Author Stromie Kent talks about the novel setting for Battling Rapture

Today we're welcoming Stormie Kent Author of Battling Rapture to the ludis. Kick back and have a read as Stormie talks about her latest novel's setting. Be sure to leave a comment  for a chance to win a $20 Amazon Gift Card! 

Publisher: Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.

Book Length: Novel

Genre: Futuristic Erotic Romance

Release Date: January 18, 2013

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Thanks for having me on Gladiator’s Pen today.

When I was writing Battling Rapture, there were scenes where I wanted the scenery to not only say something about the futuristic world my heroine lived in after Earth is invaded by aliens, but also about the woman who was my heroine. She had to be everything the heroine in my previous book wasn’t. That difference was the result of the trauma they had both experienced as children. Niki (Battling Rapture) is resourceful, hostile, guarded and dangerous. What kind of environment would test her limits? What would Earth look like after a battle with aliens?

I decided to open with a hospital. Why? I wanted to take a place everyone goes when they are hurt or injured and destroy the hope of finding solace there. I thought of scenery in terms of damage from firepower. I imagined the accelerated wear and tear on a building long neglected. I wondered what had happened to all of the animals in the area. Then I threw my heroine in and waited to see what she would do. The excerpt below is just a snippet. I hope you enjoy it.

  

BLURB

      Niki is captured by hostile aliens after Earth is invaded. Once a soldier, she is now a slave. She is sold to the highest bidder, and then lost in a game of cards to a tall Ordanian spaceship captain, who claims to have been sent to rescue her. They work together to survive the dangers of the United Universe, while Niki battles her desire for the only man to ever enflame her mind, body and soul.

Captain Rhine’s mission is to reunite the Earth woman with her family. Outmaneuvering beast shifters and a crazed stalker are the very least he is willing to do to keep her by his side. Her touch ignites his passion. Her scent drives his lust. Her strength eases his soul even as she challenges him every step of the way. In the end, Rhine understands, the biggest battle is for her heart.

EXCERPT

 The following excerpt is for those readers who are 18 and over only.

Copyright © Stormie Kent, 2013

All Rights Reserved, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.

She filled bags with medicines, needles and bandages. She saw a pile of hospital gowns and shoved those in too. She had a little of everything loaded into the packs, including soap, hospital toothbrushes and sheets. Their third salvage mission might be their last. The next time they came, the entire place could be vaporized. This was the only city for miles which still contained the original architecture and infrastructure—even if it was in ruins.

She walked to the gaping hole in the wall. Craters dotted the landscape. Some were filled with buildings, others with vehicles. The building across from her had the top two floors collapsed in. All the windows were blown out. She looked down. Movement caught her eye, and she quickly hid behind what was left of a pillar. She carefully peered down again and relaxed when she noticed it was only a pack of stray dogs.

At least it isn’t a lion or tiger from the zoo.

She heard a whistle, and then a man stepped into the doorway.

“You ready, Niki?” Antoine said.

“Yes, let’s get these down to the wagons and go get the others. I hope they found baby formula and ammunition.”

Dragging the heavy packs down the emergency exit stairwell was slow work. When they reached the ER entrance, they began loading the bags in the carts.

“I wish I knew how the aliens track us when we use cars and trucks. This would be so much easier without the horse and cart,” Antoine said.

“Just be happy we don’t have to hike back up the mountain with this stuff on our backs or pulling it behind us on a makeshift gurney.” She was slightly out of breath. Some of the bags she’d packed weighed more than she did. She pulled her gun from her hip. “You steer the cart. I’ll be lookout.”

There were four teams spread out all over the city. They needed to pick them up and make it back to the mountain by late afternoon without stumbling onto an alien hunting party.

She scanned the rubble for dead bodies. They tried to burn them when they could. If not, the animals—well, it was better if they burned the bodies. She refocused. She had a job to do. To make it back to camp safely, they all needed to use their heads, stay sharp and work as a team.

Their survival depended on it.

Want more? Click the link for another excerpt.

Now for my blog tour contest. Every eligible comment along my blog tour will be entered to win. All those who enter a positive comment here between now and 11:59 p.m. Eastern (USA) on February 1, 2013 will be entered in a drawing for a $20 Amazon eGiftcard. You must leave a valid email address in the comments to be entered. The winner will be announced the night of February 2, 2013 on my blog, http://stormiekent.wordpress.com.

Happy Reading!

Stormie Kent