I
have no problem tooting my own horn, and yet, oddly enough, I still struggle
with the inevitable question: “What’s your book about?”
I
hate that question. I’d rather just hand people a copy of the book. And yet, I
understand it. If someone told me they were filming a movie, the first question
out of my mouth would be “what’s it about?” I’d want to know if it’s something
I’d be interested in too.
The
problem is authors want so very badly to believe that everyone in the world
WILL be interested in their book, all the while knowing deep inside that not
everyone will be – and we dread the day when we’re forced to face that reality.
A
prime example of this happened to me recently. Old friends of the family came
over for dinner and of course Mom and Dad did their duty of bragging about
their daughter, the published author. Then it came, like the shark from Jaws. I
could even hear the “da-dum…da-dum…” music in my head: “I knew she was writing, but I didn’t know
she was published! What’s the book about?”
I’ll
admit, one of the reasons I’m so hesitant to say my book is about vampires is
because I’m fully aware of how divided the general public’s opinion of vampire
novels is – remember that fear of finding out not everyone will be turned on by
your book? Yeah, so I try to handle it with more fineness before people can
jump to conclusions. But this time Mom beat me to the punch and blurted out “it’s
about vampires!”
The
friend’s immediate response was “Oh gosh, I can’t read about vampires, they’re
too scary.”
Okay…this
person OBVIOUSLY never read or watched Twilight…
But
no matter how much I tried to explain to her that my book is not horror and NOT
scary, she was already shut down and locked tight. There was no getting through
to her.
I’ve
also had the opposite happen, were people were quick to assume that my book isn’t
scary enough – that it would be too much like Twilight. Um, no. There is some
blood and gore in my book, okay? Just not enough to warrant it as a horror
novel.
So
then, what the heck IS Dark Heirloom about?
In
a nutshell, it’s my unique spin on vampire urban fantasy with a light romance
thread. But gosh, that sounds an awful lot like all the other books on the
market, doesn’t it? It’s not. Honestly, every review I’ve received has
commented on the uniqueness of the story and characters, but… Oh forget it, let
me just give you the book:
Excerpt from
Chapter Four:
“Ema.” I peeked at Jesu from behind
my fingers. His eyes sparkled as his lips pursed in concern. “Ema, I promised
my brother an answer.”
My hands fell to my lap as I shook
my head. “An answer to what?”
“Who did this? Who bit you?”
“I don’t understand. Jalmari did
this, you know that. You said so yourself he wanted to kill me. I don’t know
what made him change his mind—”
“Jalmari brought you here because
you were already changing. If not, he would have finished the job. There must
have been someone else.”
Excerpt from
Chapter Seven:
Jesu scanned the room for minute, and
then he faced me. “How much do you know about evolution?”
I shrugged. “The basics, I guess. I’m a
historian, not a scientist.”
Jesu cocked a brow. “So you are
familiar with ancient history?”
A small grin tugged at the corners
of my lips. I nodded. “Ancient, European, American. I majored in world history.
The Baroque art in the dining hall was fascinating to see without the
protection of fiber glass. Thank you for that.”
He grinned. “So you know the stories
of the nephilim?”
“The giant sons of Cain?” I shook my
head. “I’ve heard of them, but I’m not Jewish and I don’t study religion or
mythology. Historians follow dates, events, and facts.”
“What if I told you the nephilim
were real at one point?”
Excerpt from
Chapter Thirteen:
“No, you promised you’d help me get home, you promised!” I shook my head,
but I knew he was right. I had no control over the animal inside me. Last night
I had gone after a reindeer, but what would have happened if I had found a
person first? What would have happened if that man hadn’t had a gun and Jesu
hadn’t been there to stop me? “Maybe not now…” my voice quivered. “But I can
learn. You said I could learn. I just need practice, right?”
Jesu shook his head. “Ema, I do not
know how long—”
“Shut up. You promised you would
help me. You have to. I didn’t ask for this like you did.” I faced
the entrance of the cave. I wanted to run. If not for the threatening sunlight,
I would be halfway across the island. Who cares if I go blind? I stepped
in the direction of the forest.
Jesu grabbed my shoulder and forced
me to face him. His embrace startled me. His thick arms wrapped tight around my
back as he gently pressed me against his chest. I stood speechless in his arms.
He hugged me so tight I thought I could feel his heart beating. It was all in
my head, of course, I could only hear it.
Excerpt from
Chapter Fifteen:
I knew the timeless tale of Jack the
Ripper, the serial killer from England whose true identity had never been
found. Yet these articles claimed to have a pretty good idea of who Jack the
Ripper really was. One even had a photograph of him. A black and white profile
shot of the supposed killer as he was vanishing around a corner. Looking
closely at the picture, I could have sworn I recognized the young man and the
hint of a dagger by his side.
Suddenly, horrid memories flashed
before my eyes. I was back in the alley, thrust against the cold, brick wall.
Jalmari’s silver dagger pointed straight at my heart.
I slammed the book shut. Meaning
shone through. This wasn’t just a library it was a cave of secret truths.
Humans lived in ignorance of vampires and nephilim, and Jalmari wanted to keep
it like that, so he hid the evidence. Nausea knotted my stomach. Everything I
learned in college…everything I thought I knew about the world…was a lie.
Excerpt from
Chapter Twenty-four:
“Whoa.”
I stood. “Hold on. You’re saying we can use magic to go to hell and kill
Satan?”
Leena
rose. “That is correct.”
“Are
you out of your mind?”
“I
am perfectly sane.” She put her hands on her hips.
I
rolled my eyes. “You can’t be that sane if you honestly don’t see anything
wrong with that plan. Magic isn’t real, the spell will never work. The only way
we’re going to hell is if we kill each other.”
Leena
snorted and mumbled something that sounded like “stupid human.”
“Excuse
me?”
She
rolled her eyes. “Before mainstream religion, everyone used magic. But the dumb
humans die so quickly, they forget what they’re capable of. We remember.”
“Uh
huh. Let’s say, for the sake of arguing, that the spell does work and we go to
the underworld and actually find Apollyon. You really think you and I can kill
a man that evil?”
“Oh
please.” Leena waved a hand. “He will be weak from being in the underworld for
so long. Defeating him will be easy.”
I
grumbled. “If everything is so peachy, then why do you need my help?”
Leena
pressed her lips into a thin line. Her brows furrowed as she stared at the pink
stain on the carpet. “Neither of us would make it alone. You need me for my
knowledge and experience. I need you for your power and strength.”
I
almost laughed out loud. Me, strong? She must be mistaken.
“I
am not mistaken.” She stomped her foot and clenched her fists. “Please, you do
not know what it’s like to lose so many people you love. Everyone around me
grows old and dies so quickly. Jalmari is all I have left and—”
“I
know what it’s like,” I blurted out. “Not the growing-old-and-dying part, but
the losing-someone-you-love part.” Images of my mom and Anthony flashed through
my mind. I winced, knowing Leena probably saw those images too.
The
smile on her face confirmed my suspicions. “So you’ll help me?”
I
groaned. Nothing good could come from this. I should stick to my original plan
and fly to Alaska.
“Please?
I am begging you. I cannot lose Jalmari. Not like this. Not without the choice
being his own.”
I
hesitated. The last time Anthony and I spoke, he told me he had cheated on me.
Anthony wasn’t possessed. He was just a normal guy breaking up with his normal
girlfriend. He chose to be dishonest. Had it not been Anthony’s choice, had it
been something vile and sick inside him, wouldn’t I have done everything in my
power to help him? Of course I would. I was even willing to forgive him.
Leena
bit her lip. No doubt she had heard everything I just thought, yet she waited
patiently for my answer. Something inside me shifted as I studied her.
Suddenly, none of it mattered. My human life was history. I was a vampyre, and
these were my friends and family now.
I
nodded at Leena. “Okay. I’ll help.”
The first ten chapters of Dark Heirloom by J.D. Brown are available for free upload on the
author’s website: http://authorjdbrown.com
~ Try it before you buy it! ~
Dark Heirloom is
available for all e-readers from
MuseItUp Publishing, Amazon.com, and Smashwords.com and coming soon in
paperback.
About the
author: J.D. Brown
graduated from the International Academy of Design and Technology with a
Bachelor Degree in Fine Arts. She currently lives in Wisconsin with her two
Pomeranians. Growing up in the suburbs of Chicago, her writing is influenced by
the multicultural urban society of her youth which she continues to visit each
summer. J.D. loves paranormal characters; from vampires and werewolves, demons
and angels, to witches and ghost. Her writings are often a combination of
suspense and romance.
Visit
J.D. Brown on Facebook!
2 comments:
JD, interesting excerpts. Your experience with family friends too is entertaining. Funny how people accept stereotypes so easily without being prepared to discover for themselves how your vampires are different.
Still.. these short glimpses into your characters are terrific.
Rosalie, thank you so much, I'm glad you enjoyed the excerpts. :)
I bet the stereotypes issue holds true for a lot of genres. I know I still think of LOTR when someone says fantasy. LOL.
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