Character Interview: Lucy Day from Dead Girl + Giveaway!

  Happy Monday! I have another wonderful opportunity to introduce you to a brand new author and Lucy Day, the heroine of Deadgirl by B.C. Johnson. Lucy was suppose to have a great time on her first date with Zack. Instead she gets killed and wakes up alive the next morning trying to sort things out. Help me welcome Lucy to the blog and learn about her current predicament. If you're interested to learn more about Lucy, check out the giveaway at the bottom of this post.

  Before we get to the interview, here is the book cover and description of Deadgirl by B.C. Johnson:

Fifteen-year-old Lucy Day falls between the gears in the machinery of the afterlife. She is murdered while on her first date, but awakens a day later, completely solid and completely whole. She has no hunger for brains, blood, or haunting, so she crosses “zombie,” “vampire,” and “ghost” off her list of re-life possibilities. But figuring out what she is becomes the least of her worries when Abraham, Lucy’s personal Grim Reaper, begins dogging her, dead-set on righting the error that dropped her back into the spongy flesh of a living girl.

Lucy must put her mangled life back together, escape re-death, and learn to control her burgeoning psychic powers while staying one step ahead of Abraham. But when she learns the devastating price of coming back from the dead, Lucy is forced to make the hardest decision of her re-life—a decision that could save her loved ones...or kill them.

Hey Lucy. Welcome to the blog! In Twitter style, how would you describe yourself?

Confusingly hilarious, occasionally terrified, slightly less stubborn than a herd of donkeys. Atlanta High School resident student smartass.
 
Who is Zack?

Zack is . . . complicated. We had a mess of a non-relationship our Freshman year. One of those "will they won't they ah crap they messed it up" kind of deals. If either of us had guts or a working head on our shoulders things might have turned out differently.

Zack is smart, Zack is brave, Zack makes me want to be a better person just by being around him. Zack makes me stronger, and I like to think I make him stronger too. I don't know.
 
What was the first thought that popped into your head when Zack asked you on a date?

Probably something like "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHH." What do you think when you try not to pee yourself? I guess I just couldn't believe he'd finally asked, really. Why had he finally asked? What had taken a year of flirting and significant glances to finally say "Hey Luce, wanna hit the movies? By the way, I want to kiss you."

Unfortunately, your dream date didn't happen, but what did you hope for?

Certainly not for what happened. I don't know. It was my first date - I'm not exactly an expert. A million Julia Roberts / Kate Hudson movies have told me there ought to be flowers, a stunning act of heroism, maybe lips. Yeah, lips. Lips are good. Oh, and maybe the coat-over-the-rain puddle thing. I'm a sucker for the classics. If somehow a puppy could have been involved . . .

What are you exactly?

Lucy Day, fifteen-year-old girl who is completely normal and nothing at all weird happened to her. Some people disappear for a day. It happens.

In honesty? I've heard the word Phantom thrown around, but I don't know what any of that means. My sole source of information is a mute dude. It's less "ironic" and more "terrifically irritating." I tell you this - I'm alive. I'm not a monster. Woe to the person who tries to disagree.
 
Best thing about being re-animated? Worst thing?

Best thing? Not bleeding out in a bank parking lot. I'd call that the incredible upside.

Down side? I guess it's a toss up between "being stalked by a monster made of light" and "never having to sleep." I'll tell you what - sleeping is highly underrated. Do you have any idea how hard it is to fill the time when you don't sleep? I guess I need to take up crochet or sculpting or brain surgery. I've got a LOT of time to kill.
 
What's the most important lesson that you learned so far?

Never give up. Never stop. Never let anyone tell you what you can't be, and never let anyone try to take from you what's yours. All the strength you'll ever need is already there.

There's always a catch with getting a second shot at life, what's yours?

Let's just say that my body doesn't run off sandwichesanymore.

If you could change one thing about yourself it would be...

If I look in the mirror, plenty. Heh. I guess I'd say my heart - I have no ability to hold back. I just can't. I wish I could get a rein on that thing, but I don't think I'm in the driver's seat. I just feel.I love hard, I die hard, and I'm fiercely protective of my friends. I make bad decisions sometimes, I mess up, I leap to spectacularly wrong conclusions. I wish my heart wasn't pumping right there on my sleeve. I guess I'm saying a cold-calculating-logic injection wouldn't go amiss.

What would you like to say or do if you were to meet Abraham, the Grim Reaper, face to face?

I'll go with the "non-profanity" version. I guess it'd be something like: "You just signed up for the hardest gig of your life, buddy. I'm a weed with deep roots, I'm a cockroach, I'm Superman. Good luck you son of - " Sorry. No profanity, got it.

Thanks for stopping by, Lucy, and I hope you figure things out quickly.

  GIVEAWAY

This giveaway is open to U.S. and international readers! Please read the details below:

For U.S. READERS: ONE (1) lucky reader will get 1 (one) signed paperback copy of Deadgirl along with 1 (one) signed bookmark. 

For INTERNATIONAL READERS: ONE (1) lucky reader will get 1 (one) ebook copy of Deadgirl. 

To enter the giveaway, please leave your name and email address so I can contact you if you win. The giveaway will be held until SATURDAY, November 17th. The winners (one U.S. and one international) will be chosen randomly by Random.org and will announced on my blog on SUNDAY, November 18th. Good luck! 

Read More

Guest Post: Alternative Britain Setting in "The Substitute" by Holly Barrington

I'm thrilled to participate in Something Wicked Comes, a fabulous event where bloggers and authors celebrate all things creepy during the month of October. The event is hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings and Babbling About Books. Be sure to stop by and visit the busy month long schedule to sign up for awesome giveaways, read interviews from your favorite authors, and discover some great books!
  As part of my participation in the Something Wicked Comes for today, I'd like to share with you a guest post by indie author, Holly Barrington, who would like to talk to us about her alternative Britain setting for her debut paranormal novel The Substitute! Be sure to scroll down to the end of the post to see how you can win a copy of Freak. Below is the pretty book cover and its description:

   My book "The Substitute" is set in an alternate Britain, where Vampires and Mortals coexist more or less in harmony. They live together as part of a single, integrated society, which has been made possible by two significant developments. One is artificial human blood, known as "The Substitute". The other is a drug that renders Vampires immune to daylight.
 Vampires and Mortals work together, play together and become friends. Some even marry, although this is still quite rare. For the most part there is no real difference between the two groups. Vampires are stronger and have superior reflexes, but these have little meaning in everyday life. However, just as in any society, there are always extremists. Those who seek to change the order of things through terrorism. There are of course agencies set up to deal with this issue, just as in our world, and the conflict between the two sides is at the heart of the book.
  This alternative Britain has a similar history to ours, although the book only mentions the First World War onwards. The main differences are the major milestones in Vampire/Mortal relations, such as an agreement known as The Compact, and the involvement of Vampires in the Third Reich. There are a number of reasons why I chose Britain as the setting for my book. Because of the degree of cooperation needed between Vampires and Mortals, based on free will and voluntary participation, the book would not have "worked" in anything but a free, democratic country. It also needed to be set in a country with a long history of integration
and acceptance, with relatively little conflict. And the fact that I am British might have had something to do with it as well.
   From my point of view, "The Substitute" is a reflection of modern, multicultural Britain where the majority get on very well. I'm no George Orwell, though. I didn’t set out to make any kind of social or political statements. I'm just influenced/inspired by such things, and this is reflected in my writing.
   I hope this has piqued your interest enough to want to read my book. I hope you do, and I hope you enjoy it. Thank you so much for reading my post, and thank you, Rummanah, for inviting me!


Thank you for stopping by, Holly!

“The Substitute” is set in an alternate Britain, where Vampires and Mortals co-exist more or less in harmony. However, that may soon be about to change . . .

Emily Brown starts her new job at Pathway Software, and at first everything goes well. She makes new friends there and her bosses are impressed so things are really looking up for Emily. Until her friend is killed. Murdered. The official account said it was a gang hit gone bad, and rumours suggest she had drugs in her possession.

However another, unofficial, report suggests that the bullet wounds were all post-mortem, and the drugs were planted on her in the morgue. It also says that she suffered multiple broken bones, cuts, contusions and…vampire bites. Everything suggests that her friend died a brutal and vicious death at the hands of a number of vampires.

Vampire and Mortal relations are, on the whole, very good. Ever since The Compact, there have been eighty five years of unprecedented peace between the two worlds. But there are some dissenters, the foremost of which are the sinister Circle of Ixiom. And Emily is about to become their bitterest enemy . . .

Read More

Freak Giveaway!

I'm thrilled to participate in Something Wicked Comes, a fabulous event where bloggers and authors celebrate all things creepy during the month of October. The event is hosted by Rainy Day Ramblings and Babbling About Books. Be sure to stop by and visit the busy month long schedule to sign up for awesome giveaways, read interviews from your favorite authors, and discover some great books!
  As part of my participation in the Something Wicked Comes, I'd like to spotlight indie author, E.K. Henry, debut novel Freak! Be sure to scroll down to the end of the post to see how you can win a copy of Freak. Below is the pretty book cover and its description:




Being a lower-class human born into a world where vampires rule sucks. No matter how hard Juniper Rayne tries to fit in, she's labeled a freak. When her dad signs the family up to take part in a reality television show, Juniper hopes that it'll give her the edge she needs to shed her freak label.
  Unfortunately for Juniper, vampires aren't that accepting. She decides to take control of her life and become a vampire hunter, instead of continuing to live in her own personal hell any longer. She will regain control or die trying.

GIVEAWAY

Thanks to E.K.'s generosity, I have two (2) ebooks of Freak to giveaway to two (2) winners. To enter, simply leave your name and email address so I can contact you if you win. This giveaway is open internationally. Winners will be selected by Random.org and the giveaway will run until FRIDAY, 11/2/12 at 11 PM EST. The winner will be announced on my blog on SATURDAY, 11/3/12. Good luck!

Read More

I'm Participating in Bloggiesta Fall 2012!

I will be joining with hundreds other bloggers in the Bloggiesta event co-hosted this year Bloggiesta is co-hosted by 1st Daughter over at There's a Book and Suey from It’s All About Books. Originally created nearly four years ago by Natasha of Maw Books, we want to make sure to give her a huge thank you for starting such a fantastic event! Bloggiesta occurs twice a year and it allows bloggers to hang out together while doing some maintanece on their blogs, participating in some mini-challenges, networking with other bloggers. Bloggiesta this fall is taking place on September 28th through the 30th. You can sign up for the event here. This is my first year participating!

Goals I'd Like to Accomplish for Bloggiesta

1. Update all review index pages on blog and on Shelfari account
2. Create a separate page for picture books only
3. Update Resources page.
4. Clean up and update blogging labels
5. Create a list of discussion post topics
6. Create a list of TV/Movie characters for Reel Shelf feature
7. Reading advisory book lists for a variety of topics (i.e Halloween, Winter Break reads, etc.)
8. Update Review Policy
9. Prepare author interview questions for October and November
10. Schedule blog posts for the rest of this month and October.

Just a quick note that my regular scheduled posts for next week will not be disrupted. Most of the maintence will happen behind the scenes. Hope you all have a great weekend and join in on the fun!

Read More