Guest Post & Giveaway with Andrea Cremer

 

 

I am very happy to have the amazing debut author Andrea Cremer by my side today! The first  novel of her trilogy, Nightshade, will release in October 2010 and let me tell you, this is one amazing book! I was lucky enough to receive an ARC, so you can read my review here if you want more details! Andrea created a rather unique werewolf love in her book, and I asked her to tell us a bit more about it!

 

 

 

Calla Tor has always know her destiny: After graduating from the Mountain School, she’ll be the mate of sexy alpha wolf Ren Laroche and fight with him, side by side, ruling their pack and guarding scared sites for the keepers. But when she violate her masters’ by saving a beautiful human boy out for a hike, Calla begins to question her fate, her existence, and the very essence of the world she has known. By following her heart, she might loose everything- including her own life. Is forbidden love worth the ultimate sacrifice?

 

Something Wolfish This Way Comes

Thanks so much, Tynga, for the invitation to share some thoughts about wolves and writing. This post will be part confession, part discussion.  First: confession.

I’ve lived long in the realm of paranormal/fantasy proudly bearing my badge of vampire girl. That’s right: I came on board as a fan of vamps, not werewolves. I was Team Edward during Twilight. I prefer Bill and Eric to Sam in Tru Blood. But before you start throwing tomatoes, let me tell you why.

Friends who knew I was a vampire girl presumed that meant I love ALL forms of paranormal, so they’d push werewolves at me enthusiastically. I wasn’t interested, and I couldn’t figure out why. After all they were fierce, strong, magical – all things I liked. So what was the problem? And then it hit me – I didn’t like werewolves because I love wolves.

That’s right – I’m a wolf girl, but a real wolf girl. I grew up so far North in Wisconsin that it’s practically Canada. Wolves roamed the forests of my homeland. I also loved National Geographic specials even more than cartoons. So by age 9 I could rattle off biological and ecological info like a pro. Wolves to me were beautiful, intelligent, social, and graceful.

Werewolves seemed to be none of these things. The werewolves I’d encountered on page and screen were hideous – half man/half beast, usually ugly, often unintelligent, driven only by rage or bloodlust.

And worst of all: they didn’t want to be wolves. Lycanthropy occurs as a curse, or a disease. The endgoal of most werewolf tales was to kill the wolf or free the affected person of the wolf curse.

I couldn’t come to grips with that idea. If someone asked me – hey wanna turn into a wolf? I’d say “heck, yeah!” Wouldn’t you rather be a wolf? From what I know of wolves, the answer is indisputably YES.

Nightshade’s Guardians are my way of coming to terms with my love of wolves and my trouble with classic werewolf tales. Calla – the alpha female who narrates Nightshade – is powerful and revels in her life as a wolf.

Her troubles arise not from her ability to shift, but from the ways in which her masters try to limit her power, to restrain her freedoms.

Wolves also inspire me because of their sociability.

Pack relationships offered a wonderful way to explore a world of friendship, servitude, loyalty, and betrayal. While Nightshade is about Calla’s journey, it’s also the story of her pack. The other wolves in the book play key roles throughout the trilogy. Wolves offered a wonderful framework around which to explore relationships, love, fear, and rivalry.

I still love vampires, but I have to say I think I’m switching teams. Wolves carry a magic and mystery to me that captured my heart and hasn’t let go. It was just a matter of finding my own way to tell their story.

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Thank you very much Andrea for sharing with us =) It’s true that werewolves are offend portrayed as violent and impulsive creatures and the lore you created for Nightshade was quite refreshing!

Now to give you a taste of what you can expect from Nightshade, here are the very first sentences of the book!

I'd always welcomed war, but in battle my passion rose unbidden.
The bear's roar filled my ears. Its hot breath assaulted my nostrils, fueling my bloodlust. Behind me I could hear the boy's ragged breath. The desperate sound made my nails dig into the earth. I snarled at the larger predator again, daring it to try to get past me.

Convinced yet? Yeah, that’s what I thought!

Andrea generously offered and ARC of Nightshade and a wolfish surprise (a calendar, stuffed animal, or postcards, something like that) to a lucky reader!

Why is it a surprise? Well surprises are way cool, but Andrea hasn’t decided yet lol so whoever wins, please let me know what you received lol I’m a curious little think!

Open Worldwide (Thank you Andrea!)

to enter, Please FILL THE FORM

Ends July 4th, 2010.

Posted by Tynga at 00:05

 Andrea Cremer, giveaway, Guest Post, Paranormal Summer Fest, werewolf  29 People left their mark

Tynga is a 32 years old mom of two, from Montreal, working as a lab technician in an hospital specialized in heart disease. In her free time, she enjoys reading all things Paranormal and photography.

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