Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Blog Tour: Erin by Miranda Stork


I will have a Review, Excerpt, Interview, and Giveaway. 



Erin is the werewolf Queen of Athol Castle. She has no memories of the events of a few months ago, where she believed herself to be a psychologist, and met the enigmatic and charming Conner… Filtiarn has taken over Conner’s body once more, and is relishing being in control. Cruel and sensual, he decides to work on a plan...to take over humanity. He begins a war...of werewolves against humans. But unknown to him, Conner is fighting against him within his own body, to set things right, and to bring Erin back from her own darkness. He tries to undo a great mistake from long ago, using Erin’s famed sword, Sioctine, as remnants of his own memory come back to him, opening up the present he now lives in. At the same time, another enemy is using the situation to their advantage, following the werewolves at every turn, threatening to undo everything that Conner is struggling to obtain... But will he be able to bring Erin back from Filtiarn’s grasp, or is it too late? And will he be able to stop the war against the humans progressing? And who is threatening to take over not only the humans, but the werewolves as well?

My Rating:

My Review:
Erin is in the dark when this book begins and let me tell you, so are you as the reader. I like the feeling of learning things along with the characters, it builds a stronger connection. 

The circumstances surrounding Connor and Erin are so heartbreaking. Connor is so that hero that you root for and feel for the entire book. 

This is definitely a darker take on a Paranormal Romance but so unique and wonderful! 



EXCERPT

Sighing heavily, Erin plonked herself down on the bed she had been laid on just
a few hours before, swinging her legs out in front her. Conner smiled, and came to sit
next to her, winding his arm across her shoulders.
“What’s wrong?”
Erin leaned into his warm body, closing her eyes for a second, and wrapping
her arms around him. “I’m just…tired. It’s a lot to take in, you know? One minute I
have this normal life…and then you find out that that was all a lie, and your real life
is so incredibly complicated. I just wish I had something to hang on to that wasn’t
complicated.”
Putting his hand under her chin, Conner lifted her face to his. “You have me.
I’ll always love you, even as Filtiarn, I loved you. That will never be complicated, and
that will never change.” Erin’s lips curved into a smile as he gently planted a kiss on
them. “Do you remember the first time I gave in to you when you were at Forest Hall? I
couldn’t keep up the pretense the whole time; it was killing me seeing you and not being
able to touch you.”
Erin blushed, lowering her gaze. “You mean in the shower?”
Conner grinned broadly, making his face look even more sexy. “Yes, in the
shower. You smelled so amazing…”
Swallowing, Erin lowered her head, pulling her chin away from his hand, so that
he couldn’t see her grinning shyly in return.
Conner looked at her soft hair for a few minutes, teasing himself with the memory
of burying his face in that soft, sweet-smelling hair, the touch of her smooth skin next to
his, her eyes melting in pleasure…
He gently but firmly lifted her head up again, so that he could see into those
stunning blue eyes. Erin was smiling, but a deep rosy blush had covered her cheeks,
making her look even more beautiful to Conner. He leant down, pressing his lips against
hers. She didn’t resist, and put her hand on his shoulder, to get closer to him. Reading
her signals, he placed his other hand behind her head, pulling her deeper into their kiss,
threading his fingers through her silky hair. His body began to stir, but he forced himself
to be slow and careful, easing her into this. He growled low in his throat, a primal, raw
sound, thrusting his tongue into her mouth, licking her lip gently.
The sound made her moan a little, as she let her tongue meet his. The sound
made his groin ache, and his breathing began to go faster. His instincts were taking
over, telling him to pin her down and rip her clothes off, but he held back, instead gently
tracing her collarbone with the pad of his thumb. She shivered a little at the touch,
placing her hands on his chest, clawing slightly, as if she too, wanted him stripped off.
Conner pulled his mouth away, gasping slightly. He leaned his head, and
began to slowly lay butterfly kisses along her neck, moving his lips along the top of her

collarbone, remembering how she had reacted to that in the shower, all that time ago.
She cried out, making him instantly go rock hard against her, his hips moving of their
own accord, as if he were losing control of them. Erin pushed him off for a moment;
making him furrow his brows in disappointment-perhaps he had done too much?
“Erin, I’m sorry, I-“
“What are you sorry for?” When Erin spoke, her voice was husky and soft. She
grinned at him, her eyes looking drowsy with lust. Leaning back, she pulled her sweater
off, revealing her creamy lace bra. Unhooking it quickly, she pulled that off as well,
letting it fall to the floor. She looked back up at Conner. “Is this okay?”


BUY LINKS





I was born in Guisborough, North Yorkshire in 1987 and have lived in various places
around Britain, including Newcastle and Glasgow. I now live in North Yorkshire with my
wonderful partner, and our spoilt but gorgeous cat!
My writing is inspired by various writers, including the vivid characters of Charles
Dickens, the imagination of Stephen King, and the gothic imagery of Anne Rice.
My love of horror began at an early age, when I was only three or four. I could read
proficiently at the age of three, and devoured fairy-stories, but I always had a bent
towards the darker stories, such as the Brother's Grimm's tales...Red Riding Hood was
always a firm favourite, although I always felt sorry for the wolf, despite him having tried
to eat everyone!




Interview with Miranda Stork

Is There a Message in Your Novel That You Want Readers to Grasp?

Hmm….I think that there might be a few. The first one is definitely how we look at
ourselves as humanity. The whole reasoning behind Filtiarn wanting to take control of
things is because humans were once of the side of nature and hence the werewolves, but
they turned their backs on it. Humanity has become greedy and needs to remember we
are not the most important species here.
The other main message in my books is one of hope. Even in the direst situations,
my characters try to remain strong, and they never give up. If we do not have hope
in life, then we don’t have anything. As Andy Dufresne says in the Shawshank
Redemption, “hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things”.
Aside from that, the message that werewolves are cool!

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?

Good question. I find it particularly challenging to write an action scene. I had a lot of
practice with this in ‘Erin’, and it’s difficult to realise you actually have to slow things
down in order to build the tension. I wrote the scenes first with the action and speed that
I wanted the readers to feel, and then went back and focussed on small details in order to
create more drama.

How many books have you written and which is your favorite?

I’ve written seven to date, but six of them are published, and one will be out near
Christmas. My favourite is still ‘Conner’. To me it’s the one that got me started on this
writing lark, and the one that made me realise I could do this. Erin and Conner will be
like my two favourite children no matter how many other books I write.

If You had the chance to cast your main character from Hollywood today, who
would you pick and why?

Although I would love to have unknowns playing the parts of my main characters if I
had the chance to cast anyone for a film, for Conner I think I would cast Colin Farrell. I
think he could pull of the dual personalities needed, and he has the right sort of style for a
rough and ready Alpha male, while being somewhat snarky. Plus he’s hot. *giggle*

When did you begin writing?

It depends what you mean. I began writing seriously about three years ago, but
I’ve always written stories since I was tiny. When I was a little girl, I use to make
fake ‘books’ with sheets of folded A4 paper, and write the stories in. Being a writer was
never a choice for me, it was what I felt I was meant to be.

How long did it take to complete your first book?

‘Conner’ took about a year and a half-with six months of writer’s block in between. Then
it just sat for a few years with not much happening, until a few months ago I decided to
re-edit it, as I had also written Erin. It took a great deal longer than my current ones do, as
I wasn’t sure how they would be taken.

Did you have an author who inspired you to become a writer?

LOTS. Although the main three would have to be Enid Blyton, Agatha Christie, and
Charles Dickens. Enid Blyton really captured my reading mind when I was little, with
the vast worlds and characters she created with her imagination. Agatha Christie was
a master of suspense and red herrings, and I like to hope I learned something from
reading her books, and use this in my own novels. And Charles Dickens had wonderfully
real, gritty characters and situations-he wrote about the real world in fictional terms,
something else I hope to emulate.

What is your favorite part of the writing process?

Just one? No fair! I guess if I could choose just one, it would have to be actually creating
the characters. It’s a little like giving birth, but you get to choose every aspect of their
life, from what toothpaste they like, to that terrible event in school.

Describe your latest book in 4 words.

Exciting. Dangerous. Sexy. Dark.

Can you share a little bit about your current work or what is in the future for your
writing?

I’m now onto my fourth novella in my ‘Bassinville Witches’ series, a series of monthly
novellas about a town of Wiccans and some powerful stones that must be collected.
There are, of course, evil forces working against them, and the series will have 12 books
when I’m finished. My next novel will be ‘Vigilante of Shadows’, a totally new series of
books about a dystopian world in which the world has become like ‘1984’ but vampires
are now in charge. ‘Vigilante of Shadows’ is the prequel to these events, setting up how
it happened, and the main characters that will be the good in this evil new world. I’m
currently writing up the next one in the series. I also have lots of short stories coming out
at various times throughout the year.








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