Blog Tour, Exclusive Excerpt & Giveaway:
Manchester Lake by Joshua Ian
Darkly Enchanted Romance, Book 3
England, 1910
Monty, along with his best friend Bishop, investigates an odd seal-like creature swimming in Manchester Lake. The pair soon realize they’ve found a selkie when the magnificent animal transforms into the most gorgeous man either of them has ever seen. Determined to discover the origins of the mystical man, they bundle him into Bishop’s brand-new electric automobile and whisk him off to London.
There they find a host of distractions: a tastefully debauched house party hosted by silver-tongued aristocrats, and a queerly European-inspired novelty called the night club. Both are filled with a cast of characters sometimes amusing and sometimes frightening. And as the night unfolds, Monty comes face-to-face with ghoulish agents of the occult as well as revelations from the past.
Most surprisingly of all, Monty finds himself falling for the beautiful creature from the lake, who seems equally interested in him. Can he really find himself in love with a man he has only just met? Or do they have a deeper connection which goes much further back? And what does it all have to do with the memories of his trip to Paris three years prior?
The mystery of the selkie from Manchester Lake is only the beginning, and before their adventure is finished Monty will see the culmination of long suppressed secrets explode in a firestorm of magic and passion!
Universal Link
Amazon
Rodin cocked his head and listened.
“Music,” he whispered.
He grabbed Monty by the hand and pulled him into the room. Rodin headed directly towards the pianist who still played the Boston. Rodin listened and watched the two young women who were making their way through the steps. He studied them intently for a moment, and then turned to Monty. He took the cocktail glass from Monty’s hand, placed it on the piano and said, “Come.”
He pulled Monty very close and positioned them to match the young ladies formation. Monty was so shocked he let himself be led without thinking. They began to make the steps of the dance and moved around in a circular formation, just near the young ladies. Monty had never danced the Boston before but it didn’t seem so very different from a number of waltzes he had learned in his years, the step only seemed abbreviated.
As they settled into a mutual rhythm, a sense of embarrassment began to wash over Monty. He was acutely aware of being in a private home and that he was surrounded by people. Surely he had stolen a moment or two like this, deep in the darkened recesses of a club in Paris, or at the Brunswick on his few trips there. But those places were made for the kind of company kept who also partook in such dances. Anywhere else they would have been thought unseemly, scandalous. It was all well and good for two unattached young ladies to partner in the absence of a male suitor, but for two men whirling about a corner of the room like some perverse Regency ball was unheard of.
“Do you think we ought to be doing this?” he whispered as Rodin pulled him close.
“Why not?” asked Rodin. “No one seems to mind.”
And as Rodin turned him into a spin, and Monty lifted his arms, his eyes whirled around the room. Rodin was right; the only ones bothering to even watch them were clearly enjoying the sight. He even caught sight of Bishop smiling broadly and Jodhpurs looking on with wide-eyed amusement. Monty smiled back and closed his eyes as he finished his spin and was pulled nearer to Rodin again. Silently, Monty thanked Aunt Charlotte for her choice of friends and relished the novel sense of freedom.
Trevor would have gone absolutely apoplectic at the mere suggestion of such an abandonment of propriety. Being so intimately familiar with another man in front of a crowd, of mixed company at that. Trevor simply would have withered away. But why did that come to mind now? Monty chastised himself. Constantly these thoughts of Paris, which he had pushed aside for so long now, threatened to invade. He did not want to think of Trevor now, or any of that.
As if on cue, Rodin tightened the grip of his hand on Monty’s waist.
“What are you thinking of?” he whispered.
Monty opened his eyes and looked into those tender pools of brown.
“Nothing,” he replied. “Nothing except this moment. And how good it feels.”
“Good.” Rodin nodded and they continued to dance.
To celebrate the release of Manchester Lake, we is giving away 2 e-sets of The Ghost of Hillcomb Hall & Manchester Lake!
Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for your chance to win!
About the Author:
Joshua Ian can easily be captured by a witty turn of phrase or a low-bottomed electronic bassline. If you manage to combine the two, then you have his heart forever. He lives in New York City and writes mostly historical, speculative, and sci-fi/fantasy fiction but he does love a good mystery. He watches too many movies, eats too much dark chocolate, and falls into way too many Wikipedia rabbit holes- but it’s all in the name of research (or so he tells himself). One day he plans to travel the world – to see what each country has to offer in the way of movie theatres and dark chocolate, naturally.
Connect with Joshua:
Goodreads: https://goodreads.com/joshuaian
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/joshuaianauthor/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/joshua-ian
Twitter: https://twitter.com/joshuaianauthor
Instagram: @moodyboxfan
Website: https://moodyboxfan.com
