Guest Post
By
Brooklyn Ann
I've always been fascinated with vampires.
Count Chocula was my favorite cereal and I always drew fangs on coloring book
characters in preschool. Bunnicula was a treasured book in my childhood and I
watched every vampire movie I could get my hands on.
Anne Rice was a revelation in my adolescence
and I confess that Louis from INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE was my first crush.
So it naturally followed that I would write
vampire stories of my own. With oodles of vampire lore from movies and
literature it was quite a task to discern which aspects of my vampires follow
tradition and which ones set them apart.
So I’ve decided to give a brief study on the
vampires in my novels.
Traditional
aspects:
They do not age
They have fast healing
They drink blood ...though they don't require
enough to kill a person.
They’re vulnerable to sunlight and can also be
killed by decapitation or major damage to the heart.
My
Twist:
They can drink water and nibble on small
amounts of food, though cannot digest it well. They also can technically enter
someone's home when uninvited but they don't because they think it's very rude.
They are alive, not dead, and owe their unique
attributes to a magical mutation.
They are sterile, so they make other vampires
through blood exchange. However, they maintain their human libidos and the
ability to use them. :)
Their government is a cross between feudalism
and bureaucracy. Lord vampires rule over individual territories and bow down to
laws made by council of 12 Elders that are like the UN.
Although duels and bloodthirsty battles
still ensue, if a vampire wants something done, unfortunately he or she has to
resort to copious amounts of paperwork. All vampires must swear fealty to the
lord vampire of his home and seek his permission if he have an overlord or
territory to call home, then he is a rogue and runs the risk of imprisonment or
even execution if he is caught.
Vampires have existed for several millennium.
They don't know where they came from, but there’s an old legend that they were
demons banished from hell because they weren’t evil enough. In Wrenching Fate,
they discover that there is a grain of truth to this myth.
What are some of your favorite aspects of
vampire mythology? Which books or movies do it best? One commenter will win an
e-book copy of WRENCHING FATE in the format of their choice!
Silas McNaught, Lord Vampire of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho is elated when he finds Akasha Hope, the woman his psychic visions revealed to him centuries ago. To his surprise, Akasha is infuriated when Silas interferes with her life. Furthermore, she is nothing like the sweet woman he’d envisioned. Instead she's a foul mouthed mechanic and, due to being the accidental result of a military experiment, she possesses the strength of ten men ….and government agents are looking for her. Matters are further complicated when Silas’s vindictive ex lover spurs the Elders to investigate Silas in hopes to destroy Akasha and gain control of her friends, which are the key to an otherworldly prophecy. As government conspiracies and vampire politics collide, Silas teaches Akasha the meaning of trust…and love.
About
the Author
A
former mechanic turned paranormal romance author, Brooklyn Ann lives in the
beautiful city of Coeur d’Alene with her son, her cat, and a 1980 Datsun 210.
She can be found online at http://brooklynann.blogspot.com as well as on
twitter and facebook.
Works:
Published
by Sourcebooks
BITE
ME, YOUR GRACE (April 2013)
ONE
BITE PER NIGHT (August 2014)
BITE
AT FIRST SIGHT (To be announced)
Published
by Broken Angels
WRENCHING
FATE (February 2014)
IRONIC
SACRIFICE (To be announced)
Thanks so much for having me today!
ReplyDeleteFavorite aspects of vampire mythology:
ReplyDeleteThey do not age
They have fast healing
They are stronger and can see in the dark
I like a little twist with my vampire's like with Christine Feehan and her Dark series where they are creatures of nature that can turn into the hated vampire or Lynsay Sands and her Argeneau series where it's a scientific explanation that made them vampires.
I can't say that I'm a strict traditionalist about vampire stories, although the first one I experienced was Dracula by Bram Stoker. I do like the new twists that make them a bit flawed and therefore loveable. The old Stoker model where they are just mindless, heartless killing machines is boring to me now. I can't embrace a vampire that sparkles in the sunlight, but Jeanniene Frost's interpretation that they can go in sunlight but will get a sunburn seems to make sense. Brooklyn Ann's vampires are each different with his own strengths and weaknesses. Hers is my favorite interpretation so far, although I would love to see a protagonist who is a female vampire. I can just imagine what she would do with that scenario...
ReplyDeleteFavorite vampire aspect? HMmmmmm,... all of them LOL Vampires are the best, love reading any book that includes them.
ReplyDeleteMy fave is definitely immortality plus they always seem to be super sexy and irresistible. Fave books are the Argeneau vampire series by Lynsay Sands, they are very different vampires, they come from Atlantis and I like how she made them very human but yet very powerful. My fave movies are definitely Underworld (all of them) Vampires are my thing, some might say I am a bit obsessed with them, I am adding your book to my wish list, your vampires sound very interesting. I must get to know them ;)
ReplyDeleteI actually like all the aspects of being a vampire. I really got hooked on Vampires while reading The Son's of Navarus series by Gabrielle Bisset and V V Inn series by C.J. Ellisson. As for tv/movies I absolutely <3 Dracula TV show.
ReplyDeleteI was in grade school when the origianl Dark Shadows wa on tv. we would literally run home to watch. Still hard to believe our mothers allowed it. They had cool costumes and music and fog..,
ReplyDeleteI love the fact they do not age!!! I love the true blood comics and the TV show is very steamy too ;)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for all the awesome recommendations, everyone! And Dot, thanks for the sweet compliment! And DogsMom, I still want to watch the DARK SHADOWS TV series. My mom told me all about it. Sorry I couldn't pop back in earlier. The dayjob blocked the site. :(
ReplyDeleteI like the no aging as well as immortality, so much history to experience and explore. I like different aspects from a bunch of authors like Anne Rice, Lysay Sands, Kerrlyn Sparks and now yours becuase the whole eating and drinking think is quite unique. Im going to have to read up on more vamps once im off this were kick lol. Thanks for the chance.
ReplyDeleteI like the aspects that different authors put on them. Some can go out in the sun, while in some books they can have babies and so on. Jeaniene Frost, Lynsay Sands and Sharon Hamilton do excellent jobs of putting a twist on it.
ReplyDelete