Monday, September 10, 2012

Giveaway, Sneak Peek, and Review of Erin by Miranda Stork


Happy Monday, lol, as if there was such a thing!!  Today I have, for your viewing pleasure, a look in to a new kind of werewolf book which is entitled Erin.  Erin is a very complex character in this book, lol, that is if you don't consider her mate.  Before I share my thoughts on the book, let's take a look at the details:


Erin is the werewolf Queen of Athol Castle. She has no memories of the events of a few months ago, where she believed herself to be a psychologist, and met the enigmatic and charming Conner…

Filtiarn has taken over Conner’s body once more, and is relishing being in control. Cruel and sensual, he decides to work on a plan...to take over humanity. He begins a war...of werewolves against humans. But unknown to him, Conner is fighting against him within his own body, to set things right, and to bring Erin back from her own darkness. He tries to undo a great mistake from long ago, using Erin’s famed sword, Sioctine, as remnants of his own memory come back to him, opening up the present he now lives in.

At the same time, another enemy is using the situation to their advantage, following the werewolves at every turn, threatening to undo everything that Conner is struggling to obtain...

But will he be able to bring Erin back from Filtiarn’s grasp, or is it too late? And will he be able to stop the war against the humans progressing?

And who is threatening to take over not only the humans, but the werewolves as well?
Sneak Peek:


Sighing heavily, Erin plonked herself down on the bed she had been laid on just a few hours before, swinging her legs out in front her. Conner smiled, and came to sit next to her, winding his arm across her shoulders.

“What’s wrong?”

Erin leaned into his warm body, closing her eyes for a second, and wrapping her arms around him. “I’m just…tired. It’s a lot to take in, you know? One minute I have this normal life…and then you find out that that was all a lie, and your real life is so incredibly complicated. I just wish I had something to hang on to that wasn’t complicated.”

Putting his hand under her chin, Conner lifted her face to his. “You have me. I’ll always love you, even as Filtiarn, I loved you. That will never be complicated, and that will never change.” Erin’s lips curved into a smile as he gently planted a kiss on them. “Do you remember the first time I gave in to you when you were at Forest Hall? I couldn’t keep up the pretense the whole time; it was killing me seeing you and not being able to touch you.”

Erin blushed, lowering her gaze. “You mean in the shower?”

Conner grinned broadly, making his face look even more sexy. “Yes, in the shower. You smelled so amazing…”

Swallowing, Erin lowered her head, pulling her chin away from his hand, so that he couldn’t see her grinning shyly in return.

Conner looked at her soft hair for a few minutes, teasing himself with the memory of burying his face in that soft, sweet-smelling hair, the touch of her smooth skin next to his, her eyes melting in pleasure…

He gently but firmly lifted her head up again, so that he could see into those stunning blue eyes. Erin was smiling, but a deep rosy blush had covered her cheeks, making her look even more beautiful to Conner. He leant down, pressing his lips against hers. She didn’t resist, and put her hand on his shoulder, to get closer to him. Reading her signals, he placed his other hand behind her head, pulling her deeper into their kiss, threading his fingers through her silky hair. His body began to stir, but he forced himself to be slow and careful, easing her into this. He growled low in his throat, a primal, raw sound, thrusting his tongue into her mouth, licking her lip gently.

The sound made her moan a little, as she let her tongue meet his. The sound made his groin ache, and his breathing began to go faster. His instincts were taking over, telling him to pin her down and rip her clothes off, but he held back, instead gently tracing her collarbone with the pad of his thumb. She shivered a little at the touch, placing her hands on his chest, clawing slightly, as if she too, wanted him stripped off.

Conner pulled his mouth away, gasping slightly. He leaned his head, and began to slowly lay butterfly kisses along her neck, moving his lips along the top of her collarbone, remembering how she had reacted to that in the shower, all that time ago. She cried out, making him instantly go rock hard against her, his hips moving of their own accord, as if he were losing control of them. Erin pushed him off for a moment; making him furrow his brows in disappointment-perhaps he had done too much?

“Erin, I’m sorry, I-“

“What are you sorry for?” When Erin spoke, her voice was husky and soft. She grinned at him, her eyes looking drowsy with lust. Leaning back, she pulled her sweater off, revealing her creamy lace bra. Unhooking it quickly, she pulled that off as well, letting it fall to the floor. She looked back up at Conner. “Is this okay?”

 About the Author:
 
I was born in Guisborough, North Yorkshire in 1987 and have lived in various places around Britain, including Newcastle and Glasgow.
My writing is inspired by various writers, including the vivid characters of Charles Dickens, the imagination of Stephen King, and the gothic imagery of Anne Rice.
My love of horror began at an early age, when I was only three or four. I could read proficiently at the age of three, and devoured fairy-stories, but I always had a bent towards the darker stories, such as the Brother's Grimm's tales...Red Riding Hood was always a firm favourite, although I always felt sorry for the wolf, despite him having tried to eat everyone!
I also had an incredibly vivid imagination, leading me to believe that the noises that the radiator in my room made, were in fact the noises of monsters hiding behind it. This led to me having terrible nightmares, in which I believed I woke up and would see them sat in my room, doing nothing more extraordinary than playing cards or reading a book.
As I got older, my love of tales about unknown creatures persisted, always wanting to devour tales about ghosts or other beings. Being born in Guisborough was also a coincidence, as it is a town rich in folklore and ghosts in various places, such as the Black Monk of Guisborough Priory...whether or not any of these stories were true, I still don't know, but I love the tingle of imagining whether or not they might be.
As I began school, I began to read more books, and became enraptured with the tales of ancient Greece and Rome, loving the explanations for simple things around us turned into figures and gods. To this day, I still have an avid love of ancient customs, and I have especially fallen in love with Celtic symbolism and myths, winding them into my novels whenever possible.
As I got older, about ten or eleven, I had moved, to a small village, with only about 80 children or so. I quickly became the main story-teller of my friends, my favourite one being a story about a girl who buys a porcelain doll, only to hate it after a few days and lock it away in her family's garage. The doll of course, is haunted, and breaks back into the house, calling, 'I'm coming, I'm coming...!' until she reaches the little girl, who is hiding under her cover, where she whispers, 'I'm here, I'm here...!' The poor mother of course comes into her daughter's room in the morning and finds her daughter dead, with the doll sat on top of her. I have a vague memory of telling a wide-eyed group of peers one morning, and one of them running off crying...I think I got told off for telling stories that were too scary at school.
At the age of seven or so, I was given two books by a relative; one of them was a large collection of Lewis Carroll, and to this day my favourite poem is 'Phantasmorgoria'. The other book was a collection of weird tales, all involving fair maids and witches, devils and wicked spirits in some form or another, a lot of them derived from eastern story-telling, where children and evil witches constantly collide-usually with awful consequences. This persisted with a series of magazines and music called 'The Magical Music Box'.
At this point I began to really get into more horror books, watching all and any horrors on television, even ones that were far too cheesy to watch without laughing. Point Horror stories became a favourite on my shelf as I went into my teens, alongside my classic favourites such as Dorian Grey and Great Expectations (still my favourite book to this day). I got hooked onto Anne Rice novels as well, loving the combination of a typically monstrous creature who had redeeming qualities akin to human ones.
The most terrifying book that ever made an impression on me has to be The Exorcist. The film is nothing compared to the book-I don't believe I slept the night after finishing it, waking up at every noise in my room, imagining it to be a voice or whispered giggle.
(If you want to cut my bio down a little, please feel free, it's simply the author bio I use everywhere else, so I thought it would be best to send you the whole piece.)
Where you can find Miranda:
Website, Blog, Twitter, Facebook, Goodreads ,Amazon
My Thoughts:
 
If you are into the sparkly, broody, but hot werewolves, then this definitely isn't your kind of book.  I myself found it fascinating.  The author has pulled out the true nature of a wild being, and written about it rather concisely.  Animals are by their own accord violent and blood thirsty, especially when starved.  But this story was truly original, which you'll see as I talk a bit about the characters.
 
At first blush, you think that the story is going to be based around an evil king and queen.  This however, isn't the case.  The two main characters are completely fascinating and do have a revolving personality.  I won't give it away but just a side note that the plot itself was brilliant!  Erin is the essence of evil and rules her subjects with an iron fist.  After awakening out of a 26 year coma, she finds that there are gaps in her memory.  She does remember a large portion of it, with most being centered around Filtiarn, her mate.  Or was he?
 
Filtiarn ruled with a cruelty only matched by his queen.  Humans meant little to him except for food.  Now was the perfect opportunity to put his master plan into action.  He would bring about the end of the rule by humanity.  A more capable species would take their place, with him leading the attack and his newly created world.  Conner was the only thing that stood in his way from complete victory, or was he?
 
This was a brutal and violent tale of immortals that had a lot of issues, but it made for an excellent story.  Nothing is how it seems in this book, so don't become too comfortable with thinking you know whats about to happen.  You'll be in for a surprise!!!  Very Good Read!!
 
 
So would you like a chance to win a copy of this book plus a super amazing swag pack?  Excellent!!  just fill out the rafflecopter below!!  Good Luck!!

 

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway  
 
 
 

7 comments:

Booklover Sue said...

This story looks really interesting and will be adding it to my wishlist!!

susanmplatt AT hotmail DOT com

Cassandra said...

Bowen MacRieve from Kresley Cole's Immortals After Dark is my werewolf of choice at the moment lol
cassandrahicks1989@yahoo.com

Unknown said...

Jacob from Twilight. Tore923@aol.com

Theresa Haywood Donbroski Johnson said...

Phil in Forbidden Nights with a Vampire by Kerrelyn Sparks

ArtemisG said...

I don't find the werewolves very attractive. Maybe I need to know more werewolves. But If I have to choice, Sam from Wolves of Mercy Falls series by Maggie Stiefvater.
Thank you for the giveaway!
Artemis
artgiote at gmail dot com

Leannessf said...

I love Rule and Cullen from The World of the Lupi series by Eileen Wilks!

Thanks,
Leanne

Shadow said...

Hmm. Hard question. I fall in love (usually) with the werewolf im reading at the time. Its been awhile since ive read one and now im drawing a back. Hmm.

Disqus for Close Encounters with the NIght Kind

AddThis

Copyright Text