Today I am so pleased to welcome Brienne Lee Carter to Joyfully Jay. Brienne has come to talk to us about her latest release, Etched on Your Skin. She has also brought along a copy to give away. Please join me in giving her a big welcome!

Hello, readers! I’m Brienne Lee Carter, and I wanted to thank you for joining me today – as well as throw out a HUGE thanks to Jay for giving me space on the blog today! I’m here to talk about my debut novel, Etched on Your Skin, a labor of love that was nine years in the making when it finally hit the (virtual) shelves this past April! Etched on Your Skin is the first installment in the Lunar Contagions series, which follows an indie rock band as they attempt to balance newfound stardom, life on the road, and the dynamics of having three couples on one tiny tour bus. Oh, and let’s not forget the tiny fact that they’re all werewolves. No big deal, right?

As I said, Etched on Your Skin is a labor of love that was nearly a decade in the making by the time it finally made its debut to the world. Inspiration truly comes from the strangest sources, and for me, it started with a trip to the local air and space museum. I found myself standing in front of an old Airstream trailer, which the plaque said was for the astronauts returning from the moon to quarantine in. Why, you ask? In case of any lunar contagions! Next thing I know, I was taking out my phone to text my best friend Leo and telling him how “lunar contagions” sounded like a great name for a band. The rest, they say, was history.

I can’t mention the Lunar Contagions without talking about how integral Leo was to the process of really getting into these characters. Etched on Your Skin started not as a story, but a roleplay in a shared Google document. Through the documents (yes, plural, there were more than one), the original Lunar Contagions – Rowan, Jocey, Elias, and Lukas – came to life. And through these documents, the relationship between Rowan and Elias blossomed into a story that I knew the world needed to read.

And then, as usual, life got into the way. While the initial draft of Etched on Your Skin was written in 2015, nothing else really came of it until late last year, when I decided I didn’t want to head to another Ravencon without a book of my own to offer.

While my upcoming book, The Heir of Blood, is not a continuation of the Lunar Contagions’ story, it does take place in the same shared universe, just one-hundred-plus years earlier. You might find a familiar face popping up in the pages!

As for the Lunar Contagions, their adventure continues in their debut full-length novel, which is coming soon to a Nanowrimo near you!

Excerpt

“It’s not important.” Elias leaned forward, stubbing his cigarette out in the ashtray. He put another between his lips, but didn’t light it.

“What do you want from me?”

Rowan blew out a sigh, shoving his hair back from his forehead. “I guess I want to talk to you. You’re willing to put a lot of trust into someone you just met.”

“Well,” Rowan said. “Maybe I…want to get to know you a little better.”

Elias snorted. “I’m not very good at making friends. Just want to warn you about that right now.”

“Who said I just wanted to be friends?”

Elias’s went very still. A knot formed in Rowan’s gut…

Blurb

PITTSBURGH, 2016. Up-and-coming indie rock band The Lunar Contagions has just hit the road on their first domestic tour. While reveling in their success after their sold-out show, however, their drummer Elias Kersley flees the venue, distraught and alone.

LONDON, 1971. After decades of wandering Europe and trying to make sense of what he is, Rowan Walsh lands in England for the first time since his Turning. What starts as a late-night run turns into a chance encounter that shows him he’s not the only werewolf around – and sparks a lifelong romance with the most unlikely of partners.

As the night drags on and a snowstorm looms over Pittsburgh, Rowan chases Elias through the city streets and the memories of their tumultuous four decades together. Old memories have come back to haunt them both, and Rowan knows that only he can stop the night from coming to a catastrophic end.

Can he prevent the worst from happening?

Or has his and Elias’s time together finally run out?

Bio

Brienne Lee (or Bree, for the reader in a hurry) is a lifelong writer and aspiring novelist. Voted “Most Likely to Become the Next Bestselling Author” by her 8th grade class, she loves writing whatever comes to her mind. There’s a special place in her heart, however, for the tales of the fantastical and the absurd. Her works have previously appeared in various online forums, as well as in the anthology Obscura and in the published Voltron fan zine Orion. This is her debut published work.

When not creating impossible worlds, Brienne is a wrangler of chaos both at her day job as a middle school teacher and at home as a mom of two rescue cats. She’s an avid tabletop gamer, a collector of dolls and Funko Pops, a lover of the annual Renaissance festival, and a master of plush doll making.

You can keep in touch with Brienne at the following locations:

• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090785786693
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/BreeLeeCarter
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/breecarterbooks/
• Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@breecarterbooks
• Website: https://brienneleebooks.com/
• Email: breecarterbooks@gmail.com

Giveaway

Brienne has brought a copy of Etched On Your Skin to give away to one lucky reader. Just leave a comment at the end of the post to enter. The contest ends on Tuesday, October 24th at 11:59 pm ET.

• By entering the giveaway, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
• Winners will be selected by random number. No purchase necessary to win. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning.
• If you win, you must respond to my email within 48 hours or another winner may be chosen. Please make sure that your spam filter allows email from Joyfully Jay.
• 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.
• All book prizes are in electronic format unless otherwise specified.
• By entering you are agreeing to hold Joyfully Jay harmless if the prize or giveaway in some way negatively impacts the winner.
• Readers may only enter once for each contest.  Duplicate entries for the same giveaway will be ignored. In the event of technical problems with the blog during the contest, every effort will be made to extend the contest deadline to allow for additional entries.
• Void where prohibited by law.