Monday, March 11, 2013

TEMPTATIONS ... WHAT ARE YOUR INNER MOST DESIRES? ....


As I meander through town, images from the past remind me of my former life. Each one of the quaint, tree-lined streets, the designer boutique where I found the perfect little-black-dress for our anniversary, and the charming bistro, all seem to mock me now. 

My marriage, the separation, and then, the divorce, are now, all part of my past. But, no matter, I have my life back. I smile for the first time in years. 

                                                                          

***


A few months have passed now.  A periwinkle blue sky peeks though the remaining gray clouds, and the first sign of Spring crocuses burst through the cold, hard earth. I pull into the driveway of my vintage cape cod home. Although much smaller than the grand residence I had occupied before with him, you know, the ex, this is much more of a reflection of who I really am. From the delicate lace curtains caressing the two side lights that frame the paneled white front door, to my grandmother’s hand-made quilt draped over the rice carved mahogany four poster, my world is complete. Each detail carefully constructed and each a piece of my soul.

The click of my high heels sound oddly loud on the flagstone path. This quiet dead end street sees little traffic, and my neighbors usually settle in early for the night. Life in the suburbs, far from fast-paced Chicago, but, it works for me.

I prepare myself a simple meal: a tossed garden salad, a left over piece of grilled chicken, and a soothing glass of my favorite chardonnay.  I pull out a tray and add a linen napkin and flatware to the side of the simple white, china plate. After I take a sip of wine, I head for the bedroom.

The soft amber glow from the corner lamp post filters through the embroidered sheer curtains as I enter and set the tray down on the end of the bed. As I slip out of my dress, the solid adjoining drape shifts a whisper, but I catch a glimpse of a broad form underneath. My heart crashes into my chest. I hold my breath ....  

A tuft of sandy hair ... 

A glint of emerald ... 

A muscular arm straining ...

A heartbeat .... My heartbeat ....  Thunders through my entire being. And then there is peace ... or is there?






Maggie Brock has everything under control...until an angel shows up in her bedroom.


AUTHOR, NICKI ELSON’S DIVINE TEMPTATION ....   

Are you ready to be tempted? 

Revealing all on March 26, 2013


Add it to your GOODREADS bookshelf and enter to win a paperback copy.  http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17158217-divine-temptation


I hope you all enjoyed my newest intro. I honesty had a great time writing it. Please leave blogger love for Nicki and put Divine Temptation on your TBR list in Goodreads. Have a wonderful day everyone.

60 comments:

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

Awesome introduction, Michael! You both rock.

Stina said...

Great intro, Michael. Love Nicki's cover. :D

Natalie Aguirre said...

Loved the intro and Nicki's cover.

S.A. Larsenッ said...

Ooh, that was very visual. Nicely done! Love this cover!

Anonymous said...

Bravo!! Everything--right down to the title, perfect.

Congrats to Nicki on what I'm sure is another compelling story.

Adding to my Goodreads...

Melissa said...

Oh, wow! Gotta add this to my TBR...
Great post! :D

Denise Covey said...

I only hope Nicki can write as good as you, Michael. Awesome, atmospheric...

Nicki Elson said...

Yay! It looks so pretty on your blog, Michael.

I can read this intro again & again - so beautiful. I still can't believe you nailed it so well with only the cover & blurb to go on. And yes, Denise, it certainly gives my book a lot to live up to! Thank you, thank you Michael for the care and attention you give everything you do and for sharing this incredible talent of yours with me for the reveal.

Thank you all for your very nice comments. I've been dying for this book to emerge into the world, and now that it's only two short weeks away...let the nail-biting begin! So your encouragement is extra wonderful and appreciated at this stage. :)

Elizabeth Seckman said...

Such creative intros! And you have a very strong sense of self to lead with a confession of finding the perfect little dress.
Best of luck Nikki!

L. Diane Wolfe said...

That was beautiful, Michael.

Jennifer Lane said...

WOW! I love love love this color. I love how his eyes are open and hers are closed, and the black and white is so artistic. Well done!

Julie Flanders said...

Wow, what an intro. I knew it would be great with your writing it, Michael, but this was even better than expected.
And, I LOVE the cover!! Congratulations to Nicki!!! I wish you all the success in the world with the book, Nicki!

Michael Di Gesu said...

GOOD MORNING!

So happy to see you all supporting Nicki. I really appreciate it everyone ...

Alex,

Thanks. You are always so supportive.

Stina,

Always happy to see you. Thanks for dropping by.

Natalie,

Thanks. SO glad you enjoyed it.

Sheri,

Thanks. I am all about the "visual" and "atmosphere" when I write. After all this is a COVER REVEAL, we have to be visual.

Liz,

So glad you enjoyed it. Yes, it's an AWESOME cover. I flipped when I got to see it last week.

Melissa,

That would be great. I know you won't be disappointed.

Denise,

No worries there, Nicki is an EXCELLENT writer. This is her second published book and has quite the following. But I do appreciate the compliment!

Nicki,

Blushing ... It was SO my pleasure. I am just so happy it turned out so well for you. It's such a beautiful cover and evokes so much emotion. I LOVE black and white photos and these two are just a perfect match.

Elizabeth,

LOL, Uh, I didn't for the quintessential "little black dress," Maggie did. It was her voice... lol. Besides, my legs are way too muscular to pull it off.

L. Diane,

Thank you. Again, coming from you, this means so much.

Jennifer,

I couldn't agree more. This is an AMAZING COVER!!!

Julie,

Thank you for lovely comment. I really appreciate it. I am just happy that I was able to create the perfect intro for this AMAZING cover and book.



Tyrean Martinson said...

That was an awesome introduction Michael!!! Wow!
Congrats to Nicki!

~Sia McKye~ said...

I like the intro! Makes you want to know what happens next.

Susan Kaye Quinn said...

Oooh! Sounds awesome!! Congrats on your upcoming release!

Nilanjana Bose said...

Cool intro! for a minute thought it's yours! Best of luck :)

Nick Wilford said...

Great job, Michael! Congrats to Nicki.

Tara Tyler said...

intoxicating! take me away!
yay for nicki and excellent job, michael!

shelly said...

What a wonderful voice.

Hugs and chocolate,
Shelly

Nicki Elson said...

I'm so excited that you're all enjoying both the cover and the intro. I couldn't agree more, Sia, that Michael's words definitely lead to intrigue. Do ya see why I wanted to give him exclusive?

Ditto what Jen Lane said about the cover. :)

Jennifer Lane said...

I meant to say COVER. Love the cover. And what a well-written intro!

Michael Offutt, Phantom Reader said...

I used to think that "Periwinkle" was the name of a character on the Rocky and Bullwinkle show.

Summer Ross said...

Loved the intro and the book looks amazing! Thank you for sharing!

Michelle Wallace said...

That voice is excellent! And I love the attention to detail.
Great job Michael!

D.G. Hudson said...

I've been through that feeling, and this excerpt captures it. But the only angel that showed up for me was my second husband.

An exclusive is great when it's in the hands of a sensitive writer (Michael). And it's gentle on the blogosphere.

Best of luck with your book, Nicki!

LTM said...

Ooo... nice! So atmospheric, and I love the cover. Great work, BB! ((hugs)) <3

Johanna Garth said...

I love that intro Michael! And Divine Temptation is going on my TBR :)

Cherie Colyer said...

I love the cover! And I'm very excited that Divine Temptation will be available soon!

Mark said...

Great writing:) Neat blog:)

Alison Oburia said...

You know I loved your first book, Nicki, so you can be sure I'll be diving right in to Divine Temptation as soon as I can! Congrats!

Roland D. Yeomans said...

Sounds tempting to the max, Nicki. Michael, you are the master of introductions.

But with temptations, the partings often make us regret the first meeting. :-) Best of sales, Nicki, Roland

Michael Di Gesu said...

Tyrean.

Thanks for coming over so quickly. So glad you liked the intro.

Sia,

Thanks. It does keep you wanting MORE...

Nilanjana,

Thanks. It is my writing, but the prompts and blurb from Nicki brought this intro to life.

Nick,

Thanks for stopping by. I know how busy you have been lately.

Tara,

Thanks so much. You made my day...

Shelly,

Love those hugs and chocolate.... Thanks.

Nicki,

Thanks. I really am so thrilled for you. A NEW RECORD ... SO far over 200 HITS TODAY... YAY!! Thanks everyone!

Jen,

I knew what you meant, and thanks. Glad you enjoyed the intro.

Michael,

Too funny. I happens to be one of my favorite colors.

Summer,

You are SOOOO welcome. Always happy when I see your fairy....


Michelle,

So glad you liked the voice... She just came to me ... in the middle of the night. LOL.

D.G.

What a NICE thing to say. Thank you...

Hopefully your second husband turned out to be an "angel" to you...


Michael Di Gesu said...

LB,

Thanks for the compliment and I LOVE the hugs. RIght back at you!

Johanna,

Thanks. Glad you liked it. It's on my TBR list TOO!

Cherie,

Isn't it great! Only a few weeks to wait!

Hi, Mark, Welcome.

Glad you liked the intro and I am looking forward to getting to know you better.

Hi, Alison, Welcome to you too.

Yes, Nicki's first book THREE DAVES was quite a fun a read. DIvine Temptations sound so much more intense.

Roland,

Thank you. I am glad you enjoyed it. I do try to make these intos interesting, different, and exciting.

Suze said...

A cover reveal can be SO exciting! I am thrilled for Nick!!

Thank you so much for doing her work justice on this important day, Michael.

Nicki Elson said...

Big smiles by me every time I stop by & read the new comments. Thanks all of you. Omni-sisters, I'm touched beyond words (well then, good thing the story's already written, eh?), and here's a big smooch for those lips, Suze: mwah!

Jemi Fraser said...

Love the cover - awesome!

And your intro is superb!!! :)

Suzanne Furness said...

Awesome intro and beautiful cover. Love it!

Heather M. Gardner said...

Great job!
Sounds like a very interesting book.

Best of luck!

Heather

Golden Eagle said...

Excellent intro!

Finding him in her bedroom like that must have been a shock. LOL.

CarolOates said...

I can't wait to get my hands on this book. Having talked to Nicki a little, I know she's put her heart and soul into creating beautiful characters and fabulous story. I'm delighted to see the cover shared and this book nearing publication. The cover is stunning, simple and artistic. Congratulations to all involved.

Laura Eno said...

Love this, Michael! You are the reveal extraordinaire. Who wouldn't lose control with an angel showing up? Delightfully wicked.

Michael Di Gesu said...

Suze,

It was so my pleasure. Nicki is AMAZING, and I would only give her my finest. I am glad you enjoyed it.

Jemi,

I know.... I was thrilled when I first saw it, so many ideas raced through my head on how to handle the intro. Of course, the "voice" had other ideas, so I had to listen to her. LOL.

Suzanne,

Thanks so much, glad you liked it.

Heather,

Thanks for stopping by. Glad you liked the intro and I can't wait to read this.

Golden,

Really. No kidding. I honestly don't know how I would've handled this type of situation. Realizing it was an angel would've put me at ease right away though, because I do believe in spiritual entities.

Michael Di Gesu said...

Carol,

I so agree. I remember when Nicki first mentioned this story. She said very little, so I knew it was something she felt very strongly about and wanted to keep under wraps until she was ready to share it.

The cover is STUNNING. Nothing more beautiful than a black an white photo of two stunning people. And the faded image of the girl is so ethereal, even the the male is the angel.

Laura,

Thank you... I do enjoy these reveals and I am actually thinking of going with this theme for the A-Z challenge. This way I write something really fun everyday AND I help promote my blogger friends books. It's a win/win situation. I so enjoy doing as much for the community as I can.

Nicki Elson said...

And the nice comments just keep coming. Thanks for keeping me smiling all day.

Carol got a glimpse into my soul during this process and was a much needed light. We're planning a group "Angel Author" event with a couple other authors, which I'm looking soooo forward to!

Luanne G. Smith said...

Beautiful cover, Nicki! And intriguing intro. Wowzer. :)

Mark Means said...

Very well done, Michael!

Heather Murphy said...

I am tempted! Love the cover. YEAH!

LD Masterson said...

Fantastic intro. Beautiful cover.

Unknown said...

Amazing! The fine details, the setting...I am hooked. Michael you have a true gift for intros, so unique. All authors should do their cover reveals here.

Love the story, Nicki! Best of luck.

Carrie Butler said...

Oh, how gorgeous is that? I love it! :)

VR Barkowski said...

Beautifully done, Michael! I'll say it again, these intro/reveals are amazing. Totally drew me in and the book looks fantastic.

Congratulations and much success to Nicki and DIVINE TEMPTATION!

Morgan said...

Oh. My. GOSH...

SERIOUSLY!?!?!?!!

You leave us there?!?!?!!?

Now I HAVE to read the book, LOL. ;-)

Michael, you've made these cover reveals an ART. Such a perfect segue into Nicki's book. You really do have a gift of painting the perfect picture and reeling the reader right in. SO AWESOME. :D

Nicki Elson said...

I think I should hire Michael to write my whole next book! Ha. Thank you, Michael, for giving me such a wonderful cover reveal, and much thanks to everyone who stopped by, even if you didn't leave a comment (Mom). All this support makes me a wee bit less shaky about the impending release. Thanks.

Nigel G Mitchell said...

That's an awesome cover, and well-written intro as well

ilima said...

Very well done. And I love the cover!

Anne said...

Very inviting indeed. Just the right intro for what looks to be a very tempting book.

Susan Flett Swiderski said...

What a super gorgeous cover! And totally cool that you got the "scoop" on revealing it.

Unknown said...

Congratulations to Nikki, that is a pretty cover :-)

Sabrina A. Fish said...

That intro is beautifully written, Michael. Wow! You truly have a special gift.