Theresa is an Associate Editor for Entangled Publishing, mom and step-mom to five boys, and coffee addict. When she isn't working, learning, or taxiing the boys around, she's lost between the pages of a paranormal novel. You can learn more about her on the About Me page. Feel free to email her at Theresa (at) fadeintofantasy (dot) com! *If you are looking to submit a book for review, please read the Review Policy page first.*
11-21-2011: Never to be forgotten! Today is the day that Ian Somerhalder responded to me on facebook! Hey, that may not be a big deal for you, but for me.. HUGE. *swoon*
Conversation copied from FB:
ME: Finally! After an hour of searching facebook, I find the REAL you. Hi Ian!
Ian Somerhalder: Thank you.Nice to meet you
ME: My pleasure! Thank you for taking the time to notice. :)
Ian Somerhalder: you're welcome
Ian Somerhalder: I try not to disappoint my fans!
ME: Well, you're doing a wonderful job. :) It's nice (and a bit scary) to talk to someone like you!
ME: lol... (I'm secretly freaking out cuz I got to talk to Ian! *sigh*)
Ian Somerhalder: Thank you Theresa!
ME: lol... you're welcome! Just do me a favor and don't knock when you invade my dreams tonight. The husband probably wouldn't like that. hehe!
Ian Somerhalder: well I will not:)
ME: Perfect! Thanks. LOL
Guest post: Shea Berkley, author of The Marked Son
Guest Post:
Shea Berkley, author of THE MARKED SON
THE MARKED SON
BY SHEA BERKLEY
Seventeen-year-old Dylan Kennedy always knew something was different about him, but
until his mother abandoned him in the middle of Oregon with grandparents he’s never
met, he had no idea what.When Dylan sees a girl in white in the woods behind his grandparents’ farm, he knows
he’s seen her before…in his dreams. He’s felt her fear. Heard her insistence that only he
can save her world from an evil lord who uses magic and fear to feed his greed for power.Unable to shake the unearthly pull to Kera, Dylan takes her hand. Either he’s completely
insane or he’s about to have the adventure of his life, because where they’re going is full
of creatures he’s only read about in horror stories. Worse, the human blood in his veins
has Dylan marked for death…
Excerpt: THE MARKED SON by Shea Berkley
Instead I sink into the thick air and come out the other side into a world that is nothing like the one I
know…Yet, it’s familiar.Tonight, the smoke fades, and the girl appears in a thin, white gown. I’m lying in a meadow surrounded by deep woods, one hand tucked behind my head—shirtless and shoeless and wearing a pair of old, ratty jeans. I can hear the TV I left on fading in the distance until the sound of the meadow fills the air.She’s suddenly beside me, beautiful beyond words, her long, dark hair spilling over her shoulder as she bends to touch my hand. Her cool fingers rest more like mist than flesh in my palm. The rough corset she’s wearing cinches the fabric snug to her hips. She’s got a definite Victorian vibe going, but it suits her. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like it.
Her violet eyes darken, revealing the silent plea that carries a hint of desperation, and she tugs, urging me to get to my feet. She wants me to run, to escape. In the last two weeks, we’ve tried, running so long and so hard that we’re sure we’ll never find our way home again. We’ll be lost together forever. It’s what she wants. It’s what I need. But it always fails. We eventually wind up back at the meadow.
Tonight, I’m content to pull her down beside me, lie in the soft grass, and stare at the sky. Our fingers intertwine, our shoulders touch. We’ve both gotten older since the first time we met. There have been years when we rarely saw each other, but lately, our time together has intensified. There’s a feeling of impending doom that wasn’t there when we were younger, as if this perfect place of dreams is about to shatter, and we’ll never see each other again.
There’s so much I want to know. Why do I only dream about her when I need her most? Am I insane? I don’t ask. I’m afraid to. I want her to be real, just a few months more, maybe a year. Then I’ll grow up and cut this strange, imaginary cord. I can’t lose her smile, not yet, or her lips against my cheek—one of her butterfly kisses that’s gone before it’s begun.
Her silence has never bothered me before. Tonight, all I want is one word.
My name.
Guest post by author Shea Berkley:
The Best Fantasy Villain Who Wasn’t a Villain
I’ll give you a couple of guesses who this is. Come on. You know who it is. His name rhymes
with cape.
Snape. Professor Severus Snape.
I love JK Rowling’s handling of Snape. So many of my friends thought he was a horrible man. I always thought of him as sad. He was acting out like a spoilt child denied his favorite toy during playtime. Who wouldn’t, when tortured on a consistent basis, not become petulant, snippy and downright mean-spirited? Yet deep within Snape lived someone who loved deeply and wanted to be admired as a hero.
The hints that Harry’s dad wasn’t the shiny pure one gave it away for me. It’s what made me
positive that Snape was exactly who Hogwarts Head Master Albus Dumbledore said he was—
repentant and loyal. That I suspected Snape had been smitten with Harry’s mum, Lily, and only
called her a Mudblood because he was so hurt by her love for James Potter, his tormentor, was
just that, a suspicion. Yet, I can’t say any one thing completely gave the ending away.
Like most people, I was horrified when Snape killed Dumbledore, yet I knew by that point there
had to be another reason. Dumbledore was, by far, too powerful to just allow Snape to kill him.
No fight equals a reason to give in, and Dumbledore always had a reason for everything he did.
So I held onto my belief that Snape was a good guy, acting like a villain for the good of the
Wizarding World. Only when we see his memories and the extent to which he tried to protect the
Potters do we know for sure Snape, as horribly flawed and brilliant of a man that he was, would never have harmed Lily’s child.
I have no idea if JK Rowling intended Snape to be this complex from the very beginning. It
actually doesn’t matter. She knew what Snape’s motivation was from the beginning and she had
the choice to use that information as her story progressed.
As a writer, that is something I need to keep in mind when I write. I need to know my villain’s
motivation. Why is he the way he is? I may never use the information to the degree Rowling
used Snape’s information, but it’s a good lesson on how to redeem a character that at first glance
appears unredeemable, or flip a reader’s expectations that their favorite villain isn’t really a
villain afterall.
If anyone has a burning desire to talk to me, you can find me at: Facebook / SheaBerkley.com /Goodreads / RubySlipperedSisterhood.com
* * * * *
Shea has another book releasing in November! Here’s a peek…
Torrien by Shea Berkley
What if the only hope of saving a magical world depended on an ordinary boy?
Taelyon is a land divided; its mortals distrust those different than them; its
wizards live indifferent to the suffering of others to see the danger on their
doorstep. The battle for dominance is never far off, and death is a daily fear
provoked by King Hcaon the Younger’s inability to lead.
Torrein’s parents are powerful wizards, and Torrein’s greatest fear is that he’ll
be denied the gift of magic. When magic is denied him, he’s chased from his
own village by those he used to call friends. Alone and wandering in a world he
doesn’t know, Torrein doesn’t understand that his destiny is far greater than any
he could have achieved if magic had been granted him. What plagues him is a
desire he can’t have – to be with his family and live his life in peace.
Peace is not easily found in Taelyon. The destiny Torrein fights lies in a
prophecy soaked in blood. To claim his rightful power, he must calm his fears
and face those who want him and his people dead. Everyone has been blinded
to the real evil in their midst, and it will be a fight till the end of the age to reclaim
Taelyon’s freedom. Though it’s hard for him to accept, it’s up to Torrein to
protect those who have been deceived, and to make sure the evil in their midst
doesn’t destroy them all.
I knew Snape was “good” from the start. When he killed Dumbledore, I knew Dumbledore had asked him to (that overheard conversation, the “please” Dumbledore says at the end). Love, love, love Snape.
Yeah, it just didn’t make sense otherwise. Dumbledore was just too powerful to let Snape get the better of him. Poor Snape. What a horrible thing to ask of someone, but he did it anyway.
Shea-I’m a few chapters into The Marked Son, and I absolutely cannot put it down! Write faster, pretty please…
Woo-hoo! I’m so glad you’re liking it so far. I hope you continue to like it. (bites nails) I’m trying to write faster. Really!!
Congratulations! Can’t wait to read The Marked Son. You’re one of my favorite authors
Thanks, Cat. You’re a doll for saying so.
I loved Snape from the get-go and I kept thinking, “No, he’s not really bad is he?” Too many of his actions contradicted his villainous persona. I just never quite believed it. And when JK pulled him out of the fire like she did, my admiration for her soared. I just love how she did it. And his motivation was pure genius.
GREAT post, Shea!!! ~D~
I know, he’s such a great character
I really loved that she made his motivation so real.
Thank you for taking the time to share with us today. I have been following this tour and book for a while and would love to read it. It is definitely on the wishlist. I enjoy reading about the thought processes of the authors I enjoy reading and feel this gives me a greater insight into the thoughts behind what was written.
Not a Potter fan and have seen only bits of the movies, but I love a well-drawn villain that is more than a charicature. Just now hitting a place where I must show a secondary villain’s motivation (and hint at the primary villain’s), so the reader sees beyond her actions to the confused and angry child beneath. Not easy.
So looking forward to reading these, Shea!
Just had your book “auto-delivered wirelessly” to my Kindle. Can’t wait to start reading.
Hi, Shea and Theresa!
Shea, I’m thoroughly enjoying the Marked Son, and I can’t to read more of Torrein! I agree–villains need to be three-dimensional. I have to be able to understand why they’re so, so bad, otherwise to me they’re just cardboard cut-outs.