Maggie Blackbird

Book Hooks is a weekly meme hosted by Marketing for Romance Writers as part of the MFRW Authors Blog. Readers can jump from one author to another who share hooks from their current WIP (work in progress) or any previously published books.

For this week’s edition of Book Hooks, I give you a teaser from Twisted Beauty, a m/m dystopian romance.

His community or his enemy.  He can’t have both.

Deep in the badlands, long after the fall of modern civilization, Hunter patrols the area as the war chief for his Lakota community.  His latest mission is to hunt down a marauder who robbed his neighbors of their precious goods.  He’ll act as this man’s judge, jury, and executioner.

Having lost everything at his former Ojibway encampment, Chassis is far from home.  He wanders the badlands, a grim reaper bringing death to those with what he needs to survive.  But there is one man courageous enough to challenge him.

When the duo faces off, neither expects the sizzling chemistry to erupt between them, nor for their duel to touch what both have denied themselves.  Now they must choose to either remain together and sacrifice their beliefs, or go their separate ways, losing what they’ve spent their lives searching for—love.

Genre(s): M/M Dystopian Romance, LGBTQ+, First Nations Romance, Native American Romance
Heat Rating: Level 4 (violence, dubious consent)
Publication Date: November 3, 2023
Publisher: eXtasy Books

PURCHASE A COPY

Chassis’ hand continued to graze the shifter. When Hunter pointed at a certain spot for him to take the car in, he engaged the clutch and guided the Camaro off the road. He cranked the wheel and kept the gear in first, letting the engine pull the vehicle to the exact spot he was being directed to. He wasn’t surprised when the wheels never sank.

Crafty fuckers.

They’d packed the sod with more topsoil so the quicksand-like ground could withstand the weight of an automobile. There were no tire tracks, which meant maintaining this hidden road was probably a task that was undertaken every single day.

Two defenders peered at the car.

Chassis looked them over, assessing his potential enemies. One was about six feet tall, had black hair, and was rather homely. The other was even taller with a mohawk and wiry build.

Chassis’ gaze drifted back to Hunter, who wasn’t striding to the monument but veering off, indicating for him to take the car behind the mounds of toadstools. Chassis followed Hunter’s motioning directions and steered the Camaro around the last toadstool. What greeted him twitched his lips. Smart. Clever. The chase vehicles were hidden behind the monument. There were three parked, ready to leave at a moment’s notice.

Any stranger passing by would be none the wiser to what was tucked behind the shrine. Nor would anyone think to inspect it because the driveway blended in with the land and left no tracks. Ten bucks the two men had already covered his tire treads.

More men appeared. Chassis counted ten. They must work in teams, because there were no odd numbers, which meant Mechanix was part of Hunter’s team.

Chassis remained in the car while Hunter issued orders in a commanding voice, the position of leadership suiting him. It was as natural as his thick hair, diamond-cutting cheekbones, and ultra-long legs.

“Three Fingers, I need Mechanix carried to the two-up. He’s wounded… Stone, ready the car… Fixer, assist Three Fingers… Nose, you…”

A man husky in build with a beard neatly trimmed into a chin curtain swaggered to the Camaro. He opened the door, hooded eyes narrowing as he assessed Chassis and zeroed in on the Walther.

“You’re armed,” the bearded man said.

Chassis simply stared.

The man stepped away from the car and called out, “Hunter.”

Hunter, who was in mid-conversation, craned his neck. When the bearded guy made a beckoning gesture, Hunter strode for the car. With each step, a crunching sound appeared as his boots connected with the pebbles smattering the ground, the opposite of his quiet stealth when he’d first stalked Chassis. “What is it?”

“He’s…armed.” Beard Dude pointed at Chassis.

Hunter followed the direction of Beard Dude’s stubby finger. “Yeah, I realize this. Pay it no mind.”

“What do you mean? He’s a—” Beard Dude lowered his voice. “Justice will not—”

“Let me handle Justice.” Hunter patted the man’s shoulder.

Beard Dude hesitated but then nodded.

“Chassis…” Hunter rounded the vehicle to the driver’s side. “Let’s go.”

Chassis eased from the car, still holding the Walther while Beard Dude took his place in the driver’s seat. He studied the defense line. Bows and crossbows of various types such as compound, recurve, and cho-ko-nu, remained trained on him.

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