Author Connie Suttle

Author Connie Suttle:
Urban Fantasy/ Young Adult

Friday, October 7, 2011

You Saw It Here First

The first pages of Blood Domination:

Jovana was beautiful. Xenides hated her. If not for a command given by his now-deceased sire, Xenides would have killed her long ago. Instead, Saxom had instructed his eldest to keep Jovana alive and hidden, as she might be useful in Xenides' war against the Vampire Council.

"You should do this for me--in our sire's memory and with no compensation," Xenides growled. Xenides sat on a Louis XVI sofa in Jovana's private quarters. Jovana's Paris apartment was tastefully decorated in antiques, many of which Saxom had given her. He'd collected throughout his lengthy life and now Jovana had enough to keep her into the next century. She wasn't satisfied with that, however. She had expensive tastes and only wore the best in designer clothing. Therefore, she often agreed to the odd assignment for Xenides. For a healthy fee, of course.

"Our sire is dead and compulsion is merely a joke to me," Jovana murmured, rising to gaze out a window. Evenings in Paris appealed to her and were the deciding factor in her choice of living quarters. Lucius had taken her for his lover long ago, and he'd never informed anyone that Jovana wasn't susceptible to compulsion. Saxom had known it anyway, and together he and Jovana had killed Lucius before Saxom made her vampire. She'd agreed willingly to the turn--after all, her beauty was fading away and she worried that Lucius would leave her behind. She'd risen a Queen Vampire, just as Saxom knew she would, and she'd created havoc at Saxom's bidding for more than two hundred years.

"Jovana, our sire left me in charge of his wealth for a reason," Xenides pointed out maliciously.

"So you can keep me under your thumb," Jovana snorted, turning back to her vampire sibling. "He knew I would walk away from you and your foolishness if he didn't."

"You could sell what you own and keep yourself for a very long time," Xenides snapped.

"Of course I will not sell my things. This is mine," Jovana swept out a hand. "And I deserved a fair share of our sire's wealth when he died. You refuse to give it to me."

"I will pay for your services as always, Jovana," Xenides sighed. "How much this time for your assistance in capturing the little princess?"

"You should be glad I have no feelings for you, Xenides," Jovana huffed. "Else I would be quite jealous. You talk of her too often."

"You have no reason to be jealous. I only wish to utilize her talents, as you are so reluctant to do so."

"Of course I am reluctant. You fail to see the ignorance in this quest. You should allow me to kill the little bitch and be done with it."

"You will not kill her, and avenging our sire's death is not ignorance," Xenides hissed, his eyes turning so deep a red they were nearly black.

"No need to be angry, Xenides. I'll do this for you." Jovana inspected a well-manicured hand. "Six million will suffice until the next assignment."

"Then I suggest you don't spend it in one place, Jovana. As soon as I have the little female under compulsion, you and I will part ways."

"Where and when?" Jovana ignored Xenides' threat.

"Don't worry, I'll bring her to you. You won't have to leave your precious city behind."

"What about the Council?" Jovana didn't bother to hide the contempt in her voice. After all, Wlodek always treated her coldly and ignored her advances.

"I have my own plans where they're concerned," Xenides replied. "I intend to kill Wlodek and then watch the others scatter like the frightened vermin they are. I will only contact you again if the situation becomes dire. You are dead weight to me, Jovana, and without your particular talents, you would be completely worthless."

"Please, see yourself out," Jovana snarled, turning her back on Xenides. "I shall expect the transfer of funds in two days."

Xenides didn't bother with a farewell; he merely slammed the door so hard on his way out the wood split. Jovana cursed at his retreating back.

19 comments:

  1. hi! i read the first three books recently and they were awesome! i just cant wait for the fourth one..thank you for this small taste.. i just had a question.. is the release date still October 15 because according to goodreads.com the book has already been published. so im highly confuse

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  2. Connie,

    So does Jovana have the same talents as Lissa? Or should I just wait to read the book, but you have gotten me so curious now, that I will be anxious until I can get my hands on a copy. Mean! LOL.

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  3. Hi, yashika. I'm so glad you like the books.

    Yes, the release date is still October 15 for Blood Domination. An explanation is in order on how all those books were put up on Goodreads--I have a friend who likes to put everything he reads on Goodreads. When he read my first books in manuscript form, he manually added them to the site. Then, when he showed me how to do it, I added in later titles.(Yes, I've done nothing but write for the past four years--since leaving my job at Borders, in fact)The books you see on Goodreads without a cover image are unpublished manuscripts, but they will be published. I hope you are willing to stick with me through all this, and thanks for checking in!
    Connie

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  4. Hi, Maria!
    I can't go too far into Jovana's talents without giving away spoilers. Sorry :(

    I didn't mean to be mean when I posted those pages, so I will say that Jovana's part in the book isn't a large one. Blood Domination introduces new friends and additional enemies, and Lissa goes where she never thought she'd go. I hope you stick with me for the (unexpected) ride.
    Thanks for writing. Hope your day is a happy one!
    Connie

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  5. I'm holding out reading this with all my willpower till the book is released. only 5 short days!! sigh

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  6. I will always stick with you on this Connie, No Problem. And I always enjoy your quick Response. I am one of those people who knows they have a gift coming, but will nag to find out what it is before the time comes to open it. Just keep writing about Lissa for as long as possible. Hoping we get it a few days early like Blood Sense.

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  7. Dare and Maria: I am working to get it released a little early, but I can't make any promises right now. I wanted to spend today doing a final run-through, but more mundane things demanded my attention instead. You'll see it on this blog if I do manage to release it early.
    Thanks!
    Connie

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  8. Counting down - 4 more days!! WooHoo

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  9. Do we finally get to find out what Griffin is??? I have more questions, but those, I think I can wait to find out. :)

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  10. Hi, Julie. I was beginning to wonder if anybody was even curious about him. The answer is yes, for the most part. Someday, I may publish a few short stories (or even long stories) about him and others like him. If you have more questions after reading Blood Domination, I'll answer what I can :) Thanks for posting!
    Connie

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  11. I'm so glad Julie asked about Griffin and I'm so glad that the answer is kind of a yes! I can't wait! I'm rereading all 3 in preparation for the new one! Thank you for writing these wonderful books!

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  12. You're welcome, Sarah!
    Thank you!
    :) Connie

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  13. I hope you publish all your work soon. i can't wait to get my hands on it :D

    I have a question. Will this book explain why Lissa's invulnerability to compulsion developed late as opposed to other Queens who have had it even as humans?

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  14. Hello, Yashika!
    I think that question is answered in Blood Royal (#5). If not, ask me again and I promise to hand over the info! As a side note, Lissa's resistance to compulsion was never tested before she was turned--Sergio "killed" her too quickly :)
    Connie

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  15. ok this is insane but im going crazy waiting.

    But then how was she susceptible to gavin's and wlodeks and everyone else's compulsion? Is that true for every queen?

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  16. ohk wait dont tell me. ill wait for the fifth book even if it kills me :D

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