New Addition to A Vampire Series

That's right, folks. The Some By Day, Some By Night series has a new addition! 
I was pretty excited to get this one published so let me give you guys the yummy details. The Smell of Death & A Taste of Blood is a collection of short vampire stories of horror, action, and tragedy. Here is the summary:
Can you survive...
          ...what's waiting for you?
Delving into the world introduced in the Some By Day, Some By Night series and continued in Lord Gerard's Coven, this collection of short stories begins before written history, jumping through time and ending during the events of Threads of A Web. Welcome to a world of vampires, humans, and maybe even something else. Though each tale can stand on it's own, readers of the two series will enjoy these extra background stories. Have you wondered:
Why does Serahfine despise humans?
What was Morgan like before she was changed?
Who was the very first vampire?
What happened to Lionel's wife, Roberta?

Questions will be answered. Pasts will be explained. But only if you can handle
THE SMELL OF DEATH & A TASTE OF BLOOD

Isn't that cover just wonderful? Eye catching and creepy, just what I wanted! The talented Julie Nicholls did an amazing job! 

Though this collection is part of the Some By Day, Some By Night series, it also involves characters from the sister series, Lord Gerard's Coven. Both series involve vampires throughout history, their stories intertwining and proceeding into the distant future. The difference is, Some By Day focuses on the individual vampires and their personal struggles and romances. Lord Gerard focuses more on the small battles, impending wars, and other science fiction fun.  I recommend reading both to get all the delicious backstories!

The Smell of Death & A Taste of Blood is available at Amazon here. 

Happy reading, everyone!

March Reads and Reviews

After having read very little in February, I tried to make up for it in March by reading a lot. A lot for a busy person like me, anyway. I read twelve books last month! The best part is, I thoroughly enjoyed every single one of them. Nothing under four stars this month!

I read more trade books than indie books this month so I will only be posting reviews for indie books in the YA or adult market. The children's books I read are reviewed on my other blog.

Jade
by Rose Montague

Rating: 4 Stars

Review:
Action packed and fun! I loved the tone of this book and how Jade's true nature is kept a mystery for a time. A real page turner.
My only complaint is the pacing. It was a tad fast for my taste, I would have liked to slow it down and see more of the initial spark between Jade and Jane, let that romance build more.
Great read!

To purchase this title, find it on Amazon here.

Demon Within
by Julie Nicholls

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:
I couldn't put it down!
This story was exactly what I look for in a romance. The author took her time introducing us to each character, leaving a bit of mystery to be discovered along the way while letting the reader become emotionally invested in their own stories. The action was exciting and the romance sizzling. Some twists were predictable, others less so, but all done so well that it felt genuine.
A great read that hooked me, reeled me in, and left me wanting more. 

To purchase this title, find it on Amazon here.

Five Seven Five
by C. E. Wilson

Rating: 5 Stars

Review:
This story sucked me in from page one!
A colony that lives underground. Strict enforces of the rules, rules that no one really understands. A girl curious about the world above. A death that will change everything.
I couldn't help but to root for White from the start. Her character is flawed, headstrong, and endearing, everything I love in a protagonist. The vivid details and original story line made this book very hard to put down! Excellent read. 

To purchase this title, find it on Amazon here.
 

Stake Out
by Lily Luchesi

Rating: 4 Stars

Review:
A great start to a promising series!
A killer on the loose, a doomed romance, and paranormal creatures functioning in modern society make for an exciting story. It has issues that usually accompany an author's first book like head-hopping confusion and showing versus telling, but the story itself shines through. I enjoyed the bit of mystery and romance just as much as the action and fight scenes.
Very well done and can't wait to read the sequel!

To purchase this title, find it on Amazon here.



A few other books a read include Hollow City, the sequel to Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Excellent book, can't wait to read the third and final story! The Sandman Volume 9, which, geezus, almost killed me with that ending. I also finished off a manga series I started reading many years ago, Descendants of Darkness (Yami no Matsuei).  

All in all, it was a great month for reading!

A Treat

I want to give you guys a juicy little bit from my published novel Love Me Today, Kill Me Tomorrow from the Some By Day, Some By Night series. These vampires are not to be toyed with!


I nod my head and concede. Of course I do. I can’t say no when she’s trying so hard to smile at me. Christ, we are both a couple of idiots. Hiding our true feelings behind fake smiles. Her eyes give her away. Do mine, I wonder?

She pushes me back in the bed, pulling the slightly ripped sheet over me. I lay back on the pillow I slept on last night, sighing, wondering how my life ever came to this. A couple of weeks ago, I was in the middle of this threesome where I tore the girls’ bodies to pieces as I killed them, their screams of terror making me laugh. Now I’m in a soft bed, half naked, being pampered by a suicidal rich girl.

Life is a hell of a thing.

Artus was a fun character to write. Sexy but deadly. All male but emotionally vulnerable. His personality made for some explosive, and sometimes hard to write, scenes. This novel is not for the weak of heart, but you may just fall in love.

Interested in finding out what becomes of Artus and his willing victim, Alexus? The book is available in paperback and Kindle format on Amazon. 

Until next time, my dears!

Holiday Surprise!

Guess what everyone?
As an extra special surprise for my readers, I have published a short story for the Some By Day, Some By Night series. Already available for purchase, this sexy gem is here just in time for the holidays.
Here is the blurb for A Naughty New Year's Eve:
When asked by her nerdy friend Morgan if she would mind accompanying her to an old cabin in the woods to pack up some things, Marla is happy to oblige.
It isn't like New Year's Eve is a special occasion for a vampire. Why would it be when they have seen so many pass by?

Marla and Morgan have been close friends for years. They have always enjoyed each other's company but now Marla is ready to take their relationship to the next level.

Is Morgan willing to have a naughty New Year's Eve?

Come take a trip to a secluded cabin in the woods and get cozy with this new addition to a hot vampire series!

Available on Amazon! For more information visit my website.

Books That Should Be Movies Pt. 1

We all know that Hollywood has run out of ideas. I mean, their about to redo Ghostbusters. The time for original thinking has passed. Turning to books has become popular but unlike everyone else, I recommend turning to older books instead of those that just came out. I hate it when they're already starting a movie series based on a book series that isn't even completed yet. That's exactly how a lot of anime series go horribly wrong.

Anywho, when it comes to children's books, I think the best series to make the leap to the big screen should be Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising Sequence. These five books are a fun fantasy read that I could see as epic movies. If they're told right. And if they're told in order. I actually think that if Disney took the initiative, they could make some real masterpieces. I could even see Peter Jackson directing. 

I would so pee myself in excitement if these wonderful books were ever made into screenplays but I'll say right now that there are definitely things that should NOT be done when prepping these bad boys for Hollywood. 

Do not:
1. Make the children older. Back in 2007, Fox made the mistake of trying to make the second book in the series into a movie entitled The Seeker: The Dark Is Rising. This was a horrific failure. They literally stabbed my childhood in the heart by taking a huge shit on a Newbery Honor winning book. Of the hundreds of problems with that movie, the one I will touch on here is the fact that they changed the main character's age. He's supposed to be just turning eleven. In the movie, he is turning fourteen.
A teenager has a completely different view of the world than a pre-teen does. These books are about children, not horny kids who see every member of the opposite sex as a potential girlfriend/boyfriend. The innocence of childhood is actually pretty relevant to the stories. Don't mess with that.

2. Skip books in the series. Thanks Disney for screwing up the Chronicles of Narnia movies by skipping books. Just because said books didn't involve the characters that you deem most important, doesn't mean you can just pretend they aren't there. It was the chronicles of NARNIA not the chronicles of four siblings. 
Don't skip Over Sea, Under Stone just because it doesn't involve Will Stanton and is aimed at a younger audience. The Drew children are relevant to later books.

3. Make them American. Don't even think about it. That crappy movie from 2007 did this. Locations in the UK become important in later books so don't screw with this. Also, English kids are so cute. 

  3. Cut corners. Don't leave out huge chunks of the story because filming them would be a pain. If it would take two and a half hours to tell the story right, then that's how long it needs to take. Don't get slack on the funds because if done right I believe that these could be serious box office cash cows. Don't make every scene involving magic on a computer. When Merriman and Will jump off a cliff and dive deep into the ocean, let's not make that entire scene CG. Part of it, sure, fake bubbles would be cool looking of course. Use real actors people, that's what they're paid for. 

4. Make a completely different story out of it. Please don't do this. A few changes here and there are always going to happen, I know, but these books wouldn't have won awards if they weren't excellent stories. There is a scene in The Dark Is Rising where Will discusses religion with a priest very briefly. Knowing how sensitive some Christians can be, I'd leave that out (cause some people are on the lookout for things to boycott) but I honestly can't think of any other situations that would really offend anyone so I see very little that should be changed. 
And to those Christians reading this, don't get offended. There are fanatics in every religion. I read these books as a child would, seeing only magic and wonder. I don't over analyze children's books. To this day, I haven't told my children about the religious parallels in The Chronicles of Narnia. It's just a story about a magical world and a friendly lion. 
The conflict here is between the Light and the Dark, two outside forces that try to manipulate people based on the good and evil already in their hearts. Deities have nothing to do with it. 

To conclude, I think that if someone took the initiative and wrote some decent screenplays based on this series, the film industry could have some real box office jewels that could become instant classics in family entertainment. I know I'd be happier than a pig in shit.