Launching Romance into the stars.

Thursday, January 31, 2013

Celebrating 1-year of Never Gonna Let You Go!


Good day! It's been an exciting month, with Unknown Futures celebrating its one-year book birthday, and the releases of Made For Her and Accidental Romance. Then I found out my sci-fi/futuristic/dystopian story Never Gonna Let You Go was nominated for the Love Romances (LR) Cafe's Best Of 2012 Awards in that genre category. The story ended up receiving honorable mention. :) And the nomination gave me the motivation I needed to write the next book in The Underground series, Never Gonna Desert You, which I shared an excerpt from last week.

Well, today is the book birthday for Never Gonna Let You Go. It released a year ago today, and was based on a story I originally wrote in my Science Fiction English class in high school. Here's a bit about the story:


Caught in a tangle of lies, Calla Jacobs must sort through the truth to discover where she truly belongs. A biologist for Planet Core, she finds herself ensnared in a web of deceit. Sent to Airondelle, she must work with a team to prepare the newly discovered planet for colonists from Earth. But the mission does not go as she expected. Her former lover, Erik Edwards, shuns her, sending Calla into the arms of Melina Holloway, their commander, for the attention she craves and more. A confrontation among the trio leaves her with a broken heart, and fleeing from the two people she trusted most.

Attempting to break free from the lies that bind her, she discovers Planet Core has deceived everyone. And when she returns to Earth, Calla learns just how far Planet Core’s control reaches.

Excerpt:

Pulling the camera from her backpack, Calla considered what might have happened if she’d remained in Holloway’s tent. Would they have kissed? Her stomach fluttered and dampness spread between her legs as she thought about Melina’s soft lips.

Wait! She wasn’t attracted to women, never had been before. Then why couldn’t she stop thinking about what Holloway’s lips would feel like on hers and all over her body?

She took a deep breath. Sexual relations of any kind are forbidden during the missions. While repeating those words over and over, she spotted a perfect place to set up for her study—a large crancait bush on the edge of the field where the rapat fed. The bright red berries decorated the bush in stark contrast to its deepgreen, oval-shaped foliage. She crept through the waist-high vegetation, trying to make as little noise as possible. Although the foreign planet had not been shaped by an ice age like Earth, it did boast fields all the way to the horizon similar to the prairies where she and Erik had grown up. Erik should be the one she thought about kissing, not Melina, not a woman. She knew everything about him, or once had. But Erik had turned into an asshole, and Melina wanted to be friends. Maybe more? Her body warmed at the thought.

On her way to the red-berried bush where she planned to take pictures of the creatures, she stopped to ensure she hadn’t spooked the herd while her mind wandered to places it shouldn’t. Good, they haven’t moved.

Arriving at the crancait, she spread out a blanket to lay her equipment on and turned to affix her camera to a tripod. She’d never gotten this close to the herd for her footage. She’d managed to remain downwind and the warm breeze not only helped to disguise her scent but also her movements.

With no natural predator—at least none she’d discovered—the rapat flourished on this part of the planet. Their round pig-sized bodies resembled the tapir of Earth, but with the addition of a longer, elephant-like trunk. Their lips smacked and teeth ground together as they ate their fill of grasses. The smell of their dung reminded her of molasses rather than that of any Earth animal.

After adjusting the camera to record video footage of their feeding and social behaviors, she sat down to write her notes. Instead, she could only think of Melina, and the moment in her tent, which could have led to something else, something more than friendship. Something she needed just as much. She sighed. I’m attracted to Melina. What does this mean?



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Giveaway!!
Leave a comment (with your email address) for your chance to WIN an ebook copy of Never Gonna Let You Go. Winner will be drawn February 3, 2013. Contest is international. Good luck!

Bio:

Jessica Subject started writing to encourage her daughter to read. Now she writes to keep herself grounded. Although she reads many genres, she enjoys writing Science Fiction Romance the most and believes everyone in the universe deserves a happily ever after. She lives Southwestern Ontario, Canada with her husband and two kids and loves to hear from her readers.





9 comments:

Liza O'Connor said...

A first birthday for your book. What a wonderful idea! And the book sounds most interesting. I want to read so many of your books. If only I could let that darn kitten market without my supervision I would have more time to read.

Kate Richards said...

Happy Anniversary to you and Never Gonna Let You Go!

Taryn Kincaid said...

Happy Bookoversary, Jess!

Jessica E. Subject said...

Liza - Thank you! I know, it's hard to find time to balance reading, writing, promotion, and everyday life. :)

Kate - Thanks so much! You were a huge help with this story. :)

Taryn - Thank you very much! :)

Alexa said...

Happy Book Birthday!

Jessica E. Subject said...

Thank you, Alexa! :)

lexcade said...

Happy book birthday, Jess! I really can't wait to read this!

c.peace@live.com

Jessica E. Subject said...

Thank you very much, Cate! :)

Jessica E. Subject said...

Congrats to lexcade (Cate) who wins an ebook copy of Never Gonna Let You Go. Thanks everyone for stopping by!