Lisabet Sarai’s The Witches of Gloucester

I’m very excited to have Lisabet Sarai join me today. Her latest book The Witches of Gloucester is out now and it’s a book that I’m very interested in reading. She allowed me to ask some fun questions and I truly enjoyed the interview. Lisabet also shares a picture of one of her fabulous costumes. Read all about the book, plus an excerpt that will make you want to know what happens next. Lisabet was kind enough to offer a giveaway for a copy of Forbidden Fruit: Stories of Unwise Lesbian Desire. See how to enter in the interview, and again at the very bottom of the post.

Amanda C. Stone: Good morning Lisabet. Thank you for joining me today!
Lisabet Sarai: Hello, Amanda! Thanks for inviting me. I’m always eager to meet new authors, and new readers.
ACS: You are on a deserted island and can have only one book with you. What book would it be?
LS: Ooh, that’s a tough one. Maybe Anathem, by Neal Stephenson. It’s nearly one thousand pages, an incredibly rich and complex novel. I’ve only read it once, and I feel as though I missed a great deal. I suspect it might hold up for many more readings.
ACS: I love books that are rich and you can get things out of each re-read you do. You’re going to a naughty costume party, what do you go as?
LS: Well, I’ve actually been to a few parties of that sort—I was the hostess for most of them!—so I can share some of my favorite costumes. One year I created a mermaid costume out pale green satin (and cardboard). The top was fashioned from see-through fishnet, with a few strategically placed oyster shells.
ACS: Oh my gosh, how fun!
LS: For another party, my husband and I dressed as a sheik and his harem girl. I wore diaphanous pantaloons and a jewel-encrusted brassiere.
ACS: I’d go as a harem girl for the pants alone.
LS: Then there was the Halloween party where I went as a black widow spider, in tights, high heels and a stretchy black leotard with a plunging neckline—plus eight legs made of copper wire threaded through black rubber tubing.
ACS: Oh, and you’ve shared a picture as well. I love it!

LS: I’ve always loved to dress up (or down), ever since I was a kid. In preparation for moving halfway around the world a decade ago, I got rid of 80% of my possessions, but I still shipped my costume trunk.
ACS: I’d ship it as well if it was that well stocked! Do you have a library card and know where it is?
LS: Yes, and yes. Unfortunately it’s for the Boston Public Library, which is 12,000 km away from where I now live. (However, they have a great online collection, which is why I hold onto it.)
ACS: That’s great they have an expansive online selection for you to utilize.
LS: I remember getting my first library card, at the age of six. Our biweekly trips to get new books a high point of my existence. In fact, I remember some of the library books I read when I was that age better than what I read now.
ACS: I love that you have those memories of books from the library. If you were a candy bar what would you taste like?
LS: I’m not much of a sweets person, but I would undoubtedly something with lots of nuts! Almonds or cashews. Perhaps embedded in something that sticks to your teeth…!
ACS: I love candy bars with nuts in them. The more they stick to my teeth the better! Last question! Anyone can buy the rights to name a star. What would you name a star bought for you?
LS: Compassion. I’d like Compassion to shine down on everyone.
ACS: Oh I love it! I think that needs to happen for sure. Thank you for stopping by today. It was a pleasure having you!
LS: It was fun! And to thank you, and your readers, I’m giving away a copy of Forbidden Fruit: Stories of Unwise Lesbian Desire, edited by Cheyenne Blue. I have a tale in the book; overall it’s a fantastic collection, nominated for a Lammy.

To enter, just leave a comment with your email address. And if you’re feeling inspired, tell me what kind of candy bar you’d be!

Blurb:
It’s not about power. It’s about love.

The historic port of Gloucester, Massachusetts has a special charm, due at least in part to its resident witches. For decades, raven-maned Marguerite and red-headed Beryl have lived among its hard-working inhabitants, making magic and mischief. Love and sex fuel their supernatural abilities, but duality limits their power. To reach their full potential, they need a third witch to complete their circle.

Rejected as a nymphomaniac by her puritanical boyfriend, Emmeline escapes to Gloucester to work on her PhD thesis. From the moment she arrives, Marguerite and Beryl sense her erotic vitality and unrecognized paranormal talent. The platinum-haired beauty may well be the enchantress they have been awaiting for so long. Now they need to show Em that her prodigious libido is a gift, not a liability, and to persuade her that her destiny lies in the sea-girt town they guard, and in their arms.

Excerpt:
“Will she come, do you think?” Marguerite gestured toward the 1930’s brass Commodore clock on the mantel, which read ten minutes past four. “She looked so nervous yesterday – as if she thought we’d eat her alive.”

“Well, actually, when you put it that way…” Beryl allowed herself a lecherous chuckle.

Her companion gave her an exasperated grin. “This is not a joke. You know as well as I what is at stake.”

“Don’t worry, Mar. She’ll be here, though she may have to wrestle a few doubts into submission first. She feels the pull, just as we do, even if she doesn’t understand it.”

“Well, I do hope she arrives soon.” Marguerite surveyed the elegant table she’d set. She picked up a Blue Willow porcelain teacup and wiped away an imaginary smudge. “The icing on the petit fours is melting.”

As if in answer, chimes tinkled at the front of the house and a hint of fresh air slipped in the open door, bringing the ubiquitous tang of salt. From his corner cage, Marguerite’s mynah, Jonah, exactly mimicked the sound of the doorbell. Beryl jumped to her feet. “I’ll go show her to the parlor.”

“No, no – let Gloria do that. We don’t want to spook her with excess enthusiasm. Settle down and compose yourself. Remember, you’re a member of the Ladies’ Welcome Brigade. Refined. Polite. Proper.”

“Proper?” Beryl grinned and thumbed her peaked nipples, obvious as always through the navy blue crepe of her blouse. Her eyes fluttered shut as she relished the sensation. “Refined? Me?”

Marguerite licked her full lips. She swept her palms over the plum velvet caftan that hid her thighs. “Try to pretend, darling. Just this once.”

About Lisabet:
LISABET SARAI writes in many genres, but F/F fiction is one of her favorites. Her lesbian erotica credits include contributions to Lambda Award winner Where the Girls Are, Ippie-winning Carnal Machines, Best Lesbian Romance 2012, Forbidden Fruit: Stories of Unwise Lesbian Desire, and Lammy-nominated Coming Together: Girl on Girl. Her story “The Late Show” appears in the recently released Best Lesbian Erotica 2015.

Lisabet holds more degrees than anyone would ever need, from prestigious educational institutions who would no doubt be deeply embarrassed by her explicit literary endeavors. She has traveled widely and currently lives in Southeast Asia, where she pursues an alternative career that is completely unrelated to her writing. For all the dirt on Lisabet, visit her website (http://www.lisabetsarai.com) or her blog Beyond Romance (http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com).

Buy Links:
LadyLit Publishing: http://www.ladylit.com/books/the-witches-of-gloucester-by-lisabet-sarai/
ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-thewitchesofgloucester-1765748-349.html
Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Witches-Gloucester-Lisabet-Sarai-ebook/dp/B00UXOA23I/
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Witches-Gloucester-Lisabet-Sarai-ebook/dp/B00UXOA23I/
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/529037
Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/the-witches-of-gloucester
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-witches-of-gloucester/id978323143?mt=11&uo=4

Giveaway:
Lisabet Sarai is generously offering a copy of Forbidden Fruit: Stories of Unwise Lesbian Desire, edited by Cheyenne Blue. To enter, just leave a comment with your email address. And if you’re feeling inspired, tell us what kind of candy bar you’d be! Contest ends Friday April 16 at 10PM Eastern time.