The terror of the incubus.

There are a lot of romances out there featuring incubi, or sexual demons, as heroes. My upcoming release Night Lover has an incubus antihero, but I wanted to present an alternate picture, one that reflects the legend more accurately.

These are creatures to be feared.

We’ve all seen John Henry Fuseli’s famous painting. Yes, there is a sexual pull on the victim, a strange allure. However, there is terror involved as well.

In researching this book, I was amazed at how many chat rooms still exist in which alleged victims claim to suffer from incubus attacks. This sort of phenomena can paralyze victims and drain them of energy. There are numerous accounts in books of the paranormal, dating back centuries.

The symptoms can be horrific. One may experience a choking sensation or inability to breathe. This is because incubi are said to sit on the victim’s chest, cutting off the air supply. My heroine Renata experiences this as well. The victim may begin to feel listless, unfocused. They lose all vitality and strength. Their appearance begins to show the strain. Reports detail dark circles under the victim’s eyes or pale skin. Some accounts claim an incubus can father a child with its hapless victim, creating a half-human offspring. As the victim’s health deteriorates, a victim might contemplate suicide.

Not so sexy, is it?

In Night Lover, my incubus Hugh suffered tragedy in life, a tragedy that was amplified when he was cursed by a man who worshiped Satan. He despises his fate but cannot seem to alter it. He’s been trapped on a torturous plane, destined to seduce and lead women to destruction.

Can Renata, his latest victim, save him? And will she be able to save herself in the process?

I hope you will read Night Lover and find out.

Canadian soprano Renata Bruno is tired of waiting for her big break. Unfortunately, her boss, the conductor of a chamber ensemble, sees her as little more than background material. When she learns of an opportunity to sing solo with a different troupe in England, she knows she must seize it. Especially when she hears the group is to perform Mozart’s Requiem, her favorite work.

As soon as Renata decides to make her move, a strange, sultry presence invades her life. She begins dreaming of a man, one who makes love to her, bewitching her. It isn’t long before her night lover leaves startling proof of his nocturnal presence, making her doubt her senses.

To compound her discomfort, she learns her new conductor is the college boyfriend who broke her heart years ago. As Renata grapples with old hurts and renewed passion, she must also fend off the increasingly fervent advances of her night-time visitor. She realizes she is under the influence of an incubus, a sexual demon.

It becomes harder to resist the incubus when she learns he has a name and had a tragic history. The more she discovers about his past, the more she realizes they are linked in more ways than one. Renata begins to rediscover love and her sense of faith, but will it be enough to save her night lover from an evil curse? And will it destroy her in the process?

Excerpt:

Margaret reached for my hand and squeezed it. “I’ve taken it upon myself to speak with some of the religious leaders in my community…”

“Margaret, I’m not religious.”

“No, but you said yourself you acknowledge intangibles. You recognize the existence of spirits, if not God.” She handed me a sheet of printed paper with several stanzas on it. “These are prayers to ward off an incubus.”

I skimmed the paragraphs and shook my head. “Away with you, Satan? May the Lord Jesus Christ rebuke you? I’m not comfortable with this.”

“Well, if you won’t read the prayers, continue to read his journal. Perhaps something there will resonate with you.” She squeezed my shoulder. “You may have invited him in, Renata, but he came because he recognized your vulnerabilities. He knows the chink in your armor. He understands your deepest fears. Do you?”

Preorder links:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Night-Lover-Rosanna-Leo-ebook/dp/B016TMOHT2/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/night-lover-1

B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/night-lover-rosanna-leo/1122845405?ean=2940152424058