Today I have a guest post. She is Carolyn McCray, the author of Heartsblood. Keep reading it because she is giving away one free ebook of Heartsblood for you. All you have to do is just leaving a comment and a valid email address before February 28, 2011. As simple as that.
~~~
I like vampires. No, actually I love vampires.
However, I didn't want to write about them.
Whenever I write a book I want to bring something fresh and unique to the genre and after the sparkling thing that ship had pretty much sailed.
But I did love the essence of the mythology. Blood as a potent force and the sensuality of the bite. I didn't want to be tied to the over-worked nocturnal/silver hating/immortal thing.
I wanted something seeped in fable yet new.
Allowing this idea to percolate for a few weeks, my muse finally created Praxis. Blood Magic.
Depending on a person's emotions at the time of the the blood letting, their blood held varied properties. Love, hate, and fear all take on new meaning when used by someone skilled in Praxis.
I then toyed with the notion that any technology advanced enough appeared to be magic.
Was Praxis magic or a science so complex we simply cannot understand it.
From those humble beginnings sprang HeartsBlood.
A tale set in present day San Francisco entwined with an ancient magic that turns out to be nothing as it seems.
HeartsBlood.
Here is a sample of my novel. If you enjoy it, leave a comment below to be entered in a free eBook give away of HeartsBlood!
Excerpt
“Maria!” Sal yelled, remembering it all. How could she have forgotten that this man had nearly killed her friend?
“Leave,” he growled.
Despite her body wanting to do exactly the opposite, Sal found her feet turning back toward the stairwell. While she tried to rationalize that it was her desire to get to security, Sal knew that it was his word, his commanding tone that forced her feet to move. Nothing else mattered but following his edict.
In obeying, Sal’s path brought her past the blood bank’s door. She caught the sight of red. Her feet stopped.
“No!”
Before her lay a bloodbath. Literally. Two inches of the sticky fluid covered the floor. The blood bags had been ripped to shreds, their contents spilled. And a single body lay in the middle, slashed open like a wild animal kill. White innards spilled across the crimson sea.
Sal stood stunned, then caught sight of a blonde streak. Blonde bangs against blue-black shorn hair.
Maria!
Her best friend’s eyes lay open, glazed over with death. A wrenching nausea threatened to topple Sal, then his hand was on her shoulder.
His hand. The man who had done this. The man who’d killed Maria.
Her feet took over, reeling her backwards, propelling her away. She had seen a phone. It was halfway to the stairs. Running, Sal found the phone and jerked it from its hook. “Security!”
But it was dead. Not even a dial tone. She dropped the handpiece and went to run for the stairwell, but a strong hand caught her jacket.
Sal tried to scream, but his hand grabbed her throat, choking her, picking her up off her feet and slamming her back against the wall.
He brought his face so near that stubble raked her cheek. “Hold.”
As much as Sal wanted to squirm from his grasp, she could not. The man lowered her to the ground, then ever so slightly released the pressure against her trachea. She took in a harsh breath, then coughed.
His grip cut off her windpipe again. “You draw him!”
From under his coat, he drew his knife, the same blade she had seen earlier. The thin steel glistened at its impossibly sharp tip. Sal flailed as the light from the blood bank suddenly extinguished, leaving only inky black.
This was it. She was going to die like Maria. Here alone in the dark.
~~~
I like vampires. No, actually I love vampires.
However, I didn't want to write about them.
Whenever I write a book I want to bring something fresh and unique to the genre and after the sparkling thing that ship had pretty much sailed.
But I did love the essence of the mythology. Blood as a potent force and the sensuality of the bite. I didn't want to be tied to the over-worked nocturnal/silver hating/immortal thing.
I wanted something seeped in fable yet new.
Allowing this idea to percolate for a few weeks, my muse finally created Praxis. Blood Magic.
Depending on a person's emotions at the time of the the blood letting, their blood held varied properties. Love, hate, and fear all take on new meaning when used by someone skilled in Praxis.
I then toyed with the notion that any technology advanced enough appeared to be magic.
Was Praxis magic or a science so complex we simply cannot understand it.
From those humble beginnings sprang HeartsBlood.
A tale set in present day San Francisco entwined with an ancient magic that turns out to be nothing as it seems.
HeartsBlood.
Here is a sample of my novel. If you enjoy it, leave a comment below to be entered in a free eBook give away of HeartsBlood!
Excerpt
“Maria!” Sal yelled, remembering it all. How could she have forgotten that this man had nearly killed her friend?“Leave,” he growled.
Despite her body wanting to do exactly the opposite, Sal found her feet turning back toward the stairwell. While she tried to rationalize that it was her desire to get to security, Sal knew that it was his word, his commanding tone that forced her feet to move. Nothing else mattered but following his edict.
In obeying, Sal’s path brought her past the blood bank’s door. She caught the sight of red. Her feet stopped.
“No!”
Before her lay a bloodbath. Literally. Two inches of the sticky fluid covered the floor. The blood bags had been ripped to shreds, their contents spilled. And a single body lay in the middle, slashed open like a wild animal kill. White innards spilled across the crimson sea.
Sal stood stunned, then caught sight of a blonde streak. Blonde bangs against blue-black shorn hair.
Maria!
Her best friend’s eyes lay open, glazed over with death. A wrenching nausea threatened to topple Sal, then his hand was on her shoulder.
His hand. The man who had done this. The man who’d killed Maria.
Her feet took over, reeling her backwards, propelling her away. She had seen a phone. It was halfway to the stairs. Running, Sal found the phone and jerked it from its hook. “Security!”
But it was dead. Not even a dial tone. She dropped the handpiece and went to run for the stairwell, but a strong hand caught her jacket.
Sal tried to scream, but his hand grabbed her throat, choking her, picking her up off her feet and slamming her back against the wall.
He brought his face so near that stubble raked her cheek. “Hold.”
As much as Sal wanted to squirm from his grasp, she could not. The man lowered her to the ground, then ever so slightly released the pressure against her trachea. She took in a harsh breath, then coughed.
His grip cut off her windpipe again. “You draw him!”
From under his coat, he drew his knife, the same blade she had seen earlier. The thin steel glistened at its impossibly sharp tip. Sal flailed as the light from the blood bank suddenly extinguished, leaving only inky black.
This was it. She was going to die like Maria. Here alone in the dark.
1 comment:
I'd love to win this! my email address is: caitlinhlomas@gmail.com
Post a Comment