Michele Drier Guest Post

I Owe it all to My Daughter

Although I tell people I don’t read much in the paranormal genre, years ago I read a series about the vampire colony living underground in L.A.

I buried the author’s name and the titles but remembered the basic plot, so the vamps made an impression that came back when my daughter said “Write a vampire book!”

I’d just contracted for my first book, a traditional mystery, and was planning the second when my daughter and her husband started hammering on me about the undead. They both read, voraciously. Between them, they have three Nooks and four Kindles, plus iPhones, iPads and computers. They’re so wired in they just bought their two-year-old a Kindle for games and kids’ show and she calls it her book. A little scary!

With all these reading devices (plus books) scattered around, I figured they were au courant on the hot literary trends so I listened when my son-in-law said, “Go into any bookstore and see the size of the mystery section. Then look at the paranormal section. Then decide.”

I started reading. Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, Karen Moning. And then I picked up Kelly Armstrong and was hooked. These guys were writing involved, intricate books full of imagination and other worlds.

But I was a mystery writer. How could I find a hook? I batted around a few ideas (lame) with my daughter until she said, “You’re over-thinking this. Look at celebrities. They all wear oversized dark glasses, don’t come out much during the day, ride around in limos with tinted windows...they could all be vampires.”

And SNAP, the world’s biggest and best international conglomerate of celebrity gossip was born

I also dredged the underground colony from my mind and discovered that my protagonist, a regular named Maxie Gwenoch, had heard all the vampire rumors while at UCLA.  They continue to this day.

The Federal Vampire and Zombie Agency lists the Sunset strip area of L.A. and Hollywood as one of the five mostly likely places in the United States to find vampires, due to the crush of nightlife activity.

Google some combination of vampires, L.A., night, underground and up come more than 10,000,000 hits, including a Meetup listing of groups in the L.A. area having to do with vampires in some way.

There are vampire nightclubs, vampire bands, vampire games and a listing for “real vampires in L.A.” Clearly, my daughter was on to something.

I did some research, then imagined my vampires, the Kandesky and Huszar families, in different ways.

Over their 500-year history, the Kandeskys have given up killing and found ways to feed themselves non-violently. They also found a love of wealth, and amassed a fortune from their businesses, which only grew once they went into celebrity journalism. And when Maxie goes to work for SNAP she finds the truth about all those L.A. vampire rumors!

Now I listen with a little tinge of fear when my daughter suggests something. All I am now is due to her!

Michele Drier was born in Santa Cruz and is a fifth generation Californian. She’s lived and worked all over the state, calling both Southern and Northern California home.  During her career in journalism — as a reporter and editor at daily newspapers – she won awards for producing investigative series.

Her mystery Edited for Death, called “Riveting and much recommended” by the Midwest Book Review is available at Amazon. She’s working on the second book in the Amy Hobbes Newspaper mysteries, Labeled for Death, out in spring 2013.

Her paranormal romance series, SNAP: The Kandesky Vampire Chronicles, is available in ebook, paperback and audible at Amazon.  The first two books, SNAP: The World Unfolds, andSNAP: New Talent, received 4 stars from PRG.  The third, fourth and fifth books, Plague: A Love Story, Danube: A Tale of Murder  and SNAP: Love for Blood rated 5 stars. The first four books are available in a boxed set at Amazon, B&N and Kobo. She’s writing SNAP: Happily Ever After? for release in summer 2013 and a seventh book in late fall 2013.

Visit her website: http://www.micheledrier.comor facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/AuthorMicheleDrieror her Amazon author page, http://www.amazon.com/Michele-Drier/e/B005D2YC8G/

One lucky commenter will receive a copy of her set of books seen above! Good luck to everyone! 

When Shadows Call by Amanda Bonilla

Synopsis:
The envy of 1900s society, Darian is the rich, beautiful wife of a prominent Californian doctor—but her life is far from perfect. For years, Darian has suffered at the hand of her cruel husband and yearned for an escape—one that she knows to be all but impossible. 

But when an enigmatic stranger comes to call, Darian finds herself charmed by his seductive smile and the inexplicable connection she feels. And when he makes her a thrilling—yet frightening—proposition, Darian must decide if she’s strong enough to abandon the mortal world she knows and answer the shadow’s call…


Review: 
I'm a pretty big fan of origin stories, and recently I have started to become more and more of a fan of novellas. This was a pretty awesome novella/origin story. I loved Darian when she was introduced to me in Amanda Bonilla's first book (check out the review if you don't believe me), so I was excited to see how things really started out for her. Granted I knew the big picture, throughout the first book you get a pretty decent glimpse into what Darian went through. But this was different, it wasn't just the simple telling of what happened in her life, but rather the living of it all. All the thoughts and feels that come along with that.

Darian is a hard woman, she has taken what was truly a hard beginning and turned herself into something so much more, and while I would love to go into detail about the person Darian is today, I think it would be robbing you of the experience of the first book. So instead I'll talk about what she was like in this book. Darian starts off as a very broken person. In no way do I think she has ever had a healthy relationship or been loved in the way a woman should be love. But worse than that her husband is a violent guy and beats her when he drinks, and to say it is easy to feel for Darian and to want her to get out of that situation would be an understatement.

Then of course Darian meets Azriel, who changes her entire life. You have Darian being this abused and beaten down woman who is on the brink of dying, turn into something more than human who is really starting to come into her own. She does this all along side Azriel, which I think is actually kind of awesome because you get to see Azriel in such a different light compared to the way you get to know him in the series.

I really enjoyed reading this novella and really getting to know Darian on a level I wasn't really expecting. She's a great character in the series, and that makes her all the more interesting when you get to really experience her back story right along side her. Of course I would recommend this novella to anyone who enjoyed book 1 in the series, but I also think if you are interested in trying out Amanda Bonilla's work then this would be an awesome introduction not only to her writing style but also to the series. All in all I am going to call this novella a don't miss. So go out, buy it, and enjoy!

One lucky commenter will get to choose between a digital copy of When Shadows Call  or a print copy of Blood Before Sunrise! Hard choice! 


E-MAIL kate@ufreviews with "GIVEAWAY" in the subject line to enter! Include your preference and 1 winner will be chosen randomly. 

Barely Human by Trace Riles

Synopsis: Now you see her. Now you don't Recently promoted, Jessie is struggling to get into the groove of things alongside her edgy and more experienced partner. Lately she’s found it increasingly difficult to hide an ability she can’t control, and doesn’t understand. While investigating the murder of a local teen, she discovers the shocking truth about what she really is. Worse, she suspects the killer that continues to hunt teenage girls is closer to her than she could ever have guessed. As she delves deeper into a world where demons, vampires, and werewolves not only exist, but are all around us, unlikely friendships blossom as a group of misfits band together to put a stop to a madman’s murderous rampage.

Review: This is one of those times I really enjoy being a book reviewer. Sure it's great to get books from all different kinds of authors and to have the ability to try out books I don't normally see at my neighborhood book store, but every once in a while a book comes up in my review queue that makes me so happy to do this day in and day out. From the first page I knew this book was going to be one I liked. 

To start I loved the writing in this book. The writing was really smart, nothing was dumbed down, it was compelling, made you want to turn the page. Descriptions where very well done, but not overly detailed. Just overall the writing was good, it made reading the book both easy and fun. 

I loved Jessie as a character, she kind of reminds me of myself a little bit, but only a tad. Riles gives her such a great inner dialogue. When Jessie first describes her partner Ray you know exactly what to expect, that Ray is a hard ass. And every time Ray would get on Jessie's case about something, Jessie's inner dialogue matched what I would be thinking too. Something about the way that Riles writes Jessie makes it so easy for the reader to not only identify with her, but also to pull for her, to be right there in the situation with her. Another great aspect about Jessie is from the very beginning you know there is something "supernatural" about her, after all everyday humans don't "flicker" from one room to the next in their sleep. Of course Jessie has no idea what is going on with her either, so you as a reader get to find out her secrets at the same time as she does. 

I also want to mention how much I like the back and forth between Jessie's point of view and the demon point of view. They contrasted each other so well. And it was really interesting to get to see what the other side of the story was thinking. 

There isn't much more I can say about the book without giving away all the fun tidbits you will want to discover on your own. I will say that it does has a bit of mystery paranormal genre mash up to it, so I think this book would appeal to a larger audience. I would say if you like anything supernatural give this book a shot, and if you like mystery/crime books, this would be a good book to try out the supernatural genres. Check it out!

CLICK HERE to enter for a signed copy of Barely Human!

Paranormal Turkey Tour! With Giveaway!

Ah yes, Thanksgiving. Nothing says the holidays like sitting around a fully decked out dining room table with mouthwatering temptations waiting to be gobbled up. Everyone waits anxiously for the big reveal… the turkey! Lovingly prepared since early that morning, the turkey is brought out in a covered, silver serving platter. Aunt Edith smacks little Tommy's hand as he attempts to steal a candied yam dripping with marshmallow. The collective breath is held as the silver cover is removed… revealing… a zombie turkey! What—what? That's right folks, this year, we are celebrating this American holiday paranormal style. And what says paranormal holiday better than a walking, talking zombie turkey? This zombie turkey brings you important tidings of great prizes that shall be for all people… who participate and win of course. November 25-27 you could win up to $200 in prizes!  

Three days. Four YA paranormal books. Five chances to win!

And who are these crazy paranormal authors? Check them out. It's like the Nightmare Before Christmas, Thanksgiving style!
  Emlyn Chand, author of Farsighted "Psychic or not, you'll never see the end for this one coming! Emlyn Chand is pioneering 'the next big thing' for YA." ~ Emily Reese, author of Second Death Alex Kosmitoras may be blind, but he can still “see” things others can’t. When his unwanted visions of the future begin to suggest that the girl he likes could be in danger, he has no choice but to take on destiny and demand it reconsider. Monster Mash: Emlyn says… I. AM. WEREWOLF! And why's that you ask? First off, my name (Chand) literally means moon in Sanskrit. Next, werewolves are super cool--we can blend in with common folk, and then out of nowhere, kapow! I'm a werewolf, and I sure am hungry. Lastly, Team Jacob 100%. Now excuse me while I cock back my head and howl at my namesake.
Patti Larsen, author of Family Magic "Patti Larsen is truly gifted because I read Family Magic cover to cover and I'm on the edge of my seat waiting for the next installment!" ~ from Goodreads review Sixteen-year-old Sydlynn Hayle is the daughter of a powerful witch and a demon lord, but she just wants to be ordinary. When her coven comes under attack, Syd must face the fact only her power can save her family's magic. Monster Mash: Patti says… I am a witch. Naturally. I weave spells with my words, cast incantations from my keyboard, mix up the very best potions in my cauldron of documents. You want to stay on my good side. Trust me. Unless you enjoy waking up as something... unnatural.
  Kimberly Kinrade, author of Forbidden Mind "Forbidden Mind is a thrilling, dark and deeply romantic read that had me sitting on the edge of my seat and eagerly awaiting the next installment." ~Refracted Light Young Adult Book Reviews Paranormal teens with unimaginable powers. An evil organization with deep secrets. When Sam, a girl who reads minds, meets a boy who controls minds, she discovers her future isn't what she thought. Together they must escape and free the others… or risk losing everything—and everyone—they love. Monster Mash: Kimberly says… I may look like a demon, but I'm actually a succubus. Enchanting and seductive, I weave stories that will fuel your passions and make you fall in love. But be warned… once you fall under the spell of my words, your world will never be the same.   John Corwin, author of The Next Thing I Knew Corwin does a phenomenal job of including humor throughout this novel. This book was like . . . Ghost (the movie) meets The Host (by Stephanie Meyer) meets MIB (Men In Black the movie). ~Maryann, Chapter by Chapter The afterlife is the last thing on Lucy’s mind until she and every other human on the planet drop dead and find themselves in the hereafter. Lucy drags her social life back from the grave and enlists her friends to figure out the rules of the afterlife and, more importantly, to discover who or what killed everyone and why anyone would do such a mean thing. Monster Mash: John says… I am a ninja. After all, vampires are simply ninjas with fangs. They can hide in plain sight, right in your living room. Jump out and scare the wits out of you. Drop a smoke bomb and poof! All you’re left with is stinky smoke in your house and soiled underclothes.

 

The Prizes

Four $25 Book Entries: For each of the four books in the contest, you can enter to win $25 (up to $100 in giveaways!) Simply buy a copy of the book (each is priced at just 99 cents for this special promotion) and email the proof of purchase for that book OR submit the first sentence of the fifth chapter for that book to ParanormalTurkey@gmail.com. Winners will be chosen randomly. Each person can submit one entry per book. Here are the links for each book:

• Farsighted by Emlyn Chand : http://ow.ly/7tqhx
• Forbidden Mind by Kimberly Kinrade: http://amzn.to/rKraMo
• The Next Thing I Knew by John Corwin: http://amzn.to/tSlj8A
• Family Magic by Patti Larsen : http://goo.gl/r2Bsm

And... if you buy all FOUR books, you are entered to win the Grand Prize!  

The Grand Prize

One randomly selected reader who enters to win all four book prizes (Family Magic, Farsighted, Forbidden Mind and The Next Thing I Knew) will win the grand prize of $100. So go on now and pick up a copy of these fantastic paranormal reads before the zombie turkey eats you! What? Still around? Then enjoy these fun book trailers and Paranormal Turkey Tour trailer. (Then go buy the books.) Also, leave a comment and help your favorite blog host win a $50 prize!   Notes:

• All winners will be chosen randomly using random.org.
• Amazon links are provided, but books purchased through any online vendor will qualify with proof of purchase.