Archive for the ‘Interview’ Category

Vamps, Weres and Warriors!

Posted: June 29, 2012 in fiction, Interview, Paranormal or fantasy, reviews
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I have two things to tell you about today. First is my review of Black Warrior by H.D. Gordon. Second is really exciting. H.D. is here on my blog today for an interview. I love interviews, don’t you? Also a peek at Book 2 and her upcoming new release at the end of this post!

Here is my review of Blood Warrior (Book 1 of The Alexa Montgomery Saga)

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Fighting is all Alexa has ever known. Her mother uses makeup to cover the bruises, the ones she herself caused. She never explains why Alexa has to learn, she only says it is necessary to be prepared.

Her younger sister Nelly couldn’t be more different. Always dressed in the nicest clothes, makeup tastefully done and not a hair out of place. She was slight of build, more delicate, and Alexa was glad Nelly did not have to fight their mother. Alexa adored her sister and would do what ever it took to keep her safe, but from what?

I admired how fiercely Alexa loved Nelly. Her protective instincts towards her sister were more lethal than a momma bear for her cub. I have three older sisters and they were  always standing up for me against others, but liked to tease me as older sisters do.

It was a good thing her mother prepared her physically for what was coming, but Alexa could have used some answers to the mysteries surrounding her.

They came late one evening. The Lamias.  They looked like humans, except they weren’t. Eyes completely black, pale white skin, emitting horrid shrieks. There for one reason only, to kill Alexa and her family.

Alexa and her mother fought well, shielding Nelly, but they were vastly outnumbered and when Alexa’s mother orders her to take Nelly and run, she knows there is no other choice. However much she hates leaving her mother behind,  knowing she can’t survive, Alexa must keep Nelly safe. There is no other choice.

I was a little confused in the beginning. It seemed like Alexa was being abused by her mother, but she was actually preparing her for what was surely coming. The Lamias – part demon/damned souls, their only purpose being to cause pain and to kill. Forced to leave their mother behind, the sisters seek refuge at Two Rivers, a spectacular city surrounded by water. They should be safe there. Lamias can not cross water.

At Two Rivers Alexa discovers who and what she is and some secrets are revealed.

Blood Warrior is a great introduction into this series about vampires and werewolves. There are several love interests for Alexa, but not what I would call a real love triangle, along with some intense fighting scenes-vividly written and a whole lot of mystery.

H. D. Gordon has built a marvelous new world. It is always amazing to me how an author can take something tried and true and make it unique and surprisingly fresh. Her writing is crisp, without a lot of fluff, and she tells the story fluidly, capturing you and putting you at the scene.

A great beginning to this series, Blood Warrior sets up the plot, introduces the characters and their world and fills you with anticipation. I already have Half Black Soul, the second book in this series, and am so glad I don’t have to wait to dive back into this world as this is not a stand alone book. I’ll tell you about it later!

I urge you to get Blood Warrior and enter a new world. You won’t want it to end.

4 STARS

And now for my interview with guest H. D. Gordon

How about we start by having you tell us a little bit about yourself?

I am 23 years old and the mother of two beautiful girls. My children get the vast majority of my time, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. They both will begin school next year and I’m not sure what I will do with myself when that happens. Well, yes, I do. I will read and write more. Those are the two activities that take up pretty muck all the rest of my time, and I wouldn’t have that any other way, either. A mother and a writer, that just about sums me up. I also play a little guitar, long walks on the beach, etc, etc.

How did you pick this genre and where do you get your ideas?

This genre was always a passion for me. I love all things fantastical. Ever since I was a child and obsessed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer(I used to carve chopsticks into stakes and carry them around with me, in case I had to slay a vamp, of course) and the obsession never waned. Stories, ideas? Well, they come from everywhere and from nowhere. There’s really no other way to describe it. With Blood Warrior, all I had was an opening scene, which I handed to my father to read. He then advised me to take the next semester off of college to write this book. He is huge on school, and this was unheard of from him. I took his advice and am so happy I did. I now write full-time for a living. It’s the best thing that has ever happened to me, other than the birth of my children, of course.

Does your character Alexa resemble you in any way?

Alexa is pretty much me only way, way cooler. Basically, she is everything I wish I could be(except for the homicidal tendencies). More accurately, she is me before children; reckless, hot-headed and young. I think the biggest similarity is our loyalty to those we love. Loyalty is the most valued quality I think a person can have. When I wrote this book I honestly never expected the success it is having. I wrote it for me, and so it indulges my fantasies, and I wrote Alexa to be like me because I sort of wanted to live through her. She is my hero. When I get scared I think to myself “Alexa could handle this.”

What are you reading now?

Lots and lots of Stephen King. Him and Poe are my literary heroes. Poe influenced a lot of my writing as a child, and King embodies everything I aspire to be. I just finished The Stand(awesome btw, so read it) and my fav book of all time is The Shining. I am currently reading The Dark Tower Series and I can’t get enough. King’s attention to the words is just…well, amazing. Someday I hope to be as good as him, and I believe I’m getting there. My new book Joe, due out on June 30th, will hopefully show my growth. Give me a few years and I hope to rival all the males dominating the world of books(Koontz, Patterson, King). I hope to show them what a female writer can do. I guess we will just have to wait and see. But,  I’m getting there.

How do you spend your spare time, if you have any?

Sparetime? Lol, I don’t even know what those words mean. My children come first, but I have gotten used to reading and writing around them, which is to say the least, distracting. But really that’s it right now. I read and write like crazy and make sure my girls get my full attention. There isn’t much time for anything else. But. really, for me, it is like living the dream. I can read and write anywhere, and I do. It’s a dream job. I get to stay with my girls 24/7 and do what I love in between. I couldn’t imagine a better life. (My daughter just came in to tell me about a boy who turns into a turtle and a boy who turns into a “T-wex” as I write this). Gotta love em.

Is there anything else you would like to share with us?

Yes, I am working hard to get books out. My new book, Joe, is my proudest work yet, and I hope to pull in a wider audience with it. After that, two more Alexa books will be released in 2012, the next one at the end of this coming August. I have a lot of stories to tell, and I plan to do just that. So, huge thank you to the fans! You guys have been so supportive, and for this I love you all.

Thank you for the interview!

You are welcome and thank you for being my guest and sharing with us today.

You can read an excerpt for Half Black Soul (Book 2 in the Alexa Montgomery Saga) at the end of the post. Also included is a blurb from her new book “JOE” scheduled to be released on June 30, 2012. That’s right. This week!

For more about H.D. Gordon and her books:

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/HDGordon?sk=wall

twitter: https://twitter.com/hd_gordon

Her blog: http://hdgordon.com/

You can sign up for her newsletter and get all of the latest news at the bottom of her blog.

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5189455.H_D_Gordon

Mild Spoiler Alert

This is a blurb of book 2 in the Alexa Montgomery Series. If you have not read the first book , this contains mild spoilers.

 In the past few weeks Alexa Montgomery has had her entire world flipped upside down. She’s gone from living a semi-normal teenage life to a life full of vampires and werewolves who all expect her to deliver them from the control of an evil dictator.

Alexa is the last of her kind; a Sun Warrior, and now she has left the safety of Two Rivers to search for her mother, but she’s left her sister behind to do so, and Nelly is the one person that she was told that she must always protect. Kayden, a vampire who is Alexa’s other half, has followed her on her journey. But, secrets are about to come out, relationships will break and danger lies just up ahead. Will Alexa be able to get through all of this and make it out alive? And, will she be able to protect Nelly from danger when she is so far away?

Here is a blurb from Goodreads about Joe, H. D. Gordon’s upcoming new novel, scheduled to be released on June 30, 2012.

Joe
From the author of The Alexa Montgomery Saga comes a book that will take you into the mind of a genuine psychopath, the lives of six ordinary people and the world of a very special girl named Joe.
Joe is seemingly an ordinary college student. She works, studies and reads. But in between these activities Joe has a gift that promises to add a dose of color to her life at any given moment. Joe sees things before they happen. Bad things, and the worst thing she has ever faced is just around the corner. Someone is planning a massacre at the college university that Joe attends, and the only person with a hope of stopping the psychopath is her.
Oh, the beauty of foresight. More like a curse. Joe has four days to figure out the mystery, make plans to take down the psycho and save the lives of people. People like you and me. ordinary people.
You can find out more about Joe here: http://hdgordon.com/?p=436
Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew!

Interview/ Giveaway of Dark Passage /Paperbacks and Ebooks/Contest is over

Posted: June 10, 2012 in fiction, giveaways, Interview, Paranormal or fantasy
Tags: , , , ,
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 Dark Passage

Dark Passage by M.L. Woolley
Dark Passage (Chosen, #1)
by M.L. Woolley(Goodreads Author)

 
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UPDATE!!!
To all that have already entered this contest, you are now also entered in a giveaway that includes the first 3 paperback copies of Rebecca York’s Moon Series. A werewolf series. And if I get 40 entries, the First Place  Winner will also receive a paperback copy of Blood Trinity by Sherrilyn Kenyon and Dianna Love. The contest has been extended until June 23rd at 12:00 A.M.
WOO HOO!!
I have some goodies to giveaway today along with an interview that the author graciously agreed to do. The giveaway includes 30 ebooks, 2 paperbacks/US and 1 paperback/International. That’s right!  This little blog is rockin today! To enter the contest just follow the directions provided below the interview. This contest runs from June 10 – June23 so lets get started!
 
L.      Thanks for being my guest today Michele. Would you like to start by telling us a little about yourself and how you started writing? 
M.  Thank you so much for having me as a guest today Laura! Well, I am 43 years old and a mother of two adult girls, one of whom is my model for the book covers. My husband and I live on a small horse farm in Western Washington and operate a riding program for special needs children. My life passion has been helping people recover from trauma and go on to live fulfilled lives. As you might guess, I am a social worker/counselor and I work for a government agency with special needs people and do free counseling on the side. In my spare time I love to write and fit some of the people I have worked with over the years into my books. Once you work with someone who has suffered immense tragedy, or worked with people who have struggled with life, they become a part of you. Their voices will always be in my head and their faces etched on the hidden corners of my mind. Their personalities live on and their memory is never forgotten. Writing is healing in many ways and I can give good endings to the ones who didn’t survive the brutality of life.
L.  Do you have a secret weapon that helps with writer’s block?
M.  Hmm – When I write I am very disciplined and will sit at my desk all night and force myself to write a minimum number of words. I enjoy going out on the deck and looking at the stars and then think of people I have known. There is always a story to be told and creativity comes when you least expect it. It’s also good to go for a drive and go someplace relaxing. Sometimes I sit on the patio at Barnes and Nobel and just watch people. I try to imagine them in situations and take mental snapshots of how they would react. Sometimes, nothing comes and it takes days for my mind to clear. When I write, I spend many, many hours researching various things that I write about. It’s all quite a daunting task to take a book from start to finish but I never give up on a goal and push on until I finish.
L.  What was your inspiration for writing Dark Passages?
M.  The past couple of years I have had experiences with the supernatural. I was never a believer in ghosts but after my mom died I learned there was more to come after death. We would hear footsteps upstairs when we were in bed at night, pictures were moved(of her and I) from their places and strange things would happen. I think in her own way she was telling me she was going to be okay and not to worry about her.
There is a very old Victorian not far from where we live. It’s set on a hill and underneath it are tunnels from an army base that used to exist in the 1920″s. They were used to hide supplies and missiles were stored there. The house belonged to a sea-captain and his family. The wife was said to have been friends with the infamous “Dr. Hazzard” who murdered dozens of people in her sanitarium a block from the house. I enjoy history and the paranormal so I explored the house one day when they were having an estate sale. In the attic were various books on witchcraft and dark arts. There were also some crazy paintings hanging all in a row. They were crudely made and I imagined that the faces somehow were the avatars for the souls murdered in the valley. The house has been said to be very haunted and photos have been taken where faces(not living) were seen peering out. We have some photos and blew them up to see what was really there. They were misty appearing and had no substance to them. I have always had a wild imagination (I suppose that was my saving grace out of my own tragedy and on to a better life) and the stories came to me.
L.  Can you tell us something about the next book, maybe give us a peek?
M.  The next book takes up where the last one ended but is very different. It takes the characters into the underworld, as Lisa realizes the evil she has done and decides to go into the veil to find David. I would say it is a Dystopian and has as many twists and turns as part 1. The characters are further developed and new ones are added into the mix. My imagination was working overtime for this one lol.
Here is an excerpt from the book:
Lisa made her way quietly down the dank tunnel, the sound of wet moss squishing down under her converse shoes. The flickering light of her flashlight made shadows on the earthen walls and the drip of water could be heard further down. Her eyes burned but she refused to cry. Crying wouldn’t change the past and it wouldn’t do David any good.
She came to know David at a party. His winsome smile and the way he nodded to her as she glanced over at him. There was an aspect of him that had an undercurrent of danger, recklessness even, that aroused her senses. He was strikingly handsome and his blue eyes smoldered seductively. He was a man who knew precisely what he wanted and he made it clear that he wanted Lisa.
Lisa paused for a moment, as though to turn around and forget the madness. Her body betrayed her and buckled beneath her grief. She crumpled to the damp ground and pulled her knees to her chest, as though to shut out the pain. Finding the old book today had rocked her world. When Ivy started reading it out loud the words spun around in Lisa’s head.
There is a great veil that will be opened when the events are put into motion. Those who are living can cross over and find the tree of life. With the precious sap the tree produces, the living can renew the dead and bring them back across the veil. To complete the transformation the ancient alchemist must be found and then prophesy can be fulfilled. Beware that there is risk of never leaving the way of the dead should you die on that side. Take with you one from the other world to shield you from the evil. You will find what you need within the book.
She wanted to run back to the others in the cavern but a battle raged in her mind.and heart . Lisa put her hands over her ears but her thoughts cut into her mind like arrows. Images of David flashed across her mind like a movie. She remembered the night he grabbed her and pressed her hard against the wall. She had stiffened, clenched and protested, but he held her tightly as though to never let go. The weight of his body crushed her and she felt suddenly awakened. Passion was ignited and it was as though they became one. He possessed her, almost savagely, and tore down all the barriers in her mind. She was vulnerable to him. He had seen deep into her being and accepted her for what she was. To be loved when there is nothing in it for the other person but hope, that maybe someday they could be loved.
The hot tears she had been holding back rolled down her face and there was a terrible pain in the pit of her stomach. She felt as though she couldn’t catch her breath as the sobs came hard. Lisa hated herself for what she had done to David. When he needed her most, she walked away and left him to sacrifice his life for her own. She realized after he was gone that she had thrown away the most precious thing in her life. The one that she had least expected to fall in love with, became the man of her dreams.
Now it was time to take some chances and risk losing her very life. It meant closing her eyes and leaping into the void and facing the horror on the other side. Nightmares had plagued her and she had heard screams of dying people in immense pain. Their eyes were pleading for someone to help them as flesh fell from their bones. Smoke surged around the charred remains of bodies. The hungry flames glowed red-hot in the darkness of the night. In the shadow of the ghoulish light she saw David. He was looking at her with brooding eyes and she could feel what he was feeling. Nothing terrified Lisa more than losing the only one who made her life worth living. He was the first thought in her head when she got up in the morning and the last thing she thought of when she went to bed at night.
Lisa shivered as she pushed her body up from the cold ground. She knew what she must do, and was prepared to die if need be to make right the wrong she had done.
L. Is there anything else you would like to add?
M.  To those of you out there struggling with life or not sure where you are going. Keep pushing forward and never give up on yourself because there is light at the end of the tunnel. Dreams do come true.
 
Fun shorts
butterflies or dragonflies:
Hmm – tough one. Dragonflies have always seemed mystical to me and held promise of some land far away, while butterflies make me think of the struggle of each person and how they emerge from the problems a beautiful butterfly. Butterflies-definitely.
 
dogs or cats:
Cats have always been a part of my life. When I was alone as a child they were my friends, dolls to dress up, comforters and constant companions. I have an  old cat my mom gave me many years ago. He knows when I am sad or ill and curls up by me and purrs for hours. Cats are a treasure. I love all animals but cats are #1.
 
ebooks or print books:
I love to have shelves full of books, however, ebooks allow me to read on the go. I would have to say ebooks:)
 
elevators or stairs:
Haha! If I am trying to lose weight then the stairs, but if not I take the elevator.
 
Sweet or salty snacks:
I would say salty. I like to eat green apples with table salt:)
 
A huge thank you to Michele for such an insightful interview and a peek into her next book.
 
And now for the giveaway. There are 30 ebooks, 2 paperbacks/US and 1 paperback/International to be given away!  All that is required is to leave me your email in the comment box so that I have a way to contact the winners. It would be nice if  you were to follow my blog and follow Michele and I on twitter but it is not a requirement to be entered. You can follow me from my side bar and you can follow Michele here:
 
You can find her on Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads .com/author/show/5767871.M_L_Woolley
For updates about Underworld – Book 2 of the Dark Passage Series:
 
For my review of Dark Passage – Book 1
 
 
 

If you would like to purchase Dark Passage – Chosen just click on the image:)

Good Luck!

 
 
 
 
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