Lisa Olsen's Blog, page 19

A Taste of Mercy for the Wicked

Final edits are going well for Pretty Witches All in a Row, but in the meantime, here's a brief sample of a scene from Mercy for the Wicked where we see Sam try to broaden his horizons a little bit.

"Sam?" I stepped out into the hallway, wrapping my warm, fuzzy cardigan a little tighter to my body. There was no answer and I started to wonder if it wasn't such a hot idea to be stepping out of my apartment into a deserted hallway with a pack of demons on my trail. "Sam, is that you or should I be calling the cops?" The top of Sam's head peeked out of the stairwell, just his eyes visible, and he gave a shy, little wave. "What are you doing down there?" I waved him over. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack? I started to think there was someone out here waiting to get me," I grabbed his elbow and tugged him closer once he came into reach.

"I panicked," he said softly and I blinked at him, digesting that for a moment. The big bad angel of death (formerly anyway) who I'd seen slam a demon down on a bar one handed, had panicked?

"Why?"

"It wasn't you who came to the door."

I mashed my lips together to keep from smiling over the admission; it was a big step that he was there at all. "It's only Daphne, who you've seen a zillion times, why don't you come on in and meet her?" I could see her out of the corner of my eye, practically vibrating with excitement to finally meet my 'guardian angel'.

"Alright," he nodded, looking all around as he stepped over the threshold, as if he hadn't been inside my apartment before. Come to think of it, it was Adam who'd spent more time at my place, not Sam.

"Sam, this is Daphne, Daphne, Sam," I did the honors, and Daphne stuck out her hand.

"How do you do?" she said formally.

"Very well thank you, and yourself?" Sam took her hand and clasped it in his briefly before letting go.

"Fine, thank you." They were both so friendly and polite; I hoped it wouldn't be awkward for the rest of the night. I shut the door behind us, turning back to see them staring back at each other, neither one of them uttering a word until Sam spoke again.

"I have heard many good things about you, Daphne, Mercy speaks well of you, indeed."

A smile spread over Daphne's face as she came back to life. "She talks up a storm about you too. Though I have to admit, for a while I wasn't sure if you were real or a figment of her imagination."

"Understandable," he nodded soberly.

"Jiminy Christmas, but your eyes are blue…" she murmured and Sam stood very still while she finished her inspection.

"Yes, they are," he nodded again. "You are quite colorful as well."

"I am?" she looked down at her clothes. Dressed casually for her impromptu date with Mitch, she was wearing a pale blue sweater over slim fitting jeans.

"Yes, I can see why Mercy is so fond of you." Sam's eyes swept over her body and I began to understand he was talking about the quality of her soul which radiated a bright, cheerful orange with warm pink highlights. Sensing her confusion, I decided to break up the little love fest in the hallway, moving past them into the living room.

"Okay guys, its time for the movie. Sam, would you like some ice cream?"

"No, thank you."

Daphne followed my lead, with Sam following along behind. "Are you sure? It's chocolate fudge explosion."

"Explosion is good?" his brows climbed dubiously, taking a seat beside me on the couch. Mimsy immediately jumped onto his lap and he stroked her back absently.

"Very good," I nodded, putting a small bite on the end of my spoon and holding it up to him. "It can't hurt to try it, right?" He leaned towards the spoon, eyeing the melting concoction warily before taking the tiniest bit between his lips. I don't know if you've ever seen someone taste chocolate for the first time ever, but I swear it was right up there with a religious experience, and for an angel, that's saying a lot. Sam's entire face transformed into a wondrous smile, tongue darting out to moisten his lips. "What do you think?" I grinned.

"Explosion is very good," Sam nodded, with a longing look to the rest of my ice cream.

"Here, knock yourself out," I handed the stein full of ice cream over and rose to make myself another. "Oh, but don't eat it too… fast…" I looked back to see his mouth closing around an enormous bite of ice cream, his eyes widening slightly at the temperature change. "You might end up with an ice cream headache." It was a little late for the warning now, and sure enough, his face scrunched up tight with pain.

"Ahhh… I do not like ice cream explosions," he frowned, setting the cup down on the table as he pressed a hand to his head.

Dreamcasting – The Touch

As you know, I always have someone in mind when creating new characters for my books. Maybe it's cheating a little, but it definitely helps me flesh them out in my mind. And of course, if they ever made a movie or tv series out of the story, I could help steer them in the right direction. So, in the spirit of that happy thought, here is my dream casting for who would play everybody in The Touch.

Lexi Morgan – A dark haired Anna Paquin. I think she could capture Lexi's quirkiness, as well as gumption and loyalty to her family and friends.

Detective Gabriel Ryan – Timothy Olyphant. He's Olyphantastic, need I say more? Where else can I find a cop with easy charm that's capable of intensity and humor at the same time?

Allison Travers- Jennifer Connely. She can look so sweet and girl next door, you'd never ever suspect her of having her own secrets.

Chloe Travers – Chloe Moretz. Love, love, love this girl. She is such a fantastic actress, I could easily picture her dealing with all of the ghosts.

Detective Tim Cooper – Jacob Pitts. Go watch Eurotrip, and then go watch an episode of Justified. 'nuff said.

Maddie Parker – Kristen Bell – because I love Kristen Bell and I like to incorporate her whenever I can. I have no idea why I've never made her the heroine to any of my books yet. Also Ryan Reynolds. Love me some Ryan Reynolds, how have I not paired these two up yet? But I digress…

Paul Spencer – Paul Wesley – He plays the nice, safe guy so well!

Neil Travers – Okay so he doesn't play much of a role in this one, but in my head I had Tom Jane as 'the tool'.

Sophia – Monica Bellucci. She's so beautiful, but I could see her slowly unraveling and spinning into madness quite nicely

Bianca – I don't know, I can never see her face!

Jack (Sophia's husband) – Matthew Fox. Every time I hear the name Jack, I think of him. It's as easy as that. Plus, wouldn't he look great in a period military uniform?

That's pretty much everybody I had a specific person in mind for while I was writing. What about you guys? Who did you see when you were reading the book?

Mercy for the Wicked is now available online!

Mercy for the Wicked is now available for sale as an eBook on Amazon.com and BarnesAndNoble.com! It's out as an e-book for $3.99 but you don't have to have a Kindle or Nook to read it, they have free downloadable apps so you can read it on your PC, or even your phone. It'll be available in print as well in a week or two through Amazon.

I decided to go with the sword for the cover art in the end because I don't want to be limited to the eyes theme for future books, I decided the eyes weren't menacing enough and I love the rich red background, so pretty!

Now I'll take about five minutes to breathe before I get going on the edits for Pretty Witches All in a Row which I hope to have released in early October, just in time for Halloween!   Then it's back to work on The Fallen series with Mercy for the Damned.

psst… Psawyer1, please contact me to make arrangements for your free book!

We Have A Winner!

Congratulations to Psawyer1 who won a free copy of my book!  Thanks to everyone who weighed in on the cover art fot Mercy for the Wicked, I loved your comments!  It was a pretty close race, with the eyes taking the lead right at the end, so now I'm pretty torn as to which way to go.  The eyes do tie in with demons in the book and it does tie in with the eye on the 1st book, but then does that rope me in to putting an eye on the cover for the third book?  The Sword does figure into the book as well, and I think it's very pretty, but again, it might conjure images of a more sword and sorcery/fantasy type book.  What I learned is that they're both pretty and eyecatching though, so more than likely, I'll worry over it until the very last moment and then make my decision.

The edits are coming along very, very well by the way, I hope to have Mercy for the Wicked ready to publish in the next couple of weeks, so stay tuned!

Vote on Cover Art for Mercy for the Wicked

(and enter to win a free copy of one of my books!)

Okay guys, it's time to give me your thoughts and feedback over the cover art for Mercy for the Wicked. Anyone who comments on the covers on the website will be automatically entered for a chance to win a copy of one of my books (your choice of Angel of Mercy or The Touch, or if you're feeling patient, you could wait for Mercy for the Wicked to come out!). I won't say which one of these is my favorite, but take a look at the blurb below and let us know which cover you prefer. We'd also love to hear constructive criticism and ideas for how to improve them if you have any suggestions.

"How do you tell a guy that you're being stalked by demons without sounding like a fruitcake? Even if he really cares about you, there's bound to be that moment when he looks at you like you're a total nutbar, right?"

Mercy is back, and in a world of trouble as factions from above and below vie for her attention, pulling her from the carefully constructed 'normalcy' of her life. After confessing all to boyfriend Ben, Mercy is counting on fallen angel Samael to help protect her while she deals with the sting of Adam's abandonment. But self control has never been Adam's strong suit. When Mercy is pursued from all sides, will Adam be able to resist playing the hero? Or will Mercy get tired of waiting and save herself? In the end, Mercy must decide, is the enemy of her enemy her friend? Or just a worse enemy?

The Touch Is Now Available in Print!

Again it only took about a month after it was released as an ebook but it's available to purchase through Amazon.com.

So, to celebrate, here's another excerpt from the book that takes place right after Lexi finds out her niece Chloe has disappeared:

There were more cars in the driveway this time when she got to Allie's house.   In addition to Gabriel's Towncar, there was a red Dodge Charger and a regular black and white police car next to her sister's white Volvo.  No one stopped her from approaching the front door though, and she let herself in without knocking.  "Allie?"

Almost immediately her path was blocked by a plain clothes policeman, his badge visible on his belt the way Gabriel wore his.  Closer to her age, he was good looking with blonde hair and blue eyes.  Clean cut, but there was a sarcastic tilt to his smile that one didn't normally associate with 'cop'.  "Whoa, where did you come from?" he asked, hands up to block her view into the living room.

"Allie called me, I came right over."

"How did you even get in here?" he looked over her shoulder through the sidelight window.

"Well, it's not like you guys are running crackerjack security or anything, I just walked right in."  She'd been hoping to see Gabriel, but apparently she had to run the gauntlet before she'd be given admittance.

His eyes lit upon her gloved hands and widened slightly in response.  "Oh, you're the sister."

"I see my reputation precedes me," she gave a tight smile.  Of course Ryan would have mentioned her, why was she even surprised?  Idly she wondered what made it into his report…  "I'm Lexi, and you are?" she offered her hand, trying to play nice.

"Detective Tim Cooper."  He took her hand with an appraising smile and Lexi got the feeling he was checking her out more than was strictly necessary.  "Well, I guess we can all pack up and go home now, no need for us detectives with you on the case, right?" he smirked.

Lexi let go of his hand.  So, that was how it was gonna be, was it?  "Might as well.  It's not like you guys got anywhere when Neil disappeared," she replied tartly.  "Do you mind if I go see my sister now?"

"Ouch… Ryan was right about you, you're feisty," he chuckled, stepping out of the way.  "Be my guest."

So she was feisty, was she?  Again Lexi wasn't sure if that was good or bad.  Stepping past the younger detective, she spotted Allison on the couch, twisting a tissue into tiny shreds as she talked to Gabriel quietly.  "Allie, I came as quick as I could, how are you holding up?"

"Oh good, good you're here," Allison clung to her in a hug the moment Lexi sat down.  "You've got to help me find her Lexi; I don't know what else to do."

"I'll do everything I can," Lexi promised, barely sparing a nod for Detective Ryan.  "How long has she been gone?  When's the last time you saw her?"

"Hey, who's running this investigation, you or me?"  Gabriel interrupted; a trace of annoyance visible on his face.

"That all depends, are you guys gonna do something this time?" Lexi retorted, instantly regretting it as soon as the words left her mouth.  She wasn't helping anything by jumping down his throat.  "I'm sorry, please go ahead," she added softly, sitting deeper on the couch.

Detective Cooper took a position against the wall behind Ryan, the look of vague amusement still playing on his features.  Something about it irked Lexi.  Whether he found her amusing or not, shouldn't he at least pretend to care that a little girl was missing?

Mercy for the Wicked

Despite work seriously kicking my ass lately, the new book is going well, I'm just about 48,000 words into it and so far, Adam has hijacked it twice, changing my outline to suit his purposes.  I have to say, I like his ideas better than mine, and I hope you will too.

Here is a little taste:

All I knew was that I dreaded the moment it would end, because I knew each time we parted it would be harder to say goodbye. So I concentrated on making a memory to last me through those times when we'd be apart, savoring every touch of his hands, every brush of his lips, every breath that mingled with mine until finally he pulled away, pressing his forehead to mine.

"I hate to say this, but…"

"You have to go," I nodded slowly, but neither of us moved to part just yet. "You can't keep doing this to me."

"I know," Adam sighed, fingers tracing over the curve of my jaw.

"I have a life. I have a boyfriend." Inside I dared him to challenge me about it, claim me as his, but his face just darkened.

"I know."

Disappointed, I pushed a little harder. "You can't expect me to wait around for you forever; taking whatever crumbs you toss my way when you feel like it." But I would, I knew that about myself and I felt like shit for it, because it wasn't fair to Ben and it wasn't fair to me.

"I know."

A furrow appeared on his brow and I wasn't sure he was even listening to me anymore. "Will you stop saying you know? Can't you give me something to hold onto? Some kind of hope? Or is this it? You're leaving me here until you're good and ready and when you do take me out of this place, things go back to the way they were? You in whatever forsaken corner of the world you're holed up in, and me…"

"Shut up for a minute, I'm thinking," he muttered absently and my eyes closed as I tried to reign in my temper. Sweet Jesus, why did I bother?

*** 

Ah you gotta love a man with a plan, right?  And Adam definitely has a plan…  Too bad Mercy doesn't follow instructions particularly well.

Friends With Benefits – review

*warning, contains spoilers!

We saw Friends With Benefits over the weekend in an attempt to beat the heat and I thought I'd write an informal review.  I know, I know, you see the trailer and you already know how this one's gonna end.  They'll both give up their hard hearted cynicism and wind up all ooey, gooey in love with each other amid a parade of hearts and flowers, right?  So why do we bother to see these movies?  Didn't they do this one last year with Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher?I admit I was about to give this one a pass until I saw the preview for it at another movie and the scene where her mother walks in on them in bed together made me crack up.  (I wish tv commercials for movies had half of the story the in theater previews have, I would see so many more movies!)  That and I like both Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis, so I was up for a bit of fun on a Saturday afternoon.

So this one is about NY Head Hunter Jamie who is courting Dylan, head of design for a little website in LA to take over a prestigious position at GQ magazine.  He flies out to check it out, and Jamie decides to sell him on New York instead of the position and takes him on a whirlwind walking tour of the city (in killer heels no less…)  He agrees and takes the position and a friendship montage begins. 

While hanging out and watching a sappy chick flick, they lament on how they miss sex because neither one of them is in a relationship at the moment.  The idea comes up that they should add some sexual benefits to their friendship and each agree to give it a go.  He's emotionally unavailable and she's emotionally damaged, sounds like a recipe for easy uncomplicated sex, right?  That might have worked for me, except for it was kinda unappealing, the way they talked through the sex, each giving critique and complaints.  It made it kinda technical and maybe that was the point, but it was a little awkward to watch. 

Predictably, they grow closer together and get past the technical speedbumps in the bedroom, but each still maintain that they're just friends.  Jamie even decides to start dating again and goes out with a handsome doctor and they agree to drop off the sex.  I was a little surprised at how easy that seemed for Dylan to watch, Jamie with the other man, and their friendship weathered it just fine.  But when the doctor turns out to be a rat, Dylan invites her home to visit with his family over the 4th of July weekend.  She agrees and we get to meet his sister (played by Jenna Elfman), his magician nephew (hilarious!) and his father, a renown journalist who is dealing with alzheimers. 

Jamie meshes well with the family and they can tell there's something more than friendship going on between them.  When the two of them "hook up" again, there's none of the technical chatter, it's all hearts and flowers and soft music.  But before these two can admit it means more than just sex now, it all falls apart when Jamie overhears Dylan tell his sister that he'd never date a girl like her, she's too screwed up in the head.  Hurt, she runs home and stops taking his calls.  Now we have the montage where they're both pretty miserable without each other. 

Uh oh, how are they gonna fix it and realize that they're M.F.E.O?  It takes a flash mob and a lot of groveling on his part but they get their happy ending after all.  So is Friends With Benefits worth seeing?  I'd say yes if you're a fan of either of the stars.  Jamie comes across as kinda hard most of the time, but I can see what they're going for and Dylan a little silly from time to time, but both were enjoyable to watch.  Whenever her mother is in the scene she steals the show, those were the funniest moments and I did tear up a little near the end when he and his father have a heart to heart (minus pants in an airport restaurant no less).  I'd give it a 3.5 out of 5 stars, definitely worth the matinee price.

Dream Casting – Angel of Mercy

 

I think most writers have specific types in mind when they start crafting characters.  I know when I start to flesh out my leads in particular, I start by coming up with a list of attributes, is she kind?  Spunky?  Sarcastic?  What color hair does she have?  Is she an only child?  Does she get along with her parents?  The more detail I can drill down, the richer the character ends up.  Being a visual person, I almost always end up picking an actor or actress in my mind that I associate with the character, down to the bit players who just show up in one scene.  It makes it much easier to keep everybody straight in my head (actually I cheat, I keep a spreadsheet of names, who they are and who they look like).  You can't help but think – if they made a movie or tv series out of this story, who would play so and so?  In the spirit of this, here is my dream casting of who would play everybody in Angel of Mercy. 

Mercy – Amelia Warner – a pretty obscure British actress who I think is beautiful and spirited

Sam – a younger Jude Law, pre-Talented Mr. Ripley.  I came across a couple of pictures of him taken by the paparazzi and he was a little ruffled and baffled looking, it really caught that part of Sam's clueless personality

Adam – Ian Somerhalder because let's face it, he could play this character in his sleep and he's just a sexy beast

Ben – Mark Rufalo – he has that every guy quality that's easy to overlook sometimes, but he can be so charming!

Parker – Bradley Cooper – because he can play an ass and still be pretty to look at

Matty – Justin Long – I think he could pull off the slacker brother so well

Daphne – Amanda Seyfried – with that long blonde hair and blue eyes, she has that wide eyed innocence that I associate with Daphne

Weatie – Jeremy Sisto – I can totally picture him playing an intense, scruffy looking scumbag

Nathanael – Matthew McFadyen (go see him in Pride and Prejudice as Mr. Darcy) – He has the intensity to look really pious and thunderous

Walter (the bouncer at Eden) – Marc Blucas – he's got the muscle and all American looks to be a sweet guy that just doesn't ring Mercy's bell

Rachel (the nurse) – No idea what her name is, but the red headed nurse from "While You Were Sleeping" was who I pictured, it was probably on TV or something

Jilly (waitress at Eden) – Kristen Bell – because I love Kristen Bell and I like to incorporate her whenever I can. 

Mariah (Adam's wife) – Morena Baccarin – a la Inara from Firefly, because I could see her tempting an angel to fall from grace

Cephas – Badger from Firefly, because I love the accent and he plays a great baddie

Mimsy – one of my own cats!  Because she's so cute and curious and her squeaky sounds are like nothing I've heard from a cat before. 

Did I miss anybody?

(I'd love to hear it, by the way, if any readers had a specific person in mind when they read the story as well!)

You Can't Hug Every Cat

I came across this youtube video this week and I am seriously obsessed with it.  Every single time I watch it, it makes me absolutely giddy over how silly it is.  My kids now know the words to the song and hubby is working on making it a ring tone for my  youngest.  It's made by this nifty downloadable app for your phone called Songify which will convert any spoken words into a techno pop kind of song.  You have to watch this.  Seriously.  Do it…

I can't understand why she's still single…