The Clock's Running Out--Just One More Day to Wait!

So...tomorrow's the big day. Being part of the A Clockwork Christmas anthology has already been such a great experience. The stories are great, my antho-sisters are fabulous. And it's been such a thrill working with Angela James and everyone at Carina Press.

And now it's time for me to tell you all a little bit about my own story, This Winter Heart.

Santa Fe, The Republic of New Texacali, 1870


Eight years ago, Ophelia Leonides's husband cast her off when he discovered she was not the woman he thought she was. Now destitute after the death of her father, Ophelia is forced to turn to Dario for help raising the child she never told him about.

Dario is furious that Ophelia has returned, and refuses to believe Arthur is his son—after all, he thought his wife was barren. But to avoid gossip, he agrees to let them spend the holidays at his villa. While he cannot resist the desire he still feels for Ophelia, Dario despises himself for being hopelessly in love with a woman who can never love him back.

But Dario is wrong: Ophelia's emotions are all too human, and she was brokenhearted when he rejected her. Unsure if she can trust the man she desperately loves, she fears for her life, her freedom and her son if anyone else learns of her true nature...
30,000 words

Read an excerpt

I had such fun writing this story melding secret-baby and lovers-reunited themes with classic sci-fi. For my setting I chose Santa Fe, because there's no place more festive during the holidays. I also chose to play fast and loose with History, envisioning a world where the Confederacy was victorious, the Louisiana Purchase never happened, and all the territory between Oklahoma and California was its own country. 


Oh, and where automatons look and feel--and love--just like anyone else.





In the words of one reviewer:

"This Winter Heart is a heart wrenching but satisfying read. Ophelia is not the woman she appears to be, and when her husband Dario discovered this in a conversation with her father, he cast her out. Now Ophelia's father has died and she feels that she has no choice but to seek help from Dario, not just for her but for the son Dario does not know he has. The emotional depth of this novella is much more than one might expect."


Read more here




And, yes, btw, I'm including TWO different RTCs  for This Winter Heart in the set. Never could choose. 


We Wish You a Steampunk Christmas

Changed forever after tragedy, a woman must draw strength from her husband's love. A man learns that love isn't always what you expect. A thief steals the heart of a vengeful professor. And an American inventor finds love Down Under. Enjoy Victorian Christmas with a clockwork twist in these four steampunk novellas.

Anthology includes:

Crime Wave in a Corset by Stacy Gail

This Winter Heart by PG Forte

Wanted: One Scoundrel by Jenny Schwartz

Far From Broken by JK Coi