Leo of the Rose
by Chris Crittenden

are roses lions?
they have manes,
they have claws,
they have eyes that dominate
a quivering life.

they taste blood
that spilled into the earth
and slowly worked its way up
into their drippy mouths.

“death comes back around,” they growl,
stalking in the wind. when someone
snips them and puts them in crystal,
they have caught their favorite prey.

bees are hors d’oeuvres.
storms a libation.
now come the human gazelles
with fancy lopes and gawking necks,
their throats plump with sound-
flighty words
that crumple into tears
much sweeter than rain.

every petal laps
the emotional succulence.
every thorn lunges
into a heart that cowers under thread.

and as it’s always been
the herd flees, leaving the victim
to be devoured by roses.

Free Book Contest

Here's a contest everybody will love. You'd get a chance to bring home a bag's worth of books. The details are below. This contest is courtesy of http://zyphe.blogspot.com

Katie Hart is holding a contest on her website where you can win huge prize packs. The packs include the following:


(1)
A Bride Most Begrudging by Deeanne Gist
The Cubicle Next Door by Siri Mitchell
Shivering World by Kathy Tyers
All She Ever Wanted by Lynn Austin
Beyond the Blue by Leslie Gould
CD - My Other Band - Volume One
Four selections from Katie Hart's ARC/galley pile

(2)
Comes a Horseman (hardcover) by Robert Liparulo
River Rising (hardcover) by Athol Dickson
Mark of the Cross by Judith Pella
Three selections from Katie Hart's ARC/galley pile

(3)
A Garden to Keep (hardcover) by Jamie Langston Turner
The Yada Yada Prayer Group Gets Caught by Neta Jackson
Paper Moon by Linda Windsor
Three selections from Katie Hart's ARC/galley pile


"But how do I win any of these packs?" you ask. Simple! Just tell others about her site, Waterfall Books and the huge book giveaway! You may email your friends, post the announcement on social/dating networks like Myspace and Hi5 or send out bulletins everywhere, etc. It's up to you. Pump out your creative juices to spread the word. Just know your limits so you may not be banned for spamming.

Whenever you've done something to promote Waterfall Books, email Katie (theloneislands@yahoo.com) to let her know. She is giving one point for each promotion you do - two points or more for creative or extra influential ways of promotion. At the end of January, there will be a tally of points and the top 3 highest point getters will receive the prize packs mentioned above respectively!

But there's more! Go to http://zyphe.blogspot.com/ and leave a comment informing Rachelle that you've subcribed to her yahoogroup and you've done what you ought to do (promotion, marketing, etc) and then you'll be entered to win a book from her!

The winner will get to choose any of these 7 brand-new books:

• Lasher by Anne Rice
  
• The Feast of All Saints by Anne Rice
  
• Belinda by Anne Rampling
  
• Lakota Dawn by Janelle Taylor
  
• Savage Destiny by Rosanne Bittner
  
• Miracle by Deborah Smith
  
• Tempt Fortune by Hebby Roman
  

Don't forget to leave your contact info in your comment. She said, she's picking a name from all the entries and post the winner on January 15, 2007.

So, what are you waiting for? Start charming away and keep those subscribers comin'!


Links ideal to include:
http://reviewingchristiannovels.blogspot.com
christiannovels-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Tawny Taylor is proud to announce the launch of a new vampire series titled TWILIGHT’S POSSESSION in 2007. With it comes a new website, http://www.twilightspossession.com/, and a new myspace, www.myspace.com/twilightspossession.



To celebrate the new series, and a second piece of good news--the official acceptance of Real Vampires Don’t Drink O-Neg by Kensington (Sept. 2007)--Tawny is holding a contest.



The prize: A Vampire Lover’s gift basket full of terrific paranormal romance novels, a tote to carry them, and (not shown) a few necessities to help the winner score a sexy alpha vampire of her own.

To enter: email tawny at tawnytaylor@sbcglobal.net with the name for the secret brotherhood of warriors AND their creed copied and pasted into the body of an email (no attachments will be opened). To assure your entry in the contest, please put the words Vampire Lover Contest in the subject line. And please, don’t forget to include your name and contact information.

No purchase necessary.

A BONUS: Extra chances will be awarded to anyone who posts this announcement (including the live links below for Tawny’s websites) on his/her blog and/or myspace. One extra chance per post, up to a maximum of five extra chances per person. So post away! Please! To receive the extra chances, please send a link of the live post in the body of your email, along with your contact information.

Entries accepted Dec. 1 through Dec. 31 (11:59pm, Eastern US Time) The drawing will be held on New Year’s Day and the winner will be announced on Twilights Possession by 5:00 PM Jan. 1, 2007.

Finally, Tawny would like to wish everyone a blessed Christmas and New Year.

Links for contest:
Tawny Taylor’s Erotic Romance with Sassitude
Tawny Taylor’s Twilight’s Possession