by Bex McLynn
What the fuck was Zver thinking? Sending him? He was broken. The godsdamned Bane.
His skepticism must have shown, because Seph said, "You're perfect for this, Ther! You still look like a marauder. You're super sneaky when you need to be. Morally you walk the line, but you’re a good guy, deep down. Don't you see, you're gonna be so perfect!"
He laughed, a stiff huff of breath that shredded his chest. Seph wanted him to do it. He could never say no. At least, not to someone he loved. If they wanted something, he wanted to get it for them. Whatever it was. No matter the cost.
"For you," Therion said, "I'll do it."
Dearest Reader
Thank you, so much, for reading Thanemonger. I had a blast writing about Seph and Zver. I've left them HFN (happy for now) because there are more adventures to come. More human women will be found. More hunky Teras men will rescue them.
If you enjoyed the book, please consider leaving a review. One or two lines make all the difference and are greatly appreciated.
All the best,
Bex
For the latest teasers and updates, sign up for my newsletter at: bexmclynn.com/newsletter
If you’d like to read more about Therion and sign up for my newsletter, Tell No Tales is a free collection of deleted scenes from the series. Current newsletter subscribers may download the story as well.
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Acknowledgments
There are some very important people who made this all possible.
First of all, my hunky husband, who is the abs-tronomical cover model of my dreams. Thanks, Hun. Without your support, I wouldn't be living my dream.
Chris Westwater, my Critique Partner, kept me sane, on track, and inspired. Chris and I speak weekly, so she's exposed to my brand-o-crazy, a lot. She read, re-read, edited, re-edited, and supported Thanemonger from inception to completion. Chris—I should know better and just listen to you the first time. You're always right.
Would also like to thank my editor, Lindsay York at LY Publishing Services, and book cover designer, Melody Simmons. Lindsay provided amazing edits that just made my writing so much better, and Melody created such a dreamy image of a Teras. Thanks, ladies!
Special thanks to Bobby Ashmore and his sharp eyes. He caught so many things, and I appreciate his help!
More awesome persons to thank are my beta readers. I did an industry no-no and handed my book off to dear friends. It was a risk—not on their part, because they're all awesome—but because I still wanted them to be my friends after they read the book. I basically said, "Please read this, and it's totally fine if you crush my artistic soul, because I'll still adore you anyways." So, many thanks to Nicole and Alicia.
Finally, these two ladies proved that the Internet is not always a scary place. I connected online with two additional beta readers, my Master Betas: Kate (hardcore SFR fangirl) and AJ Ryder (kickass erotica writer). You ladies rock so damn hard it hurts. But in a good way. Thank you!
Other Titles
The Ladyships
Sarda
Thanemonger
Bane
Tidefall
Rein
Treasured by the Alien with Honey Phillips
Mama and the Alien Warrior
Cosmic Fairy Tales Collaboration
The Ugly Dukeling
About Bex
Bex loves to read all kinds of romance: science fiction, shifter, fantasy, regency, contemporary... (Seriously, all of it!) Currently she writes SFR and Fantasy/PNR. Her writing style—a mixture of action, humor, tenderness, and heat—features worlds and characters that captivate her readers.
Visit my website at https://bexmclynn.com
Connect with me on Facebook at The League of Bextraordinary Readers
My Rule of Names
I first read “The Rule of Names” by Ursula K. Le Guin in grade school, and it has shaped my writing ever since. When I name my characters, it is with 10% whimsy, 90% purpose. For those of you who are diehard wordsmiths, you can continue reading and discover the meanings of my characters’ names. Enjoy!
Seph / Josephine / Josie – Seph needed a mighty morphing name, whose purpose will be revealed later in the series.
Zver – Slovene, Russian, Serbo-Croatian Roman for beast
Rannik – from oxrannik, Russian for watchman/guard/bodyguard
Therion – Ancient Greek for beast
Prykimis – from Pyrkimys, Finnish for endeavor
Moya – My homage to the scifi series Farscape. Moya was the sentient spaceship, a leviathan.
Wies – Teutonic for warrior
Borac – Czech for fighter
Thane – a rank of nobility in pre-Norman England, roughly equivalent to baron
Athel – (obsolete or Britain dialectal) noble; illustrious; a chief or lord
Trine – a group of three things; to execute (someone) by suspension from the neck
Vedma – Czech for medium, fortuneteller
Arana – Spanish, Asturian, Galician for spider
Hyva – Finnish for good (all the meanings: inspiring positive reactions; morally good; good by one's skills)
Grondin – French for gurnard (fish); aka piper fish -- common European gurnard [Side Note: Why a fish, you ask? I named Grondin back when marauder clades were piper clades. Long story short: I changed the bad guys but not Grondin’s name inspiration. So, there you go.]
Jahat – Indonesian and Malay for bad, evil, naughty, undisciplined, malicious
Teras – Estonian for steel; Indonesian for heart, pith
Apinazeru – a blending of two words meaning “Simian” (Finnish: apinamainen / Hungarian: majomszerű)
Gwyretti – a blending of two words: Gwyr (Welsh) for crooked, bend; Retten (German) for salvage
Kraai – Dutch for a craye, Scandinavian vessel type and Dutch for crow
Ero – Old High German for Earth
Unholde – German for monster, fiend
Direis – a blending of two words: from dizer, Portuguese for to speak; to pronounce; to utter; to say and reis, Galician for kings.
Sefura – a blending of two words: Japanese rōmaji "sefure" (informal) friend with benefits (friend as a casual sexual partner) and Old English "seofa/sefa" (poetic) spirit, heart, mind
Vayant – Walloon for affectionate, kind
Deleo – Latin for I destroy, I finish, terminate
Lekar, Medicmaster – Bosnian, Serbian for physician, doctor
Varlet, Aides-de-camp – (obsolete) a servant or attendant
Mernok, Engineermaster – Hungarian for engineer
Laptrin, Systemsmaster – from lập trình viên, Vietnamese for computer programmer
Feldser, Submedic – Crimean Tatar for doctor's assistant, medical attendant
Ochrona, Security Chief – Polish for bodyguard
Furiero, Cachemaster – Ido for quartermaster
Vapen, Weaponsmaster – Swedish for weapon
Keibin, Entourage – from keibiin, Japanese for guardsman
Frouros, Entourage – Greek for guardsman
Sowar, Entourage – Persian for a soldier on horseback