My Life/Working Notes – April 10, 2015

As I write this post, I’m zooming up to the finish post on the fourth Vistaria Affair book, White Dawn.  (And as I post this post, I’ve finished!!)

This one has been a long time coming.  I finished the first three books years ago. In fact, Blue Knight was one of the last two books I sold to a legacy publisher, then turned around and unpublished it a year later so I could publish it myself. Kiss Across Swords was the other last book. That was very early in 2011, and by late March 2011, I had my first indie title out – Blood Knot.

So it has taken a while to get to this one, but as per my intention for this year, I’m adding more books to my current series for readers who are reading them, after taking nearly a year to write The Branded Rose Prophecy, which was my personal indulgence. 🙂

White Dawn features Carmen Escobedo, the daughter of the assassinated President of Vistaria. When she first appeared in the series, in Black Heart, she was a spoiled princess, but she’s learned a thing or two thanks to the war she has found herself embroiled in.

You might remember from Black Heart Carmen meeting the leader of a resistance group, deep in the jungles of Vistaria; Garrett Blackburn, a doctor who bears arms and fights the Insurrectos when he’s not wrapping bandages over war wounds. Garrett is scarred, both physically and mentally, and he doesn’t have any time for Carmen at all.

It would be fair to say their dislike is very mutual.

Here’s a flash excerpt for you:

_________

An Excerpt From: WHITE DAWN
Copyright © TRACY COOPER-POSEY, 2015
All Rights Reserved.

Machine gun fire rachetted loudly, right over her head, causing Carmen to suck in her breath in surprise and hug the door. Behind her, she heard the characteristic bellow of Garrett’s heavy duty .45.

There was a cough from above and Carmen tightened her grip as a man wearing the mottled grey of the new Insurrecto uniforms fell past her, almost brushing her shoulder, to thud onto the rocks. His machine gun followed.

Carmen was a pretty good marksman with a handgun and getting better all the time, but Garrett was far, far better. Damn him.

There was another burst of submachine gun fire right overhead. Two guards. What the hell? What did they have in this train that justified two guards on the roof like that? Anyone would think they were afraid the resistance might try to hijack the train.

She pulled out her Smith & Wesson and cocked it, then raised it to point at the roof. Carefully, she leaned outwards, until she could see over the lip of the roof. The guard was firing toward the back of the train and wasn’t even looking at her. She took her time with the shot and got him in the torso. He reared back and clutched his side. One of the other fighters on the other side of the train – Ledo, by the sound of the light shot – took him in the head. He tumbled backward and disappeared.

Carmen worked on the latch of the box car. It was rusty and gave way with a groan. Then she pulled the door aside and instantly whipped her gun out once more. There were three more Insurrectos in the car, but they were crowded up against the back of the car, peering through slits. The sound of the door opening alerted them, but they were slow to turn. Carmen had all the time in the world.

She shot all of them in the knee, a shot apeice. They went down clutching their legs and screaming.

A fourth guard lurched into the doorway from the other end of the car, bringing up his rifle to aim at her and Carmen squeaked in surprise. She swung her gun to point at him, but before she could fire off the shot, another sounded. It was Garett’s .45 bellowing again and she heard the bullet whizz past her like a miniature thunderclap.

The guard clutched his belly, looking down at it, surprised. Then he toppled sideways, revealing Garrett standing inside the other door, the .45 in his hand.

“You didn’t quarter the room, did you?” he said, his scowl back.

More about the book – blurb, release date, etc. — coming soon.  More about the series here — PS, the first book is free!