Calling all book lovers looking for new romance horror books in 2023: In which I tell you about the wild card

Posted on by Megan

There was something special about the starlet. Nechai noticed this right away. She noticed everything about everyone, but must people didn’t intrigue her, not like this, not in a way that made her not only notice but stop and pay attention.

The starlet was still a budding star back then. She would have made it into the spotlight on her own eventually, Nechai was sure of that. But the starlet wanted it now.

Don’t we all.

Thing is, Nechai could give it to her. Just as the starlet wanted it. And all right now.

And so she did.

But the starlet wasn’t satisfied with having it all. Of course not. She was ambitious. She was insatiable.

And she was cunning.

It hurt Nechai to let Fausten take what she wanted, knowing it would cost their friendship and foreseeing where the girl’s choice would land her, but Nechai has no regrets about letting Fausten turn herself into the most intriguing human…

Well… she can’t really say alive now, can she?

So no, maybe not alive, not quite, but definitely still the most intriguing.

And now that Fausten’s neverending machinations have set their sights on the college girl…

Well…

There’s no way Nechai is missing the show.

And neither should you.

GIRL, INCORRUPTED is available now!. Find order options here.

And join my newsletter to read the first hundred pages free!

For Readers Looking for New Romance Horror Books 2023: in which I tell you about the boss

Posted on by Megan

All Conlin ever wanted to do was own his own theater. Live acts. Vaudeville. He’d be the emcee. The spotlight. The energy. The fun.

And now he has it.

L’Aornum Theatre. Sure, the century-old building’s a work in progress, but the location ain’t bad. Portland’s cultural district is filled with the strange, with people who appreciate weird and are happy to pay for live entertainment. It’s got a lively pool of local performers too. No one name-brand, maybe. But a roster to fill the bill. Enough to make a solid start at any rate.

Imagine his delight when he found out that one of the hottest and most mysterious up and coming acts of recent years had not only resurfaced but had moved out of Los Angeles and was looking for a new theater to call home. He made an offer, certain the woman wouldn’t come north and take a chance on him.

But she did. And all of a sudden Conlin’s theater had a headliner.

All he needs now is some more money to continue fixing up his theater and, most excitingly, to start producing his own full-length show. He’s already started planning the costumes.

Fortunately his new star has brought along some fans who apparently like to travel—and have deep pockets to boot.

I’ll tell you about the most intriguing one tomorrow.

For Romance-Horror Book Lovers: In which I tell you about the knight

Posted on by Megan

Guy met Fausten and Petty at a one-off show. Being around them, around Fausten, was such an upgrade at first. Guy had never witnessed such confidence. Within weeks, their acts had merged together seemlessly, organically. And when their success began to snowball? What else can you do when everything you’ve ever wanted is being handed to you piece by piece but sit back and grin as it slots itself into place all around you? And to think there was still so much more to come.

But Fausten didn’t want to chase a snowball. She wanted to stand with her arms outstretched as she was bombarded with an avalance. She wanted matured success and she wanted it now, and damn everyone else.

Literally.

It took everything Guy had to tell her he was leaving. Not because of her, exactly, though he’d miss who he’d thought she was, but because of their mounting success. Did lightening strike twice? And were the odds better or worse when it only hit you the first time after bouncing off the person you were working with? Guy didn’t know. But he couldn’t let fear that he’d already peaked keep him with Fausten, not with the way she was achieiving that success.

No, after her accident, it wasn’t fear that kept Guy with Fausten. It was guilt. Guilt that he hadn’t done more to rein her in. Followed by a sense of duty to do what he could to rein her in now.

Because even in her current condition, she still needs reining in.

Fortunately their new boss is up to the task. It took 18 months to get this opportunity with L’Aornum Theatre, a smaller, much less prestitious theater than the Orphic Starlight, that’s for sure. But Guy liked the owner. The man would probably never learn the truth about Fausten, not really, but he was a rare guy, the kind where lack of knowledge didn’t make him a fool. Their new boss was probably the only person who refused to put up with Fausten’s shit. Guy liked him a lot.

I’ll tell you all about him tomorrow.

Check out Girl, Incorrupted by Megan Bledsoe and join my newsletter to read the first hundred pages of Girl, Incorrupted!!!

For Love-Horror Hybrid Readers: In which I tell you about the Minion

Posted on by Megan

He’s moody. He’s curt. And he’s devoted to Fausten. He does her hair, her makeup. Her style, too—not that there’s too much of that to do anymore, now that her style’s become so iconic. Like Marilyn. Or Audrey. You know?

Moody, devoted… but also angry. He remembers that night when he called Fausten to tell her they’d booked the Orphic Starlight.

The Orphic. Freaking. Starlight.

She’d been thrilled, of course—of course she’d been thrilled. But Petty thought she’d sounded distracted. The Orphic Starlight! How could anything else matter when they’d worked so hard for exactly this opportunity. And the theater had called them.

But Fausten didn’t want to celebrate with him. She said she had something else more important to do.

The next time Petty saw her, she’d been this strange combination of in awe and freaked out. And that week, as they prepared for the show, Petty had warned her not to get distracted. He’d tried to get Fausten to refocus on their act, on their dreams.

But he should have tried harder. And he would have had he known just what had her distracted and what it would cost them.

And boy had it cost them.

And all because Fausten didn’t like to hear the word no. From anyone.

I’ll tell you who said no to her first, tomorrow…

Check out Girl, Incorrupted by Megan Bledsoe and join my newsletter to read the first hundred pages of Girl, Incorrupted!!!

Botticelli’s Birth of Venus

Posted on by Megan

This is a part of The Birth of Venus, a painting by Botticelli. As you may have heard, I’m doing a page-a-day on my substack. We just finished Chapter 4, which has a scene that takes inspiration from this painting.

Curious? Come read...

For Readers Looking for a Love-Horror Hybrid Book: in which I tell you about the starlet nemesis

Posted on by Megan

The starlet wasn’t from around here. She had never met Daphne and Andy, had never heard or known anything about them. At least not until Andy had said what he’d said about her poster…and given the starlet an opportunity to practice her new poster skills.

Let me explain.

It had annoyed her back when Petty had slathered her posters all over the ceiling above her bed while she’d been—well, “recovering” isn’t exactly the right word, but I guess it’ll have to do—while she’d been recovering after her accident.

Eighteen months. She couldn’t believe it had already been eighteen months since the best and worst night of her life. Since then, she’d made barely any progress in the more obvious areas of desired recovery. But in other, much less obvious areas?

Let’s just say that she’s her toughest critic, and even she was impressed.

And now that Daphne and Andy were on her radar and her new skills were reaching their pique, the starlet’s posters might just help her make a full recovery in those yet-to-improve areas.

Petty. Thank goodness for Petty and for his insistance that she remain focused on her dreams, no matter what her current condition. She would kiss him if she could.

I’ll tell you more about him tomorrow…

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For Readers of Romance-Horror Novels: in which I tell you about the reluctant boyfriend

Posted on by Megan

You might say Andy was one of those who went the other other way. He grew up in a house with a mom, a dad, and two sisters. All seemed fine. Ideal even. At least on the outside.

Let me explain.

His mom was…is…different.

And his dad is stuck.

Andy loves his father. But he doesn’t ever, ever, want to end up like him: Stuck with someone who seems to have flipped a switch, who isn’t anything like who they used to be, at least not on the inside, not anymore.

To Andy, there was only one way to avoid this. Sure, things happen. But it’s usually cause and effect. Dominoes. If you don’t set them up, let alone push the first one down, then there’s nothing to watch fall.

In other words, it’s one thing to have a college girlfriend. But after that, when life is getting real, it’s better to only have to be responsible for yourself, to be independent, self-reliant. Andy hasn’t truly seen what it’s like to live like that, but after watching his dad…the idea has appeal.

And so Andy’s been coasting. Nothing future needs to be decided today. Probably not tomorrow either. Why not save after-graduation things for…after graduation? School is what’s most important right now. School and setting himself up for financial independence.

Until then, Andy would prefer to stay in the moment, to have fun and keep things light. Daphne‘s been his girlfriend for two years now, and she’s the best. And if he were being honest with himself, he might even acknowledge that she could be the best for the long term, for after graduation and beyond. Andy never thought that idea would tempt him, but Daphne… she keeps things fun and light.

At least she did until recently. Until the thing that happened on New Year’s Eve, and now again tonight at the party.

And that thing Andy said on the walk home? He was just trying to lighten the mood, what with that thing he said about the girl in the poster…

All tell you more about her tomorrow.

Join my newsletter to read the first hundred pages of Girl, Incorrupted!!

Calling all Romance Horror Readers! You might say Andy was one of those who went the other other way... Check out Girl, Incorrupted by Megan Bledsoe!

For Readers of Love-Horror Hybrid Books: In which I tell you about the Stumptown co-ed

Posted on by Megan

Hers isn’t a last-girl-standing kind of story. In fact, in someone else’s story, Daphne James might be one of the first to go. But that’s only because she’s willing to take risks to get what she wants. Even when it scares her.

Let me explain.

Daphne was raised by a young and often single mom who had a…let’s call it an “active social life.” There was a lot to admire about her mother, but this part of her wasn’t something that appealed to Daphne. Quite the opposite really.

Sure, Daphne’s mother had gotten it right once. But for reasons beyond anyone’s control, it didn’t last. And neither had any of the options that had come afterwards. Other people in Daphne’s situation might have shunned relationships altogether. Better to need nobody, to be independent and self-reliant. But between relationships, Daphne’s mother had helped her to see what that option was like, too. And so Daphne ended up going the other way.

She became determined to find and claim “the one” for her as soon as possible—and to get it right the first time.

She didn’t know when it would happen, obviously, but when she met Andy her sophomore year of college, it seemed like everything was on track. She’d be sending save-the-dates by the time she graduated.

But it’s now Daphne’s senior year. The first day of winter term. And Andy is…

Stalling?

It’s tough to tell. Sometimes he’s hard to read. But tonight, after the party, he’ll speak loud and clear. And his words will prime Daphne to take her first risk to move things forward with Andy.

I’ll tell you more about him tomorrow…

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Like Romance Horror Books?

Posted on by Megan

I would have done anything for Andy. But the night I vandalized the starlet’s poster, I began wondering how to make Andy do anything for me.

So begins…

Girl, Incorrupted: a love-horror story

With magical lore, all the feels, and ominous characters who haunt the page, this romance-horror novel is about a young woman following her darker impulses with regards to love and entangling herself with a monster rarely seen before, a—

Well…

You know how to find out.

> Start reading page 1

Like horror romance books?

Posted on by Megan

If you like romance horror books, or horror romance novels, or, as I prefer to call this one—

a love-horror story

—then feast your eyes on Daphne, Fausten, Andy, Guy, Conlin, Petty, and Nechai.

Or at least, feast your eyes on some book quotes about them.

In other words…

Let’s Roll Out Some Character Introductions!

Wait, which character is which archetype?

Yes, well, wouldn’t you like to know.

Oh, wait! You can!

Let me explain…

The Girl, Incorrupted Page-A-Day

I’m doing a read-a-page-a-day on my substack newsletter. This means that you can start reading this book that won’t actually, technically be available until September 12, 2023—Right—Now!

Really!

> Start reading page 1 RIGHT NOW

How much can I read?

As of today, July 2, we’re just starting chapter 4. There’s something like 30 or so pages posted so far. It’s a nice chunk of reading, a good taste of the goods.

Course, there are a couple of those character/archetypes that haven’t yet made an appearance by the beginning of Chapter 4, but fret not. Tomorrow is another page…

> Start reading page 1 RIGHT NOW