Brigit Zahara – Guest Blog & Giveaway

 

Today I have erotic paranormal romance author, Brigit Zahara here guest blogging along with a giveaway of her newly released e-novella, The Turning! Giveaway details will be after Brigit’s guest blog and an excerpt of The Turning. Let’s give her a warm welcome.

ALTERED STATES

How Would You Feel if You Woke Up As A Vampire?

By Brigit Zahara

Vampires are big business these days. Seems darn near everyone wants to read about them and more than a few people want to become one.

Back in the old days when the myth of the undead first arose (pun intended;) these creatures of the night were considered to be ugly, abhorrent monsters that were to be avoided at all costs. But today’s abiding immortals have quite the fan base.

Why? Wouldn’t you think the Pros would far outweigh the Cons in the question of whether or not to take the eternal plunge?

From what I can see, the pros are pretty obvious:

• Immortality

• Superior power/strength and speed

• Superior senses

• Freedom to do and be what you want

And depending on which type of vampire you like/vampire books you’ve read, the list may also include:

• Heightened beauty and sexual appeal

• Powers of control and coercion i.e. hypnotism, mind reading, etc.

• Flying

• Shapeshifting

I’m sure there are more characteristics to be found but just looking at what I have so far, it sounds like a no-brainer right? But what about the cons?

• No sunlight

• VERY restricted diet

• Losing scores of mortal friends and lovers

• Being the quintessential outsider

True, it’s a short list but it packs a punch. Just having to eat – or rather drink – only one thing for the rest of all eternity is a big turnoff for me. And no sun? Ever? Yeah, that wouldn’t float my boat either. Those two may not be deal breakers for you, but no matter how you look at it, deciding to become a vampire is not an easy decision.

That’s when you get to make the decision.

In THE TURNING—my contemporary vampire ménage that flashes back to Rome and the time of gladiators, none of the three mortals who become vampires were actually given a choice.

So that’s the question on the table:

How would you feel if you woke up tomorrow and, without your consent, had been turned into a vampire?

Excerpt of The Turning

Once outside, Atticus collapsed against the wall, grimacing as his long, white eyeteeth lengthened into twin razor-sharp daggers with each passing second. Intense emotion always brought out the animal in him. Clamping a hand over his mouth and willing himself to calm down, Atticus squeezed his eyes shut.

God he loved her.

He had from the moment he’d laid eyes on her.

At the tender age of eighteen, Atticus had seen fifteen-year-old Galeria for the very first time as he stood in the center of the dusty arena, addressing the emperor in the standard salutation before his premiere match was to begin. She was perched high above the stadium on a throne situated to the emperor’s left but even from that distance, Atticus could discern the regal carriage, the sheer elegance and stunning beauty of her delicate form. Where Atticus was hulking and muscular, she was petite and pristinely pale. Only months before his massive body and physical prowess had attracted the attention of the emperor during one fortuitous meeting along a road where Atticus was toiling as a farmhand. Right there and then he was specially “selected” to train in Rome’s premiere gladiator school, until he was ready to showcase his strength and speed, testing his keen instincts of survival in matches against other similarly endowed males for the delight of an audience.

An audience that included Galeria.

At the end of each victorious contest, Atticus would approach the raised section of the stadium where the privileged sat. He would bow, his gaze trained on the ground. It was considered a show of disrespect to make eye contact with any member of the royal family post-match so he never looked at the emperor.

Or his daughter.

But Atticus felt her—felt her gentleness, her feminine power, her seductive beauty.

For many years, Atticus fought valiantly, always winning, albeit frequently saved from various near-fatal injuries in a number of different ways. However none quite so fatefully as the last time.

It was during one of the Tour of Champions’ stops in a strange country filled with ancient legends and superstitions that, nestled in the Carpathian Mountains, bordered the Black Sea. It was there that a mysterious healer performed some strange kind of bloodletting on Atticus to treat his life-threatening wounds sustained in a match. It appeared a miracle cure had been administered but in reality, Atticus had unwittingly turned into a strigoi—a creature of the night who survived solely on the blood of warm-blooded beings.

From then on, he had to endure many changes.

 Giveaway Details:

Brigit will be popping by today to reply to comments and questions!

“How would you feel if you woke up tomorrow and, without your consent, had been turned into a vampire?”

For one entry: Please leave a comment with the answer to the question.  (+1 entry)

For extra entries:

• Subscribe to my blog, Sidhe Vicious Reviews, through the links at the top right hand side of the blog, and let me know in your comment. Be sure you verify your subscription through the email you’ll receive or it won’t count. (+1 entry)

•  

• If you’re already subscribed, you’ll receive two extra entries, but be sure to let me know in the comments if you’re an old follower. (+2 entries)

•  

• Post a link to this contest on your Twitter, FaceBook, MySpace, GoodReads, LibraryThing, or on your blog and send me the link either in the comments or by email and you’ll get an extra entry for each place you add a link to. ( add 1 entry each for  however many links you’ve done)

•  

• Follow me on Twitter, Add me as a friend on FaceBook, GoodReads, MySpace, Chapters Community or LibraryThing and let me know in your comment. (add 1 entry each for however many places you followed/friended me)

•  

• Contest is open to Everyone  and will run through April 8th until 11:59pm. The winners will be posted here on April 9th. Please leave your email addy in your comment for me to contact you if you’ve won. If I haven’t heard back from the winner in 7 days, a new winner will be drawn from the eligible comments. Winners will be chosen by a random number generator. Good Luck everyone!

(I should also mention that if you’re leaving me a bunch of links in your comment, do not panic if it doesn’t show up right away. It just automatically gets held for me to moderate, which I will as soon as I’m online. )