AMAZON     BARNES&NOBLE     HARLEQUIN

SERESSIA GLASS is a prolific author writing contemporary romance, urban fantasy, and paranormal romance. She has been the recipient of numerous awards including the 2000 Romance in Color Reviewers’ Choice Awards winner, Genesis Book of the Year, NO COMMITMENT REQUIRED 2001 Emma Awards nominee, Best New Author, and 2006 Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award Winner, THROUGH THE FIRE. Her current paranormal romance series, THE SONS OF ANUBIS, is part of Harlequin’s Nocturne Cravings line. The first novella, SEDUCING THE JACKAL, debuted in April 2013. The second, HUNTING THE JACKAL, will be available in June 2013.

RK: How did you begin your career as a writer and what was your first foray into speculative fiction?

SERESSIA: I began my career as a writer in 2000 with an interracial romance novel called No Commitment Required. I write a couple of more romances until Parker Publishing asked if I’d like to write a novella for a werewolves in Vegas anthology called Vegas Bites that LA Banks had the lead story in. Of course I jumped at the chance, and the rest is history!

RK: How did you create the character of Kira Solomon, the star of your urban fantasy series? Was there a particular inspiration?

SERESSIA: Kira is the final incarnation of multiple attempts at creating a fantasy and paranormal heroine. She was inspired by everything I’d read, watched, or experienced up to that point. My experiences with the paranormal, my love of ancient Egypt, favorite characteristics of different heroines I’ve admired, and weaknesses of some of my favorite characters.

RK: A lot of discussion focuses on creating powerful female heroines in the romance genre, but how do you create your male heroes? Do you find it more difficult or easier than your heroines?

SERESSIA: It always takes me a bit to get a firm grip on what makes my characters tick—whether they’re male or female. I know when I have them right because the words just flow, and I hear them talking. Still, I know if I’m creating a larger than life, kick butt heroine, the hero needs to be able to hold his own—even if it’s just as a foil for the heroine. So I work really hard at getting the heroines right, and make my male characters tragic heroes—something terrible has shaped them into the men they are when we meet them. Because angsty heroes are my secret weakness!

RK: You use a lot of Egyptian mythology in your work, both in Shadowchasers and Sons of Anubis. Where did this fascination begin? How do you do your research?

SERESSIA: I’ve been fascinated by Egyptian mythology and the ancient culture since I was a child. It probably started with watching the Shazam/Isis power hour when I was a kid. I just feel strangely connected to it, and love to learn about it. My sister’s the same way. I’ve done research at the Michael C Carlos Museum at Emory University in Atlanta which has an extensive Egyptian collection and possessed Ramesses the Great’s mummy for a while.

As for research, I watch every documentary on Ancient Egypt that I can get my hands on, I own a copy of the Book of the Dead, a massive lecture series on DVD and books from Dr. Bob Brier, lots of research books on Egyptian magic, mythology and daily life, and bookmarks on the Pyramid Texts, the Coffin Texts, and other writings from sacred-texts.org.

RK: How do you characterize the difference between urban fantasy and paranormal romance?

SERESSIA: In paranormal romance, you have world building, and action, but the relationship between the hero and heroine are the main focus. In urban fantasy, you have world building, action, and you may or may not have an intimate relationship. The focus is the hero or heroine’s journey through the world you’ve created, their internal and external fights and how they overcome them.

RK: Can you tell us more about your current release?

SERESSIA: My current release sends me back to paranormal romance. SEDUCING THE JACKAL launches what I call the Sons of Anubis series. The Sons of Anubis are jackal shapeshifters created by Anubis to protect the living from the dead who refuses to journey through the underworld and complete the Weighing of the Heart ceremony. The Daughters of Isis are priestesses of Isis who use magic to aid the Sons of Anubis in the fight against the Lost Ones. 4000 years ago betrayal drove the allies apart.

In Seducing the Jackal, Markus, leader of the Sons of Anubis kidnaps Tia, granddaughter of the high priestess to heal his men, who have been struck by a deadly curse. Enemies become allies then lovers and when the truth behind their ancient fued comes to light, they’ll have to join together to save their peoples.

And for some fun questions:

RK: If one of your series’ were made for television, which would it be? Who would you like to see in it?

SERESSIA: I think Shadowchasers would be easier to adapt to the small screen, since I use current-day Atlanta as a backdrop. I always wanted to see Jada Pinkett Smith in it in some way. If she doesn’t play Kira, I think she’d be good as Balm, leader of Gilead and the embodiment of Light. Not sure who I’d pick to play Khefar—they have to look good in dreads. And a loincloth!

RK: Which would you rather face down: a horde of zombies or a nest of vampires?

SERESSIA: If the nest isn’t starving, I’d rather face them. They at least still have reasoning capabilities, and I could convince them to keep me around as a long-term food source. Nothing stops zombies, no known vulnerabilities except taking out the brain, but you have to sleep sometime and they don’t. So I’d rather zombies didn’t exist.

RK: And because this is the Smart Girls love SciFi blog, if you could have a piece of technology from a SF film or franchise, what would it be and why?

SERESSIA: It’s a tie between the transporter from Star Trek and the gate from Stargate. I mean, is there a cooler, quicker way to travel?

Check out Seressia online:

SITE: http://seressia.com/

TWITTER: @seressia

Her most recent entry in the SHADOWCHASERS urban fantasy series, SHADOW FALL is currently available.

AMAZON

And available for pre-order:

AMAZON      BARNES&NOBLE      HARLEQUIN

I think it is oh, so shiney! What do you think? 

If you want to add Land of the Unaltered to your GOODREADS shelf, you can find it here. 

About the book:

Rose comes from the capital of the Confederation of Cities where its citizens live in luxury and the greatest fashion statement of all is being Altered. People change everything about the way they look as often as they do their hairstyle but Rose is different. Her position of privilege has made her an outcast and led her to suspect that something sinister is happening to the citizens and flees the capital along with a past that imprisons her in search of a fresh start in the Land of the Unaltered.

Flynn lives in the Land of the Unaltered and hates the capitol and everything it stands for. So when a spoiled capital girl is assigned to work with him, he wants nothing to do with her and is prepared to make her life miserable. But Flynn was not prepared for someone like Rose. She doesn’t fit the mold he expected and finds himself strongly attracted to her. As she continues to surprise and outwit him, they begin to forge a bond that is tested when they discover a secret that could change everything they know about Land of the Unaltered.

Land of the Unaltered is a Dystopian Romance and is the first installment of the Confederation Trilogy.

Find out more about Leti and her books on her blog: http://wordswithletidelmar.blogspot.com/

And don’t forget to add her book to your GOODREADS shelf. It is on GOODREADS at: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17875009-land-of-the-unaltered

Today, my thirteen year old, after two years of study experienced the tradition and ritual of the rite of Confirmation. The festivities are over and finally I have the chance to examine the question plaguing me this weekend.

If all societies have traditions and rituals meant to protect and perpetuate their belief systems, what then do Vampires, Werewolves and the like do celebrate their milestones?

In some books, puberty is a rite marked by a shifters first change. In others, it is the mating dance or call. In some, I’ve heard of the first hunt or the first kill celebrated as a rite of passage. I wracked my brain for a vampire ceremony, but all I could think of was the turning of a vampire born.

It was in a book I read long ago, where the heroine meets her hero on the night she is to turn. Now, I can remember whether it happened “naturally” or if something was required to start the process.

The only rituals I can think of for ghost are exorcisms.

I can’t help but think that there have to be others.  After all these are creatures based on human even if they have immortal or long life or, have abilities from other creatures. After all, even creatures in the wild have been known to mourn their dead and they are not human.

Blockbuster – check!
I have to disclose that I’m inclined to like any Star Trek movie, but I think I would have enjoyed this one even if I wasn’t already a fan. You can always count on Director, JJ Abrams, to make a big action-packed block-buster. That is what he set out to do and I’d say he succeeded for the most part. I highly recommend the movie, but I feel compelled to warn you that it isn’t a perfect movie so set your expectations accordingly.

Into the not so Dark – ness 
I had a bit of trouble with my own expectations. Perhaps it was the name, but I was expecting a darker flick. There are plenty of ‘darker trappings’ and emotionally dark moments, but the overall effect isn’t dark. If the movie fails anywhere, I’d say it was in those dark or dramatic moments. You don’t want solutions to appear out of the blue, but I’m not sure you want them to be quite this predictable. The movie too often telegraphs the plot twists before they are executed and the solution to the dark moment is easy to spot long before it is needed. I’d go so far as to call it predictable.  But this is adventure not mystery, so a bit of predictability isn’t disastrous. The movie is still a fun ride and even laugh-out-loud funny at times.

Fandom Nods Noted
Many of the jokes come in the form of nods to the fans. Fondly remembered lines abound, but not every nod to fans hits the mark. Some are just too on the nose and each of those occurrences took me out of the story. The more subtle references or twists on the original fare much better. At least for me.

Get your Star Wars out of my Star Trek
My last complaint may be a bit petty. I know Abrams has been pretty open about not being a Star Trek fan until he put his own mark on it. I guess that is okay as is his preference for Star Wars. I won’t begrudge anyone their childhood favorites. However, I was disappointed when one of the last big scenes of the movie was played out in a manner so similar to scenes in Star Wars episode 2 that I expected a skinny, arrogant Aniken to beam into the scene at any moment. (sigh)

Embrace the Bromance
What makes the movie stellar, in spite of any weaknesses, is the central character relationships. At the heart of this movie is the friendship between Kirk and Spock. That delights my fannish heart more than any tribble or red-shirt reference. The evolution of that friendship and its effects on the two men and the rest of the crew are integral to the story and develop apace with the plot. Zachary Quinto and Chris Pine execute it perfectly.  Into Darkness, taps into the Star Trek tradition of looking at ethical complexity, hard choices, right and wrong, logic and passion, love and respect and I heartily approve.

I’m pleased to reveal the cover for S.A. Huchton’s upcoming novel, Maven (The Endure Series, book 1). 

This New Adult Science Fiction Romance will be available June 3^rd, 2013; but we’re getting a first look.

About the book:

How far would you go for love?

Since losing her parents at 14, young prodigy Dr. Lydia Ashley has focused on one thing: an appointment on the Deep Water Research Command Endure. Now 21, she’s about to realize that dream, but nothing is how she imagined it would be. Her transitional sponsor forgets her, her new lab is in complete chaos, and, as if that weren’t enough, she’s about to discover something so horrific it could potentially destroy all life on the planet. 

Daniel Brewer, a noted playboy and genius in his own right, may be exactly what she needs… Or he may make everything worse.

Has she finally found a puzzle she can’t solve?

About the Author:

Starla Huchton released her first novel, The Dreamer’s Thread, as a full cast podcast production beginning in August 2009. Her first foray went on to become a double-nominee and finalist for the 2010 Parsec Awards. Since her debut, Starla’s voice has appeared in other podcasts including The Dunesteef Audio Fiction Magazine, The Drabblecast, and Erotica a la Carte. She is also a voice talent for Darkfire Productions, and narrates several of their projects, including The Emperor’s Edge series, This Path We Share, and others. Her writing has appeared in the Erotica a la Carte podcast, a short story for The Gearheart, and an episode of the Tales from the Archives podcast (the companion to Tee Morris and Philippa Balantine’s Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences series), which garnered her a second finalist badge from the 2012 Parsec Awards. Her second novel, a Steampunk adventure entitled Master of Myth, was the first place winner in the Fantasy/Science Fiction category of The Sandy Writing Contest held annually by the Crested Butte Writers Conference. Maven is her third completed novel and the first in a planned series of four.

After completing her degree in Graphic Arts at Monterey Peninsula College, Starla opened up shop as a freelance graphic designer focusing on creating beautiful book covers for independent authors publishers. She currently lives in Virginia where she trains her three Minions and military husband.

http://www.designedbystarla.com

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Starla-Huchton-Author-Page/255657227797465

Twitter: @riznphnx