Interview and Giveaway with Katie MacAlister (and Jim)

We cannot tell you how excited we are to have here today not just one awesome treat for you all but two.  We had the opportunity to pick Katie MacAlister's brain a bit and ask her about some of her AWESOME books but she also brought Jim with her!  *cue swooning and squeeing* In case you are not familiar with either of them, Katie is an awesome PNR author, her series are full of sexiness, humor and great stories.  Jim, well, he's a star all by himself.  You'll see when you get to meet him.  We might have a problem with trying to keep him here though, his Demon Lord might come and haunt us.  Please help us welcome them to UTC!

Katie, you just released SPARKS FLY, congratulations! What can readers expect from your latest book?

Everything from a sheep in fishnet stockings adult toy to exploding buildings. With a bunch of dragons. And one very annoyed archimage. :)

Later this year in September, you also have A TALE OF TWO VAMPIRES (beautiful cover)!  What's the story behind this book? Can you give us an interesting scoop?

When I wrote In the Company of Vampires (the book where Ben and Fran grow up), I became intrigued by the idea of Ben’s father being a man who was totally misunderstood by his children. But I was limited by what I’d written about him in the past (which wasn’t a whole lot, but was still enough to throw my original plans into the trash), so I had to rethink exactly what I wanted to do with Nikola.

The idea of seeing just what happened to him in Ben’s past soon took hold, and I ended up writing a part of the book in the past, so the reader can see the journey that Nikola (and Io, the heroine) took in order to arrive at the present day.

So basically, you get two vampires (Nikola and Ben), some time traveling, and a whole lot of insight into what an eighteenth century man thinks of bikinis.

There's been an interesting explosion in dragons lately. Why did you start writing about dragons?

When I wrote You Slay Me, there were no dragons in romances (other than the scaly beasties in some fantasies), and I was became enamored with the idea of dragons in human form. From there, the politics of the dragon septs grew, and with that, all the tons of dragon lore. I’m so happy that readers fell in love with the dragons, because I’ve had a blast writing about them.

Of ANY book character, who would you want to have a date with?

Oh boy, just one? That’s so unfair! I suppose I’d go on a date with Jack Fletcher (from Steamed), because he rings all my chimes. :)

And which female character in ANY book would you take out for a drink?

Probably Aisling. She’s the most irreverent of all the heroines, and has a sense of humor the most like mine. I have a feeling we’d get into trouble together, though.

Aisling and Drake are hosting a dinner party. Aside from the dragons from your series, what other dragons would be invited to come? 

Probably a handful of green dragons. Drake wouldn’t let too many people into the house at any one time, though—he’s far too protective of his babies to run a risk like that. OK, he’s downright overprotective, but hey, it’s part of his charm.

Knowing that you only had plans for 3 Light Dragons books, can we expect to see more dragons in the future?

Absolutely. And just as it was with the other dragon books, future books will include Ysolde and Baltic, as well as all the other dragons. I dread the day when I come to the end of the dragon books—they’re going to be nothing but five thousand secondary characters all standing around reminiscing. :)

I have a fascination with Jim, he might me my all-time favorite sidekick. Can I steal him? *sigh* And on that note... Hi Jim. I hope you don't mind if we ask you just a few questions. You being the star of the books and all.

What are your thoughts on the Dragons? Who is your favourite, and what things to you do to get them breathing fire?

Dude, dragons are totally rockin’. Except when they’re being bossy, which I have to admit is most of the time. But most of the time, they are the coolest of all the peeps in the Otherworld. They like gold, they have nice houses, and they breathe fire. What’s not to like?

As for a fave sept…wait, are you going to show this to Aisling? Cause if you are, I’m green all the way, baby. If not…er…I really dig Soldy’s cooking. Just sayin’.

What are the perks and drawbacks to being Aislings demon minion? Is there anything you would like her to do to improve your circumstances?

Perk: get to be with the cool kids
Drawback: get yelled at a lot
Perk: get to see the wyverns beating each other up a lot
Drawback: sometimes get set on fire during their fights
Perk: occasionally get kidnapped by Ysolde and fed really well
Drawback: she has a tendency to force me into human form, which sucks snails, let me tell you.

I used to spend a lot of time planning how to make Aisling less clueless, and more like a proper demon lord—you know, hip and badass and scary and all that stuff—but then I realized she can be scary and badass without going the whole demon lord route, so I’ve lightened up on the kid. Now we’re copacetic. Except when she threatens to banish me to the Akasha.

Of all the dogs, why a Newfoundland for your magnificent form?
 

Are you kidding? Have you SEEN my fabulous form? It’s beyond magnificent! It’s super-magnificent! I’m like a god among dogs in this form. All those other breeds are just pale in comparison.

If we were taking you for a slap up lunch all expenses on UTC...what would you have?

Steak. No, salmon. No, wait…hamburgers. Plural. Like eight or nine. With an endless basket of fries. And some shakes. No chocolate, though, cause that’ll mess up my fabulous form. OK, so…how about a steak, with a wad of salmon, and then the nine hamburgers with endless fries and shakes. Yeah. That sounds good.

Can I get a doggy bag? Cause if I can, then I’m going to want a few extra burgers to go. And maybe some more steak.

What's your favorite part of being in the human world now, even though you are bound to Aisling? Has her treatment of you improved or have you had to call the demon abuse hotline?

Well, the food’s better, for one. And with the exception of the few times Ash sends me to the Akasha, there’s no torture or eternal torment. Plus, I get to do demony things that don’t involve killing people, or damning them, or being summoned by who-knows-what and forced to do all sorts of heinous acts. Aisling takes me to Paris twice a month, and even if I do have to put up with her and Drake being all sucky-face, it’s still more fun at their house than it was back in Abaddon.

That’s not to say it couldn’t be better. Aisling totally starves my magnificent form (seriously, is that dinner on or what?), and of course, she’s really bossy. Not so bossy as Ysolde, but bossy enough that I keep the demon abuse hotline number pinned to the corkboard where she can see it.

When you are not trying to save Aisling or her friends from trouble, or annoying Drake, what do you like to do with your free time?

I like long walks on the beach, especially if something has died there recently. I also like to peruse my collection of Welsh Corgi Fancier. And of course, there’s imp hunting on days when we’re out in the country. But mostly I like to eat.

So....are rumors true and are you officially off the market? If you say yes you will crush some hearts.

Sorry babe, the rumors are true. Not that I don’t appreciate the lovin’, but my furry-butted Cecile is the only one for me. It’s just those cute little Corgi ears, you know? And that delicious rump without a tail. And the way she snaps when she gets testy. Man. Now I have to go call her.

Since you've had a chance to spend some quality time with all these dragons, which one is easiest to wind up and what winds up which dragon?

Oh, Drake, hands down. No, wait, Balters. No…Kostya. OK, the three of them are all pretty volatile, but if I had to pick one, that would probably be…Constantine? Or Magoth. Hmm…

Thank you so much to both of you for stopping by, we've had a great time and hope that our readers did as well.  If you haven't checked out Katie's series, you must!  Her Dark Ones series features yummy vampires, and of course there are her dragons series, which are all related so be sure to start with Aisling Grey!

A TALE OF TWO VAMPIRES

Release Date: September 4, 2012

Dark Ones, Book 10

Time isn’t always on a vampire’s side…

Iolanthe Tennyson has had a very bad year—due in part to the very bad men in her life. So, she’s accepted her cousin’s invitation to spend the summer in Austria indulging in her photography hobby. There, rumors of a haunted forest draw Iolanthe into the dark woods—and into the eighteenth century…

Nikola Czerny is a cursed man, forced by his half-brothers to live forever as a Dark One. But his miserable existence takes an intriguing turn when a strange, babbling woman is thrown in his path. Iolanthe claims to know Nikola’s daughter—three hundred years in the future. She also knows what fate—in the form of his murderous half-brothers—has in store for him. If only she knew the consequences of changing the past to save one good, impossibly sexy vampire…

 SPARKS FLY

Out Now

Light Dragons, Book Three

Hell hath no fury like a ticked-off dragon…

Ysolde de Bouchier has a lot on her plate, which isn’t unusual considering her Light Dragon mate Baltic is still at odds with just about everyone, starting with his former guard Thala and her outlaw posse, right down to his dragon god father. Ysolde herself fairs no better, since the First Dragon has her in his sights as well, demanding that she right past wrongs…and her time to do that is quickly running out.

With the help of some familiar friends, Ysolde sets into motion an elaborate plan that will have repercussions throughout the mortal and immortal worlds. But when a member of her family is held hostage, no one is safe from the fire of her rage.

Author Bio:
For as long as she can remember, Katie MacAlister has loved reading. Growing up in a family where a weekly visit to the library was a given, Katie spent much of her time with her nose buried in a book. Despite her love for novels, she didn’t think of writing them until she was contracted to write a non-fiction book about software. Since her editor refused to allow her to include either witty dialogue or love scenes in the software book, Katie swiftly resolved to switch to fiction, where she could indulge in world building, tormenting characters, and falling madly in love with all her heroes.
Two years after she started writing novels, Katie sold her first romance, Noble Intentions. More than thirty books later, her novels have been translated into numerous languages, been recorded as audiobooks, received several awards, and are regulars on the New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists. She also writes for the young adult audience as Katie Maxwell.
Katie lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and dogs, and can often be found lurking around online.


Stalk Her:
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Katie has agreed to provide three $30 gift certificates to a favorite site of hers www.loomingmoon.etsy.com

We are also giving away a copy of SPARKS FLY to one lucky US maiden too!

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