Today I am so pleased to welcome Iris Foxglove to Joyfully Jay. Iris has come to talk to us about their latest release, Winter of the Owl. The authors have also brought along a great giveaway. Please join me in giving them a big welcome!

Excerpt

It was snowing. Real, thick flakes of snow, the kind Victor read about in children’s books, drifted in a slow-falling curtain over Lukos. Victor stumbled forward, all thoughts of David gone, and tugged off a glove to catch some in his hand. It melted, but he grinned up at Sava anyway, unable to contain his delight.”

“You’re right,” Sava said, and Victor blinked as Sava gave him one of his quiet smiles. “You are a man who loves everything.”

“You say that like it’s a good thing,” Victor said, but the low mood couldn’t settle over him entirely when the world had transformed into one of the entrancing balls they sold at glassblowers’ shops, the ones with little pieces of silken snow that swirled around miniature houses.

“Why would it not be good?”

“Maybe I love too easily,” Victor said. “We’re walking in that?”

“Yes, it’s not bad.”

“Not bad, he says.” Victor stepped out into the snow and tipped his face up to it, shaking flakes of it out of his hair.

Sava smiled and strode over to fit a hat on his head, and Victor thought of what it must have been like for him to live alone for so long. Back in Gerakia, he would have had a veritable following of suitors, submissive and dominant.

Then Sava, eyes bright with good-natured wickedness, leaned down to haul Victor over his shoulder again, and Victor made a squawking sound like a kicked duck in his attempt to retain some dignity. Which didn’t work, because he twisted too far out of Sava’s grip and fell on the ground, where he lay and watched the snow spiral from the clouds.

“Victor,” Sava said, concern threading his voice. “Are you injured?”

“No, this was planned,” Victor said. “Lie down with me, Sava. It’s comfortable. Did you know the snow moves in a pattern when it comes down?”

Sava blinked at him, and Victor patted the ground like it was a warm coverlet. Then, to his surprise, Sava stretched out next to him, radiating warmth at his side. Snow fell on his face and in his hair, and he squinted up at it thoughtfully. “Yes,” he said at last. “It does.”

“Right?”

They lay there for a moment, quiet, and Victor found he could almost forget that he’d fallen for a philosopher who’d shipped him off to Lukos the moment Victor threatened his career. He was just Victor, transported somehow to this strange island where winter meant death and ice and false spring, staring up at the falling snow with a man big enough to pick him up without breaking a sweat.

“I want to be your friend,” he said in his own language, and Sava turned to look at him, snow glittering on his eyelashes.

Blurb

Seasons of the Lukoi, Book 1

Sava has the best house in all of Lukos. He built it himself, dreaming of the day when he and Milan, the man he loved, could live there and brave the harsh winters of Lukos together—only to be devastated when Milan was found dead in the spring. Fraught with grief, Sava resigns himself to spending his winters alone.

Then a stranger appears on his doorstep, and everything changes.

Victor is a scholar from Gerakia, a land known for its long summers and vibrant history, and he has never been more unprepared in his life. Abandoned on the inhospitable island of Lukos after a disastrous relationship, Victor has to adapt quickly to survive. It helps, of course, that he’s taken in by Sava, who has the biggest heart of any man Victor has ever known. Victor and Sava start to make a home together, growing close as snow falls outside, but the true danger of a Lukos winter is closer than they suspect…

• Universal Link
• Add on Goodreads

Bio

Iris Foxglove is a shared pen name between two authors, Avon Gale and Fae Loxley. Together, they’re writing fantasy with an emphasis on biological imperative kink (“BDSM alternate universe” or “D/s-verse”), complex worldbuilding and unforgettable characters.

You can follow Iris on Twitter @irisfoxglove, or sign up for Iris’ newsletter: http://eepurl.com/hrhA6z

Iris is also on Patreon! Check it out for extras and all sorts of goodies here: https://www.patreon.com/irisfoxglove

Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Winter of the Owl, the authors are giving away an audiobook from choice from Iris Foxglove’s backlist. Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for your chance to win!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

• By entering the giveaway, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
• By entering you are agreeing to the Terms and Conditions set out by Rafflecopter for entries.
• Winners may be announced on the blog following the contest. By entering the contest you are agreeing to allow your name to be posted and promoted as the contest winner by Joyfully Jay.
• Prizes will be distributed following the giveaway either by Joyfully Jay or the person/organization donating the prize. In order to facilitate prize distribution, the winner name’s and email may be provided to a third party awarding the prize.
• By entering you are agreeing to hold Joyfully Jay harmless if the prize or giveaway in some way negatively impacts the winner.
• Void where prohibited by law.