Excitement is in the air! Fellow Sunshine State Romance Author Jennifer Taylor is visiting today to showcase her second historical romance, Heartbeat of the Moon. Her writing style is lyrical and her characters off the beaten path and compelling. Trust me– you will love her stories.
Heartbeat of the Moon, Book Two of the Rhythm of the Moon Series
Blurb: Superstition sails into King’s Harbour with tales of winged monsters rising from the dead. Midwife Maggie and husband Ian fight for reason and logic when a friend’s nephew disappears from the grave, and the friend’s behavior becomes more animal than man.
As forces and bizarre events around the two lovers threaten their happiness, Maggie faces challenges from her expectant mothers and struggles to understand Ian’s troubling behavior. Ian endeavors to cure his mind’s affliction but fears the slide into insanity may be fatal.
Excerpt:
Ian glanced her way, finally. “Do you think Josef has lost his wits?”
“I don’t know,” she said. “For we have seen stranger things than this, things I never thought were possible. And it’s as if…”
“What?”
She shook her head. “It is fanciful and silly.”
“Maggie, I have told you before.” He came to her and took her hands. “Nothing you ever say to me will be taken lightly, for every word you utter is like holy writ to me.”
She moved into his embrace, her hands on his bristled cheeks. He was very warm. “The spirit of the holy nun lives in me still.” He nodded. “Something happened today.”
Josef moaned in his sleep. “Let me in. The beast is out there, in the woods, and he comes for us. Where are your weapons? Where is Ana? Has she not arrived? The
beast is coming; do you hear it? No, the floor is sticky with her blood, I slipped in it, I could not help it,” Josef screamed.
“But I just saw her yesterday,” he continued in a voice not his own. “She sold chestnuts in the market. How can this be her, neck laid open? She will not stop
bleeding. Her eyes opened, she snarls.”
And his own voice returned. “No, stop screaming, sister. We must bury her, bury her deep.”
Fear rippled down Maggie’s back.
Mercy of the Moon, Book One of the Rhythm of the Moon Series
Excerpt:
The door swung open, and Mr. Pierce, the singer from the kirkyard, thrust himself into the room. He carried a body in his arms, covered in a cloak. Blue-tinged, slender feet dangled from the tattered, mud-soaked hem.
Samuel stared in slack-jawed shock and backed away. “Why have you brought this body here?”
To Maggie’s astonishment, the body began convulsing in great spasms, and the singer struggled to hold it. The cloak fell off, revealing a shroud-wrapped body, only the face exposed. The eyes, ice blue, stared wide and unblinking and blank with terror.
Sarah’s eyes. Her lips blue, dirt-encrusted eyelashes, cleft chin.
“It cannot be,” Maggie whispered, and shrank back. Coldness enveloped her, as if she had slipped into a frozen lake, cold water surrounding her, and could hear only muffled voices, echoing urgent and sharp. She saw only shapes above the icy water.
“Miss Maggie.”
A voice, masculine and hoarse, broke through the ice, and she stared into the singer’s eyes. They steadied and warmed, pulled her out of her daze.
“We must move her by the fire and rid her of this shroud,” Ian urged.
She took a deep, shaky breath. Yes. It was Sarah, yet the eyes stared unseeing in a blue-mottled face covered in dirt.
Samuel’s voice escalated in panic. “She was buried, she was dead. I saw her. How can this be?” He turned his head away.
Maggie grabbed him by the shoulders. “Samuel, you must look at her. Somehow it is our Sarah.”
Buy Mercy of the Moon:
Bio:
Jennifer Taylor spent her childhood running wild on an Idaho mountainside. Although she’s lived across the U.S., she’s still an Idahoan at heart and a notorious potato pusher. She’s been a roofer, a hoofer, a computer data entry operator, and a stay-at-home mom.
She’s dreamt of writing historical romances since reading Wuthering Heights at the tender age of twelve, and is now living her dream of writing love stories set in 18th Century England. She feverishly lobbies for the return of breeches and would love to see her husband of 36 years in a pair.
Jennifer lives in rural Florida with her husband and goofy Great Dane. She is the author of Mercy of the Moon, Book One of the Rhythm of the Moon Series, and the newly released Book Two, Heartbeat of the Moon, published by the Wild Rose Press.
Jennifer’s Hangouts:
Cheers & Happy Reading!
Flossie Benton Rogers, Conjuring the Magic in Romance
That sounds so good
I appreciate that, Cathy–nice to meet you!
They are, Cathy, thanks.
Enjoyed the excerpt so much.
Best of luck, Jennifer, with your writing!
Thanks, Flossie, for bringing to our attention such gifted authors!
Thank you, Carmen! I really appreciate it.
You are most welcome, Carmen, and thank YOU.
Can’t wait to read this one since the first was so good. I’ll be sure to leave a review when I do!
Thanks so much for your last review, Linda. Happy release day to you!
Linda, thanks for popping over and commenting.
Yes, it’s a big release day for you, Milady!
These sound intriguing and the covers are great. I especially love the one for Mercy of the Moon, and that excerpts from both are fabulous. Congrats to Jennifer. I’ll be adding these to my read list!
Hello, Mae. I hope you enjoy them. Great meeting you!
Thanks for stopping by, Mae!
Jennifer, thanks for being here!
My pleasure, Flossie. It’s such a treat! Your website is gorgeous.