Urban Fantasy Investigations

Friday, November 1, 2013

Interview & Giveaway: Darkness Splintered by Keri Arthur

UFI welcomes Author Keri Arthur. Thanks for Joining us!!

What can you tell my readers about yourself that they might not know from looking on your bio or reading in another interview?

How about... even though I hate the taste of coffee, I adore the smell of it. That and freshly cut grass. Does that make me weird? lol

What do you enjoy doing on your down time?

If I'm not watching movies, I'm out in the garden weeding (I swear the weeds where I live have super powers—they grow incredibly fast and will not be destroyed!) I'm also a hobbyist photographer, so I'm often heading off somewhere for the day to take pics

What is your Favorite part of writing?

Starting a new story and gradually getting to know all the characters who populate it (I am not a plotter)

Do you have any certain routines you must follow as you write?

I haven't really got any set routines as such. I can pretty much write anywhere if I need to. However, I do like to listen to music when I write, and I have a set playlist of songs that is on repeat. It's gotten to the point now that when I hear the music, the muse goes into writing mode.

What are some of your Favorite books or Authors in the Urban Fantasy/ Paranormal Genres?

I actually don't read much urban fantasy these days (I used to, but now that I'm published in the genre, I prefer to read outside of it. Feels more like relaxation that way). But my favs would be Mercedes Lackey, Anne McCaffrey, Jacqueline Carey, Katherine Kerr, Raymond E Fiest, Andre Norton, C J Cherryh...there's a ton of others, but I'm in the UK at the moment, and haven't got access to my bookshelves. I do also re-read the Lord of the Rings regularly.

My fav non-genre authors are Dick Francis and James Herbert. I also read a whole lot of regency romances.

What can you tell me about the world that your Dark Angels Series is set in?

It's set in a future Melbourne—it's where I live, and a city that I love, so it just made sense to set both it and the Riley Jenson series there. It's a world where vampires, werewolves, reapers, ghosts, witches and sorcerers live side by side with humans, but it's also a world in which the life of all those beings now hang in the balance. If our heroine doesn't succeed in stopping the keys to hell being found and used, then it will literally become hell on Earth

Do you have a favorite scene in Darkness Splintered?

I do, but I can't say what it is because that would be a massive spoiler

Darkness Splintered is the 6th book in the series. Do you find it easier to write about Risa now or when you first started?

I'm actually find it harder to write the books now, simply because Splintered is the penultimate book in the series, and I have to start tying up all the threads both in this book and in Darkness Falls, the last in the series.

Which character was your favorite to write about in all of your series? What about the hardest to write about?

My usual answer to this question is generally the one I'm currently writing. But I guess there's one character that totally changed my life—one character that allowed me to give up work and concentrate on writing full time—and that is Riley Jenson. I think she is, and will always be, an all-time favorite.

The hardest to write—that's a tough one, because I enjoy writing all my characters, good or bad. But the hardest thing to write in any series is a character's death—and I've written a few of those over the years (Some welcomed by readers, some not!)

What Other Projects can we look forward to reading from you?

After Darkness Splintered, the next book in line is Fireborn, which is the first of the Souls of Fire series. That comes out June 2014. Then, in Nov 2014, it's Darkness Falls, the last of the Dark Angels series

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Darkness Splintered

Dark Angels #6

When Risa loses the second key to hell, she angers several powerful people, and she’s starting to feel the pressure from all sides. She gets a visit from her father, who gives her an ultimatum: Get back the key or he will kill her friends.

Risa also finds herself under the scrutiny of the vampire council, some of whom consider her a monster who should be destroyed. But they offer her a bloody bargain: Take on the lethal head of the council, Madeline Hunter, and others will support her.

As the search for the keys to hell heats up, Risa realizes that she has no choice. For the sake of the people she loves, she must find the keys — and get rid of Hunter — before the second gate is opened and brings the world closer to all hell breaking loose...

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Keri Arthur, author of the New York Times bestselling Riley Jenson Guardian series, has now written more than twenty-eight novels. She’s received several nominations in the Best Contemporary Paranormal category of the Romantic Times Reviewers Choice Awards and has won RT’s Career Achievement Award for urban fantasy. She lives with her daughter in Melbourne, Australia.

Find Keri and her books

Website / Goodreads / Twitter / Facebook

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Thursday, October 31, 2013

Interview: Nightlife by Matthew Quinn Martin

UFI welcomes Matthew Quinn Martin Author of Nightlife. Thanks for Joining us!!

What can you tell my readers about yourself that they might not know from looking on your bio or reading in another interview?
I’m a huge Toto fan. Not just of the band itself, but of the individual members and the work they did as session musicians. I think you’d be hard pressed to find a studio ensemble that has had as big an impact on popular music other than the legendary Funk Brothers. Actually, when I was doing on-set re-writes on Slingshot I kept slipping Toto lyrics into the dialogue. None of it made it to the final cut, but I’d love to see the outtakes one day.

What do you enjoy doing on your down time?
Downtime? What is this downtime of which you speak? Seriously though, I enjoy playing music, either on my record player or on one of the various musical instruments littering my house.

What is your Favorite part of writing?
Reading over something I’ve written the day before and thinking that it doesn’t suck. That’s a red-letter day for me.

Do you have any certain routines you must follow as you write?
I’ll treat myself to a can of Moxie when I finish or sell something. Other than that it’s helpful to have a “door” that you can keep closed. But headphones usually work if I happen to be stuck writing in a public place. Even if they aren’t plugged in they are a nice sign for others to “keep out.” Fellow writer and frequent collaborator Libby Cudmore makes little writing shrines out of Altoid tins so she can create a personal writing space anywhere. She made me one…and it has a Moxie button in it.

What are some of your Favorite books or Authors in the Urban Fantasy/ Paranormal Genres?
Harlan Ellison is a big influence. I still remember the first time I read Strange Wine. It would have been in the late 80s and I was in my mid-teens. The opening story, “Croatoan,” gave me a string of nightmares that I hope will go away at some point. But more than just that, the story showed me just where the boundaries of genre fiction were…and totally obliterated them, just blew them right to cinders. If I ever write something that has ten percent of the impact or depth of “Croatoan,” then I will consider myself a success.

How would you pitch Nightlife to someone who has not heard of it before?
Not your kid sister’s vampire novel.

Can you tell us a little bit about the world that Nightlife is set in?
The city of New Harbor is based (more than a little) on my experiences growing up in New Haven, Connecticut. I chose to fictionalize it because the city itself is a small one. Places like New York, Chicago, London, etc. are so massive and mythic that you can set just about anything there and as long as you don’t get too specific about the details and there will be room for that “willing suspension of disbelief” to kick in. No one can really know all there is to know about New York. In a more intimate setting you run the risk of taking people familiar with the area right out of the action with too much creative license. This is especially true in horror/fantasy. You are already asking your reader to accept that there are creatures lurking in the shadows––best not to blow that by situating an apartment building in an industrial area or a park where there isn’t one. There’s a certain freedom in working like that, but there are challenges to it as well.

Do you have a favorite scene in Nightlife?
I do…but I’m not going to say which because I don’t want the other scenes to get jealous.

Which character was your favorite to write about? What about the hardest to write about?
I had a lot of fun writing Gabby, especially the scenes in her headspace. There is something freeing about seeing the world through six-year-old kid logic. The other characters could all vie for “most difficult” at various points during the writing and revisions.

What Other Projects can we look forward to reading from you?
Right now I’m hard at work on the sequel, Nightlife: As the Worm Turns. It’s a broader and more epic story (and a longer one). After that, I’ve got my eyes on a stand alone supernatural horror novel…but I’ve learned that it’s best not to plan too far ahead.

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Born in Allentown, Pennsylvania and raised in New Haven, Connecticut, it wasn’t until Matthew moved to Manhattan that he realized he was a writer. These days, he lives on a small island off the North Atlantic coast of the United States where it gets quiet in the winter…perhaps too quiet. . .

Find Matthew and her books

Website / Goodreads / Twitter

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Nightlife

For centuries an ancient evil has slept beneath the streets of New Harbor. This Halloween, it wakes up.
An action-packed debut horror novel from talented new writer Matthew Quinn Martin, Nightlife pits a feisty bartender and a mysterious loner against bloodthirsty terrors as alluring as they are deadly.

Nightclub bartender and serial heartbreaker Beth Becker might be a cynic. But when her best friend goes missing Halloween night, Beth knows it's up to her to find out what happened.

Her quest will take her on an odyssey through the crumbling city of New Harbor, Connecticut. Along the way she meets a homeless prophet warning of something he calls the "Night Angel"-a bloodthirsty creature that feeds on the forgotten. And she will form an unlikely bond with a hunted stranger who knows all too well what stalks the streets at night.

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Review: Secret Unleashed by Sierra Dean

Secret Unleashed

Author: Sierra Dean

Release Date: October 15, 2013

Publisher: Samhain Publishing

Secret McQueen Book #6

ISBN: 1619214458

ISBN13: 9781619214453

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Review Copy Request: Author

After her last mission tested the limits of her humanity and took her out of this world, Secret’s friends, determined to keep her safe from her old nemesis Alexandre Peyton, keep ushering her from one babysitter to the next.

Couch surfing would be a lot more fun if Alexandre would let up on her long enough to allow her to get in some alone time with her lovers. Including Holden, her self-appointed shadow.

As if living out of coffin isn’t bad enough, Secret literally brings down the house while hunting a rogue, causing the council to exile her from New York—for her own safety, of course.

With her list of people to trust getting shorter and shorter, Secret ends up embroiled in a mystery to find a vampire warden gone AWOL and a missing artifact. Things go from bad to worse when she falls into the hands of a man who will prove that humans can be the worst monsters of them all.

Warning: Contains a cross-country journey, an unexpected family reunion, heated lovers’ embraces and a hell of a lot of trouble.

This is such a fun series. It's not hard to get caught up in Secrets life and the drama it brings as it unfolds. SECRET UNLEASHED kicks off shortly after the events of book 5, a lot happens and it will leave you mentally drained by the end.

Secret always ends up caught in the middle and I love the way she thinks and handles every situation thrown at her. Secret's love life is crazy. There is Desmond and Holden, they are both sexy, supportive, and love Secret like they should. I am so conflicted, I don't know who I want Secret to love! She will just have to continue to love both of them. There were some really scary points in SECRET UNLEASHED. I didn't think everyone would make it out alive and I was right. There is no way that Secret won't be forever changed by the events that occurred. SECRET UNLEASHED also manages to bring us a good bit of fast and hard answers to some of our most sought after questions. Where is Secret's Dad? Who really is Sig and why is he so interested in Secret?

There really isn't anything I don't like about this series. The characters, the flow of events, the plot, the world, it is all well written and keeps me coming back for more. What could possibly happen next? Who knows but I will be on the roller coaster every step of the way.

I gave it 4/5 stars

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Promo & Giveaway: The Sentinel by Holly Martin

The Sentinel

The Sentinel #1

Amazon

WHAT IF SAVING THE WORLD MEANT LOSING EVERYTHING?

When Eve is rescued from a horrific coach crash by her teachers, she is shocked to discover they possess super strength and speed. But what happens next is even more harrowing.

In the aftermath of the crash she discovers that everyone in her life from neighbours, doctors, dentists, teachers, shop keepers and even her family and friends are actually super strength Guardians sent to protect her. They all have one thing in common, a single minded ferocity that she must be kept alive at all costs.

However, she is surrounded by secrets and lies. Those in the know deny all knowledge of what happened that fateful night. Everyone else carries on as normal, seemingly unaware of the new strange world that she has stumbled against.

With the help of Seth, her best friend, Eve discovers the prophecies surrounding her true identity and the super strength she too holds. With her Guardians pledged to protect her, her closest friends ready to die for her, her own hopes and dreams are put on hold whilst she battles to control the amazing powers she has been bestowed with.

But those that seek to destroy her move ever closer. Will the Guardians be enough to protect her when so many are prepared to stop at nothing to see her dead? And will she be strong enough to fulfil her destiny when the time comes?

A fast paced fantasy adventure for young adults. With high speed car chases, airborne fights, amazing stunts and super powered beings, this is a story of loyalty, friendship and love.

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Find Holly and her books

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Review: Archangel's Legion by Nalini Singh

Archangel's Legion

Author: Nalini Singh

Release Date: October 29, 2013

Publisher: Penguin

Guild Hunter Book #6

ISBN: 1101602228

ISBN13: 9781101602225

Genre: Paranormal Romance
Review Copy Source: Publisher

Nalini Singh, the New York Times bestselling “alpha author of paranormal romance” (Booklist) returns to an immortal world of violent passion and lethal power…on the brink of a deadly archangelic war.

Angels are falling from the sky in New York, struck down by a vicious, unknown force.

Vampires are dying impossibly of disease.

Guild hunter Elena Deveraux and the Archangel Raphael must discover the source of the wave of death before it engulfs their city and their people, leaving New York a ruin and Raphael’s Tower under siege by enemy archangels.

Yet even as they fight desperately to save the city, an even darker force is stirring, its chill eyes trained on New York…and on Raphael. Rivers of crimson and nightmares given flesh, the world will never again be the same…

I really enjoyed reading about Elena and Raphael and could not wait for Nalini to get back to them after the 2 Guild Hunter books without them. I honestly had no want to read books 4 or 5 and was a little worried that I would be lost when I jumped back in for ARCHANGEL'S LEGION, but I am happy to report that I felt like I had not left the series at all.

A surprising amount of events and confrontations happen in ARCHANGEL'S LEGION and it's all written so smoothly that before you know it the book is at its end and you are pining for more. We get Angel's falling from the sky, woman throwing themselves at Raphael (although that is nothing new), Mother in Law drama, father drama and a supernatural war that you will not soon forget.

I love the development of Raphael and Elena's relationship. They have gone through a lot and they closer and closer every day and with every event. They both complement each other really well and I love watching them together. Elena handles the woman coming after Raphael surprisingly well and I can not help but laugh thinking of anyone brave enough to come after their relationship in the future. Raphael's Mom surprised me, I enjoyed her more than I thought I would after certain events. I understand Elena's Father better after ARCHANGEL'S LEGION. It will never excuse his behavior but I understand him now. The author brings out a lot of emotions in this installment you will be laughing, cringing, crying and yelling with the rest of us when you dive in.

The fight at the end, CRAZY! I was gripped to my seat with my heart pounding out of my chest while reading and I never thought it would end like it did. Why must we wait to get more? Will book 7 stay with Raphael and Elena? I really really hope so.

I gave it 5/5 stars

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

Guest Blog & Giveaway: Four Weddings and a Werewolf by Kristin Miller

UFI welcomes Author Kristin Miler. Thanks for Joining us!!

Four Weddings and a Werewolf’s Playlist

Just like every movie has a soundtrack, I believe every book should have a playlist.

While I’d like to say the Four Weddings and a Werewolf playlist is filled with songs like “Chapel of Love”, or even Billy Idol’s “White Wedding”, it’s not. I’ve seen authors create fake playlists based on the themes in the book or choose songs the characters might like. Those are definitely cool, but the playlist I used to write Four Weddings and a Werewolf is what inspired the book, so I think that should be the book’s playlist.

There were about twenty songs on the overall playlist, but I would often start midstream, choosing a song and letting it run down the list before starting from the midpoint again. The following songs are the ten that played on repeat most often:

1. T.B. Sheets, Van Morrison

2. I Know It’s Over, Jeff Buckley

3. I Can Barely Say, The Fray

4. Black and Blue live, Christina Perri

5. You Know Where I’m At, Gavin DeGraw

6. Be Still, The Fray

7. Kiss Me, Ed Sheeran

8. Last Kiss, Taylor Swift

9. Thinking of You, Katy Perry

10. Lover, You Should’ve Come Over, Jeff Buckley

Overall, the mood was romantic and mellow, with some anguish here and there (courtesy of Jeff Buckley and Van Morrison). Any songs on the playlist you haven’t heard? (You should hop over to Spotify and listen! They’re amazing!) Are any of those your favorites? (We’re on the same page—yay!)

Okay, I’m off to create another playlist! It’s called “Release Week” playlist, and it’s got Prince’s “1999”. I’m off to party!

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National bestselling author Kristin Miller has had a passion for language and literature her whole life. Born and raised in northern California, she often made up stories about faraway places and edge-of-your-seat adventures. After graduating from Humboldt State University, Kristin taught high school and middle school English, married her college sweetheart, and had two beautiful munchkins. In 2008, she took time off from teaching to raise her children, and started writing while they napped.

Her first novel was published in 2011, and since then she has had eight other novels published with Entangled Covet, Avon/HarperCollins and Harlequin Nocturne. She is the author of the Seattle Wolf Pack series (starting with the national bestselling book Gone with the Wolf), the dark and gritty Vampires of Crimson Bay series and the short-but-steamy Isle of Feralon novellas.

Find Kristin and her books

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Four Weddings and a Werewolf
Amazon BN Goodreads

To have and to howl…

Logan Black, former Marine and bodyguard for the Seattle Wolf Pack, hates weddings and has no plan to walk the path to matrimonial misery. But when he’s hired to protect a hot-to-trot wedding planner with a werewolf stalker, he’s forced to put his feelings aside. Not such an easy task when the damsel can turn him on with a single smoldering glance.

Wedding planner Veronica Vale knows werewolves exist, but hates them. One bit her sister, changing their lives forever. When a sexy Marine shows his gorgeous face at one of her wedding appointments, Veronica finds it hard to focus on the task at hand.

The chemistry drawing Logan and Veronica together seems fated, but with Logan’s playboy attitude, Veronica’s hatred for werewolves, and a stalker lurking in the shadows, these two need more than passion to keep them together.

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