Forget Me Knot (Royal Reaper 2)
by Ruth Silver
Publisher: Booktrope
Published: June 23, 2015
Don’t mess with death.
When Wynter explores his newly developed dark angel powers, regret soon fills his heart and mind. Saving a soul isn’t what he imagined it to be, and it puts the grim reaper he loves in grave danger.
Obligated to take the throne as Queen, Mara must face the truth and unravel secrets she may not be ready to accept.
The second book in the Royal Reaper saga takes you on a paranormal fantasy adventure into a world of grim reapers, dark angels, and undead trucidators.
Also available on Barnes & Noble and iBooks
Excerpt
Death crept into the castle. Mara could feel its darkness pressing her down. As she walked to her father's bedchamber, the thought of marrying a man she did not love weighed heavily on her. All the invitations had been sent out months ago. Just as her life was beginning to almost feel normal, her father, King Philip, had fallen ill along with the court of Casmerelda and much of the kingdom. The second wave of the plague violently spread, leaving a trail of death and burning corpses for the living to clean up.
Her father had been bedridden for three days. His fever spiked and his skin glistened. He grew delirious, falling in and out of consciousness. As much as she despised him for what he’d done to her sister’s boyfriend, he was still her father. She didn’t want to be left alone.
“You must marry Astin at once.”
Mara cringed. “I can’t.” Her lips hidden as she wore a piece of ivory cloth against her nose and mouth, the slightest bit of protection from the disease that had taken over the kingdom. “I don’t love him. Please don’t do this to me.”
“Don’t be selfish.” The words struggled to reach his lips. He coughed and heaved, his chest rising and falling quickly as his pulse raced. “I’ll be with your mother soon…”
“You’ll be dead.”
Taking in several deep breaths, he opened his mouth, his words coming out as a whisper. “You will be reigning queen. Mara, you must act the part. Marry Astin and forge an alliance with the country of Morro, for the sake of Casmerelda. Your people need you.”
“I need you,” Mara said, gripping her father’s hand. She frowned, studying the tips of his fingers, a blackened hue lacing his skin.
“You shouldn’t touch me.” He tried to pull away, unsuccessfully. Her grip remained tight, but more significantly, he’d grown weak from the disease ravaging his body.
“I haven’t been infected, and I’ve been at your bedside every night.” Mara ordered the servants to bring more water and rags. It had done little good to break his fever or alleviate the discomfort he must have been experiencing, but it was all she could think of to help.
“Marry Astin.” His words were rough slipping past his lips. He wheezed, trying to speak, but Mara rested a hand upon his chest.
“Don’t.” She didn’t want to have this conversation again.
“For the sake of the kingdom,” he said, pleading with her.
Mara refused to answer. Marrying Astin wasn’t what she wanted. “I have no desire to be queen so young. You will pull through, do you hear me?”
He’d fallen into a deep slumber, unable to answer her.
GUEST POST
How to
Choose a Publisher
by Ruth
Silver
If you’re writing and preparing to publish your
first novel, you may start researching publishers. How do you know which ones
are reputable? There are websites like Authors Beware that will give up to date
information on complaints from authors. For example is a publisher isn’t paying
royalties or acting in some illegal or unethical manner. Always research the
publisher before signing a contract. It’s best to do some research before even
wasting your time submitting a manuscript to them.
What else can you do?
If you want to know how their sales are, take a
look on Amazon. Search the publisher and their titles. What are they charging
for their novels? Is it a reasonable price? If they’re too low, the authors aren’t
likely to make any money. Too high and they’re not likely to get as many sales.
There’s a sweet spot, at this point it’s between $2.99 - $4.99. With the Amazon
market constantly changing and the eBook market always fresh with new novels,
this could and likely will change. Look at the sales stats. Do the publisher’s
books have a lot of sales? Or are they only selling books when it’s on a
promotion (ie – Bookbub?).
Another point to consider is how the publisher
chooses to market its authors. Do they invest in conferences for their authors?
Does the publisher attend tradeshows or conventions to sell books? Even if a
publisher is strictly an eBook publisher or touting themselves as one, they
still need to be visible in the market.
If you have a few publishers in mind, ask an
author that publishes with them if they’re happy with the marketing that the
publisher does. Ask the author if they will be publishing with that same
publisher in the future. If they’re not, ask them if they can disclose why.
As an author, you should never have to pay to have
your book published. Decent publishers will be able to pay you an advance on
your novel, even if it’s minimal, at least it proves they’re willing to invest
in you and your writing. You don’t want to be with a publisher that will
publish anything and everything without reading through a manuscript.
Also consider the editing process. How much say do
you get? Do you want more of an input or would you prefer to let them edit and
you just see the final copy before it gets released? If you want total input
and are a control freak, it’s not a bad thing but consider self-publishing
where you don’t have to relinquish any control. Some editors won’t do more than
correct punctuation and grammar. Others may help further shape the novel if
it’s not ready for publication. It depends on the publisher and their process.
Be choosy.
Ruth Silver is the best-selling author of the Aberrant trilogy. With a passion for writing and a love of story-telling, Ruth is actively writing two series: Royal Reaper and Orenda. She also writes The Federal Agent Chronicles and Palace Secrets, both of which are adult romance under the name Ravyn Rayne for Blushing Books. Her interests include traveling, reading, and photography. Her favorite vacation destination is Australia. Ruth currently resides in Plainfield, Illinois.
Follow Ruth here:
Blog- http://writeawaybliss.com
Facebook- http://facebook.com/writeawaybliss
Twitter- http://twitter.com/writeawaybliss
Looking for a steamier read?
Check her out here:
Blog- http://ravynrayne.com
Facebook- http://facebook.com/ravynraynereads
Twitter- http://twitter.com/blushingravyn
Author Interview
What are you
writing now?
I’m currently writing under the pen name Ravyn
Rayne. I’ve been working on developing several romantic series for adult
readers. I’ve also recently released another YA title, Stolen Art, released by
Lazy Day Publishing.
Do you have
plans to continue the Royal Reaper saga?
I’ve definitely left it open ended to continue the
series, but I have no immediate plans at the moment for the next book. I feel
that a spin-off would probably be more appropriate, given the ending of Forget Me Knot.
Do you
write full-time?
Yes! I write about 25k words a week when I’m able
to write without distractions. It also helps if I have a story in mind!
Favorite
singer?
I love Taylor Swift and also Katy Perry.
If you
could travel anywhere, where would you go?
I’d love to visit Europe. Specifically I want to
see Paris and Rome.
