Spotlight & Giveaway: Unforgiven by Lindsay McKenna

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Lindsay McKenna to HJ!

Hi Lindsay and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, UNFORGIVEN!

 
Thankyou, Sara!
 

Tell us about the book with this fun little challenge using the title of the book:

First and most important, readers need to know this is a REPRINT of a 2006 book, a paranormal, I wrote for Harlequin Nocturne. I received the rights back to it and I changed covers. The book is untouched and nothing has been changed, added or subtracted from it. If you bought the book before? DO NOT buy it again 😉

UNFORGIVEN, Book 1, Warriors for the Light Series, paranormal
Plucked from the depths of hell, former military sniper Reno Manchahi was hired by the government to kill a thief, but he had a mission of his own. Descended from a family of shape-shifters, Reno vowed to get the revenge he’d thirsted for all these years. But his assignment went awry when his target turned out to be a powerful seductress, a woman who risked everything to fight a potent evil.

They had a combustible connection, yet he struggled to reveal the truth about himself–his Apache upbringing, his Jaguar pride, his death plot. Soon, Reno had to transform himself into a true hero, accept this new love and conquer the enemy that threatened them all. He had to become a Warrior for the Light….

What’s your favorite line(s) from the book?:

One shot…one kill

Please tell us a little about the characters in your book. What first attracts your Hero to the Heroine and vice versa?

Reno Manchahi (Wolf in Apache) is a full blood Apache, and a US Marine Corps sniper. I like writing about Native Americans because I’m 1/6th Eastern Cherokee, myself. Write what I know. Right? 😉 Reno, who is in prison in the USA, is given his freedom and release if he’ll hunt down El Spanto, the “Ghost” who is causing havoc in Ecuador. I loved the heroine, Magdalena Calen Hernandez . They call Calen “El Espanto, the Ghost.” She lives at the edge of Ibarra, village at the base of the emerald mountain mining camp. who was strong, passionate, a warrior in her own right, fighting for justice and fairness for her own people near Quito, Ecuador. She rides out into the night on a black horse, dressed in black herself, attacking The Guild, who owns the mine and enslaves the poor, her people.

When you sat down to start this book, what was the biggest challenge you faced? What were you most excited about?

In 2006 I had not delved into the paranormal niche. It was hot then, and I decided to try my hand at it. I loved it ;-).

What, in your mind, makes this book stand out?

There is an over-arching theme to the six books. Each book can be read individually, no problem at all. But if readers love series, they will see the return of the villain, a sorcerer, and meet new members of a team who are out to find six emerald spheres, hidden around the world. These spheres are about ultimate power and of course, the team of clairvoyants and psychics, do not want them to fall into the hands of the sorcerer/villain.

The First Kiss…

Uttering a cry, Calen threw her arms around Reno’s proud, broad shoulders. She clung to him, her lips pressed against his sweaty flesh. “No! No, there must be some other way, Reno! There just has to be.”
The sensation of her warm, firm body meeting, melding and sliding against his was such an unexpected surprise that Reno automatically embraced Calen. Her lips against his cheek ignited a powerful yearning within him. Turning, he met and slid his seeking mouth against her parting, waiting lips. As he tasted the salt upon them, he realized Calen was crying—for him. For them. After all, they were jaguar shape-shifters. They bore the birthmark of the Warriors for the Light. They were part of a clan, a group of people who were on a rare and sacred mission. More than that, Reno realized he was falling deeply in love with this courageous woman who risked her life for others.

If your book was optioned for a movie, what scene would you use for the audition of the main characters and why?

The sudden yelp of a guard above broke the silence. Whirling, Reno heard another scream. It was the second guard, coming over the radio Reno carried.
“Jaguar! There’s that jaguar again! Shit! Shoot him! Shoot him!”
Then Reno heard gunshots shatter the stillness— wildly fired shots. Digging the toes of his boots into the damp clay, he lunged up the slope, rifle ready in his right hand. His radio shrieked and squawked as the two guards yelped and shouted. Rushing upward, slipping and scrambling, Reno dodged a riderless horse careening down past him. The second horse exploded out of the brush to his left. It, too, was riderless. Had the rogue jaguar attacked the foreign mercs? Did they fall off their startled mounts?
As Reno leaped onto a well-trodden guard path, he spotted both sentries on the ground. A huge, stocky gold jaguar with black half-moon spots crouched over one of them. Its mouth was very close to the sentry’s exposed throat.
The cat saw Reno.
In a split second, the animal turned and raced down the hill toward the jungle, a quarter of a mile away.
Jerking to a halt, Reno saw that the guards were shaken but not harmed. They didn’t realize he was nearby, their night vision nonexistent compared to his. Breathing heavily, Reno willed himself to calm down. Concentrate! He had to concentrate! The only way to follow that rogue cat was to become a jaguar himself.
Moving out of the line of sight of the mercenaries, Reno willed his jaguar guardian to come over him. Like a tight glove fitting over his body, it happened. There were sensations of expansion, changes in the length of his arms, hands and legs. Animal strength tunneled through him. And fifteen seconds later, the morphing complete, Reno was on all fours, hurtling silently down the slope after the other jaguar.
Running full tilt, his stride long and swift, Reno scented the air. It was easy to pick up traces of the cat who had just left the scene. To his surprise, he could smell that she was female. That was unusual, because normally, only males went to claim new territory. Reno’s human mind mixed uneasily with his primitive animal mind. It was always a struggle to keep the human elements in charge.
Leaves and brush swatted at him as he continued his charge toward the female. He couldn’t see her, but her scent grew stronger and stronger by the moment. He was closing in on her. Reaching a trail, Reno rushed downward. He picked up speed as the path canted through the twisted jungle growth.
Along the trail, the vegetation rose like walls, high and thick. Nothing could penetrate it at this point. The foliage was so dense it kept everything out but small birds and animals. Reno veered around a curve, running full bore, his hind legs pumping like tireless steel pistons. The trail snaked to the right around a hairpin turn. Skidding, Reno felt the mud flying back beneath his belly and coating it as he galloped on, trying not to trip or fall.
The trail finally straightened out. He smelled the female very close now. Was she slowing down? Tired? Probably. She felt safe in here, Reno thought. No one would follow her—or so she figured.
Reno’s plan was to scare the cat out of the area. He had no intention of killing a jaguar. After all, it was his guardian’s people. If this was a rogue cat trying to establish a new territory, she might leave once and for all confronted and threatened. That would make Reno’s job up on the mountain easier as he continued to hunt for signs of El Espanto.
The trail thinned and curved to the left. He slowed, knowing he’d never make the bend at this speed. As he ratcheted down and made the turn, he saw a dark shape in the middle of the path just ahead of him. It was the female jaguar. She was standing and facing him.
Reno skidded to a halt, not expecting to be confronted by her. And then something happened that startled the hell out of him. The beautiful female jaguar began to waver like heat waves in a hot desert. Blinking, Reno tried to grasp what was happening.
Like shimmering waves rising from a blisteringly hot asphalt highway, the jaguar began to change shape— into a woman. And not just any woman. It was Calen!
Hissing in surprise, Reno tensed. Calen stood there in a black, body-hugging spandex suit. In her right hand a rifle appeared. She wore a black baseball cap, her hair pulled back into a ponytail. She was breathing hard, her chest heaving. The look on her face was grim as she saw him struggle to stop no more than ten feet away from her.
She lifted the rifle toward him, mouth flattening.
Breathing hoarsely, Reno reeled in shock over what he’d just seen. His mind whirled, trying to grasp this stunning truth. It was Calen! Reno willed himself back into his human shape. The morphing process took a long fifteen seconds—seconds that seemed like horrible, slow-moving hours. Changing from one form to another was always a period of vulnerability. The process left Reno dizzy for several seconds afterward.
“Reno!” Calen gasped. She instantly lowered her rifle. Eyes widening, she stared at him and his ragged sniper outfit. She couldn’t believe what she’d just seen.
“You…” Reno gasped. He scowled and searched her shocked eyes. “You’re a shape-shifter. You were the jaguar up there. You attacked the guards.”

If your hero had a sexy-times play list, what song(s) would have to be on it?

To Dream the Impossible Dream

What do you want people to take away from reading this book?

That love transcends a myriad of challenges that await these two broken people who find love amidst carnage.

What are you currently working on? What are your up-coming releases?

I’m having the entire series, all six books, come out on a monthly basis.
Dark Truth, Book 2, 10.1.2018
The Quest, Book 3, 11.24.2018
Reunion, Book 4, 12.19.18
The Adversary, Book 5, 2.1.2019
Guardian, Book 6, 3.15.19
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: One paperback copy of UNFORGIVEN, signed by the author. USA only. plus, lots of fun SWAG!!

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: What do you think of shape shifters?

 
a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Excerpt from Unforgiven:

Nodding, Calen felt her heart thump violently in her

chest “Yes…yes, I did.” She gulped. What was she going to do? Reno now knew her secret. As she watched him, the barrel of his weapon remained pointed toward the ground.
Calen did not want to kill Reno. She wanted to run. To hide. But that was now impossible.
“What the hell is going on here? What were you doing out there on the slopes? You attacked those two guards!” he repeated, his voice thick.
Perspiration trickled down her overheated body. Calen shakily wiped her mouth with the back of her gloved hand. “Yes, I did attack them.” She saw Reno’s eyes narrow speculatively. Calen didn’t wait for him to put it together. “Reno, I’m El Espanto. You might as well know it.” Hand tightening on her weapon, she wondered if he was going to lift his rifle and shoot her. She wore Kevlar, but snipers preferred head shots, and she wore no protection there.
“Dammit!” he growled. Pulling off his ragged cap, his long, dark hair damp with sweat, he glared at her. “You can’t be!” Everything in him screamed that was impossible. Yet Reno stood there looking at Calen’s proudly held shoulders, her luscious mouth set in that thin line and those willow-green eyes of hers blazing with courage he’d seen in few men, much less a woman. She was telling the truth. He shook his head in utter disbelief, then forced himself to lock on to Calen’s burning gaze.
“I shot you.” It hurt to say those words. To realize

he’d nearly killed the only woman since Ilona to make him feel alive, to make him feel hope since the tragic loss of his family. Heart squeezing in terror at those realizations, Reno could barely breathe. Faintness momentarily rimmed his vision, and he took a step back to steady himself.
He sharply recalled how his commanding officer had pulled him aside, gripped his arm and told him, with tears in his voice, that Ilona and Sarah had been murdered. The same harrowing sensations—the feeling of the floor dropping from beneath him until he was falling, falling, falling into a bottomless pit of hell— engulfed him all over again. He’d nearly killed Calen….
Calen’s smile was mirthless. “Yeah, you nailed me, Reno.” She touched her Kevlar vest over her heart. “Right here. I was riding Storm, my black Arabian, when you shot me. Your bullet knocked me off my mare and as I fell, I changed into a jaguar. By the time I hit the ground, I was in cat form and got away from you.”
Rubbing his wrinkled brow, Reno muttered, “That’s why I saw horse and jaguar prints.”
“When my life is threatened like that,” Calen told him in a low voice, “I automatically turn into my jaguar form.” Worry crept into her husky tone. “More to the point—what are you going to do now that you know I’m El Espanto? Cruz is paying you big money to kill me. What are you going to do, Reno?” Her hand remained firm around her rifle. Calen watched with a profound wariness as Reno scowled, looked down at

his own weapon, disgust clearly mirrored in his features. Would he kill her? Would he fulfill the contract with Cruz? Her throat ached with tension and her mouth went dry as she watched the sniper.
Wiping his brow with his hand, Reno shook his head. “Hell no, Calen. I’m not going to kill you. I couldn’t…wouldn’t! And I’m so damn sorry I almost took your life.” His mouth curled with savage pain. “I wish I’d known. I wish…” His voice trailed off as he searched her wide, haunted eyes. “How long have you been doing this? Leading three lives?”
“Two years. Ever since I moved back here from Quito.”
Reno walked toward her. Calen stiffened warily. “I’m not your enemy, Calen. Not now. Not ever. So relax. I’ll never lift my hand or weapon toward you again. I understand better why you’re back here. You might be rich, but your heart and soul are with your people, the esmeraldos. You’ve come back to help save lives.”
He understood. Tears burned in Calen’s eyes. A sob caught in her throat as he drew close. “I—I didn’t think you’d understand, but you do….”
Setting his rifle on the ground, the barrel leaning against the trunk of a tree, Reno turned toward her. There was no way he was going to take her life to get his life back.
Only a few feet separated them. Reno watched as she set her own weapon next to his. It was a truce. The night enclosed them, the spicy fragrance of orchids

surrounded them. Far out in the jungle, the animal sounds joined together in a musical chorus. “Do you know what this means?” he demanded.
“No, Reno, I don’t.” Swallowing hard, Calen whispered rawly, “I’m scared. And I’m confused. I’m relieved. Thank you for not taking my life.”
Reaching out, he grazed her damp cheek. Her flesh was so smooth and firm beneath his exploring fingertips. “Of all the people I’ve ever met, Calen, I would never intentionally hurt you. Not ever.”
Reno saw his entire life change in that moment. Cruz would be furious. He’d contact that spook, James, in Quito, and Reno would be going back to the brig again.
Absorbing the tender look in Calen’s searching gaze, the soft parting of her lips, he realized he would never have her, either. Whatever crazy, idealistic dreams he had of them together were now gone. Forever. “I’ll be sent back to the U.S. Back to prison.”

Excerpts. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

Plucked from the depths of hell, former military sniper Reno Manchahi was hired by the government to kill a thief, but he had a mission of his own. Descended from a family of shape-shifters, Reno vowed to get the revenge he’d thirsted for all these years. But his assignment went awry when his target turned out to be a powerful seductress, a woman who risked everything to fight a potent evil.

They had a combustible connection, yet he struggled to reveal the truth about himself–his Apache upbringing, his Jaguar pride, his death plot. Soon, Reno had to transform himself into a true hero, accept this new love and conquer the enemy that threatened them all. He had to become a Warrior for the Light….
Book Links: Website | Website | Website | Website |
 
 

Meet the Author:

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Lindsay McKenna is the pseudonym of award-winning author Eileen Nauman. With more than 200 titles to her credit and approximately 23 million books sold in 33 countries worldwide, Lindsay is one of the most distinguished authors in the women’s fiction genre. She is the recipient of many awards, including six RT Book Reviews awards (including best military romance author) and an RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award. In 1999, foreseeing the emergence of ebooks, she became the first bestselling women’s fiction author to exclusively release a new title digitally. In recognition of her status as one of the originators of the military adventure/romance genre, Lindsay is affectionately known as “The Top Gun of Women’s Military Fiction.” Lindsay comes by her military knowledge and interest honestly—by continuing a family tradition of serving in the U.S. Navy. Her father, who served on a destroyer in the Pacific theater during World War II, instilled a strong sense of patriotism and duty in his daughter. Creator of the Delos series for Blue Turtle Publishing (her Indie owned company) and Wind River Valley Series for Kensington Books, she writes emotionally and romantically intense suspense stories.
Visit her online at Website | Facebook | Twitter |