Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Louisa Bacio - Book Review, Book Giveaway, Swag/Item Giveaway, Author Interview, Author Guest Post


The Vampire, The Witch & The Werewolf: Chains of Silver
by Louisa Bacio

Adopted at birth, Silver Ashe discovers her blood-brother Trevor Pack is a werewolf, with a vampire and witch for lovers. All her teachings about the evils of the paranormal Others come into question. She runs to a family friend, Nick, for help.

Nick Stake takes his hobby as a vampire hunter personally. He strives to rid the world of evil bloodsuckers. When his best friend’s “kid” sister comes to him for advice, Nick discovers Silver’s more than grown up. He battles his growing desire for Silver and blindly holds true to his convictions.

Once Silver reaches her sexual maturity, she’ll inherit her full genetic heritage and turn into a werewolf. When death comes calling, Silver and Nick must face their darkest fears in order to break free from the chains that bind.

CAUTION FOR READERS 18 AND OLDER

My Review:
I Loved the 1st book (Click To See Review), this returning author sent my way. So I was ecstatic that I was asked to review the following book. The enduring characters you come to know and love in the 1st book are continued in this book. Trevor's little sister joins in on the story and makes it even hotter with Nick. The plot and pace was well formed for a book that was 160 pages. Writing style is exceptional. Overall it was a fantastic erotic read.

My rating 5 stars!

AUTHOR GUEST POST


The Silver Lining to a Vampire’s Aura
By Louisa Bacio

Thanks so much for hosting me today. It’s a pleasure to be back! I’ve been saving one super-special topic related to The Vampire, The Witch & The Werewolf: Chains of Silver, and that’s the research on a vampire’s aura. The sentence weighs heavily with terms that unbelievers may not know how to interpret: Vampire, aura and research? How does one look into a vampire’s life energy and come out alive?

A few other instances, I’ve talked about some of the eerie coincidences that have happened while writing this series. Silver ties in with more than the lead character and the title of the book. It’s also the color of a vampire’s aura.

One of the powers of my witch character, Lily, is seeing the auras of other people. In the past, I’ve investigated the varying traditional colors of an aura, and their meanings. The easiest way for me to see my own aura is to hold my hand up in front of a white wall and look at the spaces between the fingers. Sometimes, you can catch a shimmering color hovering there. Can you see it? What color do you see?

Here’s a link that talks about varying colors: http://www.reiki-for-holistic-health.com/auracolormeanings.html Usually, mine is a shade of violet. Now, if it’s lavender or indigo, I’m not that specific in my sight.

But what about the undead? Within the world of my books, I don’t see vampires as being necessarily evil. And, I certainly didn’t want to portray them as being without an aura. To me, that harkens somewhat to not having a soul. And, perhaps the second “final” death comes with the loss of the aura (another thought for the future). So I consulted a Psychic Medium, Kathryn Wilson, and her thoughts on the subject. Fortunately, for me, Kathryn embraced the topic, and quickly came back with some ideas on the auras of a new vampire and one that’s “lived” for a long time such as Lawrence.

http://web.me.com/ufojoe/psychickathryn/Kathryn_Wilson.html

Here’s a glimpse at Kathryn’s reflection:

“I would not use gold, because that is a high, pure, level of spirituality.... for (a) new vampire I would go with a murky thin grey (illness, fear) haze with sparks of silver (intuition, both physical and spiritual power) in it.....for the old vampire, who would be wiser and more powerful, I would go with a thicker layer of violet (psychic, visionary, magical power) with lighting bolts of silver (which would be like super “SPIDEY” sense), LOL! That would sum up a new and old vampire very nicely.”

When I read Kathryn’s message, shivers ran down my back: Silver. How perfect. I’d already played around with the idea already, and another interesting tie-in is that silver sometimes works as a harmful element to vampires. It all connects together quite nicely.

What do you think? Pretty freaky? Have you ever thought about or been told the color of your aura? And, can you imagine such research? I’ll be giving away some goody bags to those who leave a comment (U.S. only), and an electronic copy of one of the books on my backlist. Please make sure to leave an email address so winners can be contacted.


AUTHOR INTERVIEW


Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I’m much more unassuming in real life than you would think. I’m married, and a mother of two young children. I teach college English wearing button-up sweaters. But, I also have this side that enjoys dying my hair pink or blue and traipsing through the French Quarter. Every now and then, the daring author persona takes over.

Do you recall how your interest in writing originated?

As an only child, I loved disappearing within books. I started writing poetry at such a young age, 7. In junior high and high school, I served on the yearbook staff and moved on to my college papers. Writing has always been part of my life, and fortunately, I’ve been good enough to make a living at it.

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

At this point, it’s hard to say. The business of publishing continues to change, and evolve. My publisher Ravenous Romance moves quickly. The book usually comes out within six weeks or so after I turn it in. If I moved to a more traditional, print publisher, it would be much different to work with a full year or more between submission and the end result.

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

No formula. In some ways, I describe myself as a “method author.” That sounds weird, and I’ve only heard it in context to being an actor, but I’ll sit, putting myself into the characters’ thoughts and feelings, asking what’s happening to them physically. The scenes of transforming into a wolf for both Trevor and his sister Silver were extremely interesting to write.

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

Having the reader connect with your characters and the storyline. I love feeling the emotions of the characters I’m reading about, and truly caring about what happens to them. I hope that while reading my books, I offer that escape into another reality, and that the characters come to life.

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

The Vampire, The Witch & The Werewolf: Chains of Silver is an erotic paranormal, set in modern-day New Orleans. The book picks up with the original threesome of Lawrence, Lily and Trevor, and explores the relationship with Trevor’s sister, Silver, and her love interest Nick. What Silver doesn’t know is once she hits her sexual maturity, she’ll turn into a werewolf. The turn of events and unordinary extended family may not go over well with her vampire-hunting boyfriend.

In Twitter Fashion use 140 characters or less, sum The Vampire, The Witch & The Werewolf: Chains of Silver for us.

That’s kind of a point of the blurb, right? Hmmm, let’s see: An unlikely couple of Silver, a werewolf, and Nick, a vampire hunter, must face their darkest fears in order to break free from the chains that bind.

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

The story comes from a combination of experience, research and listening. When I heard about the abandoned amusement park in New Orleans, I knew that it would eventually work its way into my books. And once you’ve read the book, isn’t it the perfect place for how it’s used? (Trying not to give away a spoiler.)

How long did it take you to write it, and did you have any writer’s block along the way?

Chains of Silver was written in about four months. Last year, I put a crazy pace on the writing. I published three full-length books and one holiday novella. These characters very much whisper in my ear, so the writing goes pretty fast. I didn’t experience “writer’s block,” but a major change from my original synopsis at the end. But, I’m willing to adapt.

Will we be seeing a following book to these stories?

Definitely, I’m currently working on book 3, The Voodoo King, and for those who’ve read the books so far you should be able to guess who that might be. Plus, I’ve turned in a proposal for book 4, The Wolfe Pack – still waiting to hear back on that one, but I promise it’s a HOT storyline.

How did you come up with the character Silver?

In the first book, A New Orleans Threesome, Trevor talks a little bit about his sister Silver, who was placed up for adoption at birth. He mentions wanting to find her. Although there are potentially several storylines that can be explored, Silver’s a strong character who wants to be heard. (And, she’s not done yet.)

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

With his Creole looks of darker skin and blonde dreads, Nick is a man unto himself. I’ve spent countless hours looking for images of him, or the him in his mind. All that said, I’m really liking the attitude of Jason Momoa – lighten up his hair a bit and maybe …
The author and creative genius Lex Valentine made the video trailer for Chains of Silver, and I think we did a good job finding an image for Nick:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_RnwgdxWsKo

Was there anything you find particularly challenging when writing this book?

Five points of view! I couldn’t give up my original threesome when I moved onto Silver and Nick’s story. So, I kept all five going, and did my best to make the shifts clear for the reader.
One reason why my holiday novella, The Vampire & The Werewolf: A New Orleans Christmas was such a pleasure to write.

What were your feelings when you first saw the cover of your finished book?

The answer’s a little double edged because what you’ve seen is the second cover for the book. The first version actually focused on a threesome, but since this book’s primary focus is Silver and Nick, I wanted the couple. Loved the image of the amusement park in the background and it combines that dark erotic nature of the book so well. 


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One Winner will win a copy of this book


and 


5 Follow up winners will win a goody bag from the author! (US Only)





Please Follow the giveaway rules (Found on the left side of site)

12 comments:

tears_of_fire said...

Sounds great :) I still need to read the first one.

Victoria said...

Sounds good. Thank you.

vsloboda(at)gmail(dot)com

Sharon Stogner said...

The title alone makes me want to read this. I am love witches, vampires and especially shifters ;) thanks for the chance to win! I really want the swag, being the swag ho that I am ;)

Sharon Stogner said...

I filled out the winner form, also you might want to check the font color of this post. Some of it isn't showing up because of the color!

Toni said...

I've been keeping my eyes on the first one and now there are two. I need to get busy. Thanks for stopping by.

tsteinerid(gmail)

Melissa said...

Sorry for the Glitch. I did have it all put together. :/

Well It is fixed now :) Thanks for the heads up!

Louisa Bacio said...

Thanks for all the great comments! There's actually a third book, a holiday novella "The Vampire & The Werewolf: A New Orleans Christmas," that came out in December, too! It tells the story of how Lawrence and Trevor got together.

Victoria said...

Thanks for the info on the Christmas novella. I love holiday theme quickies :).
vsloboda(at)gmail(dot)com

Unknown said...

This book looks awesome! I better get on this series!

delphinareadstoomuch@yahoo.com

Krysykat said...

I'm squealing over this book, I want to read the first now too :)

GFC- Krysta Banco

Morganlafey86(at)aol(dot)com

elaing8 said...

Great post and interview.I have book one and would love to win this one.

elaing8(at)netscape(dot)net

Louisa Bacio said...

Thanks so much for all of your great comments. Two more days until the contest ends ...

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