White Zombie - More Human than Human

 It's been a crazy summer and I am just getting back with updating things like the blog and website. As I am getting myself back on track, I thought I'd share a new Glamour Club video with you! This song is awesome for all of the fey, and even the parahumans, like the vampires and werewolves in The Sidhe series. It's also an awesome song to write to. I hope you enjoy it!

Enjoy: White Zombie - More Human than Human

Katy Perry - Wide Awake

 If you've read Uprising, then you know about the young woman Donovan rescued from the wizards. This song is perfect for her, as she wakes up from her coma, and as she wakes up to the truth about the life that came before the Collapse of the Mounds. There are major revelations for all involved in the action packed finale to the Rise of the Unseelie mini-series, and it set the stage for the action and intrigue coming in Season Two!


enjoy: Katy Perry - Wide Awake

Three Days Grace - Animal I Have Become

 The lovely @RegencyEmma, our Glamour Club DJ, suggested a perfect song for Lugh as he deals with the darkness he was infected with in Protector of the Light , and in the upcoming Captivated (Touched #5) and Keeper of Secrets (Champion of the Sidhe #5). There is a lot to come with Lugh's new dark side! I hope you enjoy the intrigue and suspense as the Urban Fantasy series reaches the end of Season One, and gears up for Season Two!

enjoy: Three Days Grace - Animal I Have Become

A Song For Lugh and London

 If you've read Protector of the Light or Compelled then you've seen the start of something new between the series main characters Lugh, of the Champion of the Sidhe series, and London, of the Touched series. What's begun in those books will continue to build and take new shape in the books coming out soon. We'll pick up the story with London's fifth book, Captivated. It should be coming out very soon. The manuscript is going into the final stages of editing this week. And the story will expand in Lugh's fifth book, Keeper of Secrets.

 Today's Glamour Club video is one of the inspiration songs for the complicated relationship weaving between these two characters. It hints at Lugh's new darkness and London's desire to overcome her curse.

 Enjoy: Skillet - Whispers in the Dark

Fireflight - Unbreakable

 During the writing of Bloodhound, Unbreakable by Fireflight was one of my favorite songs for the earthborns, especially Malcolm. I love the beat and the energy in this song and I wanted to share it with you. Can't you just see Malcolm, after all his gone through with his dad and the goblins, facing his past and becoming stronger as he overcomes the pain that once consumed him? Can't you imagine Kieran, trying to find his strength in the face of his past with the vampires, and his confusion over the attraction and anger he holds for London?

enjoy: Fireflight - Unbreakable

Disciple - Dear X (You Don't Own Me)

 For me, I find music is a powerful inspiration when I am writing. As we are working on finishing up Bloodhound, the fourth book in the Rise of the Unseelie series, one of the songs I have in Malcolm's playlist is Disciple's "Dear X (You Don't Own Me)". This song seems perfect for Malcolm at this stage in his life, when he is beginning to recover from the trauma of a year of abuse in the goblins' cave and starting to find a strength within himself.

When you look through the Glamour Club music videos for Malcolm, you can see the emotional journey he's been on. At only seventeen, he's still got a lot of growing and maturing ahead of him. Between the abuse of his past, and the challenges of his magic, the road ahead is still a rocky one. Donovan has been a rock for him and is giving him a foundation on which to build. Sounds all well and good, until you remember that Donovan was the head of the Unseelie Elite and a deadly force to reckon with.

Feel free to leave a comment or send me an email at Archer[at]sidhetouch.com . I'd love to hear your thoughts or suggestions about Glamour Club videos and casting calls, or anything about the stories. Reader comments and questions have already helped to shape the series. I would love to make this a more interactive world for you to feel immersed in.


enjoy: Disciple - Dear X (You Don't Own Me)

Heavy Metal is So Unseelie

 Our awesome and lovely Glamour Club DJ @RegencyEmma suggested this song for the Unseelie. In real life, Emma is a sweet and awesome supporter of the Sidhe, giving us Glamour Club song suggestions and shout-outs on Twitter. It's hard to think about the Glamour Club on this blog without thinking of her! (See how many song suggestions she's made?) So of course, Ravynheart and I had to bring her fictionally into the 'real' Glamour Club itself. She had a cameo is Eyes of Magic, as the fairy DJ who keeps the music flowing when there isn't a live band. Watch for her to show up again in Bloodhound, the next of the Rise of the Unseelie books.

Do you have a song suggestion or a casting call suggestion? Let me know at Archer [at] SidheTouch.com

Thanks for today's song suggestion Emma!

Enjoy: Black Veil Bride - Never Give In

A Song For Kieran and London in Enchanted

 The guys from the Rise of the Unseelie urban fantasy series make an appearance in Enchanted, the latest book in the Touched urban fantasy series. Kieran and London have one wild evening. I can't tell you much without giving away spoilers, but today's Glamour Club song is a fun one and fits really well with the action in Enchanted, with Kieran's sexy/ playful style, and with what the future holds in store for these two. 

enjoy: Maroon 5 - Moves Like Jagger

Linkin Park - In Between

 This song resonates with me when I think about Lugh, the lead character in the Champion of the Sidhe urban fantasy series. Between his pride as the Champion of the Sidhe and The Shining One of the Seelie Court, and his promise to do everything he can to protect his people, he's found himself on a near-to-impossible quest to restore the magical realm of fey.

 The lyrics within this song touches on the subtle clues in the series, which raise the question: Could Lugh have prevented the Collapse, had he only made different choices? And foreshadows the events to come in the next two books, Protector of the Light and Keeper of Secrets, when his storyline and the storylines in the Touched series and Rise of the Unseelie series collide.

enjoy: Link Park - In Between

30 Seconds to Mars - The Kill

 Readers of the Rise of the Unseelie urban fantasy series have come to know Malcolm, the young earthborn Sidhe. Today's Glamour Club music video is one that captures the emotion Malcolm has through his ordeal in Scars of Silver and Eyes of Magic. Like all Unseelie, though, he's a fighter. You'll get a glimpse at what he is becoming in Enchanted (Touched #3) when the Unseelie make a crossover appearance in that storyline. And then discover much more about the wild card Malcolm is becoming in Bloodhound (Rise of the Unseelie #4).

enjoy: 30 Seconds to Mars - The Kill

Within Temptation - In The Middle Of The Night

 Our Glamour Club DJ @RegencyEmma has selected another great song for Malcolm, one of the earthborns in the urban fantasy series Rise of the Unseelie.I'll be adding this song to my playlist when I write Bloodhound and Uprising, the next two books in the series. If you've read Malcolm's story so far, you'll definitely see the potential foreshadowing in these lyrics.

enjoy: Within Temptation - In The Middle Of The Night

Linkin Park - One Step Closer

 In Eyes of Magic, there is a scene where Malcolm plays the drums in perfect synchronicity with several songs which are playing over the sound system in the Glamour Club. Of those songs, he actually sang along with one in particular, and that was 'One Step Closer' by Linkin Park. It encompasses the feelings of frustration and desperation he's experiencing at the moment, so much so that he actually breaks his drumstick from beating so furiously on the drums.

Eyes of Magic is the third installment of the Rise of the Unseelie series, an urban fantasy adventure which tells the story of The Sidhe from the view point of the Unseelie. Malcolm is one of the teenage 'earthborn' Unseelie that Donovan has gathered together, the last surviving remnants of the Sidhe to have survived the Collapse of the Mounds.

enjoy: Linkin Park - One Step Closer

The Letter Black - Hanging On By A Thread

 Malcolm is back in Eyes of Magic, the third book in the Rise of the Unseelie urban fantasy series. In Scars of Silver he suffered abuse at the hands of goblins, vampires, and even Touch-addicted humans. Now he's among the Unseelie of the Glamour Club. If coping with his past wasn't bad enough, he's not fitting it, and his magic appears to have been severely damaged. Our Glamour Club pick for today is The Letter Black's "Hanging on by a Thread." Something young Malcolm can truly relate to in Eyes of Magic.

enjoy: The Letter Black - Hanging On By A Thread

Linkin Park - From the Inside

 As I am working on the edits for Eyes of Magic, which is the next book in the Rise of the Unseelie urban fantasy series, I have been listening to my playlist for Malcolm. Linkin Park's From the Inside is one of those songs that really fits for the young Unseelie whose been through hell and is trying to claw his way out of it. Even after all he went through in Scars of Silver, Malcolm is still a fighter. This song and video really seems to catch that inner turmoil and determination. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do.

enjoy: Linkin Park - From the Inside

Your Touch Magnetizing

 Our Glamour Club DJ, @RegencyEmma has picked another wonderful song for London and those humans addicted to the Touch of the Sidhe.

The Touched series so far:

Cursed: As a private investigator specializing in paranormal problems, London Eyer thought she could handle working for the Sidhe. They couldn’t be any worse than vampires or werewolves or wizards, could they? Oh, how wrong she was. One ‘Touch’ of Sidhe magic and she was cursed. Her only chance to survive is to serve the creep that cursed her against the vicious Changelings out for his blood.

Addicted: Suffering from the addiction to the Sidhe Touch, London is obsessed with finding a source of magic that can ease her curse. Unfortunately, premium magic like the Touch comes with one a heck of a high price tag. Working off the debt she’s racked up to the dealer may well terminate her addiction once and for all, because nothing’s more dangerous than doing a Changeling’s dirty work.

Coming soon! Enchanted: All London wants is her life back, not something easy to accomplish with her addiction to the Sidhe Touch constantly gnawing at her. This time she's found an earthborn Sidhe who just might take the edge off her craving. If she can keep the other predators like vampires and wizards from claiming her prey, that is.

enjoy: Katy Perry - ET

Soul Asylum - Runaway Train

This is a powerful song for Malcolm, the young earthborn Sidhe in Scars of Silver. Like most of the earthborn Sidhe, he is untrained in magic and uneducated in the ways of the fey. He doesn't realize the threats he faces from predators. As a runaway he's got no one to count on and trust is a dangerous risk, as we see in this snippet from the urban fantasy series, Rise of the Unseelie.

###

Malcolm still smelled like industrial hand soap from his sink bath at the gas station. He wiped the pocket fuzz from the black plastic comb that was only missing a couple teeth and then battled the knots in his too long hair. His reflection in the store window winced back at him. The skater boy hair served a purpose beyond just announcing to the world that he didn’t have the cash for a haircut. The unruly waves covered the telltale point to his ears.

Even after he beat the worst of the dirt off his clothing, Malcolm still looked like what he was, a homeless teen.

It wasn’t like he couldn’t go back. They’d take him back. He knew they would. Only, if he went back home they’d never let him leave again. “For his own protection.” That’s what they’d say. That’s what they always said. Like house arrest was what it was. Some kind of fey witness protection program or something.

Only, if they’d ever let him get out at least once in a while, he probably would know something. Like how to get money. Or food. Or a warm place to crash. Instead of having to figure a way to steal what he needed.


Malcolm crouched down behind the lunch special sign, waiting for customers to venture into the Fairy Circle shop. Probably a waste of time, only Malcolm lacked for any better ideas. Not like he could ask someone for directions to a fey hangout or anything.
###
Read a longer excerpt
Scars of Silver on Kindle, Kindle UK, Barnes and Noble

Get involved: Find out what you can do to help homeless and runaway teens at the National Runaway Switchboard http://www.1800runaway.org/

enjoy: Soul Asylum - Runaway Train


Check out other Glamour Club music videos for Malcolm, The Unseelie and the rest of The Sidhe series.

Skillet - Monster

I love getting song suggestions for the Glamour Club! If you have a suggestion send me an email at archer@SidheTouch.com or comment me on Twitter (@the_Sidhe). This song suggestion for London in the Touched series comes from the awesome @RegencyEmma, who has picked so many fabulous songs for the Glamour Club that I am awarding her with the title of "Glamour Club DJ!" You rock, Emma!

enjoy: Skillet - Monster

Breaking Benjamin - Breath

I love this song for London Eyer. The lyrics fit perfect with her story line throughout the Touched mini-series. So much so that I'm going to include the lyrics here, so you can see for yourself.

###

Breaking Benjamin - Breath (lyrics)

I see nothing in your eyes,

And the more I see the less I like

Is it over yet?

In my head?

I know nothing of your kind,

And I won't reveal your evil mind

Is it over yet?

I can't win

So sacrifice yourself

And let me have what's left

I know that I can find

A fire in your eyes

I'm going all the way

Get away, please

You take the breath right out of me

You left a hole where my heart should be

You've gotta fight just to make it through

Cause I will be the death of you

This will be all over soon,

(This will be all over soon),

Pour the salt into the open wound

Is it over yet?

Let me in

So sacrifice yourself

And let me have what's left

I know that I can find

A fire in your eyes

I'm going all the way

Get away, please

You take the breath right out of me

You left a hole where my heart should be

You've gotta fight just to make it through

Cause I will be the death of you

I'm waiting

I'm praying

Realize

Start hating

You take the breath right out of me

You left a hole where my heart should be

You've gotta fight just to make it through

Cause I will be the death of you

###

In case you didn't notice, I'm a huge fan of Breaking Benjamin! Which is why so many of their songs are showing up in the Glamour Club videos and in the stories.

enjoy: Breaking Benjamin - Breath

Something For The Pain

Tiernan Kilgrave's catch phrase "What do ya need?" says it all. He's a dealer in all types of illicit pleasures. This song suits Tiernan perfectly.

###

(Excerpt from Donovan's journal with his assessment of Tiernan)

Tiernan Kilgrave swagged with his lazily confident style and his usual smirk of self-satisfaction. Though only a century old his cocky attitude didn't soften even for the head of the Unseelie Elite. Then again, most exiles 'didn't give a shite' about the customs in the Mounds. One thing could be said for Tiernan; he embraced his Unseelie nature with as much vigor as he embraced life on the surface. Those pale eyes just focused on me with all seriousness, never acknowledging the other fey around him. To him 'earthborn' usually was synonymous with 'dumbass.' Although outwardly a laid back individual, Tiernan hadn't established himself in his amoral endeavors and criminal empire by slacking. He had been one of the key informants from some of the most secret and deadly of missions the queen of the Unseelie Court required.

###

enjoy: Redlight King - Something For The Pain

Breaking Benjamin - Dear Agony

Malcolm goes through a tough time in his first book, Scars of Silver. A song like Breaking Benjamin's "Dear Agony" captures the emotion of his horrific experience. This is a snippet that fits with the song.

###

Rand circled around until he towered over Malcolm’s head. He planted a booted foot on the chain linking the wrist shackles before Malcolm could flinch away. “Do it quick.”

Flora smeared the salve over his torn back. It burned like alcohol. The chains clinked as he jerked in shock and pain, but Rand’s foot pinned his arms fast to the ground. Malcolm screamed.

The goblins in the chamber clamored to the bars, hopping and laughing.

Malcolm bit back his screams. Hating… Hating how they delighted in his outcries. His throat strangled the sound. He sucked hissing breaths, shoving down the pain as much as he could. Shoving it down. Down. Down. Feel nothing. Feel nothing.

Rand backed off the chain. Malcolm rolled to his side, as he watched Rand and Flora leave the cell. The prickly burn dropped down to a full body throb.

###

Enjoy: Breaking Benjamin - Dear Agony (Lyrics on screen)