Release Day Guest Post and Giveaway: Powerless by S.A. McAuley

 

We’re so pleased to welcome author S.A. McAuley back to TNA today to celebrate the re-release of Powerless, book three in The Borders War series. If you don’t know Merq Grayson and Armise Darcan yet, now is the time, people… now is the time. :)

As a special part of the celebration, Sam also has a fantastic giveaway lined up for you. How about the chance to win a brand new Kindle Fire? That’s what’s up for grabs, so enjoy getting to know Armise just a wee bit better, and then click on the Rafflecopter widget below to enter (*no residency restrictions apply*).

Good luck!

Writing a Character That Doesn’t Want to Speak

 

Almost four years ago, I wrote a two-thousand word draft that exploded completely out of control and is now five books and over two-hundred-fifty-thousand words about the enemies become lovers Merq Grayson and Armise Darcan.

As the single point-of-view, Merq’s side of the story is on every page of The Borders War series. We get to see his world through his eyes. We get to learn about who he is as a person. We get to know Armise through Merq, but that’s only part of the story.

So let me share an insider’s view of Armise.

He is a quiet man. Contemplative and thoughtful in his intentions. He doesn’t think, he knows. He is violent and vengeful—especially when it comes to protecting his own—and he is human, with all of the failings and flaws that go along with that. While you can read all about Merq’s penchant for deluding himself HERE, Armise doesn’t share that quality with Merq. Armise is guarded and always on the defensive, but he is fully aware of who he is. Who he wants.

He just doesn’t want you to know.

Finding a way to break through that barrier has been a fight for both Merq and me. I’ve never written a character that was so unwilling to give up his secrets. At the same time, hearing Armise’s voice in my head was infinitely easier than working with Merq—because of Armise’s surety in his path.

Armise is not a complicated man, but he is complex. He is one of the most mysterious characters in The Borders War series…despite being one of the main characters.

Until now, Merq and Armise’s story has been told solely through Merq’s point-of-view. But all of that changes with the re-issues of the first three books. With Armise’s point-of-view scenes added to the end of the new editions of One Breath, One Bullet, Dominant Predator and Powerless, you’ll get an inside look into what Armise is thinking.

In Falling, One by One (The Borders War #4, releasing next week, January 19^th) much of who Armise is at his core—his history and his motivations—will finally be exposed. Strength of the Rising Sun (The Borders War #5, and the final book, releasing January 26^th) ends their journey when the secret Armise has been protecting Merq from is revealed.

That revelation may just be the breaking point for Merq and Armise—unless they can stand together.

Blurbs, Buy Links and Promotional Price Info

 

One Breath, One Bullet (The Borders War #1)

Face to face, and rifle to rifle. The time and location change, but never the circumstance. Merq Grayson and Armise Darcan are enemies. And neither will be considered successful until the other is dead.

It is the year 2558. A mere decade has passed since the signing of the treaty which ended the three hundred year long Borders War. In the midst of an uneasy peace, the world gathers for the first Olympic games since the war began.

The Rifle competition showcases the very soldiers who fought in the war, pitting former enemies against one another again. Continental States Peacemaker Merq Grayson will once again battle the Dark Ops officer from the People’s Republic of Singapore, Armise Darcan, this time under the flag of their own uneasy truce. The relationship between Merq and Armise is one of violence, secrecy, and a growing intimacy that could have them both branded as traitors.

But there is more at stake than pride or medals in these games. And neither Merq nor Armise may be able to make it out alive before the fires of revolution are set ablaze again.

Reader Advisory: This book contains scenes of violence.

Publisher’s Note: This book has previously been released under the same title. It has been revised and re-edited for re-release with Pride Publishing.

One Breath, One Bullet – FREE (99p/c on Amazon, free on Pride Publishing’s site and other retailers, Offer ends 31st January): Pride Publishing || All Romance eBooks || Amazon

Dominant Predator (The Borders War #2)

A relationship is the least of Merq and Armise’s concerns…

With one bullet Merq Grayson set the wealthiest citizens of the world on a collision course with the poorest—with those fighting for their freedom. As the Borders War reignites, the Revolution faces heavy losses. They scramble to maintain their advantage, to strike at the Opposition and crumble their power structure before they are able to rally.

But Merq is in the midst of an internal battle that shakes him to the core. For the first time in his life Merq will have to reconcile the inherent tragedy of war and decide just how much vengeance can be justified by spilt blood. How much can he trust the men and women around him? The President, Neveed, his former soldiers, his parents…and Armise.

Merq and Armise find themselves off grid and on the hunt for Committee members. Merq is just as unsettled with Armise at his side as he was with Armise as an enemy, but they will have to learn how to fight together—or they may just die together.

Reader Advisory: This book contains scenes of violence.

Publisher’s Note: This book has previously been released under the same title. It has been revised and re-edited for re-release with Pride Publishing.

Dominant Predator – 99p/c (Offer ends 31st January): Pride Publishing || All Romance eBooks || Amazon

Powerless (The Borders War #3)

He was built to be invincible.

Merq and Armise return to the States after their mission to assassinate the remaining Committee members only to find the leadership of the Revolution isn’t as stable as they had thought.

Outside forces come crashing down on a Revolution stronghold, leaving two of their soldiers gravely wounded. Merq’s history with his brothers in arms Simion and Neveed forces him into making decisions that will impact his future with the Revolution.

Merq has always identified as a soldier first. Always known who deserved his loyalty and who didn’t. But with the uncertainty surrounding the leadership of the Revolution, the mysterious disappearance of the jacquerie and increased activity with the PsychHAgs, Merq knows there are few people he can trust.

The only man Merq wants or needs at his side is Armise Darcan. But his reliance on his former enemy may be a miscalculation that will threaten everything Merq stands for.

Reader Advisory: This book contains reference to genetic experimentation on children.

Publisher’s Note: This book has previously been released under the same title. It has been revised and re-edited for re-release with Pride Publishing.

Powerless – 30% off (Offer ends 31st January): Pride Publishing || All Romance eBooks || Amazon

Falling, One by One (The Borders War #4)

Whether Armise lived or died was never supposed to matter to Merq.

As the fight for the kids of the jacquerie begins and the war between Opposition and Revolution heightens, Merq discovers that he may not have as much control over his actions as he thought he did. Further complicating their tangled relationship, Armise may be just as compromised.

Desperate to learn the truth, Merq and Armise put themselves directly in the path of a powerful enemy. They’ve spent fifteen years of their lives on the knife’s edge of trust and loyalty. What they learn about each other’s pasts—and what it means for their future—will bring them together or definitively tear them apart.

Merq’s life has always been at risk—one bullet away from death in sacrifice of his mission. As his focus begins to shift, Merq may be too late to understand what, and who, is most important in his life.

Reader Advisory: This book contains scenes of graphic violence, forced genetic modification, genetic experimentation, genetic experimentation on children and torture.

General Release Date: 19th January 2016

Pre-Order Falling One by One: Pride Publishing

Strength of the Rising Sun (The Borders War #5)

Merq’s always known there’s only one way Armise and he can end.

The Opposition is losing—both the war and the fight for citizen support—and the Revolution’s victory appears certain. Despite that success, Merq knows his leaders won’t let two of their greatest assets simply walk away. But with Armise fighting for his life, getting out becomes Merq’s primary objective.

Almost two decades of selfishness can’t be alleviated with one right decision, and Merq is faced with the reality of how deeply he has wounded Armise in ways that cannot be seen from the outside. Merq’s world has been upended more times than he can count and he’s always survived, but life without Armise is no longer an option. He just has to prove that to Armise.

Merq believes there are few who are strong enough to challenge them when they stand together. But when the secret Armise has been protecting Merq from is revealed, the truth has consequences neither of them can prepare for.

Reader Advisory: This book contains graphic violence, mention of torture and genetic experimentation.

General Release Date: 26th January 2016

Pre-Order Strength of the Rising Sun: Pride Publishing

THE GIVEAWAY

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