Malcom Cho is in over his head, wrapped up in a love affair with his superhero nemesis Zeus, who most people in Olympus City only know as Detective Danny Grant.
Lovesick Titans begins where Lovesick Gods left off, after a heist gone wrong that ended with a museum guard dead and Mal and Danny beaten and exhausted from their fight with the new threat in town, Cassidy Ludgate—Hades.
Unaware that Ludgate’s true motivation is revenge for the death of his father at Zeus’s hands, Mal wants only to keep Danny close, while Danny races to solve the cases surrounding Ludgate to stop him from whatever he has planned for them next.
What Mal doesn’t know is that Danny didn’t pursue him with the purest of intentions but sought to break his heart in retaliation for not being there when he needed him in the fight against Thanatos. Even though Danny no longer seeks that end, the lies between them loom like a shadow about to descend upon them both.
And Hades has only begun to toy with them…
There are three fun facts surrounding Lovesick Titans, and the overall two-part series.
First: It’s an adapted fanfic about The Flash and Captain Cold from DC Comics (specifically the CW’s TV universe).
Second: The editing and cover art was done by fans of mine.
Third: It started as a single book and almost became a trilogy before I decided on splitting it in half.
Adapted fanfic
I am a huge proponent of fanfiction and have written articles about how to take fanfic and adapt them into original novels. Like this one: https://www.amandameuwissen.com/single-post/2017/09/09/How-to-adapt-a-fanfic-into-an-original-novel
Not all my works are adapted fanfics (The Collector and Life as a Teenage Vampire are not) but most are and more in the future likely will be too because that is where my muses live, even if I eventually take the stories and rewrite them into something original, often from alternate universe fics so the story really does stand on its own.
The Lovesick Series was originally simply Lovesick, a fanfic for the TV version of The Flash and Captain Cold. I fell so in love with the story and saw how the inherent plotline and villain didn’t rely on canon. So, I rewrote it, painstakingly at times, to be an original novel.
I couldn’t be prouder of both versions and the great fans I have from The Flash (and specifically ColdFlash) fandom that have supported the story, which is why the book’s dedication is – To my family of ice and lightning.
Editing and art by fans
I have close relationship with many of my fans – we hug at conventions, we’re Facebook friends, we DM on tumblr – so it’s hard to even think of them as fans so much as just readers and friends.
For the cover art for both books in this series, I commissioned a remarkable artist who had done art for my fics in the past, just out of the goodness of her heart and as a reader, and because of that, I wanted to have something of hers for the adaptation. It was a joy working on the little nuances to get everything just right, especially since the art is flawless, but my poor cover designer had to redo things several times until I was truly happy with how the art was presented.
The editing was also done by a reader and online friend, who still blows me away with how thoughtfully she edits. She would catch the exact moments where something might drag, or where something might be missing, and remember things I’d missed from earlier scenes that could be called back to at just the right time. She really immersed herself in the story to be the best editor I could imagine for bringing this tale to new life.
Without editor Kaila Corrington and artist Veronika Dolnikova, this series would be incomplete, and I am truly grateful for their contributions.
Book length
I have trouble writing that 50k basic novel length. My stories are often much longer, I can’t help it! I thought after editing things down for Lovesick that it would be fine for a single novel length – I was wrong. For everything I tweaked and cut, I added just as much for new worldbuilding, and the length at the end was as long as the original fanfic. I could NOT let it be a single book.
I spent weeks, maybe months, while still editing pieces of the story, trying to determine the best place to split it. Everyone tends to think of trilogies first, but I knew that doing that would make one or more of the books lacking in narrative structure.
So, I finally decided that the best spot to break things up was almost perfectly in the middle. I still made changes and additions to make sure each novel felt sound on its own, while also requiring each other to get the full story, and I don’t regret my final decision at all.
Plus, since there are two equal protagonists, with an alternating 3rd person limited POV between them throughout, having two books that each represent one of those characters really ties everything together.
First: It’s an adapted fanfic about The Flash and Captain Cold from DC Comics (specifically the CW’s TV universe).
Second: The editing and cover art was done by fans of mine.
Third: It started as a single book and almost became a trilogy before I decided on splitting it in half.
Adapted fanfic
I am a huge proponent of fanfiction and have written articles about how to take fanfic and adapt them into original novels. Like this one: https://www.amandameuwissen.com/single-post/2017/09/09/How-to-adapt-a-fanfic-into-an-original-novel
Not all my works are adapted fanfics (The Collector and Life as a Teenage Vampire are not) but most are and more in the future likely will be too because that is where my muses live, even if I eventually take the stories and rewrite them into something original, often from alternate universe fics so the story really does stand on its own.
The Lovesick Series was originally simply Lovesick, a fanfic for the TV version of The Flash and Captain Cold. I fell so in love with the story and saw how the inherent plotline and villain didn’t rely on canon. So, I rewrote it, painstakingly at times, to be an original novel.
I couldn’t be prouder of both versions and the great fans I have from The Flash (and specifically ColdFlash) fandom that have supported the story, which is why the book’s dedication is – To my family of ice and lightning.
Editing and art by fans
I have close relationship with many of my fans – we hug at conventions, we’re Facebook friends, we DM on tumblr – so it’s hard to even think of them as fans so much as just readers and friends.
For the cover art for both books in this series, I commissioned a remarkable artist who had done art for my fics in the past, just out of the goodness of her heart and as a reader, and because of that, I wanted to have something of hers for the adaptation. It was a joy working on the little nuances to get everything just right, especially since the art is flawless, but my poor cover designer had to redo things several times until I was truly happy with how the art was presented.
The editing was also done by a reader and online friend, who still blows me away with how thoughtfully she edits. She would catch the exact moments where something might drag, or where something might be missing, and remember things I’d missed from earlier scenes that could be called back to at just the right time. She really immersed herself in the story to be the best editor I could imagine for bringing this tale to new life.
Without editor Kaila Corrington and artist Veronika Dolnikova, this series would be incomplete, and I am truly grateful for their contributions.
Book length
I have trouble writing that 50k basic novel length. My stories are often much longer, I can’t help it! I thought after editing things down for Lovesick that it would be fine for a single novel length – I was wrong. For everything I tweaked and cut, I added just as much for new worldbuilding, and the length at the end was as long as the original fanfic. I could NOT let it be a single book.
I spent weeks, maybe months, while still editing pieces of the story, trying to determine the best place to split it. Everyone tends to think of trilogies first, but I knew that doing that would make one or more of the books lacking in narrative structure.
So, I finally decided that the best spot to break things up was almost perfectly in the middle. I still made changes and additions to make sure each novel felt sound on its own, while also requiring each other to get the full story, and I don’t regret my final decision at all.
Plus, since there are two equal protagonists, with an alternating 3rd person limited POV between them throughout, having two books that each represent one of those characters really ties everything together.
“Giving up already, Danny? You really are pathetic.”
Danny barely flinched at hearing his own voice coming from the mirrors across the room. Andre hadn’t finished a version of the Miasma Maker for the house yet. By tomorrow, Wednesday at the latest, he’d said. Maybe Andre would have pushed harder if Danny had told anyone he was being haunted by his reflection.
“Go away, Ludgate. Aren’t you getting enough of what you want? You could steal anything that suited you and I couldn’t lift a finger. If you’re not going to kill me, then just go away.” He wondered if he could fight back if Ludgate attacked him. He didn’t seem to have the energy to even raise his head.
“Looking to take the easy way out? Figures. Everything that makes you worth something you’ve already ruined. Better to get out clean now before you drag anyone else through the mud, right?”
Danny’s hand clenched tighter around the pill bottle. He dragged himself up from the bed and glared at his reflection, hating it—which was only too easy these days. “What do you even want from me?” he hissed, afraid to yell and bring John or Joey running. “You’ve already won. Even if we catch you someday, you won. You’re a better thief than Prometheus, and you’ve proven Zeus can’t stop you. So what do you want?”
The smug smirk on his reflection’s face made him want to punch it, but he knew that wouldn’t do any good. Even the half-healed burns that made Danny's skin feel tight and sore while speaking didn't seem to bother his reflection. But of course they wouldn’t bother him. The reflection wasn’t really Danny.
“It’s funny, you know,” the man in the mirror said. The pill bottle wasn’t in his hand; he didn’t need it. He seemed to walk closer to Danny, filling the mirror, which made Danny step closer too. “Funny that you think I’m Ludgate,” he said and then vanished just as Danny heard a whisper at his ear, “and not just in your head.”
Danny barely flinched at hearing his own voice coming from the mirrors across the room. Andre hadn’t finished a version of the Miasma Maker for the house yet. By tomorrow, Wednesday at the latest, he’d said. Maybe Andre would have pushed harder if Danny had told anyone he was being haunted by his reflection.
“Go away, Ludgate. Aren’t you getting enough of what you want? You could steal anything that suited you and I couldn’t lift a finger. If you’re not going to kill me, then just go away.” He wondered if he could fight back if Ludgate attacked him. He didn’t seem to have the energy to even raise his head.
“Looking to take the easy way out? Figures. Everything that makes you worth something you’ve already ruined. Better to get out clean now before you drag anyone else through the mud, right?”
Danny’s hand clenched tighter around the pill bottle. He dragged himself up from the bed and glared at his reflection, hating it—which was only too easy these days. “What do you even want from me?” he hissed, afraid to yell and bring John or Joey running. “You’ve already won. Even if we catch you someday, you won. You’re a better thief than Prometheus, and you’ve proven Zeus can’t stop you. So what do you want?”
The smug smirk on his reflection’s face made him want to punch it, but he knew that wouldn’t do any good. Even the half-healed burns that made Danny's skin feel tight and sore while speaking didn't seem to bother his reflection. But of course they wouldn’t bother him. The reflection wasn’t really Danny.
“It’s funny, you know,” the man in the mirror said. The pill bottle wasn’t in his hand; he didn’t need it. He seemed to walk closer to Danny, filling the mirror, which made Danny step closer too. “Funny that you think I’m Ludgate,” he said and then vanished just as Danny heard a whisper at his ear, “and not just in your head.”
The elements touch everyone on Earth—Fire, Water, even Light—but every so often someone becomes more attuned to their elemental leaning and develops true power. When an evil Elemental known as Thanatos arrived in Olympus City, it saw the rise of its first hero—Zeus. But the death toll caused by defeating Thanatos changed Zeus, who by day is young detective Danny Grant.
It’s been six months since Thanatos terrorized the city at the start of Lovesick Gods. Danny should be used to his duty behind the mask, but the recent past haunts him. His girlfriend left him, he snaps at the barest provocation, his life feels empty—he needs an outlet, any outlet to pull him out of his depression.
Enter notorious thief Malcolm Cho, the Ice Elemental Prometheus. There was a time when Danny welcomed a fight with Cho, filled with colorful banter and casual flirtations that were a relief compared to Thanatos. Even as a criminal, Cho had recognized the threat Thanatos posed and promised to help Danny stop him, but the day Danny needed Cho, he never showed. Cho was the reason so many people died that day—including Danny’s mother.
Danny decides to teach the man a lesson and fan the fire of their attraction into something more. At worst, he’ll get some no-strings-attached sex out of the deal and finally blow off steam; at best, he’ll get Cho to fall in love with him and then break his heart to spite him.
Danny doesn’t expect to fall for Cho in the process, and he certainly can’t predict the much darker threat on the horizon.
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ReplyDeleteHaving a family who loves to read I always appreciate hearing about another great book. Thank you for the book description and giveaway as well.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this stop! I really loved getting to explore some fun facts about what led to this book and the process of creating it.
ReplyDeleteI liked the excerpt.
ReplyDeletesounds lik3 a good read!
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to read this one!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a an interesting story, I look forward to reading this book. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a great new take on the Gods! I can't wait to read it.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on your new release, I enjoyed learning about it! And thank you for the awesome giveaway!
ReplyDeleteSounds interesting
ReplyDeleteI can only see part of his face on the cover but what a unique and beautiful eye.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I actually worked with the artist very closely on that. This is book 2, but on book 1 is the other protagonist, who has gold eyes, also glowy. I really love how the imagery turned out!
DeleteSounds like a great book! Best wishes on your tour.
ReplyDeleteI would like to give thanks for all your really great writings, including Lovesick Titans, and wishing the best in keeping up the good work in the future.
ReplyDelete