Jun 27, 2011

Laura Kaye - Guest Blog and Contest


Please welcome Laura Kaye a multi-published author of paranormal, contemporary, and erotic romance. Today Laura introduces PVN readers to her amazing vampire world.

She is also offering one  lucky commenter an ebook of  Forever Freed plus some surprises.  [See rules at end of post]

The Vampires in the World of Forever Freed

Thanks to Patricia for having me here today to talk about my new release and share my vampires with you. I’ve been an avid reader of all things paranormal and supernatural—especially vampires—since I was a kid, so it’s such a thrill to have written a vampire story of my own. Forever Freed is about a reclusive, empathic vampire who falls in love with a woman he planned to kill and her daughter, then fights his ancient guilt, bloodlust, lie by omission, and an old vampire rival who threatens everything he holds dear.

Here’s the blurb:

A heart can break, even one that no longer beats.



I stalk my new neighbors, a single mother and her child, drawn by the irresistible scent of their joy and love. I crave their blood, starved for some healing respite from my ancient grief. Now to lure them into my grasp.



But they surprise me. Little Olivia accepts me without fear or reservation--talking, smiling, offering innocent affection that tugs at my long-lost humanity. Her mother, Samantha, seeks me out when she should stay away, offering sweet friendship, and calling to the forgotten man within me. They lure me instead

Ah, Dio, Lucien, run and spare them while you can...

*grins* So, today, I thought I’d introduce you to the vampires of Forever Freed’s world.  All of the vampires share the following attributes:

ABILITIES:  Supernatural strength, speed, hearing, eyesight; don’t age; supernatural ability to heal; ability to charm another’s will, although this is not absolute; ability to daywalk, though not in direct sunlight; ability to go long periods of time without sleeping [called “trancing”]

WEAKNESSES:  Direct sunlight, silver, holy water, decapitation—surest way to kill

The Hero:

Lucien Demarco [Turned 1895. Empathic.].  He’s hot, he’s fanged, he’s brooding, he’s Italian, he’s wonderful with small children—what more could you want? *grins*  Lucien has a strong empathic ability that has been a source of torment for him since being turned in 1895 in a gruesome scene that left his then wife and daughter dead.  His empathy forces him to feel his victims’ emotions when he feeds, so even though he can charm them into calmness, if they’re evildoers, he feels that about them, and feels he’s drinking it inside of himself.  The alternative?  Isolate and starve himself as much as possible.  Until he has a chance meeting with Samantha and Ollie Sutton.

The Ithaca Coven:

Seven vampires reside in North Ithaca, New York, and they are essentially Lucien’s adoptive family.  Days after being changed in 1895, they found him, abandoned by his maker, and took him in.  He lived with the Ithaca Coven for forty years, then broke out on his own.  But they’re still a major part of Lucien’s life.

Here they are:

Griffin [Turned 1760. Mesmerizer.]  Griffin is the oldest and most powerful of the Ithaca vampires and made the decision to bring Lucien into the coven when they found him in 1895.  He’d been dying after a battle during the French & Indian War when an ancient Native American vampire found him and turned him.  Griffin turned everyone in the coven except for Lucien and Anna.  He is mated to Henrietta.

Jedediah [Turned 1789. Gift not yet disclosed.]  Jed is smart-mouthed, quick-witted and loyal to a fault.  He’d been dying of a sickness while trying to build a homestead out in the wilds of New York when Griffin found and changed him—the first person Griffin ever changed, largely because he’d been in such dire need of companionship.  He is mated to Rebecca.


Henrietta [Turned 1792. Healer.]  Henrietta, or Henny, as Ollie calls her, is the next most powerful vampire in the coven.  A midwife in life, she is able to heal most, but not all, injuries and illness with her touch.  She is one of the four Ithaca vampires turned/saved during an Indian raid on western New York that occurred during the Northwest Indian War.  She is mated to Griffin.

Catherine [Turned 1792. Empathic.]  Catherine is the most beautiful vampire of the coven and the only one unmated.  She is also Rebecca’s older sister.  Catherine’s empathy is stronger than Lucien’s—whereas he can only sense emotions within close proximity, Catherine can sense emotions over distance, particularly with people with whom she’s had, er, certain connections.  She regularly has romantic liaisons with human men.  Aside from his human wife who died, Catherine is the only other woman with whom Lucien had a romantic relationship before he met Samantha.

Rebecca [Turned 1792. Not gifted.]  The youngest of the Ithaca vampires was only 17 when saved/turned after the Indian raid. She is also Catherine’s younger sister.  Rebecca is passionate, effervescent, and brutally honest.  She is mated to Jed.

William [Turned 1792. Gift not yet disclosed.]  For a long time, William was in love with Catherine and had a relationship with her, but it was generally one-sided.  Thus, when Catherine developed feelings for Lucien, William was immediately jealous.  His animosity and other actions, particularly turning three girls with attributes similar to Catherine’s, were ultimately what chased Lucien from the Ithaca coven.  Mated to Anna, who he turned.

Anna [Turned 1938.  Not gifted.]  Turned by William in a fit of desperate jealousy and loneliness, Anna ultimately forgave and fell in love with William. Her love healed the part of William’s personality so filled with rage and frustration.  Mated to William.


The Detroit Coven:

A large number of vampires make up this coven, though most are newer and pawns of the Laumets, the bad guys of the story.  Lucien worked for the Laumets from the 1950s through 1990.  Having gotten free, Lucien wants to stay free of them.

Four are most worth noting:

Antoine Laumet [Turned 1731.  Not gifted.] Antoine Laumet is the ruler of Detroit, a position that comes from his long history with the city.  Indeed, Antoine Laumet is based on a real person, the man who actually founded the French fort (Fort Ponchartrain) that was the forerunner of the city (the British changed the name to Detroit during the French and Indian War).  The Jesuits did not have nice things to say about the real Antoine Laumet, so he’s a perfect character to turn into an evil vampire overlord in the story.  And I love weaving history into my tales, as I did with the Indian raids and Northwest Indian War, also real.  Mated to Magena, who he turned.

Jacques Laumet [Turned 1731.  Not gifted.] Antoine’s only surviving son, Jacques is second in command of the Detroit coven and also based on a real person.  Jacques is small and slight in stature and rabidly jealous of Lucien, who his father grew to develop some paternal affection for, especially when Lucien saved his life in an assassination attempt in 1990.  Unmated.

Magena [Turned 1763. Telepathic.] Magena is the most powerful vampire in the Detroit coven. Her telepathy includes not only the ability to read other people’s minds but, through touch, she can also show those thoughts to another person.  A victim of the fighting during Pontiac’s Rebellion, Antoine found and saved her.  Ever since she’s felt torn between a sort of gratitude to him and respectful affection, and a resentment borne out of the fact that vampirism violates her native religious beliefs.  Mated to Antoine.

Langston Brown [Turned 1975. Free of bloodlust.] Newly hired as the director of the Detroit Medical Center blood bank, Langston remembers the friendship Lucien extended to him back when they’d both worked for Laumet and offers to provide Lucien with guilt-free sustenance.  His lack of bloodlust has been a challenge at times, but is useful for Laumet in gaining control of this blood supply.  Unmated as he has an unrequited love.


The Maker:

Lazar.  Despite several decades of trying to find him to exact revenge, Lucien as yet knows nothing about him.



So, you’ve now met the vampires in the world of Forever Freed.  A lot of these details are real sneak peeks in to the series, as they’re revealed and discussed more in the (as-yet) unpublished prequel than in this book.

I’d be happy to answer any questions, but, also: What are your favorite vampire attributes or special abilities?

Thanks for reading!
Laura Kaye

Website: http://www.LauraKayeAuthor.com
Blog: http://laurakayeauthor.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/laurakayeauthor
Twitter: @laurakayeauthor
Sign up for Laura’s Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/d9ruD

Buy Forever Freed, and use this DigiBooks Café code for a 20% discount: e3d9d10a3c - http://tiny.cc/iydy4



Contest

*Laura is offering an ebook of Forever Freed plus signed romance trading cards and some other swag {by mail) to one lucky reader.

*Ask Laura a question, OR answer her question -What are your favorite vampire attributes or special abilities? - for a chance to win.
 
* Be sure contact information is included with your comment.

* Contest ends July 6, 2011 at 11:59pm EST

* Contest is limited to US and Canadian residents.

*ATTENTION - CONTEST IS NOW INTERNATIONAL!!



A multi-published author of paranormal, contemporary, and erotic romance with four books releasing in 2011, Laura Kaye’s hot, heartfelt stories are all about the universal desire for a place to belong.  Laura grew up amidst family lore involving angels, ghosts, and evil-eye curses, cementing her life-long fascination with the supernatural.  Though an avid fiction writer as a teenager, a career as a historian took her in other directions until recently.  Now that Laura’s inner muse has awakened, she’s constantly creating new story ideas!  Laura lives in Maryland with her husband, two daughters, and cute-but-bad dog, and appreciates her view of the Chesapeake Bay every day.

25 comments:

Tanya1224 said...

I love new vampire reads and this sounds more on the romantic side. My favorite ability in a vampire is if they can teleport but some writers do not give them this ability. That's ok though because they usually give them other abilities that are cool. I also like how when they do love it's hardcore...nothing else matters. They go so long without it so when they do find it...it's breath taking. I'd love to win your book. Please count me in. Thanks
Tanyaw1224(at)yahoo(dot)com

Laura Kaye said...

Hi Tanya! I love teleporting too. My favorite instance of this is probably in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J.R. Ward. And, yeah, hardcore love--what's not to love??? Thanks for commenting!

And thanks to Patricia for having me here!

Anonymous said...

I love reading about vampires and this book sounds very good. What are your favorite vampire attributes or special abilities? I like how a vampire can memorize you with their eyes. I like how handsome and gorgeous they are. They look so very hot and not undead. I like their abilities of strength power and how fast they move and how much they love someone. How they fall in love with humans. It shows they do have a soul and heart. Please enter me in contest. Tore923@aol.com

Laura Kaye said...

Those are some great ones, Tore! Good luck!

DANIELA said...

Hi Laura
Just stopping by to say hi... love vamp books, but was I'm not a US or Canadian resident I can't enter the giveaway!

Daniela.

Laura Kaye said...

Daniela--consider yourself entered! There's no reason I can't send an ebook 'round the world!!! :) And having sent romance trading cards to Australia, I know they're not so expensive to send! :)=

Patricia--would you mind changing that so anyone can enter? My oversight!

Bella Street said...

I love the lust for blood and then the reasons why they can't. Obviously it mirrors sexual tension, which is what makes romance novels go 'round. Your book sounds fantastic. I hope I win! :)

bellastreetwritesATgmail.com

Laura Kaye said...

Bella--it is a good parallel, isn't it? Blood lust and sexual lust! I love 'em together! :)= Good luck!

latishajean said...

I love reading about vampires they are my favorite! I love that most are tall and good looking :) I love how fast they can be and reading minds! I also love that every book has a different take on what their vampires can do. I never get sick reading about them! Your vampires sounds very cool can't wait to read. Thank you so much for the chance!
tishajean@ charter.net

Unknown said...

Laura, it sounds like a great new series! I will add it to my 'to-read' list.

I think my favorite vampire gift is not quite empathic, but along those lines. So not only can they sense the emotions, but can influence them also!

Thanks for the opportunity to win!

Dorothy
For Books – http://alaskanbookie.blogspot.com/
For Chocolate – http://alaskanchocoholic.blogspot.com/
For Both – http://twitter.com/AkChocoholic

Laura Kaye said...

Latisha--I too love all the different takes on vampires--that's part of what makes reading new series fun!

Squeak--empathy is a great one! And the type of empathy you describe will play a in the sequel!

Thanks for commenting!

DANIELA said...

Hi Laura
Thanks a lot for including me in the giveaway!!

Daniela.:)

Jud said...

Laura: You caught me just as I was heading out the door. I devoted over a year to exploring completely unfamiliar genres, including paranormal, romance, steam punk, etc., reading hundreds of books to try and understand the mechanics of the ever-changing publishing industry.

PVN is one of the few mailing lists I haven't abandoned and the announcement of your book caught my attention.

One comment, one question:

I don't have any particular likes in the vampire genre, but I'm always haunted by tragic romances between immortal vampires and mortal humans.

I see that some of the links in your guest blog lead to different sites: Amazon, White Rose, DigiBooks. Leaving retail price out of the equation, a purchase from which would most help an author like yourself?

(I'm outside N. America, so no need to enter me for the giveaway.)

Laura Kaye said...

Good morning everyone!!!

You're welcome, Daniela! :D

Thanks for your question, Jud! I'm glad you keep PVN on your current list--it's a great site! A purchase from the publisher (in this case, TWRP) almost always puts the most money in an author's pocket, tho my publisher owns Digibooks, so I receive the sane royalties from sales at that site too, plus have that great discount code they've offered because Digi is newish!

I am including international folks in after all, my oversight on not catching that before posting!

In NYC this week at the Romance Writers of America national meeting--I'll get to gear Sherrilyn Kenyon (Dark Hunters series) at lunch on Thurs--pretty cool!

Thanks for the comments everyone!

Jud said...

And thanks for your response, Laura. I'll go with Wild Rose, as I've bought from them before. The DigiClub discount is attractive, but not the bother of creating yet another account and inputting so much personal info.

I'm still trying to figure out who owns what in the publishing/bookstore world. There have been so many changes in the last six month, the least attractive being several major sites locking themselves into Adobe DRM copy protection.

Thanks for the kind thought of including overseas fans in your giveaway, but I intend to buy a copy anyway, so please leave me out of the draw,

Have fun in NY. My one and only visit there consisted of two days acting as an interpreter at the Jewelry Show. No time for sightseeing whatsoever, unless you count a brief hop to Pittsburgh to interpret for a foreign diamond buyer.

Pam S (pams00) said...

Hi Laura and Patrica this was a great post ty for sharing!

I loved the character descriptions and excited to read about them.

My fav powers --hmmm the misting thing seems pretty cool and I guess empathy.

Pam S
pams00 @ aol.com

Kalex said...

I love reading new vampire books.

kaiodan@gmail.com

shaey said...

I love the great new authors that are writing paranormal books. I especially like the attributes of the vamps and the way they are written about. I would love to have the mind reading ability, and enjoy reading how the vamps try to make things right with this ability.

booklover0226 said...

This is a novel I would really enjoy. The characters sound interesting and well created. In reading your post, you stated the word "series." That word is music to my ears! I can't wait to read Forever Freed.

To answer your question, one of my favorite vampire attributes or special abilities is their super-human strength and mind control.

Thanks,
Tracey D
booklover0226 at gmail dot com

Laura Kaye said...

Thanks for so many great comments everyone! I love hanging with vampire lovers! :)=

Erin said...

I love the sexual tension that builds and builds until the point of complete misery - only to be released in a complete and total moment of passion... The longing and the want the vampires feel - sucking you in until you ache for them.... Yeah thats it!!!
Erin

Lola Loves Books! said...

Thanks Patricia for hosting :-)

Vamps could chew bubblegum while cartwheeling for all I care as long as they ooze mystery and sex appeal! No, really ... I love the mind-link between bonded mates, I would give to feel and know what my husband feels when ... well, you know what I mean.

Doodlebg44(at)cox(dot)net

practimom said...

hey Laura,

I can't wait to read this. the cards are gorgeous! I love when they have the ability to fly. It wouldbe super cool to be able to do that. And of course, when they are bad and struggle to love...watching that unfold in a book is what i love!!!

Christy M
practimom (at) yahoo (dot) com

June M. said...

I love romantic vampire stories. This one does sound really good. I really enjoy seeing how each of the authors will choose to write their vamps, what they can or can't do, how they get nurishment, why they are vamps, etc.

manning_j2004 at yahoo dot com

Anonymous said...

I LOVE vampires! I love how they can fall in love and are totally devoted to that person, teleporting,reading minds and there sexyness and HOT sex! lol

alycia@thejeepdiva.com