What is dark romance? #darkromance #mm #michaelmandrake #paranormal

 

Dark – A place or time with little to no light.

Romance – A feeling of excitement and mystery associated with love.

Greetings readers!

Today, we’re discussing a hot subgenre called dark romance.  

Before I talk about my own works, let’s define dark romance? With help of the definitions above, we gather a feeling of love with very little light involved. Not actual light, but in a figurative sense. Perhaps you have a morally gray hero or heroine. Think vampire or even a demon. If paranormal isn’t your thing, perhaps a mobster, a murderer, or a bad cop who wears the badge as a cover for his true evil self.

Hmm... *Jots notes*

In truth there’s no right or wrong answer for this. Dark romance can be as twisted as you want or slightly wrong. Some go to extremes, while others take the easier way out.

Now that we have an idea, this leads to the question; how can romance be dark?

Isn’t romance supposed to bring happiness? See the above definition about feeling excited.

So you get excited or there’s a euphoria associated with falling in love. It doesn’t give a description of the person or what made you have that feeling so, despite it being something wrong or immoral, the protagonists still push for it to work.

Perhaps the characters enjoy killing, and although it’s wrong they find a person who enjoys the same thing or at least understands why they love murdering people. Maybe one of the characters is aroused by what the hero or heroine does to them, etc.

There’s plenty of scenarios to explore, it just depends on how far you and your characters want to go.

If you’d like more information on the term, check out this article. Dark Romance.

As for my writing, my Immortals series is based around paranormal beings who enjoy being beaten within an inch of their immortal lives. The more tests they endured, the stronger they became. Their dark desires didn’t prohibit them from falling in love since each character found his Mr. Right or Wrong. Maybe wrong for anyone else, but perfect for the lead characters.

The story that holds true to this is Calisto’s Quest where my main character was an angel who took pleasure in fighting and or getting roughed up. Without spoiling the plot, he questioned his true calling because he loved someone who was the exact opposite of who he was. And although this being could lead him down a rough path, he still had feelings for him.

During my writing journey, I’ve discovered my love for writing polar opposites with questionable morals. Although the element of the forbidden or taboo might turn off some readers, I write what’s in my heart first. And since a majority of my books follow the opposites attract formula, dark romance is up my alley.  

Knowing how much I love the opposites trope, I’m looking forward to getting back into writing dark romances. Despite being stagnant for about three years, I plan to finish my Love Kills series and hopefully re-release my Nola Series books before the end of the year.

Wish me luck.

If you like dark romances, please chime in. What is your definition of dark romance? Also, recommend some books you’ve enjoyed. They don’t have to be MM.

Thanks so much for listening!

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If you're interested in the Immortal's Series, they are best read in order. All books are on Kindle Unlimited!

This is the blurb for Calisto's Quest

Calisto hungers for Valios, but will their families determine whether or not they’ll have an unholy happy ever after?

Calisto is bored with heaven. Despite his dad’s unconditional love, he isn’t satisfied being High’s favorite winged boy. In the back of his mind, Calisto desires a being from his past to be part of his future. But acting on those emotions risks enraging his family and bringing punishment upon himself.

Valios’ black heart is broken. He’s ruined one chance at true love by being an ass. As he moves on, he meets his arch enemy who he’s fancied for centuries. Though Valios cares for the angel, nothing can happen between them or his father will kill him.

Will Calisto and Valios take a chance or ignore their desires to stay in favorable in the eyes of their masters? Although they realize their feelings for each other, rekindling those could widen the divide between the sides, destroy the peace, and place the entire universe in danger.

Love should be blind, but at what cost?

Calisto’s Quest features an angel with a bad temper and the devil’s son that tries to ignore him. If you enjoy demon angel romances where love means high stakes, pick up a copy of Calisto’s Quest today.

All books must be read in order for full enjoyment of the series.

WARNING: This is a dark romance! Rough sex, violence, torture, and MPreg. Relationships that others might find objectionable.

Book Birthday - See No Evil Michael Mandrake #transromance #BWWM #paranormal #nolaseries

 

Hello

I'm celebrating another book birthday for my revised Nola series. The one that's coming up is See No Evil which was published in 2019. It's an interracial trans romance with my existing characters along with some new ones. 

The book will be available again for purchase this year since I plan on re-releasing all of them!

Here is a snippet. Again, I'm revising this book so no blurb or buylink. 

When Waylon reached the door, he ran up the few steps and rang the bell. He rubbed his shoulders and leaned his head forward, trying to avoid the chilly air hitting his face.

“Yes, who is it?”

“Naomi, it’s me. I’m downstairs.”

No answer, just a buzz, allowing Waylon into Naomi’s second-floor abode. He closed the door tightly behind him and walked up the hardwood floor steps to get to her place. When he reached the second floor, he made a sharp right and stood in front of apartment 206. To get warm, he blew on his hands and rubbed them together.

In less than a minute, Waylon heard several locks click and Naomi opened the door with a pensive look on her face. As per usual, Naomi dressed in her Asian style purple robe. Her hot cocoa colored skin was a great contrast to the covering on her body. Decorative sticks held Naomi’s black curly hair in place with the exception of a few wayward strands.

With no makeup, Naomi was still ravishing.

Despite his personal creed, he couldn’t help to be taken by her beauty.

“Hey, ba …”

Waylon’s greeting as cut off when she crashed into him, holding Waylon as if he were her means to survival. He ran his hand through the loose strands of her hair and pressed his nose into the side of her neck. Wanting more of her, he kissed the side of her head and held her tight to his body. Waylon cared deeply for Naomi and couldn’t wait until they made love.

“Shh, it’s okay, baby. Tell me what’s hurting my girl.” Waylon pushed his frames back up on his nose.

“Waylon I’m so happy to see you,” Naomi cried into his jacket, sniffling. “You feel like a damn icicle too. What have I told you about not wearing a coat?”

Waylon harrumphed and continued to hold her because her voluptuous frame felt amazing under his fingers. Electricity shot through his tips to every erogenous zone in his body. It had been harder than hell to keep himself under control.

“What’s wrong, babe?”

Naomi moved slightly and looked down a moment. “I dunno what’s going on. I’ve been having these intense dreams, visions of – Shit Way I’m losing my fucking mind.” Her light brown eyes met his.

“What do you mean?” Waylon asked. He ran his hand down her shoulder, then back up to her face. He lightly caressed it with his nails.

“Let’s go inside and I’ll tell you more.” Naomi pulled on his hand and led him into her apartment.

The place was immaculate. White walls with accents of gold around the windows. Frame Asian prints colored the walls while vases with purple Asiatic flowers rising from the tops. Her white sectional was partially covered with purple throws, all with Asian style writing or prints on the front while fluffy pillows stacked three high flanked her coffee table.

Although Waylon had been inside quite a bit, he was still amazed at Naomi’s attention to detail and impeccable style. She made the most of the thousand or so square feet with her design ideas. He removed his shoes and followed her to the sectional in the center of the living room.

“Would you like something warm to drink, honey? I can make you some tea. Orange pekoe. Your favorite.” Naomi flashed him a wry smile.

“No, I’m good. Had coffee on the way in. Come have a seat and tell me about these nightmares you been having.” Waylon patted the seat next to him.

Naomi nodded and did as Waylon asked. She curled up with Waylon and laid her head on his shoulder. “I swear I just don’t know what’s going on. I been … dreaming about the ladies who been killed and what happened to them. Some of the most gruesome images … I dunno, I’ve never been psychic, ever. I heard rumblings in my family about our ancestors having some psychic powers. I ain’t never believed in any of it.”

Waylon softly rubbed her back from her neck down to her waist. “First time for everything then, hmm? I mean, we didn’t know Kajika had vampire uncles until about a year ago.”

“Yeah. And I wonder if Ryland has something to do with it. I mean, I remember us having a talk about you and me going out together. Never anything about the murders. Do you think Ryland is trying to help you guys out through me?”

“I dunno, sweets.” Waylon shrugged cradling Naomi’s head in his hands. “Could be. Ryland told me and Dale a while back he isn’t supposed to interfere.”

“Well, maybe this is his way of doing somethin’ ‘cause I swear, I have never had any kinda dreams so graphic and real like this.”

“How, though? Ryland’s a vampire. From what I know about vampire lore, they can only read minds or zap someone’s brain to make them forget. I don’t think they have much power beyond that.”

Naomi shifted and moved to face him. She cocked an eyebrow and toyed with the covering on the side. “Pssh. I don’t put nothing passed Kajika’s freaky family members. Anything is possible. Some of the things Kajika had been telling me before he left on the trip was something. He said it was like Ryland could read him and find out everything about their family tree. Ryland might be more than just a vampire too. Who knows? For whatever reason, I’m not as scared of him anymore. It might be ‘cause he’d been so nice and getting us together. I dunno. I truly think I’m losing all my cookies.”

“No, you’re not. You might have a point. However, he isn’t here so we’re not going to be able to ask him.” Waylon leaned in, pulling her close again. “Why not forget about all of it for now, okay? We’ll sit back, watch a little television, and relax together. Or maybe, we’ll talk a little more about our plans.”

Naomi smiled sweetly and pecked his lips. “Those are good ideas. Where are you taking me?”

“It’s a surprise. I got it all planned out. Just know we’re getting out of the cold. I need you to wear the skimpiest swimsuit you own on our trip.”

“Mhmm. And what’cha gonna do with the suit?”

Waylon smiled at her and took her hand into his. “I’m gonna ogle it for a bit then peel it off you.” He kissed the top of Naomi’s head. “Then we’ll make love on the beach. Oh damn.”

Naomi giggled and hugged him tight to her body. “Okay, now you let the cat out the bag. So where we’re going has a beach.”

“Well, there’s a lot of places with beaches. Just trust we’ll be away from this chilly weather for four days. I wish it could be longer, but the Police balls’ happening and I don’t wanna miss the opportunity to show you off.”

“Oh dang, Waylon, I swear you are amazing. Listen, I … I know this is forward. Do you think you could spend the night? I … I’m scared. I don’t want to be alone.”

Instantly Waylon’s cock sprouted in his trousers when he heard Naomi’s invite. Waylon thought it a good idea to hold off on the intimacy for a while because he desperately wanted to spend his vacation at her side and temporarily forget about his job. It had been hard as hell to do so. Waylon had braced himself for the six days he’d requested right before the policeman’s ball on the twentieth. He’d planned on taking Naomi away for four, then come back, attending the fancy shindig with her on his arm as his date.

“Um. Of course. I can sleep out here on the sofa.”

“Oh no, you don’t, Waylon. If you’re still gonna hold onto the chastity belt then you’re sleeping in the spare bedroom. No one and I mean no one sleeps on my couch.” Naomi scolded him.

Waylon smiled wryly and nodded. In truth, he wanted to throw the belt out the window. “All right, missy ma’am, will do. I’ll take the spare bed and hopefully, the dreams of being close to you will come fast and furious.”

****

To keep up with what I'm doing, pls visit thelitriad.com

Book Birthday - Hirah Blaze #bisexualromance #InterracialRomance #IR #RockstarRomance #BLMORTICIA

 

Hello everyone! Happy new year to everyone. 

My apologies for missing last month. I'm back for February however to chat about one of my favorite characters and her book's birthday which is today. 

Authors, I know all of us have written about a person who is relatable to us. That protagonist might have the same traits, quirks, or anything that makes you say how they might be just like you. 

In the case of Hirah, I wrote a fictional version of myself. When I was younger, I wanted to play an instrument and even dreamt I was in a rock and roll hand. Now mind you, I didn't play a lick of guitar, but I just wished to be in the center, strumming the axe like there was no tomorrow. I thought of being adored and hated by many people, gaining fame and fortune, and eventually be so superior that no one would stop me. 

Those and other amazing traits are in my fictional character Hirah who's not really looking for love, but instead it finds her in the form of her handsome bandmate Chad who isn't seeking anything by the next warm body to lay on. Despite that sparks fly and the chemistry between them can't be ignored. 

Back to the relatable thing. Yes, I dreamt of  falling for a rockstar too. Isn't that everyone's dream to be swooned by a long haired, lanky metal musician? 

Well anyway. this book is a favorite, as they all are but its something really special about this one. Maybe give it a read to find out more about the rock adventures of my sexy heroine, Hirah Blaze.

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My name is Hirah Blaze. I’m The Wretched’s lead woman on axe. From the first day I picked up a guitar, I wasn’t satisfied with being the best female guitarist or the best black female guitarist. I had to be the best fucking guitarist on the planet or it was considered a failure. The metal world could eat you alive if you didn’t know how to play and I’ve spent my entire life to make sure that never happens.

Although Sarge and Diabolical Plan had given me the initial opportunity to show off my chops, I couldn’t be what I wanted with my ex-boyfriend steering the ship. I had to be the captain of my own destiny, the one taking the lead.

Five months into being part of one of the biggest rock bands in the world and I’m still pinching myself. Me, the little Blatina goth girl from Milwaukee, along with Corey Patrick, Bryan Taylor, Nicolai Zander and the new guy on bass named Chad Stephenson.

Have I mentioned that Chad is hot as hell?

If I truly wanted to control my future, I couldn’t be derailed by gorgeous, tattooed dudes with pretty eyes and piercings.

Who was I kidding?

As long as Chad wasn’t looking for something serious we could have some fun while taking the hard rock world by storm.

This is a spinoff of The Wretched Tales with new guitarist Hirah Blaze. She's kicking ass and taking names, looking to become the metal world's newest guitar goddess!

Book Link

Hope you enjoyed this post. Check out my other books here. 

There will be new books coming soon!