Friday, September 17, 2021

Favorite Quote Friday & the Latest News

Happy Friday! I hope this finds you all safe and well. Hurricane Nicholas hit us earlier this week, but we ended up on the cleaner side of the storm. We had some hard rains and strong enough winds to strip the bark from our elm tree and litter the yard with tree limbs. But my area didn't flood, and the power only went out a couple of times. So we fared well. I hope everyone else made it through safely.


Thank you, everyone who has pre-ordered my next release: An Immortal Guardians Companion! You made it an Amazon and Barnes&Noble Bestseller! Woohoo!! You rock! I hope you'll enjoy it. If this is your first time hearing about it, it contains 90 pages* of deleted scenes that I think you'll like. There's also a Bonus Scene from Cliff's Descent that I think you'll enjoy. Here's the blurb:

Releasing October 12, 2021
in ebook and paperback

ebook

Kindle | KoboNookApple

AmazonUK | AmazonAU | AmazonCA | AmazonDE | AmazonFR

paperback

— Available on Release Day —


Hello, all!

Your favorite character, Sheldon, here. If you’re an Immortal Guardians fan, I think you’re really going to enjoy this companion. Dianne has packed it with ninety pages of deleted scenes that feature many of the characters you’ve come to know and love plus a bonus scene from Cliff’s Descent that you won’t want to miss.

You’ll also find every character interview Dianne has ever written inside these pages. (Those of you who’ve encountered a few in the past know the ones I conduct are the best.) If you’ve never read one or you missed a few, then pick up a copy, sit back, and laugh while I interview Immortal Guardians and the loves of their lives for the network. Even Chris Reordon and Todd down at network headquarters get in on the action.

I also interview Dianne and ply her with questions I thought you’d like to ask her. Throw in a couple of short stories, what inspired the Immortal Guardians series, and a brief Who Does What Now? list, and you’re bound to enjoy it.

See you on the inside!

Your friend,

Sheldon

Immortal Guardian Richart’s immensely competent Second

And the most beloved character in the Immortal Guardians series (at least in his mind).

*Just a note: that's 90 manuscript pages. In the trade paperback, with its larger page size that can accommodate more words, it may be a little less than that. And in the ebook, the "deleted scenes" page count may be noticeably larger than that. In the past, I've had 430-page books show up as 500+ pages on some ebook vendor sites.


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⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"Ms. Duvall has provided this reader with everything I could hope for."

Cliff's Descent was voted Book of the Month at Long and Short Reviews!! Woohoo!! Thank you so much!! Reviews continue to roll in for it. And I could not be happier. I'm so thrilled you're enjoying Cliff and Emma's story.


Caffeinated Reviewer gave Cliff's Descent an absolutely fabulous review.

"Thank you, Dianne Duvall. Cliff deserved his own story, and I loved every minute of its telling... Kirsten Potter out did herself with this performance. The emotions, particularly Cliff's, and his immortal friends, were so well done."


Cliff's Descent also received a wonderful review from eBookObsessed.

"Every author dreams of writing a character so beloved that their readers just can't get enough, and Dianne Duvall succeeded monumentally with Cliff. The readers just can't get enough of this brave and noble man."

If you're new to my Immortal Guardians series...

I thought I would share something else Long and Short Reviews said: "Even though it might be coming from the long side of the series, I truly believe that a reader jumping into the Immortal Guardians' world could enjoy this story as a starter. I say that because it is told from Cliff's side. He can only tell us what he heard or experienced from his point of view."

And I've seen other reviewers and new-to-the-series readers and audiobook lovers say the same. So feel free to jump in with this one if the blurb entices you. 😉

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An Immortal Guardians Companion will release in less than a month! I can't wait! And Author's Taproom is hard at work, planning a fun Blog Tour and Release Day Blitz to celebrate. There will be author posts, Q&A's, a tour-wide giveaway, and more. I'd love to see you there. So if you're a blogger, bookstagrammer, or book influencer and would like to join the fun, you can learn more here:


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This has been quite an eventful week. I'm really looking forward to the weekend, so let's start it off with another Favorite Quote Friday. Today, I'd like to share one of my favorite scenes from Cliff's Descent for those who haven't given it a read or a listen. (If you like audiobooks, I highly recommend you look up Kirsten Potter. She's a fantastic narrator!) It features Cliff and Emma.

___________________________

A loud knock shook her door.

Emma damn near jumped off the sofa. Her neck popped as she jerked her head around to stare at the door with wide eyes. Her heart began to slam against her ribs as fear trickled through her.

Who the hell would be knocking on her door this late at night?

No one she knew would do so without calling first. And deliverymen and -women didn't drop off packages at freaking midnight.

As quickly and quietly as a mouse, she darted into her bedroom and grabbed the 9mm her father had bought her and trained her to use. Flicking off the safety, she returned to the living room and swung by the coffee table to tuck her phone in her pajama pants pockets in case she needed to call 911. Only then did she cautiously approach the door.

Another knock thundered through the house.

Adrenaline spiking, she peered through the door's peephole.

Shock rippled through her. "Oh shit," she whispered. Setting the gun on the coat rack bench beside her, she hastily unlocked the dead bolt, then the knob, and flung open the door.

Cliff stood before her, his big body blocking her view of the yard.

Emma gaped up at him.

He wore the standard blacks of network guards covered with a long black coat similar to that of an Immortal Guardian. His face, neck, and hands were streaked with blood. His clothing glistened with wet patches. And his eyes shone bright amber.

She had never seen them so bright and knew it meant that whatever emotion roiled inside him was intense.

Panic consumed her. "Cliff," she breathed. Stepping onto the porch, she swiftly glanced around, terrified she might see soldiers in black approaching with weapons raised.

When none materialized, she grabbed his wrist and yanked him inside.

Her hands shook as she closed and bolted the door, her fingers leaving little streaks of blood on the white surface.

Spinning around, she stared up at him. "What happened? Are you hurt?" Her gaze swept over him, noting every wet patch on his clothing, every ruby-red splotch on his skin. Was that his blood or someone else's? "How did you get here? Are you hurt?" Closing the distance between them, she began to run her hands over his chest in search of wounds.

Cliff grabbed her wrists to halt her frantic movements. His glowing eyes dropped to the points at which they touched. He drew his thumbs over her skin as if to confirm she was real. Then he met her gaze. "I need your shower," he said, voice gruff.

Heart pounding, she nodded. As soon as he released her, she pointed. "It's through there."

Without another word, he strode toward it. His heavy boots thudded loudly in the quiet as he entered the short hallway, then turned in to the bathroom. The door closed. Water began to pound tile.

Emma didn't move.

Cliff was here. In her home. What the hell had happened?

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Have a wonderful weekend!

Dianne

6 comments:

  1. Lovely! Happy weekend Dianne! Glad all is well in your neck of the woods.

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  2. Dianne never disappoints. I look forward to each and every book

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  3. Love being in the world that Dianne created!! Can't wait for the next book.

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  4. I remember that scene from Cliff's Descent, my admiration for Emma grew so much as that scene continued.
    Fab news about hitting the top spot, too.

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  5. I can’t wait to see what Sheldon discusses this time. 😁

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