Of Light and Darkness: Author Interview

[Sorry about the blank post- not sure how that happened, apparently blogger hard at work again on my blog :-/]

Let's Welcome Shayne Leighton, Author of The Vampire's Daughter, Of Light and Darkness No. 1! I absolutely adored this book and was totally excited when I got a chance to send a few questions over to Shayne Leighton via {Teen Book Scene}!

Hi Stacey! Thank you so much for having me at Flippin’ Fabulous!!!

[1] I know that writing isn't your only talent, I have found out you have several, do you care to share with us some of your others?
Thank you! I do really love writing and think that it’s my most therapeutic passion. When I’m writing, it’s only my thoughts and myself.  But you’re right – I do partake in a bunch of other collaborative art forms that I also am really passionate about. My background is primarily in acting and filmmaking. I’ve been acting in television commercials and film since I was 5 years old and also had an extreme love for musical theatre throughout high school. I think I just love story-telling in general, so I try to do it utilizing as many facets of the arts as I possibly can, whether it be acting, singing, or writing.

[2] I read Of Light and Darkness, loved it, and really felt the passion between the characters and their situations. Where did your inspiration for Of Light and Darkness come from?
Of Light and Darkness is my most favorite thing I’ve penned to date. I pulled from a lot of different areas of my life and research for inspiration. I love all things magical and impossible. Most of my inspiration, however, stemmed from my husband and his rich, Czech heritage. After hearing so many stories, I absolutely fell in love with the country, its setting, and its history.
Also, this is really interesting, but the first bout of inspiration that jump-started the fact that I would even write the story was a dream I had where I was actually walking through the hazy streets of what would become my Occult town at night. It kind of looked like something out of the movies ‘Hocus Pocus’ and ‘Halloween Town’.

[3] Being the nosy blogger that I am, I have also noticed that you have listed possible more books to go with Of Light and Darkness. Is Of Light and Darkness going to be a series following Charlotte and Valek or are you writing other stand alone titles featuring other characters or are they new stories altogether?
Of Light and Darkness is DEFINITELY being planned as a series that will continue to follow Charlotte and Valek. I just love these characters too much to leave them alone.

[4] Silly question I know but your pictures, your works, and your talents make me feel like maybe came from another time. Do you ever feel like maybe you were born in the wrong era or world?
I actually LOVE this question, because I totally feel like that’s true. I feel like maybe my past life was in the Victorian Era. I don’t feel a tie to anything Medieval, but Victorian, definitely. Plus, I’m kind of trying to write the Of Light and Darkness series as a borderline Steampunk series. I just really like the feel of this budding, new genre which was sort of birthed from Victorian style.

[5] Now a question I make a point to ask every author I am able to.... If you were a color, you'd be? If you were a season, you'd be? If you were a shape, you'd be?
If I were a color, I would totally be a deep, warm, autumn red – it’s a tad seductive, a tad soft, and a tad fiery all at the same time.
If I were a season, I would be autumn! It’s my absolute favorite time of year and Halloween is of course my favorite holiday!
If I were a shape, I would be a triangle. I don’t know why…I feel like I just would be…


Thank You for stopping by Shayne! I loved this interview, I think it is one of my favorite to date :-)

Fab Readers, if you have a chance make sure to check out Of Light of Darkness, it is absolutely fabulous!
| Goodreads | Amazon | B&N |

ARC Review: Jessica Rules the Darkside

Jessica Rules the Darksideby Beth Fantaskey
Release Date: January 10, 2012
Young Adult, Hardcover, 320 Pages
Source: ATWT
Overall: Flippin' Fab!
| Author Website | Goodreads | Twitter |

The highly anticipated sequel to Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark Side.
It’s one thing to find out you’re a vampire princess. It’s a whole other thing to actually rule. Newly married Jessica Packwood is having a hard enough time feeling regal with her husband, Lucius, at her side. But when evidence in the murder of a powerful elder points to Lucius, sending him into solitary confinement, Jessica is suddenly on her own. Determined to clear her husband’s name, Jessica launches into a full-scale investigation, but hallucinations and nightmares of betrayal keep getting in her way. Jessica knows that with no blood to drink, Lucius’s time is running out. Can she figure out who the real killer is—and whom she can trust—before it’s too late?

My Thoughts: 
Possible Book No.1 Spoilers

Beth Fantaskey easily became one of my favorite authors when I first read Jekel Loves Hyde and my early declaration was further solidified when I read Jessica's Guide to Dating the Dark Side. I absolutely adored the darker sides of both books and loved their tie in to their character's history even more. Jessica Rules the Dark Side is no exception, Beth Fantaskey once again wow'd me with a dark, romantic tale that was thick with history and mystery.

This go around I found Jessica stronger and slightly less snarky than in the first part of her story. While I laughed and snickered most of Jessica's Guide to Dating the Dark Side I found that Jessica's strength and personal growth suited her well. Anyone who questioned her ability to rule alongside her vampire prince was definitely shown what type of vampire Jessica was and wasn't in this sequel.

Lucius was still Lucius, confident and in control- most of the time. What I found I liked most about Lucius, since we didn't have him fighting for Jessica's heart, was the way endearing he was toward Jessica. His love for her ran so thick, and it was apparent, even when he was temporarily setting her aside to deal with his royal duties. It was like two different Lucius' from book one to book two of the Jessica series, though like I said, Lucius was still Lucius.

Jessica's best friend, Mindy, made another appearance and we got to meet Lucius' cousin and most trusted, Raniero. Good thing they were around or the dramatic unfolding of Jessica and Lucius' life may have been too serious otherwise. Despite the stressed situation you could guarantee Mindy or Raniero had a laughable thought thrown in when I got around to reading their views. Raniero's emails to Lucius were incredibly funny. Who knew two vampires with an incredibly disturbing childhood and history could be so at ease with one another and so funny. Then there was Raniero's thoughts on his Mindy. It was almost painful to go through the motions of Mindy and Raniero's friendship knowing their thoughts on one another.

The characters aren't the only thing that made Jessica Rules the Dark Side so great. The storyline was pretty good as well. Though it starts of slightly slow and there isn't much Lucius to be seen, we got to see Jessica prove what kind of woman she is and saw a small band of friends (Jessica, Mindy and Raniero) band together to help Jessica while she attempts to save her new husband's life. We are taken back and are able to see brief glimpses into the vampire laws and the history of the different families. We aren't taken too deep, just barely deep enough to graze the surface to see what the character's know and possibly suspect. If it weren't for the different views then we would have missed out on major clues and powerful emotions. I believe it is safe to say that the switch in characters we followed added a whole other facet to this story and made it all that much better.

I will point out that I do wish the beginning didn't start out so slow and that I wish that certain periods in the timeline didn't lag. I also wish we would have gotten more of Lucius, while the switch in point of views really added to the story I didn't feel like we got enough of Lucius or enough downtime for him and Jessica. While most of these are just preferences and wishful thoughts on my part, with the involved and stressed plot I would have enjoyed more of the happy newly weds and of Mindy and Raniero.

Jessica Rules the Dark Side is a fabulous follow up to Jessica's Guide to Dating the Dark Side and a must read for those who adore Jessica, Lucius and their journey together. Dark and romantic in its own right, the story of Jessica and Lucius and the mystery behind who wanted Lucius to meet a dreadful fate was one I was extremely glad that I read. With a fabulous cover to boot, what more could a fan of Jessica and Lucius want?

Descended by Blood Tour Stop + Giveaway

Let's Welcome Angeline Kace to Flippin' Fabulous today!  She's here and she's going to tell us her Top 5 Board Games and to offer up a pretty fab giveaway! 
|My fab review of Descended by Blood|

My Top 5 Board Games

Most of us read books because it provides us with entertainment. Books are fabulous, but it's mostly a solitary activity. I thought it would be fun to share with you all some of my favorite games I used to play for entertainment when I was younger.

Operation:



I LOVED this game. Is it really a game though? You just take turns trying to get the bones out of the guy without touching the metal and hearing the BBBEEEEPPPP!!! Well, I used to love that one! I remember that stupid horse was so hard for me! And my sister would always maneuver me to have to go for that one at the end!

Sorry!



This game is truly the game of sweet revenge! With 2 brothers and 2 sisters growing up, this was a ton of fun! At least as long as I was the one winning. Because honestly, it sucked when they would make me lose my gains. lol

Guess Who



Oh Man! I was a sucker for this game! "Does your guy have glasses?" I played this every chance I could get, which was a lot because my sister loved it too! She's only 15 months older than me so we were really close growing up. If I can recall correctly, I kicked her trash most of the time. ;)

UNO



I LOVED this game. Especially because I'm super good at calling people out on their Unos. My older brother hated me for it. Like I wasn't supposed to catch him and make him draw when he didn't call "Uno". lol

Speed (card game)



This was my all time FAVORITE game to play when I was younger. My sister and I would play this for hours every day. We got the point that we were incredibly fast! And what was so much fun was that we were pretty evenly matched. We always called this "California Speed", but looking it up just now, I realized it's the "Speed" version we played, not California Speed. lol I actually miss this game. Next time I see her, we're gonna go at it. It will be funny because I know we won't be nearly as fast at it. lol


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I just love board games, don't you?!  Let's thank Angeline for stopping by and make sure to check out the giveaway!


GIVEAWAY:
-Descended by Blood E-Book
-Kindle OR Nook E-Reader Skin
-Bookmark
-Nail Polish
-If you are the winner, you must be able to provide a US Mailing Address
To Enter please leave a comment with your email address

Review: Descended by Blood

Don't mind the formatting (the cover and book content.) You can thank Blogger for that





Descended by Blood
Angeline Kace
Released: August 26, 2011
Young Adult, Paperback, 252 Pages
Source: Author, in exchange for an honest review
Overall: Fabulous!
| Amazon | B&N |
| Angeline's Website | Book Website | Twitter |

Brooke Keller's a high school junior who never spent much time living in one place. She's finally in a town long enough to almost snag the boy of her dreams, until her life is threatened by a fanged man in his attempt to kidnap her. Brooke begins a dangerous journey to find out who is after her and how to stop them. Thrown into a world with powerful and prejudiced vampires, Brooke must tap into the side of herself that she never knew existed, at the risk of losing her life in order to save it.


My Thoughts:

Angeline Kace's brought to us a fabulous YA debut novel with Descended by Blood. And rather then give this must-read away with a typical review I thought I'd mix it up a bit.

The Fab....

The Characters: Despite any qualms I have with any one particular character, the characters were developed pretty danged well for a book with such a quick pace. Our main and secondary characters were just that, standing out against the rest but tying in with the background enough that the story seemed almost real.

The character we follow, Brooke is as real as they come as far as people are concerned. She isn't a mega-character, the she-woman who plows through life unscathed. Nor is she a delicate little flower that has to be handle with such care that you find yourself reading with stiff shoulders like you, the reader, could actually harm her. Brooke has extremely strong moments, weak moments and moments that her character flounders as she tries to regain her balance, control, and sense of self but that is why I love her. She is just like you and me- well, except for a little something that she never knew existed and is totally B.A (bad ass!)

Our Secondary characters are the shit. No joke. Excuse my language but even when I want to kick one of them where the sun doesn't shine and threaten him with a string of expletives I totally love them all. They all have their spots in Brooke's life, whether they were there for years or days. Like Brooke they all have a story, their strengths, their weaknesses and their spot in making Brooke's story. Kaitlynn, the best friend is beyond loyal and makes everyone wish they had someone like her in their lives. Jaren, the boyfriend/ex-boyfriend/whatever-he-is is the said character, beyond that of the enemy sort, that makes me wants to kic, him but before he was put on my shit-list he sat happily on my good side. Having him there, following Brooke's "never knew existed" journey adds a whole other facet of drama and complication to the story which I just love! The last secondary character I'll comment on is Mirko, the sorta-the-same trainer/protector/hot-maybe-wanna-be-more guy. Mirko swept in and took control of Brooke's situation setting out to make it all right. Totally swoon-worthy but not exactly perfect and with an emotionally-excessive-package for a past makes him all that much more perfect for this story (and Brooke- TEAM MIRKO! Is there a team mirko?)

The Plot: This story has a plot? Yes, it in fact does. There is a beginning, there is a middle and there is an end. Lately, it seems like so many YA books I have come across it all sort of just blends together. You don't really know where you stand and there are lulls in action with more filler than necessary or appreciated. Descended by Blood is a perfect mixture of action filled, plot sensitive moments and those (filler) moments that finish making all of the characters real.

The Not So Fab...

The Plot: Yes, I have a few qualms here. One, the story ended too soon for my liking. I could have had several more helpings of Descended by Blood (or the next book- that would have worked as well) and been more than okay with it. Two, being fast pace the story did suffer from a few cases when things seemed just a tad too rushed. It wasn't much but a few times I wished a scene would have extended a little longer to help finish developing the characters, their world, and the situations.

Fab's Final Word....

Action packed and chemistry driven, Descended by blood is a single-sitting book that I instantly wanted more of. Angeline Kace gave me a cast of extremely likable and well developed characters with individual voices. Descended by blood is what I believe the beginning of what is going to be a absolutely addictive and fabulous trilogy!