Summer Lovin - Guest post by Erica Hayes & giveaway

Thanks to Jo-Anne for inviting me to Strange Candy! As I write this it's sheeting down with rain – we’ve had a very wet summer so far in the eastern states of Australia, when we're used to the weather being hot and dry. Strange candy indeed 

But I love to write stories set in summer. My Shadowfae Chronicles urban fantasy series is set during the scorching heights of a Melbourne summer: hot and dry, with the odd ear-splitting thunderstorm that creeps out of nowhere.

Melbourne's renowned for miserable winters and four seasons in a day, yet it always seems to be summer in the Shadowfae world. Why? Well, firstly, I love writing about heat. It's alive and sexy, and my books are packed with shimmering heat hazes, searing air that parches your throat, and the scents of stormy ozone and skin and sweat. Ruled by a demon lord, the Melbourne of Shadowfae is at times eerily like hell.

Heat is edgy and provocative, too – it frustrates people, drives them mad, pushes them over the edge into unreason. When you're fighting for your life, your body heats up. You sweat and shiver and breathe hard. Fear and sexual arousal are alike for a reason: your body's worked up to cope with extremes. And that's what we want, in a good hot romance – our characters pushed to the edge, or sometimes over it, to obtain their heart's desire.

Want to wind up the tension for your heroine and hero? Arc up the heat, and let their world burn. In my book POISON KISSED, the hero, Joey, is a shapeshifting gangster who loathes his animal (ahem, make that reptile) shape so desperately, he always wears clothing that covers him as completely as he can, just in case. But when the story opens, it's so damn hot that even he can't bear it. The summer strips him of his armour. Makes him vulnerable. Joey and vulnerable don't play well together, especially when the sexy banshee enforcer he lusts after gets too close…

Anyone seen the movie Summer of Sam? How about Predator 2? Or The Chronicles of Riddick, set on the prison planet Crematoria? Tension much? Heat is the climate of fever and fear. So a long hot summer is the perfect atmosphere for a dark, sexy, gritty paranormal series.

It's also a really good excuse for characters to swan around with hardly any clothes on. Shirtless boys, ahoy. Wet hair, muscles slick with sweat… Okay, I'm sold. Come to think of it, I shouldn't be surprised if it's always summer in the Shadowfae world. Even in July.

You can find out more about Erica and her books on her website & facebook.

Book 4 in the Shadowfae Chronicles, Blood Cursed is out August 2nd 2011!

Now for the giveaway. Just fill out the form below to win either a copy of Poison Kissed or both Shadowfae & Shadowglass. Winners choice. Giveaway ends Feb 2nd. 
The question you have to answer is: If you could spend a summer romance with anyone (fictional or otherwise) who would it be and why?