Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Giveaway, Book Review, & Author Interview with The Awesome Ms. Denise K. Rago!!!

PhotobucketAs a young man in eighteenth century France, Christian Du Mauré impulsively follows his best friend into the complex and warring world of the Parisian vampires. Against the backdrop of the French Revolution and following an affair with a mortal aristocrat, he promises to watch over her daughter - only to learn the child is his. Now settled in Manhattan, only two descendents of his union remain, Amanda and her brother, Ryan. After Amanda witnesses a savage murder in Central Park, she is determined to find the ethereal stranger who saved her life. When their worlds inevitably collide, Christian finds he cannot prevent Amanda from becoming a pawn in a centuries-old struggle for power. As a confrontation between ancient enemies comes to a head, Christian must face a betrayal from his past that still haunts him and threatens the woman he loves.


My Review:

This book is VERY far from disappointing. Ok for starters, who wouldn’t love a sexy French Vampires? This book is mad house crazy, whirlwind of events. It is fast pace, will never let you up for air, and I doubt you would ever want to. Nothing is as it seems. I found the twists to be unpredictable. The characters are completely relatable, and very well developed. The way Ms. Rago writes you feel like you’ve known the characters (esp. Christian) all your life. It will leaving you yearning for more. By the time I finished reading this review copy all I had to tell Ms. Rago was “Wow”. I HIGHLY Recommend you pick up your copy.


My Rating: 5 Stars!! Hands down!
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Personal Note:

This lady is awesome! 100% Awesome. I have never met her in my life, but I am so happy I know her now! I am happy she signed up for my Authors Month in April Event. As you may noticed this month was packed with authors from every level. From the NYT Best Sellers, to the new and up-coming. All of them were nice. I would work with them again. With that said, I would like to point out how Ms. Denise K. Rago has gone the extra mile.


Most of you may have notice that on every single post this month Ms. Rago, has commented. Most of them she was the 1st to comment. She takes the time to not only make readers feel like they are number one in her book, but also this newbie blogger. I received a print copy of her book to review, asked/received her the interview questions, After gave her the review, and After I let her know that I seriously believe (and still do) she will undoubtedly make it to the NYT Best Sellers list. After all that was done and over, The post was done, She still made it an effort to come and visit my little blog everyday. She not only visited, but she read, commented, and participated in everything.

We are not talking the normal meet and greet time people get with authors. This was not just 5-15 minutes to get to sit and talk with this author. It was literally everyday. This author blows me away. I truly mean it when I say it is an honor to showcase this very special Guest author and her work. I do believe you will see her on the NYT Best Sellers List very soon. Her work is that awesome. She is my Newest Favorite Author.

BTW…
She doesn’t know I just added this, so she shall be surprised as well. (April 21,2011).
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PhotobucketDear Readers of Were Vamps Romance, It is a special Honor for me to introduce the lovely and fantastic author Ms. Denise K. Rago. Author of Immortal Obsession.

Hi, everyone! I’d like to thank Melissa for giving me this wonderful opportunity by having me as a guest during Author Month. I am a paranormal romance writer who recently puslished my first novel, Immortal Obsession.

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I grew up in New Jersey, not far from Manhattan. I have always loved reading, art museums and the paranormal, especially vampires. As a part of my Masters’ Degree, I interned at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. My career has included working as a Business Assistant in schools, both for profit and non-profit, which has also been very rewarding work for me.

How do you recall your interest in writing originated?

I have kept journals since high school and wrote poetry as well. I won’t comment on the quality of it though, but along with my love of reading has always been the desire to write books.

What surprised you the most about the writing/publishing process?

Editing. It is extremely important, but very time consuming as well. I think it is best left to professionals. Plus an editor is objective about your work and hopefully will spot typos and grammatical errors.

How do you develop your plots and characters? Do you use any set formula?

The characters just come to me, strange as this may seem. When I tell you, the story unfolds and I just write it, I am not kidding. The characters let me know what has to happen. I follow their lead!

What, in your opinion, are the most important components of good writing?

Grammar and punctuation are a given but I am a stickler for an authors’ choice of words. I believe in saying much in a few words.

Can you share a little of your current work with us?

Presently, I am working on Blood Kiss, the second novel in The Enchanted Bloodline Trilogy. Christian returns to Paris after leaving his home behind in 1790. Of course he is faced with more conflicts and learns more about his past than he bargained for.

I have a nice time following you on Twitter. In 140 characters or less, sum Immortal Obsession for us.

A young woman is inexplicably drawn into the seductive and mysterious world of a beautiful eighteenth century vampire in modern Manhattan.

How did you come up with a story that was such a whirlwind of events?

I am continually intrigued by how our lives can take twists and turns in the blink of an eye. We can wake up one morning, not knowing how the day may change our destiny. That being said, Immortal Obsession takes the reader into the sedate world of Amanda Perretti, a young professional who witnesses an event one summer night that leaves her in shock and with many unanswered questions. In order to make sense of it, she sets out to discover the truth only the truth has already come looking for her! She finds herself caught up in the seductive world of several beautiful vampires and as their own crisis escalates she is drawn deeper into their world. To accurately express the urgency and loss of control Amanda experiences, I felt the story line required a fast pace.

Immortal Obsession was awesome to read. It will leave the reader aching for the next book. How long did it take you to write it, and did you have any writer’s block along the way?

Thank you. From start to finish: five years. No writers block, just several rewrites after a professional editor read my original manuscript and gave me several options on how to improve my story. I took his advice!

Will we be seeing a following book to this story?

Absolutely. I am in the process of writing Blood Kiss, the second novel in this trilogy. It would have been finished much sooner but my mom passed away and I needed some time to grieve before I could begin writing again.

I just love the men in your books. The tormented Christian character I am absolutely in love with. How did you come up with the character Christian?

I have often been asked this question. To answer it honestly, I would have to speak not only about my inspiration for him, but for writing Immortal Obsession as well. I allude to it on my website when I mention that I had an encounter with a mysterious stranger in a Manhattan diner. Like Amanda, I fell into a pair of dark eyes and my life has not been the same since, however, I am not ready to speak more about this experience except to say that I have learned that this character guides all of my writing.

I always must ask if you could pick one actor to portray Christian on the big screen who would it be and why?

I would choose Michael Pitt, who plays the character of James Darmody on the HBO series, Boardwalk Empire. Aside from being tall and blond haired, James Darmody is a well-read, sensitive soul, despite being a cold-blooded killer. His dual nature intrigues me and reflects Christian’s nature as well.

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The world and storyline in this book was so vivid. Was there anything you found particularly challenging when writing this book?

Because I am writing about vampires I am always mindful of the fact that they bed down during the day so that factored into the flow of the story, as well as keeping the time line accurate to account for each characters whereabouts.

I found the cover to look dark, yet very fitting for the book. What were your feelings when you first saw the cover of your finished book?

I cried! The original cover featured Christian, Gaétan and Amanda with buildings and a full moon in the background. It was not capturing the feeling I was trying to project so I submitted a black and white photograph that I had taken of the angel atop Bethesda Fountain in Central Park in New York City. Both Bethesda Fountain and Bethesda Terrace are integral to the story. The publisher came back with a composite of the two covers and I loved it.

Follow this amazing Author at:

FB: http://www.facebook.com/dkrago

Twitter: http://twitter.com/DeniseKRago

Website: http://www.denisekrago.com/

Goodreads Author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4410029.Denise_K_Rago/

Find This Book At:

Barnes And Noble: http://productsearch.barnesandnoble.com/search/results.aspx?WRD=denise+k.+rago&page=index&prod=univ&choice=allproducts&query=Denise+K.+Rago&flag=False&ugrp=2

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Denise+K.+Rago&x=14&y=21

SmashWords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/search?query=Denise+K.+Rago

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ONE Winner with will this awesome book in print.

Open to US and Canada Residents only.
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22 comments:

Denise K. Rago said...

I had tears when I read your comments aloud to my husband this morning! I feel that it is so important to support one another, no matter if you are up and coming or a New York Times best selling author.

Thank you for inviting me to be a part of an author a day this month. I am honored to be listed among such incredible writers! I also thank you for coordinating and managing all of it, especially as a mother of two young children!

It has been a pleasure Melissa!

Sharon S. said...

wow! this is quite an endorsement . You got me wanting to read it. I love it when a debut author hits one out of the ballpark.

When do you do your most productive writing? (night, day) and do you wake up in the middle of the night and have to run to the computer?

Denise K. Rago said...

Sharon,

I am definitely a morning/day person. I always carry at least two small notebooks in my purse because I never know when an idea will come plus I keep a pen and notebook on my nightstand just in case. Thank you for stopping by.

tears_of_fire said...

I love findind out about new authors. This has been a really great place to come and find out about lots of new books and people. I love the cover of your book and it does sound like an amazing story. It is going on me to be read list :)

booklover0226 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
booklover0226 said...

Hi, Denise.

I have always been fascinated with the French Revolution. I love reading novels set against that time periods, especially A Tale of Two Cities.

Now, you're throwing in vampires to add to the mix! Sounds like a must have for me!!

I'm a follower (booklover0226)

I look forward in reading Immortal Obsession.

Thanks,
Tracey D
booklover0226 at gmail dot com

Rita Vetere said...

Great interview, Denise, and you already know I love the book. :-)

Jolene and Family said...

Wow, this sounds like an amazing read and I loved your review and what I loved even more is your thoughts on the author. You've made this number one for me to get ahold of :)

june111(at)att(dot)net

Unknown said...

Ms. Rago is a new to me author, and her book sounds amazing. I'm going to put it on my list.

RFTC Blog said...

This sounds like a great read. I will definitely have to put this on the TBR pile.

iqb99@yahoo.com

Trish said...

Denise, you are a new author to me and Melissa's review & your Twitter statement has me really wanting to read this book. I love anything PNR, with vampires and with the historical backdrop really has me intrigued.

I am putting this book on my TBR list and will read it as soon as I can! I am very excited about it!

trishbrittingham at gmail dot com

Denise K. Rago said...

Thank you for your wonderful comments everyone! It makes writing so worthwhile.

Amy said...

This book sounds very interesting. I have yet to read a book about French vampires specifically. The cover is very mysterious and cool also. Would love to read it!

lindalou said...

You are a new author to me... but your book sounds fabulous. I've got to read it after that review!
KUDOS! AND... thanks for being here today...
Linda T.
lindalou(at)cfl(dot)rr(dot)com

Read Between the Lines said...

Your book sounds really good looking forward to reading it

Read Between the Lines said...

I really want to read this it sounds really good.

Anonymous said...

Haven't had the honor of reading Ms.Rago but the book sounds wonderful and I can't wait to read it!

Gabby said...

Ms. Rago's a new author to me but the book she's got coming looks really intriguing and I'm really into the cover, it's sort of got a haunting sense about it.

Ms. Rago? Did you already have a sense of what you wanted your cover to look like when you started writing?

Anonymous said...

I've read Immortal Obsession, and I second the high recommendation. I really hope more readers will discover this great book!

Denise, I know just what you mean about learning the story from characters who already seem fully developed when they step forward. My husband calls that crazy talk, but I think that's what leads to well developed characters like the ones in your book (love Christian!). Thanks for letting me show my husband that I'm not the only one. :)

Victoria said...

What a wonderful review.
Your a morning person so does this mean you write best in the morning too? What time of the year (season) do you feel your creativity is highest?
vsloboda9at)gmail(dot)com

Melissa said...

Denise!!! You are awesome it was an honor to have you! Sorry I am just now getting around to replying. I just got off work (1am my time). It takes a lot of juggling to get this stuff done, but the authors make it easy on me. I just got to throw it all together, and make sure it works. The bonus is I get to read these books! I LOVE Finding new authors. I only say what I mean, and mean what I say. You are awesome and I thought the readers should know.

Keep up the amazing work! Be sure to come back and visit us too!

Denise K. Rago said...

Gabby - the cover went through two revisions and I still was not happy so I sent in a photo of at angel atop Bethesda Fountain in Central Park and along with the background of the moon and blood it just clicked.
Victoria - yes, I am an early riser. I can' t say there is a particular season but fall is my favorite!
Nancy- thank you for your endorsement and thank you for understanding - it's just the way I write.
Melissa- I'll be back tomorrow!

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