• Rainbow Award Finalist!

    I have two books in the Rainbow Award finals! I was really excited to see Cronin’s Key and Red Dirt Heart 4 on the final list!

    Rainbow Award_finalist

    Cronin’s Key

    CroninsKeyNRWalker1500

    BUY LINKS : Amazon | All Romance eBooks
    BLURB:

    NYPD Detective Alec MacAidan has always been good with weird. After all, his life has been a string of the unexplainable. But when an injured man gives him cryptic clues, then turns to dust in front of him, Alec’s view on weird is changed forever.

    Cronin, a vampire Elder, has spent the last thousand years waiting for Alec. He’d been told his fated one would be a man wielding a shield, but he didn’t expect him to be human, and he certainly didn’t expect that shield to be a police badge.

    Both men, strong-willed and stubborn, are still learning how to cope with the push and pull of being fated, when fate throws them another curveball.

    Rumors have spread quickly of turmoil in Egypt. Covens are fleeing with news of a vampire who has a talent like no other, hell-bent on unleashing the wrath of Death.

    Alec and Cronin are thrown into a world of weird Alec cannot imagine. What he learned in school of ancient pharaohs and Egyptian gods was far from the truth. Instead, he finds out firsthand that history isn’t always what it seems.

    Red Dirt Heart 4

    Reddirtheart4300

    BUY LINKS: Amazon | All Romance eBooks | B&N
    BLURB:

    Moving from a Texas ranch to an Australian Outback station was a life changing decision for Travis Craig. Though it wasn’t really a decision at all. Something in his bones told him to go, though he had no clue as to why.
    Until he met Sutton Station’s owner, Charlie.
    Loving Charlie shouldn’t have been easy. The man was stubborn, and riddled with crippling self-doubt. No, it shouldn’t have been easy at all. Yet somehow, falling in love with Charlie was the easiest thing in the world.
    Loving him was easy. Living with him, teaching him how to love in return and, more importantly, how to love himself, was not.
    But Travis knew all along it’d be worth it. He knew the man with the red dirt heart was destined to be his. Just like he knew the red dirt that surrounded him was where he was supposed to be.
    In the final instalment of the Red Dirt Series, we see Charlie through Travis’ eyes. We see how much he’s grown and how much he loves. We go back to Texas with them, and we see Charlie get everything he truly thought he never deserved.
    Red Dirt Heart 4 is Travis’ story.
    And this is the story of not just one red dirt heart, but two.

  • Cronin’s Key ~ Rainbow Awards Honorable Mentions

    I’m so very honoured that Cronin’s Key has been given “one or more additional honorable mentions” and rated a score above 36 out of a possible 40 points in the Rainbow Awards!! This is an incredible compliment and I’m truly grateful.

    The lovely review, at Elisa’s Reviews and Ramblings can be found HERE

    Rainbow Awards Honorable mention Rainbow Awards Honorable mention 1

    Cronin’s Key is the first in a paranormal/fantasy trilogy, where New York cop Alec MacAidan discovers history isn’t always what it seems.

    cronins picture 1

    BLURB:

    NYPD Detective Alec MacAidan has always been good with weird. After all, his life has been a string of the unexplainable. But when an injured man gives him cryptic clues, then turns to dust in front of him, Alec’s view on weird is changed forever.

    Cronin, a vampire Elder, has spent the last thousand years waiting for Alec. He’d been told his fated one would be a man wielding a shield, but he didn’t expect him to be human, and he certainly didn’t expect that shield to be a police badge.

    Both men, strong-willed and stubborn, are still learning how to cope with the push and pull of being fated, when fate throws them another curveball.

    Rumors have spread quickly of turmoil in Egypt. Covens are fleeing with news of a vampire who has a talent like no other, hell-bent on unleashing the wrath of Death.

    Alec and Cronin are thrown into a world of weird Alec cannot imagine. What he learned in school of ancient pharaohs and Egyptian gods was far from the truth. Instead, he finds out firsthand that history isn’t always what it seems.

    BUY LINKS:

    Amazon

    Barnes and Noble

    All Romance eBooks

  • Cronin’s Key Series

    Thank you to everyone who has bought Cronin’s Key III. Let’s celebrate Alec and Cronin’s story through the series.

    History isn’t always what it seems

    Cronin’s Key

    cronins picture 1

    AmazonAll Romance eBooksBarnes and Noble

    BLURB:

    NYPD Detective Alec MacAidan has always been good with weird. After all, his life has been a string of the unexplainable. But when an injured man gives him cryptic clues, then turns to dust in front of him, Alec’s view on weird is changed forever.

    Cronin, a vampire Elder, has spent the last thousand years waiting for Alec. He’d been told his fated one would be a man wielding a shield, but he didn’t expect him to be human, and he certainly didn’t expect that shield to be a police badge.

    Both men, strong-willed and stubborn, are still learning how to cope with the push and pull of being fated, when fate throws them another curveball.

    Rumors have spread quickly of turmoil in Egypt. Covens are fleeing with news of a vampire who has a talent like no other, hell-bent on unleashing the wrath of Death.

    Alec and Cronin are thrown into a world of weird Alec cannot imagine. What he learned in school of ancient pharaohs and Egyptian gods was far from the truth. Instead, he finds out first hand that history isn’t always what it seems.

    Cronin’s Key II

    cronins picture 2

    Amazon | All Romance eBooks | Barnes and Noble

    BLURB:

    History isn’t always what it seems.

    With the battle of Egypt behind them, Alec and Cronin are enjoying the thrill of new love. Though fate doesn’t wait long before throwing them back into the world of weird.
    They know Alec’s blood is special, though its true purpose still eludes them. And given Alec’s inability to be changed into a vampire, Cronin is free to drink from him at will. But the ramifications of drinking such powerful blood starts a ripple effect. 
    With the help of Jorge, a disturbing vampire-child with the gift of foresight, Alec and Cronin face a new kind of war. This time their investigations lead them to the borders of China and Mongolia—but it’s not what lies in the pits beneath that worries Alec. 
    It’s the creator behind it all. 
    In the underground depths of China, amidst a war with the Terracotta Army, they will find out just what the Key is, and what Alec means to the vampire world.

    Cronin’s Key III

    cronins picture 3

    Amazon  | Smashwords | ARe | B&N | iBooks

    Goodreads

    BLURB:

    History isn’t always what it seems…

    Twelve months after his change, Alec MacAidan is still getting used to his many vampire talents. While most vampires would give anything to have more than one supernatural power, Alec craves nothing more than peace and time alone with Cronin. But when Alec meets entities from outside this realm, he’s left powerless in their presence.

    Zoan are half-lycan, half-dragon creatures that have slipped through time and reality, seemingly undetected by man and vampire. Or have they? They bear an uncanny resemblance to gargoyles, leaving Alec’s view on all things weird to get a whole lot weirder.

    This new quest leads Alec, Cronin, and their band of friends to Paris, Rome, and Moscow, where they learn that gargoyles aren’t simply statues on walls. In the underground pits beneath churches all over the world, Alec discovers the Key’s true destiny. Facing the Zoan might take every talent he has. And he may need help from the dead to get them all out alive.

  • Cronin’s Key

    In anticipation of the release of Cronin’s Key III on September 18th the first two books deserve some love. Let’s start with Cronin’s Key where the story begins…

    cronin

    BUY LINKS: Amazon | All Romance | Smashwords

    BLURB:

    NYPD Detective Alec MacAidan has always been good with weird. After all, his life has been a string of the unexplainable. But when an injured man gives him cryptic clues, then turns to dust in front of him, Alec’s view on weird is changed forever.

    Cronin, a vampire Elder, has spent the last thousand years waiting for Alec. He’d been told his fated one would be a man wielding a shield, but he didn’t expect him to be human, and he certainly didn’t expect that shield to be a police badge.

    Both men, strong-willed and stubborn, are still learning how to cope with the push and pull of being fated, when fate throws them another curveball.

    Rumors have spread quickly of turmoil in Egypt. Covens are fleeing with news of a vampire who has a talent like no other, hell-bent on unleashing the wrath of Death.

    Alec and Cronin are thrown into a world of weird Alec cannot imagine. What he learned in school of ancient pharaohs and Egyptian gods was far from the truth. Instead, he finds out firsthand that history isn’t always what it seems.

    EXCERPT:

    Detective Alec MacAidan ran through the dark and wet backstreets of New York City. The rain added a silver-scape to the buildings, dulling the stench of rubbish-littered alleys, and added an eeriness to what had been a weird night. Shadows seemed to move and follow him as he ran, the hairs on the back of his neck prickled, but he never quit running. Chasing.

    He was one of the fittest guys in his department, and at only twenty-nine he was younger than most. His jeans were wet to his knees and water streamed down from his soaked brown hair to his coat, his senses alert. The only sounds he could hear were his own heart pounding in his ears and his boots on the pavement.

    He’d chased down ice addicts before, and this one was no different. Unnatural strength and speed, ashen faces and wide eyes, and manic highs and lows made these people unpredictable and dangerous. But as he navigated his way, chasing this guy through the back alleyways, around corners, over fences, barely catching glimpses of the guy’s dark coat before it disappeared again, the shadows got closer. Alec had the creeping realization that he wasn’t chasing someone at all.

    He was being chased.

    Followed. Hunted.

    Despite the burn in his lungs and in his legs, he pushed himself harder, faster, and as he rounded the corner of a building, the guy he was chasing approached the eight foot brick wall that fenced the back of the alley.

    The assailant didn’t stop; he didn’t even balk. He simply used the alley wall to his right to launch himself up onto the top of the brick fence where he paused for just a second, long enough to stop, turn and look at Alec. And he smiled before disappearing onto the other side.

    Two things flashed through Alec’s mind: speed and teeth.

    Neither of them human.

    Alec did as the assailant had done. He ran to the dead end, stepped onto the alley wall and used it to propel himself up enough to get his arms up on top of the brick fence, pulling himself over it.

    He swung his legs over and jumped down into another shorter alley that met a main road just a hundred yards away. Cars passed and Alec thought for sure he’d lost chase, but a lone figure stood in the alley. Alec thought for a moment that the man had simply given up running, but something flashed near the street—a coat, Alec realized—before disappearing around the corner.

    Yet the lone man just stood there. All Alec could see was the silhouette, lit only from a streetlight behind him at the end of the alley, the man was completely shrouded in shadow. Alec pulled his gun and aimed it at him. “NYPD,” he huffed, out of breath. “Hands where I can see ‘em.”

    The man fell to his knees, then slumped to his side on the wet pavement. Alec ran to him, and when he was close enough, he could see a dark pool seeping through the man’s shirt. Alec hadn’t heard any shots fired, he hadn’t heard any confrontation. Was he shot? Was he stabbed?

    Alec pressed his hand against the man’s chest with one hand and radioed for back up with his other. “This is MacAidan. I need a paramedic.”

    It was only now that he was close enough, that Alec could see the man’s face. He was pale with dark eyes, but he was smiling. He was oddly beautiful and serene, despite being shot in the chest.

    “What’s your name?” Alec asked him.

    He laughed. “He missed my heart,” he said.

    “We’ll get you to the hospital,” Alec started to say. “Just hang on.”

    “No.” He shook his head slowly, still smiling. “It’s you. It really is you.”

    Alec was sure the man was seeing someone that wasn’t there, as most people taking their last breaths often did. “What’s your name?”

    “He will come for you. Tell him it’s started, they’re coming,” his voice was wispy, fading. “It’s not one, it’s both.”

    The man was making no sense. “Tell who?”

    The man on the ground reached up and put his hand to Alec’s chest and he smiled again, his eyes glazed over with something akin to wonder. “I touched the key.”

    “Detective MacAidan.” Alec’s radio cracked to life, startling him. He didn’t know how long the operator had been calling his name. “State your location.”

    “The key to what?”

    The dying man laughed. “You must tell Cronin what I said. He’ll find you, Ailig.”

    Alec’s blood ran cold. Ailig? How the hell did he know…. Then the man on the ground took his last breath, and crumbled to dust.

  • Pre-Order Buylinks for Cronin’s Key III

    CroninsKey3NRWalker (2)

    Cronin’s Key III is now available for pre-order!

    Blurb:

    History isn’t always what it seems…

    Twelve months after his change, Alec MacAidan is still getting used to his many vampire talents. While most vampires would give anything to have more than one supernatural power, Alec craves nothing more than peace and time alone with Cronin. But when Alec meets entities from outside this realm, he’s left powerless in their presence.

    Zoan are half-lycan, half-dragon creatures that have slipped through time and reality, seemingly undetected by man and vampire. Or have they? They bear an uncanny resemblance to gargoyles, leaving Alec’s view on all things weird to get a whole lot weirder.

    This new quest leads Alec, Cronin, and their band of friends to Paris, Rome, and Moscow, where they learn that gargoyles aren’t simply statues on walls. In the underground pits beneath churches all over the world, Alec discovers the Key’s true destiny. Facing the Zoan might take every talent he has. And he may need help from the dead to get them all out alive.

    Excerpt:

    Chapter One:

    Alec sat back in the chair and held in a sigh, feeling every bit the lab rat he’d become. Since he’d changed into a vampire a year ago, he’d been put through test after test, so each and every one of his unending list of talents could be explored and documented.
    He’d agreed to this, and he knew it was the right thing to do, but in that very moment, he wished to be doing anything else.

    And with talents for making errant thoughts an instant reality—like setting fire to sofas and making Xbox controllers explode in Eiji’s hand because he’d somehow won—it wasn’t a good frame of mind to be in.

    He loved Jodis. He really did. She had become one of his best friends. But she’d also taken it upon herself to document his talents, and he’d just about had enough for one day. If replicating wasn’t a talent so frowned upon in the vampire world, he’d make a copy of himself to endure Jodis’ tests while he and Cronin hid out in their bedroom. He’d replicated himself a few times, experimentally of course, and found it too taxing on himself anyway.

    “Can you do it again?” she asked, notepad and pen in hand.
    Alec had found a certain talent he’d dubbed the chameleon, for obvious reasons, because he could make things change color. It was absurd, really, and probably of no better use than a party trick. But he could, if he concentrated, turn a red pen blue or a white shirt black. The talent could only manifest by touch, and it lasted only a few minutes before returning to its original color, but Jodis was rather intrigued.

    Alec, on the other hand, had passed bored like it was standing still and was well on his way to irate. “Jodis, I’ve kinda had enough of this today.”

    “Last one, I promise.”

    For Alec, it wasn’t so much as reining in a temper anymore, where the most damage done was a cutting remark. Now it was keeping a lid on a few dozen talents that reacted poorly to anger. He only had to get really pissed off and a rage would barrel out of him like nuclear fallout, literally knocking humans and vampires off their feet. Or he could burst eardrums with a furious roar, or maybe he could turn them to stone, or dust. Or maybe, just maybe, he could rip an earthquake through the apartment so he didn’t have to do any more of these stupid fucking tests.

    “Alec,” Eleanor cautioned from the next room.

    “I wasn’t actually going to do that,” he replied petulantly. He knew Eleanor, with the gift of foresight, saw possible outcomes of decisions made, and that did nothing to quell his frustration. “Jesus, now my thoughts aren’t even my own.” Standing up, he snatched the purple notebook off the desk, holding it for half a second and slamming it back down. It was now black, as was every page inside it, and it was smoldering as though it almost caught fire.

    Cronin was suddenly in front of him, a hand cupped to his face. “He’s had enough,” he said to Jodis, and they disappeared.

    * * * *

    As soon as Alec’s feet hit the soft earth, he took a deep breath of fresh air and reveled in the silence.

    His life hadn’t exactly been quiet in the last twelve months.

    He felt the warmth of Cronin’s hand in his, smelled the sweet aromas of heath and moss from both the vampire beside him and the cool air of the long-abandoned battlefield, and Alec exhaled loudly.

    Cronin had somehow learned to quiet his mind a little and it gave Alec the silence he so desperately needed. In the last twelve months, Cronin had taken Alec on more time-outs than he could count. Knowing when he’d had enough and was reaching his breaking point, Cronin would simply remove Alec from the situation, leaping him somewhere quiet where his mind could have some much needed solitude. But with a gentle squeeze of his hand, Cronin reassured him he was there.

    “I’m sorry,” Alec said.

    “Don’t apologize,” Cronin said adamantly. “I can’t begin to imagine your frustrations.”

    “Jodis is only trying to help. I behaved badly.” He could very well speak words directly into Jodis’ mind and tell her privately that he was sorry. But he’d prefer not to invade the thoughts of others, preferring to apologize in person.

    “She understands,” Cronin said, trying to pacify him.
    Alec sighed loudly and allowed the quiet to envelop him. “I love it here,” he said eventually.

    The field at Dunadd, Scotland, had become a sanctuary for Alec. No voices in his head, no city of millions with flurrying thoughts rushing unbidden through his mind, no politics of vampire councils, no meetings, no one hovering.

    Just Cronin.

    “It affords you a great privacy,” Cronin said. His Scottish accent and formal tone still made Alec smile. “Your talents as a vampire are a burdensome gift.”

    Alec had learned very early on to block out the voices and thoughts of those around him, but living in such a large city made it a constant effort, and his display of anger at Jodis just minutes ago bothered him. “These talents are a pain in my ass.”

    Cronin laughed quietly. “Your control over them still astounds us all.”

    “The control you keep talking about is a talent in itself. It’s like casting a net over a thousand different fish.” Alec sighed loudly. “I’ve told you that before.”

    “I know. Though it amazes me still.” Cronin squeezed Alec’s hand again and looked out across the field of long grass to the line of trees that fronted the river. “Lie down with me.”

    Cronin simply lay flat on his back in the middle of the field and when Alec lay down next to him, Cronin snatched up Alec’s hand again. And together in the mind-clearing silence, they watched the blanket of stars glide across the sky.

    It was a clear autumn night in Scotland, cold and dark. Neither of those things impeded a vampire of course, and Alec would never tire of the simple changes he’d gone through when he became a vampire. It was the complex changes he was beginning to struggle with. The talents he’d been given made him unique: the only vampire ever to have all vampire talents, some he was still discovering a year after his change. It was these talents that made his life hectic, his obligations as the key to the vampire world that gave him a great responsibility, and as Cronin had said, it was becoming a great burden.

    Alec loved that Cronin would leap them to the very field where his human life had ended. The old battlefield in Scotland was also where they’d first made love, where they came to talk, to be by themselves. Like now.

    “Thank you for bringing me here,” Alec whispered, his anger and frustration from before almost gone. “I feel like I can breathe here.”

    “Is that not what husbands do?” Cronin asked with a smile. “Save the other from the myriad of madness?”

    “Husbands,” Alec said, bringing Cronin’s knuckles up to his lips and kissing them softly. “Now that is something I’ll never tire of. And that place you call a myriad of madness is our home.” Since their wedding just six months prior, they’d barely had more than a few hours to themselves. Their apartment was never empty. Alec sighed, still looking at the night sky. “Do you think we could buy this place? That little farmhouse by the hillfort could be our private sanctuary. Just for us.”

    “Do you wish to?”

    Alec snorted quietly. “I was just kidding.”

    “I will look into it. I rather like that idea myself.”

    “I wasn’t being serious. It was just a random thought. I’m pretty sure husbands don’t just go and buy the other one every single thing he thinks of.”

    Cronin leaned up on his elbow and leaned in so he could kiss Alec softly. “Don’t think it would be just for you,” he said with a gleam in his eye. “A quiet place where I could have you all to myself is more for my selfish reasons than your romantic whim.”

    Alec laughed and rolled on top of Cronin. “So when I want a place for us to have some privacy, it’s romantic, but when you want some privacy to have your way with me, it’s what?”

    “Wicked.”

    Alec grinned down at him. “I happen to like wicked.”

    “And maybe I could bed you in a place of our own without an audience three rooms away,” Cronin added. “And not in some random hotel or muddy field.”

    Alec brushed his fingers through Cronin’s hair. “Random hotels are fun, but going back to the apartment full of people when we’re both covered in mud is the most fun of all.”

    Cronin’s eyes crinkled when he smiled. “They were certainly surprised. Though it didn’t help that, when asked what on earth we got up to, you showed everyone the mental images.”

    Alec laughed at the memory. Being able to show other people images in their minds was a talent with some benefits. And just because he could, he ran a reel of images through Cronin’s mind, snippets of them making love: flushed skin, hands gripping, thighs open, being joined, heads thrown back in ecstasy. And then, to prove a point, Alec surged out a cloud of what it felt like when they fucked. Empathic transference, allowing Cronin to feel what he was feeling, was one of Alec’s favorite talents.

    Cronin bucked his hips instantly and growled out, “Alec.”

    Alec pulled back the images and the lust, leaving Cronin breathless. His black eyes were swimming, swirling with want. He took a hold of Alec’s face and brought their mouths together in a searing kiss.

    Cronin moved his arms down Alec’s back and held him tighter. He rolled his hips up and kissed him deeper until Alec was lost in him.

    Then it happened.

    Images. Visions flashed through Alec’s mind, visions he did not put there. Alec had learned to protect his mind, another of his talents was to shield his own thoughts from others. Yet someone or something had penetrated through.

    “Alec, what is it?” Cronin asked.

    When Alec looked down at a concerned Cronin, Alec realized he’d zoned out, their make-out session long-forgotten. “We need to leave,” Alec said, jumping to his feet. He pulled Cronin up by the hand, and before Cronin could ask why, Alec pulled him close, and they leapt.

     

  • The Fact and the Fiction

    ** SPOILERS AHEAD**

    If you don’t want spoilers for Cronin’s Key, please don’t read 🙂

    Cronin’s Key has been out for a little while now and I wanted to shed some light on research; the fact and the fiction. As all writers know (or at least they should) research is a huge part of any story. And out of all my books (all 20 of them), I think I have done more research for Cronin’s Key than any other.

    Cronin’s Key is a paranormal, supernatural, fantasy, sci-fi, action romance. So, by rights I could have ignored all fact and just gone with fiction. I could have taken creative license and created a world all it’s own and made it all up as I went along, and in many ways I guess I did.

    But there is an awful lot fact in this fiction.  And if you’re a history buff you might get the references as you read the book, but for those who aren’t, I wanted to outline some of it for you. 🙂 

  • COVER REVEAL – Cronin’s Key

    Here it is!! Sara York has done it again! I have the most amazing cover for my next release, and I’ve been dying to show it off.

    CroninsKeyNRWalker1500

    I adore the colours, and the pool of blood at the key. Sara has done a fab job at capturing this story, because yes, it’s a  novel about vampires.

    Yes, I said vampires.

    Cronin’s Key is an 82,000 word paranormal romance, and it’s a far leap from my usual contemporary romance. I’m nervous about how this book will be received by my readers AND by any paranormal readers who may not have read anything by me. It’s a huge risk coming from the success of my Red Dirt Heart series, which was as real as life gets in Outback Australia, to leaping into a paranormal world of New York City and the sands of Egypt with vampires and mummies. *coughs*  Yep, you read that right too. I said mummies. LOL

    I fear my contemporary readers will want to yell at me, “What the freakin’ hell were you thinking??” and the paranormal readers will pat me on the head and tell me to go back to the kiddies table.

    Either way, I can’t change what is done. Well, okay, technically I could because the book is still in editing, but I won’t. What’s done is done, and I will always stay true to my characters. (And jsyk, it will be pretty safe to say that if you don’t like the first book, you most certainly won’t like the sequel I’m writing either.) 😀

    The release date is March 13th – which is a Black Friday (maybe it’s an omen LOL)  I will post the buy links when I get them, because like I said, the book is still in editing. I just reeeeeeeeeeally wanted to show off the fabulous cover.  Stay tuned for more details. <3

    The Blurb

    NYPD Detective Alec MacAidan has always been good with weird.  After all, his life has been a string of the unexplainable. But when an injured man gives him cryptic clues, then turns to dust in front of him, Alec’s view on weird is changed forever.

    Cronin, a vampire Elder, has spent the last thousand years waiting for Alec. He’d been told his fated one would be a man wielding a shield, but he didn’t expect him to be human, and he certainly didn’t expect that shield to be a police badge.

    Both men, strong-willed and stubborn, are still learning how to cope with the push and pull of being fated, when fate throws them another curveball.

    Rumors have spread quickly of turmoil in Egypt. Covens are fleeing with news of a vampire who has a talent like no other, hell-bent on unleashing the wrath of Death.

    Alec and Cronin are thrown into a world of weird Alec cannot imagine. What he learned in school of ancient pharaohs and Egyptian gods was far from the truth. Instead, he finds out firsthand that history isn’t always what it seems.

    ck art 3

     

%d bloggers like this: