My firstborn, The Initiation of Ms Holly, has had a wild couple of years in her young life. She’s found her way into the national newspapers, she’s made it onto national television and radio, she’s made it to number one on the Amazon UK paid erotica chart and on the free chart, and she’s in her third printing with Xcite books. Holly has even made her way into public libraries all across the UK!

Holly has done the Coast to Coast walk across England with Raymond and me in a zip lock bag. (We couldn’t find any waterproofs in her size). She’s been to Las Vegas where she was read from at the famous Flamingo hotel. She’s been on the bookshelves in WH Smith stores in airports, train stations and along the motorways. That girl is well travelled! And as of today, her adventure gets even bigger!

Today is the official launch day for The Initiation of Ms Holly with US publisher, SourceBooks!  I’ve been waiting for what feels like ages for this day. But some things are just worth the wait, and this is definitely one of them.

SourceBooks fabulous PR folks have already gotten the book some great pre-launch attention, and look what people are saying about Holly!

RT Book Reviews had this to say about Holly:

While the “exclusive BDSM club” trope is certainly not new, the author has found a way to make the story compelling with a variety of erotic characters and a slight hint of mystery. Readers will enjoy having a heroine like Rita who is comfortable with exploring her sexuality and will want to stick around to see if she emerges victorious when going up against the club’s wicked dominatrix. Caution: The sex in this book is both plentiful and scorching hot — oven mitts may be needed when turning the pages!

The Library Journal has included The Initiation of Ms Holly among what they consider the best of current erotic fiction!

Thanks, SourceBooks for spreading the news!

The Initiation of Ms Holly is the novel that nearly didn’t get published, and yet, of all my novels, Holly has been the one that has taken me on the wildest ride – and still is! And I couldn’t be prouder.

I’m especially excited about the adventures of Rita Holly as the intrigues and sexy schemings of The Mount continue. More about that in Thursday’s post.

In the meantime, to help Holly Celebrate her new cover, new release and continued adventure, here is a little teaser.

Blurb:

Journalist, Rita Holly, never dreamed sex with the mysterious Edward in the dark of a malfunctioning train would lead to a blindfolded, champagne-drenched tango, a spanking by a butch waitress, and an offer of initiation into the exclusive mysteries of The Mount. Desperate to save her threatened job, she agrees, scheming secretly to write an inside exposé on the club that will make her career. But as she delves deeper into the intrigue of The Mount and the lives of its members, she soon discovers that her heart may have other plans.

Excerpt from The Initiation of Ms Holly:

He practically fell on top of Rita, his hand grazing her left breast in the complete darkness. She yelped and grabbed him to keep from losing her balance.

“God, I’m sorry!” He gasped. “Bloody nuisance, this, isn’t it?” His voice was warm, melodious, by far the most pleasant thing that had happened to Rita since she left Paris. “Oh dear. You’re trembling. Are you all right?”

“I’m claustrophobic” her words were thin and shaky, as though she didn’t fully trust herself to let them out. “It wouldn’t be so bad if I didn’t know where we are.” For an embarrassing moment, she realized she was still clinging to him, but the embarrassment passed, and suddenly she didn’t care. If they were going to die trapped in a train in the Eurostar tunnel, buried beneath a gazillion gallons of water, she’d just as soon not do it alone.

He either understood, or was too polite to leave her in such distress. He wrapped his arms around her engulfing her in a muscular embrace, the scent of which was maleness barely masked by deodorant and some spicy cologne, both fading at the end of a day much longer than either of them had anticipated. “Don’t worry.” In the darkness, he misjudged the distance between them and his lips brushed her earlobe. “It’s just an electrical malfunction. Anyway we’re better off down here than in the snowstorm up above. Sounds like all of London is shut down. Who’d have expected snow this late in the spring? Never mind that, where else do you get the chance to cuddle strangers in the dark?”

He pressed a little closer to her, and she was relieved to find other thoughts, thoughts more welcome than those of their predicament, pushing their way into her head. He felt good, broad-shouldered and tall, easy to lean on.

“Why are you huddled here in the corner rather than hunkered down in your seat?”

She concentrated on his warm breath pressing against the top of her ear. “I was on my way back from the loo when the lights went out and…”

“And this is as far as you got.”

She nodded against his chest, homing in on the reassuring sound of his heartbeat.

“Shall I help you back to your seat then?”

The train lurched forward, and she yelped again, tightening her grip around his neck. “No, please. It’s better if I just don’t move.”

There was a long pause. “Do you want me to stay with you?”

She realized the poor man had little choice clenched in her strangle hold, as he was. “I don’t want to be any trouble,” she lied.

He readjusted his stance and tightened his embrace. “No trouble at all. I can’t think of a better way to pass the time than in the arms of a beautiful woman. You are beautiful, aren’t you?”

In spite of the stress she felt, she forced a laugh. “Gorgeous, actually. Too bad you can’t see for yourself.”

He ran a hand down the contour of her spine to rest low on the small of her back. “I don’t have to see you to admire you.”

The thought that the man was rather cheeky barely crossed her mind before he lifted her fingers to his lips and planted a warm kiss across the back of her knuckles. “I’m Edward. I’m from London. Clearly you’re not.”

“Rita,’ she replied. ‘I’m from Seattle, but I live in London now.”

“Well Rita, from Seattle, we’ve established that you’re an exotic beauty. Perhaps you’d like to return the favour.” He lifted her hand to his face and guided it gently over the slight stubble of his cheek. As her hand cupped his well-formed chin, he pulled her middle finger into his mouth and nibbled it, teasing the pad of it with his tongue. Suddenly her struggle to breathe had nothing to do with being claustrophobic.

“Well?” He asked pulling her hand away to massage her fingers. “What do you think? Am I acceptable?”

If he was cheeky, she was downright brazen. She stopped his words with her mouth, amazed at how easily she had found the mark in total darkness. Perhaps it was the darkness that made her so bold, but whatever it was, he didn’t disappoint. His mouth was warm, opening eagerly to the probing of her tongue, responding in kind, caressing her hard pallet, nipping at the fullness of her lower lip before pulling away just enough to speak.

“There, you see? It’s not so bad being in the dark, is it? The other senses are too often overlooked, which is very sad, since they offer such exquisite delights.” His hand moved up to cup her cheek, and he raked a thumb across her still parted lips. “Taste, for example. Few pleasures exceed that of the tongue.”

She heard him fumbling in the darkness, then she heard the rattling of foil. ‘Open your mouth,’ he whispered. “I have something that’ll make you feel better, guaranteed. Oh don’t worry, it’s nothing illegal.”

Reluctantly she opened her mouth, which he primed with a wet kiss, then slipped a chocolate truffle between her lips. It was covered liberally in cocoa and warmed exquisitely almost, but not quite to the steamy melting point of his body temperature, which only enhanced the sharp, edgy flavor that separates expensive chocolate from the cheap stuff.

She gasped her surprise, then moaned softly at the intensity of the taste.

“Don’t bite,” he kissed her jaw, then her throat. “Savour it, roll it around in your mouth. There are places on the tongue that taste only sweet and places that taste only bitter or salt, or sour. Chocolate can have all those flavors. Caress it in your mouth like you’re making love to it, and you’ll be amazed at what you taste.”

She cheeked the truffle, slurring her words as she spoke. “I thought I was tasting you.”

He chuckled softly. “Everything tastes better with chocolate.” Without another word, he took her mouth, plunging his tongue deep against the melting truffle, whirling it, lapping at it, sighing with the pleasure of it. The more liquid and heated the truffle became, the more liquid and heated Rita became.