Tag: Dark Ones

Guest Author (and Giveaway): Katie MacAlister

Posted October 9, 2011 by Holly in Giveaways, Promotions | 27 Comments

Have we got a treat for you! Author Katie MacAlister is here to talk about vampires! Plus, we’re giving away a copy of her latest vampire release, Much Ado About Vampires: A Dark Ones Novel
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Hello, everyone! I’m here to talk about all things vampires, so get your fake fangs in, and settle back for more Dark Ones info than you can shake a stake at.

Recently, I asked a handful of readers what questions they had regarding my vampire mythos. I received more questions than I could possibly post here, but I thought I’d share the answers to a few of them with all of you.

Terina asks: What made you want to write about vamps, and which one is your favorite?

I decided to write my own vampire series after reading my friend Christine Feehan’s vampire series. I loved her dark, brooding vampires, and ached to write my own version, but alas, I couldn’t write dark and brooding if my life depended on it. Rather than frustrate myself, I wrote what I knew I could have fun with: funny vampire novels with a mythos that tipped its hat to standard vampire lore, but also had some different elements that would be great fun to explore.

My favorite of all the vampires has always been Christian. When I wrote A Girl’s Guide to Vampires, I lusted after him the entire book, and wasn’t happy until I got to sit down and write his story. After more than ten vampire stories, he still remains my favorite. Mmrowr.

Kate H. asks: What if a Dark One joins with the wrong woman?

Dark Ones may be “assigned” (for lack of a better word) the wrong Beloved, but they would never Join with her. They would realize the futility of that long before the final step to Joining was ever completed.

Andrea S. asks: Who is the oldest Dark one, and where did he come from?

The answer to that question is also Christian. He’s the oldest of the vamps that I’ve written to date, and so far as I know, he was born of a Dark One father. I don’t know more than that, although some day, I really should poke around into his background.

Rebekah asks: How do they pass their time? Is it possible to live for eons and not go mad? Do they view human mortals as glorified livestock mostly due to our limited amount of time to gain knowledge?

Wow, Rebekah, that’s a lot of questions. Let’s see if I can answer all of them. They pass their time the same way we do—entertaining themselves as best they can, being with loved ones, and stalking around in the night scaring mortals. Well, OK, the last bit probably isn’t true, but I can imagine that after a few hundred years, the temptation to do some scaring of the mortal-folk would be almost too great to ignore.

They don’t view humans as livestock. They view them as being vital to their existence, and usually take great pains to keep the humans healthy and happy and blissfully unaware that they are providing a meal now and again, and social stimulation at other times. Many of my Dark Ones have relationships with mortal women simply because they’re lonely, and they need to be loved just like everyone else. But in general, no, they don’t look down on humans because they have a limited life span.

And finally, Michelle H. asks: Why Moravian? Why don’t any of them live in the US? Can a male child be born to a Dark One and not be a Dark One?

I chose the Moravian Highlands of the Czech Republic because of their history. They had a lot of battles and wars and various insurrections that just fit nicely into my idea of a source for my vampires.

Some of them do live in the US. Alec (Much Ado About Vampires) lives in California, and his house is part of the story in Crouching Vampire, Hidden Fang. Others live there as well, but since I am a die-hard Anglophile, I tend to set a lot of stories in England and Europe. I think it’s the accents, really. I just go all melty at thinking about those delicious accents.

Any male child of a Dark One is going to be a Moravian, period. No ifs or buts about that. But he will be in full possession of his soul if Daddy has his soul. So a soulless father means a soulless son.

Yeah, I really was mean with that part of my Dark One mythology. I’m sure the vamps all growl when my name is mentioned around them…

Thanks so much for letting me visit here. I hope everyone enjoyed the brief peek into all things Dark Ones!

Thanks so much for sharing your insight with us, Katie!

We have a copy of Much Ado About Vampires: A Dark Ones Novel to giveaway. Leave a comment on this post welcoming Katie to the blog and you’ll be entered to win. Contest ends 9/14 @ 11:59pm. Please note: You must include a valid email address with your comment to be eligible. US residents only.

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Tagged: Dark Ones, Giveaways, Guest Authors, Guest Authors, Katie MacAlister, Signet

Guest Review: Confessions of a Vampire’s Girlfriend by Katie MacAllister

Posted December 15, 2010 by Book Binge Guest Blogger in Reviews | 1 Comment

Genres: Paranormal Romance

Mary‘s review of Confessions of a Vampire’s Girlfriend by Katie MacAllister (writing as Kate Maxwell)

I’ve been a huge Katie MacAllister for ages now (I have a bookshelf full of her dragons and Dark Ones novels) so I was super-excited to get my hands on this one. Granted, these two novellas were published under a pen name (Katie Maxwell) several years ago but they were new to me. Seems a while back, Katie wrote a couple of YA stories based on the world she created in her adult Dark Ones novels. But, as it sometimes happens in the publishing world, fate intervened and the YA line was no more. But, luckily for us, Katie MacAllister has some persistent fans and is a determined writer so, just before she published the adult Dark Ones novel, In the Company of Vampires, which star Francesca and Benedict, she re-released Got Fangs and Circus of the Darned.

Got Fangs?

When you’re traveling through Europe with psychics, magicians, and other really bizarre people, normality is hard to come by, but something Francesca longs for. Until she meets Benedikt. He’s actually taller than her, rides a motorcycle, and doesn’t think Fran is the least bit weird. On the dark side, he’s also a vampire—and Fran is supposed to redeem is soul. But when Ben’s kisses turn out to be anything but normal, Fran starts to embrace the freakiness that is her life.

You’d think that traveling around Europe would be something a teenager would enjoy. In this case, you’d be wrong. Francesca has been shipped off to spend some time with her mother while her father “gets to know” his new trophy wife. And Fran resents every bit of it. There’s no one her age to hang out with, she’s stuck with a traveling freak show, and, well, she’s feeling unwanted. She thinks, what guy would want someone who’s six feet tall and built like a linebacker? And, to top it all off, she’s got her own freakiness to deal with—she has to wear gloves or she’ll be overwhelmed with the thoughts and feelings of anyone she touches. Until she meets Benedikt.

At first, considering Fran is sixteen and Ben is somewhere around 300, I was a little skeeved out at Fran being Ben’s Beloved (and yes, I felt the same way about the Edward-Bella relationship.). But it wasn’t really like that. Sure, Ben needed her to save his soul and they were destined to be together but he knew she wasn’t ready. Ben was supposed to be all dark and tormented (it’s the job of a Dark One) but he was also very sweet, caring, and loyal. He took care of his sister, helped out a friend in need, and very gently wooed Fran, never stepping beyond the limits set by her mother or her.

And I really enjoyed Fran. She was snarky and brave, willing to use her gift to help out the circus that her mother loved, despite the fact that she hated to do it. GOT FANGS? was filled with Katie MacAllister’s signature wit and semi-bumbling characters. A quick and fun read.

4.5/5

Circus of the Darned

With a witch for a mom. It’s no surprise that Fran might not fit in, but having a vampire for a boyfriend is doing wonders for her self-esteem. And now, even though she suspects Ben is keeping things from her, her only concern is finding some time—and something to wear—for their first actual date. But Fran’s own mysterious talents seem to get in the way when she accidentally conjures an entire battlefield of warring Viking ghosts. Two’s company—a dozen is a crowd…

Now that Fran is “dating” Ben, she’s feeling pretty good about herself, even though she hasn’t seen or heard from him for the last three weeks. Still, life with the circus is much better, and Fran finally feels like she belongs. When Ben comes back, he’s reluctant to talk about where he’s been and what he’s done. Still playing the tall, dark, and mysterious card.

Again, Katie MacAllister’s style shines through. In this story, she throws in a super-hot Swede who also happens to have some magic of his own; Loki, the Norse god of mischief; and a pile of Viking ghosts who believe Fran is their goddess who will send them on to Valhalla. After they get in a good rape-and-pillage (Fran puts the kibosh on that right away. The only thing they’re allowed to pillage is the local McDonald’s).

The romance between Ben and Fran may have reached the official date stage but I still didn’t read a whole lot of chemistry between the two of them. Yeah, the kisses were great, and the tingles were there but I wasn’t swept away by their love story. It was almost like Ben knew Fran wasn’t ready for much more than those few kisses and a date. But the action never slows—with all those Vikings and a ticked-off Norse god, there’s always something happening.

4/5

This book is available from NAL. You can buy it here or here in e-format.