Spotlight & Giveaway: Ancient Desire by N.J. Walters

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author N.J. Walters to HJ!

Hi N.J. Walters and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Ancient Desire!

 
Thank you. I’m excited to be here.
 

Please summarize the book a la Twitter style for the readers here:

Nothing was supposed to wake half dragon, half human Lucius from his Deep Sleep. Nothing. And yet something, or rather someone has. The unexpectedly attractive human not only touched him. She kissed him. Now Lucius is awake, and more powerful than he has ever been in his 4,000 years of existence. And once he finds out who led her to his cave, he’ll deal with his 300 years of hunger…
 

Please share the opening lines of this book:

“How much farther?” Raine Carson asked as she trudged over the uneven terrain, hands extended for balance and to catch herself if she fell. The ground was wet, making the dead leaves on the forest floor slippery.

“Almost there.” Her guide had said the same thing every time she’d asked for the past two hours.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

The heroine talks…a lot. To herself and to Lucius. Trying to convince a drakon to help her, she talks rings around him until he’s not sure what to think of her. Makes for some fun moments.

What first attracts your main characters to each other?

She’s awakened him from the Deep Sleep, something that should be impossible. She’s intelligent, courageous, and won’t stop talking. He’s enthralled by her.

Raine has spent her life chasing legends. Now one has come to life. Not only is he impressive in his dragon form, he’s downright hot in his human form.
 

Using just 5 words, how would you describe your main characters”love affair?

Tumultuous. Fun. Sexy. Powerful. Dangerous.
 

The First Kiss…

Alluring? Her? “Are you sure you’re not suffering from some post waking-up-from-a-long-nap thing?”

The corners of his mouth twitched. “My senses are more alive than ever.”

Was that a good thing or a bad thing? It no longer mattered when he lowered his head, his breath teasing her mouth just before his lips touched hers, soft and warm and leaving her wanting more.

Fingers curling against his chest, she went up on her toes to deepen the contact. Oh, he tasted good. Like chocolate and hot male—pure heaven. When she parted her lips on a groan, he swept inside, teasing her tongue with his.

This is the best kiss ever. No, it’s wrong. He thinks he’s recovered from his ordeal, but he’s not. I’m taking advantage of him. I’ll stop. Any second now.

The world ceased to exist. The forest cocooned them. Other than his lips on hers, Lucius wasn’t touching her, wasn’t doing anything that might overwhelm or cause her fear. The kiss was gentle, showing great restraint, but that made it even more poignant.

Without revealing too much, what is your favorite scene in the book?

I don’t have a favorite scene, but this is a fun one.

“You’re a stone dragon. Excuse me, drakon. Or you were. What am I supposed to be? The virgin sacrifice? According to legend, that’s what they did.”

She wasn’t wrong. When dragons had arrived, the tribes of the earth offered up their most beautiful maidens. Only the dragons hadn’t eaten them, they’d seduced and procreated with them. His heart ached at the memory of his mother who’d been one such woman.

“You’ve been cheated. I’m no virgin. Not that I’m super experienced or anything, but I dated a guy for a year in college and had a couple short-term relationships. So, yeah, no virgin here.” She pointed at her chest, a triumphant smile on her face.

Lucius frowned and lowered his head. The idea of her having sex with another man was…distasteful. Good gods, was he jealous? Of this mouthy, dirty creature?

Yes, yes he was. He closed his eyes for a moment and prayed for deliverance.

If your book was optioned for a movie, what scene would be absolutely crucial to include?

An absolute crucial scene is the one where Lucius wakes from the Deep Sleep, drawn out of it by Raine.

SCENE:

“I’m sorry to dump all this on you, but let’s face it. You’re the only one here.”

Giving a sigh, she leaned her head back and stared at the ceiling. “It’s my own fault for believing in myths and legends. Did you know there are urban legends about werewolves and vampires in North Carolina?” She took a tiny sip of water. “But you’re real. You’re a freaking stone dragon.

Her insistence on referring to him as a dragon was beginning to annoy him.

“Are you based off some prehistoric flying dinosaur? Maybe they found some fossilized bones and this was their interpretation of what you might have looked like. Yeah, you’re probably nothing more than a flying dinosaur.”

The rumble came from deep inside him. Cracks appeared in his stone covering and traveled down to the ground beneath him.

“Holy crap.” Raine jumped to her feet, her hand pressed to her chest, her eyes wide.
The thick casing that had protected him for centuries crumbled. His limbs were stiff after so long, but there wasn’t enough room for him to stretch, not unless he wanted to bring the ceiling down around them.

He swiveled his head in her direction. “I’m no dinosaur. I am a drakon.”

Readers should read this book …

This book has it all—a courageous, smart, mouthy heroine, a sexy, stubborn, dangerous drakon, deadly enemies who are trying to kill her and capture him, and a love story hotter than dragon fire that will make you laugh and cry.

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have planned?

I’m working on the next Forgotten Brotherhood book, as well as a new series.

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

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Excerpt from Ancient Desire:

“New plan.” She rolled up her sleeping bag and tied it to her pack.

“What are you doing?”

“I’m going exploring.” She groaned as she lifted her knapsack and put it on. The muscles in her shoulders and back were killing her.

“That’s dangerous. No way of knowing what lies in that direction. You could end up falling into a pit or reaching a dead end.”

She shrugged, even as his observations gave her the shivers. “You’re right but trying is better than dying. And it’s a given if I stay here, since you won’t help me.”

He shuffled across the floor, moving faster than she’d thought possible, since he was hunched over. Not toward her. No, the big bastard was blocking the tunnel going inward.

“What are you doing?”

“Stopping you from doing something you’ll regret.”

“Regret?” Something inside her snapped. “I’ve got all kinds of regrets. I regret getting that grant from the Angel Foundation. I regret agreeing to meet with Mack. I regret coming into this godforsaken cave. I regret waking you. I regret you not helping me.” Her voice got louder and louder until she was screaming at him. She stopped, chest heaving, heart racing.

“Are you done?”

Furious beyond caution, she grabbed a rock from the floor. Fittingly, it was one of the stones he had shed. She drew back her arm and flung it with all her might. It bounced harmlessly off his scales and right back at her, hitting her in the thigh.

“Fuck!” She fell to the floor and grabbed her leg. “See what you made me do?”

“Me? I’m trying to keep you safe.”

“No, you’re not. If you wanted me safe, you’d get me out of here. If you’re not going to help me, then kill me. Anything is better than sitting here waiting to die.”

“You’d think that.” There was something in his tone—resignation, regret, a tinge of fear. Whatever. She had much bigger problems than worrying about some drakon’s issues. He had options, could leave whenever he chose. She was stuck here, and all because of him.

She’d never given up, facing each challenge in her life as it arose from the time she was a kid, born into a horrible situation before being thrust into an orphanage and later foster care. Maybe there was something about her that was destined for tragedy. If so, she’d certainly found it.

Beyond tears, she shrugged out of her pack, lay down, and closed her eyes. Exhaustion tugged at her. She needed to eat and drink but couldn’t work up any enthusiasm.

I’m done.

A spark inside her protested, but she squashed it. Quitting went against her very nature. She’d fought to live from her first breath, but she was tired. Tired of always having to do everything on her own.

“Too bad you weren’t a damn genie, then you’d owe me three wishes.” She clamped her mouth shut. She wasn’t taking to him.

Something nudged her. She squeezed her eyes shut, refusing to look. It nudged her again. “Stop that,” she muttered. When it happened again, she turned, relented. One of those massive claws prodded her side. “Are you going to turn me into a human kabob?”

He pulled his arm back. Or was it a leg? Did drakons have arms or did they consider them all legs? Not important. She propped herself against her pack and wiggled around trying to get comfortable.

“I told you, I’m not going to hurt you.”

“But you’re not helping me and that is hurting me.” She could debate with the best of them and talk rings around most. Maybe she could find a way to make him listen.

He huffed, a huge plume of smoke puffing out of his nostrils. She waved her hand in front of her, glad it wasn’t fire. That had been impressive and downright scary.

“I have a life out there.” She waved toward the tunnel blocked with rocks and debris. “Responsibilities. Penelope.” She wouldn’t lie and say she had anyone who’d miss her. Her colleagues thought she was on a year sabbatical. Maybe the people from the Angel Foundation might call—if they weren’t somehow involved in this fiasco. All they wanted from her was a final report, which wasn’t due for another twelve months. “And if I die here, Mack gets away with murder.” As hard as it was to face, there wasn’t anyone coming for her. All her bills were set up for automatic payment. With the grant money, it would be a year or more before anyone would even notice she was missing.

Talk about depressing.

Lucius stared at her, then turned his back and shuffled toward the cave entrance.

“Where are you going?”

“To get you out of here.”

Excerpts. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

Nothing was supposed to wake half dragon, half human Lucius from his Deep Sleep. Nothing. And yet something, or rather someone has. The unexpectedly attractive human not only touched him. She kissed him. Now Lucius is awake, and more powerful than he has ever been in his 4,000 years of existence. And once he finds out who led her to his cave, he’ll deal with his 300 years of hunger…

College professor Raine Carson spent her life obsessed with myths and legends. And now she’s woken one up. Only, Lucius is nothing like anything she’s ever seen or read about in her history books. Because this man is part sexy badass and part terrifying…monster. Yet she wants him with a hunger like nothing she’s ever felt before.

Lucius used to be part of the Forgotten Brotherhood—a ruthless group of paranormal assassins. Now he’s unsure if his former Brothers are their allies…or enemies. All he knows is that someone is hunting him, and Raine is just as tangled up in this mess as he is. And he’ll protect her—even if it means unleashing his Dragon and all of its power.
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Meet the Author:

N.J. Walters is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who has always been a voracious reader, and now she spends her days writing novels of her own. Vampires, werewolves, dragons, time-travelers, seductive handymen, and next-door neighbors with smoldering good looks—all vie for her attention. It’s a tough life, but someone’s got to live it.
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