Today we are excited to welcome back author Linda Robertson to Book Lovers Inc. whose story Arcane Circle received a rave review from our own HEA Lover. Linda is sharing a very unique review of her book “Fatal Circle” and we hope you enjoy it as much as we did. Please give Linda a warm Book Lovers welcome and be sure to check the end of her post for her generous giveaway!!
Johnny Newman stomped his motorcycle boots to force the snow off, then pushed open the front door to Persephone Alcmedi’s home. The scrumptious aroma of beef roast met his nose. Ares, the Great Dane, came to greet him. “Hello?” he called.
The sound of pots and pans clanging in the kitchen answered, then Demeter snarled to someone, “If I wanted your cooking advice—which I don’t, then I’d have asked—which I didn’t.”
The 6’2” wærewolf stepped further inside and scratched the pup’s head vigorously. “Hey there, boy. We’ll just stay out of Demeter’s way for a while, huh?” The living room was lit by the dim glow of a dying fire. He shrugged from his biker jacket and started to drop it on the newel post. Seeing the vampire’s suit jacket resting there, he hesitated…he knew who Demeter was loosing her temper on. He dropped his leather atop the suit jacket and went to tend the fire.
He jabbed the fireplace poker in the hearth, moving the embers around so he could add more wood. He replaced the tool and stood straight, hands on his hips, and turned, noticing that Menessos had snuck in and taken a seat on the slip-covered couch. The vamp held a paperback book in each hand and was frowning at them.
“What are you doing?” Johnny asked. Besides annoying cranky old women, that is.
“Judging. I’ve been asked which of these is best.”
Johnny wondered who’d give a rat’s ass what the vamp thought of a book. “Not judging by the cover, I hope.” Johnny sank into the cozy chair and reached down to scratch behind the ears of the pup that had flopped at his feet. The Great Dane’s tail thumped gratefully on the floor.
“Both are equally lovely. She is stunning in those boots. Don’t you agree?” Menessos turned the novels so Johnny could see the images of Persephone.
The pup forgotten, Johnny reached for the novels. Menessos handed them over. “Wow. Yeah. Hot.”
The vampire flicked his wrist to gesture at the paperbacks. “BookLovers Inc. asked for some special input as part of their one-year celebration. Thought I’d give them my honest opinion.”
“You decide yet?” Johnny asked, ogling the image of his girlfriend that adorned the cover.
“I believe I must to go with Fatal Circle.”
“Why?”
“I feature more prominently in it, of course. It’s a stronger part, more revealing. Some, I’ve been told, even wept over my actions.”
John smirked. “Yeah, cause self-aggrandizing is so out of character for you.”
“I resent that.”
“Resent all you want. Deny it and you’re a damn liar.”
Menessos reached out and snatched Fatal Circle away from him. He scanned the back cover copy. “My name is mentioned four times. Yours only half that.”
“Ha. Yours isn’t on the back of Arcane Circle at all.” Johnny smiled broadly. “Maybe you’re dead.”
Menessos looked daggers at him, but he ignored it.
“I think Arcane Circle is the better book,” Johnny said.
“You certainly couldn’t vote for Hallowed Circle could you? A story that exposes you as a cheat would never gain your vote.”
“That was all circumstantial. I’m not a cheat.”
“Riiight.” Menessos winked.
“Of the two of us, you’re the one wetting your wick in every woman you come across.”
“Au contraire.”
“Vivian. Risque. Eva. Xerxadrea in her younger days. Marion. Gloria. Jessica. Darci. Babette. Shannon—”
“Wolf, enough!” Johnny chuckled.
Menessos squinted, leaning hard on the arm of the couch. “How do you even know about Marion, Gloria, Jessica, Darci, Babette and Shannon?”
“I know about Amy-ann, Tiana and Halley, too.”
“How?”
Johnny flicked his brows. “And Konstance.”
“What do you know about her?” Menessos demanded.
Oooo. Struck a nerve with that one. Johnny shrugged. “People talk.”
“Not my people.”
“Aw, you know how it is, Quarterlord.”
“Indeed, Domn Lup. However, revealing that this is the kind of intelligence the Zvonul has on me is hardly worrisome. Tell me, how is Cammi Harding these days?”
“She doesn’t talk to me anymore.” He winked back. “Got anything else?”
Menessos eased back into the couch. “BookLovers Inc. asked me, not you.”
“Mmmm.” Johnny pulled out his BlackBerry, punched buttons. “That’s funny. See, I got this email from Caro….” He showed the screen to the vamp.
Menessos sighed in aggravation. “So you intend to say Arcane Circle is best, do you?”
Johnny nodded with such merriment the triple little hoops in his ears clinked together. “Yup.” He read from the back cover: “…Johnny’s hiding a dangerous secret: his magic is locked in his mysterious tattoos. He and Seph must find a way to reclaim it—fast—despite those who have no intention of letting Johnny regain his full powers.” He tossed the book at the vamp. “Gets my vote.” He stretched his legs out before him and crossed his ankles as he linked his fingers behind his head in a pose of relaxed calm. A roaring fire. A good dog. The only thing that could make this great evening tip over into fantastic is—
Someone cleared their throat from the doorway. Expecting Seph, Johnny turned. Seeing the snowman figure of Demeter instead of Seph’s lean, sexy shape made his seductive smile instantly fall into a polite one.
“Let’s not gag at a gnat and swallow a camel, boys.”
With a confused expression, Johnny turned to Menessos who was blinking dazedly. The vamp whispered, “Unless I’m mistaken, the translation is that she thinks we’re overreacting.”
“We’re overreacting?” Johnny whispered back. “Us?”
“I can hear you, you buffoons. I meant the pissing contest that you two automatically react with is juvenile,” Demeter snapped.
This time, Menessos faced Johnny with a question in his gaze. “Juvenile?”
Johnny shrugged. “You gotta give her that one.”
“I’m old but my ears still work,” Demeter grumbled as she shuffled to the hearth.
Menessos tapped the arm of the couch and retorted, “Only because you are expert at localizing sound amplification spells near your ears.”
“Cheaper than hearing aid batteries.” She turned her backside to the blaze.
“Such spells,” Menessos continued, reproachfully, “can cause immediate, irascible shifts in your natural disposition when the smacking together of cookware sends stabbing pain through your cranium.”
Demeter snickered. “Unlike you, vampire, I am naturally eighty-four years old. I’m fat and I’m wrinkled. My bones hurt, my muscles ache and I have arthritis. Add to all that the fact that I just gave up a life-long relationship with the Marlboro Man’s best product. Pissed-off and grouchy is my new natural disposition.”
No one could argue with that.
“Besides,” Demeter added in a casual tone, “Susi asked me which one I thought was the best.”
“Susi?” Menessos came to his feet. “Did everyone else get a personal request?”
“Everyone else?” Johnny laughed. “What did yours say, BLI Staff?”
“As a matter of fact….” The vampire sat, crossed his legs and his arms.
Demeter smirked. “Aw, wittle vam-pi-uh gonna pout?”
“Now who’s being juvenile?” Menessos uncrossed his limbs.
“What’s your vote, Demeter?” Johnny asked, laughing.
“The as-yet untitled fifth book.”
“You’ve seen it?” Menessos sat forward.
“Do you ‘feature more prominently’ in it?” Johnny asked her, mocking Menessos’s earlier words.
Demeter shook her head. To the vampire she said, “Yes. I’m beta-reading it.” She faced Johnny. “And no, I’m not a prominent figure.”
“Why then does it get your vote?” Menessos demanded.
“Watching the two of you squirm like worms on a sidewalk just kicks ass.”
Number of pages: 352 pages
Formats available: ebook, Kindle, audiobook
Release Date: December 28th 2010
Publisher: Pocket
Even magic can’t solve everything. . . .
After facing down the forces of Fairy in mortal combat, Persephone Alcmedi still must deal with the aftermath. Not only does Seph now possess deadly secrets she must hide from the arcane and mundane world alike, but the dozens of magical creatures who’ve taken up residence behind her cornfield need food and shelter, and there’s still her foster daughter Beverly’s tenth birthday party to plan.
And that’s not all. . . . Seph’s boyfriend Johnny has revealed himself as the wærewolf Domn Lup, and the ruler of the wære world is en route from Romania to make sure Johnny really is the “king” he claims to be. But Johnny’s hiding a dangerous secret: his magic is locked in his mysterious tattoos. He and Seph must find a way for him to reclaim it—fast—despite those who have no intention of letting Johnny gain his full powers. Seph knows that, in the arcane world, strength is always a necessity and power must be constantly proven, but how far is she willing to go to succeed . . . and at what cost?
If you could have a private interview with any character from any book, who would that be?
What secret would you like them to tell you?
Do you like reading character interviews/ out of books scenes?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Linda is offering a copy of her book Arcane Circle to 1 lucky commenter
You’re also getting an extra entry for the main giveaway if you entered our Big Blogoversary Giveaway here.
All you have to do is leave a meaningful comment or question for Linda or answer one of the questions.
(You can read our full giveaway policy here)
Please leave us a way to contact you.
(Email in blogger profile or twitter name – no way to contact you – no entry).
This giveaway is open worldwide!
Giveaway ends on Friday February 4th and we will announce the winner on Sunday.
About Caro The HEA Lover
Caroline is a HEA loving, yarn addicted French who's desperately hoping to get a HEA of her own. If she's not reading then she can be found knitting while listening to Audiobooks or watching Tv shows. Her secret addiction is reading websites that make fun at other people's expense (DYAC, Failbook)! Caroline also blogs at the Secret HEA Society with Susi.
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Oh, the book sounds really good and I loved the post! I didn't know about this book (sorry, my fault, sometimes I cannot keep track of everything) but I'll definitely going to read it! Will it be translated?
Lots of love from italy
aliasgirl AT libero DOT it
OMG that blog post was a riot. Everyone is so snarky, I love it! It sounds like an awesome story. I think my TBR pile is growing by the minute.
GeishasMom73 on twitter
I like character interviews and scenes from books. Lets you get a flavor of the book. Since I just finished Shadowfever, I would like to interview…yeah, Barrons, for all the wrong reasons 😉
I am looking forward to trying this series.
And that would be Lestat from Interview with Vampire. I am so into him!
darlyn225 at gmail dot com
What a fun character interview. I would want to interview Sherrilyn Kenyon's Acheron. I think he would be very interesting to talk with.
I would choose Acheron too. I have no idea what I would ask him, perhaps to show me some magic LOL. Yah, I would sound that dumb 🙂
robin [at] intensewhisper [dot] com
I do enjoy character interviews like these. Thanks for a fun column.
Today (because surely my answer would be different tomorrow) if I interviewed a book character, it would be Sookie Stackhouse. I’d want to ask her what she wants. So much of the time, she acts in accordance with what everyone expects or needs from her. Sookie doesn’t frequently have her opinion heard. She deserves to.
Great post! I love reading these sorts of out-of-book scenes/interviews! They're always so much fun and we get to learn about the characters without ruining the plot of the actual books.
smaccall @ comcast.net
Character interviews are quite interesting. I would love to chat with Bones from the Cat&Bones series over some yummy espresso.
terilhack at gmail dot com
ohh I would love to chat with Fang from the Max Ride series to see what my kids are so in love with him about.
kasuranna at yahoo dot com
Oh my, good questions! I think right now I'd like to meet Pettersson's Joanna and Hunter and shake the ending of The Neon Graveyard out of them. And I'd love to interview two characters that are really interesting to me- Tybalt from McGuire's October Daye series and Dorian from Mead's Dark Swan. I want some insight into what makes them tick, in particular how they were raised.
b(dot)cardone(at)hotmail(dot)com
I would love to interview Simi from The Dark Hunter series. I think she would be a blast and if I offered her some sparklies should could tell me some juicy secret from Artie ;).
I love character reviews, I think it helps me to connect to them and the book.
vampiremistress2010(at)gmail(dot)com
Oh, Linda, I'm all about interviews with the villains. Really just crawling inside their heads and finding that line that makes them more than an opponent with a conflicting desire. I want to know how a villain perceives the world around him.
I can't wait to see what nastiness Johnny and Seph encounter in Arcane!
I love reading character interviews and out of book scenes! They're like little treats 🙂
I think I would interview Harry Dresden, not so he could tell me a secret, but just because I think he'd be fun to hang with.
Thanks for the giveaway!
drakeLa90 at aol dot com
I would love to interview Bones from the 'Grave' series by Jeanianne Frost…..sigh!!!!!
I think I would be quite tongue-tied….I'd just like to bat my eye-lashes at thim…hehe!!!
Valerie
in Germany
valb0302@yahoo.com
I must agree with Menessos. I liked Fatal Circle beter than Arcane Circle. I give Arcane Circle an A+ and Fatal Circle an A++. I think it a shame that I read Arcane Circle in 8 hours after it was delivered to my Kindle, and now I have to wait a year for Wicked Circle. I think I will start with Vicious Circle in January and read all four again so I can pick up Wicked Circle immediately after I finish.
I would interview Larissa Ione's Wraith. I'd ask him to tell me what if anything would ever make him feel like crying – we all know he'd never actually cry!
I love character interviews.
vsloboda(at)gmail(dot)com
I would like to have an interview with Ilona Andrew's Curran. I love that we get little snippets about things that happened in the book and there are so many other points in the books that I want to know what he was thinking.
I love character interviews because it allows readers to see a different side of a situation.
smccar1 at hotmail dot com
Thanks everybody! And in answer to Reading Mind's question, the books are set to be released in Germany starting in March. Last I heard France was interested, but I don't know if that is going forward or not. Italy, to my knowledge, has not inquired. 😀
I really love reading character interviews because it gives me a good idea of what the characters are like and what the book may be like as well.
throuthehaze at gmail dot com
LOVE it! Johnny is so HAWT! I love all the books and read them all already too!
be well,
Dawn
LOVE it! Johnny is so HAWT! I love all the books and read them all already too!
be well,
Dawn
I would like to interview any of the BDB warriors. They are so hot!!
iqb99@yahoo.com
I would want to interview Rand al'Thor from the WHeel of Time series by Robert Jordan, and ask him how he handles being in love with three woman who all love him back 😉
blodeuedd1 at gmail dot com
I love seeing characters in their 'off' time! 🙂
If I could interview any character it would be have to be Clayton Danvers from Kelley Armstrongs Otehrworld series – if I could get a word out of him!
Mel S
notanotherbookblog(at)hotmail(dot)co(dot)uk
I love character interviews. It usually ends up being very entertaining and not too spoilery either. 🙂
books (dot) things (at) yahoo (dot) com
I love character interviews.
I would love to have a private interview with Roarke from JD Robb's In Death Series.
kissinoak at frontier dot com
Ooh character interviews! Love them! So hard to pick who I would want to interview though.
Definitely Bones from Jeaniene Frost's series.
And I think I would want to interview Cassandra from Kelley Armstrong's Otherworld series, she has made some appearances, but hasn't had her book yet so I'm dying to know her story!
jessbess2505[at]yahoo[dot]com
Wow, it's hard to pick a character to interview, there are so many amazing ones. I think I'd pick Keri Arthur's Riley Jenson. I'd like her to tell me how her life has been since the series ended.
Yes, I think it's fun to read character interviews/out of books scenes, especially when it's a character I enjoy.
Barbed1951(at)aol(dot)com
I would love to interview Raphael from Archangel's Kiss by Nalini Singh. I want to see and hear what about him makes her believe he can be saved!
OMG here you go again making me drool over these questions!! I would sit with Menessos and ask him what his favorite era would be. I've got such a sweet "tooth" when it comes to history and personal experiences in the different times.
And now to the stalking… STALK! 😀
and if you enter me in the contest, know the book will find a good home, guaranteed!
BTW, STALK!
I love character interviews. They are always a blast. 🙂
I think I would like to sit down with Amanada Ferral from Mark Henry's zombie series. Of course with the disclaimer that I would not be lunch. I can always use some fashion tips, and I think it would just be snarky riot.
heatwave96(at)hotmail.com
I do like reading character interviews. You get that little something extra… a little bit more knowledge about them… a little more time with them….
lisagkATyahooDOTcom
Character interviews are such fun!
The character I would like to interview is a tie between P. G. Wodehouse's Jeeves and Terry Pratchett's Lord Ventinari. These are two almost-omniscient characters in their respective worlds.
ironss[at]gmail.com
I love reading character interviews and out of book scenes! I always like to check out authors' websites after finishing a book to see if they wrote any of these 'extras' so that we can either find out more about them or follow-up to see what happens to them after the story in the book ends.
chibipooh(at)gmail(dot)com
I would love to have a private interview with Edward from Twilight. I would have to ask him if he would destroy my pillows too or break things while we are making love, lol. Please enter me in contest. I would love to read this book. Tore923@aol.com
Its sooo cool to see the answers to questions like these! Some are characters from books I haven't read, and the comments you-all make are making me want to read them! So glad you all came by and enjoyed the short and commented!
Characters interviews are funny to read. It's good to see how they "are" outside of the book. I would like to interview Dumbledore hahaha 😛 And ask about his teenage years -me and everybody else lol-
sweet.sayumi@yahoo.com.br
I love reading character interviews! I like the little bit of insight you get into their "relaxed" life, or in their downtime, when their life isn't as adventurous enough to have a book written about it.
meredithfl at gmail dot com
As might know from multiple previous comments, I would love to interview Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games, about her true feelings for Gale.
girl23rocks at hotmail dot com
oh I loved book 1 and I can't wait to read on – the world you created is fantastic!!
I really like character interviews – they give me the feeling of learning more about them and sometimes you get more background information about the author too 🙂
an interview with Madoc (The Sentinels by Shannon K. Butcher) would be soo interesting and I would love to know all his dark secrets *g*
wish you all the best, Ina
I have to say that the cover for 'Arcane Circle' has me intrigued.
marypres@gmail.com
I think I'd like to sit down with Rhett Butler from GWTW and find out what happened after "Frankly my dear, I don't give a damn". Did he ever give Scarlett another chance or did he find someone else who would really deserve him.
Loved the first three books – looking forward to reading Arcane Circle, especially since Johnny "features prominently" LOL.
jen at delux dot com
Character interviews are very interesting and if l have time l like to read them.
l think they can sometimes work the wrong way though if not written right!
booksforcompany @ gmail.com
I'd like to interview Vlad from Jeaniene Frosts series. I don't know what I'd ask him, but I'd love to find out more about him.
natalie23[at]hotmail[dot]co[dot]uk
There are a lot of characters I would like to interview. But currently it's Fin from the Gods of Night series by Nina Bangs. I would like to know what he and his brother are and what happened between the two of them.
I love character interviews. They are even better when you have read the series since you know the characters.
beckerjo(at)verizon(dot)net
That was a lot of fun, thank you for posting!
I love character interviews and posts, I like seeing what they are like outside the novel and just plain seeing more of them.
folksohana(at)gmail(dot)com
Linda is a new author for me. I would love to read her books! Thanks for the nice character interview!
angeldream3(at)gmail(dot)com
I love to read character interviews, because they enhance my enjoyment and understanding of the character.
marlenebreakfield(at)yahoo(dot)com
I always enjoy character interviews. Thanks to Book Lover Inc., they have lots of post with it. It was fun to see them out of the book but still role as they are
aleetha.ally at gmail dot com
twitter: @aleetha
I enjoy character interviews and getting a glimpse into their point of view. Do not have anyone in particular I would want to interview.
linze_e at hotmail.com
I like character interviews, they give you a chance to learn something new about them.
spav05(at)gmail(dot)com