Ivy Granger Buttons Giveaway Winner

Congratulations Kerry O'Dea the winner of the Ivy Granger Buttons Giveaway at From the Shadows!  Kerry will receive three Ivy Granger urban fantasy series buttons.

Thank you to all who entered!

Didn't win?  Visit my table at AnthoCon in Portsmouth, NH June 5 - 7, Author Reader Con (ARC NOLA) in New Orleans, LA July 30 - August 1 In-CON-ceivable in Northampton, MA August 28 - 30, 2015, and Speculative Fiction: Southeast (SF:SE) in Orlando, FL September 25 - 27 for a chance to purchase these fab Ivy Granger buttons.

*Giveaway winner randomly selected using Random.org*

Paranormal Road Trip: Destination Krymzyn with B.C. Powell + $100 Amazon Giveaway

Come on boys and ghouls!  It's time to hop on Route 666 for a spooktacular Paranormal Road Trip.

This week's stop is Krymzyn and our special guide is B.C. Powell author of THE INFINITE EXPANSE, the second novel in The Journals of Krymzyn fantasy series.

Keep reading for a chance to win $100 Amazon Gift Card!

B.C.'s Top 5 Spooky Places in Krymzyn

Krymzyn is a mystical world filled with breathtaking scenery, vibrant colors, and fascinating creatures. Every substance and being exists in perfect balance. But as Chase learns, balance doesn’t imply an absence of danger. Many horrors lurk behind the alluring beauty of the world where time began.

1. The Infinite Expanse. What are your worst fears? What are your hidden secrets, the terrors you keep buried deep in your subconscious, and what makes the bumps you hear in the night? If you find yourself in The Infinite Expanse of Krymzyn, all of those questions will be answered for you. Because in The Infinite Expanse, the darkest fears from a person’s mind take shape and come to life. If you can’t control your mind in the presence of everything that frightens you most, your own fears can kill you . . . although there may be fates much worse than death.

2. The Eternal Canyon. The symphonic music from the bottomless abyss will lure you to the edge of the mile wide Canyon. As you gaze at the beauty of the flowering vines that cascade down the Canyon walls, you’re in the Schorachnia’s domain. If you don’t have the sign to be there, a horrific fate awaits you. Paralyzed by a stinger from the end of one of the Schorachnia’s two tails and woven into a cocoon by the other, the giant scorpion-like creatures will keep you alive just so they can to slowly feed upon your blood. Weeks of mental anguish and physical torture await you if you unknowingly enter their realm.

3. The Barrens of Krymzyn. Billions of square miles of dreary, desolate wasteland surround the fertile Delta of Krymzyn. Spread out in tones of black and gray, the crystalline dirt hills, ravines, and caverns present many hiding places for the Murkovin. The muscular creatures with blood-red eyes and black veins bulging from their pale white skin have an insatiable craving for one thing—the pure energy of tree sap, the only form of sustenance in Krymzyn. If they can’t take it from the sparse, gangly trees of the Barrens, they’ll slash your throat and drain your blood for the sap you have pulsing inside you.

4. Ovin’s Tree. The sustaining trees of Krymzyn violently spring to life when Darkness falls. If you’re in reach of the branches, you may be brutally injured as the lashing branches attempt to defend the precious sap flowing in their trunks. But one tree, known as Ovin’s tree, spends eternity enraged that its roots have been bound underneath the soil. The tree was once able to lift it roots from the ground and run free across the Delta of Krymzyn. Now, its savage branches will take revenge by killing any person in their reach.

5. The Springs. Glistening, terraced pools descend the side of a giant hill, interconnected by small waterfalls and spillways. Luminescent water lilies flourish around the edges of the pools. Even more intriguing than the scenery is the timeless beauty of Serquatine who dwell there, seven women, each with a different color glowing from the tips of their long, blond waves. But if their melodic voices serenade you into a trance and you dive into their peaceful waters, death will await you. Although the Serquatine live on nectar from the lilies, they consider sustaining tree sap a great delicacy. Once your mind is under their control, they’ll rip your flesh apart to consume the sap you have in your blood.

Thank you B.C. for giving us such a haunting tour of Krymzyn!  

To learn more about B.C. Powell and his books, please visit his website, and don't miss this guest post with B.C. Powell here at From the Shadows.  You can add his Journals of Krymzyn series here on Goodreads.

Journals of Krymzyn Giveaway

The author is giving away $100 Amazon Gift Card to one lucky winner!

To enter, please use this Rafflecopter form.  This giveaway is INTERNATIONAL.  This is a book tour giveaway, so the winner will be randomly selected by the author or publisher.  Giveaway ends May 14, 2015.

What did you think of B.C.'s picks for spooky places?

Last week on Paranormal Road Trip we visited Chicago with Megan Morgan.  Next week we'll be traveling to Annwyn with Shona Husk.

Join us for another spine-tingling Paranormal Road Trip...
if you dare!

Q+A with Carole Cummings + Wolf's-Own Giveaway

Please welcome today's guest author, Carole Cummings!  Carole is the author of the Wolf's-Own series, including GHOST.

Keep reading for a chance to win a Kindle Fire and signed books!

Q+A with Carole Cummings

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Carole:  As soon as I able to hold a pencil and make it make the shapes I wanted.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Carole:  I like the strange, the unexplained, the magic, the inexplicable. I’m like Mulder—I want to believe.

EJ:  If you could be any paranormal or have any one supernatural talent, what would it be? Why?

Carole:  I would like to know when someone is lying. Not what they’re thinking—just if they’re lying or not. I’m horrible at seeing deception and I trust too easily.

EJ:  Tell us why readers will enjoy your new release.

Carole:  It’s old school epic fantasy, with lots of plot, lots of twists and in-depth characterizations. It’s not a beach read, you have to pay attention and think along with the characters, but if you look for immersive when you read, Wolf’s-own can give you that.

EJ:  If your book(s) were being made into a movie, who would you cast for the leading roles? Why?

Carole:  Physically speaking, Hyun Bin (South Korean actor) has the closest I’ve found to the right look for Fen, though the fit isn’t quite perfect. And Travis Fimmel, back when he was all about the hair and the pretty, works quite well for Malick. (Mal’s a bit of an egotist.)

Thank you Carole for joining us here today at From the Shadows!

To learn more about author Carole Cummings and her books, please visit her website.

Ghost (Wolfs-Own #1) by Carole Cummings.

Dwelling in the land of Ada and defending magic users called the Jin, Fen Jacin-rei is a trained assassin and an Untouchable, one whose mind hosts the Voices of the Ancestors, spirits of long-dead magicians. His fate should be one of madness and solitude, yet Fen Jacin-rei desperately clings to his sanity and ferociously protects the family he loves. But how does Fen do it? Kamen Malick has every intention of finding out.

When Malick and his own small band of assassins ambush Fen in an alley, Malick offers Fen one choice: join us or die. Determined to decode the intrigue that surrounds Fen—and to have the Untouchable for himself—Malick sets to unraveling Fen’s past while Fen delves into the mysteries surrounding Malick.

As Fen’s secrets slowly unfold, Malick is drawn into a crusade that isn’t his, one surprisingly similar to his own quest for vengeance. Yet irony is a bitter reward when Malick discovers the one he wants is already hopelessly entangled with the one he hunts.

Release Date:  November 4, 2014
Genre:  Fantasy, New Adult, Paranormal
Add to Goodreads.

Wolf's-Own Giveaway

The author is giving away a Kindle Fire, signed copies of Wolf’s-Own: Ghost, and a full set of the four books in the Wolf's Own series.

To enter, use the Rafflecopter form below.  This is a book tour giveaway, so the winners will be randomly selected by the author or publisher.  Giveaway ends April 30, 2015.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

Paranormal Road Trip: Destination Chicago with Megan Morgan

Come on boys and ghouls!  It's time to hop on Route 666 for a spooktacular Paranormal Road Trip.

This week's stop is Chicago and our special guide is Megan Morgan author of THE WICKED CITY, the first novel in the Siren Song urban fantasy series.

Megan's Top 5 Spooky Places in Chicago

Chicago is one of the oldest and most storied cities in the United States, and it has seen its fair share of disasters, turmoil, crime, and hardship—the perfect ingredients for making ghosts. Chicago is one of my favorite cities and I visit it often. I hope to live there someday, but when I do, here’s a list of places I certainly won’t be moving into:

H.H. Holmes’ Murder Castle

By far, the spookiest thing to ever haunt Chicago was a real life monster, one of the first documented serial killers, H.H. Holmes. Prior to the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition, he designed, built, and opened a hotel specifically to lure in victims, give him a place to discreetly torture and murder them, and stash their bodies before ‘stripping’ them and selling their skeletons to medical schools. Located on the South Side in Englewood, this ghastly structure eventually burnt down—many think via arson—and a post office was later erected on the site. However, a mysterious tunnel remains below the building, believed to once be part of the Murder Castle. Employees and customers have reported seeing and hearing strange things, and experiencing chills and a random sense of terror. People walking their dogs past the building have reported them acting strangely, either barking wildly at the building or cowering away from it.

Excalibur Club

Chicago’s Excalibur Nightclub (afterwards called Castle Chicago and now closed) on North Dearborn in downtown Chicago was once the site of the Chicago Historical Society, which was ravaged in the Great Chicago Fire—with many hapless victims trapped inside. Now, the building is said to house their tortured spirits. Employees have many stories of strange happenings in the building, from things being moved to being locked in bathroom stalls, and seeing shadows and hearing voices.

The Drake Hotel

The Drake Hotel was founded in 1920 and stands near the John Hancock Center on Michigan Avenue. The most famous of its ghost stories is ‘The Woman in Red,’ supposedly a guest who jumped from a tenth story window after catching her husband cheating on New Year’s Eve shortly after the hotel opened. Several documented murders have also taken place in the hotel. Guests and employees claim to be spooked by these lingering souls, forever haunted by the victims who can’t seem to find peace in the afterlife.

Eastland River Disaster

In July of 1915, the SS Eastland capsized on the Chicago River between Clark and LaSalle Streets, with over 2,500 passengers on board. Of those, 844 died, and were taken to various makeshift morgues set up in buildings around the area. Since that time, their wandering spirits are said to haunt the buildings where they were kept and the area around the disaster. People have claimed to see apparitions, heard sobbing, screaming, and whispering, and seen ghostly children playing along the riverbank; also strange currents in the river itself, as though people were struggling beneath the surface.

Chicago Water Tower

The historic Chicago Water Tower on Michigan Avenue in Streeterville was one of many old buildings touched by the Great Chicago Fire. According to legend, a worker manning the pumps during the fire and subsequently trapped inside hung himself rather than burn to death. Today, people passing by sometimes see his ghost hanging in an upstairs window, so vividly the police have been called to the site several times.

Thank you Megan for giving us such a haunting tour of Chicago!  

To learn more about Megan Morgan and her books, please visit her website.  You can add her Siren Song series here on Goodreads.

Have you visited Chicago?  Ever experience anything of the supernatural kind in and around Chicago?

What did you think of Megan's picks for spooky places?

Last week on Paranormal Road Trip we visited Spokane, Washington with Danielle Annett.  Next week we'll be traveling to Krymzyn with B.C. Powell.

Join us for another spine-tingling Paranormal Road Trip...
if you dare!

Birthright Now Available for Pre-Order

BIRTHRIGHT, the fourth novel in the award winning Ivy Granger urban fantasy series, is now available for pre-order!

Birthright (Ivy Granger #4) by E.J. Stevens.

Being a faerie princess isn't all it's cracked up to be...

Ivy must go to Faerie, but the gateway to the Wisp Court is through Tech Duinn, the house of Donn—Celtic god of the dead. Just her luck.

Unable to share her secret with Jinx, and with Jenna called away on Hunters' Guild business, Ivy must rely on Ceff and Torn to lead her to Death's door, literally, and back again. As if that wasn't dangerous enough, there's no saying what horrors lay in store within the Faerie realm. Too bad the Wisp Court is the one lead Ivy has in the search for her father—and possible salvation.

Maybe hiding away and dodging sidhe assassins isn't so bad after all...

Release Date:  July 14, 2015
Genre:  Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Add to Goodreads.

Pre-Order Birthright Now

Paranormal Road Trip: Destination Spokane with Danielle Annett

Come on boys and ghouls!  It's time to hop on Route 666 for a spooktacular Paranormal Road Trip.

This week's stop is Spokane, Washington and our special guide is Danielle Annett author of CURSED BY FIRED, the first novel in the Blood and Magic urban fantasy series.

Danielle's Top 5 Spooky Places in Spokane

Known as the Lilac city, these spooky locations are known to send chills up the spines of even the strong at heart.

The Davenport hotel is known as one of Spokane’s finest establishments, built in 1914. What many residents don’t realize is that is happens to be home to Ellen McNamara. Sightings have reported that Ellen walks the mezzanine, peering over the railing to the lobby of guests below. She died within the hotels confines in 1920 after falling through a Tiffany skylight and her memory remains to this very day.

Doubletree Hotel is another haunted landmark in Spokane. It is known that every Halloween night since October 1998, a mysterious noise sounds throughout the 15th floor. Shadows are seen in the darkened hallways as well and luckily no one has yet been hurt

Gonzaga Prep High School contains the story of a teenage girl who haunts the halls. Back when the school was an all-boys school, a football player asked his girlfriend to meet him after a game. He told her to wait in a small underground tunnel area that lead to the furnace. Following his instructions, she snuck into the tunnel to wait. When the boy arrived, lifting the trap door, the smell of burnt flesh assailed his senses. The heater had kicked on, burning the girl against the wall. Students now report hearing her muffled cried and the doors in the downstairs hallways open and close on their own accord.

St. Xavier Church is known for its nuns but most noteworthy is the deceased nun who haunts the windows after dark. It is said that she peers through the windows, guarding the church with a candle beneath her face, illuminating her features in a soundless scream of terror. No one knows why she is so frightened or what she guards the church from but many have sighted her near the east windows.

Spokane Falls Cemetery contains a number of steps leading from the side of the road to the cemetery known as the 1000 steps. It is rumored that the steps lead to a place where satanic rituals take place and only those granted passage from the spirits can make it to the top. Rumor is that many have tried and died on their journey to the top. Only two in history being known of conquer the steps. Many college students often brag to have made it to the half way point, only to be turned away by a mysterious cloaked figure, warning them of certain death should they continue.

Thank you Danielle for giving us such a haunting tour of Spokane!  

To learn more about Danielle Annett and her books, please visit her website.  You can add her Blood and Magic series here on Goodreads.

Have you visited Spokane?  Ever experience anything of the supernatural kind in and around Spokane, Washington?

What did you think of Danielle's picks for spooky places?

Last week on Paranormal Road Trip we visited New Orleans with Kristen Painter.  Next week we'll be traveling to Chicago with Megan Morgan.

Join us for another spine-tingling Paranormal Road Trip...
if you dare!

Q+A with V.A. Dold (Le Beau Brothers)

Please welcome today's guest author V.A. Dold!  V.A. is the author of the Le Beau Brothers paranormal romance series, including the novels Cade, Simon, Stefan, and Thomas.

Q+A with V.A. Dold

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

VA:  One and a half years ago. Being an author was a complete accident, I was a publicist helping other authors and I had Cade’s story in my head. Writing it down to get it out of my head turned into a fourteen book series.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

VA:  I write what I read and enjoy. I will also be starting a contemporary Cowboy series later this year.

EJ:  If you could be any paranormal or have any one supernatural talent, what would it be? Why?

VA:  I would be a shifter and be a badass healer.

EJ:  Tell us why readers will enjoy your new release.

VA:  Thomas’s book is romantic, funny and packed with action.

EJ:  If your book(s) were being made into a movie, who would you cast for the leading roles? Why?

VA:  Good Lord! I have no idea. How about we let the fans post pictures of who they think should play the leads.

Thank you V.A. for joining us here today at From the Shadows!

To learn more about V.A. Dold and her books, please visit her website.  You can add her Le Beau paranormal romance series here on Goodreads.  Keep reading to learn more about her new release, Thomas.

Thomas (Le Beau Brothers #4) by V.A. Dold

Julia is happy with her place in the shifter community as the owner of the famous shifter bar, The Backwater. But the life she's created for herself isn't enough to satisfy her crazy-ass mother, Lucinda, who shops her and her sister Krystal around to the pure blood shifters like a piece of meat. Only a born shifter mate is good enough for her girls.

Thomas James has his hands full as the shifter king's head of security. He certainly wasn’t looking for a girlfriend during the first annual shifter gathering. He had the king and queen to protect, not skirts to chase.

A childhood of emotional and physical abuse by his birth father has left Thomas emotionally unavailable and uninterested in romantic relationships. His father Tim’s cruelty to his mother and brother molded him into an extremely protective person. No one messes with his loved ones without answering to him.

Even though Julia and Thomas are destined to be mates. The obstacles standing between them and their happy ever after seem insurmountable.
Lucinda insists Julia stay away from the filthy human.

Tim is trying to kill everyone Thomas loves.

The mysterious Benevolent Sovereign who is trying to over through the throne, has sent swampers attack Thomas and destroy Julia’s lively hood.

With family like theirs, who needs enemies?

Will Julia and Thomas’s happiness be snuffed out before it has a chance to begin or will they forge through - obstacles be damned.

Genre: Paranormal Romance

Do you have a favorite Le Beau Brother?

If so, let us know in the comments.  We love comments!

Paranormal Road Trip: Destination New Orleans with Kristen Painter

Come on boys and ghouls!  It's time to hop on Route 666 for a spooktacular Paranormal Road Trip.

This week's stop is New Orleans and our special guide is Kristen Painter author of GARDEN OF DREAMS AND DESIRES, the third novel in the Crescent City urban fantasy series.

Kristen's Top 5 Spooky Places in New Orleans

Just say the words New Orleans and you probably think of jazz music, cobblestone streets, cemeteries filled with monuments, and scrolling iron balconies. You might also think about vampires, ghosts and who knows what else that might be lurking in the shadows. The Big Easy has a certain reputation for the mysterious. And indeed, it is definitely a place filled with a special kind of magic. The tales that surround this city are part truth, part legend, part good old fashioned story telling.

As a writer, it’s hard not to be mesmerized by this place. I’ve been to New Orleans more times than I can count and it never fails to enchant me in some new way. There are moments when I could easily believe I’ve crossed a threshold where all the creatures of my imagination could truly exist. Maybe it has something to do with the city’s own sense of immortality. Very little changes here, whether it’s the architecture, the colorful presence of art and music, the tantalizing aroma of chicory-laced coffee, or the ever-present sense that an undercurrent of something dark and magic thrums just below the surface.

I promise it’s nothing to be intimidated by. The locals are friendly and the tourist even more so, perhaps helped by the loose liquor laws. Whatever the reason, the city welcomes everyone and has become a favorite for so many authors, myself included.

In my new Crescent City series, it became the perfect setting for my fae characters. A place where mortals and othernaturals could indulge in food, drink, music, love, and war, all while fully aware of each others’ existence.
If you find yourself in New Orleans and want to check out some of the places where the lines between this world and the supernatural seem to blur, take this list with you. A few of these spots show up in my series.

The cemeteries of New Orleans

Sometimes called the Cities of the Dead because their towering crypts and monuments create mini-skylines, a stroll through any one of these final resting places is something you’ll always remember. My favorite is Lafayette Cemetery No. One in the Garden District and conveniently located across from Commander’s Palace restaurant. Both spots make an appearance in my series, but the cemetery gets top billing as it’s also the location of the fae’s underground headquarters (via a secret entry through one of its crypts).

The Ursuline Convent

Hard to believe this quiet, reverent place is just steps from the constant party of Bourbon Street. But this gorgeous building is such an amazing location, I had to write it into my book as the place my hero’s mother took refuge. Not only one of the few remaining examples of French Colonial architecture, the Convent has been both an orphanage and a school for girls (a usage it’s returned to in my Crescent City series).  Walled off from the rest of the French Quarter like its own little domain, it’s easy to understand how tales arose that vampires were once held prisoner in its attic.

Haunted buildings

Lafitte's Blacksmith Shop is probably one of the most famous with its long, haunted history that includes its namesake, the dread pirate Jean Lafitte.  Story has it, he apparently planned many of his capers here.

LaLaurie House is one of the most gruesome and has a genuinely terrifying past.  The house’s original owner, Madame LaLaurie became infamous for her torture and mutilation of slaves. (Kathy Bates resurrected her on American Horror Story: Coven.)

Lastly, there’s the Hotel Monteleone, which also makes a guest appearance in my series. This joint has a crowd of ghosts that include kids, guests who never made it out of the hotel alive, and the spirit of the guy who built the Grandfather clock in the lobby. It’s said you can occasionally see him working on it.

As coincidence has it, the hotel sports the French Quarter’s only rotating bar. With the bar’s long history of inventing cocktails, it’s no wonder such authors like Ernest Hemmingway and Truman Capote made this one of their hang outs when they were in town.

If you stop by, you might get to see them still hanging out there. How could I not write about this city? It’s the most amazing place and really, that’s the trouble with New Orleans. No one ever wants to leave.

Take your own trip to New Orleans with my Crescent City series! The final book in the trilogy, Garden of Dreams and Desires, is out April 7th.

Thank you Kristen for giving us such a haunting tour of New Orleans!  

To learn more about Kristen Painter and her books, please visit her website.  You can add her Crescent City series here on Goodreads.

Have you visited New Orleans?  Ever experience anything of the supernatural kind in and around New Orleans?  I'm going to New Orleans this summer for Author Reader Con, and I can't wait to check out the places on Kristen's list!

What did you think of Kristen's picks for spooky places?

Last week on Paranormal Road Trip we visited Sonoma County, California with Sharon Hamilton.  Next week we'll be traveling to Spokane, Washington with Danielle Annett.

Join us for another spine-tingling Paranormal Road Trip...
if you dare!

ARC NOLA Ticket Winner

Congratulations Melanie S. the winner of the ARC NOLA Ticket Giveaway at From the Shadows!  Melanie will receive a reader ticket to ARC NOLA happening in New Orleans July 30-August 1, 2015.

Thank you to all who entered!  Didn't win?  Don't worry.

There's still time to get your ticket to ARC NOLA 2015.

Author Reader Convention NOLA

Author Reader Con 2015 will be in New Orleans July 30 - August 1st.  Here are a few reasons why you should join us.

• Enjoy the tours and fun of the French Quarter with the authors
• Cover Models
• BTS E-Magazine Red Carpet Awards
• Book Signing 
• Panels
• Games
• Ball

E.J. Stevens at ARC NOLA

I will be at Author Reader Con July 30 - August 1, 2015.  Come hang out with me in the Author Lounge on Friday, July 31st and stop by my table Saturday, August 1st.  I'll also be at a few of the mixer events, including the author and reader dinner Friday night and the dance party/ball Saturday night.

In addition to the convention, I'm also organizing a Ghost Tour on July 29th, and a Cemetery Tour on August 2nd.

Come join me in the French Quarter for a weekend of bookish fun and paranormal thrills!

The Exile Giveaway Winner

Congratulations Lainey the winner of The Exile Giveaway at From the Shadows!  Lainey will receive a trade paperback edition of The Exile by C.T. Adams.

Thank you to all who entered.

*Giveaway winner randomly selected using Random.org*

Q+A with J.P. Sloan Author of The Curse Servant

Please welcome today's guest author, J.P. Sloan!  J.P. is the author of The Dark Choir urban fantasy series, including THE CURSE MERCHANT and THE CURSE SERVANT.

Q+A with J.P. Sloan

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

JP:  I suppose I first started in high school, dabbling in short stories, but never with any serious intentions. I didn't get serious about long-format fiction until my last year of college, when I took creative writing courses both at university and via mail. From the first "serious" (read: horrid) novel I wrote, it was ten years and seven manuscripts until I finally wrote something I felt was marketable.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

JP:  Honestly, the story came first. The entire world of the Dark Choir series was inspired by my daily commute into Baltimore… the sights of dark alleys and hundred-year-old cellar doors tucked beneath skyscrapers inspired this dual-world wherein secret magic is huddled away directly underneath our feet. The story wanted to be urban fantasy, so I just rolled with it! If I worked in D.C., I might have ended up with a political thriller. Baltimore is just this dark, macabre, wonderful town.

EJ:  If you could be any paranormal or have any one supernatural talent, what would it be? Why?

JP:  Mind control. It's the ultimate trump card. You can open up so many opportunities. Sure, it may be morally ambivalent. Okay, it's morally reprehensible. But things would be so much easier if we all just did it my way…

EJ:  Tell us why readers will enjoy your new release.

JP:  THE CURSE SERVANT is the second book of the Dark Choir series. I always enjoy "second books," since the world building and origin stories are all taken care of, and the reader can dive directly into a new caper. I'm especially proud of SERVANT, because it rides a grittier line than THE CURSE MERCHANT. It's closer to horror, but still folding in plenty of socio-political commentary. Besides, it's hard not to like Dorian Lake. His self-aggrandizing yet self-effacing charisma is infectious.

EJ:  If your book(s) were being made into a movie, who would you cast for the leading roles? Why?

JP:  I've always felt that Sam Witwer of Being Human (US) fame would make a perfect Dorian Lake. He can pull off smarmy, yet haunted. I think Rachel Brosnahan (House of Cards, Blacklist) would play a good Francesca Baker, as she can really sell that all-American pith. And let's be honest… the cockney purveyor of secrets, Del Carmody, was basically written for Mark Sheppard.

Thank you J.P. for joining us here today at From the Shadows!

To learn more about J.P. Sloan and his books, please visit his website.  Additional information about his new release,The Curse Servant, below.

This book sounds fantastic.  I can't wait to read it!

The Curse Servant (The Dark Choir #1) by J.P. Sloan

The one person standing between Hell… and an innocent girl… is a man without a soul.

A regular life isn’t in the cards for Dorian Lake, but with his charm-crafting business invigorated, and the prospect of a serious relationship within his grasp, life is closer to normal than Dorian could ever expect. In the heat of the Baltimore mayoral campaign, Dorian has managed to balance his arrangements with Deputy Mayor Julian Bright with his search to find his lost soul. Dorian soon learns of a Netherworker, the head of a dangerous West Coast cabal, who might be able to find and return his soul. The price? Just one curse.

Sounds easy… but nothing ever is for Dorian. A dark presence arrives in the city, hell-bent on finding Dorian’s soul first. Innocents are caught in the crossfire, and Dorian finds it harder to keep his commitments to Bright. When the fight gets personal, and the entity hits too close to home, Dorian must rely on those he trusts the least to save the ones he loves. As he tests the limits of his hermetic skills to defeat this new enemy, will Dorian lose his one chance to avoid damnation?
Release Date: February 26, 2015
Genre: Paranormal, Urban Fantasy
Add to Goodreads.

Have a question for J.P. Sloan?

Ask away in the comments section. We love comments!

Ivy Granger Buttons + Giveaway

Check out these AMAZING new Ivy Granger buttons!

Ivy Granger Buttons

Aren't they gorgeous?

*strokes buttons*  My preciousssssss.

Visit my table at AnthoCon in Portsmouth, NH June 5 - 7, Author Reader Con (ARC NOLA) in New Orleans, LA July 30 - August 1 In-CON-ceivable in Northampton, MA August 28 - 30, 2015, and Speculative Fiction: Southeast (SF:SE) in Orlando, FL September 25 - 27 to see these buttons.

Can't make it to one of my upcoming public appearances?  No problem!  I'm giving away these shiny new buttons in the giveaway below.

Ivy Granger Button Giveaway

I am giving away an Ivy Granger urban fantasy series button to one lucky winner!

To enter, please leave a comment on this post.  This giveaway is INTERNATIONAL.  Giveaway ends April 25, 2015 midnight EST.

Good luck!

And don't forget, I'm giving away a reader ticket to Author Reader Con here.