Yes, I'm still writing fiction...

I've been derelict in updating my web pages, and for that I do sincerely apologize.  Here are my latest two releases, one an original story in the Divorced Divas series from eXtasy Books (written as Celine Chatillon), and the other the re-release of our YA sci-fi tale in the BloodDark series from Devine Destinies.

Olivia's Escape

(BloodDark series, Young adult- PG rated)

http://www.devinedestinies.com/978-1-4874-2127-4-olivias-escape/?fbclid=IwAR2WoJp1dIZ1t1wV2YgblYLo8l6paYPCC-v9oS4HrX2YDvstGCYS8HRyu1E

Seventeen-year-old Olivia Brown is abducted on her way home from a night out and wakes up to find herself imprisoned by a vampiric race in a dark city bathed in eternal night. Hernando, a handsome half-human slave, reveals what is intended for her-they want her blood for the upcoming festival. Together they escape, and find friends and allies in unexpected places.

Joining a resistance cell, they help plot a revolution and fall in love. Their group plans to take control of the Portal, a teleportation device that links Earth to the world of BloodDark. Getting into the City of Night is a challenge. A narrow window of opportunity opens-but what awaits them in the caverns located deep beneath the city?

What Money Can't Buy
(Divorced Divas series -- R rated)
https://www.extasybooks.com/978-1-4874-2347-6-what-money-cant-buy/

Francesca has had enough of her dead-end marriage. She walks out with no regrets and in hopes of discovering what will make her life more fulfilling. Following her passions for gardening and sustainable living, she enrolls in a course to learn more and collides head-on with a handsome Irishman, Callan O'Toole. Callan challenges her to apply for a summer internship at the Bouncing Butterfly eco-village. She does and is overjoyed to be accepted.

Working so close to a man who fills her every erotic daydream is a bit more than Francesca can take at first, so she tries to avoid Callan. He won't cooperate—and soon they are in each other's arms and in Callan's bed. Their summer lovin' is approved of by all, but Francesca doesn't want to become a permanent villager simply because she’s Callan's partner. She wants to be invited to live there on her own terms. Besides, her parents and her boss are waiting back in the city for her to return and take up her former existence. Can Francesca have it all—a lover, a career, and most importantly, what money can't buy?

A New Home for Our YA Series!

Good news--we have a new publisher for our YA SF series!

Our BloodDark series--set on a tidally locked world inhabited by a vampiric race and others--will be re-released by Devine Destinies Books. All new stories set on this world will also be DD releases.

Fire on the Sands will be the first re-release followed by the "Olivia trilogy" of books.

Stay tuned for release dates and details.

Book 3 is now here--can you help us decide which cover is best?

 Our latest in the BloodDark Series...

Book 3 in the "Olivia's Trilogy"  

Olivia's Decision

http://www.desertbreezepublishing.com/blooddark-book-three-olivias-decision-epub/  and also available at Amazon.
 

Olivia's chance to prove herself as a spy hasn't gone well. She knows the handsome vampire Moreau is up to something. With the assistance of Kate and Mahvet, Olivia solves the mystery of the rogue Portal and Clan Alpha's illegal artwork sales, then escapes with the help of Valori, whose growing telekinetic powers prove frightening.

Hernando is hurt by Olivia's lie, but there's too much at stake to remain mad for long. Even Olivia learns to trust the Pure Bloods. They travel with the ruling council by airship to the Alphans' defensive weapon constructed with materials bought from billionaire Roland Grundfest. She senses the true invaders are Earthmen who've stolen BloodDark's technology for their own purposes. Olivia is torn between Earth and the world and peoples she's come to love. Will a climactic encounter in the desert decide Olivia's--and BloodDark's--fate once and for all?

Read an excerpt at The World of BloodDark web site. 

Books 1 and 2, Olivia's Escape and Olivia's Return, are  available in e-book and print from Desert Breeze Publishing, Amazon and other fine online book sellers. Read more about them at The World of BloodDark.

 




We're trying to decide which cover to use on promotional materials for this trilogy (as other stories set on BloodDark are forthcoming). Which one of the three covers "speaks" to you the most? Why do you think it works best? Let us know in the comments below. Thank you.

Olivia's Return (BloodDark Series Book 2)

It's good to return home--or is it? A year after Olivia Brown's abduction by vampiric aliens, she isn't sure where she belongs anymore.

Cover art by Gwen Phifer.

Olivia's Return
by Cindy A. Matthews and Adrian J. Matthews
Desert Breeze Publishing, February 2017
(Click on cover for direct purchase link)

On Earth, Olivia's told to forget her adventures and go to college. But evidence of wrongdoing by the Pure Bloods prompt fellow Resistance fighter Annara to concoct a plan to spy on Clan Alpha. Are the Alphans dealing with billionaire Roland Grundfest, a man willing to supply "vampire brides" for a price to serve their needs for fresh DNA on BloodDark?

To become a spy, Olivia must do more than dye her hair and change her clothing tastes--she must lie to both her parents and her Quadsang boyfriend, Hernando. A little white lie can't hurt, can it? Once again on BloodDark, Olivia realizes she needs friends like Valori, whose psychic powers can incapacitate hired killers. Will Olivia return to Earth ever again?

Also available at Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Olivias-Return-BloodDark-Book-2-ebook/dp/B01N9XRMZ2/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1486166534&sr=1-4&keywords=Olivia%27s+Return

Excerpt

Something wasn't quite right. It was quiet aboard the small aircraft. Too quiet. A cold shiver of dread tingled up her spine. Olivia glanced around. Leaning across the narrow aisle, she whispered to Hernando, "Where are all the families? This is a holiday weekend, so you'd expect there would be more people than just us, your driver and those big beefy guys in the black suits and ties in the back... Oh, no."

Annara rotated in her seat and rose up slightly on one knee to gain a better view of their fellow passengers. "I wish they hadn't made me pack my bow and arrows."

Hernando frowned. "How many of them are there?"

"Counting your driver, six," Annara replied, returning to face forward. "These tight spaces will make it difficult to defend ourselves, especially if they have weapons."

"Don't forget we're in an airplane. Chances are they won't have guns. There's too much risk of shooting a hole through the fuselage which will endanger us all." Olivia swallowed a large lump in her throat and tried hard not to sound frightened. "The pilot is either one of them, or this is a hijacking."

"What is a hijacking?" Annara asked. "Does this mean they can make this aircraft go to where they want it to go without our say so?"

Olivia nodded. "Kidnapping ambassadors isn't unknown. You'd think all this extra security the government puts people through at airports would prevent something like this."

"Unless they are working for the government. It explains a lot." Hernando's grim tone didn't inspire confidence. Olivia reached out, took his hand and squeezed it. His expression grew darker. "We're at their mercy," he continued under his breath. "Should we announce ourselves? Or should we pretend we're oblivious to their plans?"

"The longer they don't suspect we're onto them, the greater the element of surprise when we turn on them," Annara suggested. Smiling, she stood up and turned around, pretending to re-arrange the seat pillow behind her back. "They're watching us. We should wait until we've landed to make our move. That way, we won't have to worry about dropping out of the sky."

"The soaring lizards of the deserts soar so high on BloodDark," Valori whispered, "and many years ago in the days of my youth the great ships lifted by hot air and the fiery gas..."

Olivia startled and turned to her seat mate. Valori stood, her petite height allowing her to turn about in her seat area and not hit her head on the overhead bin. Olivia had thought her friend was engrossed in reading the fashion magazine, unaware of what was happening. Was I ever wrong. How do you keep secrets from a psychic?

"They are working for an Earth organization friendly with Clan Alpha," Valori explained in a calm and reassuring tone. "I sense their loyalty is more to the money they are promised if they bring you to their employer unharmed, however, and not the honor of the clan or their organization."

"Valori, sit down, please." Olivia took her friend's hand and tried to pull her into her seat, but the older woman resisted.

"Their lack of honor will be their undoing. They're going to sleep now for a very long time." Valori closed her eyes and concentrated, her brow wrinkling.

What on Earth is she doing? Can she use her mind as a weapon? Olivia and the others stole quick glances at the rear of the plane and were surprised to see the men in black slumping in their seats. A couple of them began to snore. The limo driver, sitting several rows behind them, stood up. He looked at the sleeping men in astonishment. A nervous sheen of sweat dotted his brow.

"Where do you think you're going?" Valori addressed the quivering chauffeur in her typical calm manner. "This aircraft soars very high in the sky. You wouldn't want to open the door by accident and fall out of it."

Meet the Authors of Olivia's Escape

 We were recently asked some questions about our writing and our methods as writers. Here are our responses:

Are you a full-out plotter? Are you a "let's see what happens" pantser? Or do you think you fall somewhere in between? Describe your process in coming up with and executing a story idea.

Adrian says: I'm by nature a pantser. I will plot things out if necessary, like when I'm writing a murder mystery. I don't really have a process in coming up with a story idea. They come to me from out of the ether--in the middle of the night sometimes--and then I write the story idea down.

Cindy says: I have to admit to being a "let's see what happens" pantser. I've tried to be more methodical and plot things out in detail, but somehow the characters always take me by the hand and lead me down another path. They just start "talking" to me as I write the scene, and they tell me they're not going to do as I want them to do. (Very much like children, it seems!) I'm not sure I have a set process for coming up with story ideas, but I read quite widely and expose myself to a lot of different people and subjects as a freelance writer/editor, so I'm constantly being inundated with potential characters and stories. Once I get a feel for "a character who has a story that needs telling" I start to envision the opening scene with my main characters and allow myself to be taken on a ride from there.


**Where is the most interesting place you have ever traveled? If you haven't traveled much, where would you absolutely love to go?

Together we've traveled to several Civil War battlefields and sites, such as

Wilson's Creek in Missouri, Lookout Mountain/Chattanooga in Tennessee and Chickamauga and Kennesaw National Battlefields in Georgia. Recently, we stopped off at both the Gettysburg and Antietam National Battlefields. (Hint: Try not to tour both of these within 48 hours--there's way too much to see at each to do them justice.) We're hoping to return to both of them someday soon and visit other Civil War sites in Virginia and West Virginia as well.

We both used to do French and Indian War re-enactments, so we really enjoy touring historical places and speaking with others about the significance of what happened there and the historical personalities involved. When we were in England visiting Adrian's family, we enjoyed touring castles and other historical sites in County Norfolk.


**What have you never written about, but want to some day?

Adrian: I've had the idea for a SF story knocking around for years, but haven't got around to writing it beyond working up a few notes.

Cindy: I've always wanted to write a more "hard science fiction" novel about a near future that may or may not come about and the consequences of our actions in bringing such a world into existence. I'm not saying it would be Orwellian in tone, but it probably would be much more "serious" than anything I've been able to publish so far (in fiction at least).

**Describe for us how it felt the first time you actually completed a manuscript.

Adrian: Jubilant! There's nothing better for me as a writer than the moment when I type "The End."

Cindy: I think I was shocked the first time I completed a romantic-comedy novel. It had taken some time to write that first draft (as I had two very young daughters underfoot at the time) and my first thought was, "What do I do now?" Luckily, I joined a writer's group not too long after finishing that book, and I learned a lot about rewriting and polishing a manuscript for publication, so much so that I eventually sold the book, The Fixer-Uppers. (And it is still in print/e-print, too. You can read about it at my contemporary/fantasy romance persona's website www.cynthianna.com.) 

**Did you write stories or make up stories as a child? Do you remember what any of them were about? Tell us...

Adrian says: I did write a short story at age 8 or 9. It was about the pilot of a 1930's Grumman Goose seaplane who discovers pirate treasure in the South Seas. I can even remember the title - "Barry Linton's Treasure." I might just revisit the idea as a full YA novel one of these days, although the 80's TV series "Tales of the Gold Monkey" seems to have stolen my idea!

Cindy says: Oh, did I ever make up stories when I was a child! I remember my mother helped me write my first "picture book," which was a story about a dining table full of talking objects who came to life late at night… 

The salt and pepper shakers were characters, as was the butter in the butter dish and the sugar bowl, etc. I drew the pictures in blue ball-point, as I recall, on scrap paper, and my mom wrote the words of my story beside the pictures and bound the pages all together, and I then made proper cover for it. (I was about four or five years old, and we didn't learn to write until first grade way back when. We didn't even have to attend kindergarten!) 

I hope I can find the remnants of my first "book" someday in all the boxes of nostalgia I've inherited from my late mother, but I fear it's long been lost. Still, I am ever so proud to say I "wrote and illustrated" my own book before I even attended school.


**Consider the main character in the last book you had published with DBP. What was different or special about him or her?

Olivia is different from a lot of our other heroines because she's 1) a young adult (age 17 in the first book) and not a mature adult (as we both usually are drawn to write), and 2) she's a strong person who acts on the courage of her convictions. 

That's not say Olivia is a person without self-doubts--because all of us question our own motives from time to time--but Olivia is special in that she has the innocence of her childhood and the love of her family fresh in her mind when she faces the challenges of being abducted and taken to an alien world. Her bravery is genuine and not jaded by a long past that many older characters have. In other words, she hasn't grown overly cynical. 

Olivia feels free to take a moral stand and to do whatever is necessary to bring about change on BloodDark to help her new friends and her new love, Hernando, survive and thrive there. It's quite refreshing to write from the perspective of a young and positive heroine who has the energy and guts to tackle challenges without shying away from them.

**Do you have a favorite inspirational quote/scripture/poem that you feel motivates you?

Adrian:
I like this quote:
"We are all of us lying in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars." --Oscar Wilde

Cindy: My favorite poem is "Success" by Ralph Waldo Emerson. Its last stanza is particularly motivating:

"To know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived.
This is to have succeeded."

Be sure to check out our latest release, Olivia's Escape, from Desert Breeze Publishing!

Two Fiction Releases in One Month

After a quiet time with no new releases, suddenly I have two fiction releases in one month. When it rains, it pours!  (And after a very dry summer, we actually got rain this week, too. Is that a good omen or what?) ;)

My husband and I have been waiting for about a year for the first book in our Young Adult-Science Fiction series, BloodDark, to be released from Desert Breeze Publishing, and here it is at last...

Olivia's Escape 
The BloodDark Series: Book 1
http://blooddarkbooks.blogspot.com 

by Cindy A. Matthews & Adrian J. Matthews

Seventeen-year-old Olivia Brown is abducted on her way home from a night out on the town and wakes up to find that she is imprisoned by a vampire-like race in a dark city bathed in eternal night. Hernando, a handsome half-human slave, reveals what is intended for her – the bloodsuckers want her blood for the upcoming festival. Together they plot an escape. 
 

 Joining a resistance cell, they help plot a revolution, and fall in love. Their group plans take control of the Portal, a teleportation device that links Earth with BloodDark. They plan to attack when the Pure Bloods go into hibernation in caverns located deep beneath the city. The Resistance fighters make it to the city only to find the Overseers, the Pure Bloods’ henchmen, are armed and waiting for them.

Will Olivia and Hernando survive the battle? And if she returns to Earth, will Olivia see Hernando ever again?

Available in ebook formats from Desert Breeze Publishing: http://www.desertbreezepublishing.com/the-blooddark-series-book-one-olivias-escape-epub/ 

In print at Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Olivias-Escape-BloodDark-Cindy-Matthews/dp/1682949303/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1471490078&sr=1-2&keywords=olivia%27s+escape

My contemporary sweet-romance persona, Cynthianna, has a short story release from Devine Destinies Books.

 Hurricane Alley
(a contemporary short romance)
by Cynthianna
http://www.devinedestinies.com/hurricane-alley/
 
Sometimes only a hurricane can calm the storm in your heart.

When Elena’s car breaks down in a Carolina town, the big city saleswoman falls into the arms of a handsome singing auto mechanic named Jake who is more than he appears to be. Can two lost souls from two very different worlds find love and happiness together or will a storm blow them apart?






I hope you give my titles a look over and consider purchasing a copy. Feel free to leave a review of any of my books on Amazon and/or elsewhere, too. Thanks!