{"id":2121,"date":"2019-06-29T01:05:46","date_gmt":"2019-06-29T05:05:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/?p=2121"},"modified":"2019-11-03T18:05:55","modified_gmt":"2019-11-03T23:05:55","slug":"story-sample-a-mermans-choice-by-alice-renaud-paranormalromance-romance-fantasy-mermen-mermaid","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/2019\/06\/29\/story-sample-a-mermans-choice-by-alice-renaud-paranormalromance-romance-fantasy-mermen-mermaid\/","title":{"rendered":"Story Sample: A Merman’s Choice by Alice Renaud #paranormalromance #romance #fantasy #mermen #Mermaid"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Merman’s Choice<\/strong>
\nby Alice Renaud<\/p>\n

Blurb<\/strong><\/p>\n

For centuries the shape-shifting mermen of the Morvann Islands have lived incognito among humans. But one of them, Yann, has developed some bad habits. Like rescuing humans, even when doing so risks revealing his true nature. When he fishes Alex out of the sea, he doesn\u2019t expect her to reappear eight months later, and turn his life upside down by asking him to be her guide.<\/p>\n

Alex is determined to fulfil a promise to her dying grandmother, by gathering pictures and stories of the Morvanns. But she soon discovers that, on these remote Welsh islands, legends have a habit of becoming true!<\/p>\n

Over the course of a few days, Yann and Alex grow close. But some mermen hate humans. Their hostility, and Yann\u2019s secret, threaten to tear the couple apart just as they are discovering that they are soul mates. Can Yann overcome the obstacles in his path and make the right choice?<\/p>\n

Excerpt:<\/strong><\/p>\n

The girl wasn\u2019t swimming any more. Yann\u2019s sonar gave him a clear picture of her distress. She was flailing. Sinking.<\/p>\n

Fear punched him between the ribs. Just a few minutes earlier, she\u2019d been splashing in the shallows, laughing and humming to herself. That music had rippled around him, brightening his journey. Now the sea was snuffing that light out. No! He wouldn\u2019t let it happen. His webbed hands and feet churned the water, and he shot towards her like a torpedo.<\/p>\n

Not this one, sea. Not this time.<\/p>\n

She came in sight, slim and lovely, with long bronzed limbs and hair the colour of sunshine. But her eyes were closed, her movements slow, hesitant, as if she were falling asleep. His fear hardened into cold, sharp dread. He poured all his energy into the last powerful strokes. He\u2019d almost reached her, when his eye caught the shadow, beyond the crystal surface, out there in the dry world. He sent a sound wave. It came back with an image, and the icy blade inside him twisted: two-legged shapes on the beach. Humans!<\/p>\n

If they saw him, they\u2019d know him for what he was. His people\u2019s secret, kept for thousands of years, would be out.<\/p>\n

The girl\u2019s head vanished under the waves. To hell with that. He couldn\u2019t let her drown.<\/p>\n

He grabbed her and dragged her back to the surface. She thrashed in his arms and coughed up seawater. Intense relief swept through him as he hugged her to his chest. He\u2019d sworn he\u2019d never again swim by and let a human drown, and he\u2019d kept his promise. If the young woman\u2019s eyes remained closed, he might even get away with it. He wanted her to breathe, not scream in horror at the sight of his dark grey face.<\/p>\n

He looked up. The shapes on the beach had gone. Another miracle, or perhaps he\u2019d only imagined them. What if they came back? A fresh stab of anxiety propelled him through the surf. He lay the girl down on the sand, cushioning her head on his arm. Her round breasts, encased in the turquoise bikini top, rose and fell in a regular rhythm, but her skin felt clammy under his hands. He scanned the beach in vain for something to cover her with, and saw the motorbike. A sleek, sporty number, well camouflaged among the grass-covered dunes.<\/p>\n

Shit. He retracted the webs between his fingers and toes, but his body would take at least twenty minutes to shift from the aquatic shape to the human form. And even when it did, what would the humans think, if they found him naked next to an unconscious girl?<\/p>\n

They\u2019d arrest him for indecent exposure, or worse. He touched the girl\u2019s face with a tentative finger. The thought of leaving her sickened him. But he couldn\u2019t stay.<\/p>\n

Her eyelids fluttered and she muttered a name. \u201cBoris?\u201d<\/p>\n

As if in answer, a male voice tore through the air, from behind the dunes. \u201cAlex!\u201d<\/p>\n

Yann flew towards the waves. Help was coming for the girl. She\u2019d be fine.<\/p>\n

He sped into the open sea, leaving the human world and human fears behind. He\u2019d saved her. That knowledge glowed inside him as he plunged into the depths. She was safe, and his people would remain safe too. He sang as he rode the riptide, a song full of triumph and laughter. Far away, the humpback whales heard him and picked up the tune. He\u2019d got away with it.<\/p>\n

For now.<\/p>\n

Purchase Link:<\/strong><\/p>\n

https:\/\/amzn.to\/2QglyeIhttps:\/\/books2read.com\/u\/31xw7a<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"Author Bio:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Alice was born and brought up in Brittany, Western France, her father was French and her mother British (from Wales). She moved to London, UK, in 1997, where she now lives with her husband and son. She works full time as a compliance specialist in a pharmaceutical company. She has been writing in her free time since she was 14. She got quite a few short stories published in UK magazines, before moving to longer fiction. She wrote three contemporary romance books, but didn\u2019t find a publisher for them. She then realized that mermen, sea witches and water demons were a lot more fun than sheikhs and billionaires! Her first two paranormal romances did not find a publisher either, then she wrote \u201cA Merman\u2019s Choice,\u201d which was published in January this year by Black Velvet Seductions. It is the first book in a fantasy romance trilogy inspired by the landscapes and legends of Brittany and Wales. The second book, \u201cMusic for a Merman,\u201d will be out later this year. She\u2019s also written a short story, \u201cThe Sweetest Magic of All,\u201d that will appear in the BVS supernatural romance anthology \u201cMystic Desire,\u201d due this fall (autumn). It\u2019s about a sexy apprentice witch and a hot time-travelling warlock who go in search of a magical amulet… and find more than they bargained for!<\/p>\n

Alice loves reading and writing stories, and sharing them with anyone who\u2019s interested!<\/p>\n

Author Links:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Facebook: https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AliceRenaudAuthorRomance\/<\/a>
\nTwitter: https:\/\/twitter.com\/alicerauthor<\/a>
\nLinkedin: https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/alice-renaud-author-4219b6166\/<\/a>
\nInstagram: https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/alicerenaudauthor\/<\/a>
\nGoodreads: https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/author\/show\/18670218.Alice_Renaud<\/a>
\nBookbub: https:\/\/www.bookbub.com\/profile\/alice-renaud<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Merman’s Choice by Alice Renaud Blurb For centuries the shape-shifting mermen of the Morvann Islands have lived incognito among humans. But one of them, Yann, has developed some bad habits. Like rescuing humans, even when doing so risks revealing his true nature. When he fishes Alex out of the sea, he doesn\u2019t expect her…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2123,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9,4,249],"tags":[25,281,324,323,322],"class_list":["post-2121","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-excerpts","category-guestposts","category-story-sample","tag-fantasy","tag-featured","tag-mermaid","tag-mermen","tag-paranormalromance-romance"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/A-Mermans-Choice-Front-1.jpg?fit=428%2C640&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6kq3e-yd","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2121","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2121"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2121\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2124,"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2121\/revisions\/2124"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2123"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2121"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2121"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kate-hill.com\/compellingbeastsblog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2121"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}