Robyn Bachar's Blog, page 19

Author Thursday: Interview with Lynn Crandall

Today I'm excited to have Crimson Romance author Lynn Crandall as my guest, and she's answering questions about her exciting romantic suspense novels Dancing with Detective Danger and Always and Forever Love.

1. What flavor is your writing? (Spicy? Action? Space odyssey? Ninjas? All of the above?)

I don't know how I'd categorize the flavor of my writing in Dancing with Detective Danger and Always and Forever Love, but I was going for suspense, danger, and relationship development. I love exploring inner dynamics that move characters to do what they do, and then having them "see" their destructive patterns and finding love. There is sex, there is action in my books, but the danger comes from outer forces as well as the workings of releasing old beliefs.
2. Where do you get your inspiration?

My inspiration comes from real people I see struggling with relationships and personal growth. I think the average individual is complex, remarkable, and fascinating.

3. Dancing with Detective Danger and Always and Forever Love feature a pair of sisters who are private detectives. What drew you to writing about PIs?

I actually was interested in writing about sisters working together. I wanted to explore and present a family that is not the standard we all tend to believe makes a family. Could sisters work together, be different personalities, and still support each other. I made them private investigators because that naturally put them in dangerous situations and they would have to use their strengths and skills to be successful in their work.

4. What are you reading now or what books do you have in your TBR pile?

I just finished one of the books in the Dresden Files series. Love them! I've been reading them for a while. But right now I'm reading the final book in Kelley Armstrong's Nadia Stadfford series, Wild Justice. I love magic and fantasy, so I've read all Armstrong's books in the Otherworld series and Jim Butcher books. But I also enjoy the story of Nadia Stadfford, a wounded woman who respects the law but works as a hired assassin.

5. What are you working on now?

I'm writing a third book set in the town where the PI sisters live, but it focuses on their office manager, Michelle Slade. It's been suggested by my editor that it could be the first in a paranormal spin-off series. I'm super excited about it and am enjoying the challenge, in between thoughts of, "I can't do this!" I'm a pantser and it's a first for me to conceptualize more than one book at a time.

You can learn more about Lynn here:
Website: http://lynn-crandall.com/Twitter: @lcrandall246Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LynnCrandallAuthorAmazon author page: http://amzn.to/NNUM8v
Always and Forever Love

The presence of a ghost in her life doesn't alarm Lacy Aegar, in fact it makes her happy. Two and a half years ago when her dead husband Nicholas reappeared in her life as a full-bodied spirit, she questioned her sanity. But with Nicholas' explanation that there are things about life that are not as she's always believed, she settled into a pleasant routine of working with her sister at their private investigation business and enjoying home life with her now 10-year-old son – with Nicholas never very far away.

Lacey's complacency and sense of stability is sent topsy-turvy when she runs into Jackson Carter, the son of powerful and influential business tycoon, William Carter. Typical of the Carter reputation, Jackson's slick new private investigating business is siphoning off clients from the Aegar sisters' business, creating financial difficulty. It's a recurring nightmare for Lacey, who has already seen damage done by the Carter family, and when she encounters Jackson, she wants nothing to do with him.

But things are not what they seem when it comes to Jackson Carter, either. Unbeknownst to Lacey and her sister, Jackson is fighting a battle to preserve his business, too, and his integrity. For him, it's a fight for his soul, and he enlists Lacey's help because of her unique investigative skills and open heart. When she uncovers a mole in his business, she also discovers that one of his clients' drug trials has been given the green light to go to the next phase based on falsified data. As they work together to save both their businesses, Jackson and Lacey not only face death, they must come to grips with their feelings about love and life.

Hope Springs Eternal

Ahh, springtime. When the flowers bloom and the world is green once---wait, what do you mean there's more snow on the way?

Sigh.
It's been a long, cold winter in Chiberia. No, seriously. They had to bring an icebreaker ship to clear a path through Lake Michigan. We're in the top three snowfalls on record. It's been so cold for so long that when it hit the 40s last week crazy people were walking around downtown with no coats on, because 40 degrees was "warm." But though spring has decided to be fashionably late this year, I know it's on its way. Because Spring Training! Go Cubbies!

"Hope springs eternal" does not refer to the Chicago Cubs, but its a phrase Cub fans embrace every year because next year is here. This could be the year. This could be the team that takes us to the World Series. (Probably not.) Though first, they're going to have to thaw out Wrigley Field. (Which they were using snow plows on. Seriously.)

Being an author is a lot like being a Cub fan. Each new release is like a new season---maybe this will be the one that takes you all the way to the top! The crowd goes wild! Or, maybe this is the book that only your die-hard fans love, and everyone else thinks it stinks. All you can do is keep playing. Keep writing.

Hope springs eternal.

Read an Ebook Week Giveaway Winner!

Random.org has chosen, and the winner of the free ebook of The Importance of Being Emily is... Liz! Who chose the magic power of seeing the future. You'll get along well with Emily. ;) Liz, please send me an email (robyn at robynbachar dot com) and let me know what sort of file type you prefer. :)

Author Thursday: Interview with Devin Harnois

I'm super excited to have author Devin Harnois as my guest for Author Thursday! Devin's Love and Monsters and Alex Holden series are favorites of mine. :-) (Who doesn't love a talking cat named Mew-Mew?) Devin was kind enough to be pestered with interview questions. Please enjoy.

1. What flavor is your writing? (Spicy? Action? Space odyssey? Ninjas? All of the above?) 

I go all over the place, but I tend to stick around urban fantasy and its cousin paranormal romance. I also tripped and landed on YA a while back and I’m having fun with that.
2. Where do you get your inspiration?

Everywhere. I never know what’s going to spark an idea. The NaNoWriMo book I just finished came out of a mish-mash of things gathered from Teen Wolf, Hemlock Grove, Once Upon a Time, a bunch of mythology, the blurb of David Farland’s Nightingale (I haven’t read the book), Supernatural, Harry Potter, Sky High, and the description of Matt Forbeck’s Monster Academy series.

3. I love the Alex Holden series! What was your favorite part of working on it? 

Do I have to pick one? Haha. One of my favorite things was the way Alex started talking in my head one morning, describing his life from the time he was two. He had such a strong voice I knew I had to write a book about him.

4. What are you reading now, or what books do you have in your TBR pile? 

I’m always in the middle of three or four books. Currently it’s Shadowdance by Kristen Callihan, The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe, and Elric: Swords and Roses by Michael Moorcock.

5. What are you working on now? 

Editing the first book in the Shadow Valley series (YA urban fantasy), How To Make Friends and Not Incinerate People. I also just started the second book, working title The 7 Bad Habits of Slightly Troubled Monsters.

You can find out more about Devin here:
Website: http://devinharnois.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/devinharnois Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Devin-Harnois/119946704699190 
Not My Apocalypse by Devin Harnois

"My name is Alex Holden, and I’m the Antichrist." 

Alex is the son of the Devil, destined to help his father end the world. But Alex has other ideas. What he wants more than anything is freedom and a chance at a normal life. Constantly running away, he spends his time with his best friend -- a cat named Mew-Mew -- and a group of demigod teenagers.

Then Alex finds out Ragnarok, the Norse version of the Apocalypse, might be starting and he gets a crazy idea.

He's not going to destroy the world. He's going to save it.

Read an eBook Week!

The Samhain Cafe is celebrating Read an eBook Week, and they'll be hosting author chats and giveaways all week. I'm giving away a copy of The Importance of Being Emily to a commenter here (more details below), and I have a bonus coupon code for the second Emily book, Poison in the Blood.

Emily, Michael and Simon first appeared as meddling vampires in Blood, Smoke and Mirrors. I loved writing them so much that I knew I wanted to write the story of how Michael and Emily met and fell in love, and how Michael's mentor, Simon, came to terms with that. TIoBE was a blast to write. It has murder, mystery and mayhem. RT Book Reviews said,

If Agatha Christie included paranormal elements in her house party murder mysteries, the results would have probably been something similar to Bachar’s short story. The Importance of Being Emily has all of the hallmarks of a traditional historical romance, including very conservative beliefs about a woman’s “place”. However, the story is absolutely doused in occult magic, vampires, mind readers and other sorts of magic. This is a wonderfully imaginative tale that begs a re-read just so that every detail and nuance can be savored.

I'll admit, I author swooned when I saw that review. ;-)

The sequel, Poison in the Blood, was my 2011 NaNoWriMo project. PitB has even more murdery, mystery, and magical mayhem, with bonus faerie shenanigans. (Faust makes an unnamed cameo appearance.) I'm planning on two more Emily books, one set in late 19th century Chicago, and one set in Prohibition-era Chicago. She's so much fun to write; Emily is definitely one of my favorite narrators.

You can get 30% off Poison in the Blood when you use the code POISON14 during checkout from the Samhain store.

Want a chance to win a free ebook of TIoBE? Leave a comment with your email address and the answer to this question: If you could have one magic ability, what would it be?

Me, I'd love to throw some fireballs. The winner will be chosen through the magic of random.org and will be announced on Friday. Go forth, and read some ebooks! ;-)

Super Samhain Savings!

Are you trapped indoors by snow and sub-zero temperatures? Need something to read? Well Mr. Sam Hain wants to help!


Samhain is having a hugenormous sale at their site, offering 50% off all their paperback books when you use the coupon code PAPERBACK50 at checkout. Awesome, right?

That means you can get half off the print versions of Blood, Smoke and Mirrors, Bewitched, Blooded and Bewildered, and Nightfall!



But wait, there's more!

I have a special Samhain coupon code for the e-book of Poison in the Blood! If you enter the code POISON14 at checkout you'll get 30% off. w00t!


So much savings. You should treat yourself to something. ;-)

Sweet Home Chicago

I recently returned to the Chicagoland area after living for several years surrounded by cornfields in central Illinois. Of course I moved back just in time for one of the coldest, snowiest Chicago winters on record. Luckily being trapped indoors isn't a terrible thing for a writer--I've had plenty of time to polish up the third Cy'ren book and to put together a zombified proposal for my editor. I even joined the Chicago-North RWA Chapter. (You guys, my name is totally listed on the same page as Courtney Milan and Carrie Lofty. It makes me feel famous by association.)
It's weird coming back after having lived in a college town. I'd forgotten about the perils of no parking--or worse, parallel parking--and the booze is so expensive here. But some things never change. A list of 18 Things You Have to Explain to Out-of-Towners about Chicago has been making the rounds of my Facebook feed, and I had to share it and emailed it to my relatives. There's a lot of truth in it, starting with the observation that Navy Pier is not a must-see cultural destination. I've been there...once? Number 16 is also accurate, because it's just easier to say you're from Chicago. Everyone's heard of Chicago. Not everyone has heard of Berwyn (though if they have, it's probably due to Svengoolie).

Anyway, when you live in the area you make the rounds of the museums when you're in grade school, but after that, who has the time? This year my family has decided that we're going to make the time, and for my mom's birthday we visited the Museum of Science and Industry. As it was a frigid January day, we practically had the place to ourselves.

We saw the Treasures of the Disney Archives exhibit, wandered through the U-505 Submarine exhibit, and my dad was particularly excited by the Henry Crown Space Center (as the photo to the left shows). As I've mentioned before, my dad is the source of my love of sci-fi. He'd love to be an astronaut (and now that he's retired, I think my mom would be perfectly happy to send him on a trip to the moon, just to get him out of the house). ;-)

They're predicting more snow for this weekend, but I'm hoping that spring isn't too far off. My plan for this year is to take the time to visit more museums and historical locations around Chicago. Local people: Are there any places you'd like to visit again, or haven't visited yet but want to? Non-local people: If you could visit Chicago, where would you go? A Cub game? The Shedd Aquarium?

Slaying the TBR Pile

Soon I will have the cover for the second Cy'ren book, Morningstar, and I'm extremely thrilled and hyper about that. It will be out later this year, as will the third book, Sunsinger. (Much thanks again to my awesome and brave beta readers.) I'm also working on more Bad Witch books and a new fantasy series, but when I'm not obsessing over them, I've been making progress on my quest to whittle down my hugenormous To Be Read pile. (Or TBR bookcase, rather. It's an entire bookcase. My Nook and Kindle are also similarly filled.)
What I've been reading lately...

Corine Solomon series by Ann Aguirre. Blue Diablo has been hanging out on my TBR shelf for awhile, because I was in a dry spell for wanting to read urban fantasy. I tore through her sci-fi Sirantha Jax series last year like Cookie Monster in a bakery (OM NOM NOM!), so I knew I'd love this series too. And I do. I was glued to Blue Diablo, and I'm looking forward to reading more.

Aguirre is awesome at creating heroines who are tough but damaged--rolicking badasses who have dark, tortured pasts. They always save the day, but there's always a price to be paid. Her books have teeth and grit, and I love that. This isn't a romance series, but there's a romantic storyline that's complex and angsty which should satisfy romance readers.

InCryptid series and the October Daye series by Seanan McGuire. I devoured the Newsflesh books by Seanan's alter-ego Mira Grant last year. (Devoured. That's a zombie joke. ZOM NOM NOM!) It was a pretty sure bet that I'd love her Seanan McGuire books too, and yes, I did. I was immediately in love with the InCryptid books because the combination of humor and the supernatural reminded me of The Middleman. BFF Diana and I LOVE The Middleman, and often lament that it didn't last more than one season. I can judge how awesome a book is by how quickly I demand that Diana read it. Discount Armageddon had me singing its praises to her within the first few pages. I already pre-ordered book three, Half-Off Ragnarok. Again, these aren't romance books per se, but there's a romantic storyline with a very swoon-worthy hero.

I'm currently reading the second October Daye book, and I kinda wanted to hug the first book. It reminded me of everything I love about urban fantasy. Evil fae! Gritty setting! Tough heroine! Shakespearean references! Mythology! All the things! ...I'll stop now. It doesn't have the fun, bubbly flavor of the InCryptid books, but instead it has a dark, earthy taste. Like Guinness.

Blood of the Pride series by Sheryl Nantus. Okay, kids. I'm gonna tell you a quick story about how Sheryl Nantus is awesome. I've had a few rough spots after my divorce, and one particularly difficult day in 2012 I tweeted something angsty and Sheryl saw it. She DM'd me and asked if a free book would cheer me up, and then sent me not one but two free e-books. Because she's fabulous. ;-) And yes, they did cheer me up.

I read the first book awhile ago, then my urban fantasy reading dry spell kicked in. Once I was back in the groove I remembered that I had books two and three waiting on my Nook, so I read Claws Bared and Family Pride in quick succession, and I just picked up Battle Scars. I really enjoy this series, which is somewhat weird for me because I usually can't get into shapeshifters. The Blood of the Pride books are cat shifters though, not your standard werewolves, and it's a refreshing change. The heroine, Rebecca Desjardin, is a private investigator, and the mystery-solving aspect of the books remind me of the things I loved about the early Anita Blake books. Lots of action and crime-fighting, and the hero is rather awesome as well.

So what are you all reading lately? Does anyone have suggestions for UF or PNR with some good, old-fashioned vampires?

New Year, New Releases

Where did the time go? The past few weeks have been crazy. I moved, I survived another NaNoWriMo, the holidays flew by, the snowpocalypse happened, and then it was a brisk -15 degrees outside.

I'm excited for 2014. I kicked butt at my 2013 reading goal on Goodreads (much of which was due to BFF Diana introducing me to the world of Elfquest, which is awesome), so this year I hope to read 52 books. In fact, I want to attempt reading one print book and one ebook each week. I still have an enormous bookcase filled with TBR books, so fingers crossed that this is the year I make a dent in it. I also have a new-to-me Kindle to go with my Nook, and plenty of ebooks on both.
I have three releases this year! In June the print version of Poison in the Blood releases, and it includes the novella The Importance of Being Emily. Two books for the price of one! Good deal.

Cy'ren books two and three will be out in ebook in fall and winter. I'll be sharing more info. on blurbs, covers and release dates as they're confirmed. I'm super excited about these two. The first book, Nightfall, is a finalist in the Sci-Fi Romance category of the 2014 EPIC eBook Awards. The winners will be announced in March. Can't wait!

...hmm. Lots of exclamations in this post. Too much coffee. ;)

So what are you looking forward to in 2014? For Christmas I treated myself to Dark Witch, the first book in Nora Roberts' new Cousins O'Dwyer trilogy, and I loved it. The second book will be out in March.

NaNo Revisited 2011: Poison in the Blood

Simon and his soul mate were the first Bad Witch characters I created, followed by Emily and Michael. I wrote a bit of a book with them during my last year at college but didn't get far with it. When I started Blood, Smoke and Mirrors , I knew Simon, Michael, and Emily had to be in it, and they stole scenes at every opportunity. I had so much fun writing about Emily and her undead peanut gallery that I decided to write a novella about how Michael and Emily fell in love, and that became The Importance of Being Emily .

I loved writing that story, and it became my best-reviewed book. (Dude. Seriously. RT gave it 4.5 stars and invited me to blog about it on their site.) So when NaNoWriMo approached in 2011, I decided to write the story of how Emily became a vampire.
Before 2011, as part of my "you can do it!" speech about how anyone can find the time to write during NaNoWriMo I used to excitedly tell people about how I'd written my first NaNo the month before my wedding. Then in 2011 my ex-husband dropped the divorce bomb halfway through NaNoWriMo. It was sort of poetic, in an awful "circle of life" kind of way. NaNo helped me through my pre-wedding jitters, and then it helped me survive the first wave of divorce heartbreak. It was my Scarlett O'Hara moment--God as my witness, I was not going to let my ex take my NaNo from me.

So Poison in the Blood became the first book of my divorced romance writer life. (There's a poignant article here about writing romance during a divorce, for those interested in the subject.) My feelings on the divorce are, oh, let's call them negative, so I'll spare you the details. It boils down to this: I still believe in Happily Ever After, even if my first Prince turned out to be charming but not sincere. There's comfort in writing about characters I love and knowing that they're happy.

While TIoBE was my best-reviewed book, PitB is my least reviewed. Actually it's my first book to have no reviews at all. I wonder if that has to do with it being my Divorce Book. Or if it's because I don't have the resources to spend on blog tours and promo like I did with my previous books. But I love this book. I loved every moment of longing between Michael and Emily, every argument between Emily and Simon, and every flustered bit of Dr. Bennett's unrequited love for Miss Dubois. They fight crime! They take a field trip to Faerie! It's a lot of fun. ;) Here's an excerpt from the first chapter:

Miss Dubois straightened and approached us. She was quite beautiful, and I could see why Dr. Bennett was so helplessly attracted to her. She had a charming, heart-shaped face graced with large blue eyes framed with thick lashes. Her hair was arranged in an artful mass of golden curls, and she was positively radiant. Almost angelic.

She eyed me thoughtfully. “I have never met a seer before.”

I smiled as I refrained from commenting on how I had never met a female guardian before. Instead I chose a more polite reply. “Very few people have. I am pleased to make your acquaintance.”

Nodding briskly, she returned her attention to the body. “What do you see?”

Simple. To the point. I rather liked that. It was refreshing to be spared having to justify my abilities, though I suspected that as a woman Miss Dubois was familiar with having to justify her own magic to others.

I stepped away from Dr. Bennett and centered myself, clearing my thoughts of my curiosity about their relationship. When I opened my eyes I winced at the riot of colors emanating from the Undiscovered Country; was nothing calm in this city? The necromancers had cast so many spells upon their building that the narrow alleyway rather looked like our table linens the day the twins had gotten into the watercolors. I turned my gaze to the body itself and found it devoid of energy, as I expected. Mrs. Harding’s dark hair was unbound, and her lifeless eyes stared blankly up at the night sky.

“I should like to see the young woman’s home. I may be able to see a vision of her abduction,” I said.

“That can be arranged,” Miss Dubois replied. “Is there anything of note on the body?”

“No, and there are no strong impressions around the body. It is doubtful that she was killed here, but that much is obvious from the lack of blood in the area.”

“Anything else?” Miss Dubois prompted.

My attention flicked to her, and I winced at her bright silver aura. She was by far the most powerful magician I had ever encountered. Were all guardian auras that strong? There was something odd about her parasol as well. It gave off a bright energy, which was unusual for an object because most items only held residual traces of the person who had been handling them.

Blinking past the brightness, I walked away, hoping to find some sort of trail in the swirling mass of magic. I left the lantern’s light behind me, but my vision was filled with the necromancers’ spells, at least on my right side. The building to my left was plain, dull brick, with no magic whatsoever…except for one spot. Tilting my head, I studied the area. A long gash of unfamiliar energy was torn into the brick, a bit taller and wider than myself. It almost looked like a door of sorts.

“Would you bring a lantern here, please?” I asked.

One of the necromancers obliged, muttering less-than-polite things about meddling women under his breath as he did so. The light bobbed nearer, and I frowned as I saw nothing—the absence of color, as though a dark void was painted onto the wall. I removed my right glove, intending to place my hand against the brick, but was startled by a sudden, angry shout.

I whirled at the sound and spotted two figures approaching, their energy faint in the dark like two ghosts storming down the alleyway. My eyes widened with shock when the lanterns caught them, revealing my nemesis, Simon St. Jerome, with my husband, Michael, in tow. As always, Simon was a spindly tower of disapproval crowned with long chestnut hair, and, also as always, my husband, Michael, followed at his heel like a loyal hunting dog.

The change in Michael’s aura struck me like a physical blow, forcing the air from my lungs until it was difficult to breathe. Though on the surface he was still the handsome man I married, small details of the change in his condition became clearer as they drew to a halt, like the bloodless paleness of his skin and the stillness of his body. Tears welled in my eyes, and I shook my head and turned away, unable to keep looking.

Poison in the Blood is available in ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Samhain Publishing. It will be in print (bundled with The Importance of Being Emily) in June 2014.