Welcome back to the Weird, the Wild, and the Wicked.
Today I have the honor of hosting paranormal romantic suspense author Silver
James (who’s one of my all time favorites, btw) with a new release, Christmas Moon. I finally met Silver at
Hot Mojave Knights 2013 and she is even cooler in person than she is online. Hoorah! She is also graciously offering
an excerpt to everyone, and a copy of her ebook to one lucky commenter.
Welcome, Silver. Thank you for being with me today.
*Squeee!* Okay, fangirl moment done.
:D
What started you on the path to becoming a
paranormal romance author after being a first responder?
What’s
that old adage? Write what you know? I was a writer long before I became a
first responder and I’ve been a fan of paranormal romance since I first
discovered the genre. It just made sense to combine the two and add in my
experiences as an officer’s wife when my husband was in the army. As a result,
all my main characters seem to be involved either in the military or public
service in some form or another.
Congratulations on your recent release on Christmas Moon. Introduce us to the main
characters and premise of your story for those who haven’t read the series.
This
is tough to answer because all the wolves are in this story. I suppose Mac and
Hannah, the hero and heroine of the first book in the series—BLOOD MOON—lead
the way in CHRISTMAS MOON. The Wolves were part of a Special Operations unit in
the army. Due to circumstances and on account of because, the unit was
disbanded and subsequently brought back together. There’s a civilian
corporation wanting to exploit their “unique” genetic structure and we all know
no good will come of that! LOL Hannah was an army major sent on an assignment
with the Wolves and during the course of it, she and Mac discovered they were
mates. The premise for this particular story is that the Wolves are now
outlaws, which is tough with wives and kids involved, it’s almost Christmas,
and they owe a debt of honor to the family of a deceased comrade.
Did anything in particular inspire this story?
Actually,
it was the fans of the series. Lots of readers were “poking” me about when the
next book would be out and even though I was in the middle of launching a new
urban fantasy series, I decided to write a Christmas story for them. I wasn’t
sure what was going to happen for sure but when Liam (Mac and Hannah’s preteen
son) reminded me that his first change was about to happen and he really wanted
his dad to be there to help, the plot just fell into place.
I love your blending of werewolves and military. What
are the Wolves’ origins and how did they get involved in the military?
According
to their backstory, the Wolves have been around and serving in the military
since the Declaration of Independence, basically. Several of them rode with
Francis Marion, the Swamp Fox. Nakai, one of the Wolves in the first three
books, was a Navajo Code Talker. In my werewolf mythos, the wolf DNA traces
back to two roots—either Celtic or Indian (Native American). As a result, my
wolves tend to be of Scot/Irish descent or like Michael Lightfoot and Jacob
Nakai, Indian. These two “ancestry” groups tend to have a strong sense of
military duty in real life. In the series, the military has always had a need
for the type of missions they go on, though the true nature of their unique abilities is a state secret. Or
was until Black Root Corporation got involved. Cue the dramatic music here…
Uh-oh...What other projects are on the horizon for you that
we’re likely to see?
Where
to start? LOL There’s at least one wolf who hasn’t met his mate yet so
Antoine’s story is still to be told. Look for BLUE MOON next spring. I also
plan on producing full novels that detail more of the backstory and some of the
things that happen between each of the novellas. The first, MOONSTRUCK: SECRETS
AND LIES will encompass the first three stories—BLOOD MOON, BAD MOON, and
HUNTER’S MOON. The second, MOONSTRUCK: BETRAYAL, covers the next three books,
WOLF MOON, BRIDE’S MOON, and ROGUE MOON. They’ll be available in digital and
print formats next spring as well.
Additionally,
I’ve launched my new urban fantasy series, The Penumbra Papers, with the
prequel novella, THAT OL’ BLACK MAGIC, and the first book in the series, SEASON
OF THE WITCH. I’m at work on the second book, THE DEVIL’S CUT and it will be
available in 2014.
Thank you for joining me today, Silver, and we look
forward to all your upcoming releases. Definitely!
If you’d like a copy of Christmas Moon, you can find it at:
If you’d like to read the rest of the Moonstruck
series, you can find them here:
You can find Silver at:
Silver has graciously offered a copy of Christmas Moon (Kindle or PDF) plus a copy of the winner's choice of one other Moonstruck book (they're all good - you can't pick wrong- in Kindle or PDF format) to a lucky commenter who tells us: Pick your favorite "Wolf gene pool." (Hint: their DNA is dicussed in one of her answers.)
Please leave a valid email or twitter handle in your comment to be included in the drawing. The giveaway is open internationally to anyone 18 years or older. Please void where prohibited. The giveaway will go until 8:59 pm Pacific US Time Thursday, Dec. 5 2013, and the winner will be announced on the blog on Friday, Dec. 6 2013.
EXCERPT of CHRISTMAS MOON:
Liam stood in the door of the
RV, so angry his whole body vibrated. “We won’t have a Christmas? Mom, you
promised!” He whirled and was gone before his parents could react.
“Aw, crap. I’m sorry.” Sean’s expression turned hang dog. “I didn’t
realize he was standing there.”
By the time Mac got to the door, with Hannah close on his heels, Liam
was already ducking into the woods at the edge of the campsite. Cody stood
frozen in place, his eyes wide and scared, as he squeezed Micah’s hand to keep
the little boy from crying. He turned to the adults.
“No Christmas?” His voice quivered as his bottom lip trembled.
Micah let out a wail, which brought his parents barreling through
Hannah and Mac. Sean and Annie followed close behind.
“What the hell? What did you promise, Hannah?” Mac’s lips pressed into
a tight line.
She scrubbed her hands through her hair. “He was worried about
Christmas, Mac.”
“And?”
Hannah’s fingers curled against her palms as she fought down her
temper. “And, while the holiday has tended to be a little loose for us because
of our jobs, this year, he decided it was important.”
“So you promised him?” Exasperated, Mac turned away to hunt his son.
He paused when Hannah’s hand grabbed his biceps.
“No. I promised him I would try. There is a difference, Mac.”
“Mommy, does that mean Santa won’t find us?” Cody stared up at Annie,
his gaze darting between her and Sean.
Annie looked helpless and Sean wanted to kick himself for ever opening
his mouth. “Charlie foxtrot,” he muttered. “It’ll be okay, little man.”
Liz cradled Micah in her arms and leaned against Michael. “I know you
have to do this, but yeah, I sort of feel the same way.”
Picking up a rock, Hannah hurled it against the nearest tree. She
muttered curse words, aware of big eyes watching her every move. After counting
to a hundred, for the second time, she inhaled deeply, held her breath then
exhaled in one long gust. Turning to face the crowd now gathered outside the
RV, she slid into her role of commanding officer like a chameleon changing
colors.
“It will be okay, Cody. Santa is full of magic and he knows where all
the good little boys and girls are sleeping on Christmas Eve. At the rate Liam
is going, he’s liable to get coal and switches in his stocking.”
Cody’s eyes widened so much Hannah could see the whites all the way
around his pupils.
She closed her eyes briefly then opened them and tried again. “Santa
will find us no matter where we are, Cody. And there will be a tree and
presents and Christmas dinner.”
“You bet, Cody.” Jacey stepped over to side with Hannah. “I’ll make
cinnamon rolls for breakfast and we’ll figure out turkey and dressing and all
the trimmings.”
“Olives? I like olives.”
Annie rubbed her son’s shoulder. “Absolutely olives, Cody. The pitted
kind and I won’t even fuss if you eat them off the tips of your fingers.”
Thank you for stopping by, good luck in the giveaway, and happy reading! :)
