And when the time comes, she pays the price. Running isn't an option, and there's no fighting a man who turns her inside out with unquenchable lust. Maybe, just maybe, she's found where she belongs.

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SUSAN HAYES: For me, it’s all about the sass. I love a hero with a wicked sense of humor. He might use humor to hide his pain, or he could just have been born a smartass, but invariably I am drawn to a hero who isn’t afraid to laugh at himself or the world around him. I love a bit of witty banter, or a kissable mouth turned up into a grin. Toss in the gleam of laughter in the hero’s eyes and you’ve got the ingredients for a book that will have me reading until the wee hours of the morning. My love of laughter spills over into the heroes I write, too. My latest hero, a fierce gargoyle shifter named Vamir, has a wicked sense of humor hidden beneath his stony exterior.

Two souls bound by fate. Two lovers enslaved by magic.

Vamir Halmar is the Commander of the last Company of Guardians. When a summoning spell targets the wrong man and drops Vamir into the enemy’s hands, he discovers his salvation in the form of a beautiful slave with quicksilver eyes and the heart of a warrior.

Torn from her family and home before she had grown into her powers, Gwyneth Annaren has spent most of her life as the unwilling servant to one of the most fearsome Magi. When Vamir is accidently summoned by her master, she finds herself face to face with a living reminder of the past she has forced herself to forget.  The handsome guardian is as dangerous to her as he is compelling, tempting her to dream of freedom and an end to her loneliness.

Can they have a future together, or will the price of their freedom be paid in sacrifice and heartbreak?

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ROSANNA LEO: Thanks so much to Laurie for hosting us once again! The right man, huh? My favorite subject. There are so many delicious heroes out there but at the end of the day, the ones that get my heart pumping are the ones with confidence. Not ego, that's different. I'm talking about a man who is sure of himself, no matter his station in life or romantic situation. As my heroine Winn says in The Stand-In, I like a hero whose roguish grin hints "at past misadventures and the willingness to partake in more." This is the sort of hero who sees right through you, into your soul. He knows what you need and isn't afraid to give it to you. A hero with cheeky confidence sets my heart fluttering and inspires my fingers to fly over the keyboard. He's the man who makes me dream.

Who makes you dream?

Failed actress Winn Busby is at the end of her rope. With no money and no prospects, she accepts the one job she never thought she’d see on her résumé. Professional bridesmaid. It should be easy. If only the idea of weddings and vows didn't give Winn a case of the hives. Her role becomes more challenging when she's told a reporter will shadow her work for a men's magazine article.

Working for Player Magazine is Patrick Lincoln's worst nightmare. A former political journalist, he used to write thoughtful columns for one of Toronto's most respected papers. That is, until he was blackballed for allegedly sleeping with the boss's wife. Overnight, Patrick becomes the city's most reviled bad boy. And now he's forced to write a seedy expose on, of all things, a bridesmaid.

Patrick begrudgingly accompanies Winn to a series of strange weddings. As they are forced to work together, he learns there is more to the stand-in bridesmaid than puffy dresses and pretty speeches. She, in turn, begins to question whether or not Patrick actually deserves the derision of his peers. As much as they fight their attraction, it begins to threaten their work and their sanity.

For so long, Winn has felt second-best. A stand-in. She finally meets a man who believes in her value. But can she let go of the past and accept him?

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JENIKA SNOW: My favorite type of hero is definitely the over the top alpha. The type of hero that sees the heroine, is immediately obsessed, and has to do everything in his power to be with her. He can’t stay away from the heroine, is possessive, territorial, and just overall insane for the heroine. But there also has to be devotion, trust, and of course love. He isn’t the type of hero that can be redeemed right away, because of course he’ll have this darkness in him that makes him a hero that the reader just has to root for.

Jana Finley just wants to escape from her abusive ex and start over with her son. She never envisioned her new life involving a motorcycle club. Even with the sex, partying, and violence that surrounds the MC, one biker in particular fascinates her.

From the moment Boston “Tuck” Oakley saw Jana he wanted her. When Jana is abducted right off club property something inside of him snaps. A beast emerges, thirsty for the blood of the one that took her. With vengeance running his blood cold, he will do whatever it takes to find her and kill anyone that stands in his way.

But time is running out, so in order to find Jana, Tuck resorts to something that puts the club in danger. Because of that betrayal his patch and even his life are on the line. He must find some way to make it right with the MC, as well has convince Jana that being with him isn’t the absolute worst mistake she’ll ever make.

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ELODIE PARKES: My favorite hero is such a complex character little wonder I've never met him in real life, so it’s great I can at least find him in stories, mine, and other authors’. He’s sweet, sexy, sometimes alpha, sometimes vulnerable, often caring. He’ll share his thoughts and fears. He’ll do things with you that don’t always align with his interests. He knows what he wants, and will go after it. He’s intelligent, muscled and handsome, and best of all he’s extra loving. Once he loves you, he’ll never let you down. He’s so great at sex just the thought of his kiss makes you go gooey. All my heroes are complex and I fall in love with everyone one them. Sighs.

Cade’s trying to get over a broken heart when his friend Jack takes him off to a nightclub, named only, The Club. Although at first Cade is shocked by the place, he meets Marissa. It’s not long before he and Marissa get together, but under the pressure of mixed emotions, and Marissa’s fear of commitment, they’re both running in opposite directions.

Gorgeous Cade has touched Marissa’s heart in ways she doesn’t want to admit.
Lovely Marissa has lifted Cade’s sadness and opened his heart to love again.

The trouble is — someone has to give a little. Who’s it going to be?

A contemporary erotic romance with a sprinkle of BDSM


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HAZEL GOWER: Thanks so much for inviting me to be a part of your blog. I love this discussion, The Right Man. This can be answered in so many ways and is different for everyone.  I like my book men to be very alpha, but I can tell you my hubby isn’t that alpha, shh, don’t tell him I’m telling everyone, I still love him though. Now if we were talking about my favourite type of hero to write, I’d have to say, tall, muscular, and I myself am partial to blue eyes, and a nice olive skin. Hair, you’ll find I have a decent amount of redheads in my books, or as my hubby says, ‘strawberry blond’. Personality, wow, that’s hard. I think it depends on the individual and what they’re looking for. I like to have my male characters positive, possessive, caring, trustworthy, protective, sure of themselves and at least have a direction of where they want their life to go. Now not all my men have this, but that’s what I personally like them to have, sometimes a male character can be bordering on none of those qualities and I really have to work with him and help guide him in at least the right direction.

My new book Gordon’s Dawn, Gordon needed a little push.

Gordon Wilks thought he had it all—women, power, and money—until a car accident had him questioning what he really wanted in life.

Moving to Australia where no one knows him, Gordon has a plan to find what he really wants, which is everything he never had and thought he didn’t need—until now—a woman to love him and to become his wife. His new neighbor in Australia, with her gothic looks, horrible taste in music, and amazing cooking gets in his way.

Dawn has a new neighbor, who at first is almost as bad as her last—calling the police on her for her loud music a couple of nights a week. One night, things change when she opens her door—not to the police, but to her new handsome neighbor.

Gordon gave himself a year to find a potential wife, and that year is close to an end. He finally gives in to the attraction he feels for Dawn despite their differences. Once he faces his true feelings, he realizes she’s the only one for him, and he has fallen in love with her.

Only, his time is now up and he needs to go back to his old life. The problem is Dawn has no idea he is Gordon Wilks, CEO of Wilks and Co Financial, and the only son of a Dallas dynasty family. She thinks he is a lowly bartender.

Will Dawn stay with him when she learns the truth?

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S.J. MAYLEE: I write about the kind of men that light my fire. They’re definitely a bit brooding. They can’t seem to help themselves from caring. In fact, once they fall in love, they’ll face just about anything to keep their heroine safe. My newest hero, I love him something fierce, may appear like your standard businessman. He’s an assassin for hire. The bad boy he may be, but I swoon for the way he saves his heroine. *fans self*

Life is passing Nadia Duskin by from her position in the mailroom. It only fulfills two necessities, keeping the repo man away and keeping her up to date on her sexy CEO.

Ethan Wright is prepared to frighten and fire the nosey girl who sorts his company’s mail. After engaging with her at one of his favorite places in the world, he digs deeper.

Together, they find the kind of pleasure that could keep them satisfied for a lifetime. Her love may be the key to putting both of their lives back on track, but to what end? When a man he’s been contracted to kill threatens Nadia’s life, he forces her to face reality. Either they’ll delve deeper into the desires neither expected or they may die trying.




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KALI ARGENT: I would have to say my favorite type of hero is a little bit of everything, the everyday hero, so to speak. I like men who are secure in their manhood, but aren’t afraid of stake a claim to what belongs to them. Possessive, but not jealous. Protective, but not smothering. It’s a delicate balance between being Alpha and being overbearing, and my favorite heroes are the ones who tread that wire with ease. I want men who aren’t intimidated by strong women, but would also go to the ends of the earth to protect them, even from themselves. I have to admit that men are a constant source of confusion for me, but at the end of the day, I think I kind of like the mystery, the unpredictability, and I want my heroes the same way.

A scroll with exceptional abilities, Camille Brighton lived a life of wealth and privilege until tragedy changed everything. The gifts that had once made her special are suddenly a curse to be feared, and she finds herself a captive in her own home with a world of possibilities just beyond her reach. When the demons of her past return, though, forcing her to flee to the outer rim of Alliance territory, she soon realizes freedom isn’t exactly the adventure she’d thought it would be.
Running from his own past on Helix, Tariq Navarra has spent the last nine years as a mechanical engineer on Beta Station 4. Life has proven the only person he can depend on is himself, and he’s built an impenetrable wall around his heart, wearing suspicion and distrust like a second skin. Then a slip of a woman carrying the scent of fresh rain and lavender turns his world upside down with just a smile. He’s never wanted anything or anyone more, and he’ll go to the ends of the universe to keep Cami safe. With danger lurking at every turn, he may just be forced to prove it—even if that means protecting the angel from himself.
Betrayal left them broken. Can love see them mended?

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Have a great weekend, and happy reading!

2 comments:

  1. Thanks so much for allowing me to play, Laurie!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you for inviting me to the symposium Laurie, it's very cool :-)

    ReplyDelete