An Excerpt from Disputed Boundaries by Regina Kammer #HistoricalRomance #bisexual #polyamory

Part of the Naughty Spice: Naughty is the New Nice! anthology by bestselling authors writing as The Naughty Literati!


Pre-order Now at 99¢! Today only!
Price goes up to $2.99 on February 6, 2018


Find it here:




Blurb:
Garrison life along the disputed Canadian-U.S. border is so uneventful Royal Marine Braxton Thorne mostly just fools around with his fiancée Tilda. But when American adventurer Gideon Roberts provokes unexpected desires, Braxton finds himself in a war over the boundaries of his heart.

Excerpt:
Copyright © Regina Kammer, 2016

Royal Marine garrison, San Juan Island, 1 December 1869

There is an aching in my heart which I barely understand. An emptiness, a void made more bleak by winter’s burgeoning desolation.

It began when Gideon left.

A man…there have been times when a man has incited a spark of passion within. Always have I buried that desire, restraining the urge to act upon it. To do so is essential. Society finds love between two men aberrant.

But Gideon has affected me in a new and exciting way. I could not restrain myself.

And I do not regret it.

Our attachment is an unlikely one: I a soldier for the crown, he a free-spirited American adventurer. He was here merely visiting. I would not be here if it were not for this “war”—although the epithet is unwarranted. Since the occupation of this island began, there has been little antagonism. It is a border dispute, not a philosophical battle between our two nations. We British are cordial to the Americans and vice versa. At times, this good rapport develops into genuine friendship.

Yet, to form such a deep connection as Gideon and I have is extraordinary.

And for this yearning for his company to burn inside me is exceptional. Never before has the absence of a man caused such a hunger.

But what if Tilda were to find out? Would she doubt I love her as well?

Braxton Thorne rested his pen next to the inkwell and stared at the words drying on the open page of his journal.

Good God. What if Tilda found out? She had bemoaned his spending time with Gideon to the detriment of spending time with her. Might she suspect something unnatural fed upon him driving his need to be with the American?

Would she report him to his commanding officer for immorality?

No. Surely Tilda understood the flush of excitement with a new friendship. And she had been there the day they met…

About the Author

Regina Kammer is a librarian, an art historian, and an award-nominated, best-selling, multi-published writer of erotica and historical erotic romance. Her short stories and novels make history sexier, whether the era is Roman, Byzantine, Viking, American Revolution, or Victorian. She’s even sexed up contemporary settings, Steampunk, and Greco-Roman mythology. She has been published by Cleis Press, Go Deeper Press, Ellora’s Cave, House of Erotica, Story Ink, Loose Id, The Naughty Literati, and her own imprint, Viridium Press. She began writing historical fiction with romantic elements during National Novel Writing Month 2006, switching to erotica when all her characters suddenly demanded to have sex.

Subscribe to Kammerotica News

Keep up with Regina on her website

Follow her on Twitter @Kammerotica

Or Google+

On Instagram

Or on Pinterest

Like her on Facebook

Connect with her on Goodreads

See what’s new on her Amazon Author Page

Follow her on Bookbub

An Excerpt from Window Display by Regina Kammer #ContemporaryRomance

Part of the Getting Naughty: Twenty Tantalizing Tales anthology


Pre-order Now! Only 99¢!
Price goes up to $2.99 on release day, January 23, 2018


Find it here:





Blurb:
The apartment in Zurich was supposed to be the perfect disruption-free place to finish my dissertation. Trouble is, my room came with a very distracting view.

Excerpt:
Copyright © Regina Kammer, 2015

“Date anyone lately?”

She plunked a glass of iced tea in front of me as I ate amazingly good cheese and bread in the dining room. A humid breeze blew through the open sliding-glass door to the east balcony, the smell of freshly mowed lawn wafting up from the low rolling grassy common below.

I laughed darkly while a vision of me eating Little Man Goody Cao all by myself danced in my brain. “No.”

“Hmm.” Megan lifted a brow as she sat across from me.

“I’m too busy to fuss with online dating.” That’s what people did these days, wasn’t it?

“Surely there must be other grad students?”

“We’re all busy. And a lot of them are already married. With children.”

Megan sighed. “Well, it must be difficult to find a man in whatever it is you’re doing. Feminist Studies, is it?”

“Women’s Studies, Meg. And it’s only my emphasis.”

I scowled at her, but her eyes twinkled with joviality.

I shook my head. “There are a couple of great guys in Classics. Maybe when I’m finished―”

Megan threw up her hands. “Stop making excuses, Laur. It’s always after you finish this thing or that. The last time it was translating some Greek.”

I’d finished that well over a year ago.

She started to say something, then thought better of it. I gulped a swallow of tea and stared out the window.

To a perfect view of a naked guy.

A very hot naked guy.

I almost spit out my beverage.

He was in the building across the common. He was tall and blond, lanky but athletic, and framed by the large double window of his living room. He left and was out of sight for only a moment. He then re-appeared in the barely frosted glass of the bathroom shower stall and began to, um, well, bathe…rubbing soap all over…flexing and bending into the spray of water…grabbing and washing his—

Heat rose in my face. “Oh. My. God.”

Megan giggled. “That’s Christoph.”

“Christoph?” I squeaked.

“I used to watch him all the time. But after we became friends, it was sort of weird.” Megan sipped her tea. “He works at Parker’s company.” She eyed me. “He’s single.”

I eyed her right back. “And lives in Switzerland.”

She shrugged. “So you have a summer fling.”

About the Author

Regina Kammer is a librarian, an art historian, and an award-nominated, best-selling, multi-published writer of erotica and historical erotic romance. Her short stories and novels make history sexier, whether the era is Roman, Byzantine, Viking, American Revolution, or Victorian. She’s even sexed up contemporary settings, Steampunk, and Greco-Roman mythology. She has been published by Cleis Press, Go Deeper Press, Ellora’s Cave, House of Erotica, Story Ink, Loose Id, The Naughty Literati, and her own imprint, Viridium Press. She began writing historical fiction with romantic elements during National Novel Writing Month 2006, switching to erotica when all her characters suddenly demanded to have sex.

Subscribe to Kammerotica News

Keep up with Regina on her website

Follow her on Twitter @Kammerotica

Or Google+

On Instagram

Or on Pinterest

Like her on Facebook

Connect with her on Goodreads

See what’s new on her Amazon Author Page

Follow her on Bookbub

An Excerpt from Silent Sky by Regina Kammer #ContemporaryRomance

Part of the Getting Naughty: Twenty Tantalizing Tales anthology


Pre-order Now! Only 99¢!
Price goes up to $2.99 on release day, January 23, 2018


Find it here:





Blurb:
I watched in horror as the twin towers collapsed, trying to remember if I’d told Scott I loved him before he left for New York.

Excerpt:
Copyright © Regina Kammer, 2015

“Jennie?” said the gorgeous guy I’d been ogling surreptitiously since the second he’d walked through the front door. “Hi. I’m Scott. Happy Birthday.” He stuck out his hand.

I smiled and tried not to melt under the intensity of his olive-green gaze as I shook his hand. His grip was strong, assertive, and compelling.

It was my thirtieth birthday and my friend Daphne was throwing me a “bring a single man” party at her flat in San Francisco. All my girlfriends were partnered, but I was the black sheep of the bunch. Perennially single with a string of atrocious short-term boyfriends and one-night-stands.

I met a lot of random guys that night, some of them even gay. (“Well, he’s single!”) Scott arrived late, and I had turned at the sound of the doorbell in hopeful anticipation. He chatted with Daphne briefly before heading straight over to me, wending his way through the cliques of party guests. My heart pumped blood to flush my face, frustrating my attempts to maintain my cool.

Physically he was everything I had fantasized about—and more. Tall, but not too tall. Green eyes, but a shade I had never expected. Brown hair, longish and tousled. Athletic frame covered by a button-down shirt and black jeans. Which meant he actually thought about what to wear to a stranger’s birthday party. He posed gallantly before me with one hand behind his back, as if he were going to bow.

“Hi. Thanks,” I said, still a little dazzled by his perfection.

“I’m a friend of Dave’s—Daphne’s brother.” He glanced around at the noisy throng. “Sorry I’m late. I’m working on this big report. I had to get it done.”

“You’re not late. We haven’t even had cake yet.”

He beamed. “Seriously? That’s the best part.”

“It totally is, isn’t it?” I giggled, nervousness edging my mirth. “And now you’re here we can get the party started.”

Lines like that were usually how I got all those losers in bed.

Except Scott blushed. And pulled his hand from behind his back to present me with a beautiful bouquet: red carnations set off by orange dahlias and yellow sunflowers, splashed with a touch of baby’s breath.

I think I gasped. It was by far the most romantic thing anyone had ever done for me.

After that, except for the few moments I was expected to blow out the candles on my cake, I found myself by Scott’s side the entire night.

About the Author

Regina Kammer is a librarian, an art historian, and an award-nominated, best-selling, multi-published writer of erotica and historical erotic romance. Her short stories and novels make history sexier, whether the era is Roman, Byzantine, Viking, American Revolution, or Victorian. She’s even sexed up contemporary settings, Steampunk, and Greco-Roman mythology. She has been published by Cleis Press, Go Deeper Press, Ellora’s Cave, House of Erotica, Story Ink, Loose Id, The Naughty Literati, and her own imprint, Viridium Press. She began writing historical fiction with romantic elements during National Novel Writing Month 2006, switching to erotica when all her characters suddenly demanded to have sex.

Subscribe to Kammerotica News

Keep up with Regina on her website

Follow her on Twitter @Kammerotica

Or Google+

On Instagram

Or on Pinterest

Like her on Facebook

Connect with her on Goodreads

See what’s new on her Amazon Author Page

Follow her on Bookbub

The Westerman Affair #NewRelease #HistoricalRomance #Erotica by Regina Kammer

The Westerman Affair is out!!

An acclaimed painter. His provocative muse. Her obliging husband.
The Westerman Affair.
A tale of spanking and polyamory in the Victorian art world

This is my first new full-length novel in a very long time and I am really excited to share it with you! (Isn't the cover gorgeous?!)

Amazon USA * Amazon UK * Amazon Canada * Amazon Australia

Barnes & Noble/Nook Press

Google Play

iBooks/iTunes

Kobo USA * Kobo Canada * Kobo Australia * Kobo New Zealand * Kobo UK * Kobo South Africa

Loose Id

The Artist
Charles Westerman, Victorian England’s most sought-after landscape painter, is finished with love affairs. Yet after a taste of forbidden passion at a private art exhibition, he knows he’s met his muse in Rosamund. Problem is she’s married. For the sake of his career, Charles simply cannot afford to be distracted by another disastrous entanglement, especially one with a married woman.

The Muse
Art curator Rosamund, Lady Threxton, needs a man to satisfy her predilection for spanking. Her husband, Jeremy, does not relish the role of chastiser and, besides, has his own mistress to please. Jeremy, however, is quite amenable to Rosamund seeking out another. Hired men from her favorite erotic club provide her with only a modicum of relief. The furtive fling with Charles, though, leaves Rosamund certain she’s found her perfect match.

The Arrangement
Rosamund and Jeremy’s marriage is curiously modern for stodgy Victorian society. Together, the couple try to entice Charles into an unusual arrangement. Will Charles risk the threat to his reputation to explore passions and proclivities he never knew existed—and discover desires he never knew he had?

The Westerman Affair
A tale of spanking and polyamory in the Victorian art world.

Add The Westerman Affair to your Goodreads shelves!

For excerpts, reviews, and more see the book page on my website!

About the Author

Regina Kammer is a librarian, an art historian, and an award-nominated, best-selling, multi-published writer of erotica and historical erotic romance. Her short stories and novels make history sexier, whether the era is Roman, Byzantine, Viking, American Revolution, or Victorian. She’s even sexed up contemporary settings, Steampunk, and Greco-Roman mythology. She has been published by Cleis Press, Go Deeper Press, Ellora’s Cave, House of Erotica, Story Ink, Loose Id, The Naughty Literati, and her own imprint, Viridium Press. She began writing historical fiction with romantic elements during National Novel Writing Month 2006, switching to erotica when all her characters suddenly demanded to have sex.

Keep up with Regina on her website

Subscribe to her newsletter Kammerotica News

Read her blog

Follow her on Twitter @Kammerotica

Or Google+

Like her on Facebook

Connect with her on Goodreads

See what’s new on her Amazon Author Page

Excerpt from Swing Follies by Regina Kammer

Part of the NAUGHTY PHANTASIA boxed-set, available now!


Find it here:



Blurb:
Blimey. Delia’s besotted. With Edward. But when an old flame from Edward’s revolutionary past swings by and steams up the laboratory, has Delia missed her chance at love?
*Published in a previous Naughty Literati anthology.*


Copyright © Regina Kammer, 2017

Excerpt:

Newcastle, England
April 1879

Professor Edward Ockham gripped the ratchet handle more tightly as a frisson of lust roiled within. Before him his lovely assistant Delia Bennett awkwardly adjusted herself in a swing suspended four feet above the linoleum, her skirt and petticoats in riotous disarray. She was charming in her helplessness. Her arms, secured by leather wrist cuffs, stretched above her head. Her stocking-clad legs, extended and splayed, were held in the air by silken slings supporting each ankle and knee. Her rosy cheeks and bemused expression were slightly at odds with the bizarre eroticism of her predicament.

“Delia?”

The sound of her name tripping off his tongue echoed like a melody in the cavernous laboratory, the gentle hiss and thrum of the boiler adding a syncopated undertone.

Delia. No longer the more formal Miss Bennett during working hours. She was, by agreement, Delia.

He could say her name over and over and over again. Delia, Delia, Delia.

Her chocolatey eyes widened. “Yes, Profess—Edward?”

Edward. She was Delia and he was Edward.

“Are you comfortable?”

She wriggled her buttocks, each pillowy cheek cradled in its own sling leaving her quim exposed to the air. “Perhaps something across my bum, you know, a bolster above the crack—” She suddenly blushed crimson to the roots of her raven curls.

The door to the laboratory swung open with a dramatic flair.

“Well, well, well. What have we here?” Sebastian Broadchurch sauntered in from the hall, a little rumpled from whom and whatever he had done the night before. He stopped before Delia, his predatory stare traversing her as he combed his fingers through his flaxen hair. “Our Miss Bennett finds herself in yet another delicious quandary.”

“Good morning, Sebastian.” Edward arched a brow. Morning had but a minute left to it.

Sebastian brandished a scowl before turning his attention to the rigging holding Delia. He pursed his lips as he studied the mechanism. His gaze followed the silken slings upward to where they attached to a swivel bolt mounted to a cable. He perused the cable to where it connected to a system of belts and pulleys housed on a sturdy wooden frame. He glanced at the diminutive steam engine then grunted in comprehension as he took in the exposed gear shaft and long ball-end lever of the control box.

“It spins, does it?” he said.

“It does,” replied Edward.

Excerpt from Hot As Hades by Regina Kammer

Part of the NAUGHTY PHANTASIA boxed-set, available now!


Find it here:



Blurb:
After living in Hell for four months, Persephone returns home to the mortal realm. But can home truly be home without the man she loves?
*Published in a previous Naughty Literati anthology.*


Copyright © Regina Kammer, 2017

Excerpt:

Hades slumped in his golden throne, drumming his fingers on his knee, his other hand barely holding his blood-red wine goblet. Tiny waves of fragrant liquor sloshed over the rim as he balanced the cup with two fingers on either side of the stem.

A ker scurried over to refill his cup every time it reached half empty. After the tenth time he waved the servant away. The attempts by his staff to satisfy his every desire were getting bothersome and tiring.

He had only one desire. And she was back home visiting her damn mother. A growl of displeasure rose in his throat. He was expected to wait how many months? Eight?

Zeus had promised his daughter, then had made good on the promise. The maiden had been exactly where the God of Gods had said she would be.

Hades stared at the golden chair next to him. His queen should be sitting at his side at that very moment. Even the usually fierce Kerberos looked dejected lying on his pillow between the thrones, three chins atop two crossed paws. The canine guard sighed as his three pairs of eyes stared dolefully at the empty seat his mistress used to occupy.

Hades downed the contents of the half-filled wine glass. Damn it all to Hell! It wasn’t right. He had captured the maiden fair and square and then her mother had to go and ruin it all.

He threw the goblet into the fire pit fronting the dais. Shards of glass exploded in a dazzling display of gold flames tipped with flares of white.

Gold like her hair. White like that dangerously sexy slip of a dress she had been wearing when he first grabbed her. The filmy fabric had exaggerated the tender curves of her nubile body. Before they made love for the first time, he had easily torn the chiton clean off.

Fuck. He was hard just thinking about it.

Hades gripped the arms of the throne chair, futilely digging his nails into the hot metal, then stood.

Well, maybe he’d just go grab her right back.

Excerpt from Delia's Heartthrob by Regina Kammer

Part of the NAUGHTY PHANTASIA boxed-set, available now!


Find it here:



Blurb:
Gadzooks! Valentine’s Day is fast approaching – what’s a scientist to do? Edward knows naught of romance. Can steam power prevail over chocolates to win Delia’s heart?
*Published in a previous Naughty Literati anthology.*


Copyright © Regina Kammer, 2017

Excerpt:

A thwack and a curse presaged Edward’s entry into the lab. He stumbled in from his office, bleary-eyed, his brown curls disheveled, his shirtsleeves rolled to the elbow. Whatever Sebastian had done to him last night or this morning—or both—had been clearly far too strenuous. Delia sighed. Sometimes all Edward needed was a cuddle.

He pawed through the drawers of the tool cabinet. “Seb, have you seen my—”

He glanced over his shoulder and froze, staring at Delia, his cheeks rosy under fine stubble, the color deepening as his gaze swept over her thighs.

He turned to face them. “Sebastian,” he asked, now seemingly mesmerized by Delia’s exposed knickers. “Whatever are you working on?”

Sebastian beamed. “I call it the Broadchurch Phalangical Restraint System.”

Delia rolled her eyes. How typical of Sebastian to name the invention after himself.

Edward scowled as he approached. “Is this for one of those clandestine establishments you frequent?” He ran his fingers over the segments of a metal hand, so tantalizingly close to the bare thigh above Delia’s stocking. He no longer blushed, instead his lips and forehead twisted in a thoughtful expression.

“Yeah,” Sebastian said. “Dominick’s.”

Edward’s pinky strayed to her inner thigh. A frisson of lust tore through her, melting her insides, like the ganache centers of the bonbons she had indulged in the night before.

Edward paled and snatched his hand away.

“Miss Bennett,” he said as if just noticing her. “Good morning.”

Delia’s heart pounded, no doubt sending blood to color her cheeks the same red as her frilly knickers. “Good morning, Professor Ockham.”

Join me at #Passport2Romance! by Regina Kammer

Want to meet me, historical erotic romance author Regina Kammer, in person?

Of course you do!

I will be a featured author at the Passport to Romance Reader Appreciation Event sponsored by the Emerald City Writers' Conference!

This evening cocktail -- or "booktail" -- party is free to all and will be held Saturday, October 14th, 6pm-8pm, at the Bellevue Westin Hotel, Bellevue (near Seattle), Washington.

The first 100 readers to arrive will receive a goody bag with lots of author swag, including a download card for a copy of my historical erotic romance The Pleasure Device (Harwell Heirs Book 1)!

I will also be giving away:
- 5 paperback copies of The Pleasure Device (Harwell Heirs Book 1)
- 10 additional download cards for ebook editions of The Pleasure Device (Harwell Heirs Book 1) – for those who did not get a goody bag
- 3 copies of the now-rare naked lady cover edition of The General’s Wife: An American Revolutionary Tale – by request only!
- 2 copies of the now-rare naked butt cover edition of Hadrian and Sabina: A Love Story – by request only!
- promo cards and bookmarks


What: Passport to Romance Reader Appreciation Event, an informal cocktail party
Where: Bellevue Westin Hotel, 600 Bellevue Way NE, Bellevue (near Seattle), Washington
When: Saturday, October 14th, 6pm-8pm
Who: Meet Regina Kammer and other romance writers! Plus cover models!
Cost: Free!

For more information see the Passport to Romance webpage!

About the Author

Regina Kammer is a librarian, an art historian, and an award-nominated, best-selling, multi-published writer of erotica and historical erotic romance. Her short stories and novels make history sexier, whether the era is Roman, Byzantine, Viking, American Revolution, or Victorian. She’s even sexed up contemporary settings, Steampunk, and Greco-Roman mythology. She has been published by Cleis Press, Go Deeper Press, Ellora’s Cave, House of Erotica, Story Ink, The Naughty Literati, and her own imprint, Viridium Press. She began writing historical fiction with romantic elements during National Novel Writing Month 2006, switching to erotica when all her characters suddenly demanded to have sex.

Keep up with Regina on her website

Subscribe to her newsletter Kammerotica News

Read her blog

Follow her on Twitter @Kammerotica

Or Google+

Like her on Facebook

Connect with her on Goodreads

See what’s new on her Amazon Author Page

American Revolution Erotic Romance for July 4th!

Tomorrow is the Fourth of July, also known as Independence Day, where Americans celebrate the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776, severing ties with Great Britain and starting the American Revolution.

So of course I've written some American Revolution erotic romance!

The General’s Wife: An American Revolutionary Tale

An English Lady and a handsome American Patriot in a battle for her heart – will she submit to the enemy?

Seduced Into Marriage
Lady Clara Hastings is forced to leave her beloved England by her wicked husband, the infamous British general Lord Jeremy Strathmore. They arrive upon the shores of the uncivilized American colonies amidst the outbreak of that young nation's struggle for independence.

Kidnapped And Held For Ransom
Among Strathmore's enemies is a man Clara secretly desires. As his captive, she learns of her husband's debauched and sadistic past, and discovers her own passions and proclivities.

A Quest For Freedom
In the clutches of Patriot fighters, Clara’s beliefs are challenged, her values are threatened, and she is caught up in a battle for her heart in the arms of a handsome American revolutionary.

Epic Passion During the American Revolution
The General's Wife: An American Revolutionary Tale is a high-heat historical romance set in New York of 1777. This coming of age action and adventure romance follows a young woman’s adventure as she discovers new desires in rebel arms. Each man she encounters enlightens her to the varieties of love, including that of a man for another man, a man for both men and women, and the excitement of mingling pain with pleasure.

Amazon * Barnes & Noble/Nook Press * Google Play * iBooks * Inktera * Kobo

Winter Interlude: An American Revolutionary Novelette

On a cold winter’s night in 1778, two patriot soldiers recall their first sensual encounter and ponder their future together with the women they love.

Winter Interlude: An American Revolutionary Novelette is a prequel and interquel companion piece to The General’s Wife: An American Revolutionary Tale. This story delves into the relationship between Captain Samuel Taylor and Lieutenant Patrick Hamilton. Much of the action of Winter Interlude takes place in the gap between Chapter Twenty-Three and Chapter Twenty-Four of The General’s Wife.

Winter Interlude: An American Revolutionary Novelette appears in Naughty Chances: Take A Chance on Romance produced by The Naughty Literati.

Amazon * Barnes & Noble/Nook Press * Google Play * Kobo

About the Author

Regina Kammer is a librarian, an art historian, and an award-nominated, best-selling, multi-published writer of erotica and historical erotic romance. Her short stories and novels make history sexier, whether the era is Roman, Byzantine, Viking, American Revolution, or Victorian. She’s even sexed up contemporary settings, Steampunk, and Greco-Roman mythology. She has been published by Cleis Press, Go Deeper Press, Ellora’s Cave, House of Erotica, Story Ink, The Naughty Literati, and her own imprint, Viridium Press. She began writing historical fiction with romantic elements during National Novel Writing Month 2006, switching to erotica when all her characters suddenly demanded to have sex.

Keep up with Regina on her website

Subscribe to her newsletter Kammerotica News

Read her blog

Follow her on Twitter @Kammerotica

Or Google+

Like her on Facebook

Connect with her on Goodreads

See what’s new on her Amazon Author Page

Romancing the Throne, or, The History of a Parthian Love Story by Regina Kammer

Naughty Getaways: Eleven Sultry Stories is out! And it includes my ancient world romance, “An Unexpected Discovery” set in Parthia, the kingdom to the east of the Roman Empire. My heroine, Roedogune, is based on an actual historic figure, a Parthian princess who, along with the Parthian imperial throne, was captured by the Romans during their invasion of Ctesiphon, the capital of the Parthian Empire.

Excerpt from An Unexpected Discovery by Regina Kammer

Part of the NAUGHTY GETAWAYS boxed-set, available now!

Naughty Getaways Ebook

Naughty Getaways in Print

Blurb:

A Parthian princess searching for the lost throne of her kingdom engages the services of a palace eunuch and discovers a treasure far more precious.

Genre/theme: 

Historical, Ancient World Parthian romance, princess, eunuch, Parthia, throne

Copyright ©Regina Kammer, 2017

They entered her apartment from the women’s gallery, stepping through the office to the antechamber. Nisa opened the door to the audience chamber, and Roedogune followed.

A flush crept up the back of her neck the moment she saw him.

He was young, about her age. Tall and slender, standing with confidence. Under his cap, black hair in perfect plaits fell to just above his shoulders. He wore the costume of a courtier, for that he most certainly was, his robe and tunic rich in decoration. Jewels glinted from the rings on his fingers. Gemstones hung in strands around his neck.

Amidst all his magnificent arrayment, one feature stood out.

He was beardless.

Of course. A eunuch. For such a man was indeed allowed to be alone in the presence of the princess.

“You are dismissed, Nisa.” Roedogune waited for her maidservant to leave before addressing the man.

She paced, studying him. His nose was strong and straight punctuating his confident demeanor. “My husband sent you?”

“Yes, my lady.” His voice was not deep and gruff as that of Gotarzes, but melodic with a masculine edge.

Roedogune stood directly before him. “Your name?”

“Arashis, my lady.”

Seeing a man’s cheeks and chin and mouth was something of a treat. The Roman soldiers of her captivity had been clean shaven, despite the fashion of their emperor Hadrian. A beard could create an illusion of vigor and virility. But here, laid bare before her, was an elegant strength, angles set off by the curves of luscious, full lips.

“Did my husband explain why he sent you?”

The briefest flick of a tongue wet the seam of his mouth. A delectable distraction until he spoke with that lulling voice.

“He said you had spent time in Rome. That you intended to maintain your communications with contacts you had made during this time. That you might require the services of one who knew the languages of the Parthian and Roman empires.” He shifted on his feet, bending slightly to reach behind him. He turned back holding a basket of scrolls.

Apprehension rattled her. “What are those?”

“Communications, my lady. From your contacts beyond our kingdom.”

“Gods above,” she muttered. Gotarzes had been holding on to the missives all this time. She picked up a scroll. The seal was unbroken. She exhaled relief.

“My lady, if I may be so bold, you seem agitated.”

She lifted her head only to gaze upon the kindness in the depths of his rich brown eyes. “It seems I have a great deal of correspondence to catch up on,” she said, tossing the scroll back in the basket.

How A Book Gets Its Cover #JABBIC #HistoricalRomance by Regina Kammer

Vote for my historical romance covers in the JABBIC!

It’s that time of year again, when everyone gets to vote in the JABBIC Readers’ Choice contest!

What’s the JABBIC? It’s Judge A Book By Its Cover (JABBIC), a well-known contest run every year by the Houston Bay Area Chapter of Romance Writers of America. It’s a super fun way to see lots of book covers by genre: Contemporary Romance, Historical, Inspirational, Mainstream, Romantic Suspense, Science Fiction/Fantasy/Paranormal, Sexiest Cover, and Young Adult.

This year I entered four of my covers, all in the Historical Romance category:
Imperial Warriors: Two Scorching Tales of the Roman Empire
The Pleasure Device (Harwell Heirs Book 1)
Disobedience By Design (Harwell Heirs Book 2)
Where Destiny Plays (Harwell Heirs Book 3)

They are all on page 4 of the JABBIC Historical category listing, and I’d love your 5-star votes!

From Idea To Cover

I thought I might share a bit of behind-the-scenes work involved with making a cover, from an author’s point of view.

It’s daunting trying to condense an entire novel down to one pictorial representation. I myself have tried to do it--both Imperials Warriors and Hadrian and Sabina are my own creations. For Hadrian, I used one of my own photos of the oculus of the Pantheon. The background of Imperial Warriors is one of my photos of Roman-era spoila.

However, I prefer to rely on a cover designer, and I have found an absolutely wonderful designer for my Harwell Heirs series, Dar Albert of Wicked Smart Designs.

Cover designers usually start with a questionnaire asking about the setting, time period, character physical descriptions, genre, mood, and any text that needs to be included such as a tagline. They also often ask about covers you like so they can have a sense of what the author is expecting or hoping for. And they will ask if you have any images in mind.

And then the designer works her artistic magic...

The Pleasure Device

This was the most difficult of the covers because I just didn’t know how to convey the idea of a Victorian vibrator (without an actual picture of one!). I decided on a Creative Commons image of a Tesla coil:

which, I hope, adds a science-y feel to the image.

I also wanted the heroine to be the provocateur in the romance clinch, as that fits Helena’s character, and Nicholas is reticent to fall in love at first. So many romance stock photos have the hero as the aggressor with the heroine swooning in his arms.

Below are the stock photo from Period Images and the eventual cover:


As you can see, the cover artist can do things like change hair color and add a bit of drama to the skirt.

Disobedience By Design

I had been unhappy with the cover for the Ellora’s Cave edition of this book. I really wanted a train on the cover, as railways are such a big part of the story (and the adventure!). But Ellora’s Cave said adding such a visual element would clutter the cover. When I got my rights back, I put on my new cover request form “Background image suggestion: Steam train”. I suggested an image from Period Images for the embracing couple. I was very happy with what I got!


Dar switched positions of the hero Joseph and heroine Sophia, and changed hair and dress color. And that train! I love the train! I don’t think the cover looks cluttered at all.

Where Destiny Plays

I had been even more unhappy with the Ellora’s Cave cover I was given for this book. It was a tense time as EC was beginning its long spiral to closure. So when I was given my rights back and a chance to redo the cover, I was ecstatic.

This was another one where I relied heavily on Dar’s design sense. The poem The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam is a favorite of the hero Arthur’s, so much so he developed something of a kink for a romanticized perception of the Near East. I put on my cover request form: “lavish Victorian Orientalism”. I think I yelped with glee when I saw the cover. This time the photo of the couple was from NovelStock.


That’s what a good cover designer can do for an author.

Don’t forget to vote for my gorgeous covers in the JABBIC!

N.B.: all watermarked stock images have been resized to 400 pixels on the longest side and linked to the original in accordance with current thumbnail fair use recommendations.

About the Author

Regina Kammer is a librarian, an art historian, and an award-nominated, best-selling, multi-published writer of erotica and historical erotic romance. Her short stories and novels make history sexier, whether the era is Roman, Byzantine, Viking, American Revolution, or Victorian. She’s even sexed up contemporary settings, Steampunk, and Greco-Roman mythology. She has been published by Cleis Press, Go Deeper Press, Ellora’s Cave, House of Erotica, Story Ink, The Naughty Literati, and her own imprint, Viridium Press. She began writing historical fiction with romantic elements during National Novel Writing Month 2006, switching to erotica when all her characters suddenly demanded to have sex.

Keep up with Regina on her website

Subscribe to her newsletter Kammerotica News

Read her blog

Follow her on Twitter @Kammerotica

Or Google+

Like her on Facebook

Connect with her on Goodreads

See what’s new on her Amazon Author Page