Valentine's Blog Event: Amalie Howard Love Story + Excerpt!

Boy have I got a double shot of love for you today! Amalie Howard has graciously stopped by to not only make us swoon into a puddle of goo with her own story of love at first sight, but then gets us hot and heavy with a smokin' hot teaser from BLOODCRAFT, the sequel to her stunning debut, Bloodspell. A dark and sexy novel of witches and vampires, which I absolutely loved!

Fan letters to both Christian (lead male in Bloodspell) and Amalie's husband (the romantic Aussie) may be sent to her via email after you finish reading this post. But I suspect there's a chance her inbox may overflow, so you're welcome to try the stalking option.

Love at First Sight 

Valentine’s Day is unequivocally about love, so my guest post is going to include two stories about love: my own love story and a steamy sneak peek from the BLOODSPELL sequel, so hang on to your hats, folks.

As an author who writes in the YA paranormal romance genre, I receive a lot of comments and feedback about the infamous “insta-love.” You know, that it doesn’t really happen that way in real life or people come together far too quickly in books for it to be believable. However, I must beg to differ because I fell in love at first sight.

The future love of my life and I had never met before. We didn’t go to high school together or sit in the same Biology class. We weren’t even from the same country! The night I met the ONE was like any other frosty evening in early February 1999, several days shy of Valentine’s Day. As was my Friday night routine, I was getting ready to go out on the town with my best friend. We weren’t at all in the mood, given that we were leaving to go to the Caribbean on vacation at 5am the next day, but we were young and not about to waste a perfectly good Friday night staying in. Plus, we’d been invited to a birthday party at a trendy lounge on the lower East Side of NYC.

A couple hours later and ensconced in the lounge, there was some commotion at the door where five tall and very handsome boys were trying to sweet-talk their way in to the private party (the owner’s birthday). They did so easily, and undoubtedly because of their looks and hot Australian accents … the hostess simply had no chance. Later on in the evening, over a pool table and some witty banter, I noticed one of the Aussie boys staring at me. He was tall and blond and so not my type, but I still said to him, “If you’re going to stare like that, you may as well come over and introduce yourself.” Yes, that’s how I rolled back then. With a raised eyebrow and a smile, he walked over and did as asked.

At first, I thought I’d been wrong and he was really interested in my best friend, so I walked away to chat with another friend. But eventually, he found me, and then we started talking. Our time together was incredibly short and before I knew it, we were outside, exchanging emails and phone numbers and saying goodbye. It was so bittersweet. I’d just met this amazing guy, and he lived a gazillion miles away in London. And I was leaving to get on a plane in an hour. Could the fates be more cruel?

But then it happened—the magic that makes the impossible, possible.

I leaned up to kiss him goodbye on the cheek, and he turned his head at the last moment, meeting me on the lips. Hello, exploding stars, sun, moon and everything else in the sky! You know in old movies where the girl’s leg raises backward with a magical kiss? I kid you not that the very same thing happened to me. And if I didn’t admit it right then that I was falling for him, I certainly did when I got home and the phone rang—it was he, calling to make sure I’d gotten home okay. He’d walked two blocks from his hostel to use a pay phone at five o’clock in the morning to call me. If that isn’t love, I don’t know what is.

Even though he lived in London and I lived in New York, we weren’t ready to let each other go just yet … all it took was that one single kiss to seal our fates. Over the next few months, we spoke every day and our long-distance relationship blossomed. He visited, I visited, and eight months later, we got engaged and he moved to NY. One year later, we were married, and this year, we will celebrate our twelfth year of marriage! My husband often tells me that he knew from that very first night that I was the one for him.

Hope you enjoyed my story, and for all you naysayers on falling in love at first sight, it can and does happen. I’m living proof. Open your heart and see what happens. Life is full of surprises … wonderful ones. You just need to be receptive to them. So rock on, insta-lovers, and Happy Valentine’s Day 2012!

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SNEAK PEEK FROM BLOODCRAFT

Don't worry, it's not spoilery, but plentyful sexy!

“Kiss me then, already,” Victoria said, her voice hoarse. Christian obliged, bending his head and brushing his warm lips across hers, but she pulled away until only their fingertips were touching.

“Not that way, the other way,” she said breathless. This way.  

Her mental voice was a coaxing caress. Christian’s eyes burned silver as she slipped past the doors of his mind, her essence twirling around his consciousness, so seductive, it overtook him in seconds. She was like liquid fire, touching everywhere inside of him all at once. He returned her illusory caresses until she slid her hand up his arm and he broke away, the friction of her fingers nearly combustive.  

What’s wrong? Victoria thought gently.

Christian stared at her flushed cheeks, his free hand cradling her jaw. All he wanted to do was to pull her into his arms and kiss her for real—kiss her until neither of them could speak. But it was far too dangerous. The reality was neither of them could be trusted when things got heated—her treacherous blood couldn’t be trusted—so they’d had to settle for something more controlled, less risky. But as intense as the mental thing was, nothing could surpass the feel of physical contact, the feel of her skin against his, her breath mingling with his … her taste …  

I want … Christian stared into her luminous green eyes, his natural vampire magnetism compelling despite himself. His gaze dropped to her lips recklessly. More.  

Victoria blinked, responsive, and for an instant Christian thought he saw a shimmer of black flash in her eyes, but when she looked up, only their green warmth enveloped him.  

Yes, they said.

Desire and hunger spun into the perfect storm as Victoria slid her fingers against his nape and held his head captive to hers, Christian’s lips and mouth recreating every scorching step of their earlier mental exchange. He kissed her cheek, her jaw, her ear, inhaling her scent and descending lower, pressing into the taut column of her neck as she arched toward him lost in sensation.  

Her throat, so beautiful, so close …  

Her blood was singing, the dusky flush spiraling under her skin, the warm earthy smell of her intoxicating. Christian leaned in, his teeth grazing the translucent rose-tinted skin. His jaw tightened. He could feel her pulse humming beneath his lips, louder and louder, inviting him in.  

All his desires coalesced into a single, insistent command.

Take it.

_________

Need a bucket of cold water after that? Get in line!!
Thank you SO much for sending our hearts into overdrive, Amalie!! <3

T

This is the second letter you'll find for the Scavenger Hunt!

And don't forget to stop by Lisa's blog where she'll be revealing an exclusive deleted scene from EVERNEATH by Brodi Ashton! 

Full schedule of events can be found HERE. Be sure to enter the Comment Giveaway on that post so that all of your comments now count to winning some amazing prizes!