Stephanie Draven - Interview

A big PVN welcome to Stephanie Draven who has just released her first published novel,  Poisoned Kisses, from HQN Silhouette Nocturne. It is on shelves now. Stephanie has generously provided an interview and will giveaway one copy of her book to a U.S. reader.
[See contest details at end of post]

PVN: This is your first published novel. What was the road like leading to this moment?

 It was really long! I had a lot to learn about the craft of writing, but even more to learn about the business. I’m still learning, in fact. I stumble a lot even now because I’m not always sure what questions I should be asking. I’m really good about meeting deadlines...as long as I know that I have them!

PVN: Tell readers about the paranormal world you have created.

The world of the Mythica series is one in which the ancient gods all exist, but as we’ve ceased to believe in them, they’ve lost most of their powers. However, war gods still have quite a bit of power because they’re able to feed upon the violence of modern day life. Old gods have taken up new vocations: Ares is a weapons trafficker, Hekate is a fortune-teller, Athena is a scheming patroness of deadly arts. And into this world, the monsters of myth still walk amongst us, in human form. My hero in   Poisoned Kisses for example, is a hydra of a thousand faces. He can shapeshift into the appearance of anyone who has ever harmed him, and his blood is deadly poison.

PVN: How did you do research for this book?

I knew the premise I wanted to start with. I wanted my hero to be an arms dealer, but I wanted him to believe that he had a very good reason for it. Fortunately, I have some very smart friends, one of whom is an expert in African security issues. I asked him for some advice about conflict-ridden places in the world where someone could hold a well-intentioned, if erroneous, belief that arming the combatants would be a good idea. That’s when I zoned in on the Democratic Republic of the Congo. I started reading everything I could find on the area--most of which was horribly depressing--and had to stop researching when I felt as if it would overwhelm the happy ending I had in store for my characters.

PVN: What other writing projects are in the works?

I have another novella and novel in the Mythica series, which will be out in the coming year. Also, under the name Stephanie Dray, I’m writing historicals for Berkley, including my debut, LILY OF THE NILE: A NOVEL OF CLEOPATRA’S DAUGHTER. I’m very excited about those, and very very busy!

PVN: What books or authors influenced you as you were growing up?

Growing up, I loved Greek Mythology, and look what happened? Now I seem to pull it into everything. As for authors that I loved as a kid, well, how can I not name Judy Blume? I also remember loving DH Lawrence as a young woman. Unfortunately, I tend not to re-read things, so I don’t remember most of the plot to Lady Chatterley’s Lover. On the other hand, it’d be like reading it again for the first time if I went back now! Last, but not least, I have to mention Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle which influenced how I looked at the world and why I care about the things I do.

PVN: What is your writing environment like?

On my desk right now is a box of Zantac, which speaks for itself. Next to that is a broken pen. (Pens hate me. They run out of ink and crack in half with alarming regularity in my presence. Anyone who can recommend a fantastic pen to me will have my undying gratitude.) To my left is my Nook, upon which I read. Underneath the Nook is a stack of books I want to read, but which are too bulky to take with me on the treadmill, and so sit there languishing.

PVN: Where can readers find you on the Internet and how can they contact you?

I have a website and I LOVELOVELOVE when readers contact me. Just to say hello. To say they liked my book. To tell me what I did wrong. Whatever! I love it all. Come say hello at http://stephaniedraven.com/

Thanks so much Stephanie!

CONTEST

One lucky winner will receive a copy of Poisoned Kisses

To enter the contest do one of the following: Make a pertinent comment on Stephanie's post OR ask Stephanie a question. 

Be sure I have access to your email.

Contest is open to US residents only. 

Contest ends Oct. 11, 2010. 

This contest has closed

Masked By Moonlight - Book Tour and Contest

Masked By Moonlight
by Nancy Gideon
Pocket (May 25, 2010)

From the publisher: 

IN THIS STUNNING FIRST BOOK FROM NANCY GIDEON’S SIZZLING NEW SERIES, A TENACIOUS COP AND HER SHAPE-SHIFTING ENEMY SACRIFICE EVERYTHING FOR FORBIDDEN DESIRE.
ALL SHE WANTS IS REVENGE.

New Orleans homicide detective Charlotte Caissie is dedicated to bringing down the crime boss responsible for her father’s murder. Using Jimmy Legere’s mysterious and irresistible right-hand man is a dangerous gamble, and not only due to his reputation as more monster than man. Because her feelings for Max Savoie are . . . complicated.

THEN HE RISKS HIS LIFE TO SAVE HERS.

Rescued from the swamps as a child, Max exists silently in Legere’s shadow, heeding only his voice—until Charlotte Caissie awakens his emotions and tests his loyalties. Stepping outside his cautious rules threatens more than just his heart. He could expose his darkest secret.

NOW THEY’RE BOTH IN OVER THEIR HEADS.

Testing boundaries they weren’t meant to cross means facing the truth about who and what they are—and what they need from each other. If Max is the murderer she seeks, Charlotte could be his next victim. She can’t afford to trust any man. Good thing Max isn’t one.

About the Author

A writer whose 50 sales since 1987 cover the romance spectrum, Nancy Gideon thrives on variety. Under her own name and several pseudonyms, she's written award-winning category romances, historical and paranormal bestsellers, earned a “Career Achievement for Historical Adventure” and a HOLT Medallion, and has had two original horror screenplays optioned for film. A Michigan native, she works full time as a legal administrative assistant. Her edgy shapeshifter series for Pocket debuts back-to-back-to-back in Summer 2010.

 Contest

*Answer this question: You are a shapeshifter that can shift from human form into WHAT?  Name only one. Get one chance.

Contest ends July 1.



Contest is open to US residents only. No P.O. Boxes.
Thanks to Sarah Reidy of Pocket Books.

Magic Strikes - Review

Magic Strikes (Kate Daniels, Book 3) by Ilona Andrews. Ace, March 31, 2009.

[Reviewed by Patricia]

Kate Daniels lives In a future world where magic and technology vie for control. It takes a bit of adjusting but most people have learned to accommodate their lives when magic is high or technology again flares to life. Kate's knowledge of magic and her own prowess makes her ideal for freelance work with the Order of Knights of Merciful Aid.

One night Kate comes upon her former partner Jim, now head of security for the Pack (the largest shapeshifter society in the South), picking up the pieces of a body. Jim refuses to answer any questions about it, and tells her to mind her own business. Of course she doesn't, especially after learning that Curran, Jim's boss, and leader of the Pack has not been informed of a murder that most definitely is his business.

Kate discovers that Derek, a werewolf friend, became involved with the Midnight Games, illegal, gladitorial, no-holds-barred fights with teams of humans and preternaturals . Now Derek is missing and when he is discovered his injuries are so extensive that even his shifter healing powers may not be enough to save him. Two other shifter were hideously murdered and dismembered.

Since Derek and the other two shifters worked for Jim he is determined to track down the monsters who did this. Kate joins in. Seeing Derek so terribly brutalized enraged. What she could do, though, was combine her powers with those of Jim and his group as they set out to find who or what was behind the attacks.

One problem. She and the others risked the wrath of Curran, the Beast Master and Pack leader. He had forbidden any contact with the Midnight Games. But Kate is not too worried. Curran is a gorgeous, dangerous hunk who never wastes an opportunity to try his seductive powers on Kate. She fights her own growing sexual appitite for him. Not an easy task. The erotic, witty repartee between these two is not to be missed.

A lot of bad stuff goes on, but there is enough snarky humor to keep things from getting too dark. As in the first 2 books of the series deft plotting and a brilliant assortment of engaging characters make this a must for any reader of fantasy - urban or otherwise.

Magic Strikes is book 3 in the Kate Daniel series. Fans will not be disappointed and new readers should have no trouble jumping right in. Although if there is a choice it's more enjoyable to read the stories in order and watch the characters and their relationships develop.

Note: There are vampires in the alternate reality, but none would ever make the hero of a romance novel. Here is how Kate (in Magic Burns) describes them: "Look, you have to remember that vampires are mindless like cockroaches. They are just vehicles for the Masters of the Dead. If you see a bloodsucker and it's not ripping everyone to shred, there's an actual human being riding that vamp's mind...."

[Reviewed by Patricia]

Read a review of Magic Burns

Books in order of publication:

Magic Bites (Kate Daniels, Book 1). Ace, 2007.

Magic Burns (Kate Daniels, Book 2) Ace, 2008.

Magic Strikes (Kate Daniels, Book 3) Ace, 2009

Book 4 - title unknown - is scheduled for publication in March 2010

Dead and Gone - Vampire Book Review

Harris, Charlaine
Dead and Gone (Sookie Stackhouse, Book 9)
Ace, May 5, 2009

Sookie seems to have softened her attitude to former vampire boyfriend, Bill. No longer does she make disparaging remarks whenever his name comes up. Instead she remembers that he was her very first lover, and that they had shared many wonderful times. He still lives close by, and he is still there for her protection should she need it. But Sookie's amorous attention is strongly focused on the powerful vampire Eric. Her erotic fantasies go wild whenever he is around.

Vampires started the craze of coming out to the ordinary human world. Now weres/shapeshifters have done the same. In a highly publicized TV interview a gorgeous young woman explains that there are those who appear completely human but have a second nature within. This lovely gal then demonstrates by turning into a wolf. Many viewers are shocked and publicly demonstrate their belligerence toward such freaks of nature. Unfortunately the issue of minority rights and hate crimes become a serious problem when Crystal, a pregnant werepanther and estranged wife of Sookie's brother Jason, is murdered. Her body, nailed to a cross, is found in the back of Merlotte's, Sookie's place of employment.

In the midst of this turmoil Sookie finds her life endangered by a rebellion in the land of the Fairies. She recently discovered that one of her grandfathers was fae. These are creatures of such beauty that most mortals and strangely most vampires consider them irresistible. It was Sookie's great grandfather who told her of her ancestry. This had the unintended consequence of bringing her to the attention of a rebel faction that believe fairies should never mix with humans. To them someone like Sookie is an abomination.

Confusing thoughts and feelings about the intoxicating uber-vampire Eric, the brutal death of her sister-in-law, and an unearthly rebellion that nearly costs Sookie her life are the central themes of this latest Charlaine Harris Vampire Mystery. The dramatic intensity is so taut in the final scenes that no reader will want to put this book down until the last page. I have loved all of the Sookie stories, but Harris has surpassed herself with this darker take on life in the small town of Bon Temps, Louisiana.

Read chapter one