PAF: Interview with Dakota Banks + giveaway!

Today's guest is the talented Dakota Banks! I'm so happy she was able to join us to talk about DELIVERANCE, the upcoming third book in her Mortal Path series.

Read on to learn all about DELIVERANCE and enter to win an amazing swag bag from Dakota!

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Hi, Dakota, and welcome to Paranormal April Fools’! Would you mind starting off by telling us about your Mortal Path series?

The Mortal Path tells the story of a woman who sold her soul to an ancient Sumerian demon in colonial America in the late 1600s. In exchange for immortality and other gifts, she works as the demon’s assassin but gradually sickens of the killing. Finally she rebels and breaks the contract she signed in blood. It’s not so easy turning your back on a demon who owns your soul! Maliha Crayne, now over 300 years old, must redeem herself by saving a person for each one she’s killed, and it’s a huge number. That balancing act plays out on a scale carved into her chest by a demon’s claw. She’s also collecting shards of a diamond lens that will enable her to destroy all of the seven remaining Sumerian demons. Maliha gradually collects a team of close friends who know her story and are trying to help her succeed, but filling a heart that was empty of love for three centuries is more of a challenge. The Mortal Path books are action-filled paranormal thrillers.

You’ve put Maliha through the proverbial wringer in DARK TIME and SACRIFICE. Can we expect more of the same in DELIVERANCE?

More of the same? How about doubling down? In DELIVERANCE, the stakes are intensely personal as one of Maliha’s inner circle of friends is kidnapped to force Maliha back into assassin mode. She doesn’t take kindly to anyone messing with her friends, but she doesn’t want to be the kidnapper’s remote-control killing machine either. It’s a dilemma. She’s looking for a way out of it, and I, for one, wouldn’t want to get in her path.

I love that the series draws on Sumer for inspiration. How did you choose this ancient civilization’s religion as the base for the Mortal Path series?

I came up with the idea for the Mortal Path series in 2003, during the Iraq war when coalition forces entered Baghdad. The Iraqi National Museum, left unguarded, was looted. Priceless artifacts from Iraq’s past, including the Sumerian period, disappeared or were damaged. (Much has been recovered now, due to an international effort.) There was a lot in the news, including photos, of artifacts that had survived in some patched-together or intact form for 7,000 years only to be smashed under an angry Iraqi’s boot. I’m an amateur archaeologist with a particular interest in this region. Remember your fifth grade social studies about the valley between the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers and the Cradle of Civilization? That’s Sumer, located in modern-day Iraq. The whole museum episode started me thinking that if some dusty, dry artifacts plus piles of gold and silver treasures survived to this day, what else conceivably could have survived? Since I was already interested in Sumerian mythology, it didn’t take much to bring some Sumerian demons forward and turn them into malevolent forces in our day. The mythology in the books follows real legends from Sumer until you get to the part about demons surviving to current times. I made that part up!

Are we ever going to see Maliha’s face on a cover? ;)

No. ;) I suggested at the start that Maliha always be shown looking forward into a compelling scene, so that our eyes were seeing what she sees. I was thrilled to see the suggestion rendered in the first cover (art by Don Shipley), and as far as I know that style will continue.

Are there more books planned in the Mortal Path series? If so, can you tell us a little bit about them?

Maliha has things left to do: balance her scale to redeem her soul, find all of the shards to eliminate the demons, and of course the HEA. Yes, there will be one. She deserves it.

And now a couple April Fools’-related questions:

To prank or not to prank?

Depends. If the prank is the mean kind, just hurting someone disguised as humor, then that’s not for me. If it’s something the “victim” can really laugh about, count me in.

Would anyone survive pranking Maliha?

Hmm. Maliha has a good sense of humor and would take a good-natured prank. The mean kind—well, keep in mind she has a whip sword that can slice people in half, and being humiliated isn’t her thing.

Thank you very much for taking the time to stop by, Dakota. It’s been a pleasure!

Thanks for having me here. It’s been fun!

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Intrigued? Here’s the scoop on DELIVERANCE, which hits bookshelves on Tuesday:

Kill . . . or be damned.

A demon's assassin for centuries, Maliha Crayne has gone rogue, determined to save a life for every one she's destroyed in order to free herself from an eternity of enslavement, damnation, and excruciating torment. But as the powers that sustained her in the past fade, she is wary of trusting those closest to her—especially her lover, Jake. And her closest friends are beginning to disappear, one by one. Amid her anger, suspicion, and sorrow, her life is spiraling out of control.

Worse still, a beautiful Renaissance murderess is recruiting Maliha as her new assassin. Maliha is turning into a lethal puppet with an evil Immortal pulling the strings, forced to kill innocents or see her missing friends die horribly. Suddenly trapped in a moral no-man's-land, Maliha is damned if she does and damned if she doesn't . . . and time is rapidly running out.

Read an excerpt (scroll down)

Pre-order: Amazon | Book Depository

And here's the rest of the series in case you need to get caught up:

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Dakota is generously offering one (1) swag bag to a very lucky reader!
I wish I could win this one :)

To enter the giveaway, fill out the Rafflecopter form below.

Open internationally.

Ends Sunday, April 15, 2012
(like all of our Paranormal April Fools’ giveaways)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Growing up in a converted 1890s funeral home, complete with blood gutters in the basement floor, fueled Dakota Banks' interest in the paranormal. She's no ghost whisperer, but she keeps an open mind. She's fascinated with both archaeology and the paranormal, especially when the two intersect, as they do in Mortal Path.

Dakota is a member of the Horror Writers Association, International Thriller Writers, Romance Writers of America and Paranormal Romance Guild. She lives in a St. Louis suburb with her husband, two sons adopted from Peru and Ethiopia, and a couple of cats who keep her writing on track.

Website | Facebook | Twitter

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by jenn at Saturday, March 24, 2012

 Dakota Banks, Demon, giveaway, Harper Collins, Interview, Paranormal April Fools'  117 People left their mark

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Deliverance by Dakota Banks

Deliverance by Dakota Banks

Book Stats:
Reading level: Adult
Genre: Urban fantasy
Mass market paperback: 304 pages
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Release date: March 27, 2012

Series: Mortal Path #3

Source: Review copy from HarperCollins

Reviewed by: Jenn

Pre-order: Amazon | Book Depository

Kill . . . or be damned.

A demon's assassin for centuries, Maliha Crayne has gone rogue, determined to save a life for every one she's destroyed in order to free herself from an eternity of enslavement, damnation, and excruciating torment. But as the powers that sustained her in the past fade, she is wary of trusting those closest to her—especially her lover, Jake. And her closest friends are beginning to disappear, one by one. Amid her anger, suspicion, and sorrow, her life is spiraling out of control.

Worse still, a beautiful Renaissance murderess is recruiting Maliha as her new assassin. Maliha is turning into a lethal puppet with an evil Immortal pulling the strings, forced to kill innocents or see her missing friends die horribly. Suddenly trapped in a moral no-man's-land, Maliha is damned if she does and damned if she doesn't . . . and time is rapidly running out.

Maliha Crane leads a complicated life. She was a Sumerian demon's immortal assassin for about 300 years before realizing the error of her ways and choosing to go rogue and walk the mortal path. Her task? To balance the scale, saving enough lives to atone for the ones she took in the demon's name before she dies. Now, she only has some of her previously abilities and she ages a random amount of time every time something happens to her scale, which is literally burned onto her stomach so that she can feel the lives walking from one side of the scale to the other. (No one said the mortal path is easy.)

Thankfully, Maliha has a small team that knows what she is and helps her with her mission: Hound, a Vietnam vet she saved during the war who works as a PI; Amaro, a street kid she saved who's now a wunderkind in the hacker world; and Yanmeng, a spiritual man she saved during the revolution in China. (See a theme yet?) She's also had some interesting men in her life: Jake, a DEA agent from MORTAL PATH, the first book, and Lucian, an Ageless centurion she met in SACRIFICE, the second book.

If you read my PAF interview with Dakota, you know that she's really upped the stakes in DELIVERANCE. She mentions doubling down on the danger/drama/stress and I think that may be an understatement! DELIVERANCE is filled with action, suspense, raw honesty, and great drama. It's definitely the most high-stakes instalment in the series yet and I couldn't put it down. Dakota has done a marvellous job of creating an untenable situation and forcing Maliha to deal with it. I'm sure you all know how much I love characters who suffer at their creator's hands and Maliha does a lot of suffering, in addition to some serious butt-kicking.

As you know from the cover blurb, Maliha and her friends are being manipulated by another Ageless, one who revels in violence and bloodshed. It's a position that is extremely uncomfortable for Maliha, who's forced into a reactionary position similar to the one she occupied when she worked for Rashibu (her demon), as opposed to being her usual woman of action Her opponent is truly evil and is another great example of how well the author incorporates history into her narrative.

There's so much good stuff in DELIVERANCE it's hard for me to say what I liked best about it. If forced, though, I think I'd say it's the fact that we get to see how much Maliha's relationships mean to her and how important her team have become, even though she knows she'll outlive them all. Her bond with Yanmeng, in particular, is touching. We see just how much she's will to do to save her people when they're threatened and it's a testament to how much Maliha's evolved since she was Ageless.

Overall, DELIVERANCE is a satisfying slice of urban fantasy, sure to please fans of the genre. I strongly encourage you to check out this book and series!

P.S. You can read more about the series mythology on Dakota's website.

Read an excerpt (scroll down)

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by jenn at Saturday, March 24, 2012

 Dakota Banks, Demon, Harper Collins, Review  4 People left their mark

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In My Mailbox

Before getting to serious business, I would like to thank The Story Siren for hosting In My Mailbox every weeks =)

 

Cat & Page Turners girls you need to watch this! ^^

 

Books Mentioned:

For Review:

Sacrifice by Dakota Banks

Paranormalcy by Kiersten White

Kisses from Hell Anthology

Won:

Linger by Maggie Stiefvater

Bought:

The Mortal Instrument set by Cassandra Clare

 

Also I wanted to mention it in the vlog but I completely forgot *doh*, I will announce the winners of the three giveaway that ended at midnight on Tuesday August 24th!

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by Tynga at Sunday, August 22, 2010

 Cassandra Clare, Dakota Banks, in my mailbox, Kiersten White, Maggie Stiefvater  17 People left their mark

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Guest Post & Giveaway with Dakota Banks

 

Today Dakota Banks, author of Dark Time and it’s soon-to-be-released sequel Sacrifice (August 31st,  2010) stopped by to let us know what a day in her life is like! She’s saying her schedule is weird, but it’s actually a lot like mine, minus the nap at 8PM lol. Read on to learn more and don’t miss the giveaway!

 

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Writing is like a box of chocolates.You never know what you're gonna get.

That nails a writing career in general, and my writing day specifically. Hello, I'm Dakota Banks and I have a weird working day. Sounds a bit like an introduction at a rehab group, doesn't it? Trust me, it's just life as usual for me.

My day starts at noon. Yes, noon. But don't bother with the "I knew it! Writers goof off all day." So there I am at noon, in my t-shirt and comfy shorts, drinking coffee and reading a newspaper or magazine. What appears to be goofing off is actually research. Between bites of bagel, I scan for story ideas. Research includes watching the birds at the bird feeders outside my window. On some days I am thrilled to see a Pileated Woodpecker, an uncommon sight where I live. Almost twenty inches long, with a red crest, black body, and white underneath the wings, pileateds make a spectacular appearance. I'm still trying to fit one into a book, but the right time hasn't come up yet. Not all research is of immediate use. Sometimes it has to ferment in the brain for a time.

After breakfast, I walk down the hall to my office. Sounds good to those with jobs outside the home, I'm sure--no commute, no cubicles, no office gossip. The downside is my work is always steps away. A-l-w-a-y-s. Weekends off? Forget it. Vacations? Nope. Sick days? Only if I'm in the hospital. I have limped, dragged, sniffled, and throbbed my way to my desk. I have fallen asleep at my computer and awakened with an imprint of the keyboard on my face. But it's all good, because I'm doing what I love--writing.

In the afternoon, I deal with the business of writing. That means answering email, communicating  with my agent and editor, and the big assortment of tasks under the umbrella of promotion. I have a book release in two months, so I've been busy with plastering my book cover on anything that doesn't move, setting up book signings, and so on. At the same time, I'm working on a synopsis of the next book with my editor, getting a general direction for the book established. I changed agents recently and have some issues left to resolve with my former agent. These things don't all come naturally to me. They've been learned over time and sometimes at cost. I think a lot of new writers are starry-eyed about long days listening to their muse, when in fact writing has a business side as well as a creative one. In my case, and it's common with other writers I have talked to, time is generally split about forty percent on business and sixty percent on writing.

It's now about five p.m., and I take a break for dinner with my family. After that I might watch an hour or so of TV (recorded or DVDs) or might not have time for that. TV time has no place in a busy schedule, along with lots of time with friends, either in person or on the phone, and aimless Internet use. An interesting thing about friends. My long-term friends had no problem adjusting to the new demands in my life. Casual friends dropped away because I couldn't be there for them often enough. I find that I don't mind. Writing has taught me to take quality of relationship over quantity.

It's eight p.m. and time for a nap. What! A nap! I said I had a weird working day, and this is what works for me. I take a two hour nap, get up about ten p.m., and make some coffee. I head for the office, where I write during the quiet hours of the night. I use a synopsis of the entire book, developed in advance and submitted to my editor for comments. For me it's much better to let the editor know where I'm going with the book, and get her input up front on a fifteen page synopsis, than to submit a finished manuscript and get hit with revisions. At night, the house belongs to me and my two cats, Peanut and Marble. Sometimes I write a lot of pages, sometimes struggle to complete one page. Night Writer is my nickname, and I've earned it. When I take a break, I step outside and look at the stars. Or my frozen breath on a winter night or the full moon making a patch of white daisies glow like little ghost faces.I generally write until four or five a.m., sometimes longer. I take a long, hot shower (The hot water's all mine! Bliss.), meditate to clear my head of the frantic rush of words, and go to bed.

Up at noon--repeat.

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Thank you Dakota! It’s great to get to know you I little better!  Best of luck with Sacrifice’s release =D

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Now onto some Giveaway love!

Dakota and Harper Collins Canada are offering a total of 3 copies of Sacrifice!

2 copies available worldwide and 1 copy to Canada Only.

Books will be shipped around release date (so end of August)

A Sumerian demon's enslaved executioner--a ravager of lives and souls--Maliha Crayne has been reborn, willing to sacrifice her immortality for a chance at freedom ... and salvation.
Now she has an opportunity to prevent the death of thousands to help balance the countless lives she has obliterated over the centuries. To do so, she must locate and destroy an evil cabal of madmen in possession of a weapon of unspeakable power--and survive the immortal assassins who are now after her blood.
But it means reverting to the old ways and surrendering once more to the darkness. And if Maliha dies before the mission is accomplished, the hell she once knew will seem like a picnic compared to the eternal torments awaiting her.

to enter, Please FILL THE FORM

Ends July 4th, 2010.

 

Don’t forget to leave a comment and show some love to Dakota <3

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by Tynga at Friday, June 25, 2010

 Dakota Banks, giveaway, Guest Post, Harper Collins, Paranormal Summer Fest  19 People left their mark

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