Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all my readers! I hope you have a warm and wonderful holiday. Thanks for your interest in my little stories.

The Jezebel's Daughter is now available as an audiobook!

Yes, you read that right! Thanks to the AMAZING P.J. Morgan, you can listen to Loreley and Sebastian's story while you drive, clean the house, or work out. Be sure to check out the audio sample to get a sneak peek at what's in store for you when you download the audiobook!

Get it here: The Jezebel's Daughter on Audible.com

PS--I also have free download codes for the first five people who ask for them! All you need to do is promise to review it. Email me for details.

Good early reviews

The Jezebel's Daughter, my debut novel, was published yesterday and it's received some good early reviews. I'm excited and nervous about people's reception of this book and so far, it seems people enjoy it. Check out one review here: Mike Wolff Reviews

Exclusive Excerpt from Unintended

Unintended by Justine Alley Dowsett & Murandy Damodred

About Unintended:

Four people. Four very different lives. Four tales interwoven.

Meet Kenzie en Shareed, the High Clan Chief’s daughter who is sent south to fulfill a treaty by marriage only to marry the wrong man; Kadrean Authier, the Crown Prince who must come to terms with his new bride, even if he doesn’t much like the idea; Garron D’Arbonne, a noble Lord who has been commanded to marry a cool and aloof princess he doesn’t love; and Vivianne Chappelle, a young and ambitious woman who is in love with her abusive father’s manservant and must find a way to avoid having her entire future decided for her.

Fate and wills collide in this Shakespearian-style romantic comedy about good intentions and their unintentional consequences.

Book Details:

Title: Unintended

Author Name:  Justine Alley Dowsett and Murandy Damodred

Genre(s): Fantasy Romance, Romantic Comedy

Tags: Fantasy, romance, comedy, Shakespearian-style, romantic comedy.

Length: Approx. 440 pages

E-book:  978-1-987976-08-3

Paperback:  978-1-987976-07-6

Release Date: August 17, 2015

Publisher: Mirror World Publishing 

http://www.mirrorworldpublishing.com/

Tour Host: Sapphyria's Book Promotions 

http://saphsbookpromos.blogspot.com/

Purchase Links:

Amazon ~ 

Kindle = http://amzn.to/1P1GMBD

Paperback = http://amzn.to/1L0hkM4

Mirror World Publishing ~ 

ebook = http://mirror-world-publishing.myshopify.com/products/unintended-ebook

Paperback = http://mirror-world-publishing.myshopify.com/products/unintended-paperback

Follow the Tour to Read Reviews, Guest Posts, and Spotlights:

http://saphsbookblog.blogspot.com/2015/08/blog-tour-schedule-unintended-by.html

---

Exclusive Excerpt #2

“I’m up two points already, are you sure you’re feeling well?”

Garron shook his head to clear it of thoughts of dark auburn hair and honey-brown eyes. He forced himself to focus on the sunny smile of his best friend. “What, am I not allowed to let you win every once and a while?” he teased.

“Sure,” Cyril agreed good-naturedly, “I’ll take a win if you’re in the mood to give it to me, but what’s the special occasion? Is it my birthday or something?”

“You tell me,” Garron grinned, noting for the first time just how alike he and Cyril were physically. “I can never remember when your birthday is.”

Cyril’s dirty-blonde hair was just a few shades darker than Garron’s own and combined with his friend’s tanned skin the two of them could easily be mistaken for brothers. That is, of course, providing that the person comparing the two of them didn’t already know what houses they both belonged to, which would only be possible if that person had spent their lives under a rock somewhere, or if they were from a land beyond the borders of Ismera.

Like Kenzie… Garron’s thoughts inevitably drifted back to the new and exotic beauty that had come from the North to invade his every waking moment.

Cyril was giving Garron a raised eyebrow. “Hello?” He waved his hand in Garron’s direct line of sight to make sure he was paying attention. “My birthday is the day before yours…are we really having this conversation?”

Garron laughed, but it sounded forced even to his own ears. “Yeah…I know.”

“You’ve got it bad, my friend,” Cyril noted with a shake of his head, his blue eyes knowing.

“What?” Garron’s head snapped up, shocked.

How could Cyril possibly know? Garron silently cursed his friend’s intuition. I haven’t even mentioned her name out loud and I’ve done everything possible to ignore her. Well, except for this morning, but he couldn’t know about that yet, it only just happened!

“I mean, I know Margaret’s pretty and all, but…”

Garron didn’t bother to listen to the rest of Cyril’s words, letting out a breath in relief and feeling his heart slow back to an almost normal pace. Margaret, of course…the woman I should be thinking about.

“Yeah, I’m really lucky,” Garron agreed, trying to sound positive and hoping that his friend would be kind enough not to call him out on the lie. “Can we just play, though? We’ve only got the court for an hour and I’d really like to take those two points away from you just for insinuating that I’d be crazy enough to let you beat me.”

Cyril’s matching grin was all the answer Garron needed to look about for the ball; he was almost sure that it was his turn to serve.

---

Meet the Authors:


Murandy Damodred (left) & Justine Alley Dowsett (right):

With a background in Drama and Communications from the University of Windsor, Murandy Damodred (left) enjoys fantasy fiction with strong romantic subplots. She is an avid roleplayer and is happiest when living vicariously through her characters. Though she’d rather think of herself as the heroine of her next novel, in the real world she is an expert in sales and management living in Windsor, Ontario.

From obtaining a BA in Drama at the University of Windsor to becoming an entrepreneur in video game production and later, publishing, Justine Alley Dowsett’s unswerving ambition has always led her to pursue her dreams. Today she lives in Windsor, Ontario and is still writing and publishing fiction novels. When not focusing on growing her business, she enjoys role-playing with friends and developing new ideas to write about.

Release Day Extravaganza for Unintended!

Welcome to the Release Day Extravaganza for

Unintended by Justine Alley Dowsett & Murandy Damodred

About Unintended:

Four people. Four very different lives. Four tales interwoven.

Meet Kenzie en Shareed, the High Clan Chief’s daughter who is sent south to fulfill a treaty by marriage only to marry the wrong man; Kadrean Authier, the Crown Prince who must come to terms with his new bride, even if he doesn’t much like the idea; Garron D’Arbonne, a noble Lord who has been commanded to marry a cool and aloof princess he doesn’t love; and Vivianne Chappelle, a young and ambitious woman who is in love with her abusive father’s manservant and must find a way to avoid having her entire future decided for her.

Fate and wills collide in this Shakespearian-style romantic comedy about good intentions and their unintentional consequences.

Book Details:

Title: Unintended

Author Name:  Justine Alley Dowsett and Murandy Damodred

Genre(s): Fantasy Romance, Romantic Comedy

Tags: Fantasy, romance, comedy, Shakespearian-style, romantic comedy.

Length: Approx. 440 pages

E-book:  978-1-987976-08-3

Paperback:  978-1-987976-07-6

Release Date: August 17, 2015

Publisher: Mirror World Publishing 

http://www.mirrorworldpublishing.com/

Tour Host: Sapphyria's Book Promotions 

http://saphsbookpromos.blogspot.com/

Purchase Links:

Amazon ~ 

Kindle = http://amzn.to/1P1GMBD

Paperback = http://amzn.to/1L0hkM4

Mirror World Publishing ~ 

ebook = http://mirror-world-publishing.myshopify.com/products/unintended-ebook

Paperback = http://mirror-world-publishing.myshopify.com/products/unintended-paperback

Follow the Tour to Read Reviews, Guest Posts, and Spotlights:

http://saphsbookblog.blogspot.com/2015/08/blog-tour-schedule-unintended-by.html

Read an Excerpt:

The rolling hills and grasslands of Ismera were strange to her in the beginning. Now, after nearly a month of riding through them, they had begun to seem commonplace. What the High Clan Chief’s daughter was not prepared for, however, were the high turrets of the palace she was headed towards and the sprawling city of Ismer that surrounded it. Even more surprising than all that was the fanfare that greeted her when at last she reached the city’s high-walled gate.

A handsome man atop a white horse rode boldly out to greet her, without so much as a weapon drawn or a friend to watch his back.

They are much more trusting here of strangers than they are back at home, she noted. Unless, it’s only that they don’t consider me a stranger.

Mackenzie en Shareed of Haldoram straightened her back, instinctively preparing herself to make a good impression. She felt her breath catch in her throat as he came closer and she realized that the man before her, with his sunny hair, tanned skin and bright blue eyes could be none other than the man she’d ridden all the way here to marry. She felt her usually flawlessly tanned skin flush an uncomfortable shade of red as she watched him dismount and walk the rest of the way to her side, a wide grin spreading across his face at the sight of her.

I didn’t expect him to be so handsome.  Kenzie found that as much as she might want to, she couldn’t deny the pounding of her heart or the fluttering in her stomach. I’m very fortunate to be attracted to him so easily.

If he took notice of her discomfort he didn’t show it, bowing over her hand and kissing it lightly. “Princess Mackenzie, let me be the first to welcome you to the City of Ismer.”

Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, Kenzie reached for the marriage bracelet she’d woven herself for this very occasion. Unhooking it carefully from her belt, she caught his hand before he could take it away and swiftly wrapped the small, white-flowered wreath about his wrist, tying it with a practiced motion.

She could see in her husband-to-be’s eyes that he was confused, but she didn’t have time to explain it to him now. That would come later, after they were entwined together in their marriage bed. Right now, only the ritual mattered.

I have to do this now, she affirmed silently. Once I enter this city of theirs and am completely surrounded by Ismeran culture and politics it will be too late to marry him in my own way, in front of my people and by our customs. It’s the only way I will feel comfortable with his arrangement. I can marry him in the Ismeran way afterwards.

The barest nod over her shoulder was enough to bring Seraphina over. Her mentor and friend had accompanied her this far and now she played her part of the wedding ceremony by bringing forth the wreath that Prince Kadrean would place upon her head, sealing their arrangement and making them man and wife.

Aging Seraphina bowed before the Prince, despite the aching old bones she always complained of, holding out the wreath before her in offering.

“Take it,” Seraphina urged him, her English much less accented than Kenzie knew her own to be. “You must place it upon her head and say the words.”

Looking as confused as ever, the Prince took the woven white flowers and did as instructed.

“What words, exactly?”

“I be bhur agus thu de agamsa,” Kenzie spoke in her native tongue, making sure to properly enunciate each syllable so he could follow along.

“I be burr…” he began, trying his hardest to stumble through the words that were foreign to him, “a Gus who de Gamsa.”

That’s good enough, I suppose…  Kenzie frowned, regarding him. Though I thought that being the heir to these lands, he would have some knowledge of Gaelic.

“You may call me Kenzie,” she told him, dismissing her negative thoughts with a smile, before leaning in to kiss him, as was customary.

Seraphina and the other clanspeople who’d made the journey with her began to cheer, but their cheers were cut short when her new husband pulled back from her in surprise. “Whoa! I don’t know what’s expected between two strangers in the North, but here in the South it’s customary to save that kind of greeting for your husband.”

“Yes?”

“Yes…” he agreed, searching her eyes as if to gauge how much of the language she understood, “so I have a fiancée and you have a Prince who’s waiting very anxiously to meet you up at the Palace.”

Kenzie suddenly felt ill and more than a little dizzy. “You are not Prince Kadrean…?” The golden-haired stranger she’d just married wore a look of concern mixed with confusion. “Then who are you?”

“Uh…” He cleared his throat, made a little uncomfortable by the stares of the clanspeople. “Lord Garron D’Arbonne…at your service, Your Highness.”

An uncomfortable silence fell over them and the clansfolk, but Kenzie couldn’t find it in her to break it or fill it with anything meaningful. Her entire focus was on keeping herself from hyperventilating.

I just married this Garron D’Arbonne… Not the Prince; not my intended. Kenzie was in full panic at the gravity of the error she had just committed. How can I fix this?! The marriage bond is forever, never able to be undone… A man can remarry, under certain circumstances, but can a woman? Would they even allow such a thing?

My father will be so disappointed in me. He wanted this treaty between our lands to work. I’ve only just arrived and I’ve already ruined it. What am I going to do?!

“Well,” Garron cleared his throat again, “we should be going. I’m sure Prince Kadrean is eager to meet you.”

Gesturing forward, her husband held out his arm for her.

No, I mustn’t think of him that way, she admonished herself. He is my husband, but he’s right, I’m supposed to marry Prince Kadrean. There is a treaty; our marriage is law. It must happen…

Meet the Authors:


Murandy Damodred (left) & Justine Alley Dowsett (right):

With a background in Drama and Communications from the University of Windsor, Murandy Damodred (left) enjoys fantasy fiction with strong romantic subplots. She is an avid roleplayer and is happiest when living vicariously through her characters. Though she’d rather think of herself as the heroine of her next novel, in the real world she is an expert in sales and management living in Windsor, Ontario.

From obtaining a BA in Drama at the University of Windsor to becoming an entrepreneur in video game production and later, publishing, Justine Alley Dowsett’s unswerving ambition has always led her to pursue her dreams. Today she lives in Windsor, Ontario and is still writing and publishing fiction novels. When not focusing on growing her business, she enjoys role-playing with friends and developing new ideas to write about.

Goodreads Giveaway!

To celebrate the publishing of my debut novel, The Jezebel's Daughter, I'm hosting a Goodreads Giveaway! I've got three signed paperbacks up for grabs. Just visit the link below and enter to win!

Good luck!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

The Jezebel's Daughter

by Juliet MacLeod

Giveaway ends September 02, 2015.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter Giveaway

Do you Pinterest?

Pinterest is an amazing website. It's quickly become my go-to place for recipes, home decoration tips, life hacks, and gorgeous photography. Recently, though, I've discovered that it's a great place to collect together all the visual inspiration and research pages that I use while writing.

If you're on Pinterest, or even if you're not and are curious to see who I've "face-cast" as characters in my books, you can follow my boards here: https://www.pinterest.com/macleodjuliet/

Release date!

The Jezebel's Daughter now has a release date! Starting on September 1, you can buy the book for Kindle and order print copies as well!

It's also available for pre-order here on Amazon: The Jezebel's Daughter Pre-Order

And I'm hoping to figure out how to set up Paypal buttons so you can also purchase signed, print copies.

Interior Design

I've been formatting the book for print lately and it's beastly hard work. But I've gotten the basic design down and thought I'd share with you a couple of pages.

Title page

I used sailor's knots as page breaks

Chapter beginning

Cover Reveal!

The covers for ebook and print have been finished and I'm really excited to share them with you!

So what do you think?

First Chapter of THE JEZEBEL'S DAUGHTER

Here is the first chapter of my debut novel, The Jezebel's Daughter. Warning: adult situations and language. Reader discretion is advised.