Ann Gimpel is a clinical psychologist, with a Jungian bent. Avocations include mountaineering, skiing, wilderness photography and, of course, writing. A lifelong aficionado of the unusual, she began writing speculative fiction a few years ago. Since then her short fiction has appeared in a number of webzines and anthologies. Two novels, Psyche’s Prophecy, and its sequel, Psyche’s Search, have been published by Gypsy Shadow Publishing, a small press. A husband, grown children, grandchildren and three wolf hybrids round out her family.
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Publisher: Liquid Silver Books (December 31st, 2012)
Genre: Paranormal Romance
A deadly game of intrigue sweeps Gabrielle into a battle she has little hope of winning, even with her bond fairy helping. The last thing she expected was to fall in love . . . with the enemy!
Gabrielle McCallaghan just lost her job. Seeing the writing on the wall, she quit to spare her uncle the embarrassment of having to fire her. With her bond fairy on her shoulder, she strides through a crowded neighborhood contemplating her options. Out of nowhere, a gorgeous, full blood magic wielder appears and makes a beeline right for her. Gabby knows her hybrid witch magic is no match for his, so she tries to evade him. The fairy does her best to help, but the contest is laughable. Even in his human form, the wolf-man is still stronger than she ever dreamed of being. It doesn’t take long before Gabby is drawn into a deadly game of intrigue that started over a thousand years before. The stakes are high and the timing abysmal, but she finds herself falling in love in spite of herself. Can she and her full blood lover make a life for themselves? Or will the long-running battle between full bloods and hybrids pound the fragile bond between them to dust?
Gabrielle McCallaghan just lost her job. Seeing the writing on the wall, she quit to spare her uncle the embarrassment of having to fire her. With her bond fairy on her shoulder, she strides through a crowded neighborhood contemplating her options. Out of nowhere, a gorgeous, full blood magic wielder appears and makes a beeline right for her. Gabby knows her hybrid witch magic is no match for his, so she tries to evade him. The fairy does her best to help, but the contest is laughable. Even in his human form, the wolf-man is still stronger than she ever dreamed of being. It doesn’t take long before Gabby is drawn into a deadly game of intrigue that started over a thousand years before. The stakes are high and the timing abysmal, but she finds herself falling in love in spite of herself. Can she and her full blood lover make a life for themselves? Or will the long-running battle between full bloods and hybrids pound the fragile bond between them to dust?
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Gabrielle's Cauldron by Ann Gimpel
Excerpt
Excerpt
Gabrielle shook her head. She was shocked
at how eager she was to be free of Brad and this office. Now that the
possibility of independence sat there, beckoning to her, she couldn’t resist.
“Thanks, Uncle Brad. You’ve been more than kind to me.”
He cleared his throat. “Well,” he said,
voice surprisingly gentle, “keep in touch. If you stop by tomorrow, I’ll have
your check for this last week.”
Gabrielle knew how little she’d done.
“That’s okay. I’ll just grab my things and be out of your hair. I—” but she
didn’t know what else to say. Suddenly uncomfortable, she turned away from her
uncle and went to clear her few possessions out of her desk. After
inadvertently slamming her long, dark hair in a desk drawer, she pulled it into
an untidy pony tail. Ten minutes later, she let herself out the swinging glass
door adorned with BRAD MCCALLAGHAN, CPA, in faded, dark blue letters.
“That wasn’t very smart,” she muttered to
the pixie sitting on her shoulder. “What am I going to do now?”
Doesn’t matter, I’m free.
“No, we’re free,” Amalia corrected. The
pixie was clearly in mind-reading mode. "It hasn’t been any fun at all
being your bond fairy ever since you took that job. All you’ve done is grump
around, hating life.”
Gabrielle stared balefully at the pixie.
“You need to keep your opinions to yourself.”
“Why?” Amalia crossed one leg over the
other. The foot that dangled beat a tattoo against Gabby’s breast.
“Never mind.” Knowing it would be wasted
breath to try to get the pixie to do anything but what she wanted, Gabrielle
sucked in crisp autumn air and walked toward the bus stop. It felt good to be
outside. Not living a lie anymore was a big relief. She’d struggled with guilt
for months about her antipathy for Microsoft Excel, Turbo Tax and Tax Cut. At
least that part was over.
Strangers swirled around her. Seattle’s
Capitol Hill was always full of people. Gabrielle looked longingly at a
Starbuck’s sign, but three dollar coffees weren’t part of her new austerity
plan. Actually, neither was the bus. What she needed to do was walk home. She
had the time. And lower Queen Anne Hill wasn’t all that far away. She could be
home in an hour.
What a joke. I have nothing but time now.
Maybe if I walked more, I could get rid of some of this blubber. She tugged at
the too-tight waistband of her too-short dark green skirt. Sitting eight hours
a day hadn’t improved her figure at all. Gabrielle knew her height masked extra
pounds; she also knew she’d gained a good ten since she started working for her
uncle.
“Don’t stare,” Amalia hissed, sea-blue
eyes wide with apprehension, “but that looks like trouble.” The pixie always
reverted to mind speech when she felt threatened. Good thing too. Her constant
dialogue had gotten Gabrielle into trouble more than once when someone had
assumed she was the source of some smartass comment or other. Not all humans
could hear pixies. It depended how much magic they had. The problem was when a
person had no idea they had magic, but had been blessed—or cursed—with just
enough to hear fairy chatter. Those folk were the ones who’d ended up in
asylums a hundred years ago. Now doctors just crammed them full of mind-numbing
drugs.
Gabrielle’s head snapped up. A hunk of a
man who radiated power—wore it like an aura that screamed how much clout he
had—strode down the opposite side of the street as if he owned the world.
Coppery hair fell nearly to his waist. Well past six feet, he was dressed like
a pirate in a cream-colored shirt with full, old-fashioned sleeves, a dark
brown leather vest, and tight-fitting, black leather pants that left very
little to the imagination. Knee-high boots of buff-colored suede fit over the
pants. Apparently feeling her gaze on him, he slowed, head turning from side to
side. Gabrielle could have sworn he was scenting the air like a dog.
“What is he?” Gabby sent. “I know he’s a
full blood, but what kind?” Because pixies were entirely magical just like the
full bloods, they were often quicker on the uptake. Gabby was a hybrid and her
human blood often got in the way.
“Warg. He can see me, Gabby. Do
something.” Amalia’s nails dug into her shoulder.
The pixie’s words had barely registered
when a wolfish amber gaze settled on Gabrielle, boring into her. Heart racing,
she ducked into the first shop she saw.
“Are you all right, miss?” A shopkeeper
hurried over. Dyed red hair spiked in curls that fell past her shoulders.
Sharp, green eyes took in Gabby and her off-the-rack J.C. Penney’s clothes.
Gabrielle looked around and saw she’d
entered a lingerie store, and a pricey one at that judging from the tags
hanging off flimsy bits of silk. She tried to quiet her breathing. “Yes. Just
thought I’d, uh, look around a bit. I have a friend who’s, ah, getting married.”
She offered up what she hoped was a convincing smile, reinforced by the tiniest
leave me alone spell. The last thing she needed was for the salesclerk to boot
her out of the store.
“There you are, darling.” A cultured
baritone rang from the doorway. The voice had a definite German accent. “Nice
of you to shop for something to entertain me.” The warg moved to her side and
slid a hand under her elbow. A blast of sexual energy set Gabby’s nerves on
fire. Her nipples pebbled instantly and her skin tingled with promise. Mostly
so she wouldn’t throw herself into his arms, she took a step away and tried to
settle her heart back into a normal rhythm. But the warg’s heat—and a delicious
musky scent—followed her.
The shop girl’s eyes grew huge. She was
practically salivating. Gabby could tell she was struggling to keep her gaze
above the warg’s waist. “Welcome to my shop, sir,” she cooed. “We have things
for men too.”
He raised a well-formed eyebrow. “Yes, dear.
Your whole shop is actually for men.”
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Ooh, adding this one to my list, how about you? :)
Also, check out the guest post from Ann's about her other book, also on tour, A TIME FOR EVERYTHING!
Enjoy!
Until Next Time,
*TBQ's Book Palace is a member of both the Amazon and Barnes and Nobles affiliates program. By using the links provided to buy products from either website, I receive a very small percentage of the order. To read my full disclosure on the matter, please see this post!
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