On my upcoming releases with Riptide

A note to all my readers: I have contacted Riptide and asked to be released from my contractual obligations with them. 

This means that I will be taking back all my rights for my Riptide titles, including those written with JA Rock, and we will hopefully have them out as self-published titles as soon as possible. 

The same goes for my upcoming releases. 

I don't know what the timeframe on getting these out will be, but as soon as I know, I'll be sharing that with you. 

An excerpt from The California Dashwoods - coming in May

Back in 2016 (?) I got an email from the awesome team at Riptide, asking me if I wanted to be a part of their Classics Queered series, and, if so, which Austin novel did I want to rewrite? And my answer, no question, was Sense and Sensibility. I know that a lot of other people prefer Pride and Prejudice, but for some reason Sense and Sensibility has always resonated more for me. My sister and I argue about this all the time--yes, we're literature nerds. So I was so, so happy to be given the chance to tackle Sense and Sensibility, and put a new twist on a favourite classic. 

The Dashwoods in the 1995 movie - mine are a little different!

The California Dashwoods, my take on a modern Sense and Sensibility, is due out on May 28 -- and I'll be sharing preorder links and cover art as soon as I get them! For now though, since I've finished line edits, I thought this would be a perfect time to share an excerpt! 

In this scene, Abby (Mrs. Dashwood) and Elliott (Elinor in the original) are figuring out where they can go once Abby's terrible in-laws through them out of Norland Park: 

“Do you remember John?” Abby asked. “Not John John. My cousin John.”

Elliott sucked jam off his finger. “John in California?”

“He lives in a little town called Barton Lake. He has a store there. It’s where I met your father, actually. He and the Family were there for the summer, and they wanted an au pair for John. John John, not cousin John. I thought, well, I can make more money looking after some spoiled little snot-nosed rich-kid brat than I can doing chalk drawings on the pavement, and—” She cut herself off with a laugh. “And the rest is history.”

Elliott saw the moment her expression shifted from gentle grief into something sharper. He reached out and caught her hand. “Cousin John?” he prompted.

Abby shook herself. “He emailed me last night. He’s got an apartment above his store that he’s happy to let us have. And, if we work a few shifts in the store, he’ll let us have it rent-free. Utilities only. It’s two bedrooms, so it’s going to be a squeeze, but we’ll find a way to make it work, won’t we?”

Four of them in a two-bedroom apartment sounded like a disaster, actually. Abby and Marianne, despite being two peas in a pod—or perhaps because of it—locked horns a lot, and Greta was at the age where she needed her own space to storm off to. It wasn’t ideal, but it was a hell of a lot better than the prospect of living in the car. And it was a starting point, right? A roof over their heads while they figured out their next move.

“What’s the catch?” Elliott asked.

Abby smiled at him and squeezed his hand. “There’s no catch, baby. This is what families do.” She raised her eyebrows. “Well, families that aren’t the Dashwoods.”

Elliott quirked his mouth in a wry smile.

That was certainly true. The Dashwood Family was less like a family and more like a corporation. He wondered what Alexander Dashwood, flying his kites and dreaming his dreams, would have thought about the true legacy he’d left. A legacy of lawyers at every family gathering, of board meetings instead of birthdays, and of looping signatures on contracts instead of Christmas cards. A legacy of scheming sycophants who relied on the family trust for income and spent their lives cozying up to the trustees—Cynthia and Great Uncle Montgomery among them—to keep the money coming.

The Dashwoods really were so awful that it was as easy to reject them on an emotional level as it was to be rejected by them. Practically though . . . Well, enough money to get the girls through school and college would be nice. Elliott just needed to convince John to make that happen somehow. John was under no legal obligation—the Family lawyers had made sure that Abby and her children were in line for absolutely nothing—but John wasn’t as bad as the rest of them. John was their brother. Except there was also no guarantee that John would have any influence with the rest of the Family.

Elliott thought of the space above the fireplace where the Naked Blue Lady had hung.

“California might be nice,” he said at last, when what he really meant was that California might be necessary.

Abby smiled and squeezed his hand again.

Coming Soon: Two Man Station

I'm so excited to announce that I have a new release coming out in January 2018 from Riptide: 

Gio Valeri is a big city police officer who’s been transferred to the small outback town of Richmond with his professional reputation in tatters. His transfer is a punishment, and Gio just wants to keep his head down and survive the next two years. No more mistakes. No more complications.

Except Gio isn’t counting on Jason Quinn.

Jason Quinn, officer in charge of Richmond Station, is a single dad struggling with balancing the demands of shift work with the challenges of raising his son. The last thing he needs is a new senior constable with a history of destroying other people’s careers. But like it or not, Jason has to work with Gio.

In a remote two man station hours away from the next town, Gio and Jason have to learn to trust and rely on each another. Close quarters and a growing attraction mean that the lines between professional and personal are blurring. And even in Richmond, being a copper can be dangerous enough without risking their hearts as well.

You can pre-order Two Man Station from Riptide! 

Coming Soon - Adulting 101

Here it is, at last! The proof that I can write something fluffy! You all thought I was lying, didn't you? But no! Adulting 101 is now available for preorder from Riptide, and comes out on August 15. 

Look, I had a ridiculous amount of fun writing this, and I hope you have fun reading it. And if you check out that link to Riptide, you'll be able to read an excerpt! And who doesn't want to start their day with a blowjob scene in a porta-potty? 

Here's the blurb: 

The struggle is real.

Nick Stahlnecker is eighteen and not ready to grow up yet. He has a summer job, a case of existential panic, and a hopeless crush on the unattainable Jai Hazenbrook. Except how do you know that your coworker’s unattainable unless you ask to blow him in the porta-potty?

That’s probably not what Dad meant when he said Nick should act more like an adult.

Twenty-five-year-old Jai is back in his hometown of Franklin, Ohio, just long enough to earn the money to get the hell out again. His long-term goal of seeing more of the world is worth the short-term pain of living in his mother’s basement, but only barely.

Meeting Nick doesn’t fit in with Jai’s plans at all, but, as Jai soon learns, you don’t have to travel halfway around the world to have the adventure of a lifetime.

This is not a summer romance. This is a summer friendship-with-benefits. It’s got pizza with disgusting toppings, Netflix and chill, and accidental exhibitionism. That’s all. There are no feelings here. None. Shut up. 

Stealing Innocents

Stealing Innocents is here! Yes, it's the collection of stories so dark that even my pseudonym needed a pseudonym. 

For a chance to win a $20 Riptide voucher and an ebook of your choice from my back catalogue, join the tour and leave a comment! 

January 11, 2016  -  La Crimson Femme

January 11, 2016  -  Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

January 11, 2016  -  Booklover Sue

January 11, 2016  -  3 Chicks After Dark

January 12, 2016  -  My Fiction Nook

January 12, 2016  -  Boys in Our Books

January 12, 2016  -  GGR-Review

January 12, 2016  -  Cup o' Porn

January 13, 2016  -  Love Bytes Reviews

January 13, 2016  -  The Day Before You Came

January 13, 2016  -  Bookaholics Not-So-Anonymous

January 13, 2016  -  MM Good Book Reviews

January 14, 2016  -  Prism Book Alliance

January 14, 2016  -  Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents

January 14, 2016  -  Sinfully MM Book Reviews

January 15, 2016  -  Joyfully Jay

January 15, 2016  -  TTC Books and More

January 15, 2016  -  Book Reviews and More by Kathy

You can find out more about Stealing Innocents, and read an excerpt, here. 

Stealing Innocents

I've often said that I don't know why I call myself a romance writer. Even when I write romance, it often tends to skew dark. And there's always been a little voice inside me that whispers, "But it could be darker." 

There's a definite relationship between sex and violence, and one I've always been interested in exploring. So a while ago I decided to do an experiment in self-publishing, and to write a few very dark stories, put them up for sale, and see how they went. I used a different pseudonym, because these stories were not stories I particularly wanted to attach to the Lisa Henry brand. I mean, presuming I have a brand. 

And what happened was this.

The stories went out, caused some modest waves in the dark little corner of m/m I often hang out in, and then, surprisingly, I got an email from one of my cowriters saying how much she'd liked them. I wrote back and admitted it was me. What happened next was the awesome team at Riptide offered me a contract to expand and re-edit the stories, and package them in an anthology. And so, I share with you: 

Those who dare to scratch the surface of ordinary, everyday life may be horrified to find a sick underbelly beneath—a nightmare world populated by villains and victims, predators and prey, where the rules of society no longer apply.

Where you’ll find people like Danny, the boy who sells himself to pay for his father’s gambling debts and ends up in a situation more twisted than he ever imagined. Or Troy, the cop whose obsession with saving a brutalized human trafficking victim turns deadly. Or Drew, the mental patient who begins to suspect his nightly delusions of abuse by his doctor are actually real. Or David, the cuckolded husband who decides the best way to get revenge is to seduce his wife’s barely legal son.

Stealing Innocents is an exploration of our darkest human impulses, where sex is power, love is horror, and there’s no such thing as a happy ending.

The stories included are Gamble Everything, Crazy, and Falling Angels. 

There's also a previously unpublished story written for the anthology, called First and Only, about a man who decides the perfect way to get revenge on his cheating wife is to seduce her barely-legal son. 

These stories are dark. There are no happy endings here, well, not unless you squint and tilt your head the right way. But for those of you who like to take the occasional trip to the dark side, I hope you enjoy them! 

Stealing Innocents is out from Riptide on January 11. You can preorder it here. 

TEMPEST - Out March 9

Woot! 

TEMPEST, the third PLAYING THE FOOL book is out March 9! And, like always, JA Rock and I have a fun blog tour with an awesome giveaway. 

Not only can you win a $20 gift voucher and an ebook of something from either of our back catalogues, you will also win these: 

 Donut socks. 

A donut cushion that looks good enough to eat. (Warning: Do not eat.)  

Join the tour and leave a comment for your chance to win! 

March 9, 2015 - The Blogger Girls

March 9, 2015 - Boys In Our Books

March 9, 2015 - Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

March 10, 2015 - Sinfully Sexy Books

March 10, 2015 - Love Bytes Reviews

March 10, 2015 - The Jeep Diva

March 11, 2015 - Book Reviews and More by Kathy

March 11, 2015 - MM Good Book Reviews

March 12, 2015 - La Crimson Femme

March 13, 2015 - Cup O' Porn

March 13, 2015 - LeAnn's Book Reviews

Something wicked this way comes.

FBI Agent Ryan “Mac” McGuinness and con man Henry Page are on the run again. This time they’re headed back to where it all began: Altona, Indiana. Population: some goats. Henry’s not happy about lying low at the McGuinness family farm, but they’ve got nowhere else to go.

While Mac fights to clear his name and Henry struggles with whose side he’s really on, a ghost from the past threatens to destroy everything. And those aren’t the only storms on the radar. Cut off from both sides of the law, Mac and Henry must rely on their tenuous partnership to survive.

If Henry can convince himself to let Mac see the man behind the disguises, they’ll stand a chance of beating the forces that conspire against them. The course of true love never did run smooth, but for the two of them, it might be their only hope.

You can check out TEMPEST at Riptide.

Coming February 16 - Rules to Live By

So, Heidi Belleau and I wrote some filthy daddy kink, called The Harder They Fall. You'll find it in the Riptide anthology Rules to Live By, which comes out on February 16. The other authors are Cari Z, Anah Crow and Dianne Fox, and Anna Zabo. 

That's some damn good company to be in! 

You can preorder Rules to Live By here. 

Four intimate tales of power exchange, discipline, risks taken, and pleasures earned.

A list of rules to live by.

In Cari Z’s House Rules, jealousy leads Jonathan to break the rules his lover has established. He can’t decide which he enjoys more: his punishment, or the reward afterward. Good thing he gets both.

A lesson in humility.

In The Harder They Fall by Heidi Belleau and Lisa Henry, spoiled college boy Tad hires a prostitute, but “Daddy” couldn’t care less about what Tad wants. Instead, he’s going to give his spoiled little boy exactly what he deserves.

A cage that means freedom.

In Master Key by Anah Crow and Dianne Fox, Marquis offers Navin the key to the most intimate of locks, hoping it will help them to prioritize their relationship. And it does—until work and insecurities threaten to drive them apart again.

A spool of rope and a desire to be bound.

In CTRL Me by Anna Zabo, a night out between friends turns hot and tempting when Gabe deliberately pushes Tom’s submissive buttons. Then Tom discovers rope in Gabe’s glove box—and not the type for securing luggage. 

The Merchant of Death - Out February 2

Woohoo! It's almost here! The Merchant of Death, the second in the Playing the Fool series, comes out on February 2. Mac and Henry are back, with just the sort of intrigue, silliness, action, and cross-dressing you'd expect from something written by Shakespeare. With less genius, obviously. But more full-frontal nudity. 

To celebrate the release, JA Rock and I will be doing a blog tour. You can win awesome stuff if you follow it here: 

February 2, 2015  -  Boys In Our Books
February 2, 2015  -  Sinfully Sexy Books
February 2, 2015  -  Cup O' Porn
February 3, 2015  -  MM Good Book Reviews
February 3, 2015  -  Love Byte
February 3, 2015  -  My Fiction Nook
February 4, 2015  -  Crystal's Many Reviewers
February 4, 2015  -  Nautical Star Books - Spotlight
February 4, 2015  -  Smoocher's Voice
February 4, 2015  -  It's About The Book
February 5, 2015  -  Creative Deeds
February 5, 2015  -  La Crimson Femme
February 5, 2015  -  Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words
February 5, 2015  -  Prism Book Alliance 
February 6, 2015  -  The Novel Approach
February 6, 2015  -  TTC Books and More
February 6, 2015  -  Joyfully Jay
February 6, 2015  -  The Jeep Diva
February 6, 2015  -  On Top Down Under Book Reviews

All’s fair in love and war.

There’s something rotten in the state of Indiana. When con man Henry Page takes it upon himself to investigate the death of an elderly patient at a care facility, he does so in true Shakespearean tradition: dressed as a girl.

FBI Agent Ryan “Mac” McGuinness has more to worry about than Henry’s latest crazy idea. Someone is trying to send him a message—via a corpse with a couple of bullets in it. He needs to figure out who’s trying to set him up before he gets arrested, and he really doesn’t have time for Henry’s shenanigans. Then again, he’d probably be able to focus better if Henry didn’t look so damn distracting in a babydoll dress and a wig.

But when Mac discovers that Henry has been keeping a secret that connects the cases, he has to find a way to live on the right side of the law when he just might be in love with the wrong sort of man.

Check out more of The Merchant of Death, or the other instalments of Playing the Fool at Riptide Publishing!