French Christmas and cats

Thank you, Shaunna, for having me on your blog to kick off the holiday season. It’s my favorite time of the year. You can find out more about me and my books on my website at: http://www.vijayaschartz.com You can find my paperbacks and eBooks on AMAZON – B&N – ARe – and all the major retailers, including the Apple Store.

I was born and raised in France, where the holidays are even bigger than in the US (at least the way I remember them). The traditions are different, and so is the food. The French do not celebrate Thanksgiving, so they have turkey for Christmas, and they stuff it with chestnuts (boiled then sautéed in butter with caramelized onions). The first time I tasted sweet potatoes (that was in India and the French still don’t know what they taste like), I thought they were chunks of chestnuts. The taste is very similar.

Raw oysters and seafood are also a big part of the French holiday menu. And the traditional dessert is the Christmas log, which my mother used to make herself with chocolate or coffee butter cream. Yum. Lots of calories.

I remember with fondness the holidays of my late teens and early twenties, no school, parties every night from Christmas Eve to the New Year. Of course it helped that my birthday fell right between the two holidays.

We did not take down the tree or the nativity scene until January 6, the twelfth day of Christmas, when we celebrated the arrival of the wise men, the Magi, that we called kings. There is even a special “galette des rois” stuffed with almond paste for that particular day. Whoever finds the hard bean (or ceramic bit) hidden in the galette becomes king or queen for a day. And he/she chooses a consort by dropping the hard bean into the chosen’s glass while they aren’t looking. The king and queen wear golden paper crowns (provided by the bakery with the galette). And not just the children wear the crown all day. Adults join in the fun, too.

And all that time, I wished I had a cat. I had an uncanny obsession with cats, and several times brought strays home on my way from school. Unfortunately, my father wouldn’t hear of keeping animals. In his view, animals belonged in a farm, not in an apartment, period.

Now that I do have cats, however, and since I’m a writer, I include cats in my novels. As you can tell from my covers, cats, big and small, take an important part in most of my stories. My new release coming out today in paperback (the eBook has been out for a while) is RED LEOPARD, Book Two in the Chronicles of Kassouk series. The feline in this story, Rascal, won an award for the best animal character in a book for 2010.

Book One, White Tiger is already in paperback, the other books in the series, already in eBook format, will follow in paperback in 2013, with the prequel coming last. Book Three, Black Jaguar, is scheduled for February 1st.

THE CHRONICLES OF KASSOUK:

In this futuristic series, set on an alien planet where a human spaceship crashed centuries ago, a small human community, having lost its technology, struggles to survive, battling the domination of a more advanced galactic race. Each book is a separate love story, as well as an action adventure, so you do not need to read the books in the right order, but if you are like me, you’ll want to start at the beginning.

RED LEOPARD
Chronicles of Kassouk Book Two
by Vijaya Schartz
From Desert Breeze Publishing
In paperback Dec. 1st at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

In charge of the fortress of Kassouk in the King's absence, what is Terek to do when a Goddian spacecraft lands in his medieval backyard, and the striking woman leading the galactic party insists on colonization?

Galya, the Goddian Princess commanding the geological vessel, is bent on finding a crystal with unusual hyper conductor properties. And the futile resistance of the local population isn’t going to stop her. Not even that defiant tribal chief nicknamed Red Leopard, like the infernal feline that follows him everywhere.

Terek and his band of swordsmen and felines must defend their people’s freedom, no matter the cost. But with this unexpected arrival, an old prophecy surfaces, taking new meaning and carrying a new threat... When political intrigues, greed, murder and betrayal tip the scales, who can Galya really trust? Her fellow Goddians? the Mutants bred to serve her race? or her primitive Human enemy?

"...action packed, fast paced story... I can't wait to read the next book in the
Chronicles of Kassouk series." 5 angels - Fallen Angel Reviews

"This book was so good. I was completely lost in the world Vijaya created and loving every second of it." - 5 stars - Goodreads.com

“Packed with action and adventure. Galya ... a tough warrior... a sweetness about her that makes her easy to like... I loved how Rascal was Terek's faithful companion and defender throughout nearly the entire story... I really liked Red Leopard." - The Hope Chest Reviews

Enter a comment for a chance to win a paperback copy of RED LEOPARD.

Good luck.

Vijaya Schartz
Blasters, Swords, Romance with a Kick
http://www.vijayaschartz.com

Dragon Clans

Hi everyone and thanks to Shaunna for hosting me to talk about my newest release, young adult fantasy 'Dragon Clans' – the second book of the Dragon series.

Dragons are cool! I love reading and writing about dragons, my favorite mythical creatures. I've been an avid fan of Anne McCaffrey and her Dragons of Pern series for years.

The dragons of the Treaty Alliance have their own communities, histories and morals. They are the indigenous intelligent species of Nuer. They work well together, but the red dragons are not part of the Alliance and are considered a dangerous enemy.

In the first book of the Dragon series, 'Dragon Flame', the human settlers are welcomed by the four dragon clans. 'Dragon Clans' relates the story of Sie, an orphan who is rescued from the sea by the leader of the red Valdra dragons. The Valdra adopt her and she agrees to help them contact the Alliance. Will she need to interact with the humans of Nuer to achieve this?

 
A Young Adult romance released thru Desert Breeze Publishing. "Dragon Clans" is the second volume in the Dragon series.

Plucked from the sea by a red dragon, the human woman Sie joins the Valdra Clan. Her red friends wish to join the dragon Treaty Alliance, but the other clans consider the Valdra wild and aggressive. Byron, a human friend of the Mondra Clan, works with Sie to overcome the many obstacles in their path. Will the other clans be able to forget the Valdra's past betrayals and present day destructive behavior? They believe they have succeeded but the planet has its own way of disrupting their carefully laid plans.

Publisher's Link for further information: http://stores.desertbreezepublishing.com/-strse-325/Dragon-Clans-Sue-Perkins/Detail.bok

Buy Link: http://tinyurl.com/dragonclans

Webpage: http://www.sueperkinsauthor.com/

I hope you enjoy the excerpt below and don't forget to leave a comment to be in to win an ebook of 'Dragon Clans'.



Excerpt used by permission of author.

The waves washed over the boat, swamping the small vessel. Sie huddled in the stern, her knuckles white with cold, hands clamped to the wooden sides. The hood of her cloak had blown back some time ago, allowing the rain to plaster her red hair across her face. She didn't dare raise her hand to clear her eyes, this would mean letting go of the boat. Clothes soaked with rain clung to her body, and the chill went through to her bones.

What am I doing here?

At the front of the boat her two older brothers struggled to keep them afloat. The crashing waves filled the vessel with water and with food bowls in hand they tried to bail the water back into the sea. Gorva, the eldest, yelled at her to come and help, but Sie couldn't move for fear. She knew this would mean a beating later, but surviving the present held more importance.

Ever since her parents' death her life had been miserable. The older brothers had grudgingly provided a home for appearance sake, but they didn't want her with them. A fifteen-year-old cramped their style. She hated her life in their house as a drudge. If anything went wrong they blamed her, and the rebuke often ended with a smack across the face or worse.

They'd come up with this stupid idea and dragged her along. Dragons lived on the other continent, and they were convinced there would be dragon treasure to steal.

The two idiots hadn't planned anything, the normal way for their escapades. They'd set off in a boat too small for the journey across the ocean. The food had run out after a few days, and she'd borne the brunt of their anger, catching the blame for everything. Now the storm had descended on them with the sea and rain crashing and pounding their frail craft.

Someone help us, please! We're in the middle of an ocean in a terrible storm. The boat will sink soon. Please, if you can hear me, I need your help!

Sie knew no one would hear her mental scream. If they did, who would care enough to rescue them? A clap of thunder shook the sky, followed by a lightning flash into the sea. Huge waves crashed across the boat. Her younger brother lost his grip, and Sie heard him cry out as he disappeared overboard.

"No!" Gorva lunged to the side, but his movement made the boat lurch and dip lower, curtseying to the waves. Sie grabbed the sides as the vessel overturned and threw her into the water.

Her cloak tried to keep her beneath the surface, but Sie fought against the drag and rose up for air. Nearby, the upside down boat tossed in the waves, and she swam toward it, grabbing hold of the ridge along the upturned bottom. Once secure, Sie looked round for her brothers, but could see no sign of them. The tumultuous sea and the dark clouds scudding across the sky filled her view.

I'm going to die. A sob caught in her throat as an icy cold wave blinded her. No one knows where I am, and no one will know I'm dead. I might as well let go and drown quickly. I don't want a slow, horrible death.

A small part of her refused to give up, but time passed and her strength ebbed away. Her fingers began to slip and her cold fingers tightened their grip. How much longer could she hold on?

A shadow darkened the sky.

More storm clouds. How much more are you going to throw at me Mother Nature?

A wind beat down on her, and Sie looked up. Huge red talons reached for her and plucked her from the water. The scream died in her throat as the owner of the claws curled the talons around her. The loss of her brothers, death stalking her, and now this. Darkness crowded in and unable to take anymore, Sie fainted.