Title: Challenge the
Darkness
Author: Dirk Greyson
Series: Yellowstone Wolves
Genre: M/M Paranormal Shifters
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: Aug 31 2015
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook & Print
Blurb/Synopsis:
When alpha shifter Mikael Volokov is called to witness a
challenge, he learns the evil and power-hungry Anton Gregor will stop at
nothing to attain victory. Knowing he will need alliances to keep his pack
together, Mikael requests a congress with the Evergreen pack and meets Denton
Arguson, Evergreen alpha, to ask for his help. Fate has a strange twist for
both of them though, and Mikael and Denton soon realize they’re destined mates.
Denton resists the pull between them—he has his own pack and
his own responsibilities. But Mikael isn't willing to give up. The Mother has
promised Mikael his mate, told him he must fight for him, and that only
together can they defeat the coming darkness. When Anton casts his sights on
Denton's pack, attacks and sabotage follow, pulling Denton and Mikael together
to defeat a common enemy. But Anton’s threats sow seeds of destruction enough
to break any bond, and the mates’ determination to challenge the darkness may
be their only saving grace.
His home was a larger version of the guest quarters. Exposed
beams, paneled walls, heavy, masculine furniture—it was the home of a man. His
mother had done her best to soften the place when she and his father had lived
here, but she knew the battle was lost once Mikael took over. He liked things
simple and didn’t do fussy. However, that didn’t mean he hadn’t let his mother
help him decorate. The walls were filled with pictures of his family and pack.
This great room was the center of the pack and where everyone spent a lot of
their time.
Mikael threw his dirty clothes in the hamper and went right
to his bathroom, where he brushed his teeth and took a shower before crawling
into bed, envying the boys who had someone to curl up with at night. He’d slept
in a pile with his brothers and sister until they’d found mates and had
families of their own. Now, as alpha, he slept alone, just like as leader he
alone made decisions and accepted the consequences that affected his entire
family. He hadn’t really understood what his father had done and how
effortlessly he seemed to do it until Mikael had taken over for him after his
death. He had known he was expected to lead, and he thought he’d been prepared
for it. But after five years, there were still times when he wondered if he was
strong enough to protect his family. After tonight he wondered that even more.
Could anything protect them from Anton should he turn his sights in the
direction of Mikael’s family?
The meadow was unlike
any he’d ever seen or smelled before. Wait… yes it was. Somewhere from deep
inside, a long-faded memory, one nearly dead, sprang to life. The sky was
bluer, the wind fresher, the trees more pungent, the breeze perfect. He stood with nothing between his skin and
the kiss of the breeze. This was her domain, and he remembered the first and
only other time he had been here.
“Your fears are
well-founded.” She stepped from behind a tree, the sun forming a type of halo.
Her eyes were as dark as a night sky with stars transforming the blackness from
menace to beauty, for that’s what she was—beauty personified, with lips the
color of the strawberries that covered the small glen near the compound in
early summer, and hair the color of summer wheat.
“I understand.”
She didn’t need to
explain. Her meaning was clear as an image of Anton in wolf form filled his
mind.
“The last time you
were here I showed you your mate. Remember him, and remember that you will need
each other far more than you will initially realize.”
Mikael lowered his
gaze. “I understand,” he repeated.
“No, you don’t, but
you will eventually. Remember that I have chosen him for you.”
“I will,” Mikael said
because he had no choice. She was his goddess, the one who had seen the pack
through the decades of darkness and eventually found a way for them to rejoin
the light. He owed her everything.
She chuckled and her
eyes danced, galaxies whirling in their depths. “It may not be as easy as you
think.” She was clearly taking some enjoyment in this. “You will need to face
him.” Anton as a man flashed in his mind. “But how you face him will be up to
you.”
“Why are you telling
me this? Isn’t Anton one of your children too?” Goddesses were a mystery, but
it seemed they should play fair.
“No. He is definitely
not one of my children. He is not of the light.” She turned as birds glided
down to her head, landing gently in her hair. “I must go, and you must return.”
“Why tell me this?”
The light faded and the meadow with its trees and green disappeared into the
darkness.
“So you will know.”
Mikael opened his eyes and breathed in the familiar scents
of home. He was back in his own bed. Damn, goddesses were flashy.
“Don’t complain—I
could have taken you to the North Pole.”
Gentle laughter filled his head and then faded away. He lay
still and hoped she was gone as he shivered slightly at the thought. He got up
and walked to the window, pushing the curtains aside before staring out into
the darkness. Whatever that dream had been, the message was clear. He’d already
known he had a mate out there somewhere, and he assumed that the experience
he’d just had meant he was going to meet him soon. After a few minutes, he
turned, pulled the curtains, and went back to bed. He needed his sleep for what
he was going to have to do tomorrow.
Amazon
Deepening
Plot what steps do you take?
There’s
an old adage that when in doubt, kill someone off. I don’t usually do that, but definitely shake
things up. Often when I get to the
middle of a story there are decision points.
The doorbell rings and your character is expecting someone. Is who’s on the other side of the door the
person the character expected or is it the last person your character wants to
see? Sometimes I ask myself what is the
meanest or worst thing I could do to my character at this particular
moment? Once I have my answer, I do
that… sometimes, especially if I want the story to have a little more
suspense.
Action
is another way to deepen the plot of a story, especially when it takes the
story in an unexpected direction of leaves the characters hanging by their
fingertips. I love action in my
stories. It’s part of what really keeps
me turning the pages. Also it gives me a
chance to change the dynamic and mix things up to either push my characters
together or add tension that they need to work through. A story with a straight forward plot isn’t
nearly as interesting as one with more twists and turns, ups, and downs than a
roller coaster at Cedar Point.
Dirk is very much an outside kind
of man. He loves travel and seeing new
things. Dirk worked in corporate America
for way too long and now spends his days writing, gardening, and taking care of
the home he shares with his partner of more than two decades. He has a Master’s Degree and all the other
accessories that go with a corporate job.
But he is most proud of the stories he tells and the life he's
built. Dirk lives in Pennsylvania in a
century old home and is blessed with an amazing circle of friends.
Thanks for hosting The Gift by Andrew Grey today.
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