Tag Archives: cat shifter

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Cat Stalker

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Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or fewer.

I’m so excited! The stars have finally aligned, the curse has lifted, and I have a release date for Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4! Jacqui will once again prowl the virtual bookshelves on August 27th! To celebrate, I’ve posted the awesome cover below.

I’ve been sharing from the first chapter of Wild, in which Jacqui encounters a strange cat who isn’t like the normal domestics he’s used to. Last week, Jacqui thought the cat talked to him via telepathy, but surely he just imagined it? I’ve skipped ahead a bit to round out the scene. This is after Jacqui ran off the interloper, or tried to, anyway. Next week I’ll share from a different scene, to give a little taste of what Jacqui’s up against.

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The encounter left Jacqui feeling oddly disturbed. He sniffed here and there, scratched the trunk of a maple tree, knocked over some glass bottles left out beside a trash can, but he couldn’t get into it. His human mind buzzed too loudly and he decided to head for home, or Wyatt’s, that is, for some soothing skin-to-skin contact.

But we’ve only just begun to prowl!

Creepy vibes, gotta get back, shift, think.

One little thing goes weird and you get all human on me.

Jacqui overrode Cat’s protests, which wasn’t easy when he was in cat form, and slinked through the shadows and shrubbery back to Wyatt’s condo. When he reached the overgrown rhododendron, he glanced back, and spotted the mangy tom lurking on the corner. It had followed him.

Creepy cat stalker—Great.

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Cover by Robin Ludwig Design

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Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 ~ Available for pre-order Now! Release date August 27th.

Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate (Newsflash: it’s Wyatt), but unlike a romance novel, reality has other plans. The dog men are back, and along with their slobber and bad manners they bring a new level of danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s.  Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time and is tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world.  Only cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined. And that’s saying a lot.

Clicker Here to pre-order on Amazon.

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Challenge

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Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less.  I’m sharing from Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4, otherwise known as The Book from Hell, which appears to be cursed by the gods.  First, it took me twice as long to write as it was supposed to, and now forces beyond my control are conspiring to keep me from publishing.  But it will be worth it! I swear.  I swear a lot, actually, when it comes to this book.  But enough of my writerly woes.  In this scene from the first chapter, Jacqui in his cat form is confronting a new cat in the hood, who isn’t acting like any other cat Jacqui has ever met.

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Gradually the hairs along its spine lowered and it flopped over on its side. After a moment, it rolled onto its back, staring at him from an upside down position.

The ruffian kept its glowing eyes on Jacqui’s, and an uncomfortable feeling started to grow in Jacqui’s belly. Another cat had never supplicated before him in this manner, and they usually averted their eyes, because eye contact between cats signaled a type of challenge.

The stray rolled back and forth, coating its grimy fur with bits of gravel and twigs. Clearly male, unfixed, it was sadly a case for the local animal rescue center. They didn’t euthanize, except for when it came to a wild mutation like Cat.

Okay, Ruffian, Jacqui thought at the cat, go ahead and relax and roll in the dirt. Tomorrow I’ll get you into a carrier and take you to the shelter.

No chance, said the cat, flopping back to its side.

(That’s ten. Here’s a few more to finish out the moment):

Wait. What?

Did that beast just talk to us?

Jacqui stilled and focused very hard. Did you just talk to me?

Ruffian lifted a leg and began to lick his nether regions. No more words invaded Jacqui’s head.

Imagining things.

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Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 coming soon! Blurb-in-progress-

Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate (Newsflash: it’s Wyatt), but unlike a romance novel, reality has other plans. The dog men are back, and along with their slobber and bad manners they bring a new level of danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s.  Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time and is tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world.  Only cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined. And that’s saying a lot.

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ On the Prowl

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Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less.

Life has gotten interesting around here.  I’ve welcomed two new kittens into my household and have received my official Crazy Cat Lady certificate.  You can now address me as Alexis Duran, CCL.  I’m sure Jacqui would be thrilled with the new arrivals. They’re all about getting into trouble, just like him.

Speaking of Jacqui, he’s on the prowl for some trouble himself.  This scene is from the first chapter of my upcoming release Wild, Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4. Jacqui has shifted into his cat form and is setting off to explore the neighborhood.  You can read last week’s snippet here.

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Blinking a few times, he stretched to his full length, arched his back and shook all over. Then he jumped onto the dryer and slid out the window. A thick rhododendron bush grew right outside. Not the easiest shrub to navigate, but he rustled through it and soon stood on the street in front of Wyatt’s apartment building, scanning up and down for threats.

No one was in view except for a possum rooting around a few doors over. A bat darted across the sky above him. Jacqui yawned and took another big sniff. With Cat’s nose, a thousand new smells crowded in on him.

Strange cat on the prowl, up the hill.

He padded in that direction.

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Prowling companions

 

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Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 coming soon! Blurb-in-progress-

Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate (Newsflash: it’s Wyatt), but unlike a romance novel, reality has other plans. The dog men are back, and along with their slobber and bad manners they bring a new level of danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s.  Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time and is tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world.  Only cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined. And that’s saying a lot.

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Guess What? I’m a Cat

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Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less. I’m sharing from my upcoming release, Wild, Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4. In case you didn’t guess from the title, Jacqui is a cat shifter. He’s in a relationship with a regular human, which is a new and dangerous thing for Jacqui. He’s trying to figure out how to keep both his love life and his secret in tact. Good luck, Jacqui.

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Jacqui picked up the trail of his clothing leading to the stairs—Wyatt had undressed him with particular enthusiasm that night—and carried the bundle to the utility room. He stowed the clothes in a cupboard and slid the window open a crack.

No problem, just a quick tour of the neighborhood and back in time for some hot man sex before Wyatt got up to go to work. This could work. They could work. No need to break Wyatt’s brain with the whole “Guess what, I’m a cat” thing.

He quietly closed the door and listened for sounds of a hunky man moving around upstairs. He heard nothing—nothing except the thud of his heart.

Admit it, you enjoy the thrill.

Maybe a little.

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Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 coming soon! Blurb-in-progress-

Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate (Newsflash: it’s Wyatt), but unlike a romance novel, reality has other plans. The dog men are back, and along with their slobber and bad manners they bring a new level of danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s.  Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time and is tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world.  Only cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined. And that’s saying a lot.

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Predator

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Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors, the blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less.  I missed last week due to an urgent need to not sit at the computer for a while. No, I didn’t go out and party on a crowded beach. I stayed home and worked in my yard/jungle, making it slightly more habitable for humans. I’m assuming someday I’ll be able to have friends over to the patio/oasis to enjoy adult beverages and re-learn how to socialize.  Until then, I loft a glass of wine to you in a toast to sanity and safety.

On to the snippet: I’m sharing from my soon to be released cat shifter romance, Wild, #4 in the Jacqui the Cat Mysteries series. In this opening scene, Jacqui is ruminating on the hardships of being a cat shifter in a world that doesn’t know they exist, and worrying about the villains he encountered in book #3, Roam (might be a little spoilery if you haven’t read Roam and intend to).

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And then there were the dreams. The Dog Men dreams in which he relived the horror of being trapped in a cage and watching the evil vet, Casey Vandel, shift from dog to man. Why oh why did the first shifter he met have to be a husky? And not only a husky, but a husky who was running some sort of dog fighting ring in the rural woodlands of San Juan?

After he fought his way out of the dreams, the night terrors took hold and the impossibility of his situation stabbed at him with sharp-edged persistence. The urge to leap out of bed and shift became nearly unbearable.

Shifting was a survival mechanism. As Cat, Jacqui had claws. He could climb trees in a few bounds. He was quick, lithe and one fierce, kick-ass little predator.

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Roam is the book in which Jacqui encounters the Dog Men, who are not nice to him at all. Just click on the cover to go to the Amazon info page.

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Wild: Jacqui the Cat Mysteries #4 coming soon! Blurb-in-progress-

Jacqui Corleone has finally met his fated mate (Newsflash: it’s Wyatt), but unlike a romance novel, reality has other plans. The dog men are back, and along with their slobber and bad manners they bring new danger to Jacqui’s life, and to Wyatt’s.  Jacqui meets other cat shifters for the first time and is tantalized by a glimpse into their strange new world.  Only cats aren’t much nicer than dogs, and soon Jacqui must choose if he’s going to run again, or stand and fight against an enemy more powerful than he ever imagined. And that’s saying a lot.

Weekend Writing Warriors ~ Strange Cat

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Hello and welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors. I’ve been sharing from my work in progress, Wild, Book 4 in the Jacqui the Cat Mysteries series.  I’m venturing dangerously close to spoiler territory, so this might be the last snippet I share from this book, at least for a while.

I believe this scene is fairly self-explanatory. We’re in Jacqui’s POV, always an interesting place to be.

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He and Cat were more than ready. With a dizzying shimmer he shed unnecessary bulk and height.  For one heart-stopping moment he had no shape and then, as if he’d flung himself off a cliff, he plummeted. His perception altered, colors faded but details sharpened, and everything grew in size around him.

Blinking a few times, he stretched to his full length, arched his back and shook all over. Then, he jumped onto the dryer and slid out the window in a flash. A thick rhododendron bush grew right outside—not the easiest shrub to navigate, but he rustled through it and soon stood on the street, scanning up and down for threats.

No one was in view, except for a possum rooting around a few yards over and a bat darting in the air above him. With Cat’s nose, a thousand new smells crowded in on him.

Strange cat on the prowl, up the hill.

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Okay, not exactly Friday Harbor, but the mood is right.

Jacqui the Cat Mysteries, the cozy gay shifter romance mystery series the world has  been waiting for~

Jacqui Corleone is a fashion designer, a yoga-instructor and a concerned citizen who selflessly helps the police solve crimes. Oh, and he occasionally turns into a small wild cat. Probably due to a wizard’s curse or an evil government plot to create super warriors.

Or, he’s a cat cursed to turn into a human and only the bite of a sexy alpha lion will allow him to remain in his superior form of Cat.

Jacqui does not have a split personality, but sometimes his cat personality can get rather loud.

Loud? You’re loud.

Jacqui Corleone is a cat shifter who doesn’t know why or how he turns into a cat. He lives a solitary life in Friday Harbor on San Juan Island. He’s not afraid of intimacy (yes, he is) but sensibly refrains from potentially awkward entanglements. Unfortunately, the sexy new deputy sheriff just moved in across the street and Jacqui’s vow not to get mixed up with island dudes is sorely challenged.

When the mysterious disappearance of three blue pots draws Jacqui to investigate, he’s drawn ever deeper into danger–and into the muscular but not too bulgy or veiny arms of deputy Wyatt West (he wishes).

Join Jacqui (and Cat) in this new exciting and sexy gay shifter romance mystery series from author of fantastical romantic fiction, Alexis Duran.

Here be the Amazon links:

Prowl

Pounce

Roam

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I’ve had some inquiries if my books are available in formats other than Kindle. At this time, only Gryffon Hall and Matthias (DreamSpinners Press) are out there on B&N, Apple, etc. One reason is because I’m re-releasing all my Loose ID titles and am just flat out overwhelmed. The other reason is that I’m experimenting with Kindle Unlimited to see how that goes., which means if you have a Kindle you can read the books for free! When the KDP select term is up, I’ll distribute the books to other retailers. If you’d like to know when that happens, you can sign up for my nifty newsletter here!

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Weekend Writing Warriors is a blog hop where writers from a wide variety of genres share from their work in excerpts of ten sentences or less.  Click the link to check out the other writers participating today.  It’s a great way to discover your next favorite book!

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Thanks to Robin Ludwig Design, Inc. for the fabulous covers!