School’s In: Karina Cooper & Parker Adams

Schools In (200px)It’s that time of year again. Everyone is going back to school and so is Karina Cooper’s Parker Adams from Sacrifice the Wicked.

Parker Adams has always done what’s expected of her . . . until a double agent with nothing to lose ignites a passion she doesn’t dare give in to.

Mission Agent Simon Wells is everything Parker Adams has been trained to fight: manipulator, murderer, spy… witch. But for her, what makes Simon most dangerous is his mesmerizing sexual magnetism, powerful enough to tempt even the famed ice queen of the Mission. Though she knows better, each encounter with the deceptive agent leaves her craving more.

Simon isn’t a man to let go of what’s his, and his pursuit forces Parker, a woman he can’t get out from under his skin, to make a stand that could destroy her. If they can work together, they might survive the politics that have enslaved their devastated world—or fall victim to the pitfalls of desperation, bone-deep mistrust, and a hunger that threatens to consume them.

Make sure you stick around to the end. We’ll be giving away a copy of Sacrifice the Wicked.

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The Mission

KCooper-Sacrifice the WickedA big city like New Seattle, and there’s going to be orphaned kids. Some are abandoned on the Mission steps or discarded like old trash in alley trash cans. Others are more traditionally orphaned: a car accident, a murder, a drunken brawl in the depths of the low street clubs.

Some are taken. Though that was just a rumor the orphans tell among each other in the dark hours after curfew.

Parker Adams wasn’t ever “taken”. She never met anyone who was, or claimed to be. The Mission wasn’t a prison; it was a school. A home for orphans, offering a roof over their heads, food, education.

And for kids like her—the quick ones, the bright ones, and the ones with talents—the Mission offered training.

She thrived under the training. An orphan for most of her life, Parker couldn’t remember more than the vaguest hint of her mom and dad. They were one of the lucky ones, taken out by a car accident instead of some of the more grisly stories she’d heard, but they’d left a kid and most of their fortune behind them.

The Holy Order of St. Dominic had taken them in. Kid, fortune, and all.

So she trained to become a missionary. Most of the kids did. You either trained to fight or you trained to think, and Parker was a damn good thinker. Her memory was good, she had sharp critical thinking skills, she knew how to put together patterns.

For Parker Adams, school—the missionary orphanage—was the foundation for the rest of her life. The first step to the short road that would see her reach the support role of technical analyst, and then become the Mission director—the head of Sector Five. The boss.

Who knew that the kids she hung out with, the same orphans she ate lunch with, learned with, even did some basic training with, would one day be working for her?

If she’d known that at sixteen, maybe she would have been more careful. Maybe she would have avoided sneaking out after curfew to make-out with the cute boy from the training hall. Then again, maybe she would have taken the time to slip out a little more. Enjoy things just a little more.

Maybe she wouldn’t have been quite so serious. So studious.

They like to call Mission Director Parker Adams the ice bitch of the Mission. Even as an analyst, they’d never seen her ruffled. Never seen her lose her cool. She was always in control.

The very few boys who remembered her more personally from the orphanage were dead, now; missionaries whose dangerous jobs finally caught up with them. Who was to say otherwise? That she was a flesh-and-blood woman, that she had a beating heart beneath her tailored suits.

The Mission didn’t encourage personal commitments. Not with each other, not with anyone else. A few of them ended up with a spouse, kids, but it wasn’t the point.

That was life in New Seattle. In the Mission orphanages. You eat, you sleep, and you learn. Everything they ever gave her was designed to promote wellness—of the body, of the mind. To train.

School was always in, from the moment an orphan entered the system to the day he or she graduated into the role of full missionary. That’s how they made cool analysts like Parker. Tough agents and deadly protectors.

Get them early. Start them young.

School’s in. It always is.

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Meet Karina Cooper!

After writing happily ever afters for all of her friends in school, Karina Cooper eventually grew up (sort of), went to work in the real world (kind of), where she decided that making stuff up was way more fun (true!). She writes dark and sexy paranormal romance, steampunk urban fantasy, and writes across multiple genres with mad glee. One part glamour, one part dork and all imagination, Karina is also a gamer, an airship captain’s wife, and a steampunk fashionista. She lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with a husband, a menagerie, a severe coffee habit, and a passel of adopted gamer geeks. Visit her at www.karinacooper.com, because she says so.

Karina CooperContact Info
Website: website
Blog: Blog
Social Media: Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads | Pinterest | Tumblr

Want to purchase Karina’s novels?
Dark Mission Series

  1. Before the Witches at Amazon | Book Depository
  2. Blood of the Wicked at Amazon | Book Depository
  3. Lure of the Wicked at Amazon | Book Depository
  4. No Rest for the Witches at Amazon | Book Depository
  5. All Things Wicked at Amazon | Book Depository
  6. Sacrifice the Wicked at Amazon | Book Depository

The St. Croix Chronicles

  1. Tarnished at Amazon | Book Depository

Please help spread the word: Tweet: Go back to school with 30 authors while #giveaways ensue during #SchoolsIn (Sept 1-30) http://tinyurl.com/LESchoolsIn – #paranormal #contests #UF

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Contest Time!

Thank you Karina for taking part in Literary Escapism’s School’s in!

Karina is giving away a copy of Sacrifice the Wicked. To enter, all you have to do is answer this one question: Are you where you thought you would be in High School? Remember, you must answer the question in order to be entered. US/CA Only!

Even though I’m not giving the additional entries any more, you can still help support the author by sharing their article, and this contest, on your blog, Twitter, Facebook, or anywhere you can. After all, the more people who are aware of this fabulous author ensures we get more fabulous stories.

The winner must post a review of the novel someplace. Whether it is on their own blog, Amazon, GoodReads, LibraryThing or wherever, it doesn’t matter. Just help get the word out.

All School’s In contests will remain open until October 7th at which time I’ll determine the winner with help from the snazzy new plug-in I have. Have you checked out the other School’s In contests yet? Check out the Master List to see all the School’s In giveaways

I have not been contacting winners, so you will need to check back to see if you’ve won.

About Jackie 3282 Articles
I am a 30-something SAHM with two adorable boys and a supportive husband who is very tolerant of my reading addiction. I love to read and easily go through about a dozen books a month – well I did before I had kids. Now, not so much. After my first son was born, I began to take my hobby of reviewing a little more serious and started Literary Escapism to help with my sanity. I love to discuss the fabulous novels I’ve read and meeting all the wonderful people in the book blogging community has been amazing.

11 Comments

  1. I am getting there but not quite. Overall I’m content with where I am but a small step or two before I’m happy :)

  2. No, I’m not! I never imagined I would so content with my life as I am. Of course when you’re 15-18 yeats old, you don’t have enough life experience to do more than dream and suppose.

  3. No, I’m definitely not where I planned to be after high school. i had planned to be either a marine biologist or a zoologist. Ended up not anywhere near that. Not unhappy, just not where I had planned on being. I love Karina’s books and would be thrilled to win a copy of Sacrifice the Wicked. Thanks for the awesome giveaway!

  4. I had absolutely no idea in high school where I would be, so I can’t say. I sure didn’t expect to be living where I am, though!

  5. Yes and no. I always knew I would graduate from college, and I did so (with honors). But I also figured I would have a career and not just a job by the time I was (almost) 25. And I probably assumed I wouldn’t still be living with my mom… I can’t complain, because I do have a roof over my head and a paying job. High school also probably never thought I would read so much. :)

  6. I’d say yes- I wanted to be a nurse (since kindergarten). I do know I had no idea what field I would want to work in (expect peds- I knew I didn’t want to work with kids). Over a decade later, I wouldn’t change anything.

  7. Im a lot more then i could have imagined in high school.. im happier, and more in love.. and nowhere near where i thought i would be living!!!

  8. Love this post!

    I’m definitely not where I thought I’d be in high school but I’m very happy with how things have turned out!

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