A Review of Tall, Dark, and Fangsome by Michelle Rowen

Poor Sarah hasn't exactly had the time of her (undead) life since becoming a vampire but she isn't ready to give up yet either even when cursed into being a nightwalker and blackmailed into helping the leader of the vampire hunters, Gideon Chase, and even forced into breaking it off with her master vampire boyfriend, Thierry- at least that's what they want everyone to think.

After a while Sarah begins to feel like they really are broken up, especially when people start eyeing Thierry making out with other women and show Sarah the photos.

Yeah, fun, fun, fun.

But Sarah and Thierry are determined to find a way to break the curse, defeat the bad guy and get back together. Too bad everyone and everything seems to be against that idea.

Things just don't seem to get any better as one after another people in Sarah's life seem to be turning against her and Gideon Chase is always one step ahead of her, he knows where she goes and who she goes with. He's got everything planned and won't let Sarah get away with anything.

It looks like Sarah is going to be doomed into being a nightwalker for the rest of her undead existence and be without the vamp she loves-though to make things even more complicated Sarah's inner nightwalker seems to have a thing for Gideon. Hello? Complicated anyone?

Tall, Dark and Fangsome is a supernatural thrill ride full of twists and turns, ups and downs and quite a few bumps along the way to what will hopefully end with a happily ever after. The way the story goes though you'll be guessing right up until the very end. It could seriously go either way.

You'll love it.

The only thing you won't like is saying goodbye to another fang-tastic vampire series. This is the final book in Michelle Rowen's Immortality Bites series.

Interview with Michelle Rowen & Tall, Dark and Fangsome Giveaway

Today we have the talented and busy author, Michelle Rowen ,with us for an interview and a giveaway of her newest book Tall, Dark and Fangsome.

Hi Michelle, thanks for joining us at Fang-tastic Books today.

You are a busy writer, you've had a lot of new releases this year and more to come. Tell us a little about Tall, Dark and Fangsome the 5th and final book in your Immortality Bites series.

Tall, Dark & Fangsome pretty much takes everything that has come into play in the first four books of this series and brings it all to a fang-filled head. Sarah’s nightwalker curse, the one that has turned her into a sun-fearing evil-esque vamp, is dealt with (although I won’t say what the outcome is!); Gideon Chase, the leader of the vampire hunters, is blackmailing her to turn him into a super-vamp with her very special blood; the Red Devil, a vigilante vampire, has officially come out of retirement; and two characters from earlier books come out to lend a hand. And there is that pesky fact that the man Sarah’s in love with is in a 600-year-old marriage of convenience with a wife who refuses to sign the annulment papers. Of all the damn nerve!! Nothing is easy for Sarah, that’s for sure. It is amusing to me to torture her so. *evil laugh*

What was the inspiration for your fun characters in the Immortality Bites series? I loved that these characters were not the stereotypical vamps. Poor Sarah has just never had the greatest time being a vamp with everything going wrong all the time and it looks like the final book may have her dealing with more than ever.

My original inspiration for Sarah was Bridget Jones, back during the heyday of chick-lit. I loved that snarky girl-next-door character and thought how much fun it would be to turn her into a blood-drinking vampire. I was very influenced by Joss Whedon’s fine mix of comedy and drama as well. Sarah’s sense of humor comes from yours truly. Her looks come from Sandra Bullock, circa While You Were Sleeping. Thierry pretty much appeared out of nowhere, but started off as a bit of a parody of (or ode to) those angsty, guilt-ridden vampires that always seem to appear in vamp books and movies. Luckily, he did take on a life of his own and I was able to reach down into him and find his many layers. Not sure he appreciated that much, though. ;) I wanted to play with vampire myths, most of which aren’t even all that accurate -- Dracula was a daywalker. My vamps can go out during the day and they aren’t undead, since they still have heartbeats and normal body temperature. Later books made me want to mix it up even more, so I created “nightwalkers,” who are an ancient undead, sun-fearing vampire (now extinct) that gave modern-day vamps their bad and frequently unjustified reputation.

Are you going to miss writing about Sarah and Thierry?

I already do! They’ve been a huge part of my life for five plus years and I’m sorry to see the end of them. However, I am excited about my new projects and characters. It helps a little bit with the mourning.

I see you have a YA book coming out in October, Demon Princess: Reign or Shine. Can you tell us a little about this book?

It’s about a sixteen year old girl who is surprised to learn that her father (whom she’s never met) is a demon king in another dimension called the Shadowlands. This, of course, makes her a demon princess and heir to his throne who’s about to start manifesting some demonic powers she needs to keep secret as she deals with this life-changing news. Her father sends a super-cute messenger/bodyguard named Michael to help her out and he has some mighty big secrets of his own. It’s a whole lot of fun. :) The first book is out in October and the second book, Reign Check, is out next May!

Do you have to switch modes and watch yourself when you write YA so you don't put in too much adult humor or sexual scenes? Is it hard switching back and forth between genres?

I wrote the second book in my Demon Princess series right after I wrote my first Harlequin Blaze, and I have to say.... no, I had no problem whatsoever switching between the two. It all comes down to character for me. It’s not the writing that makes the book sexy or adult, it’s the characters and their decisions and, well, needs. So when I’m writing my teen characters, I’m not dealing with Blaze or adult paranormal situations. My voice trends tamer to start with so it’s all working out quite nicely so far (I think!)

Congrats on the newest of your book deals. I am looking forward to Nightshade, when is the expected release date for it?

Thank you! I’m very excited about it. Nightshade and its sequel will be a fast-paced supernatural vampire thriller, more in-tone with the novel, Countdown, I wrote as Michelle Maddox. I have no firm release dates for these, but they will likely be out in 2011.

So why the new name, Rachel Connor?

Because these books have a much different, edgier feel than my Michelle Rowen light paranormals and I use the F-word a lot. ;) I’m not using the Michelle Maddox name (it’s been retired) since it’s not sci-fi or futuristic. Rachel Connor will write edgy, sexy, dangerous urban fantasy. At least, that’s the goal!

I've always been curious as to why some authors add new pen names for new genres and/or publishers, does the publishing company own rights to your name so when you switch to a new publisher you have to switch names or is it just to keep your genres separate?

No, the publisher does not own the rights to my pen names. They are all mine. However, in book contracts there is sometimes something called a “non-compete” clause, which states you cannot publish a similar book with a different publisher usually within six months or so of each other. If a writer is particularly prolific, they will want to ax that clause (if they can) or take on a new pen name to help get their books out there a bit more often. It is also very useful if you’re writing strikingly different books or want to “start fresh” with a new audience.

I see that you have written under the names Michelle Maddox, Michelle Rowen and now Rachel Connor. Do you ever get confused when doing a signing or event and have to think about which name you are working under? Ever sign the wrong name in a book?

And none of them are even my real life name! Well, except for the Michelle part. Michelle Rowen is my most natural signature and only in the very beginning did I mistakenly sign my real name in a book because I was distracted. Now I sign Michelle Maddox and that M in the last name is not an easy thing to remember. There are a few books that end up signed as “Michelle Rowen aka: Michelle Maddox” because I wrote the wrong name. My pen automatically wants to go for that R. However, Michelle Maddox has been retired after one book so I only have to deal with two pen names. Rachel Connor will be a whole new ball of wax, but I won’t have to worry about that for a while, LOL. I am so used to being called Michelle Rowen that it has fully become my name in dealings with everything to do with writing. It helps that I have multiple personalities to deal with this issue. ;)

Thank you for joining us today. I look forward to reading Tall, Dark and Fangsome and all of your other upcoming releases.

Thank you so much for having me, Roxanne!!

I'd like to offer a copy of Tall, Dark and Fangsome to one commentor.

This is open to everyone, Michelle is offering international shipping so all those in the UK and everywhere else that get left out of so many contests (sorry) here at FB this is your chance to win a fab book. Just leave a comment and you'll be entered to win.

A Review of Stakes and Stilettos by Michelle Rowen

Four Fangs for Stakes and Stilettos By Michelle Rowen

Sarah Dearly is back in the 4th book of Rowen's series and getting into trouble again. Poor Sarah has the worst luck. Ever since getting turned into a vampire on a blind date she gets into more trouble than any person (or new vampire) should. This time her trouble starts when she goes on a job interview and ends up not with a job but with a wooden stake sticking out of her chest.

She gets saved by the Red Devil, too bad her much too serious master vampire boyfriend, Thierry, doesn't seem as thrilled about that as he should be. He claims the Red Devil doesn't exist, if that's the case then who saved Sarah and why?

To make matters worse when Thierry and Sarah go to her ten year high school reunion a witch places a curse on Sarah that turns her into a blood thirsty nightwalker, a type of vampire Thierry helped become extinct.

The results of the curse are sometimes comical and other times very serious as Sarah deals with new symptoms and tries to find a way to break the curse. While Thierry tries to take their relationship farther by giving her a ring and sending his wife divorce papers. Too bad wifey sudden;y decides she doesn't want a divorce even if she has no problem with Thierry and Sarah being together.

In the end Sarah is faced with some tough decisions after discovering who the Red Devil is. What will she do and will the curse ever be broken before Sarah is stuck being one of the true undead forever?

Stakes and Stilettos is a wild romp that keeps you wondering. Highly entertaining and fun to read, Sarah Dearly is such a quirky character. I pity the vamp with such bad luck. Poor Sarah, being a vampire shouldn't suck that much. She just keeps getting the wrong end of the stake.

Part romance, part mystery, part paranormal chick lit Rowen's Immortality Bites series is fun, witty and a pleasure to read. For fans of fangs this series is for you, especially if you like quirky characters and crazy story lines to shake things up a bit.

The next book comes out in September ( maybe late August) and I am sad to say that; Tall, Dark and Fangsome; will be the last book in the Immortality Bites series but at least we'll get to see what happens with Sarah and Thierry and hopefully get some closure. It's been a fun and fanged series and I look forward to the next ( and final) book.

Michelle Rowen does have some other books coming out, including a new YA series that sounds fun. To learn more visit www.michellerowen.com and drop by in September when Michelle will be a guest here at Fang-tastic Books.

Free Book Friday Win a Copy of Stakes and Stilettos by Michelle Rowen

This week's fang-tabulous giveaway book is Stakes and Stilettos the fourth book in the Immortality Bites series by Michelle Rowen.

Want to get your hands on a copy?

Leave a comment on this post telling me what you like about vampires, why are you attracted to vampires and vampire fiction?

US shipping only, please make sure to leave contact info or that your email addy is on your blogger profile.

Want to know more about Stakes and Stilettos?

From Michelle Rowen's site here's a blurb:

Grand Central Publishing - Forever
ISBN 10: 0446505846
ISBN 13: 9780446505840

Staked, cursed, and still single…

"Newly-vamped Sarah Dearly wants her normal life back, but fate is fighting against her. She tries to get a nice, regular job and gets staked at the interview, only to be rescued by a masked vampire who calls himself the Red Devil. Then a wallflower-turned-witch curses her, making her a bloodthirsty, sun-allergic nightwalker — the worst vampire there is. As if all that weren’t bad enough, she can’t get married because her 600-year-old boyfriend, Thierry, is in a centuries-long marriage of convenience he can’t escape."

…it’s enough to make a girl start biting.

"As Sarah’s nightwalker tendencies make her more dangerous, even to those she loves, she’ll have to counteract that curse, unmask the increasingly intriguing Red Devil, and — oh yeah – get a commitment from her man. But if that’s what it takes to secure her happiness, Sarah is ready…even if it means embracing her inner vamp to do it."

Want more of Stakes and Stilettos? Read the first chapter here.

A Review of Lady and the Vamp by Michelle Rowen

Four Fangs for Lady and the Vamp

Lady and the Vamp is Michelle Rowen's third book in her Immortality Bites series.

It is fun and flirty and a great read.

It's pretty clear that Janie and Michael were destined to be together...too bad they don't seem to think so.

I am one of those people that believes there are no such things as coincidences. Everything happens for a reason and Janie and Michael were childhood acquaintances that seem to keep meeting up...on the wrong side of each other's weapons.

Good thing they are so hot for each other the weapons are left unused. However everyone keeps encouraging them to kill each other. So not a good way to start a relationship. Good thing neither one of them is very good doing what people tell them to do.

They both want the Eye and are kinda willing to kill for it, just not each other. They aren't the only one's that want the magical Eye and the others, well they'll stop at nothing to get it.

Lady and the Vamp is a fast paced quick read and a wild and sexy romp that will leave you wondering will they or won't they?

This is the first book I've read of Michelle Rowen's and I am looking forward to reading the rest of the books in the Immortality Bites series.