Hybrid Book Blitz: Masters and Mages by Alexis Duran (Excerpts + Giveaway)

BOOK ONE

Title: Touch of Salar

Author: Alexis Duran

Series: Masters and Mages #1

Re-Release Date: 6 May 2018

Genre: Fantasy, MM Romance, novella

BLURB

In a world ruled by tyrannical kings and fickle gods, the young monk M'lan finds himself at the center of royal intrigue as his healing powers attract the attention of his superiors. When he learns the handsome warrior whose body he’s tending to is not only a noble, but a king's assassin, any attachment to him might prove fatal. Despite the danger, he can't stop himself from falling in love. Can he risk the abandon of passion when a slip of the tongue might force his lover to execute him?

Major Jamil Jarka comes to the temple with one intention—heal his wounds so he can return to the fight against the rebellion. When the monk assigned to him turns out to be stunningly attractive, he sees this as a pleasant distraction, no more. But soon he finds himself becoming obsessed with M'lan and is torn between the fear of betrayal and the lure of love.

Sinister forces strive to turn the monk and the warrior against each other—a conflict neither will survive if they cannot trust their lives to love and the healing power of Salar.

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK

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BOOK TWO

Title: Blood of Salar

Author: Alexis Duran

Series: Masters and Mages #2

Re-Release Date: April 19th 2018

Genre: Fantasy, MM Romance

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M’lan, headmaster of the order of Ka’alar, and Jamil Jarka, king’s assassin, find their impossible love challenged to the utmost as a rebellion sweeps them apart, sending Jamil on a dangerous mission to assassinate the rebel leader, General Charvat. Unknown to anyone, Charvat is on his way to the temple to exploit the headmaster’s magical abilities.

When the rebel army arrives, M’lan is thrust into a struggle against political and personal dominance as Charvat attempts to break his resistance. Violence and death mount, awakening within M’lan both the powers of destruction and the desire for revenge.

On the trail of his prey, Jamil begins to question his devotion to M’lan as his once innocent lover transforms into a mage and invades the assassin’s thoughts and dreams. The closer Jamil draws to M’lan, the more he puts his life and his very soul at risk. Jamil soon realizes that his lover might prove to be more deadly than the man he was sent to kill.

A final confrontation between assassin and monk might destroy them both, but Jamil is relentless in his determination to rescue M’lan, knowing that only his love can master the mage.

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK

BOOK THREE

Title: Curse of Salar

Author: Alexis Duran

Series: Masters and Mages #3

Re-Release Date: May 7th 2018

Genre: Fantasy, MM Romance

BLURB

In the kingdom of Jahar, the rule of mages has been overthrown. Prince Dezra Luzan is being held prisoner in the ancestral palace. In order to stay alive, he pretends to be a drug-addicted wastrel, trusting no one, not even his lovers. Into his lonely existence comes a man who should be his sworn enemy; Captain Rayn Nevar. Dezra is irresistibly drawn to the rough soldier and his longing for a simple sexual encounter quickly builds into a dangerous obsession.

Captain Rayn Nevar knows he should stay away from Prince Dezra, but his desire for the beautiful young man overrides all common sense. Rayn soon finds himself protecting the prince from a plot to destroy the last of the mages. When treachery leads to Dezra's escape, he is at last free to unlock his long repressed powers. Only the arrival of a mysterious monk with powers greater than Dezra's stops the prince from using sorcery to destroy all who stand in his way, including Rayn.

As Jahar edges toward another war between masters and mages, Rayn must question his devotion to his increasingly deadly lover while Dezra must decide if ultimate power is worth the ultimate sacrifice.

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK

Find Masters and Mages on Goodreads

EXCERPT from Touch of Salar

Jamil strode through the cool temple corridors and noted that his hamstring had loosened and there was no sensation of a catch as he walked. He’d had the symptoms since that day fourteen passages ago when his instructor had struck him down. Maybe there was something to this healing-energy business after all. His mood felt lighter than it had in ages as he entered the treatment room, once again awash with the amber tones of dawn.

The monk M’lan stood just out of reach of the sun’s rays, head bowed. Strands of blond hair glinted as a gentle breeze stirred them. He did not react as Jamil entered, and he kept his eyes down, as was proper. This gave Jamil a chance to observe him more closely. The monk had been in his thoughts since the other morning, as a constant irritation and source of pointless distraction. All harmless enough, though time moved ever slower as he waited impatiently to feel the monk’s hands on him again.

Today the monk’s face was expressionless, a mask of inner peace and outward aloofness. Probably the sensual impact of the treatment was an inadvertent side effect. Slightly disappointed, Jamil wondered if he could cast a ripple across the smooth facade.

“Greetings of the dawn, M’lan,” Jamil said. He was rewarded with a quick, surprised look, a flash of umber eyes that became cold and distant as they lit on Jamil’s smile.

With eyes down again, the monk asked, “How are you feeling, Major?”

“Sore. You did hurt me, as promised. But that old sword wound has ceased to bother me, so it was worth it. Maybe today you can heal my hand.” He held out his injured right hand and tried to flex the fingers. They bent reluctantly, and he winced as he tried to close them farther.

“That, Major, will take time. As I said, we must start at the surface and work our way down.” “That seems backward to me. The sword wound on my leg happened when I was a lad. This is fresh.”

“It is the depth of the injury, not the age, that counts.”

“You’re the expert,” Jamil conceded. He let his robe drop and lay again on the table, determined this time to relax and not fight whatever sensations came, as they appeared to aid his healing.

Again a charge jolted him as M’lan laid hands on him, and then a warm tingling sensation along every nerve in his skin as fingers slid, smoothed, and dug into the seemingly endless knots in his muscles. Today the treatment was more businesslike, though the monk’s touch was pleasant and, in an odd way, comforting. Jamil felt like a pet cat being stroked by an attentive master. Master.

This image made him tense up somewhat. If he relaxed too much, the monk might gain the upper hand. That was ridiculous, but Jamil had rarely allowed anyone full control of his body. It seemed to him that they’d both decided to retreat from the dangerous territories they’d so briefly touched on the previous day.

Exclusive Excerpt from Touch of Salar

Jamil entertained many elaborate fantasies about what he would do to the impertinent monk when the blessed hour arrived. But when the time approached and he imagined meeting M’lan face-to-face, he felt an odd trepidation. He was almost compelled to meet him as an equal. That would be ridiculous, and much less satisfying.

Nothing was simple when it came to this monk. Jamil had let himself into the headmaster’s quarters that afternoon and located his patient file, marked only by title and admission date. He’d reviewed the medical reports carefully, and all the other papers he could find, but saw no mention of his identity or his noble relatives, much less his name. It could be that M’lan was covering for someone else, someone less protected than a headmaster, but who?

Besides knowing his name, the monk had demonstrated power over his body. He must be put in his place, swiftly and permanently. This was not some visiting prince with whom Jamil was having a tryst, but a servant. A half-breed monk. Yes, he had remarkable skills, but there was no future here, unless Jamil found a way to steal him from the monastery and install him in his father’s palace.

Jamil slunk along the moonlit garden paths, mind and body torn in many directions. He did not like being affected so deeply. He wasn’t paying enough attention to his surroundings. If word of his identity had leaked out, he could be ambushed as easily as a fresh recruit. That life of violence beyond the monastery walls seemed so distant and unlikely here in the sweet-smelling garden he could almost dismiss his fears, but that sense of safety was an illusion. Even the most delightful garden could harbor vipers.

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About the Author Alexis Duran was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest. At the University of Oregon, her fascination with people and relationships led her to major in Sociology, but her main love has always been creative writing. She's worked in museums, finance, film production and for several performing arts organizations. 

Her favorite job so far has been inventorying the collection of a haunted Victorian Mansion. She is the author of the Masters and Mages and Edge of Night m/m fantasy series as well as several stand-alone romances. Her fiction has won several awards including the Rupert Hughes Award from the Maui Writers Conference and First Runner Up from Love Romances Cafe. She lives with one dog and four and a half cats. She is always working on the next novel and has several new ideas brewing at all times.

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