February 10th, 2010 — A-C, Erotica, Guest Blogger, Paranormal, Vampire
by Teal Ceagh, guest blogger and author of the Destiny's Trinities series.
I’ve been on a marathon viewing of the second season of True Blood
. The TV series is a huge departure from the Sookie Stackhouse
books by Charlaine Harris, which I’ve read at least twice over, all nine-point-five of them. I’m looking forward to reading book ten in May, when it’s released.
One of the more interesting convergences of the books and the series, though, is the question that constantly plagues both humans and vampires in the series: What is the difference between humans and vampires? And should vampires work to maintain their human-ness, or let it go and embrace their differences?
I find that a fascinating part of both series and I find the same questions tend to creep into the books that I write — although I tend to deal with the questions in much more intimate ways, as I’m writing erotic vampire romances. I love watching vampires struggling with feelings. After centuries of growing cynical and objective about temporal humans, seeing vampires brought to their knees by love, especially love for a human, is an especial treat — and the greater and more powerful the vampire, the more delightful it is to watch his or her topple from their ivory tower.
To fall in love with a human must be devastating for a vampire. They know from experience built over decades, centuries and sometimes even millennia, that the human they have feelings for will soon wither and die and still they cannot help themselves but feel romantic love for them. How does that make a vampire feel? Weak? Vulnerable? Powerless? An idiot? A fool? Human?
What if that human does not want to be turned to a vampire as they age? What if they prefer to age and die and leave the vampire to go on alone through the ages. Or what if the vampires refuses to turn the human when the human requests it?
There are dozens of moral, ethical and emotional questions and dilemmas that sex and romance between vampires and humans beget and beg to be explored. Is it any wonder that vampire romances are so popular? There’s so much uncharted emotional conflict still to be shaped into delicious stories and heart-stopping tales. I know I’m not about to stop writing them any time soon.
Nearly one hundred years after their last dance together, Eva’s long-lost love Edward makes contact again. Eva, now a lonely vampire, can’t resist falling into his arms and under his erotic spell. She’ll do anything he asks of her…
Until the spell is rudely interrupted by Ryan, a demon hunter on the trail of an incubus. He seduces Eva with a searing night of dance and passion—and attempts to avert the disaster that hovers over the delicate, beguiling creature.
Buy Eva's Last Dance
Excerpt
Usual warning folks…This is not kiddie fare. Read at your own moral risk.
Chapter One
Eva brushed her gloved hand down the length of her gown nervously and stepped out onto the roof, her heart pounding. At the other end of the roof, he was standing there waiting for her and she thought she might die.
“Edward,” she whispered, coming to a halt.
“Yes, it’s me.” He came toward her, holding out a rose. “I know it’s a shock but I can explain all that.” He handed her the rose. “Just as I know you can explain how you came to be here. Now.” And he smiled, just like she remembered, his blue eyes dancing, his easy smile lighting up his face. His blond hair was slicked back as always and he wore a white suit, just as she remembered too.
“You don’t look any different,” she said and her voice was husky.
“Neither do you.” He picked up her hand and drew her toward the centre of the roof. “It’s not the Waldorf, but would you care to dance?”
“I haven’t danced since…since then.” She looked around at the paper lanterns he had strung. “What about music?”
He pulled a small remote control from his pocket and clicked it. “Modern living has some advantages,” he confessed and a Strauss waltz emerged from an MP3 player and speakers set up on a small table. Waltzes. She loved waltzes the best and he knew it. She melted into his arms and wished that she was able to cry, to give expression to the overwhelming joy of being nestled in Edward’s embrace once more. Soon she would have to find out how this miracle had happened. But not now. For now she would simply enjoy it.
And dance. It had been such a long time.
Once, long ago, she and Edward had danced every night, their bodies pressed against each other, their eyes locked, the knowledge of their future together written in each others’ gazes.
She turned her head now to look him in the eye. “Edward.”
He looked at her and she saw once again the gleam in his eyes. The dancing had often been their only way of expressing their physical needs for each other, that they would not be able to fulfill until their marriage. Now she saw and understood the lust in his eyes and welcomed it. There was no impediment and her heart raced. As their steps slowed to a gentle swaying, his big hand gathered up the skirt of her gown, lifting it and his mouth captured her lips.
She moaned as his tongue pushed into her mouth, rough and commanding. Fright tore through her. They would never have been this daring when they were first engaged. Their families would have been shocked and horrified at the public display. But the fright was edged with arousal that swiftly overcame the old barrier. She wanted more.
Edward bent her over his arm, his hand sliding under her gown, past her stocking tops, to the tops of her thighs. His hand was cool but nevertheless, she found his touch made her tremble with anticipation. This was Edward, the man she had loved and thought she had lost.
His lips trailed down her throat to kiss her breasts above the low décolletage of her gown and his hand pushed between her thighs. She was slick with moisture and bare of undergarments. She longed for him to thrust his hand—
“Hey, asshole!”
Edward turned his head around toward the access doorway, questing like a wolf surveys the landscape.
Eva tried to stand up, for there was a man on the roof a few paces from the door, wearing a three-quarter length coat against the April chill, his legs spread in an aggressive stance. Black hair that was supposed to be short but needed cutting and glinting blue in the soft lights. Dark eyes surveying them with a world-weary expression and a sharp jaw set at a sardonic angle. Worse, there was a double-barrel shotgun over one shoulder.
Edward made a sound that was inhuman. A banshee howl. And he dropped her. She fell flat on her ass as he turned and strode toward the stranger, careless of the gun he had over his shoulder.
The man flipped the gun over and fired one barrel and Eva screamed as Edward clutched at his stomach with a shocked expression.
“Surprise,” the stranger said. “Think I’d use normal pellets on an asshole like you? Salt bound with holy water, with my compliments.” He walked up to Edward, put a boot on his shoulder and shoved and Edward fell on his back.
“What are you doing?” Eva cried, scrambling over to them.
“Saving your ass, honey. Don’t get in the way.” The man reached under his coat and pulled out a black knife with a flat, wide blade. Edward lay clutching his stomach and gasping with inhuman, whimpering sounds and the man leaned toward him and thrust the knife into his heart.
Eva screamed. She leapt on his back, reaching for the knife, moving as fast as she could but before she could pluck it from Edward’s heart, he disappeared. She stared at the black, smoking outline where his body had been, disbelief crowding all thoughts from her head.
That was when the man flipped her onto her back on the roof and straddled her, his black eyes glinting dangerously. “You’re a fucking vampire!” he railed.
Ryan watched the delicate little blonde’s crystal blue eyes get very large. “How do you know that?” she whispered. “No humans—”
“I just off’d an incubus. You think I don’t know about vampires?” he railed. “Question is, what did the thing want with you? They go after humans. Not your kind.”
“You’re a hunter,” she said breathlessly, fear blooming in her eyes.
“Relax,” he said, sitting back on his heels. “I took vampires off my hit list five years ago. But that still doesn’t answer my question.”
“Edward…was an incubus?” she asked. She looked like she was about to burst into tears and Ryan put it together with an almost audible click. “Jesus Christ, they duped you, didn’t they? Who was Edward to you? An old boyfriend?” He got to his feet. Normally, he would have let her get up on her own but something about her dress—the olde worlde quaintness of it, the long gloves and the way her golden curls were piled on top of her head…or maybe it was just the way her big blue eyes were gazing at him with such desperate need for help and information—whatever, okay, all right, he was a weak-minded idiot—he picked her up around the waist and put her on her feet. And damn but his hands nearly met around her middle.
And just for a second he flashed on a mental image of gripping her waist as he pounded his cock into her petite little package, making her scream his name.
He stepped back, dropping his hands from her waist like she was a hot potato and picked up the shotgun and reloaded it, giving his suddenly shaking hands something to do.
“Edward…was my fiancé,” she said softly. “We were supposed to have married, May 1, 1912. I was to join him in New York and booked passage on the Titanic.” She looked up at Ryan with a small smile. “I was not one of the women who found an early seat on the lifeboats. But a man who found me as I was dying offered me an alternative and I took it. He made me into a vampire, which allowed me to survive the cold that night and pass as human until we arrived in New York on the Carpathia. I could not go to Edward after that. It was part of the price of becoming a vampire.”
Ryan expected her blue eyes to swim with tears, until he remembered that vampires could not cry. He cleared his own throat. “What happened to him?” he asked.
“He died in the great war,” she said softly. “A hero, they said.” She looked over at the still smoking outline of the incubus. “So when I got his note today, saying that he had returned and wanted to see me, I thought that perhaps he had found a way to live on, just as I had.”
Ryan recalled the image he’d seen as he’d first stepped onto the roof—the demon’s lips on her breasts, his hands between her thighs, the gown hiked up around her hips and realized that his cock was straining against his pants, beating a steady tattoo that echoed in his temples. He was lusting after a vampire. Shit. Who’d have thought?
He waved toward the blue satin dress she was wearing. It made her waist look tiny and her breasts look like they might spill out at any moment. The sleeves looked like they would fall from her arms if he gave them the slightest encouragement, further exposing her breasts. He already knew that beneath the long panels of the dress she wore delicate stockings that stopped just above her knees and nothing else.
“Is this what you used to wear, then?”
“Almost,” she said, with a small smile. “My momma would have spanked me for not wearing a corset, or…other items. But yes, this is what we wore then.” And she blushed.
Ryan knew he was lost then. The blush did it. That and the dress that covered up far more than women exposed these days, yet did more to say “fuck me” than most porn. He was gone. Hook, line and sinker. He wanted to wrap himself around her delicate beauty and at the same time pin her to the wall and fuck her until those blue eyes hazed over with sensual repletion.
“So the fucking bastard gives you one dance and you’re putty in his hands,” he ground out. “Didn’t you even stop to ask for his credentials?”
“It was Edward. Why would I ask? And he danced with me. We always danced. We…” Her blush deepened and she dropped her gaze. “We danced instead of…” Then she lifted her head and looked him squarely in the eye. “We danced instead of sex. It was the way of it in those days, Mr.…”
“Ryan,” he said stiffly, as ideas exploded in his mind. “Jesus Christ, you’re a virgin,” he said softly.
“I most certainly am not,” she said stiffly. “I’ve been a vampire for nearly a century, Mr. Ryan. I assure you, virginity is a technicality I left behind a long time ago.”
“Just Ryan.” He held up a hand, frowning. “Technically speaking, you might still be. These things count in the demon world, let me tell you. I’m not talking about toys, or other vampires, or the loss of a hymen, if that’s what you mean.”
Her chin remained up but her blush deepened and he knew he’d hit the mark. He put the shotgun down again, to make himself less threatening and dropped his hands to his sides. “Have you ever had sex with a human male?” he asked softly.
She took a breath. “No,” she admitted.
He nodded. “That’s what the incubus wanted—your virginity. They prey upon humans because they’re easy marks but finding virgins is becoming more and more difficult for them. But when they do, they get all the power that comes with that virgin’s blood. But a virgin vampire’s powers? Sex with you would give them power beyond belief. No wonder they went to such effort to fool you.”
She backed up and sat quickly in the fold up chair next to the table, like the strength had suddenly run out of her legs. “I had no idea,” she said.
“There’s a war on,” he said dryly. “Didn’t they warn you about this stuff?”
“I’ve never… I didn’t tell anyone,” she said.
Ryan knew he had to give her the rest of it. “They’re going to keep coming at you, you know.”
Her blue eyes looked up at him helplessly.
“They’re going to keep coming at you until you do something about it,” he finished harshly.
“What do I do?” she whispered.
His cock throbbed. “Have sex with a human,” he said. He fought for a casual, offhand tone. “I’m willing to help out, if you want.”
To buy this book from Ellora’s Cave, click here.
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Giveaway: Teal is offering to giveaway one copy of any of the three books from the DESTINY’S TRINITIES series, (BETH’S ACCEPTANCE, MIA’S RETURN or SERA’S GIFT). The winner gets to choose their prize. As they’re a series, it’ll depend on what the you have read so far, as Teal says they really need to be read in order. To enter leave a comment. One entry per relevant comment; multiple entries allowed. Ends: February 28, 2010. Good Luck!
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December 31st, 2009 — A-C, Crime and Protection, Detective, Guest Blogger, Mystery, Suspense/Thriller
by Mary Burton, guest blogger and author of Dying Scream.
The average daily chase for me doesn’t have a whole lot of thrill attached to it. I’m usually chasing my miniature dachshunds, Buddy and Bella, through the woods because they’ve gotten onto the scent of something. I’m chasing a deadline or I’m chasing down a recipe for another kind of cookie or bread. All good stuff, but not so thrilling.
However, when I pick up a book, especially a romantic suspense, I can really sink into a thrilling chase. Not only is there a sense of the romantic chase (the chemistry, the tension, the energy that hooks the hero and heroine together) but there is the added layer of a very literal chase—the race to catch a killer. It’s this double pursuit for love and justice that drew me first as a reader and then as a writer to romantic suspense.
In DYING SCREAM, the hero and heroine don’t seem to be in any kind of chase when the story opens. If anything, they are running in opposite directions. Adrianna Barrington and Gage Hudson are not only former lovers with far too many unresolved emotions, but they quickly find themselves on opposite sides of a murder investigation. There are so many reasons why these two would never make it and yet the Pull between them, which they thought was long dead, is so strong that the race toward true love quickly begins.
And if the emotional struggle is not enough for these two, they also have a serial killer that is quite literally chasing Adrianna. If Gage can’t out guess this dangerous killer, he will lose the woman he has finally come so far to find.
So, if you’d like to escape the mundane and sink into a book that feeds your need for a thrilling chase, consider DYING SCREAM. It was great fun for me chasing after these two characters as their story unfolded and I hope you’ll find their journey as thrilling as I did.
Mary Burton
www.maryburton.com
Buy: Dying Scream
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November 20th, 2009 — 4 Stars, Contemporary, Italy, Movie Reviews, Paranormal, Stephenie Meyer, United States of America, Vampire, Werewolf
I saw this movie opening night with seats at a premium even with every theater devoted to the midnight showing. Talk about a rush! Unofficial reports are claiming New Moon topped Dark Knight and other movies in opening midnight showing sales. Despite the big bucks and the glory of a fanbase it really is unsurprising that New Moon tanked in critic ratings. Every critical review I’ve come across so far has been written by a guy. Maybe I’m biased – okay I am, but the point is still valid and if their reviews are valid then so is my review.
On the whole I believe the acting was infinitely better in New Moon than in Twilight. Yes, some of the dialogue is cheesy, but it is good cheesy. Much of the mushy stuff was in the book or modified from the book. I like mushy. If for nothing else, give the actors credit for saying it all with a straight face.
My guilty pleasure for New Moon is reading the beginning breakup scene and the ending sequence over and over again. Edward/Bella angst = yum. Therefore it is easy to see why I did not mind the “moping” scenes with Kristen Stewart. Critics are saying she’s completely expressionless and sucking the life out of the movie, but they don’t understand that the movie is about losing true love.
A new moon is the absence of the moon and is a metaphor for the absence of Edward. The moping is done for a reason. I think Kristen did a great job and had a lot of nuances in her face to express pain and depression. Her nightmare scenes reflected her acting skills from being bitten in the ballet studio. While I think the nightmares could have been toned down by say one maybe two in the middle part it wasn't terrible. They were a great way to show Charlies care and love for his daughter.
Robert Pattinson impressed me with his ability to look like he wants to cry and can’t! He has really improved as a actor.
Twilight Lexicon with Alphie’s review of New Moon
To that I say ditto. I understood Edward was supposed to be wholly against leaving Bella but I hadn’t quite understood Rob’s expressions were meant to be expressions of tearless crying. When I got that (during the actual breakup scene) it was so much better for me.
She [Bella] never crosses a line from friendship with Jacob, but it is easy to see how he would read her signals differently. Stupid girl, to court disaster on more than one front.
Karin at Review New Moon (movie)
I was prepared to hate this movie because of the majority being spent in focus of Jacob, but Taylor Lautner truly surprised me and in a good way. He did a phenomenal job and I especially enjoyed the scenes at Bella’s house. When Jacob and Bella hug, he embraces her like a lover, but she clasps her hands behind his back in a manner that screams friendship. Their almost kiss by the phone and when he begs her not to leave by Alice’s car are very charged.
There were some beautiful shots in this film. The scene in Italy with all the people dressed in red and Bella running through the crowds is the one that stands out the most. There were lots of fluid scene splices though some of the cutting between scenes bugged me. The ones that did made the movie feel HP5 rushed in a way that if you hadn’t read the book would make you think they left something out (though nothing really is).
My favorite trick I must say is camera rotation around Bella while showing three months passing by.
Cydia Matos at REVIEW: Twilight Saga’s New Moon Lives Up to Novel.
I agree! It was absolutely perfect. Loved the seasons and the activities shown that others were doing outside.
In addition, I really liked the CGI in this film; it’s easily 100x better than Twilight which is a good thing too! The werewolf shifting, ghost Edward, the vampire fights, the cracking on Edward’s face is fantastic! Yes, even the sparkle is better.
The vampire eyes looked really fake to me, and too perfect if that makes sense. Even though vampires are suppose to look perfect like that, and have golden eyes I still didn’t like them. People still have color changes in their eye, even if the overall affect is brown … or in this case red or yellow gold. The eye color is very flat.
Captain Yarr at Movie Review: New Moon directed by Chris Weitz
The eyes did look very strange and I think Captain Yarr hit the nail on the head. They’re strange because they’re flat. Without the minute changes in color you’d see in a real eyes the overall effect is blank, static, and solid color contact looking.
Alice didn’t look like a fashionista either. Her outfits were pretty strange. Rosalie and Jasper’s hairstyles changed to make them look older, but Rosalie didn’t really look like herself and Jasper’s hair just looked sloppy.
The Volturi were awesome! Loved them and Jane and Alec even. As I said earlier the fighting here was well done. A good job by everyone (cast and crew) all around!
I will definitely get this on DVD as soon as possible.
Oh and if you thought there was something wrong with Robert Pattinson's chest in Volterra, Italy you would not be wrong: ROBsessed Nip-vestigates Robward's "Wonky" Mipple aka Left Mipple Gate.
Edit: After second viewing, I have add by saying Kristen Stewart does an amazing panic run. It's truly a panic mode and not something cheesy. Kudos to her!
What did you think of the film?
Rating: 4 Stars
Buy: The Twilight Saga: New Moon (Two-Disc Special Edition)
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September 24th, 2009 — 5 Stars, Artist, Book Review, Contemporary, Gentry, Great Britain, Jane Austen, M-O, Regency, Time Travel, United States of America, Writer
You have to love the cover of this book. Wow! The male model is scrumptious! Anybody know who he is?
This story revolves around one question and one question only… do you believe in fate?
Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy is one of many Fitzwilliam Darcys. It’s a family name, one that’s been used many times over the centuries. His family established Pemberley Farms in 1789 for horse breeding. In the 1800s when Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice was first published in America it caused quite a scandal. If Rose Darcy, the first mistress of Pemberley Farms, hadn’t been absolutely positive her husband, Fitzwilliam Darcy, had never set foot on English soil she would have left him. The current Mr. Darcy is extremely interested in learning how Jane Austen came to know about the Darcys and Pemberley Farms. He’s bought old documents in his quest to find out if Austen’s Darcy was based on a real man.
Eliza Knight is a romantic at heart. Her talents lie with fine arts, think painting not writing. When she encounters a charming little vanity table and mirror in an antique seller warehouse she snaps it up. In the process of cleaning the wood and putting the table together Eliza discovers two letters. One from a Mr. Darcy directed to a Miss Jane Austen which is opened and a sealed letter from Jane Austen to a Mr. Darcy. Surprised, Eliza is unsure if it is a hoax or not, but in case it is not she leaves the unopened letter sealed not wanting to be known as the fool artist who ruined a historical artifact of great importance. In her quest to authenticate the letters, Eliza burns to find out if Austen’s Fitzwilliam Darcy ever existed.
The novel is broken into three volumes, following the setup of Jane Austen’s novels. The story is charming and completely engrossing. You can’t help but believe in true love and happy endings by the end of this book. I highly recommend this novel to all readers and especially to those that love Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. The Man Who Loved Jane Austen is one of the best renditions of this timeless classic I have ever had the pleasure of reading… soul stirring.
Rating: 5 Stars
Originally posted 2009-01-23 05:34:14. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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September 13th, 2009 — Guest Blogger
by Lynn Spencer, guest blogger and contributor to All About Romance. Follow her on Twitter @LynnAAR.
So, why romance? Unless you've been living in very deep cave somewhere, you probably know that it's one of the top-selling sections of the book market. During this recession, romance sales are still booming. One could simply say, "There's something about that happy ending," and leave it at that, but for me, it goes a little deeper.
No matter how dark the world becomes around us, romance ultimately serves as something both hopeful and life-affirming. Whether it's wallpaper comedy or something heavy with more than a mere touch of darkness, we get to see two people finding kindred souls in one another. No matter what happens to them or what may get destroyed, this bond will endure. For that reason, we know that we will be able to call their ending "happy" because that story will contain something hopeful and positive that will be found and never lost. Empires may fall and secondary characters may die, but true love will remain and with it bring hope.
When I first started reading romance, I was most definitely a closet reader. I did this first because even the moderately tame Harlequin Historicals I discovered in high school probably wouldn't have passed muster with my parents. Later on in college, it was just considered deeply uncool to admit reading most popular fiction, but especially romance. So, those great historical writers of the mid/late 90s were stashed under my bed and read when no one else was around. I didn't stop reading them all together, though. I may have wanted to fit in with my friends, but I still needed that happy rush that I got from seeing the hero and heroine wind up together and happy. Not to mention the fact that I really did learn a lot of history from my romances!
The message of hope and the belief that relationships really can work carried me through tougher times, too. I served as a relief worker in Europe during the Bosnian war, and while I may have been a little low on bug spray or dried fruit on occasion, I always had at least one romance and a spare in my pack, nestled next to my Bible and first aid manual. The more sources of hope and optimism available, the better. When Hurricane Isabel swept through Virginia, I had just started reviewing for All About Romance. It was my little stack of review books and a flashlight that kept my spirits up in the face of having no electricity or telephone for more than a month!
I read literary fiction, nonfiction and all manner of genre fiction, but romance still does and always will occupy a very special place. I love reviewing romance because I have learned so much from doing it, and I now have a new appreciation for the skill it takes to construct the best books in the genre. The creativity and hard work of the writers out there inspires me, and I love the adventures they bring us. And, no matter what kind of day it is, I enjoy reading something that reaffirms how precious a gift love is and that reminds me there will always be hope. People can mock romance all they want, but that's a dream and a message that still means something to me - and, judging by sales figures, a gazillion other readers.
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May 10th, 2009 — About, Author Interviews
This is part two to my Twitter query series about defining emotion and passion. Part one can be found here. This series is devoted to asking romance authors and readers to explain the driving forces behind the concepts of love and desire by sharing their opinions and stories.
What is love? How do you define it?
Sèphera Girón: Love is unconditional acceptance and nurturing protective feelings towards another human being. Romantic love would add sexual chemistry and the idea of wanting to "do anything" for your partner both in the bedroom and out.
Stephani Hecht: A few years ago my grandmother was in the hospital. She'd had emphysema for a while and we all knew she was dying. Most of the time she was unconscious, but we still took turns being by her bedside so she wouldn't be alone. I was taking the midnight shift when my grandfather showed up. He came to her bedside, took her hand and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.
"I still remember the first time I saw you," he said, as he stoked the back of her hand with his thumb. "I was fourteen, you were twelve and I spotted you across the school yard. You had on this really pretty yellow dress and there was a ribbon in your hair. As soon as I saw you I said to myself, That's the one. That's my girl."
Now that was true love. My grandmother died hours later and my grandfather has never really gotten over losing her.
What makes a great bedroom scene?
Sèphera Girón: I'm talking about one man and one woman in this one: Anticipation and tension sexually and emotionally before they hit the bedroom, leading to sensual touching and exploring, with the woman coming first at least once and usually it's because the man has full attention on her either oral sex or fingering her. Both partners are lustily into the moment and sometimes it's nice if both can come together for the finale. Descriptions and dialogue should be realistic and to the point, including talking during lovemaking even though it feels weird typing "oh yeah" but when you read the work outloud, it's real. "Cute" words such as cunny, and creamy, turn me off.
Stephani Hecht: If you can make the reader "feel" the character's fears, passions and desires, then you have done your job as a writer. I want the reader to be cheering when the hero and heroine finally get together.
To read other responses to these questions, check out Love Romance Passion's additional author interviews.
If you would like to participate officially in this series send your responses to Keira: reviewromancenovel[at]yahoo[dot]com. Additionally, you can send up to two links to connect readers to who you are and where to find you.
Photo Credits: 1
Originally posted 2009-01-10 11:49:43. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
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March 19th, 2009 — 2.5 Stars, Another Planet/Dimension, Book Review, Cursed Lead, Enemies, Fantasy, Foster/Orphan, Heiress, Historical Romance, Kings, Princes, Sheiks, Chiefs, M-O, Magic Users, Mistaken Identity, Plump/Endowed Heroine, Queen or Princess, Survival, Virgin Hero, Virgin Heroine, Young Adult
The classic story of Sleeping Beauty retold by Catherine Murdock in Princess Ben takes on a life of its own. When her father, mother, and uncle are brutally murdered under the orders of King Renaldo of Drachensbett, Benevolence is summoned by her aunt, the queen, to take her place as the heir to Montagne.
Ben is resentful of all the tortures Queen Sophie inflicts on her from classes in deportment and dancing to limiting her food in an effort to slim her figure. Ben has never been one of those silly princesses, who dined on air and compliments. She was plump and happy about it. She enjoyed her food and having it taken away is a terrible injustice!
After her latest punishment from Queen Sophie, Ben cried and raged and somehow stumbles upon a secret doorway. Behind the doorway is a stairwell, and the stairwell leads to a room. In the room there’s a book, a magic one, and in the dead of night Ben steals away and practices magic in secret. One spell creates a sleeping body double.
Prince Florian of Drachensbett, believes in destiny and true love… until he realizes that the sleeping girl who can not be woken from his prophecy is the sullen rotund Princess Ben. Despairing, Florian chooses to lead warriors against Montagne, but thoughts of war can’t block out Princess Ben. He dreams of her, as she dreams of him, much to his disgust because the girl in his dreams is nothing like the Princess Ben he met.
This book is weird to read as its first person omniscient. Queen Benevolence is recounting her tale to readers and at times it reads from young Ben’s point of view, but you get voiceovers from the present older Ben. I felt like I should believe the experiences were happening to a fifteen year old girl, but I couldn’t wrap my mind around it with the narrator voice being so much older.
Rating: 2.5 Stars
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March 9th, 2009 — Guest Blogger, J-L, Jane Austen, Regency
by Sharon Lathan, guest blogger and author of the Darcy Saga
It is such a thrill to be spending today on Love Romance Passion. Keira has been so gracious in allowing me two whole days (our fun interview will post on Thursday!) to hijack her website and talk about my debut novel, Mr. and Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy: Two Shall Become One. Today I am going to chat a bit about the limitless infatuation with Austen.
Why are people so interested in continuing Austen's books?
It is a great question, but I do not think there is a single answer. I imagine the motivations for writing a sequel or variation or behind-the-scenes or modern spin vary widely from person to person. A cynic would likely say it is merely the greed to cash in on a fad while exploiting a classic piece of literature. Maybe in a few cases, but I truly do not think this is the norm.
I recently wrote a guest blog for Diary of an Eccentric entitled, "Ignorance is Bliss." In it I talked about how I entered the realm of Austen fan fiction (JAFF) largely unaware of just how huge the genre was. I knew of a few online communities and had read enough JAFF to know what I wanted to say and that the reception would be good, but I did not know of the massive collection of books being published. At first it was daunting. But then I realized that the wealth of competition and rabid interest only proved why I had begun writing in the first place: People love Jane Austen and they can never have enough.
So I suppose if I had to come up with a single, simple answer to Keira's question it would be love. Perhaps we feel a bit cheated in Miss Austen being taken from the world so young. We mourn what we presume may have been a dozen more novels if she could only have lived another twenty years or been more prolific while alive. Her perpetual popularity for what is in truth a mere handful of novels is proof of her brilliance. Her stories are the ultimate tales of romance and true love, written with beauty and wit, and set in a world that utterly captivates. They worm into our very souls so that we are satisfied momentarily but left hungering for more. The numerous dramatic adaptations, those both silly and seriously wrought, are further evidence of this devotion. Everyone who reads Jane Austen is touched by something unique within the layers of her stories. They are romantic, yes, but also so much more. Each person is affected to some degree and for a few of us it becomes an obsession to keep that emotion alive.
Thus, I call it "love." But love of what, precisely? Well, again, I think it varies. For me, I was struck by the sheer romantic elements, the glory of a love story conveyed so phenomenally, as well as the history. For someone else it may be the culture of the day, the society that these Regency folks inhabited. Another may be captivated by the witty repartee and crazy misconceptions, taking that into extreme places as they toss bizarre stumbling blocks in the way. Then there are the really creative writers who dream up crazy time travel stuff just to see how these characters will react in wild situations! It is all good, in my opinion, as it points back to the source material with reverence and appreciation.
And the latter is the crux, isn't it? If it is largely love that motivates a writer or producer, then isn't that a good thing? Even if the inducement is plain materialism, people are being entertained (something we need in our depressing world) and hearing of Jane Austen in the process!
As for me, I only wish to carry on the joy of a beautiful love story between two amazingly written characters. I could have created my own lovers to write about - hundreds of authors do just that marvelously well - and I would have written it much the same way. Instead I am overjoyed that my inspiration was Lizzy and Darcy, because then I can continue to live with them as I desired to when the last page was turned and the movie screen faded to black. Furthermore, I can give to those hungery Austen-lovers another offering that may just be precisely what they wanted. I consider that a tremendous honor.
For more information on my saga and how I was inspired, come to my website: www.darcysaga.net. Mr. & Mrs. Fitzwilliam Darcy: Two Shall Become One is available now!
Keira: Thank you so much for joining us today Sharon, feel free to hijiack LRP anytime! It's been a real pleasure! I can't wait to read the next books in your Saga!
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December 21st, 2008 — About, Contemporary, Dragon, Fantasy, Magic Users, News, Paranormal, Stephenie Meyer, Vampire, Werewolf
"Every age embraces the vampire it needs," said Mike Deloney. Read on here.
The Top 3 Young Adult Books From 2008:
in no particular order...
Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer (vamps),
Brisingr by Christopher Paolini (dragons),
Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling (wizards).
What this means:
While it's nearly impossible to be more formulaic than Paolini's Inheritance Series, the key to big time success is to appeal to the group that rarely picks up a book unless forced... teens. If teens love your book, word of mouth will spread like wildfire.
How do you appeal to teens?
By combining a quest with finding true love. Don't believe me? Look at the trend, it is obviously fantasy with a dash of romance. The element of fantasy is most needed, something to draw people out of the normal everyday world and into a new world. This is done literally in Paolini's case and figuratively in Meyer and Rowling's case because fantasy exists beside the normal world to the ignorance of the masses.
What romance?
Harry/Ginny (very little, confined to mostly book six)
Bella/Edward (the whole series is about them as a couple)
Eragon/Ayra (don't shoot me I haven't read the third one but this is where it looked like it was headed)
Now you've appealed to teens, but you can't stop there...
It's not enough to appeal only to teens. In order to achieve the kind of fame these three authors have had an aspiring author is going to have to appeal to both young and old, male and female. You do this through great inspiring writing by creating characters and a plot to grab our attention. In the end you must give us a lead to get behind, a purpose to support, and someone to fall in love with.
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