Guest Blog and Giveaway with Linda Robertson

Please welcome the beautiful Linda Robertson as our guest author today!

She has an interesting post about the allure of self-confident alpha males.

She also has a couple giveaways .

The last time I visited the FANG-TASTIC blog site I talked about the alluring self-confidence of vampires. This time, let’s expand on that. Alpha males are attractive to many women because of the “I’m a strong manly-man who can save you, babycakes,” persona. It screams: “I’m capable, reliable, and I want you so bad I’ll risk everything.” It’s dramatized flattery at its finest.

Don’t we all want our man to be capable of becoming the warrior who protects us from the whims of our enemies, then changes light bulb? Don’t we all want the reliable guy who will doubtlessly do the right thing in any given situation and who will remember—all by himself—to take out the trash? Isn’t it even better if he can read us perfectly and knows when to chivalrously hold the door and flirt as we pass through, and when to just get the hell out of the way?

Ahhh. Fiction is a wonderful, wonderful thing, ain’t it? :-)

Relationships are never perfect. Neither are people. So flawed characters dealing with the ups and downs of interpersonal connections—all while dealing with being a vampire or a witch or a werewolf—are the characters most interesting to me. Those who, despite the odds, keep on navigating around those potholes on the highway of love can be especially fun.

Menessos, to me, is definitely an alpha male, but he’s also driving much too fast on that aforementioned highway in his overpriced sports/luxury car weaving in and around traffic hoping to impress...but the impression he’s usually making is one of arrogant charm. Sometimes it’s vexing. Sometimes it’s funny. Sometimes it’s wearying. Persephone likes it in small doses, but loathes it in any large, bossy display. Figuring out who reacts how, who has the upper hand, and who thinks they do, is great fun for me.

In FATAL CIRCLE, Persephone needs some help and Menessos is in the position to provide that assistance, but it means she must move into his Haven. She is being forced to accept some serious changes in her life and adding a new (and not entirely safe) environment to them is not the highlight of her plan. But her presence at the Haven does seem to be a bright spot for Menessos, who is determined to seduce her.

For example, here’s two excerpts:

EXCERPT ONE:

“How about we start with Johnny?” I wanted to know about the ties between Johnny and I that Menessos mentioned at the restaurant.

His voice lowered. “How about we start without Johnny?”

Though my back was turned to the fire, warmth slithered across my aura; it was an invitation duplicated in his smoldering eyes.

I drew my shields around me. “Why do you bounce back and forth between humanizing yourself to the point of making me feel sorry for you, and then play Mr. Dangerous Sex-Starved Vampire?”

Amused, he said, “I am not sex starved.”

“It’s annoying and it’ll get old, fast, if you keep it up.”

The heat abated, but was still present. “My apologies, Persephone.” Standing at the end of the granite countertop, he reached into a decorative azure blue bowl and lifted one of the crackled glass orbs. Even as he inspected it, twisting his wrist, I could feel it as if his fingers were flicking over my aura. “Do you not like having your flesh kindled?”

I recognized and resisted this, strengthening my shields even more, but my body still responded to it.

“Wasn’t that made clear with the word ‘annoying’?” The breathlessness of my voice pissed me off. So did he.

Menessos is accustomed to instant gratification. When she shuts him down, he’s annoyed with her, but he still won’t totally give up. That she reacts regardless makes Persephone even more determined to resist. It is neither his power nor his bullish manipulation that reels her a little closer, however.

EXCERPT TWO:

All of his suits were cut to complement him as only the best garments can, but tonight there was something especially masculine about him. He wore no tie and his linen shirt was neither tucked nor fully buttoned. I appraised his self-assured gait, and the competent way he scanned both sidewalks ahead of us and behind, gauging every facet of our environment.

No matter how docile he seemed, underneath he was a predator.

No matter how modern he seemed, underneath he was ancient.

He’d lived thousands of years. He’d experienced almost all recorded history from the dawn of civilization until now. Yet, he strolled along with me, hands unassumingly in his pockets. Seemingly content.

“What was the moment you realized nothing would ever be the same?” I had to ask.

It’s not the things that make him unique or powerful that appeal to her, it is the things that make him human. Her inescapable, larger-than-life destiny makes her uncertain, but she knows that he’s been through this before.

Ultimately, what he wants from her isn’t something this stubborn woman intends to give him, and what she needs from him may be the one thing he cannot or will not give her. Where they each draw their lines in the sand for relationships will determine their fate, unless someone concedes.

So…an alpha male’s stoic self-confidence is great. Sometimes even a touch of arrogance can be justifiable. But sometimes, that wall of conviction has to come down. Sometimes, an alpha male has to expose his vulnerability—not his strength—to win a place in the heart of his beloved.

What do you think? How does emotional vulnerability impact your view of the alpha male?

Leave an answer in the comments and be entered to win (see rules below)!

WHAT YOU COULD WIN:

1st Prize:

Autographed copies of both

HALLOWED CIRCLE & FATAL CIRCLE.

2nd Prize:
Authographed copy of just FATAL CIRCLE.

RULE ONE: You must have a US mailing address.

RULE TWO: Leave a comment on this blog answering the question above. **You have until Noon EST Sunday July 25, 2010 to leave your comment. I will draw a name from those who participated, and announce it in the blog comments. (If at all possible I will announce the winner that day within an hour or so of the deadline. However, things happen—I do have rambunctious kids, so barring emergency room visits or other such unforeseeable events I will be on-time, but I reserve the right to be late.) Once the winner is announced, the winner has 48 hours to email their shipping address to me @ rockinwriterlinda @ yahoo DOT com. If the winner fails to do so, another name will be drawn and that winner will have the same 48 hours to comply. ** I will be leaving the next week to attend RWA Nationals, so my internet access may be sporadic at best.

If these rules are satisfactory to you, post your comment now!

:-) Good luck!

Linda’s website: www.WOLFSBANEANDABSINTHE.com