I am very excited to participate in Felicity Heaton's Hot Halloween Heroes Giveaway Hop! For this Blog Hop, I thought I would take a minute to introduce you to the hot heroes of my upcoming work, Chasing the Star Garden.
One thing about Lily Stargazer, the protagonist of my new novel, is that she seems to like her men . . . older. Lily is in her early 20s. She is a pretty wild girl, an opium addict and something of a drunk. But she is a woman who is also very kind, very loving, and very talented. She cares deeply about those close to her and would give her life to protect them. But, like many women with a shattered past, she is a bit of a mess in her love life. While she has a history of lovers, she is currently bouncing between two men: the infamous Lord Byron who sponsors her airship racing team, and her tinker friend Salvatore Colonna, an Italian ex-pat living in London.
Now that you have met Lily's men, it's time for a giveaway! Thanks to Felicity Heaton and Indie Romance Books for organizing the blog hop!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
One thing about Lily Stargazer, the protagonist of my new novel, is that she seems to like her men . . . older. Lily is in her early 20s. She is a pretty wild girl, an opium addict and something of a drunk. But she is a woman who is also very kind, very loving, and very talented. She cares deeply about those close to her and would give her life to protect them. But, like many women with a shattered past, she is a bit of a mess in her love life. While she has a history of lovers, she is currently bouncing between two men: the infamous Lord Byron who sponsors her airship racing team, and her tinker friend Salvatore Colonna, an Italian ex-pat living in London.
Meet Lord Byron:
While I was writing the novel, I used the images of the historical George Gordon Noel, Lord Byron to inspire me. Of course, the real Lord Byron never knew an airship racer named Lily Stargazer, but in my novel, Lily and Byron have been lovers for years. They are a no-strings-attached relationship, but they also value, trust, and love one another in their own unique way. They are well suited to one another in the bedroom, but not well-suited together for any kind of domestic life. I think this is why their relationship works so well. Byron is in his 30s during their romance. I often wonder who might play Byron if the book were ever turned into a film. The actor would need to be stunning, particularly the eyes, but also have a somewhat "mad" look behind his eyes. I have one guess, Johnathan Rhys Meyers of "The Tudors" fame:
Meet Salvatore Colonna:
Lily and Sal have been lovers for the last couple of years. Salvatore is a very gifted tinker and a bit of a recluse. Lily and Sal have always had a special relationship. She feels like there is something special about him, but she is not the kind of girl to commit to one man. Sal is more than twice her age, but he is willing to travel on her adventure in Chasing the Star Garden just to get closer to her. Sal is Italian, older, and has long silver and black hair. I could only find one great match for him, a mature Daniel Day Lewis:
Now that you have met Lily's men, it's time for a giveaway! Thanks to Felicity Heaton and Indie Romance Books for organizing the blog hop!
I have the following up for grabs:
A Steampunk Book Locket
An ARC of Chasing the Star Garden
An
opium-addicted beauty.
An infamous poet
living in self-imposed exile.
An ancient
treasure about to fall into the wrong hands.
Melanie Karsak's
Chasing the Star Garden takes
readers on a thrilling adventure from the gritty opium dens of gaslamp
London to the gem-colored waters of the ancient world. Lily Stargazer, a
loveable but reckless airship racer with a famous lover and shattered
past, reluctantly plunges into a centuries-old mystery in a romantic
adventure best described as Dan Brown meets Mary Shelley.
It all begins on one of the worst days of Lily’s life. She just lost the London leg of the 1823 Airship Grand Prix. To top it off, a harlequin fleeing from constables shoved a kaleidoscope down her pants, told her to fly to Venice, then threw himself from her airship tower. What’s a girl to do? For Lily, the answer is easy: drink absinthe and smoke opium.
Lily’s lover, Lord Byron, encourages her to make the trip to Venice. Lily soon finds herself at the heart of an ancient mystery which has her running from her past and chasing true love and the stars along the way.
It all begins on one of the worst days of Lily’s life. She just lost the London leg of the 1823 Airship Grand Prix. To top it off, a harlequin fleeing from constables shoved a kaleidoscope down her pants, told her to fly to Venice, then threw himself from her airship tower. What’s a girl to do? For Lily, the answer is easy: drink absinthe and smoke opium.
Lily’s lover, Lord Byron, encourages her to make the trip to Venice. Lily soon finds herself at the heart of an ancient mystery which has her running from her past and chasing true love and the stars along the way.
