The hero of my Regency historical, Lord Midnight, is driven to avenge himself against the uncle who tried to kill him as a child. Before Gabriel's life took such a horrible turn, he chose a crescent moon as his personal crest. Now, as a highwayman who rides the king's highways at night, he uses the symbol on a scarf that he leaves with the victims of his robberies, taunting his uncle with the unwelcome knowledge that Gabriel is still alive.
The crescent moon plays another part in this story. The heroine, Marisa, is attending a masquerade, and she wears a costume depicting the Roman goddess, Diana, who rules the moon:
Marisa glanced down at her own costume—Diana, the huntress. She had savored the irony of adopting the role of the goddess, spending many of her waking hours designing the flowing white satin dress. The Grecian border, and the yellow gauze overlay, provided the perfect backdrop for the embroidered gold crescent moons. The head-dress was her particular favorite, since the wreath of artificial flowers ended with a crescent on her forehead composed of pearls and sapphires.
But instead of a sly reference to Lord Midnight's token, now the goddess's symbol reminded her of an inconstant highwayman. She chided herself for letting Lord Midnight's image slip into her mind, even for the briefest of moments.
Yet maybe he isn't so inconstant after all. . .
I'm participating in the Lunar Love Giveaway Hop hosted by I Am A Reader, Not A Writer & Bookworm Lisa. This is a fun blog hop celebrating books with paranormal, supernatural, science fiction or space travel elements, or books that have something to do with the moon or have a moon on their cover.
And it starts on the day of a full moon!
As part of this hop, I'll be giving away an e-copy of Lord Midnight to one lucky commenter. If you're the winner and already have a copy, you'll be the first to get a sneak peek of the next book in the series, Lord Moonlight. So leave a comment, and then click on the Lunar Love graphic below to check out all the other great blogs and giveaways!
Oh, that was lovely. I haven't read Lord Midnight yet but I certainly need hurry up and do it now. LOL Have fun on the hop.
Posted by: Heather Boyd | March 08, 2012 at 12:20 AM
Thanks, Heather. I'm glad you enjoyed the snippet. And hope you get a chance to read Lord Midnight -- maybe you'll be the winner!
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 08, 2012 at 08:49 AM
I love how much symbolism can be found with the simple image of the moon, and I particularly enjoy your twist of the main female character masquerading as the goddess that dominates over it. It's a giddy feeling for the reader when you see this type of connection made by the author and it makes things more juicy because of the symbolism of this one woman captivating this one man just as the goddess does the moon! How exciting!
Posted by: Britt | March 08, 2012 at 10:09 AM
Britt, it's a giddy feeling for the author, at least this one, because sometimes these things just kind of float to the surface. And then I sit there and wonder how it happened!
It does give me a shiver when I think how the brain and the muse and the words collaborate together. :) I'm always excited to see what else they'll conjure up.
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 08, 2012 at 10:30 AM
I know what you mean about the shiver! Plus, it's always exciting to realize that as an author, you made that kind of astute connection. It's as if your hands are typing a mile a minute and VIOLA the idea is there and all of a sudden you're sitting back in your chair, staring at the computer screen, and thinking: "how in the world did all of these elements come together and more importantly, how in the world was I able to make them come together without pre-planning!" --- In my opinion, that's when you become a true author because not only have you let the story evolve, but you've done it in such away that keeps you on your toes just as much as the readers!
Posted by: Britt | March 08, 2012 at 11:03 AM
Thanks for the giveaway. I would love Lord Midnight since i haven't read it. I can't wait to read it.
Posted by: Tiffany P. | March 08, 2012 at 06:18 PM
Thanks for the chance to win this(: I've never read it before and it seems interesting
cigam9(at)gmail(dot)com
Posted by: Lioness | March 09, 2012 at 12:36 AM
Britt, sorry for not answering sooner. I had to leave for work and when I got home, I had no internet. Aaugh! Your description of how it happens is PERFECT. I think that's why I keep coming back to writing when it feels like it's going to get the best of me. There's something magical going on in the midst of all that hard work!
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 09, 2012 at 09:07 AM
Tiffany, and Lioness, thanks for stopping by! And thanks for your kind words about Lord Midnight. :)
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 09, 2012 at 09:08 AM
Thanks for the amazing giveaway!
elizabeth @ bookattict . com
Posted by: Elizabeth (BookAttict) | March 09, 2012 at 01:41 PM
Thanks for the giveaway.
sstrode at scrtc dot com
Posted by: Sherry S. | March 10, 2012 at 06:01 AM
Elizabeth and Sherry, thanks for entering the giveaway. :)
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 10, 2012 at 09:47 AM
Thanks I haven't read it yet. lisapeters at yahoo dot com
Posted by: Lisa | March 10, 2012 at 11:11 AM
Ooooh, it would be so lovely to win Lord Midnight! You are a new to me author and the book sounds divine!
I am so glad you participated in this hop and thank you so much for the giveaway chance!!
Gena Robertson
[email protected]
Posted by: Gena Robertson | March 10, 2012 at 03:58 PM
You awesome thank you for the chance to win .Have a fantastic weekend
[email protected]
Posted by: wanda flanagan | March 10, 2012 at 09:03 PM
Thanks for the giveaway!
darlenesbooknook at gmail dot com
Posted by: Darlene | March 10, 2012 at 09:36 PM
Lisa, Wanda, and Darlene -- thanks for entering the giveaway. I'm glad you stopped by. :)
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 10, 2012 at 11:08 PM
Gena, I'm glad you think Lord Midnight sounds divine. :) Good luck in the giveaway!
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 10, 2012 at 11:09 PM
Thanks for the giveaway!
elizabeth @ bookattict . com
Posted by: Elizabeth (BookAttict) | March 11, 2012 at 11:21 AM
i love books is that the cver of the book
ok if i win i blg n fb and then on the
on my other site
desi the blonde at msn dot com
Posted by: desiree | March 11, 2012 at 05:49 PM
Hi Desiree -- the book cover is off to the side, under the Amazon link, in that teeny tiny version. LOL A bigger version is available if you click on the Lord Midnight link in the blog post. Good luck on the giveaway!
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 11, 2012 at 07:49 PM
Hi! I am eager to read your book. LORD MIDNIGHT sounds like a good story, and it is already on my wishlist. Thank you for the chance to win a copy of it.
manning_j2004 at yahoo dot com
Posted by: June M. | March 12, 2012 at 02:55 AM
Thanks for the giveaway
taterbug78(at)gmail(dot)com
Posted by: Tracy Haidle | March 12, 2012 at 08:54 AM
June, I'm so glad to hear LORD MIDNIGHT is on your wishlist. Fingers crossed for you in the giveaway. :)
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 12, 2012 at 09:25 AM
Tracy, thanks for stopping by and good luck to you in the giveaway!
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 12, 2012 at 09:26 AM
Lord Midnight, what a name and I love regency. Thank you for the chance in the giveaway
Posted by: Carla C | March 12, 2012 at 09:31 PM
Oh, forgot my email
scarlettkitty at hotmail dot com
Posted by: Carla C | March 12, 2012 at 09:32 PM
Carla, I'm glad you like the title, and thanks for entering the giveaway!
Posted by: Donna Cummings | March 12, 2012 at 10:48 PM
Thanks so much for the giveaway the book looks awesome!
Posted by: Lauren | March 13, 2012 at 05:59 PM
The book sounds good. Thanks for the giveaway.
Posted by: bn100 | March 13, 2012 at 08:32 PM