That said—I’m okay.
Life moves on.
I’m tough. ;)
I would be remiss if I didn’t mention a couple characters who I loved. (This may sound weird because I talk about them like they’re people, but to me, they’re all very real and present on the daily.)
Ronnie Rousseau made me laugh every scene she was in. She was absolute perfection in my eyes. I guarantee we are not done with Ronnie and Jamichael’s vavavoom.
Moses Hollister fearlessly brought his newness to the cast and held his own against Sal—not an easy feat. And I’ll be honest, sometimes the new ones…they don’t flounder…but they don’t pop quite as well. Joe, from She/He, was another rare one who came pre-packaged and ready to go.
Cat Raniero surprised the hell out of me. I didn’t see her coming at all because up until her, we had seen so little of his family. I think I have a massive girlcrush on Cat.
Deacon Cruz showed up with his classic Buddhist biker monk mentality, which I expected, but he always imparts this wholistic philosophy in his dialogues with Sal. They will forever be my bromance boys since meeting up in Son of Saint.
Trudy Diaz kicked fucking ass. After she showed up at the airport, I laughed for hours.
Jaid /“Prissy Pants” imparted a heartfelt tenderness like I don’t think she’s ever had a chance to. She’s been bound to Kaci for a long time, too. In a way, Sal finding his freedom is giving way to Jaid finding hers as well. And for those who read Unspoken, you know what’s coming.
Emlee has existed since the very first pieces of Sal were crafted back in 2007. She gave me so many smiles with her endearing moments and I love the innocence she has with Sal.
These characters were my bright, shining stars ready for whatever and whenever, they brought their A-game in dealing with the mess of Sal and without them showing up on the first row, I don’t know that this book would’ve been the same. Much like we as readers have to deal with Sal, the rest of the cast has to deal with his highs and lows as well.
On any given day, Sal can run the spectrum from diva to this stealing from the rich to give to the poor-like character. And with that, I thought it was very important I centerstage his mental issues. He’s tragically flawed and beyond broken, but with this resolve and tenacity that doesn’t quit.
Originally, I had many mixed emotions about Iris, but I’ve grown to love her passion. She’s headstrong and feisty and everything Sal needs to keep him on his toes—whether he sees that or not.
In case you are wondering, I cannot wait for lattes and chocolate croissants. Keeping them apart and telling this as he has told it to me has been one of the greatest challenges of my writing career. I pray I do the characters justice and you enjoy their journey, but remember, I write with the flow; I never do hard outlines. I have a trigger word here or there, so as I’m writing it, I’m also reading it for the first time. And I cannot tell you how many times I wanted a reading buddy during this book.
Before I forget, many of the fangirls are aware my favorite sexy scene is the hotel scene in Juliet where Iris and Sal are first messing around. The scene with Sal and Jaid in Ronnie’s office “the sleepy sex scene” knocked the hotel scene out of first. It was just pure lust and love. I loved writing that scene.
I also loved the scene when he gets back from the club and Emily and him have at it. It was a great awakening for him to have this strange normalcy, but I think at least from my reading perspective, it was horribly tragic. Sal is so deeply rooted in BDSM and to have him shut that off is just—heartbreaking.
I rewrote and incorporated a few integral scenes from other works. I really wanted to attempt to do this because it’s this whole thought process that I’ve had since She/He—what he hears/sees is not what she hears/sees—the perspective can completely shift the scene from being lusty and wanton to omg, this bitch is crazy. It was my writerly challenge for this book to see if I could pull it off.
The scene when Amber visits Sal in prison was really important for me to include his perspective. I also included a scene where Anna is talking to Sal. I thought this was so important in tying things up. And with these rewritten scenes, I think it gives the reader more a sense of the timeline… Oh, this occurred then… type thing, especially since I’m a sadist author who doesn’t write in order.
So where do we go from here within the Sal world?
Every Minute I Love You (TAT3) should be out before year’s end and TAT4 will be out in spring 2020.
Juliet II and III are both on the desk.
TAT3 – JII – Hey Pretty – TAT4 – JIII
This is the final order they will come in and I’m doing this to organize my thought process as well as yours. If I had known what would occur within me as a writer—wanting to go backwards and forwards—I don’t know if I would’ve done it the same way, but it’s hindsight. I’m doing my best to fill gaps and bring everything up to date, so moving forward we should be in order unless I go dig up backstory on a side character.
Somewhere in all of that mess, Son of Master will show up. It deals with Sal and how he comes to know Jason Torrente.
As always, I am open to requests, if there is a story you want from a specific character, let me know and I’ll see what Sal and I can do.
Save the date – MAY 17, 2020 – will be the five-year anniversary of JULIET.
Hint. Hint. You do not want to miss it. Hint. Hint.
A couple of mentions because I’ve been asked:
* Dirty Little Secret (short story from MMM anthology) will be woven into TAT4 or Juliet III with Megan Folly’s storyline; she may get her own SRT (Sal Raniero Thriller under Kailee Samuels) at some point, but I’m not there yet.
* The Difference Between (short story from Stealing Virtue) will be coming after Juliet III next year, as a Sal Raniero Thriller with Eve, Eden, and Gabe Herrera (of Immortal).
Oh! And I almost forgot!
The 2019 Nocturne Annual The Red Shoes will be out on/around Halloween.
A Shimmering Dream (Nocturne Annual 2018) will be available in print only until Halloween 2019, you may purchase copies on Amazon or direct from my website. When the print copies are gone, they are gone. The e-book will remain available.
There are many people I want to thank.
To my BETA team: snickers, Bratty E, Stolen Halo, Boston Bitch, SnarK, Sweet Megan, Lady Mel, Chelle, and Meems, you have my unending love. You ladies take my shit on a daily basis and encourage me. Your sisterhood has stood vigilantly by me during the past few months, you’ve given me so much joy and amusement. You are all incredible, strong, beautiful women and I love each and every one of you. Thank you.
To my QUEENS/ARC ARMY, thank you for getting so excited and being the cheerleaders, you are. You’re constantly tickling me with your comments/memes and showing me how much you love Sal and me.
To my CHICKEN NUGGET, thank you for being my friend. You bring so much love and laughter to every conversation. You are my rock. You are a goddess. You are my fucking rock star. I love you. - Tater Tot
“I think changing your plan is breaking your thought process which is bad…
well, I watched you struggle and you do not typically struggle.
Not with Sal.
You know how it’s supposed to be.
Do not change it for a sale.
Or you are not being the true Ms. Samuels.”
– J-Man
To J-MAN, you sent this text message which changed the course of this book. You knew I was in a creative maelstrom, and you threw me a life rope. You were my continual phone-a-friend and I owe you. BIG TIME.
Thank you, Luce, for everything. More than words. – mizu
Holy shit I said a lot.
Well, I warned you.
Thank you for your support & love!
I recently wrote a post. I’m including it because I want to remember this.
May 29, 2019
I'm feeling a touch sentimental. Just a tad. And I'm going to ramble here on my page c
ause well, it's my page and I can do that. I think. Anywho..
Many, many moons ago, I wanted to write one book – start to finish. And the thing about that is when you're on that side of having not written a complete manuscript, it's like a big, gangly beast chasing you with flailing limbs. You're fairly certain this thing is OUT TO KILL YOU because like these characters won't shut up in your head and you simply MUST be crazy.
I did that OUTSIDE in the TEXAS heat starting in July 2014. I brought Juliet to life, but what I never imagined was that the instant I finished that last chapter, the second book would begin. I kind of decided to dig further into Iris & Sal's romance and wrote Salt Kissed Love for them and made to separate collections/books ("series") The Juliet Collection and a Tomb of Ashen Tears. Salt Kissed Love published Halloween 2017.
And my did y'all wanna kill Iris...
You cried for Sal and asked for more of them.
Twenty months ago.
Now, twelve books later...a helluva lot darker...and here we are sitting on the cusp (like 5 weeks+) of TAT2 releasing.
You stuck it out. You stayed with me.
Through Bleu's self-harm in A&E, Natalie's struggle with her demons in She/He, and Poppy and her domestic abuse gone taboo story.
YOU STUCK IT OUT. YOU STAYED WITH ME.
(I get I did, too...but this isn't about me.)
This is about every reader who was with me from the beginning and encouraging my journey and watching my evolution.
You stuck it out. You stayed with me.
Along the way, I've made a lot of friends – readers and authors. I've learned a lot. I've cried a lot. I've downed words like Xanax. And I said it exactly like that for a reason – writing is my drug of choice. If you are a writer, you understand. There is no greater elation than in creating those words on the page. I'd like to say – none of this has been easy. I'm an introvert and a misfit who is stuck in another world. And if you're taking the medicinal art of writing, you are emotionally/mentally going somewhere and striving for a goal to paint a picture, learn something, or make a damn statement.
You stuck it out. You stayed with me.
So, to all the girls – and a couple of guys – who've been here since day friggin one, this one is for YOU. It took me a while to get here. Twenty months.
Thank you for waiting on me.
Peace. Love. & Sal.
Walking in grace, forever yours…
k xx
I would like to personally thank Laura Euletta Blackshire Daniels for her Brown Sugar Praline Pound Cake recipe in the Sami’s Sinners Bake-Off Competition.
Laura Euletta Blackshire Daniels
Brown Sugar Praline Pound Cake
Cake Ingredients
* 1 cup dark brown sugar
* 1 cup light brown sugar
* 1 cup white sugar
* 1 1/2 cups salted butter
* 6 medium eggs
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1 cup milk
* 3 cups all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
Layer Mixture
* 1/2 cup walnuts or pecans toasted
* 1 tablespoons cinnamon
* 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
Directions
* Preheat oven to 325 degrees .Grease and flour a 10 inch bundt pan. Mix together the flour and baking powder; set aside.
* In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar and white sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs one at a time, then stir in the vanilla. Beat in the flour mixture alternately with the milk. Pour 1/2 batter into prepared pan. Sprinkle layer mixture then pour other 1/2 of the batter.
* Bake in the preheated oven for 60 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack and cool.
Praline Icing Ingredients
* 1/2 cup light brown sugar
* 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
* 5 tablespoons butter
* 1/4 cup milk
* 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
* 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
* 1 cup chopped toasted walnuts or pecan
Directions
In a medium sauce pot over medium heat whisk together the brown sugar, butter, and milk. Bring the mixture to a boil and boil for 1 minute. Remove the pot from the heat and whisk in the vanilla and powdered sugar until there are no lumps. Let cool until moisture is thick but still pourable. Drizzle over pound cake .
Join Kailee for water, wine, or whiskey at
KaileeReeseSamuels.com
Kailee Books
Sal’s Beginnings – The SOS Series
The Initiation
Tea for Two
Grunt
Hopechest
Sal’s Ugly Cry
22
Sal & Iris BDSM at The Juliet Academy
Juliet
Kinky Sex Magic - An Author’s Cut Novella
Sal & Iris Mafia Romance – TAT Books
Salt Kissed Love
Famous Last Words
Every Minute I Love You
Sal’s Inner Circle – RIDE Series
Fluff
Bounce
Raw
Fantasy – Nocturne Series (Limited Release)
A Shimmering Dream
Sal’s Unholy Bromances – SONS Series
Son of Saint
Son of Angel
Son of Cirque
Son of Master
Dark Romance/Psychological Standalones
A&E
She (She/He Book 1)
He (She/He Book 2)
Poppy
Bad Girl
Sal Raniero Thrillers (Assassin)
Unspoken (Prequel to Hey Pretty)
Series Bound Sets
The Story of Salvatore
Ride
She/He: A Dark Romance Duet
Hop onboard the Kailee Train:
KaileeReeseSamuels.com
Suggested reading order on my website under:
Sal’s Reading List
Join my mailing list:
http://bit.ly/KaileeTrain
Famous Last Words (a Tomb of Ashen Tears Book 2) Page 61
