Cheyenne Meadows's Blog

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year. May this new year bring happiness, fulfillment, peace, and solitude. 

 Wishing one and all a wonderful Thanksgiving filled with peace, love, and surrounded by family and friends.

 

It's release day. Damien is here!


Book 4 in the Misfit Shifters series and sequel to Nate

Free Spirit Thursday, a shifter with no recollection of his past beyond being raised in a monastery, lands in the Bluebird Valley Preserve with no further motivation than assisting others through massage therapy and meditation. Disbelieving a leopard exists inside him and unable to change into such a beast, he disregards the speculation that he’s truly a shifter. To do otherwise would potentially go against all the pacifist teachings he’d taken to heart.

Damien, struggling with a sudden change in temperament from his inner wolf, searches for a way to mollify the suddenly aggressive and demanding beast before he loses complete control. If he can’t rein in his wolf, their future consists of banishment or, even worse, a death sentence. Just as he reaches his wit’s end, Damien stumbles across the most unusual shifter around, who just might hold the answer to soothing his wolf once and for all.

When a deadly threat forces Thursday’s leopard to the fore, it sends him into a tailspin, unable to cope with the realization of his true genetics and his traumatic past, as the violent cat goes against everything he’d come to believe. It’s up to Damien to create a bridge between the two differing entities. Failure to do so means the loss of so much more than Damien could ever imagine.

Damien, Misfit Shifters Book 4 is now available from booksellers such as JMS books and Amazon.

JMS Books: https://www.jms-books.com/cheyenne-meadows-c-224_308/damien-p-5004.html

 

Just finished the last edits on Damien. Release date: Feb, 24, 2024 from JMS Books. Here's a small taste:

Free Spirit Thursday, a shifter with no recollection of his past beyond being raised in a monastery, lands in the Bluebird Valley Preserve with no further motivation than assisting others through massage therapy and meditation. Disbelieving that a leopard exists inside him and unable to change into such a beast, he disregards the speculation that he’s truly a shifter. To do otherwise would potentially go against all the pacifist teachings he’d taken to heart.

Damien, struggling with a sudden change in temperament from his inner wolf, searches for a way to mollify the suddenly aggressive and demanding beast before he loses complete control. If he can’t rein in his wolf, their future consists of banishment or, even worse, a death sentence. Just as he reaches his wit’s end, Damien stumbles across the most unusual shifter around, and the one who just might hold the answer to soothing his wolf once and for all.

When a deadly threat forces Thursday’s leopard to the fore, it sends him into a tailspin, unable to cope with the realization of his true genetics and his traumatic past, as the violent cat goes against everything he’d come to believe. It’s up to Damien to create a bridge between the two differing entities. Failure to do so, means the loss of so much more than Damien could ever imagine.

And a little preview:

Damien peered out his front window, not completely surprised to find Thursday back in the tree, hanging upside down, as he’d done for the past couple of days. The circumstances, though, caused him to blink—twice.

Snow fell at a rapid clip, covering the ground quickly while making visibility difficult any more than a few feet away. A stiff gust of wind swirled the white stuff around before allowing it to fall straight once again.

No way could that silly robe keep him warm in this weather. For sure not the sandals. A ping of consciousness prodded Damien to do something. He’s got a perfectly good cabin. Not our fault he doesn’t have the common sense of a goose—or a dodo bird.

Are you sure he’s not frozen to death on that limb? His wolf asked with a hint of concern.

“Well, hell.”

The pertinent question from his animal half spurred Damien into action. He grabbed his thick coat from the hook on the door, slid on his heavy boots, and exited his warm home. Stepping into the winter mess, he shivered and pulled his coat tighter around him. His beast might enjoy a romp in the snow now and again, but personally, he’d be much happier in the warm, toasty sunshine of summer.

Tiny ice crystals had formed on Thursday’s eyelids. His face could only be called rosy from the cold and biting wind. At least the ninny wore gloves. From what he could see of Thursday’s feet, his toes, devoid of socks, were leaning toward deep red hue.

“Hey, Thursday. In case you didn’t notice, it’s snowing like gangbusters and its damn cold out here. Why don’t you give up your tree meditation for the time being and considering taking it inside?”

“Adversity must not deter one from reaching for enlightenment and inspiration.” His teeth began to chatter.

“Oh, good grief. You won’t have to worry about any of those things if you freeze to death out here hanging around like a demented bat.” Damien threw his hands up in the air in frustration at the stubbornness Thursday presented.

He’s going to be an ice crystal bat real soon, his inner wolf added. Hit him with a hammer and he’ll fracture into dozens of pieces.
That’s helpful. Not, Damien replied. He planted his hands on his hips and glared at Thursday. “Here’s the deal, buddy. You get down from there right now or I’ll drag you out of that tree.”

Thursday’s eyes opened, revealing the yellowish-amber irises, which pinned his gaze. “Discipline and the ability to control one’s mind leads to enlightenment, wisdom, and eventual true happiness.”

“Yeah, well, stupidity gets one frostbite out here and then you’ll wish you’d tapped into that wisdom factor a bit harder.” Damien stepped to the side and appraised Thursday’s position, with his lower legs crossed over the large tree limb. Of course I have to do this the hard way. He latched onto a lower branch and hauled himself up to the same one Thursday hung off of. He grabbed Thursday’s top foot, and yanked upwards. He shoved it to the other side of the branch, and yanked on the closest leg before Thursday could recover. He glimpsed white muscular white thighs and a nicely curved buttock before Thursday missed his attempted grab, and toppled into the fresh powder below.

Before Thursday could protest, Damien jumped down, grabbed him by the collar of his robe, yanked him to his feet, marched him to the small cabin porch, opened the door, and shoved him inside.
Thursday spun and appraised Damien, then lifted his chin.

“Assistance shouldn’t be insisted upon when it’s not needed.” He ruined the effect with a hard shiver.

“Yeah, well. A thank you might have been nice.” He shut the door firmly behind him and flipped the lock before removing his boots. After slipping off his heavy coat, he returned it to the hook and eyed his guest.

 

Anyone want a peek of my new release coming from JMS Feb. 24?  This is Damien, Misfit Shifters Book 4  Free Spirit Thursday, a shifter with no recollection of his past beyond being raised in a monastery, lands in the Bluebird Valley Preserve with no further motivation than assisting others through massage therapy and meditation. Disbelieving that a leopard exists inside him and unable to change into such a beast, he disregards the speculation that he’s truly a shifter. To do otherwise would potentially go against all the pacifist teachings he’d taken to heart.   Damien, struggling with a sudden change in temperament from his inner wolf, searches for a way to mollify the suddenly aggressive and demanding beast before he loses complete control. If he can’t rein in his wolf, their future consists of banishment or, even worse, a death sentence. Just as he reaches his wit’s end, Damien stumbles across the most unusual shifter around, and the one who just might hold the answer to soothing his wolf once and for all.  When a deadly threat forces Thursday’s leopard to the fore, it sends him into a tailspin, unable to cope with the realization of his true genetics and his traumatic past, as the violent cat goes against everything he’d come to believe. It’s up to Damien to create a bridge between the two differing entities. Failure to do so, means the loss of so much more than Damien could ever imagine. 
 

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Wishing everyone a wonderful holiday season!

It's been crazy busy with work and life, but I'm plugging along on the next Misfit Shifter novel. Hope to be tying "The End" in the next couple of weeks.

 It's Release Day! Dark's Destiny is here!

From JMS books: https://www.jms-books.com/cheyenne-meadows-c-224_308/darks-destiny-p-4701.html

Coming soon to Amazon and other book sellers!

Steeped in magical talent but cursed by a prophecy, Dark Arthur would much rather fix up old houses than enter the melee between good and evil in the realm of wizardry. Too bad Fate had other ideas when he steps into the small town bookstore to collect an ancient spell book. He finds a woman who not only possesses remarkable gifts, but also brightens his life with her presence. Protecting her from evil wizards would be difficult enough, but an easy task compared to guarding his heart.

Destiny Jones’s life has been a roller coaster of late, after taking over her late, great aunt’s bookstore. A mystical customer shows up to collect a previously purchased book and Destiny knows he’s trouble. The extent of her magical experience includes rumors of low-wattage witches in the family, unless one cares to include her ability to hold two-sided conversations with her cat. Now, she finds herself reading runes in ancient spells and facing dark wizards in her spare time.

Dark and Destiny must join forces to overcome the evil sent their way. As the danger increases, so do their feelings for each other. But, in the end, will it be enough?

 

 

 Hi all,

Dark's Destiny is almost here! Release date is June 3rd! That's right! It's just around the corner! To celebrate, who wants another sneak peek?

Steeped in magical talent but cursed by a prophecy, Dark Arthur would much rather fix up old houses than enter the melee between good and evil in the realm of wizardry. Too bad Fate had other ideas when he steps into the small town bookstore to collect an ancient spell book. He finds a woman who not only possesses remarkable gifts, but also brightens his life with her presence. Protecting her from evil wizards would be difficult enough, but an easy task compared to guarding his heart.

Destiny Jones’s life has been a roller coaster of late, after taking over her late, great aunt’s bookstore. A mystical customer shows up to collect a previously purchased book and Destiny knows he’s trouble. The extent of her magical experience includes rumors of low-wattage witches in the family, unless one cares to include her ability to hold two-sided conversations with her cat. Now, she finds herself reading runes in ancient spells and facing dark wizards in her spare time.

Dark and Destiny must join forces to overcome the evil sent their way. As the danger increases, so do their feelings for each other. But, in the end, will it be enough?

Available now at JMS Publishing: https://www.jms-books.com/cheyenne-meadows-c-224_308/darks-destiny-p-4701.html

Coming very soon to Amazon and other book sellers!

Here's another sneak peak:


“Okay. So back to the problem at hand. There’s no place to secure the books?” She added detergent, turned a knob, and hit the start button before returning to the living room.

He glanced her direction from the table. “No.”

She frowned. “Then why was ‘find the books and hide them in a safe spot for generations’ on the docket as a possible plan?”

He shrugged. “It was the easiest fix.”

“With them staying at my house?” Her voice rose in pitch at the end of the sentence.

“No one found them here so far.”

“Yeah, but that was before first Kooky and then Bad-tempered Demon showed up.”

Dark smirked.

“So, what do we do now?” She sat down at the table opposite him.

He gestured toward the books on the table. “I want to go through these, find useful spells, and add them to my repertoire. You can help by reading the runes. We can cross reference the symbols with this other book. If all else fails, there’s the internet.”

“Okay. Now what about visiting the tomb of the evil wizard master?”

“Tomb is a bit ... misconstrued in this case. Not too far away, one of the older guys runs an establishment. He’s in-the-know and might provide a little insight for the right price.”

“Dare I ask, what that price might be and please tell me it’s not dropping someone in a volcano or offering them a tasty snack of fresh human blood.”

Dark scowled. “Where do you come up with this nonsense?”

“Lots of late nights with very little selections on television, obviously.” She waved her hand. “So, tell already. What’s the price?”

“A fairly expensive bottle of cognac should do it.” He gave a slight nod.

“What do you consider fairly expensive?”

“Not enough to break the bank, but enough to make this a once in a year thing.”

The numbers revolved around in her head. “Like a vacation?” Her mouth fell open. “A bottle of liquor costs as much as a yearly vacation to…well, somewhere?” She shook her head. “For that price, he should not only spill all the beans, but dry clean your clothes, take you out to eat several times, and buy you a lifetime subscription to Wizards Quarterly.”

He smiled wide enough to flash straight white teeth. “You should tell him that.”

“What? Me? Why me? I was going to stay home and do the homework assignment.” She gestured to the books.

He learned a little closer and whispered, “I’m not letting you out of my sight.”

She frowned. “Oh no. No. No. No. I have a business to run. I have a life.” Well, not much of one, but it sounded good.

“Are you forgetting there’s two evil wizards out there who’d like to get their hands on you? One of them blew up your car.” He crossed his arms over his chest.

“Well, when you put it that way ...” She sighed heavily. “My life was so easy and predictable a few days ago. Now I’m stuck in the middle of wizard posturing and muscle flexing and my precious car seemed to be the ante for the ridiculous game. I want a refund. A do-over.”

“Sorry, time travel isn’t one of my abilities.” He stared at her for a long moment. “What happened to the kick-butt woman that was just here?”

“She decided she wanted to live,” Destiny fired back.

 Dark's Destiny is almost here! Release date has been moved back to June, but no worries. It will be here before you know it!

To help tide you over, here's a sneak peek:  

Destiny checked her watch as she entered herhome through the back door, shutting it firmly behind her. Dang, I’m runninglate. A moving shadow drew her attention. “Hey, Sebastian.” He’d beencurled up in one of his favorite spots—in the top hammock of the cat tree inthe corner.

::I prefer the name Death:: He stood and stretchedhis long front legs out before him, flexing his claws as he did so.

Plunking her purse on the nearby kitchen table,she rolled her eyes at the huge, long-haired Maine coon cat. All muscle, hereminded her of a panther, except for his brilliant orange tabby coat and thelarge, pointy ears complete with tufts of whitish hair arcing outwards.Weighing in at just under forty pounds, he was a huge specimen, even for one ofthe largest breeds of domestic cats. His two extra toes on all four paws gave amitten appearance, making his feet look even bigger.

“Yeah, well, I preferred the name Pickles. Ibelieve we compromised.” They had this very same discussion several times perweek. She patted his head as she hurried to Pru’s home office, her late greataunt’s inner sanctum, so to speak.

Sebastian snorted but jumped down and paddedalong behind her.

She’d adopted Sebastian as a kitten three yearsbefore. Something about him just clicked. She guessed it was because he spoketo her that day—in her mind. Most people would’ve waved it off as herimagination. Destiny knew better. Descended from a long line of witches, sheinherited the ability from her father’s descendants. Her mother’s ancestorsdidn’t hold a lick of magic. Not even Aunt Pru, who was eccentric enoughwithout the addition of such unusual skills.

On the low-wattage end of witchcraft, asexplained by her paternal grandmother, the most any of them could do was starta tiny flame without the use of a lighter or flint. Generations of hooking upwith non-witches seemed to have diluted the abilities. Fine with Destiny, asshe’d more than likely have ended up burning the house down with any of thosecapabilities. Still, she possessed a single, magical gift—she could holdconversations with her sassy, arrogant cat. No other animals, just Sebastian.

Truth be told, she’d decided that magicalabilities had fizzled when it came down to her. Sebastian, on the other hand,possessed plenty. When she considered the entire puzzle, it made sense.Sebastian projected his words into her mind and he understood her spoken words.It was all Sebastian with the gifts. She simply stood on the receiving end ofhis impressive abilities.

On the other hand, where his cat burglar skillscame from, she didn’t bother to guess. As an escape artist extraordinaire, hecould sneak into Fort Knox if he wanted. A normal house must be a piece ofcake. He’d proven his expert abilities on several occasions—much to herchagrin.

“I have to find this book. Leather bound with adrawing of a flower on the cover.” She spoke out loud to keep herself on task,and as a habit. Since Sebastian could understand everything she said, shealways kept him in the loop as a nod to manners.

::Why?::

“A customer bought it from Aunt Pru. He’s hereto collect.” She recalled those piercing eyes and knew she couldn’t returnempty-handed. No matter what.

Hanging a right, she entered the office only tocome to an immediate halt. “Sebastian? What’s this?” She glared at the largewhite sock on the floor with a mix of trepidation and resignation.

Sebastian jumped up into the office chair, satdown, and started washing his front paws. ::My latest kill::

Destiny sighed heavily. “We’ve talked aboutthis. You can’t go around stealing stuff from other people.”

He ignored her. Just like every other time overthe past year that he’d requisitioned one article of clothing or another.

 Happy Mother's Day to all. Furbabies are kids, too!