1. Quickly, give us the title and genre of your book and a 30-word or less tagline:
Blood Faerie is an urban fantasy that takes place in Perth, Scotland, where I lived at the time I wrote the Caledonia Fae series.
When police discover a mutilated body outside the abandoned church where exiled faerie Eilidh lives, she must choose: flee…or tap into the forbidden magic that cost her everything.
2. Who is your intended audience and why should they read your book?
The Caledonia Fae series is something of a mashup of genre. When asked, I usually refer to Blood Faerie as a “supernatural serial killer” book. I hope that readers who enjoy either crime novels or fantasy will find something about the story they enjoy and possibly a new twist on the themes they haven’t seen before.
3. How did you come up with the title of your book or series?
Caledonia is the old name for Scotland, where many of the characters in the series are from and where much of the inspiration arose for me. So it seemed natural to call it Caledonia Fae. “Blood Faerie” refers to the antagonist of the book, a dark, twisted faerie who uses blood magic to kill.
4. Tell us a little bit about your cover art. Who designed it? Why did you go with that particular image/artwork?
I design all my own cover art. When I first released the books, I had a picture of a character on the front. When I tested out this new style, my sales jumped dramatically and I noticed a lot more male readers subscribing to my mailing list all of a sudden. The symbology reflects the darkness of the themes, but I also liked the inclusion of the greenery, because not all is darkness. There’s growth, change, discovery, and even love.
5. Who is your favorite character from your book and why?
Probably the antagonist, Cridhe. It’s really fun to create a character who is completely mad!
6. Give us an interesting fun fact or a few about your book or series:
The entire story was first inspired by an abandoned church in Perth. Everything flowed once I asked myself what was really going on inside that forbidden, dilapidated old building.
7. Do you have any unique talents or hobbies?
Unique? I’m not sure. I think I like what a lot of people like: good food, new places, sunshine, meeting new people. I’m currently staying in Italy and learning to speak Italian. It’s not a talent, though! I find it really difficult to get beyond the basics, but I do enjoy it.
8. How can we contact you or find out more about your books?
Readers can find me on my Facebook author page and on my blog. For more about my books, check out my Amazon author page.
9. What can we expect from you in the future?
My latest book is an epic fantasy called Spirits of Light and Shadow. It’s the first in a planned trilogy and a bit of a departure from the faerie books in that it’s got a darker tone to it. Still, I hope readers who enjoyed the Caledonia Fae books will like this one too. I’m also in the process of co-writing a book called The Lies Dragons Tell with fantasy author K.C. May. I’m very excited about that project. I’ve never written with someone else before. It’s both challenging and inspiring!
10. What can readers who enjoy your book do to help make it successful?
Tell a friend! (Or share the link on social media.) Word of mouth is the best advertising. I know when a friend recommends a book to me, I trust that way more than reviews from strangers or blurbs from the author.
11. Is there anything else you’d like to say?
Thanks for hosting me today! It’s been a pleasure!
16. And now, before you go, how about a snippet from your book that is meant to intrigue and tantalize us:
Eilidh detected the greasy scent of evil moments before she heard the scream below. She perched in St Paul’s steeple, watching Perth’s late night pub-crawlers through rotting slats. The scurrying footfalls of humans did not hold her interest, nor did the seeping ruby blood that spread quickly over the flat, grey paving stones. Instead, her eyes turned north along Methven Street, seeking the source of that familiar smell.
Evil smelled like nothing else, worse than a rotting corpse, worse than sewage and disease, more vile than the fumes that billowed from modern machinery, more cloying than the shame of drunken whores. This particular evil was fresh, but not quite pure. It mixed with rage but was contained, refined, as though gestated in the belly of ancient hatred. This evil held promise, and for the first time in decades, Eilidh hesitated, slightly afraid.
*****
Thank you India for taking part in my Author Spotlight interview! I hope your writing continues to flourish and we hope to see more of you in the future.
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