Readers often ask me about future books, particularly whether or not favorite secondary characters will get their own story. So here's what's "percolating" with the muse, as well as a few tidbits about those that are actually "upcoming" (aka "on the schedule") at this point:
Knights of the Board Room series:
With the release of Ben's story, Hostile Takeover, in January 2012, we've completed our stories where the "Knights" are the main protagonists. However, a couple of intriguing side characters from Afterlife, Leland and Max, will also get their chosen ladies.
Upcoming: As you notice on the home page, next up for the KOBR series will be Max and Janet. Janet, Matt's imperious admin, is a Domme, and she's turned her sights on Max, the former Navy Seal who is now head of the K&A limo fleet. Max is not a submissive at all, but that doesn't mean these two won't help one another conquer demons and give falling in love a shot. Willing Sacrifice comes out May 1!
Percolating: Leland, our detective who helped Rachel in Afterlife, will find the submissive he's seeking in an unlikely place. Celeste, the reporter who dubbed the K&A men "Knights of the Board Room", will cross his path when she starts working the crime beat. You get some hints of the romance to come at the end of the "Retribution" short, available under the JWH fan forum's Vignette section.
Upcoming: I'm very happy to report that the next book I turn in to Ellora's Cave in 2013 will be Divine Solace, Book VIII of the series! Deadline will be October 31, so with any luck, we'll get an early 2014 release on it. It will be a f/m/f ménage (yeah, my first with that dynamic, but the muse is pretty insistent, so I’m going to trust Her – smile). Main heroine will be Gen, Marguerite’s employee at the tea room, the one Chloe was always trying to get to double date with her. The other two main players will be Mistress Lyda (mentioned in Branded Sanctuary) and Noah (the Goth-looking waiter from Hostile Takeover). Hope this comes as good news, and am looking forward to sharing Gen's HEA with you. It's been too long since I've been able to revisit the Nature of Desire folks!
Percolating: Rough Canvas brought us Julie, a close friend of Marcus and Thomas. Since she’s in her late thirties and has pretty much given up on finding a good relationship, she’s told Marcus that she’d just rather hang around with gorgeous gay men, flirt with and fantasize about them, than be let down by a flesh and blood hetero male. I'm waiting for the muse to give me the hero that will change her mind about that. Whenever that happens, you know Marcus and Thomas will be there, protecting her interests and checking this guy out thoroughly. I also expect additional secondary characters from that work - Rory and Daralyn, as well as Ellen - to possibly get their own books.
New Contemporary Series: I'll be writing a four-novella series for Berkley over the summer, with a due date for all four books of September 30, 2013. I can't give you a lot of details about the books yet, except to say 1) they will be released as ebooks with Penguin's Intermix line, 2) the four books will be connected (like one book broken into four parts), and 3) they will be contemporary BDSM erotic romance. I'll give you more details when they let me do so, but I think you'll really like the premise for the series. They plan to release them over four consecutive months, April-July 2014.
As a result of Berkley's desire to focus on contemporary erotic romance right now (thanks to the 50 Shades craze), they want me to focus on this new project and so won't invite discussions of where we'll go next with my Vampire Queen or Arcane Shot series until sometime in 2014. But when those discussions happen, you'll be glad to know I have ideas simmering on the burners...and of course one vampire book still upcoming, as follows:
Upcoming (May 7, 2013): Taken by a Vampire is a ménage a trois story involving Niall and Evan from Beloved Vampire and Alanna from Vampire Trinity. These three were secondary characters in those books. Alanna is what they call an Inherited Servant, which means she was raised from birth with the intent of being assigned to a vampire. Her master in VT was a pretty awful vampire, and we were left with the impression she might be killed by him. He escaped Council's wrath before accomplishing that (sort of), so now she's an abandoned servant with a Master who is still linked to her mind. The Council has to figure out what to do with her, because no vampire would normally want a servant in that situation. That's where our two heroes enter the picture.
Evan agrees to shelter her in his home. He and Niall have been together for some time (I'm delving into a little bit of Scots history on this one, which is fun). Though Master and servant, they aren’t as intimate as they could be with a woman in the mix. Alanna is emotionally shut down due to her master’s betrayal and her training as an Inherited Servant. They have to help her become a person again, and in doing that it opens all three of them to possibilities.
Percolating:
Lord Uthe of the Vampire Council has intrigued readers with his background as a Templar Knight. He also has a connection to Evan, in that he is his sire. The muse has been playing with the idea of a male/male or menage story for Uthe, involving the Fae Lord Keldwyn from Bound by the Vampire Queen. All of it is in the very initial stages of brainstorming, so we'll see.
Now, a LOT of folks ask about Lord Brian and his servant Debra, who have showed up as secondary characters throughout the series. So far, the muse hasn't given me anything that could be a standalone storyline for them, but I never say never. When I get breathing room, the muse has been known to zap me out of left field with a fully fleshed story concept (bless her!). If that never happens for Brian and Debra, however, I expect that we'll either get puzzle pieces of their relationship through the glimpses we're given of them throughout the series, or I'll do a comprehensive vignette for the fan forum sometime in the future that draws all those loose ends together. So, somehow, some way, you will eventually get their story!
The response to Mason and Jessica of Beloved Vampire was so strong, that it's possible they'll have another story line sometime in the future. The seed for a second book was suggested on the fan forum and the idea took off in my head, a good indication that the muse would like to sink her teeth into it at some point, so we'll see what happens with upcoming deadlines.
Finally, the readers enjoyed the free novella vignette about Daegan and Gideon of Vampire Trinity so much (One-on-One), I've started a follow up, in between other writing projects. "The Bet" focuses on the wager that Daegan lost in Bound by the Vampire Queen! You'll find this in serial format under the Vignette section of the JWH fan forum.
Percolating: Many of you have let me know how much you enjoyed the tales of my witches, Ruby and Raina, and their Guardian heroes, Derek and Mikhael, in Something About Witches and In the Company of Witches, respectively. We have one more coven sister who tale has yet to be told - the chaos witch, Ramona. A Grim Reaper has taken an interest in her, which is good, because she might just stumble into enough trouble to need his help. Fingers crossed we'll get a go-ahead on Ramona's book sometime in the future.
On Hiatus...
Percolating: A Mermaid's Ransom introduced Clara, Alexis's best friend. She has her eye on the brooding Dark Legion captain, Marcellus, and he's going to find himself reluctantly assigned as her guardian angel. Don't know when this work will be scheduled; right now Berkley hasn't scheduled any future books for this series, but we'll see how things look going forward. Their decision on this is based on sales, so if you love the Daughters of Arianne series, just keep spreading the word! A Mermaid's Kiss was re-released in mass-market format December 4, 2012, to spur further interest in the series with this less expensive print/digital format, so it's a great time for readers new to the series to give it a try.
Final Notes…
I have a couple non-series titles rattling around my head as well, so right now it appears I've enough to hold me for the next couple decades (laughter). But as you can tell, priorities are always shuffling. I'll keep you posted on everything as it develops!
