Books-n-Kisses is please to welcome back our pal Coreene Callahan to the blog.  Coreene writes about yummy bad-ass dragons in her Dragonfury Series . But today we are talking about Coreene’s 2nd book in her Circle of Seven Series Knight Avenged .  Oh and there is dragon in this series too!! Yeah Dragons!!!  So with out further ado.  

Coreene, can you please share with us a little about yourself?

I’m a rabid hockey fan! Then again, I guess that’s not much of a surprise considering I’m Canadian and live in Montreal—capital of hockey crazies. Yes, we take our hockey very seriously up here! J I started playing hockey when I four years old and was the only girl on an all-guys team from then on, right through university.

So what else I tell you about me? I’m stiletto-wearing shoe addict—I have far too many in my closet, all of which I love and could never part with. But they are gorgeous, so I’m sure the good Lord forgives me my weakness.

I also never go a day without eating chocolate. In fact, I’m eating a piece of Lindt’s 70% right now!

Have you always wanted to be an author?

I knew from an early age (six or seven, I think) that I was storyteller. I wrote a lot of poetry and short stories in high school and attempted my first novel at seventeen. If someone had ask, however, I would never have said I wanted to be a writer. Or even an published author.

That dream came much later in life.

I didn’t become serious about writing until four years ago after I finished writing my first novel. Only then did I decide to see if I could get my work published. As it turned out, it didn’t take long once I started down the path to publishing. Within six months, I signed with a literary agent and had my first contract in hand. I will say, though, that I worked hard and was relentless in my pursuit of both. I entered contests to get my work in front of editors and agents. I queried publishing houses and literary agencies every week. I found a critique partner, helped critique other writer’s work, attended writing workshops and went to conferences. Tenacity, I’ve found, plays a big role in success. Keep at it. Work hard and fight for your dream. It will happen.

What is your most interesting writing quirk?

I’m extreme early bird. I’m up and writing everyday at 5AM. I don’t know why, but my muse likes a still house. I wish it wasn’t so some mornings, but the quiet before dawn is when the words flow best and my imagination comes to life.

Can you please tell us about Knight Avenged, book 2 in the Circle of Seven Series?

Okay, so I’m going to cheat here and give you the back cover blurb:

Alone in a world on the brink of war…two unlikely allies will discover a love greater than time.

Exiled from her home, powerful oracle Cosmina Cordei holds the key to uniting those protecting mankind from evil. But just as she makes her way into the holy city to perform an ancient rite, the enemy closes in for the kill…

Drawn by a destiny he won’t accept, elite assassin Henrik Lazar detests the mystical curse handed down by his mother. But when the sorcery in his blood is activated and past pain comes back to haunt him, his new abilities come into play and he must learn to control them.

Rescued by Henrik in the heat of battle, Cosmina must decide whether to trust the assassin who loathes the goddess she serves or face certain death on her own. Forced into an untenable position, Henrik is left with a terrible choice—protect the magical Order he despises, or deny destiny and lose the woman he loves forever.

How did you come with the idea for this series?

I know it sounds funny, but I don’t control how a story idea arrives. It just…arrives—pops into head and makes me curious enough to go digging for the root of the story. Usually, the idea arrives in the from a character. Henrik did that to me. He walked into my head fully formed and told me his name. Simple as that. Once I had him in my mind’s eye, I started searching for his truth—the who, what and why of him.

I’m fascinated by the study of human behavior, so psychological profiles are a huge part of my story prep. I complete one for each character, so I know what makes he or she tick, and then add to each one’s profile with every book I write in that Series.

Who was your inspiration for Henrik.  Because I have to say that I am totally in love with him.

Me too! He’s easy to love. As such, Henrik was my inspiration for Henrik. As I said above, he walked into my head fully formed. Although, I have to admit, he didn’t give up his secrets easily. But with each scene I wrote of Knight Avenged, he revealed more, and I fell head over heads for him. He’s a study in contradictions: damaged, but unafraid of connection. Lethal, yet capable of incredible gentleness. He was tortured by his own mother as a child, grew up in a place that didn’t value men, and yet he loves women anyway. He has a myriad of flaws, but somehow that just makes sexier.

Who was your inspiration for Cosmina?  Because anyone who has to deal with Henrik will have to be one tough cookie.

Cosmina is tough. She needs to be too as she’s been on her own for long time when Knight Avenged opens. My inspiration for her was driven by pure curiosity. I wanted to know what it would be like to live inside an oracle’s head. What would it be like to see the future? How would that effect the way she moves through the world and interacts with others? What would the consequences be? For her, it’s very difficult. She never sees the whole picture at once—just bits and pieces that end being more confusing than enlightening. She doesn’t like the gift she’s been given and fights it every step of the way. In time, she learns to accept her gift, which puts her on the road to controlling it.

How about we give the readers a little snippet from Knight Avenged. Please open Knight Avenged to a random page and give us a sentence or two.

All right, here we go. I closed my eyes, opened the book, and landed on page 258—the passage in which Cristobal, an assassin and comrade of Henrik’s, discovers his magical gift.

***

Magic flared as Garren shifted into human form and stepped alongside him. Cristobal tensed. Garren exhaled in a rush, wonder in his expression. “Hellhounds.”

Cristobal blinked. “What?”

Violet eyes met his. “Do you have similar marks on your other arm?”

“Aye.”

“Twin hellhounds,” Garren said, awe in his tone. His mouth curved a second before he nodded. “You’ve been given a great gift, Cristobal. I thought Xavian and Henrik were the only ones affected by magic, but the marks on your skin tell a different tale. The tattoos are incomplete, but once finished, you will be able to call on the beasts.”

He frowned. “Call on them?”

“’Tis the Goddess of All Things at work. She has tied the Hellhounds to you.”

(excerpt used with permission from Coreene Callahan © Coreene Callahan 2014)

***

Can you share with us your current work(s) in progress?

I’m finishing up Fury of Obsession (the Dragonfury Series, book 5) right now, which centers around Venom, one of the Nightfury dragon-warriors. He’s so much fun to write! Not only he is deadly, but has a great sense of humor and is super hot too. Fury of Obsession will be released in February, 2015. But look for a surprise addition to the Dragonfury Series—the dragon-warriors who live in the Scottish Highlands are set to make an appearance this fall!

I’m also in the planning stages of Knight Unleashed, the third book in the Circle of Seven Series. Which I’ll be writing this coming fall and will be release in August 2015.

Who is the one author that you would love to meet someday and why?

Stephen King! I’d love to pick his brain. I really enjoyed his book ‘On Writing’ and have listened to it multiple times  as an audiobook. Such great advice on the writing front!

What is the best piece of advice you would give to someone that wants to get into writing?

WRITE! Every single day. Practice, as they say, makes perfect. Or least, will ensure you become better at your craft.

Being an author is sometimes lonely. It’s a solitary profession and a lot of hard work. No one but you can force you to write. And honestly, it’s easy to lose perspective, become distracted, and procrastinate. (Think Facebook!) Which doesn’t put words on the page. So make the commitment, sit your butt in the chair every day, and the rest will follow.

Can you share with us something off your bucket list.

Hmm, a bucket list. Travelling to new places is one of my passions. Especially when I get to feed my love of medieval history. So I have a list of dreams countries I want to visit someday. Australia and New Zealand top the list at the moment. Prague is a very close second. The Scandinavian countries—Finland, Sweden and Norway—are up there too. Oh, and thanks to the World Cup, Buenos Aires, Argentina is now on my radar.

What is in your To Read Pile that you are dying to start or upcoming release you can’t wait for?

My To Be Read pile is WAY too long. The drawback of being so busy writing, I guess, is that I don’t have as much time to read as I once did. Although, I have to say, when I write THE END on one of my own books, I become a voracious reader. It isn’t unusual for me to read ten or twelve novels a week when I’m not writing.

Right now, I’ve got S.G. Relding’s, Redemption Key, at the top of my TBR pile along with Victoria Dahl’s, So Tough to Tame.

A huge thanks to Kelly from Books-n-Kisses for inviting me to visit today. I had a blast answering all the questions. I hope you enjoyed my answers and will stick around to ask more! Ask anything you like in the comments below and do my best to answer them all!

A little more about Coreene:

Growing up as the only girl on all-male hockey team, Coreene Callahan knows a thing or two about tough guys and loves to write characters inspired by them. Call it kismet. Call it payback after years of locker room talk and ice rink antics, but whatever you call it, the action better be heart stopping, the magic electric, and the story wicked, good fun.

After graduating with honors in psychology and working as an interior designer, she finally gave in and returned to her first love: writing. Her debut novel, Fury of Fire, was a finalist in the New Jersey Romance Writers Golden Leaf Contest in two categories: Best First Book and Best Paranormal. She combines her love of romance, adventure and writing with her passion for history in her novels. She lives in Canada with her family, a fun-loving golden retriever, and her wild imaginary world.

You can find out more about Coreene or her books here:

Website | Facebook | Twitter: @coreenecallahan | Goodreads | Pinterest

Here is a closer look at Henrik.  I mean Knight Avenged

*****

KNIGHT AVENGED

Circle of Seven #2

Amazon| B&N | BAM |

Alone in a world on the brink of war…two unlikely allies will discover a love greater than time.

Exiled from her home, powerful oracle Cosmina Cordei holds the key to uniting those protecting mankind from evil. But just as she makes her way into the holy city to perform an ancient rite, the enemy closes in for the kill…

Drawn by a destiny he won’t accept, elite assassin Henrik Lazar detests the mystical curse handed down by his mother. But when the sorcery in his blood is activated and past pain comes back to haunt him, his new abilities come into play and he must learn to control them.

*****

GIVEAWAY TIME!!!!

Coreene is giving away 1 signed copy of Knight Avenged.
To enter please fill out the rafflecopter below.

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