Guest: Author Nicole Hurley-Moore

Thanks so much Tricia for allowing me to drop by.  :)

Do you think the books we read as children influence today? For me, the answer is yes. I grew up reading fairytales, myths and legends. A Thousand and one Nights and the dark tales of Grimm... and let’s face it some of those stories are really grim. For example, in the old version of Cinderella we see her step-mother encouraging the step sisters to cut off their heel or toes to fit into the slipper, only to have their plan undone by the two pigeons calling to the prince “Cuckoo, Cuckoo, there’s blood on the shoe... she is not the true bride for you.” Of course, the prince heeds the bird’s warning and leaves with his true bride, Cinderella. See, dark and twisty!

Added to the fairytales there was King Arthur and his knights, Scheherazade and her Arabian tales and all the myths and legends from around the world.

            I found the tales instilled in me a fondness for dark, paranormal stories and history. And of course, as in all excellent fairytales the good must win and there has to be a happy ending.  I don’t know if it was the frocks, the heroes, the forests or the castles but I fell in love with medieval history. Although, the poem ‘King John’s Christmas by A.A. Milne and the ballad ‘The Unquiet Grave’ also may have had something to do with it. My first two novellas, The Trinket Seller’s Daughter and Capturing Bliss are both medieval romances. However, just as they did as a child I find my worlds of history and the paranormal merging again. Until the Stars Burn Cold, is a time travel romance filled with the promise of everlasting love and cursed rings. For daring to love the wrong woman, Jinn is cursed into a ring by an evil sorcerer. He is trapped for centuries until modern day antiques dealer Mia Templeton accidentally releases him.

            So, I find that I am still influenced by the things I read as a child and a young adult... how about you?

           

Until The Stars Burn Cold 

Forbidden love

Long ago in ancient Persia, there lived a pair of star crossed lovers. In a desperate bid, the lovers sought to flee the town of Adwan. But they were caught and torn apart. For his insolence, Jinn is cursed into a ring. Ages pass and empires crumble... and Jinn is still forever bound in a circle of frozen silver. Bound, that is until present day antiques dealer, Mia Templeton accidentally releases him. Mia is beautiful and Jinn, finds her somehow familiar. Is love eternal and evil everlasting? Can the power that destroyed his life in Adwan, reach through the centuries and threaten his future?

A Snippet from Until The Stars Burn Cold

Mia stirred as a loud rumble of thunder echoed over her house. She cracked open one eye ever so slightly. A flash of lightning illuminated her bedroom wall. She relaxed back into her soft mattress and closed her eyes. She was warm, comfortable and content, and as sleep threatened to reclaim her once more she wondered if it would be possible to reconnect with the delicious and vivid dream she had been having. Parts of it were beginning to disappear and she tried to hold onto the details.

There had been a man, a beautiful man with wide shoulders and lovely brown eyes and he had been kissing her. Mia let herself begin to drift, she was floating, barely conscious of her surroundings as she snuggled deeper beneath her quilt. Yet there was a nagging in the back of her brain that something was amiss. The edgy feeling told her to wake up but her body rebelled and her breath began to deepen. She reasoned that it was nothing to be concerned about; the dream coupled with the oncoming storm had disturbed her and nothing more. That was until she felt a large hand hook around her waist and pull her closer to a warm mass that engulfed her back. Biting back a scream she pushed the hand away and flung herself off the bed. She turned, faced the bed and fear, shock and amazement blended together in a tight ball in her stomach as she saw that there was a man in her bed.

A weak shaft of light pierced the darkness and she could see he was lying on his side stretched out on top of the quilt, with his arm flung across the bed. He was reaching for where Mia had been dreaming only a moment or two ago. It was then that she realized with a little relief that he was fully clothed. He wore long dark green trousers tucked into soft leather boots that ran halfway up his calf and a deep cream shirt under a leather jerkin. 

Mia stumbled across the corner of the room, grabbing the tall, metal floor lamp. She yanked at the cord and pulled the plug out of the socket. The cream silk shade fell off and rolled towards the door. Flicking on the bedroom light gave her a little comfort; at least now she could see exactly what she was up against. She edged towards the bed and looked down at her intruder.

She saw the way the man’s chest softly rose and fell. His eyes were closed and his features were relaxed. Feeling a little braver, Mia took one tentative step back towards the bed and studied the stranger’s face. He was handsome, with high cheekbones and a square jaw. His golden brown complexion was offset by his long dark hair.

Mia held the lamp in front of her like a staff. Taking a deep breath, she wished her heart would stop racing. She pushed the lamp forward and jabbed at the stranger’s shoulder.

 “Who the hell are you and what are you doing in my bed?”

Links –

www.nicolehurley-moore.com

http://www.facebook.com/nicole.hurleymoore#!/nicole.hurleymoore

http://nicolehurley-moore.blogspot.com.au/

Book Trailer -    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0U9UulnlZnE&feature=plcp

Until The Stars Burn Cold available from Pink Petal Books

http://pinkpetalbooks.com/Until-The-Stars-Burn-Cold-by-Nicole-Hurley-Moore.html

Contest:

One lucky winner will receive a copy of Nicole's Until The Stars Burn Cold. Just leave a comment with your name and email to enter. The winner will be randomly selected. Good luck!