Review and Giveaway - Seduced by the Wolf by Terry Spear

Sourcebooks is generously giving away TWO copies of this book.  

SEDUCED BY THE WOLF BY TERRY SPEAR – IN STORES AUGUST 2010

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca (August 3, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402237537
• ISBN-13: 978-1402237539

Rating: 4.5 of 5.0

Product Description

His first priority is to protect his pack…
Werewolf pack leader Leidolf Wildhaven has just taken over a demoralized pack. With rogue wolves on the loose causing havoc and the authorities from the zoo suddenly zeroing in on the local wolf population, the last thing he needs in his territory is a do-gooder female, no matter how beautiful and enticing she is…

She’ll do anything to help wolves…
Biologist Cassie Roux has dedicated her life to protecting wolves in the wild. On a desperate mission to help a she-wolf with newborn pups, the last thing Cassie needs right now is a nosy and entirely too attractive werewolf pack leader trying to track her down…

With rogue wolves and hunters threatening at every turn, Cassie and Leidolf may find their attraction the most dangerous force of all…

Review: This was a very engaging werewolf romance.
Cassie is accustomed to being alone and in control.  She goes out of her way to keep her true nature secret and to not attract the sexy alpha lupus garou. That is harder than she thought.  She thinks she has managed to avoid getting entangled until her trek in the woods ends up with a gun shot wound.

Leidolf has been a loner in the past too and is able to see those signs in the skittish Cassie. He is struggling to settle into his role as pack leader to a pack that needs some healing and strong direction. Leidolf is attracted to the beautiful red-headed Biologist and would be more than happy to have an evening, well really, a whole night together.  He plans to see the reluctant lady again until he learns she has skipped town. When he gets to rescue her in the woods he isn't going to waste a second chance to seduce her into staying.

Cassie may think she doesn’t want a relationship but she keeps dreaming of seducing Leidolf.  In the end it is hard to say for sure who seduces whom.

While this tug of attraction is taking place there is danger in the woods.  It’s bad enough that there is a zoo curator intent on capturing the red wolves that have been spotted but there are hunters in the woods prepared to shot the wolves. Even more troublesome is the fact that Cassie inadvertently overhears two murderers and she has to run and hide from them.

I really liked the alpha characters of Cassie and Leidolf.  The author does a good job building the tension as they dance around their attraction for each other. There is also a subtle humor (as Ms. Spear described it) that enhances their relationship.  The plot keeps the story moving at a good clip as you try to decipher all the threats and figure out what will happen.

The story is part of a series but this is the first book I read and it worked fine as a stand alone.  Now I would be interested in going back to read some of the earlier books in the series.  If you like werewolves and romance this book is a very good choice.

About the Author
A retired lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserves, Terry Spear has an MBA from Monmouth College. An eclectic writer, she dabbles in the paranormal as well as writing historical and true life stories for both teen and adult audiences. Spear lives in Crawford, Texas. For more information, please visit Terry at these various places on the web:
www.terryspear.com
http://www.wickedlyromantic.blogspot.com/
http://casablancaauthors.blogspot.com/
http://fierceromance.blogspot.com/
http://www.facebook.com/terry.spear
http://shapeshifterromance.wordpress.com/ 
http://terry-spear.blogspot.com/

 TO ENTER THE GIVEAWAY FOR THE ARC:

1. Answer the question that Terry asks at the end of her interview.

2. For an extra entry, become a follower or tell me if you are already a follower.

3. For another entry, blog, facebook, tweet (any of those networks!) about this giveaway and tell me where you did.

4. For 2 extra entries, comment on the Author Interview.

5. For 2 more extra entries, make a meaningful comment on the review or visit any of the author's links set out above and tell me what you learned of interest..

(Seven total entries possible.) 
Please leave your e-mail!It isn't necessary to use separate entries unless you want them in different chronological order.

* This contest is open to US and Canadian residents only.
* No P.O. Boxes Please - for shipping reasons.
* This contest will close 10:00 PM (Central) on August 18, 2010. The winner will be randomly selected from all entries.

Interview - Terry Spear, Author of Seduced by the Wolf

Terry Spear Interview, Author of Seduced by the Wolf

Thank you, Terry, for visiting and sharing with us about your books and writing experience.

Q. Please tell us what inspires you to write the genres you write? Is any genre more difficult than another?

Terry: I love fantasy and the paranormal. But I love true stories too. And the worlds I most enjoy reading have some truth to them. So for me, it’s combining the real world with the world of fantasy that inspires me most. I’ve written a lot of true stories also. So either works for me. I don’t write what I find too difficult. I have to include the mystery, since I love mysteries. I have to include the suspense, because I grew up on suspenseful stories that I loved. I enjoy incorporating real-to-life stories. I love the paranormal aspects that make the stories fun. And I love romance and happily ever after. Humor just is part of the writing. So the hardest part for me is leaving out any of these elements when I’m writing fiction.

I have to agree that you make good use of all of those elements.

Q. When you do a series do you have each book plotted out before you start the first one or do the subsequent books flow from the first book?

Terry: I loved this question, Martha, because no one has asked it quite in this way! I don’t plot any of the books, first of all. Some books were considered stand alone titles from the onset.Heart of the Wolf and Destiny of the Wolf, for instance. Although Leidolf Wildhaven appears in both. Then when I wrote To Tempt the Wolf, I had fun including him again. But the stories themselves were individual efforts. The same with Legend of the White Wolf. Many fans asked to see more of certain key or secondary characters in the first four books so Wolf Fever (Dec 2010) was written for Carol Wood from Destiny of the Wolf, and I enjoyed revisiting so many of the characters from that 2nd book. Jake, the pack leader Darien’s brother, also wanted his own story, so I’m currently wrapping up Dreaming of the Wolf (Book 8, due out 2011). 

Heart of the Highland Wolf (Book 7, Jun 2011) was also a new world set in Scotland, new characters except for the thread of a prolific romance werewolf author, Julia Wildthorn, who has writer’s block. What better way to get unblocked but then to meet a hunky Highlander wolfish kind of guy? And the great news is that now Ian MacNeill’s brother will have a story of his own as he tries to track down the man who stole their money in The Highland Wolf in Paradise. And several fans wanted to see the story about Meara from To Tempt the Wolf, so I’m going to have fun writing her story in The Wolf and the SEAL. J
 

I can say that Seduced by the Wolf was fine as a stand alone but it also drew to to want to read the other book.

Q. Do your characters live with you (inside your head at odd times?) as you write?

Terry: Sometimes!!! I’ve been having trouble keeping my Highlander at bay. He keeps wanting to get to the Grand Cayman Islands to meet a sexy botanist (when he’s supposed to be trying to track down the money a crook stole from the clan, when I’m still trying to finish Jake’s story in Dreaming of the Wolf. One story at a time please, folks. But if that’s not bad enough, Meara is waving her hand, saying, ME FIRST!!! Except in her case, no way does she want the SEAL to come to her Oregon coast woodland resort. He insists he’s there to protect her. She insists there is no need.

Jake intervenes. HIS story first. It’s nearly done. Just wait your turn. Meara crosses her arms and gives him a truly waspish glower. *sigh* What is a writer to do? I love them all, but sometimes, they just won’t mind!

Sounds like those characters keep you busy writing so they can give you some peace. :)

Q. Which do you find is most important to you as a writer, voice or story? Why? Can you describe your voice in a sentence?

Terry: Both. The story has to be told. The voice defines how it is told. Hmm, I’d say mysterious, romantic, a thriller of sorts, served up with a slice of subtle humor.

I love the touch of humor which gives extra warmth and life to your stories.
Q.  What was one of the most surprising things you learned in creating the Wolf series?

Terry: That werewolves are real. J

Now there is an interesting answer to ponder.
Q. In Seduced by a Wolf what is something your heroine would never be caught dead doing/saying?

Terry:  Ohmigosh, Cassie Roux would never ever say that werewolves are more important than wolves. She would just cringe at the notion. Now Leidolf is none too happy about her sense of loyalties, and tries fervently to show her how much she’s missing in life. And it’s working!!! Kind of. J

I agree...it is kind of working. *BG*
Q. Is there an ancillary character you had the most fun with?

Terry: Absolutely! I love lots of characters, and sometimes my secondaries can really steal my heart. And when it happens, I usually end up having a lot of fan comments on how much they stole theirs, too. And the next thing I know, I’ve got to make a story for them. But I have to say that oftentimes I don’t plan a story for these characters. However, sometimes I do think I’d like to really write the brothers’ stories, in Destiny of the Wolf, for instance. I wait to see if anyone else loves them as much as I do, though, first. Jake has his coming up, and Tom, I hope will, too. I hadn’t realized how much fans wanted to see more of Carol Wood and Meara in their own stories, though. And initially, I hadn’t planned it. But I had a ball writing Carol’s story. And I can’t wait to revisit the characters from To Tempt the Wolf in Meara’s story. Now, in Seduced by the Wolf—two characters stand out for me—the omega wolf, the first time I’ve written one in a story, and the teen heartthrob. J Both I really enjoyed working with. J

It makes me wonder how complicated that gets going back to tell the story of a character from an earlier book.
Q. I note that you do online classes and workshops.   How long have you been doing this and why?

Terry: Four years. I love helping others to achieve their writing dreams. Early on, I had advice from a multi-published author and her one key piece of advice, “Start at the beginning when the character’s life has turned upside down,” stuck with me. I’d perused a ton of books on writing, but the most valuable advice I received from critique partners when I was just beginning my journey. One of the things my students find most helpful is that I actually look at snippets of their work and help to show what can be improved, or how it looks just great after giving the lesson. Getting feedback was what made all the difference in the world to me. Not just how others did it that made it work, but how that related to my actual work.

That is so good of you to give back in this fashion to help others.
Q If you could trade places with anyone, real or imagined (including paranormal creatures), in any time, who would it be and why?

Terry: A mermaid. I love the water and the idea you could travel under it for miles without a care in the world (as long as you didn’t garner shark interest), has always appealed. Exploring unknown worlds, the deepest underwater caves, find all kinds of interesting treasures left behind by sunken ships. See the myriad of brightly colored fish and coral, and enjoy the stormy seas, but never be harmed by them.

I so expected this answer to be a wolf so mermaid came from out of the blue!
Q. What is something unique about you that you would share with your readers?

Terry: I love tomatoes and tomato sauce and ketchup, so why not stewed tomatoes or tomato soup? I love Chinese snow peas, but I can’t stand regular peas. Do you have strange aversions for food that is so similar, you wonder why?  

THANK YOU!

Thanks so much, Martha, for having me today on your blog! I loved your questions. They were a lot of fun and thought-provoking!!!

And to readers, thanks so much for dropping by and commenting!!

Terry

www.terryspear.com

http://www.wickedlyromantic.blogspot.com/

http://casablancaauthors.blogspot.com/

http://fierceromance.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/terry.spear

http://shapeshifterromance.wordpress.com/2010/01/17/legend-of-the-white-wolf-being-shipped/#comment-4502

http://terry-spear.blogspot.com/

Check out my review and the Giveaway of two copies courtesy of Sourcebooks.

Cynthia Eden Guest Post

I am pleased to have author Cynthia Eden guest post today. Please give her a warm welcome and ask questions you might have on this pertinent topic!

The Agent Hunt

(Martha, thanks for inviting me to post!)
A few years ago, I attended the Romance Writers of America National Conference in Atlanta, Georgia. It was my first national conference, and when I arrived, I felt a bit lost in the huge mass of writers.

I didn’t feel lost for long. I soon made friends at the conference. I attended dozens of workshops. I learned exactly what the publishers were looking to buy, and I also learned that if I wanted to break in with some of the New York publishing houses, well, then I needed to find an agent.

Armed with the knowledge that I’d acquired at the conference, I went back home and wrote my little heart out. I knew that I had to come up with a powerful story that would capture an agent’s attention.  I also knew that I had to be true to my writing. So, I let myself go—I ignored the fearful voice in my mind that asked me if I was sure that I could do this…and I just wrote.

And then I started my agent hunt.  First, I used www.agentquery.com to find agents who were currently looking to represent stories in my genre.  I made a list of all the agents that interested me. Then I checked out the agents on Preditors & Editors (http://pred-ed.com/). Before I contacted the agents, I wanted background information on them, and the P&E site was a good resource for me.

My next step? Well, I checked out the agents and their current sales. It’s one thing to represent my area—it’s another to actually be making sales in my genre.  I needed an agent who could sell me.

Once I had a listing of about fifteen agents, I began to query.  But I didn’t just wait around while that query was out. I’m terrible at waiting.  So I wrote. And by the time I made a connection with an agent who seemed to “get” my work (Laura Bradford of the Bradford Literary Agency), I’d already finished another novel.  Now I didn’t just have one novel for her to sell—I had two. Sometimes, being a bad waiter can be a very good thing.

However, I didn’t immediately sign with my agent. Instead, I talked with some of her other clients so that I could get a feel for her interaction style. I wanted to know—did she respond promptly to emails? Does she keep clients updated on their submissions?  Is she professional?

I think it’s always a good idea to talk with an agent’s clients—you get the inside scoop that way.

After my scoop was complete, I signed with my agent. We sold to New York (yay!), and now, I am living my dream. I’m writing paranormal romances and dark romantic suspense novels.  And I’m having a blast.

I hope my agent hunt story can be helpful to those reading this post. And if you’ve got any questions about the hunt, please, let me know!

Thanks!
Cynthia Eden

Check here for the full tour schedule.

Visit CynthiaEden.com

Follow @CynthiaEden on Twitter

Go to Facebook.com/CynthiaEden

Friend Cynthia on MySpace

Giveaway - Five Copies of Deadly Fear by Cynthia Eden

An incredibly intense read from the very first page to the end.

Deadly Fear by Cynthia Eden


About the Author:
Cynthia Eden also writes tales of paranormal suspense and erotic romance for Kensington Brava, Avon Red, and Red Sage. In college, she majored in Communication and Sociology, graduating summa cum laude and spending many hours working on the campus paper. She soon decided writing fiction was much more fun than just sticking to the facts. Later, as she traveled the long and bumpy road to romance publication, Cynthia was employed as a teacher and a college counselor. She is a member of the Gulf Coast Chapter of the RWA and Mensa.

Further Information:
Visit the author’s website.
Follow the author on Twitter.
Five Fun Facts.
The author’s FaceBook page.
The author’s MySpace page.

TO ENTER THIS GIVEAWAY:

1. For your main entry make a comment on one of these two links. Make sure you leave your e-mail address!
a) Check out the Author's Website and tell me something you found interesting there.OR
b) You can visit five fun facts and comment on one of those.

2. For an extra entry, become a follower or tell me if you are already a follower.

3. For another entry, blog, facebook, tweet (any of those networks!) about this giveaway and tell me where you did.

4. For TWO extra entries comment on the review post.

5. For another TWO extra entries comment on the guest post.

It isn't necessary to use separate entries unless you want them in different chronological order.

(Seven total entries possible.) MAKE SURE YOU LEAVE YOUR E-MAIL! Five winners!

* This contest is only open to residents of US and Canada.
* No P.O. Boxes Please - for shipping reasons
* This contest will close 10:00 PM (Central) on August 24, 2010. The winners will be randomly selected from all entries.

Review - Deadly Fear by Cynthia Eden

This was an intense hunt from start to finish!

Deadly Fear by Cynthia Eden

• Mass Market Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Forever (July 27, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446559245
• ISBN-13: 978-0446559249

Rating 4.5 of 5.0

Product Description

TWO BRILLIANT AGENTS FBI Special Agent Monica Davenport has made a career out of profiling serial killers. But getting inside the twisted minds of the cruel and the sadistic has taken its toll: She's walled herself off from the world. Yet Monica can't ignore fellow agent Luke Dante, the only man who ever broke through her defenses.
ONE DREAM TEAM
Luke has the unique ability to put victims at ease...professionally, he and Monica made a perfect team. Now they're reunited to catch a murderer who uses his victims' deepest, darkest fears for sport - but their investigative skills aren't enough. Luke and Monica will have to face the secrets from their past, the ones that terrify them the most, if they are to have a future together.
But can they catch a killer whose weapon is...DEADLY FEAR

Review: This is a wonderfully intense read.  The book is so fast paced that my thoughts hit me in quick bites:

incredible intensity; terrific tension; compelling characters; vile villain; sizzling sex; superb storyline; lousy language.

I loved the intensity of the book from the very first page to the end.  The only thing that disturbed me was the rough language. The “f” word is used every other page at the beginning; it calms a bit but is then on almost every page at about pages 40-50. I came close to setting the book down but decided to persevere. The language is used liberally throughout the book although it isn’t quite as heavy after that beginning.

I really like the heroine, Monica, as the ice cool, “get into the head of the killers” profiler. She has a personal history that gives her insight to the killer’s view. That personal history has also kept her a loner.

Luke is the sexy, personable victim specialist. He has his own history that caused him to develop into a protector. Monica may want to push him away, like she did years before, but he isn’t going anywhere. In fact, he’s pushing back to get inside her defenses and knock down some of those walls.

There was plenty of tension that kept building between these two. Especially since the first several times things were heating up, they were interrupted by a knock on the door or a phone ring.  When they finally do get together the interactions are sizzling.

The brutal and detailed killer is always one step ahead of the local authorities and the FBI team.  That gives you a clue where to look for the suspect since he obviously has all the inside information. There are several good candidates and a few red herrings to keep the hunt interesting.

The manner in which Monica and Luke confront the killer was a major disappointment to me. Not because it wasn’t intense...it is. But more because it was so stupid, stupid, stupid to go in without getting backup in place. Especially since there was an opportunity on the way to call in and let others know what they were doing.  Of course this allows for more heart throbbing suspense and a showdown to the wire.

The ending is neatly wrapped up with a good twist as Monica faces her past. There may have been one or two sex scenes that could have been removed along with a lot of the “f” word and I think the book would have been better for it. But that is one reader’s opinion. Although I may think twice because of the language, I would love to read more by this author for the intensity of the work.  If you like romantic suspense and can get past the language you would surely like this book.

Thank you to Hachette and Anna for this book to read, review and giveaway.