Guest Post and Giveaway with Pamela Palmer

Today Darque Reviews welcomes Pamela Palmer with a guest post and a giveaway sponsored through the nice folks at HarperCollins. Thanks so much for joining us Pamela!

Thanks for having me at Darque Reviews!

The Guest Post:

I’m often asked how I came up with the idea for my Feral Warriors series for Avon Books. Like so many things, it didn’t happen suddenly. The idea didn’t appear, full-blown in my head. In fact, at first, all I knew were the main characters of the first book, which became Desire Untamed -- the girl next door heroine who thought she was human, and the fierce, dangerous male who stole her away for the power she possessed to save his race. I knew they were immortal. But not what kind of immortal.

I’m a huge fan of J.R. Ward’s Black Dagger Brotherhood, Alyssa Day’s Warriors of Poseidon, and Suzanne Brockmann’s Navy SEALs. I love the band of brothers theme, the warrior males bound together by a common cause or a common enemy, and the wonderful interactions between them. I knew I wanted to tell that kind of tale. My warriors were immortal, but what were they?
I’ve always loved the concept of men who could shift into animals, but most shape-shifter books deal with packs and prides and although I love reading about them, that wasn’t the story I had in my head. I finally realized my band of warrior brothers weren’t exactly brothers at all. They were shape-shifters, but not a pack. Not a pride. Each man was the last of his unique line. Each shifted into a different animal. Each went by the name of that animal.

And the Feral Warriors were born.

I adore romance, but I also love a good, fast-paced, high stakes story with nasty, evil villains. So after creating the Feral Warriors themselves, I had to discover their world, their enemies, and the dangerous situation they found themselves in. After all, warriors need a good battle now and then. By this point in my discovery process, the floodgates had opened and the ideas were rushing freely. The Mage, or the magic ones, had always been the rivals and enemies of the Ferals and their shape-shifting race. However, the true villains are the Daemons and their master, Satanan, all of whom were imprisoned eons ago. But evil is rising, dark forces gathering to free Satanan and his Daemon horde, and the Feral Warriors are the only ones who stand between us and the destruction of our world.

Passion Untamed, the third book in the series, just hit shelves today! In Passion Untamed, Paenther is faced with his worst nightmare when he falls for the seduction of a sweet beauty and finds himself chained in a Mage lair, a captive of a witch and her evil companions.

His muscles corded as he fought the chains with every ounce of strength he possessed until his skin was damp with sweat. But the chains didn’t budge. He was pinned fast, his arms trapped above his head, his legs spread and tethered.

Ah, goddess. If only you’d stopped me. There was no fate worse. He’d have sold his soul to have escaped this.

Heaven help him. His soul was probably the very thing the witch wanted. To finish what the Mage had started all those years ago – tearing him loose from his animal once and for all.
He caught her scent, that delicate, damning smell of violets. She stepped into the doorway, the ethereal beauty who’d shown him heaven between her thighs then captured him in her net of bewitchment. Lust slammed into him all over again.

Even as hatred seared its way through his blood, his gaze drank in the sight of her. She was slender, with few curves revealing themselves beneath the soft, shapeless blue dress. But her short hair accentuated a long, graceful neck and features that were too fine, too delicate for a cold-hearted witch.

Mage or not, she stole his breath.

She watched him, her eyes wary, as she gently stroked the rabbit in her arms. At her side, a doe pressed her head against the witch’s hip while several excited squirrels chased one another around her ankles.

He’d thought she was human.

Closing his eyes against the sight of her, he prayed that grave error didn’t turn out to be the last mistake he ever made.

Thanks for the opportunity to join you here and to tell you a little about the Feral Warriors!

It’s been a pleasure to have you here Pamela, thanks so much for sharing your time with us.

You can visit Ms. Palmer’s website to learn more about the Feral Warriors: HERE

Be sure to check out the reviews for the first three Feral Warrior installments: HERE

You can also ‘Browse Inside’ each of these books by visiting their pages at HarperCollins:
Desire Untamed: HERE
Obsession Untamed: HERE
Passion Untamed: HERE

The Giveaway:
To enter for a chance to win a set of the first three books in the Feral Warriors series, please leave a comment on this post. If you can remember the first paranormal romance that got you hooked on the genre, we’d love to here it. If you have a question for Ms. Palmer, she has graciously offered to check-in today and answer them. The winner will be announced on September 1, 2009, so be sure to check back! Good luck, and happy reading.

Kimberly Swan, DarqueReviews.com

Guest Post - Giveaway - Leanna Renee Hieber

Today I have the pleasure of welcoming Leanna Renee Hieber to Darque Reviews with a guest post. Thanks so much for joining us Ms. Hieber!

*Don’t forget to read the instructions below the guest post to enter for a chance to win one of two copies of The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker!*

The Guest Post:
My favourite thing about the hero of The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker- first in my Strangely Beautiful Gothic Victorian Fantasy series- is this: Clove tea and leather-bound books.

I believe the most evocative, dare I say delicious thing I’ve ever written is how my compelling, enigmatic, ever-so-sexy (otherwise why would I have written him) hero, Professor Alexi Rychman, smells. Before I wax rhapsodic about how intoxicating I find the man, let me set his scene. The year is 1888. London is ghostly and gas-lit. This is the ghostly world in which his tale takes place:

What fortune awaited sweet, timid Percy Parker at Athens Academy? Considering how few of Queen Victoria’s Londoners knew of it, the great Romanesque fortress was dreadfully imposing, and little could Percy guess what lay inside. She had never met the powerful and mysterious Professor Alexi Rychman, knew nothing of the growing shadow, the Ripper and other supernatural terrors against which his coterie stood guard. She knew simply that she was different, haunted, with her snow-white hair, pearlescent skin and uncanny gifts. But this arched stone doorway offered a portal to a new life, an education far from the convent—and an invitation to an intimate yet dangerous dance at the threshold of life and death…

A few months ago author/blogger Lise Horton of my RWA NYC Chapter (http://www.blogger.com/profile/13315265091119634416) gave a fabulous presentation about using sensory input in our stories. This is particularly important when dealing with paranormal universes. Not only is it fun to create and imagine new and unexpected sensory input, but such details can immerse readers in alternate realities and make a book a transporting experience. I find creating the necessary atmosphere, whether realistic or utterly fantastical, a delightful part of the process. During Lise’s presentation I kept thinking of a specific moment in my book. One of my very favourite moments. And in the end, this detail isn’t supernatural at all. I’ll show you. The setting:

Nineteen year old Miss Percy Parker, feeling freakish in her ghostly-white skin has fled from the uncomfortable social trauma of the Athens Academy ball and into a darkened, abandoned foyer where she dances alone. Professor Rychman, helplessly intrigued by her, silently follows, and time stops a moment to allow them this encounter...

From The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker...

Suddenly, Percy realized that she’d never before been so terribly alone. Tears sprang forth, and she let them come.

“Now, now, Miss Parker, what’s this?” a voice scolded from behind.

Percy whirled at the familiar, stern sound. A figure broke from shadow, clad in an elegantly tailored frock coat trimmed with ornate embroidery, and a white silk cravat. His black hair was combed neatly, framing that noble, stoic face at which Percy had spent countless hours staring. Percy’s heart throbbed in her throat.

“Oh, Professor! Good evening!” She nearly coughed out her words, feeling all grace drain away, cut to the quick by his unexpected appearance. She tried to bat away her tears but his firm hand caught her pale, lace-covered fingers. He took her hand, their entwined fingers bridging the cold chasm between their bodies.

“May I have this dance, Miss Parker?”

“Oh … of course, sir.” A blush bloomed ferociously in her cheeks but she was helpless to stop it.

As his hand grasped hers, she examined his full lips, which had just enough curve to make his expression inviting. There was just enough light in those dark eyes to make Percy wholly forget about breathing, and without words or even a nod he drew her hand to his side. He slid his opposite hand around layers of smooth lavender satin and placed the fullness of his palm assuredly upon her waist.

Percy’s hand flew to his shoulder, alighting like a lark on a branch. She saw his nostrils flare, as if he took in the intoxicating scent of the heather she wore, and if her mind did not play tricks he stared at her as if she was his peer. But her mind did play tricks, and these were dangerous thoughts.

They began to waltz—slowly at first, their circles precise and narrow, their gazes locked. Percy, who had already memorized the professor’s features, now savored each pore, crease and eyelash. The study of his sculpted lips forced her to close her eyes or else, truly, her knees would have buckled. In turn she knew she was being parceled; but from him, she welcomed the scrutiny.

Their bodies were one with the music, and Percy found she didn’t have to think about the correct steps any longer. In and out of the moonlight they floated, silent save for the deft clicks of their heels, the whispers of the music rising from below and the occasional sigh escaping Percy’s lips. Their orbit grew, expanded. Her sighs grew into giggles and laughs.

Professor Rychman spun her, and Percy swept fully against him, lingering there for just a moment. Her face brushed his chest and she took a deep breath. He smelled faintly of clove tea and leather-bound books. She did not want to remove her cheek from the thick black lapel of his jacket; she could have nestled in that warm darkness indefinitely. Perhaps, at least, until class. A giddy scream welled up inside her. This was surely a dream…

(end of Excerpt)
---

Scent is one of the most powerful senses to evoke memory and emotion. For me, having this real, small yet absolutely knowable sensory detail, amidst the improbable and vast spectral universe of the Strangely Beautiful world, has remained critical to me. It anchors me to Alexi, as I journey forward with him as I write his future books. I always have a cup of clove tea by my side when I write, to keep him near.

I very much appreciate the opportunity to be here at Darque Reviews and I hope you’ll love Alexi, Percy and The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker as much as I loved writing it! Blessings!

Leanna Renee Hieber

Thank you so much for joining us Leanna! I wish you the best with The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker, and hope to see more in the Strangely Beautiful series soon!

You can visit Ms. Hieber’s website: HERE

You can read a review for The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker: HERE

You can visit her author page on Darque Reviews: HERE

The Giveaway:
To enter for a chance to win one of two copies of The Strangely Beautiful Tale of Miss Percy Parker, please leave a comment on this post. I’d love to hear what draws you to reading books with a historical setting. Two winners will be chosen on release day, August 25, 2009, so be sure to check back to see if it was you! Good luck, and Happy Reading!


Kimberly Swan, DarqueReviews.com

Guest Post & Giveaway - Rachel Caine

Rachel Caine has been kind enough to share a guest post with us today. Thanks so much Rachel!

NAL – Jam (Penguin Group) has also offered to share a five book giveaway! (see below for details)

SPILLING SECRETS

Rachel Caine is the New York Times bestselling author of the Morganville Vampires series, as well as the bestselling Weather Warden and Outcast Season series. Her newest release, CARPE CORPUS (Book 6 of the Morganville series) went on sale June 2. CAPE STORM, the next Weather Warden book, will be out August 4.


Can I tell you a secret?

I didn't really intend to write the Morganville series. Or any vampire series. Or any young adult series.

Here's what happened: I got an inquiry from my publisher, who wondered if I'd be interested in writing a YA series for their NAL JAM line of books. I was ... to put it mildly ... a little thrown. "But I don't write young adult," I said. I was, at the time, writing the fourth book of the Weather Warden series, which is -- for language, violence, and yes, sex -- decidedly not YA. In fact, I didn't know anything about the YA market, other than it was vaguely on the other side of the store. So although I was deeply flattered by the inquiry, I was pretty much decided it wasn't for me. Especially since what the publisher was interested in was something vampire-themed.

Now, I'd done vampires before ... more than once. And I really didn't think there was anything I had to say about them, especially post-Buffy. How could I possibly come up with something new anyway?

I happened to call my dear (recently departed) friend Ter Matthies. She was one of those "long drive home" people you could talk to for an hour and a half about, oh, anything. During the call, I mentioned the YA thing. Ter immediately said, in that forthright way she had, "You obviously should do that."

"I should?"

"Of course."

"Um ... why?"

"Because you'd be great at it. You understand how to create interesting characters, and you think sideways. It's just a matter of writing characters that are younger, and making them believable. You can do that."

I think I spluttered "But ..." a couple of times.

"Don't think YA is like the old days," she said. "Most of the books I read now come from the YA shelves. There's incredible stuff over there."

"Really?"

"Really. They're telling the best stories over there. So just say yes."

"But -- they want something with vampires. And I don't want to do the good-guy vampire thing anyway."

"Then don't," Ter said. "How would you make it different?"

I happened to be listening -- believe it or not -- to a CD of the theme music from The Sopranos. "Well," I said, not quite seriously, "Maybe the vampires are like the Mafia. You pay them not to hurt you." I thought about it for a critical second. "Maybe they've taken over a small town. Isolated. And my younger characters are just trying to get by." We both talked about the concept of "blood money" for a moment, and thought that was kind of interesting.

Ter thought about it. "What else?" (She was great at asking this question. It's an awesome question. I ask it of myself, all the time.)

"Well," I said. "Maybe the reason they've taken over the town is that there's something wrong with them. Something they're trying to fix."

This time there was a long silence. "You mean, they're sick?"

"Yes," I said. "Maybe something like vampire Alzheimer's. Maybe they've lost the ability to control themselves at a certain point. Maybe they're really vulnerable now and can't make new vampires, so this is their last stand." I paused, and said, "It's like a nature preserve. They're predators, but they're beautiful, and they're endangered. So it's not a good versus evil sort of situation, except on a very personal level."

Ter, who regularly snarked about the deals made in Publisher's Lunch, was silent. I thought, Oh no. That really sucked.

Then she said, "A cross between the Mafia and a tiger preserve. I'd read that." And she meant it. "Write that. I dare you."

The rest of the conversation was about friend-type stuff ... how cool Alan Rickman was as Snape in the Harry Potter movies. How much we both loved Remus Lupin. How we really needed to spend more time together. You know. Life.

That was the spring of 2006, I believe. The first Morganville book came out in October 2006.

Because Ter dared me to do it.

I'm writing this because Ter was sick by the end of 2007, and slipped away from us in 2008, and I never did get to spend more time with her. I never got to properly thank her for pushing me beyond my limits, one more time.

That's the real story of Morganville. I said no. Ter made me think sideways, and look what happened.

And she was right about the YA shelves. There's so much good stuff over there, it's dizzying. Go look, if you're not already there.

Thank you, Ter. I love you.

This one's for you.

- - Rachel Caine

To learn more about Carpe Corpus, please visit Ms. Caine’s website: HERE

You can visit the Penguin Group website: HERE

Read a review of Carpe Corpus: HERE

Visit Ms. Caine’s author page on Darque Reviews: HERE

GIVEAWAY – How to enter:

This giveaway is for five copies of Carpe Corpus, sponsored by NAL/Penguin Group, and open to U. S. residents. There are two ways to enter:

1. To enter just leave one comment on this post anytime over the next week.

2. For a second entry, post the giveaway info on your blog or website and email me the link (DarqueReviews AT gmail Dot com) with ‘Carpe Corpus’ in the subject line.

The five lucky winners will be announced on Monday, June 15, 2009. Be sure to check back and see if you’re one of them!

Good Luck and Happy Reading!

Kimberly Swan, DarqueReviews.com

Guest Post & Giveaway - Toni Andrews

Today we have Toni Andrews with us sharing her guest blog in the form of a video! How cool is that?

About the Author:
Toni Andrews likes to say it's easier to list the jobs she hasn't tried. From lifeguard to lounge singer, bartender to bill collector, door-to-door salesperson to corporate business analyst--Toni has been there and done that. Then, she decided that what she really wanted to be was a writer. After fifteen years in Southern California and seven in Miami, Toni returned to the lakeside cottage in Connecticut where she spent her childhood summers, where she writes full time.

After discovering that it’s not always easy for authors to get publicity, Toni took matters into her own hands in 2008 and began producing her own public access television show, So Many Books, which features authors of all genres and appears in over 150 towns in New England and New York.

Toni also writes romance novels under the pen name Virginia Reede.

Bibliography:

As Toni Andrews:
Cry Mercy, Mira Books, June 2009
Angel of Mercy, Mira Books, May 2008
Beg for Mercy, Mira Books, September 2007

As Virginia Reede:
A Red Hot New Year (Anthology), Avon Red, December 2007
Men in Chains, Cerridwen Press, July 2007
Witch’s Knight, Ellora’s Cave, June 2007
Beastmistress, Ellora’s Cave, June 2006


Video Blog with Toni:

To learn more about Toni Andrews, her newest release Cry Mercy, and her Mercy Hollings series, please visit her website: HERE

You can read reviews of her series on the Darque Reviews website by visiting her author page: HERE

You can find out about a virtual book signing with Toni: HERE

Check out her book trailer:


For a chance to win a copy of Cry Mercy, just leave a comment for Toni. She'll draw the winner at random from the comments left! Good luck! :)

Thanks so much for joining us today Toni!

Kimberly Swan, DarqueReviews.com

Guest Post & Giveaway with Kendra Leigh Castle

We have Kendra Leigh Castle here today for a guest post and a giveaway of a copy of Wild Highland Magic. (see below for details)

A Chat with Kendra Leigh Castle

You could say that a romance writer's world revolves in no small part around the pursuit of the perfect kiss. I love to watch that first kiss in movies, when all of the chemistry between the characters has flared to a point where words fail and there's no expression left but the physical. Ideally, that simple meeting of lips will express so much feeling that even the viewer can feel the world tilt on its axis, just a little. Of course, there are also times when that kiss is the moment you discover there is exactly ZERO chemistry between the male and female leads. It can be bitterly disappointing, especially when there's a great story being built around it. And the same goes in a book...granted, it's all on the writer to paint the picture, but the way the kiss is described can sometimes mean the difference between becoming completely engrossed and putting the whole thing down indefinitely.


No pressure on us writers, right? Actors and actresses have it easy, comparatively.


Anyway, there may not be such a thing as an absolutely perfect kiss (then again, maybe there is! I am a romantic, after all), but I spend a lot of time on the kisses of my heroes and heroines, especially that first one. So today, I thought I’d share the first kiss of the hero and heroine from my new release, Wild Highland Magic. Catriona MacInnes is a werewolf spending her first night in the Scottish Highlands with the ancestral pack she only just learned existed. Bastian an Morgaine is a secretive and powerful otherworlder, a friend of the MacInneses, dealing with some deadly problems of his own while staying in a secluded cottage on the grounds of the estate. At their first chance encounter, sparks flew, and Bastian hightailed it away from the alluring she-wolf before she could crack his amazing self-control any further. But Catriona is as stubborn a MacInnes as they all are, and when a late night run in wolf form leads her to the icy, brooding stranger, there’s no way she’s backing off…

* * *
He raised his eyes to the indifferent night sky, saying a silent prayer for patience. “I can’t have this conversation if you’re not going to get dressed.”

Cat stopped short, and he heard the laughter in her voice when she replied. “Well, I can’t have this conversation if I shift back into a wolf. But if you’ve got a fig leaf handy we can compromise.”
He had to look directly at her then, and her glowing golden eyes were dancing with mischief. Despite himself, Bastian felt his heart stumble in his chest; there wasn’t an inch of her that wasn’t perfect, her long lean form draped in nothing but moonlight. Her breasts were high and made just to fit a man’s hand, her legs long and shapely beneath the slight flare of her hips. He didn’t want to notice. He shouldn’t want to notice. But how the hell could he not notice?

By the Goddess, he thought, breathing deeply and catching an enticing whiff of her scent, all night-blooming flowers and magic, she’s beautiful. And every second he spent in her presence was making it more and more likely that he was going to do something incredibly stupid. He needed to get the hell out of here.

Just as soon as he could figure out how to make his legs work again. Right now they felt cemented to this very spot.

“Hey, wait,” Cat said in the low, musical voice that he was sure he’d hear in his sleep tonight, barely suppressing a giggle and apparently oblivious to the intoxicating effect she was having on him. “I have another idea.”

She obviously had no intention of letting him be. So on a wave of mounting sexual frustration, Bastian gave in. If nothing else, it almost guaranteed she’d run off and leave him in peace.

“So do I,” he said. And in one fluid motion, he grabbed her long, slim waist, pulled her to him, and crushed his mouth against hers in a kiss meant to send her running far, far away from the pervert in the woods.

Too late, Bastian realized he hadn’t factored in what Cat’s naked body pressed against him would do to him. Or to her, for that matter.

She tasted like moonlight, strong and pure, ripe with possibility and magic. And she’d been waiting for him to make the move. It was the last coherent thought that Bastian had before Cat opened her mouth for him, her hot little tongue teasing out the need that had been lurking beneath the surface ever since he’d first seen her. And as for need, Cat’s soft and broken sigh indicated she had plenty of her own. He could feel it, thrumming beneath her skin like an electrical current. Everything in Bastian rose and responded to it before he could shut it down; he was caught helplessly in her thrall as she fitted herself to him, every seductive curve fitted precisely against him.

Bad idea, warned some semi-coherent voice in the back of his mind. But for the love of the Goddess, it had been so long since he’d allowed himself to feel need like this.

* * *

Thanks so much to Darque Reviews for having me over today, and to all of you for stopping by! I’ll be here to chat all day! My question for you is: what’s your favorite movie kiss? I’ve got two…Sandra Bullock/Aidan Quinn in Practical Magic, and Bradd Pitt/Claire Forlani in Meet Joe Black.

Kendra Leigh Castle is the author of the MacInnes Werewolves trilogy, as well as the upcoming series The Fallen, coming from Harlequin Nocturne. She lives in Maryland with her husband, three kids, and menagerie of pets, and loves to be visited online at http://www.kendraleighcastle.com/

It was a pleasure to have you here...thanks so much!

Sourcebooks has a copy of Wild Highland Magic to give away to one lucky winner! Just answer Ms. Castle's question to be entered. This contest is open to readers in the US and Canada only, and the winner will be announced on May 18th.

You can read my review of Wild Highland Magic: http://darquereviews.com/12612/120396.html

Kimberly Swan, DarqueReviews.com

Guest post & Book Giveaway with Jocelynn Drake

Kimberly asked that I try to give a behind the scenes look at the Dark Days series. Let’s see what I can do without giving away too many delicious secrets.

The Dark Days series technically started as a writing experiment. I had been playing around with some strange versions of some fan fiction; playing in other people’s worlds but introducing my own characters. I liked toying with vampires and other dark creatures. They had all the great emotional turmoil, but proved to be more durable than the normal humans. At the same time, I was creating my own vampire short stories, but I wasn’t all that happy with the results. The characters kept turning out too dark with too few redeeming qualities – there was nothing for the reader to really relate to or sympathize with.

So, one day I decided that I would write a short story in first person, but the storyteller would not focus on him/herself but actually tell the story of another character – a vampire hunter with a dark past and even darker abilities. I had the scene all laid out. I knew what was going to happen, what the tone would be, what the setting would look like. And then disaster struck. Mira opened her mouth.

I hadn’t intended for it to happen, but Mira is a larger-than-life character, and as soon as she stepped onto the screen, her personality took over. Mira is the culmination of several characters I had created through fan fiction, short stories, and just idle bits of daydreams I had had over the years. So when she opened her mouth, I knew exactly what she sounded like, what she believed, and how she acted. I knew her like she was family, and maybe in a strange way, she is family to me.

Unfortunately, when I started the story with her, she quickly took over, revealing that she had her own tale to tell, and Danaus was just going to have to come along for the ride, damn it! But I have no regrets. Mira is a ton of fun to write. She’s got a great view of life, even if it is a little dark. I love her relationship with Danaus, even when they are trying to kill each other (and I promise that that relationship will grow even more interesting over the next few books).

But back to the short story. When it was finished, I handed off to a good friend, who quickly read it. His response? He handed it back to me and simply said, “You’re not done yet.” He was addicted to the characters and the world I had created – the greatest compliment a writer could receive. So, I buckled down and I wrote what became Nightwalker and a good chunk of Dayhunter. I fell in love with this world and decided that I just couldn’t keep it to myself. After numerous rejections over a two-year period, I finally landed an absolutely amazing agent, who then snagged me the best editor in the whole world – and no I’m not exaggerating.

I will admit that the naturi were not the original villain in the series. When I finally got a publisher, my editor revealed that she didn’t care for my original villain, so the villain came out and the naturi were created. But one perk of my editor is that she lets me set the pace of the relationships within the series. I don’t like when two opposites just suddenly fall in love and everything becomes harp music and roses. These two opposites have two clashing opinions that they’re grasping to. They need time to adjust and bend a little bit. I like to think of it as a slow burn, and even then there’s no promise that everything is going to work out.

Kimberly asked me one other question that I’m struggling with: What do I want my readers to get out of these stories? Well, the first and foremost is a wonderful roller-coaster ride with some characters that you come to care greatly for. That adventure is the most important. I guess the second is more risky. I want the reader to pause and take a good look at the dark side and how easy it is to make a dark decision for what seems like a very good reason. It’s a slippery slope and every once in a while, we’re all bound to fall.

Looking ahead to the future of the series: I am contracted for six books plus one novella that is slated to come out at the end of August. However, I still have many more stories that I would like to tell. It’s all a matter of how many books my publisher is willing to publish. I hope that Mira and Danaus will be around for many more books. I’ve got a lot more trouble for them to get into. I am also hoping to introduce a couple other storytellers if only so I can give Mira a small break. There have been some requests to hear a book from Danaus’s point of view and I’m trying to accommodate that request. Keep your fingers crossed that my editor likes it.

Visit Ms. Drake at her website: http://www.jocelynndrake.com

Thanks so much for accepting the challenge and sharing with us Jocelynn! :)

In addition to this behind the scenes look into the Dark Days series, Ms. Drake’s fabulous publicist at HarperCollins is sharing a release day set of Dark Days. That’s Nightwalker and Dayhunter! The giveaway is open to readers worldwide and the winner will be drawn the morning of April 28th, 2009, release day for Dayhunter. Just leave a comment here on this post to be entered.

Guest Blog and Giveaway with Marta Acosta

Marta Acosta is with us today with a guest blog, and to give away one copy of Happy Hour at Casa Dracula. I had asked Marta how it is that she wrote a comedy and ended up with all of us Urban Fantasy fans following her. Don’t forget to comment for a chance to win!

Here’s what Marta had to say:

Okay, so there’s a woman in a posh bar and a handsome man approaches her. After a pleasant talk, he says, “Will you sleep with me for a million dollars?” She blushes and says yes. Then he says, “How about twenty bucks?”

“What kind of girl do you think I am?” she asks angrily.

“We’ve already established that,” he says. “Now we’re just negotiating a price.”

Sometimes I think of that joke when I’m telling people that I’m not a vampire writer. Sure, I’ve got a four-book deal for a series featuring vampires, and, yes, I’ve got a blog that’s called Vampire Wire, and it’s true that my book covers have characters of the fangy variety.

So why the denial?

When I wrote Happy Hour at Casa Dracula, I wrote it as a comedy and incorporated a vampire theme to spoof the conventions. I wanted a funny hip cover and a different title that would signal to readers that my book was primarily humorous. So I lost that battle, and then I found that I was being categorized in unexpected ways. I was suddenly a writer of “women’s fiction,” even though I’d always had lots of male readers. People were introducing me as a “vampire writer” and asking if I’d always been obsessed by vampires and if I wore a cape.

Man, I totally should have ridden that wave, but I’m the sort of person who will cut off my nose to spite my face; and I’ve never crossed a bridge without asking someone for a pack of matches and a bottle of gasoline. I resented being labeled, even thought the labels were perfectly lovely. I should have had “Vampire Writer” and “I Heart Dracula” tattooed on my forehead and embroidered on the back of a black satin cape that I could wear to the grocery store and book events.

Since the publication of my first novel, Simon & Schuster/Pocket has released Midnight Brunch and The Bride of Casa Dracula. Readers and even bookstore staff have no idea where to find my books. (They’re in the general fiction section of the bookstore, under Acosta and conveniently close to the anthologies of erotic short stories.) I accept some responsibility in the confusion since I kept insisting that I wasn’t a paranormal/fantasy writer, or a romance writer.

The other night, I pulled a can out of the cupboard in the dark and took a sip. I thought it was a soda, but it was beer and I practically spit it out. It wasn’t that the beer was bad; it just wasn’t what I expected. Those expecting genre conventions in my books sometimes have that reaction because they just see my books as Not Soda, instead of yum Delicious Beer!

During the last few years, I’ve encountered many wonderful paranormal romance and urban fantasy readers, writers, and bloggers. I have more fun on my Vampire Wire blog than I should for someone who’s supposed to be focusing on her fiction. I really wish I was someone obsessed by the paranormal so I could really fit into the group.

Kimberly tells me that I should be promoting my own books more, so here it is: my books are the hilarious, well crafted, smart, and exciting adventures of a bright, impetuous, sexy heroine and a pack of snobby vampires. Milagro has a weakness for fabulous men, parties, lunatics, con artists and tacky clothes. If you like flawed and sometimes clueless characters like Bridget Jones, you’ll like my books.

My next novel is a romantic comedy without vampires (I’m calling it Nancy’s Theory of Style, but the title isn’t confirmed) and then the fourth book in my Casa Dracula series will be released. I hope that people will buy my books so I won’t have to get a real job.

Thanks, Kimberly, for letting my ramble. One of the best things about being a sort of vampire writer is meeting all the wonderful reviewers like you!

Thank you Marta, and thanks so much for agreeing to share your thoughts with us. It’s always a pleasure. :)

To learn more about Marta Acosta and her books, please visit her: HERE

You can also read my reviews of her books: Happy Hour at Casa Dracula, Midnight Brunch, and The Bride of Casa Dracula.

For the chance to win a copy of Happy Hour at Casa Dracula, please share with us the supernatural being you’d like to see more of in books. (vampires, faeries, ghosts, werewolves, dragons, etc) Don’t forget to share a name if you’re leaving an anonymous post. Deadline is midnight Friday March 20th, 2009, and the winner will be announced Saturday the 21st. Good luck and happy reading!

Kimberly Swan, Darque Reviews