Friday, May 31, 2013

Series Spotlight - Blood Hunters



Blood Hunters: a sequel series to the Awakened by Blood trilogy

BLOOD GUILT
Blood Hunters, Book 1
MARIE TREANOR


Natural enemies, deadly attraction...

Mihaela, a fearless vampire hunter secretly haunted by loneliness and childhood tragedy, finds it difficult to adjust to the new world order where vampires are not always the bad guys. She's taking a much needed vacation in Scotland when she sees a little boy being chased through the streets of Edinburgh. Rescuing him brings bigger problems - two vampires from her past: Gavril, who killed her family; and the reclusive and troubled Maximilian, gifted Renaissance artist and one-time overlord of the most powerful undead community in the world. Maximilian once saved her life and now needs that favor returned.

The earth moves for Mihaela in more ways than one. From Scotland to Budapest and Malta, she  races against time to prevent a disastrous, vampire-induced earthquake and save an innocent yet powerful child – all while fighting a dreadful attraction to Maximilian, her only ally, whom she can’t afford to trust. For Maximilian, the hunter becomes a symbol of renewed existence, as he struggles to accept his past and rediscovers his appetite for blood and sex - and maybe even happiness.

BLOOD OF ANGELS

Blood Hunters, Book 2
MARIE TREANOR


Obsession... a wounded hunter, a damaged vampire

Six months ago, vampire hunter and inventive genius Istvan nearly died in the seminal battle that would change the relationship between humans and vampires forever.

A year before that, he first encountered sexy vampiress, Angyalka, owner of the Angel Club, favored haunt of the undead. Istvan won that round, but when he recklessly seeks her out again in search of the secret of angels, he's alone and so exhausted he can barely stand, let alone fight vampires. Plus Angyalka's out for revenge, and very happy to use his powerful sexual attraction to her…

But Angyalka has her own secret weaknesses amd terrifying strengths even she doesn't understand. Their battle becomes one of wits and sex, but when someone bombs the club, they fight together to contain all the threats closing in on the Angel, from humans and vampires, including the sadistic killer who could just be dangerous enough to finally topple undead overlord Saloman.

As Istvan struggles to harness the mysterious power of angels, Angyalka needs a deeper strength to send away the fascinating hunter who delivers on all her deepest sensual desires and yet can't come to terms with her vampire nature.

BLOOD DESCENT
Blood Hunters, Book 3
MARIE TREANOR

Ebook $2.99

A child is born...into the final showdown of Vampire and Hunter

The face of a killer, the heart of a lost child…

Konrad once led the legendary first team of Hungarian vampire hunters. Now, refusing to ally with the undead, he goes his own way, slaughtering vampires across the length and breadth of Europe.

The dying thoughts of one such vampire send Konrad to Britain in search of a dangerous instrument that  might be just what he needs in his obsessive war with undead overlord Saloman – a war he’s determined to win at any cost. The only being who can lead him to the instrument and its current, evil possessor, is sexy, mysterious, young Glaswegian vampire Maggie, who holds herself aloof from her own kind.

Maggie sees much more than Konrad’s anger and cruelty. She makes it her mission to reach beyond the horrors of his past and find the man he should have been. Difficult, when he threatens her heart as well as everything she believes in; and when her whole being clamors for his body and his blood.

While journalists circle, about to break the news of vampire existence on mainstream television, Elizabeth Silk labors to give birth to Saloman’s daughter: and Maggie plays a dangerous game that risks everyone for her belief in one troubled man.

About Marie Treanor
Award winning author Marie Treanor lives in Scotland with her eccentric husband and three much-too-smart children. Having grown bored with city life, she resides these days in a picturesque village by the sea where she is lucky enough to enjoy herself avoiding housework and writing sensual stories of paranormal romance and fantasy.
Marie has published nearly forty ebooks with small presses, (Samhain Publishing, Ellora’s Cave, Changeling Press and The Wild Rose Press), including a former Kindle bestseller, Killing Joe. Blood on Silk: an Awakened by Blood novel, was her New York debut with NAL. She is now self-publishing three new paranormal series.
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Review and Giveaway - Blood Descent



BLOOD DESCENT
Blood Hunters, Book 3
MARIE TREANOR

Ebook $2.99

A child is born...into the final showdown of Vampire and Hunter

The face of a killer, the heart of a lost child…

Konrad once led the legendary first team of Hungarian vampire hunters. Now, refusing to ally with the undead, he goes his own way, slaughtering vampires across the length and breadth of Europe.

The dying thoughts of one such vampire send Konrad to Britain in search of a dangerous instrument that  might be just what he needs in his obsessive war with undead overlord Saloman – a war he’s determined to win at any cost. The only being who can lead him to the instrument and its current, evil possessor, is sexy, mysterious, young Glaswegian vampire Maggie, who holds herself aloof from her own kind.

Maggie sees much more than Konrad’s anger and cruelty. She makes it her mission to reach beyond the horrors of his past and find the man he should have been. Difficult, when he threatens her heart as well as everything she believes in; and when her whole being clamors for his body and his blood.

While journalists circle, about to break the news of vampire existence on mainstream television, Elizabeth Silk labors to give birth to Saloman’s daughter: and Maggie plays a dangerous game that risks everyone for her belief in one troubled man.

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My review:

I love this series and the one that came before it.  So I was very happy when we got to Konrad's book.  I couldnt wait to find out what was going to happen with him.  He is such an interesting character with all the changes that have gone on in his life and the purposes of the hunters.  

In this volume we find out more about Konrad and his abilites.  We discover more about what happened to change him into the merciless vampire hunter that he has become.

At the same time we are introduced to Maggie.  While Maggie is a vampire, she doesnt act how Konrad believes a vampire should act.  This comes to cause great conflict as he has to work with her to get closer to his goal.  But at times has trouble remembering why he should hate her.

Maggie believes Konrad is not a lost cause to the vampire/hunter peace.  And as we watch them interact and get to know one another we hope as well that she is right and is able to overcome the ideas that have come to run his life.

This was an excellent story in the series about the legendary hunter team.  The characters are interesting, the story flows and you cant help but keep reading to find out what happens next.  I am hoping there will be more in this world coming and am looking forward to seeing whats next. 



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Giveaway:

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Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Interview and Giveaway - Lynn Crandall - Dancing with Detective Danger





Please describe your novel twitter style 140 characters or less.

Thank you for having me today on your lovely blog! I enjoy the opportunity to share my experience of writing and to interact with readers. Now for the twitter-length description.

Danger rides on Ben Kirby's shoulder. At least that's what Sterling Aegar, heroine of Dancing with Detective Danger, believes. And that's a problem.

Two years ago Sterling ran away from a passionate relationship with Ben because his work scared her. A cop herself turned private investigator, she's suffered more than her share of losses, and with the death of her sister's husband, also a cop, she couldn't contain the idea of loving Ben, then losing him to police work. But now, a mutual case has slammed them together again. Though for Ben, encountering Sterling has triggered physical attraction that has never gone away, it's also reminded him of his deep love for her. As Sterling and Ben confront grave danger on the job, they both must face their troubled pasts and choose love or let it go.


What is the one thing you wish you knew before you tried to get published? It would be an understatement to say I've learned a lot from writing, so it's hard to pick one thing I didn’t know that I wish I had. Hmm…here it is. I wish I'd learned all about effective marketing.

What to you is the best part of being a writer and what is the part you wouldnt mind giving up? I love the exhilaration of getting to know the characters and their story. I'm a pantser, so though I do a lot of preparation and research before I begin writing the story, there is a lot I don't know. It's fun to find out as I go.

The part of being a writer I wouldn’t mind giving up is not knowing everything. It fuels my self-doubt. Why can't I be a genius?

What city would you love to set a story in but the right one hasnt come along yet?  I would love to set a story in Chicago. I love the feel of an urban center, which is why Dancing with Detective Danger is set in a fictitious mid-size city that I feel has a sense of that excitement,  just on a smaller scale.

Vampires, Shifters, Zombies, Angels - who wins the final ultimate battle? Well, can't we all just live together happily ever after?

If you could witness any historical event past, present or future what would it be and why? Interesting question. It seems like historical events come in different sizes and don't necessarily have a huge impact all at once. So with that in mind, I would like to have been there when the Beatles first learned one of their songs was a hit. Very fun moment to be a part of.

If you were going to cowrite a new book, who would you want to write it with? My blog partner would be a good choice. She's a good writer.

What books are currently on your nightstand? I've come sort of late to reading the Dresden Files books, by Jim Butcher, so I'm presently reading Death Masks. I love paranormal romances and Dresden has both, even though the series is not romance.  I just finished reading Rena Koontz's new release from Crimson Romance, The Devil She Knew. Great read.

What is the best thing you have done in the name of research? Started paying more attention to everything. That was way back when I first started writing fiction. Paying attention really made the world come alive for me.

When writing what is your favorite part of the story? I love to write highly charged emotional moments that reveal things about the plot and the characters.

Anything else you would like to share today? I'm working on a second book about the sisters in Dancing with Detective Danger. In the first book, Sterling's sister Lacey is grieving the death of her husband, Nicholas, though he has reappeared in her life. In the second book, Lacey is learning to continue to love the life she has had with Nicholas while considering moving on without him.


DANCING WITH DETECTIVE DANGEROUS
By
Lynn Crandall

BLURB:  
Uncovering secrets and exposing truth are all in a day’s work for private investigator Sterling Aegar. But when her latest case threatens to reveal her own buried feelings for an old love, Sterling runs for cover.

A body in the bathtub and pleas from a jilted wife to find her wayward husband mean a welcome break from the usual humdrum cases Sterling and her sister, Lacey, are called to investigate. But when Sterling’s old flame, Detective Ben Kirby, walks into the murder scene, she feels her world spin out of control. Danger from thugs and murderers poses no greater threat than the peril she’d suffer if she lets daredevil Ben get too close.

Seeing Sterling for the first time in two years is for Ben like drinking in a healing tonic. He could never forget the way it felt to run his hands over her delicious curves or the way she touched his soul. She remains the one person who can make the emptiness in his gut go away. Finding the murderer is his job, but protecting Sterling from seriously dangerous people is his mission.
As the case unfolds, Sterling and Ben not only solve the murder and locate the missing husband, they confront secrets that set them each free from a painful past.

EXCERPT:

Ben wiped the sweat out of his eyes with the back of his hand and reached up again for the bar. Bench-pressing his usual two hundred and fifty pounds, he gritted his teeth and willed his mind to focus on the fifth repetition.

Thoughts of Sterling had been working his mind, stirring up emotions, ever since the moment he’d walked up to her at the Witt murder scene. It didn’t help that this morning when he’d dropped by the Aegar Investigations office Sterling had looked flawless, perfect. Her red suit was the picture of professionalism, but it couldn’t hide her gentle curves. And he could never forget the exquisite joy of running his hands along those sweetly feminine curves.

“Okay, let’s add another twenty pounds, Chris,” Ben said, sitting up and reaching for another weight. It’s the past, man. Forget it.

“What are you training for, the Olympics?” his spotter asked, adding on another steel weight to match the one Ben added.

Lying back down on the weight bench, Ben ignored Chris’s question. Best if no one knows what’s eating me up. He reached up and put everything he had into hoisting the barbell over his head.

Memories of peering deeply into the wells of Sterling’s eyes, dusky with passion, grabbed hold of his gut. The two of them had always connected in such a way that intimacy went beyond the physical realm. It bordered on the spiritual.

Well, that didn’t work. Now I sound like some gushy nut job.

Ben finished the last rep. and sat up to straddle the bench. “That’s it for me, Chris. Want me to spot you now?”

“No. Thanks, Ben, but I’m done for the day. See ya later.”

Ben lumbered to the locker room. Stripping off his shorts and muscle shirt, he walked to the shower and plunged his head into the hard spray. Maybe I can wash her out.

Hadn’t he tried to pull his life together after she left him? It had been damn hard and it had taken the better part of the two years, but he’d thought she was finally out. Or at least as far out of his system as he could ever hope Sterling could be.

Clearly, nothing had changed with her. Sterling wanted no part of him. Ben closed his eyes and leaned weakly against the shower wall. It still hurt. No wonder running into her messed him up so easily, he thought. A gaping hole still bled inside him where she belonged.



REVIEW SOUND BYTES

Lynn Crandall writes a compelling tale of intrigue that is sure to keep you on the edge of your seat. From the first page to the last, Dancing With Detective Danger will keep you guessing what will happen next as Sterling Aegar and Ben Kirby search to find a killer, as well as answers to the past they thought they had left behind—a past that is at times painful, but one that neither can forget. Dancing With Detective Danger will quickly become a must read for all fans of romantic suspense and have readers looking for more books by this talented author. 
– Kathie DeNosky, USA Today Bestselling Author

Lynn Crandall held my interest from start to finish with unexpected surprises and a satisfying story. Her characters are alive and easy to relate to as they struggle with inner stories that affect their lives—real issues people live with daily. An engaging plot made it hard to put the book down.
There is a broadness in this book's world where emotions and awareness of life beyond the physical are acknowledged. Her characters effectively illustrate the struggles of finding balance in the battle between self-protection and reaching for help while fearing to need it. The issue of being walled off to feel safe from the danger of being open and vulnerable are a familiar human experience. I'd like to follow this cast of characters in new adventures. 
-Lynne McLewin, Counselor and Healer 

Dancing with Detective Danger is filled with intrigue, many twists and turns as well as a passionate love story well weaved together from page one to the end.  Ms. Crandall writes beautiful prose that make the reader unable to lay the book down.  

Elizabeth Butler, award-winning author of nine novels, her latest
 Happy New Year, Emily Rose


AUTHOR INFORMATION:

I started spinning stories as a child when I tried to entertain my younger sister at night when we were supposed to be going to sleep. In the dark, my stories typically took on a scary or paranormal element -- didn't do much to put us to sleep. Today, I hope my stories still fail to put readers to sleep, but rather take them on a journey. That's what I've been on since I decided to make writing my focus. As a reporter and magazine feature writer, I truly enjoy learning as I work on stories. As a romance writer, I enjoy doing the research and following an evolving story of my characters. I'm still learning as I go.






GIVEAWAY:

Lynn will be awarding a $20 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour

Follow the tour and comment; the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here:  http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2013/04/virtual-book-tour-dancing-with.html