VISITING DIGNITARY - CATHY L. CLAMP

Yes folks, indeed, in honor of the release of THE ISIS COLLAR we have the other half of the dynamic duo visiting today.  Give a warm welcome to CATHY L. CLAMP!  (WOOOO HOOOO!!!!)


The Making of a Hero

In THE ISIS COLLAR, our heroineCelia Graves continues to struggle with which of her two favorite guys sheprefers. Bruno DeLuca is low-key and thoughtful but funny. He's caring butsometimes thoughtless, while John Creede is flashy but surprisingly private.He's supportive but sometimes condescending. In other words, two very typicalalpha males. They're both heroic in their own ways, and both can often clashwith what Celia needs or wants.
How does an author create ahero? What traits do they need to be BOTH a knight in shining armor while stillrealistic enough to have conflicts with the heroine. Most alpha males havethings in common that make them the modern equivalent of knights. Theyfrequently have a willingness to help others (or at least can be talked into itwith money or power.) They're physically and mentally tough enough to getthrough a crisis. They're driven to excel in what they do and have a highopinion of their talents (usually justified.)
But the flip side of those coinsare what are often exasperating to a likewise driven female warrior. They haveegos. Oh, lord do they have egos! They expect to get their own way (read as:tough and driven), whether or not anyone has other plans. They're often moodywhen they're losing or likely to lose.
So what makes them so darnedendearing? At least for Celia, it's the caring. Her alpha heroes care aboutdoing the right thing. Yes, sometimes they tromp on the flowers on the way tosaving the forest, but by hell or high water, the forest will be saved! They'llgive their last dying breath to be sure they attain their goal. And who doesn'tfind that loveable?
We recently did a poll atCoffeetime Romance to ask whether Celia should wind up with Bruno or Creede. Sofar, Creede is in the lead. But Bruno is the shining star of THE ISIS COLLAR,so will the polls change once everyone has had a chance to read it? Only youcan be the judge! Here's an exclusive excerpt of a kiss from each of the guys.Which one rung Celia's chime more? Let us know and you'll be in a drawing toWIN an autographed copy of THE ISIS COLLAR!
First is Creede (because Icreated Creede so he's my fav to win!)
********************Creede knelt in front of me, hishands still on my shoulders. His gaze locked with mine and the compassion inhis eyes made me believe the words he spoke next. "I don't know. But I'm goingto find out. I promise." His fingers squeezed just a bit. "All right?"
A promise from him could be putin the bank. "Okay. Thanks. What should I do until then?"
The corner of his mouth turnedup a fraction and his hands moved until they were on either side of my face."Quit trying to be superwoman. Ask for help when you're hurt. Remember that if you're hurt, it's serious."It sounded so logical when hesaid it. But . . . "That's not so easy for me."
The quirk of a smile became anamused flash of teeth. "Tell me about it." Without any warning, he leaned forward and eased his lips against mine.I found myself being pulled into the kiss before I realized what was happening.His hand slid around my head, fingers twining in my hair and my eyes closedautomatically. I leaned into him before I realized I was doing it. My breathfroze in my lungs and I couldn't seem to think past the dual sensations ofmagic and gentle pressure as he slowly moved his soft, full lips against mine.Warm breath on my cheek, magic sweet as candy and the caress of his tongue mademy knees weak and my stomach do flip-flops. His hand, lightly stroking my hair,sent electric shocks to my scalp. It was a good thing I was sitting down. Myheart began pounding hard and my fingers buried themselves in the fabric of thearmrests to keep from wrapping around him and pulling him into my lap. I wantedto . . . a lot. The strength of the desire terrified me.
The kiss was probably over inseconds, though it felt like it lasted a week. He drew back slowly and I woundup suspended, eyes closed, enjoying the remaining pull of the magic that tuggedat my stomach. A quick, nearly chaste kiss in the back of a store shouldn'treally be that big a deal.
Right.
**********************
And now it's Bruno's turn (Brunois Cie's favorite, so he always gets equal time!):
**********************
Bruno arrived first and wrappedme in a hug when I opened the door that left me warm but breathless. Then thekiss he bestowed turned what was left of my muscles into jello. "How youdoin'?"
I let out a slow sigh andallowed myself to rest against his muscled chest. "Better. The feds used somemagic on me. Apparently, my vampire healing doesn't work on burns. I couldstill use a little more rest. You?"
He nodded and lowered his mouthto mine once more. I could feel his warm breath on my face as his mouth ate atmine gently. God, those lips. I'd missed them. He smoothed his hands down myback, knowing just where to touch to make me moan. I pulled away after a fewmoments, shaky but pleased. "Mmm. Much better now. Actually, I'm headed back toNew Jersey. Just stopped by on the way to the airport."
*********************
Which of Celia's guys do youlike better, and why? We really want to know!
Oh,and if you're intrigued (and you know you are) go out and buy THE ISIS COLLARby Cat Adams right away! And if you've never heard of Celia Graves' earlieradventures in BLOOD SONG, SIREN SONG and DEMON SONG, they're on sale until therelease of ISIS! It's a really good sale, too: only $2.99 for a Kindledownload. Heck, that's three for the price of one! And if you're a printfanatic, they're also on sale at Amazon on a 4-for-3 special. But lots of otherretailers have them on sale too, so go to our publisher's website (http://us.macmillan.com/theisiscollar/CatAdams), scroll all the way to the bottom and choose your favorite store.