The Gates Blog Tour

The Gates 

The Resistance Trilogy, #2

By Rachael Wade

Getting There is Half the Battle...

Armed with more unsettling knowledge about Gavin Devereaux and her circle of friends, Camille Hart is faced with new adversities and lethal propositions when she returns to the Amaranth exile to carry out Gavin’s risky crusade.

Realizing her journey through the bayou was only the beginning of her struggle to stay with Gavin, she finds that leaving her Louisiana home is the least of her worries. New evils await her on the other side, and as she and her friends press on with their mission, they are confronted with the reality that everything doesn't always go according to plan.

As secrets unfold and alliances are formed and broken, only the strongest will survive and the power of love will be tested when a war between witches, humans, and vampires erupts into an all-out power struggle and all is on the verge of being lost.

 In case you missed it:

An interview with Rachel Wade:

1. What was your inspiration for this story?

I was really inspired by Tim Burton and his version of Alice in Wonderland in particular. Also tons of music, especially Florence and the Machine. I must’ve listened to Seven Devils until my ears bled. I love epic fantasy, and I recall watching the Lord of the Rings trilogy (for the thousandth time) while writing this, so that inspired me as well.

2. Do you have music in mind when you are in writing mode?

Always. Music and writing are synonymous for me. Listening to music before I write scenes is really crucial to my writing process. I have to listen and visualize the scenes, meditate on them, before I sit down to write.

3. What paranormal being would you be if you could chose?

I’d be a vampire. I always get the “ew” reaction when I choose that over a fairy or something haha. I guess in a traditional sense, they are pretty gross creatures. But they’re also mysterious and sensual, and in recent years, have evolved into these superhuman beings, which I love even more. I’d love to have that superhuman strength.

4. Are you a outliner or a seat of your pants writer?

Both. When I began writing the Resistance Trilogy, I had a very organized, rigid structure as far as outlining went. And to some extent, I still always need a loose outline to work with. But lately, I don’t stick to those outlines very much. I prefer to start with a loose outline and then just write, see where it takes me. That’s always more fun and the plot and characters end up surprising me more that way.

5. What is your next writing project?

Right now I’m wrapping up The Tragedy of Knowledge, book 3 of The Resistance Trilogy, which picks up right where The Gates leaves off, and I’m also working on Repossession, the first book in a post-apocalyptic sci-fi romance series, the Keepers Trilogy, which is set to release in December.

6. What was the hardest scene that you have ever written and why?

Tough question. So far, I guess I’d say a scene in Preservation that involved the issue of rape. That whole novel was very personal and that scene hit close to home, but it was empowering to write and really helped give me some closure.

Thanks for having me! :) 

Excerpt One:

      The twelve vampires all joined together in a circle, waiting for Gavin’s direction, flashlights in hand, game faces on. Scarlet leaned back toward the magic oak, draped her arms across the rugged branch that held the key to our entry, sultry and comfortable in tight-fitting pants and a revealing halter top. Hussy. Must have read the wrong dress code. We weren’t headed for Studio 54, for crying out loud.

      “As discussed, it’s imperative to keep your mojo bag on you, as close to your skin as possible, at all times. Keep it out of sight, under your clothes, and be sure to feed it with the oils I gave you intermittently, or the spells will wear out and we can’t have that.” Gavin spoke loud and authoritative. It was a tone I wasn’t used to hearing him take: one full of power, possession, and most of all, determination. He was such a leader. It was … hot. I smiled to myself, mesmerized as I watched him speak, dagger in hand, dressed in black jeans and a faded gray shirt, tousled brown hair as perfect as ever.

As I admired him, I noticed Scarlet staring intently, too, her eyes catching mine. There was a glint in them, an unspoken challenge that made me furious. Her coy smile made me even more agitated. Where was my jealousy coming from? It was so strong, so urgent, getting harder to contain by the second. Gavin had already assured me she was nothing to worry about. But something about her seared my skin, sank into my bones and settled there, leaving me on edge. I looked away, focusing again on Gavin’s pep talk.

“We’ve had an advantage, an extra defense against humans, against those who practice hoodoo—the ability to be unaffected by their magic. And yet, we can use their magic among our own kind. Their magic isn’t limited to Samira and Gérard’s use, although they love for us to think that. An original conjurer, a good friend of ours, has gone out of her way to help create these protection spells for us. They are just as strong as Samira’s magic, and will keep us safe when we approach her. They’ll also give us copious amounts of energy to thrive.”

My thoughts trailed to Vivienne and her haint blue shop behind the pizzeria, her cautious eyes and generous heart. She really wanted to help us, even though she wasn’t sure what it would mean for her people, and even though the frozen souls had disrespected her magic, her faith, for all of these years. I smiled at the thought, thankful for the sweet, wise old woman.

Gavin began meandering around the inside of the circle, locking vision with each vampire. “Samira has no idea we have a conjurer’s help, and no idea we’ve acquired this amount of energy. Even if she doesn’t reveal it, she’ll be surprised that our magic is able to withstand her own. Stand strong, and stand tall. Do not falter, because the time is coming, and her kingdom will fall. Remember to be on guard within the villages. We don’t know for certain the conditions we face. We must gain the peoples’ trust, even as we show Samira that she can trust us to restore her order. Our obedience is the only thing that will keep her unaware until the rest of the resistance arrives to help us.”

“What if we don’t make it past the moat?” one of the twelve stammered, shaking in obvious fear.

Gavin stopped in the middle of the circle and turned to him. “The moat? We will make it through the gates.”

The nervous vampire reluctantly shook his head, taking a deep breath.

“Of this, I am certain.” Gavin gave the vampire a firm nod, then shouted, “To strong will and sweet freedom!” He waved his hands to encourage his people. Everyone took the cue, shouting in unison, repeating his words, chanting them. He stormed toward me, eyes blazing, his fiery gaze taking me by surprise. It made me melt, witnessing him take such control, but then I  shivered as I felt the bayou’s temperature begin to drop, calling us toward the portal, tempting us to pull the branch and unlock the gateway.

“You’re really ready for this, aren’t you?” I asked him as he grabbed his bag.

“This is going to work. I know it. My parents will finally have peace.” He reached up and ran his fingers over his mother’s locket around my neck, then gave me a breathtaking smile and pulled me into his embrace, kissed me hard and desperately.

The group’s energy buzzed, everyone chattering and pumping one another up. When Gavin let go of me, I surveyed the bayou and swallowed, realizing this was it. I’d somehow managed to entangle myself in the beginning of a vampire war. I was no longer that book-nerd loner girl from Louisiana, no longer the damaged girl from Seattle who once put up with so much abuse from men.

I was now Gavin’s support, love and future, and he was mine. Better yet, he encouraged my personal dreams despite his all-consuming lifestyle. He didn’t want me to give myself up, even though I was lost in all of his madness. My new path was suddenly tangible beneath my feet, although I couldn’t quite see it brick for brick yet. Hope bloomed in me, and the same energy that now possessed Gavin filled me too. I was ready for this, ready to do anything for this man, for these people, for our friends. Purpose panged my stomach and I was overwhelmed with the need for justice.

“Scarlet,” Gavin called to her while taking my hand. She raised her eyebrows and smiled at him, slowly, lasciviously, keeping her eyes on his as she snapped the oak’s branch. My green envy flared at the sight.

The gorgeous violet light over the bayou began to illuminate the murky water, lighting up our surroundings more and more, the wind dancing around us with fury. The water churned, and it was time.

Excerpt Two:

He clutched me in his arms and his fiery gaze danced across my body. “Can we talk about it after?”

      “What? Gav, we need to talk about it now. What are we going to do—? And after what exactly?”

      “After I taste you.” He dipped his mouth down to mine, letting his tongue slip between my lips. The panic I felt passed through me and a soft moan replaced the tension. I melted in his arms and slipped my hands around his neck, pressed my body harder to his, pulling down on his cloak to peel it over his shoulders.

He spun me around and pushed me up against the door, leaning his weight against my back to pin me to it with his hips. Angling my chin to the side so he could see my mouth, his other hand clasped the side of my waist and his breath flickered hot in my hair. “You don’t know how good you taste,” he breathed, finding my elbow and gently rubbing his thumb across my thick bandage. “This feeling okay? I’ll be gentle with it, I promise.”

“Mhhmm. It’s better.” I welcomed his soft strokes over the crease of my elbow and swiveled my head farther back, to bring my lips closer to his.

He leaned in and looked at my lips with wonder before he kissed them hungrily again, his hands gliding down the sides of my hips to clutch my rear. “I can’t promise the same for this delicious backside, though.”

“No safety pin today,” I whispered against his jaw.

 He snatched up my skirt, tore it straight down the middle and gathered it near my waist. “Won’t be needing it.”

“Gavin! What’ll I wear home?”

“Cloak.” His voice roughened and he ripped harder, tossing the material to the ground. I felt his smile when he kissed my neck, and shivers ran down my back at the sound of his low growl.

“I made that! I don’t have many of those, you know.”

“Cam,” he snaked one hand around my stomach and made his way north, slipping one hand into my corset top to grope my chest. “You won’t be thinking about it when I’m inside you.” His hips shifted off my back and he separated my legs with his knee, his breathing ragged against my shoulder. “Now forget the damn dress.” Keeping my head pressed to the side of the door, I could see him pull at his shirt collar to loosen it, which instantly made my knees shake and my pulse thump with desire. Unsure if I’d be able to hold myself up as he had his way with me from behind, I knew the image of him there would be my undoing. There was nothing sexier than seeing this normally shy, composed man morph into a voracious creature with such insatiable, starved need in his rich, chocolate eyes. And the sleeves rolled to his elbows … that wasn’t helping.

I snuck a glance at his forearms. Nope, not helping at all.

He ran his fingers down my back and licked his lips, the sensations of his fingertips over my spine making my head spin. Before I had time to muster my strength, I heard his zipper and felt him jerk my slip aside. He slid into me and leaned close again, his jaw slack at the side of my face. I palmed the door with my good hand and reached back to latch onto the side of his hip with the other, his name spilling from my lips as he drove into me.

“I adore you, do you know that?” he murmured against my ear, his panting feeding my fervor and sending my desire into an irrepressible frenzy. “I’m yours always, baby.”

I gripped the door harder for support and dug my nails into his hip to return the passion, closing my eyes when his cries seeped into my ear. They were too much. “Gavin, please …” He thrust harder, a desperate urgency in each sharp charge, stirring my release, coaxing it into a ferocious delirium, spinning it out of control. He lifted a hand and trailed fingers over my lips, tilting and crushing his mouth on mine to silence my whimpering.

“Not yet,” he sighed against my lips and wrenched my hair back, forcing me to arch against his chest, tightening his grip on my waist before running his other hand down my front to cup it between my thighs. “Ask me again.”

“Please,” my voice hummed, barely audible as he skimmed his nose over my neck, his fingers kneading in front while he buried himself in me.

“Please, what. Tell me.”

“Please, Gavin. Let me go.”

I felt him slow and readjust his stance, then slide in deeper and pick up speed, pushing me farther and farther into luscious oblivion from behind, his fingers continuing to torture in front. “Mmm. I love hearing that.”

His forehead grazed my cheek and his sweat stuck to my skin, a sweet, heady aroma that sent my knees quaking. I cried out, feeling myself quicken, his strangled moan causing my body to cave against the door as I found my release.

“Cam … damn it.…” He pulled his hand from my thighs and braced the door next to my face, his palm spreading over the dark, battered wood, his fingers close enough for me to taste. My eyes fluttered and found his, their scorching warm glow penetrating me with crazed longing. His breath hissed and he reached his climax, hauling his fingertips through my hair and over my scalp as he stilled, my name escaping his lips one last time.

I let myself slump against his shoulder while he rested his forehead on the door, one arm drawn close around my waist to hold me upright.

“Love, making it out of this place alive is the least of my worries. If you keep making me crazy like that, you’ll be the death of me.” He snickered against my neck, his lips kissing my wet skin.

“Well,” I panted, “if you ravage me like that again, there’s a very good chance you’ll take me with you.”

What I Liked:

This book is a continuation of a series choc full of vampires and voodoo witchery. The first book was good and this one just gets better. The seductive sex scenes are smokin' hot and nothing makes me happier than to have a sexy book tucked in for a summer nights reading. 

What I Didn't:

If you haven't read the first book in the series, you will be a bit lost if you start with The Gates. You may want to pick up Amaranth to get the story background.

Overall:

The Gates is a continuation of a series and I found the writing style even better than the first book and story line gripping. The politics of the vampires and the voodoo fun will keep you turning the pages on a hot summer night. Fans of True Blood and Discovery of Witches will love this series.

About the Author:

Rachael Wade is the author of the Amazon #1 best-selling paranormal romance series, The Resistance Trilogy, and the best-selling contemporary romance, Preservation. She is a member of the Romance Writers of America and her work has been published in The Storyteller, A Hudson View International Poetry Digest, and Amulet Poetry. When she's not writing, she's busy learning French, watching too many movies, and learning how to protect wildlife and stop animal cruelty. The first title in her post-apocalyptic sci-fi romance series, The Keepers Trilogy, is set for release winter of 2012.

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