GUEST POST, SERIES DISCOUNT & GIVEAWAY: Elizabeth Noble of the Sentries Series
Five years, six books, two men: Sentries
Hello and thank you for joining me today! A super special thank you to Kimmers for hosting my entire series.
The series blurb created by Dreamspinner Press beautifully gives a much better overview than I ever could:
Three hundred years ago, natural disaster reformed the face of North America, and the people who lived in the shadow of the Rocky Mountains would never be the same.
Now, the master/slave bond in New Colorado has become a sacred rite of service, protection, and, sometimes, for the lucky, love. Follow Nick and his beloved Master, Todd Ruger, a sentry of the territories, as they struggle to survive together amid the collision of old superstition, new beliefs, territorial war, and the ever-present danger of the natural and supernatural frontier.
The Sentries series spans a lifetime for two men, Todd and Nick Ruger, beginning when they’re very young and continuing on until their final days.
The world Todd and Nick live in is very different from what it is today. Their story starts about three-hundred years in our future. The world and society as we know it has come to an end and another one has taken its place.
That’s the short version. I filled up six books and a couple of free reads with more of their story.
Todd and Nick travel a journey from master and slave, to friends, partners, lovers and family.
Todd is a sentry, trained from childhood to protect others from supernatural—and human—threats. His slave, Nick, a psychic, is raised to assist him. Life isn’t all fun and games saving people from the evils of the world however! Though they’re bonded to each other as small children they don’t begin their life together until they are in their twenties.
Todd has some kink going on and as he introduces Nick to the world of sexual pleasure they discover Nick has even more kinky tendencies.
Todd offers Nick the freedom to explore his sexuality, something Nick had never done before. Being a naturally very curious person, Nick wants to explore this new part of his life to the fullest.
They indulge in a number of BDSM activities but there was a catch when writing this series. Because today’s technology has been abandoned as a bad part of history, the toys couples have today mostly don’t exist. I had to let my characters get creative. Since there was likely BDSM long before modern times I did a little snooping into what those in times prior to the industrial revolution might do. While they use some simple devices, cloth restraints, a feather, and a tether, as well as putting Nick’s slave collar to some creative uses, that’s about it for their array of toys. Their BDSM is raw emotion and their imaginations. Instead of using a gag to prevent talking, Nick keeps silent from sheer self-control. Orgasm denial is not attained through a chastity device, but from willpower. Using the mind and emotion in place of BDSM toys is very powerful (and I think darn hot).
The characters need to draw on each other and their desire to please their partner without artificial aids.
Todd and Nick learn ways to use Nick’s slave status to their advantage during their investigations and hunting the supernatural. Slaves have certain advantages their owners do not. Nick uses the fact that to some people he’s invisible, a piece of property owned by Todd, nothing more, to allow him to develop covert skills of observation. Todd, of course, has his own unique talents, and the two complement each other incredibly well. Their lives intertwine and affect each other from the time each of them is a young child. However, they become much more than the sum of their parts and as a team are almost unstoppable.
I’ve compiled a bit on my favorite parts from each of the six books. These books are a true series and are really best read in order.
Marked Yours will always hold a very special place in my heart since it was the first of my novels accepted for publication. It began my series and was the starting place for the world building I did for Sentries as a whole. When I think of one part of Marked Yours that immediately comes to mind as my favorite part it's toward the end of the book. Nick, a slave, meets a woman who has some serious misconceptions about his life. While this woman gets to know Nick he changes her perceptions which in turn prompts her to try to change the way people think about slaves in general. It's also the first time Nick refers to the place he and Todd live as their home, not Todd's home.
Together Bound is the first book that shows them really working on a case. There are sections of Todd and Nick working separately and we get a good look at them as a working team. I created a truly oily, creepy bad guy who is a type of shifter for this book. There are two scenes that stick out for me. The first of those scenes is a fight scene between Todd and this shifter who has taken his form. There is a lot of fear and anger created by this creature, a kelbit, and it all comes to light in this confrontation. My second favorite scene is where Todd and Nick acquire two horses, Obi and Arenite, who become important minor characters in the series. Obi is the horse on the book cover. This book sets the tone for the series because it shows how Todd and Nick have learned to use their positions in their society as weapons in their arsenal.
Chained Hearts was the second most difficult book in the series to write. There are sections where Todd and Nick struggle with psychological terror and depression. Of this book my favorite scene was the most fun to write. It was an action scene that involved Todd fighting an assailant on a fast moving wagon. I love action and this scene in particular turned into one of those take your breath away bits of action. In this book we see so much of how the bond between Todd and Nick grounds and centers them. Their bond is powerful and solid and sees them through one of the most frightening times of their lives.
Collared Souls is my favorite book in the series. Todd and Nick return to Nick's childhood village. There they discover clues and facts about how their culture and slavery in their society came to be. In this book they also learn how Sentries evolved. The Ruger’s lives are changing and this book really shows the events that precipitate those changes. My favorite scene in this book is another action scene and it involves Obi and Arenite, the two horses on the book cover. Racing horses off a moving train and blowing stuff up--yeah it doesn't get any better than that. Did I mention I really love writing action (in the bedroom and out)?
Tethered Pair is a fun book. It's my little personal shout out and tribute to the TV show Maverick, which might be one of my all-time favorites. There are a number of references to that show I worked into the dialog and plot. I even hunted down the series theme song and played it while writing some of the scenes. Another part of the book came from more personal inspiration. I went to the grocery store to buy coffee beans. Some of the beans got stuck in the door and I ended up causing coffeegeddon! Pounds of coffee beans everywhere. This book is another one where the guys work independently of each other and really shows off their skills. Todd's as a gambler and con-man and Nick as a powerful psychic. There's danger and banter aplenty. My favorite scene is Nick duping a gun-running demon into a game of pool and then hustling him.
Ringed Love was so difficult to write. There might be other Sentry stories in my future as free reads or short stories, but this is the last novel of this series. I've lived with these men in my head for almost seven years, the thought of saying goodbye still makes me tear up. In this book more than the others we get to share the quiet times with Todd and Nick as well as a few of their big, happy events. They've lived their lives on their terms. Todd and Nick are sentries, protectors and the scenes in this book show that again and again in a number of ways. I think maybe my favorite scene is a bar scene where they're chasing down yet another creature intent on harming innocent people and they run into someone from their past. This young man was so influenced by them as a boy he wants to follow in their footsteps, after taking a few interesting missteps he convinces them he's a worthy student.
They are available from a number of fine book sellers, however, Dreamspinner Press has offered a discount on the series this week especially for readers of Kimmers' Erotic Book Banter Blog.
The code is: Sentries2016 (case sensitive). It's valid from Sept. 12 to 18th (finishes at 11:59pm on the 18th) and gives readers 25% off the entire Sentries series (ebooks and paperbacks). *It's valid for a single use, per person. The entire collection, including the bundle of the first five books, can be found on their site.*
Ask a question or leave a comment below and you’ll be entered into a drawing to win one of two free eBooks from my backlist (anything that wasn’t published in 2016). I’ll leave this open until September 19.
Elizabeth Noble started telling stories before she actually knew how to write, and her family was very happy when she learned to put words on a page. Those words turned into fan fiction that turned into a genuine love of M/M romance fiction. Being able to share her works with Dreamspinner is really a dream come true. She has a real love for a good mystery complete with murder and twisty plots as well as all things sci-fi, futuristic, and supernatural and a bit of an unnatural interest in a super-volcano in Wyoming.
Elizabeth has three grown children and is now happily owned by an adorable mixed breed canine princess and one tabby cat. She lives in her native northeast Ohio, the perfect place for gardening, winter and summer sports (go Tribe!). When she's not writing she's working as a veterinary nurse, so don't be surprised to see her men with a pet or three who are a very big part of their lives.
Elizabeth received several amateur writing awards. Since being published two of her novels have received honorable mentions in the Rainbow Awards. Her novel Jewel Cave was a runner up in the 2015 Rainbow awards in the Gay Mystery/Thriller category.
Feel free to email me: Elizabeth.noble19@gmail.com
