Friday, April 20, 2012

No Remorse by MaryLynn Bast (Blog Tour Spot)

I had the wonderful opportunity of interviewing MaryLynn Bast, the awesome author of No Remorse.  Here is my interview with her as well as a Adam a key character in the book.

Thank you Mary for taking the time to answer a few questions for me.  I am so excited for others to know about such an amazing author.
 
1.       How did you come up with the Character of Amber?
A friend suggested I enter a short story contest featuring werewolves.  I had always written romance, so I figured I would do a werewolf romance. All werewolf stories I have seen were always centered around men, so I wanted to change it up a bit and decided to go with a female main character instead. I put myself in her shoes and what it would feel like to be in the woods. What would I see, what would I hear? That’s how I started the story. The short story morphed into a novella and just kept growing. I had no idea what I was going to do with her or her character until it just happened.

2.       What is the hardest part of writing for you?
Sharing my work with strangers has been the hardest part for me. No Remorse is the first story I have taken to the end and actually did something with it. Sharing the story with others terrified me that they were going to hate it. But, here I am, the story is done and I’m ready to take on the world now.

3.       What are you working on now?
“Softest Touch” is the next story of the series and is nearly half way completed.  The plan is to release early 2013.
“A Justified Kill” is a novella that is being edited now, which will be going into an anthology to be released August 2012. This story will give the readers more insight to Amber’s life before “No Remorse”. Her first victim is mentioned in the “No Remorse” but does not go into details. I thought her trials and tribulations of being a lone wolf on the run, not knowing when to expect her first change was worth following up on.
“One Bite To Passion” is a story that is currently being beta read. This is not part of the “Heart of a Wolf” Series. This story is a novella that a publisher requested that I write and is an “adult” paranormal romance.

4.       What can a reader expect in the next book in the Heart of a Wolf Series?
“Softest Touch” features new characters that will interact with Amber, Blake and the rest of the pack. Well, I guess I could give you a preview of how the story begins:
Blood trickled into a dark red abyss where the woman sprawled naked on the floor. Enough time had passed that the blood was no longer pouring from her head. The part of her face that was not splattered across the floor and all over the white furniture was turned towards him with the one eye staring blankly, not blinking. The man was a couple feet away on his knees with trails of congealed blood that had trekked a path down his naked torso from the holes in his bare chest. His face frozen in terror, his mouth remained gaping where he had fought to suck in his last breath of air before slumping awkwardly against the cushions of the loveseat, his eyes staring wide at the high ceiling. His hands were hidden behind his back where they had been tied while he knelt on the carpet. 
Six year old Jimmie sat on the floor staring in horror at the gun in his hand. Even though his mind registered the shadows that shifted by the door, the boy could not force his muscles to react. He stared blankly at the horror in front of him. Not moving when the mob of dark clothed shapes swarmed into the room. Off in the distance, there were voices telling him to drop the gun. Still he sat there, frozen in place, not understanding what was happening around him; he stared at the lifeless forms.
     Suddenly, the gun was snatched forcefully from his hands. Jimmie vaguely felt the strong arms that lifted him from the sticky floor and snapped out of the fog that filled his brain and began to struggle. His eyes darted wildly around and he opened his mouth to scream, but no sound would escape. In his mind he shouted at the strange people to get out of his house and leave his family alone. Jimmie was lost in a world of silence and horror.


5.       What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview?  How would you answer that question?
Who do I make the check out to?  Answer: MaryLynn Bast…
Seriously, I think the question would be:  Sherilynn Kenyon and Christine Feehan have requested you write a story with them…would this be something you would consider doing, if so which one? The answer:  HELL YEAH and why not both?
 

Thank you Adam, for taking time out of your busy schedule and answering a few questions for me.  

 
1.       What were your first thoughts of Amber when seeing her again?
Wow, she’s even hotter than she was in school!  If Blake doesn’t jump on that, I’m going to have to give it a shot.

2.       How do you feel about the future of the pack?
Since I have a little insight to what’s going to be happening, I know there are going to be a lot of obstacles along the way. The one thing I can say for sure, we will have to protect the cubs of the pack. Another thing, the council didn’t consent to Blake forming the pack, so there could be some issues with that down the line. Speaking of the council, they are going to have to get their heads on straight because the territories were set a long time ago and apparently there are going to be a lot of disputes.  

3.       Can readers expect to hear more from you and about you in the series?
You think I am going to be left out? No way!  Even though I do tend to get in trouble quite a bit, Blake and Amber still needs me to be around.

4.       Have you found your mate?  Or is that something to come?
No, I have not found my mate yet. You would think with my ability to foresee things I would be able to find her. I thought maybe the sheriff’s daughter might work out, but her daddy didn’t take too kindly to her hooking up with the likes of me. For now, I kind of avoid him when I can. I kind of shy away from being shot at whenever possible.

5.       What is the biggest drawback of the pack connection?
The biggest drawback is the ability to communicate telepathically. Amber has got to learn to control the broadcasting. She has some really uhh hummm, how should I put it? The woman is just damned sexy! And we can’t help it if she broadcast images as well as sound. If she doesn’t control it Blake is going to kill us!  


My Review of No Remorse
 
No Remorse by MaryLynn Bast {Read April 2012}

No Remorse is Book 1 of the Heart of a Wolf Series by MaryLynn Bast.  The book follows, Amber, a lone werewolf as she finds a mate as well as a pack and finds out who she really is.  Her past comes back full force and she has to quickly realize who she is.  Amber realizes she was never as alone as she once thought.  I fell in love with this book and with a few of the characters.  It was difficult to put down.  MaryLynn quickly put herself on my list of top writers.  It was greatly written and the story line flowed smoothly.  There is twist which can change everything.  This was my first read by MaryLynn Bast and I can happily say it will not be my last.  I look forward to the second book and more from her.  I highly recommend this book and give it 5 out of 5 stars. 

*This book does contain adult material.

Now For The Giveaway!!

Below are the rules for the giveaway as well as the dates and location for No Remorse blog tour.
No Remorse Blog Tour Giveaway Contest Rules:
First Prize: Signed Copy of No Remorse, A No Remorse book mark, and a $20 Amazon gift card.
Second Prize: Signed Copy of No Remorse, A No Remorse bookmark.
How to win 1st or 2nd prize: visit each site on the blog tour schedule, post a comment on EACH DAY of the tour, post your name and email address.  Your name will be placed in the drawing.  *All posts must be made no later than 11:59pm May 5th to be entered.
Other Prizes: 5 No Remorse E-Books
How to win: Post a comment about werewolves on any of the blog tour websites, post your name and email address to be placed in the drawing. *All posts must be made no later than 11:59pm May 5th.
PLUS: One lucky winner who comments on THIS blog post will win a signed copy of No Remorse, and a few others will win bookmarks (a few signed as well). 

 
Tour Schedule
April 20 – A Page Away http://pageaway.blogspot.com
April 21 – Tahlia Newland http://tahlianewland.com/reviews.
April 23 – Vampyre Kisses http://www.vampyrekisses.com
April 24 -  Persephone http:wingedpersephone.wordpress.com
April 28 – Jennifer Turner http://jennifer-turner.com
April 29 – Stephanie Brenston http://starrynightbookreviews.blogspot.com
April 30 – Anna Dase http://amadase.blogspot.com
May 4 – Heather Lynne http://www.fullmoonbites.blogspot.com

Get No Remorse:

Available at AMAZON and BARNES & NOBLE 

Friday, April 13, 2012

Chael's Luck Blog Tour

I had the wonderful opportunity to interview Mireille Chester, the amazing author of Chael's Luck.  Here is my interview with her as well as a Princess Katheryn. 

Thank you Princess Katheryn for taking the time to answer a few questions for me.

1)             Princess Katheryn you are first introduced to the reader during Chael’s fight against Caleb.  How did you feel watching that match?

Nervous, excited.  I really wanted Chael to win.  It was obvious he was the more honorable Knight in the match.

2)                      What initially made Chael stand out more than the other knights in training?

Of course, the first thing I thought when I first noticed him was that he really was the smallest of the bunch.  As time went on, however, I started to see what a great man he was.  He’s brave, loyal, motivated.  He’s smart and able to think of ways to compensate for the fact that he is so much smaller than the rest of the Knights in training.

3)                      How did you handle the rejection from Chael?

I have to admit I was slightly put off.  I’m the Princess.  Who turns down the Princess?

4)                       How did you feel when Chaela was introduced?

Embarassed.  I mean, I’d fairly well thrown myself at Chael and he hadn’t had the courtesy to mention her.

5)                      Did you at any time feel angry at Chaela?

For sure.  I wanted Chael.  Because of her, I’ll have to settle for another.



Mireille, Thank you as well for taking the time to answer a few questions.

1)      What key point, feeling, or lesson do you hope readers take from your work?

I think that my main lesson would be that if you want something, go for it, work hard, and don’t listen to the ones who tell you you’ll never do it. 

2)      How did you come up with the main character?

I had a dream one night.  A lot of my stories start off that way.  It was about a young knight who was trying to prove himself in a fight with a bigger knight.  It just kind of snowballed from there.


3)      What is the hardest part of writing for you?

The hardest part of writing is always deciding when the story is ready to publish.  I love to write and so for the most part, that’s not usually an issue.  My biggest worry is always when I push the send button on the email that tells my publisher the proof copy was perfect and that the book can go to print.  That’s when I start to double guess myself.  Did the editors catch all of typos? Could I have added something to the story to make it better? Should I have left certain things out?  It’s a gut wrenching feeling until the first few reviews start coming in and I realize readers don’t hate the book.

4)      What are you working on now?

Right now I have five projects on the go.  I am doing the second last edits on ‘Tyler’s Story’ which is being released late in the year.  It is a young adult novel set in Quelondain, the world that ‘The Chosen One Trilogy’ is set in.  I wrote that one for my niece who asked me to write her a book she was allowed to read.  I am also working on the next novella in the Quelondain Shorts series, which will tell Hayden’s parents’ story and how her Wedelven mother became fated to a human from this world.  The third project is for the Status Shorts novellas.  Those are stories inspired by Facebook statuses.  The fourth project is called ‘Angered Seasons’.  It is a sort of zombie apocalypse/mother nature ends the world type of story.  It sounds weird, but I think people will like the twist.  It will be released next year sometime.  My last project is what I sort of consider my masterpiece.  It is called ‘The Witteck Chronicles’ and is the next series set in Quelondain.  It will be four books long and much more complex than ‘The Chosen One Trilogy’.  The first book will release next Christmas. 

5)      What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview?  How would you answer that question?

You know, no one has ever asked me which of my fictional men is my favorite.  To answer that question, I’d have to say Matthew.  He is one of the Namael (cat shifter) captains in ‘The Chosen One Trilogy’.  I just find he has that great mix of sexy, sweet, and funny.  He’s actually going to have a much bigger role in ‘The Witteck Chronicles’, so I’m super excited for everyone to get to know him better.


Here are locations for the remainder of the tour:

April 14- M.E. Franco, Author http://mefrancoauthor.blogspot.com
April 15- Forever Lost in My Own Worldhttp://mireillechester.blogspot.com/
April 16- Read2Review http://read2review.com/
April 17- Forever Lost in My Own Worldhttp://mireillechester.blogspot.com/


Now for the Giveaway!! Here are the Rules:
All those who comment on any of the blogs and leave their email address will be entered to win one of five swag packs at the end of the tour, and those who did not win an e-book during the tour will be put into a drawing for a final chance to win one of five e-books.

One of my lucky followers will get a chance to win a copy of the E-book all others will be put into the final drawing and the swag drawing. 

To check out my review of Chael's Luck if you haven't already click here:  http://pageaway.blogspot.com/2012/02/chaels-luck-by-mireille-chester-read.html

Good Luck and check out the book!! 
It is amazing!!

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Waffles and Pancakes (A lesson in friendship) by Cindy Springsteen {Read April 10, 2012}


*With help from my three year old son.
This is a great book written by Cindy Springsteen.  It was wonderfully written and had great illustrations.  My son really enjoyed the book and I had to read it a few times and I’m sure I will have to read it to him again soon.  He really loved the hamsters in the story.  He also enjoyed the colorful pictures.  I was worried that he wouldn’t follow the story (since he just turned three), but he surprised me.  He took from it that “cause you [mommy], and Nana, and pop love me so much we are happy with our little house.” And “I should play with Eva (his puppy) sometimes instead of toys.”  This story has a wonderful message that with possessions don’t make you happy, love does.  I highly recommend this book and give it 5 out of 5 stars. 

Monday, April 9, 2012

Keep an eye out.... Blog Tour

I will be hosting April 20th so keep a look out for an awesome interview 
with a character and MaryLynn and a chance to win awesome prizes!! 

Below are the rules for the giveaway as well as the dates and location for No Remorse blog tour.
No Remorse Blog Tour Giveaway Contest Rules:
First Prize: Signed Copy of No Remorse, A No Remorse book mark, and a $20 Amazon gift card.
Second Prize: Signed Copy of No Remorse, A No Remorse bookmark.
How to win 1st or 2nd prize: visit each site on the blog tour schedule, post a comment on EACH DAY of the tour, post your name and email address.  Your name will be placed in the drawing.  *All posts must be made no later than 11:59pm May 5th to be entered.
Other Prizes: 5 No Remorse E-Books
How to win: Post a comment about werewolves on any of the blog tour websites, post your name and email address to be placed in the drawing. *All posts must be made no later than 11:59pm May 5th.

 
Tour Schedule
April 2 – Business and Creative Women’s Forum http://businessandcreativewomensforum.blogspot.com/
April 8 – Reena Jacobs http://reenajacobs.com
April 9 & 10 – Just Another Book Addict   http://justanotherbookaddict.blogspot.com/p/im-addicted-to.html
April 10 – Reena Jacobs http://reenajacobs.com
April 11 – Jennifer Turner  http://jennifer-turner.com
April 12 & 13 – Renna Jacobs http://rennajacobs.com
April 16 – Ryder Islington http://ryderislington.wordpress.com
April 17 & 18– The Jeep Diva http://www.thejeepdiva.com
April 18 – Karen Docter http://www.romconinc.com
April 19 – Page Flippers http://www.pageflippers.blogspot.com
April 20 – A Page Away http://pageaway.blogspot.com
April 21 – Tahlia Newland http://tahlianewland.com/reviews.
April 23 – Vampyre Kisses http://www.vampyrekisses.com
April 24 -  Persephone http:wingedpersephone.wordpress.com
April 28 – Jennifer Turner http://jennifer-turner.com
April 29 – Stephanie Brenston http://starrynightbookreviews.blogspot.com
April 30 – Anna Dase http://amadase.blogspot.com

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Keep an eye out.... Blog Tour

I will be hosting April 13th so keep a look out for an awesome interview 
with a character and Mireille and a chance to win an E-book and a swag pack!! 
On the 13th I will be giving away one E-Book copy of "Chael's Luck".

Rules to win a swag pack: All those who comment on any of the blogs will be entered to win one of five swag packs and those who did not win an e-book will be put into a draw for a final chance to win one of five e-books. 

Here is the Blog Tour Schedule: Go comment comment comment to enter :)

 
April 4- Twimom101 Book Bloghttp://twimom101bookblog.blogspot.com/
April 5- The Book Mystress http://thebookmystress.blogspot.com/
April 6- Author C.A. Kunz http://cakunz.blogspot.com/
April 7- Melissa Stevens melissastevens.us
April 9- Book Passion for Lifehttp://bookpassionforlife.blogspot.com/
April 10- My Book Chatter http://mybookchatterchat.blogspot.com/
April 11- Paranormal Book Club http://paranormal-bookclub.com/
April 12- Scribblings of Wendy Janehttp://wjsmithblog.blogspot.com/
April 13- A Page Away http://pageaway.blogspot.com/
April 14- M.E. Franco, Author http://mefrancoauthor.blogspot.com
April 15- Forever Lost in My Own Worldhttp://mireillechester.blogspot.com/
April 16- Read2Review http://read2review.com/
April 17- Forever Lost in My Own Worldhttp://mireillechester.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Betrayal by Mayandree Michel {Read March 2012}

Contributor: Kristi Chambers
Betrayal is the first book in The Descendents series by Mayandree Michel.  This book was amazing.  I'll start by saying the only reason it didn't get my fifth star is because it starts slow and at some points the "mystery" becomes a little drawn out.  That said it was a fantastic read and I cannot wait for the sequel out in June.  It's a great combination of my favorite types of books and then some.  Romance/Mystery/Paranormal/Action and even bits like a western.  I was ultimately enthralled and couldn't put the book down once I got into the characters and plot.  Mayandree's writing style is definitely one of a kind!  I would definitely recommend this book and give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Monday, April 2, 2012

First Author Interview ......and a giveaway!


I was extremely lucky and super excited to get to interview one of my favorite authors.  Once I read the first chapter I was hooked.  Here is my interview with Tim O’Rourke author of the amazing Kiera Hudson Series.  After the interview check out how you can win the first three books in the series.

Were you surprised by the quick popularity of The Vampire Shift series?
I didn’t really know what to expect when I published ‘Vampire Shift’. I hoped that it would do well but it wasn’t really until the release of the third book in the series (Vampire Hunt) that series really started to take off.  By Christmas the series was really selling and on Christmas day I woke up to find that ‘Vampire Shift’, ‘Vampire Hunt’ and ‘Vampire Breed’ were all number one on different charts on Amazon.UK . I couldn’t have been happier and it was a great Christmas present.

How did you come up with the character of Kiera Hudson?
I wanted to write a female lead that was determined, strong and smart. I’d read quite a lot of vampire books where the female lead tends to hang off every word that her boyfriend says.  I didn’t want that for Kiera and I think that’s why she has become so popular.  Kiera can figure stuff out for herself. She makes a great leader and although she has a rough time in the first book, she grows even stronger over the series. 

 What can readers expect from the new series?
Whereas the first series is told totally form Kiera’s point of view, this will be different in series two. The first book in the new series (Dead Flesh) will be split between Kiera and Kayla. The rest of the books in the series will be split between Kiera, Isidor and Potter. The last book will be split between Kiera and another character that is returning from the first series – but I can’t say who that character is yet as it will spoil the end ‘Dead Flesh’.

 What kind of research did you do for the new series?
I haven’t undertaken too much research for the second series but I did do some for the first book ‘Vampire Shift’. I researched how quickly blood congeals and how close serial killers commit their crimes to where they live. 

What is the hardest part of writing for you?
Finding the time and meeting the tight deadlines that I set myself. I’ve never had problems coming up with ideas, but writing does take a lot of time, and although I can write a book quite quickly, I never want to rush it. 

 For you, what is the best part of being an author?
Finding out what readers think of the stories. I love getting emails and chatting to people about the characters. It’s also great fun to be able to spend my time sneaking off to a make-believe world every day and spending time with the characters that I create. Sometimes they almost seem to take on a life of their own and even though I’m the writer I still feel sadness and happiness for the characters. 

What are you working on now?
I’m currently writing ‘Dead Flesh’ the first book in the second Kiera Hudson series. I have also had a secret project going on in the background which is now finished but I can’t say anything about that right now but hopefully something exciting will be happening very soon and I’ll keep you updated. 

What question have you always wanted to be asked in an interview?  How would you answer that question?
Which of my characters do I love the most? Andrea (Andy) Black from my book ‘Black Hill Farm’.  She is the character that I miss writing about the most. I love Kiera but Andy Black is the character that I have most enjoyed writing about. 

If you were writing a book about your life, what would the title be?
‘For the Love of Two Father’s’ and I wrote it about four years ago! 

Will there be any novellas or spin off series (other than Kiera’s) from the Vampire Shift series?
This is an exclusive just for you – but I will be writing a spin off book about a separate adventure that Kayla and Isidor have.  It will be set after the last book in the second Kiera Hudson Series.  I don’t have a title yet, but it will very fast pace with lots of twists. Kiera and Potter won’t be in the book but for all those people that love them, I will be working on a series of shorter mysteries (Novella length) that I will put all into one book.

To win a copy of Vampire Shift, Vampire Wake, & Vampire Hunt; simply follow my blog and add a comment to this post answering who your favorite vampire character is.  Winner will be picked Friday.

Thank you so much to Tim O’Rourke first for such amazing reads and second for such a great giveaway.