Audiobook Lovin’ Presents: Guest post by Angela Dawe + a giveaway

Angela Dawe, alpha of the small but powerful StarSerif clan, clicked the “Send Audio Files” icon on her tablet and sat back in her chair, rolling strong shoulders stiff from hours in front of a microphone. Moaning low at the feel of her taut muscles finally stretching, she rolled her head around in a slow, clockwise motion, then repeated the move counterclockwise, easing the tension from her pale, slender neck. Tendrils of her dark-honey hair had escaped her hasty bun, and now she felt them tickling her skin. It occurred to her that was the first tactile sensation she’d been aware of since beginning her session in the recording booth.

She’d been narrating for over seventeen hours without a break, losing all sense of time and space as she immersed herself in the life of Ena Mercant. Her clanmate Luke Daniels had finished his final edits on the biography he’d written about the famous 19th-century Psy poet just days before, after having spent nearly three years researching her work and her life – the work and life with which Angela now felt intimately familiar. When the StarSerif alpha narrated a story, she didn’t just read about the people in it; she became them. It was why she’d become one of the most sought-after narrators in the world of audiobooks.

As Angela released a luxurious sigh, a message popped up on her screen from her clanmate and producer Tanya Eby:

Files successfully downloaded. Proofing should have any pickups for you by Thursday. Presale numbers are looking good! Between Luke’s incredible writing, your incredible narration, and Ena Mercant’s incredible life, I smell another Audie for Scarab Publishing… 🙂

Angela chuckled. Scarab Publishing was her beloved clan’s main source of income, and in the seven years since becoming alpha, Angela had used her rare combination of business acumen, artistic vision, and good old-fashioned charm to make it one of the most respected – and successful – publishing houses in the Western hemisphere. Securing the rights to Ena Mercant’s private estate and personal vault on the PsyNet had been StarSerif’s biggest coup to date, and if she hadn’t already known the world was waiting with breathless anticipation for the chance to finally learn the details of the brilliant recluse’s life, the countless media requests she’d been receiving for interviews and soundbites would have made it clear as day.

She dashed off a quick reply to Tanya:

Luke really outdid himself with this one, that’s for sure. As for the Audie, you know I’ve always trusted your sense of smell… 🙂

Speaking of smells… Angela’s awareness prickled as she realized a certain smell had crept into her recording studio – not a metaphorical smell, either. No, this was the very real scent of cedar and eucalyptus and fresh mountain air, and another subtle note she’d yet to put her finger on. Despite having only met him twice, she would have known his scent anywhere: Constantinos Nicolaides, the human CEO of Galaxy Publishing, a man known as much for his curious combination of shocking good looks and disdain for romance as he was for his ruthless business dealings.

Galaxy, the largest publisher in the world, had been trying to acquire StarSerif Publishing for the better part of a year now. Normally, Constantinos Nicolaides controlled every aspect of Galaxy’s dealings from his reputedly opulent office suite on the top floor of the company’s headquarters in Chicago, but he’d made the unprecedented decision to take on the StarSerif’s negotiations in person after Angela and her three closest lieutenants, Mikael Naramore, Dick Hill, and Karen White, had all but laughed a lower-ranking Galaxy representative out of the room when, during a meeting in a Detroit hotel conference room, the poor man had suggested they sell out to the larger company.

Now she felt her blood rush inexplicably at the awareness of his presence, and in the instant before turning around to face him, she tried to deduce what tactic he was employing by showing up here today. The fact that Nicolaides had come unannounced to StarSerif’s hive, nestled in the beautiful “up north” region of Michigan’s lower peninsula, was not entirely shocking to her; the element of surprise could be useful in business negotiations. But the fact he’d made it into her her studio space without tripping any alarms or revealing himself to any of the sentries who would have informed her of his presence as soon as they’d become aware of it, made her wonder who exactly she was dealing with. Why would a hotshot publishing tycoon possess the stealth of a predator?

One thing Angela knew for sure: she was no man’s prey…

*****