ReGUARDing Grace

by Karen Leppert

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Editor:  Rosalie Skinner; Line Editor:  Theresa Cole

Cover Designer:  Charlotte Volnek

Pages:  413

ISBN:  978-1-77127-261-2

Buy it from MuseItUp

When a new student arrives at Mansfield High School, Grace Evans feels an inexplicable kinship with the boy. Strange feelings are not new to Grace, who has experienced lapses in time accompanied by injuries that defy logical explanation. As much as she tries to ignore this latest mystery, Grace cannot deny her already-troubled life is getting darker and more dangerous and wonders if this new boy knows her secret.

Jack Elliott has always known what he is and believes his life is one of destiny and fate because of one person: Grace Evans, a young woman who has haunted him since the day she was born. Everything…his education, training, sacrifices…has led to this moment, but Jack‘s skills are about to be tested beyond his wildest imagination.

**Interview**

Please describe your book for us.

Jack Elliott is an Amalgamate, a person with multiple personalities possessing superhuman powers. Unlike Jack, Grace Evans has no idea she is a host to three alters who have been transitioning with more frequency, taking nocturnal jaunts through the woods. She not only needs protection from her alters (one of whom channels the dead) but from exposure to humankind. Jack’s visions have led his colleagues to believe he was chosen to facilitate integration with her alters. It is not without its pitfalls. Although he denies his relationship with Grace is anything but professional, Jack and his alters know his feelings go well beyond that of a Guardian/ host assignment.

To further complicate matters, Jack is threatened by one of Grace’s alters. Susannah Fairchild possesses the means to read thoughts and has been prying into Jack’s mind. She wants no part of integration, preferring to control the other alters and Grace. So much so, she welcomes recruitment by a dissident Amalgamate, Phineas Phillips, to take over Grace’s body and murder Jack.

Where did the idea for your book come from?

The idea for ReGUARDing GRACE came from a television show and a documentary. The show, The United States of Tara, was a dark comedy on Showtime some years ago. The main character, Tara, had multiple personalities, though unlike mine. Hers were human and the result of abuse. One of her alters wore glasses, reminding me of a documentary about Dissociative Identity Disorder, or people with multiples personalities. I marveled at how the mind can protect itself and especially how the alters had distinct personalities and traits. Unlike humans, my alters have superhuman abilities, traits they possessed in their former lives that are “supersized” as an alter.

Who is your favorite character (that you’ve written)?

My favorite character is in another book, but I mention him in ReGUARDing GRACE. Seth Mathis, the owner of the foster home where Grace lives, is a character a romantic trilogy that is yet unpublished. He is the reason I started writing. His character experiences dramatic changes, encompassing love, his infidelity, heartbreak, forgiveness and the chance at love again (hence, Second Chances was born in that book).

Do you remember the first book that kept you up all night reading?  What was it?

As a child, I did not read much but one of my teachers read Charlotte’s Web the last ten minutes of class. I remember watching the clock, eager to hear what happened next. The other book that became an obsession for me was The Outsiders, by S. E. Hinton.

Does writing come naturally to you, or did you have to work harder in order to get that story in your head down on paper?

The first two trilogies came quite easy for me. The re-write…not so much. I tend to write too passively and am still learning my craft. I must say editing and re-writing have caused a bit of writer’s block, having started two other novels and getting no farther than the first chapter. I am outlining another book now, which seems more promising.

Is there anything you’re working on now?

I am currently re-writing the sequel to ReGUARDing GRACE and another, yet unnamed, paranormal romance.

If you could bring back any tradition that seems to have faded into the past, what tradition would you bring back?

Letter writing. Curiously, I include letters in all of my books. I believe seeing the words in the author’s handwriting means so much more.

What is the best piece of advice you have ever received in your life?

Don’t wish your life away.

Werewolves or vampires?

Definitely vampires.

Morning person or night owl?

Night owl but would love to be an early riser.

Karen Leppert

I was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland but now reside in Belcamp, Maryland with my husband, Ed, and two children, Jess and Zach.  When my fiftieth birthday approached, I finally discovered what I wanted to be “when I grew up”…a writer.  This trilogy is one of two I have written in the last five years.

Giveaway!

 PRIZE: ecopy of ReGUARDing Grace!

• must be 18+ years old to enter
• leave a comment for Karen (be sure to include your email address!)
• winner will be chosen by random and notified by email after contest ends on February 28th