Interview with Jess Macallan, Author of Stone Cold Seduction

Hey, Jess! It’s great to meet you! Before we start talking about your book – which I HAD to buy, BTW, let’s talk about the New Year. You’re doing a *looking again* a Vision Board? *very interested* Tell us more. What are you doing with it and are there pics to share?

Hi! Thanks so much for having me here today. Yes, I’m addicted to creating vision boards. I usually do a couple per year. I’m also addicted to magazines, which sort of fueled the vision board obsession. I cut out pictures and words to represent my goals, dreams and even inspirations. To ring in the New Year, my husband and kids all did one. It’s the perfect visual reminder. I haven’t quite finished mine, but I’ll post pics to my blog as soon as it’s done. My favorite picture is of Johnny Depp dressed as Captain Jack Sparrow. You know, for inspiration. Ahem.

Good luck to your non-resolution-resolutions. *chuckle* There’s not a whole lot about you on the web. Why don’t you tell us a bit about yourself?

Thanks. I suppose I should mention I set so many goals in a year, resolutions are sort of redundant. *grins* And on that note, I’m a mom of 3, yoga teacher, gardener, speaker, craft junkie, book addict, volunteer…did I mention I’m a type A personality? Seriously though, I have a wide variety of interests and am easily distracted by shiny new ideas. Writing was an ideal fit for the part of my brain that needed an outlet for some of those ideas.

Your book, Stone Cold Seduction, is out. Tell us a bit about your book.

It’s the first book in my Set in Stone trilogy, from Entangled Publishing. The series features Elle Fredricks, who is unexpectedly thrown into a paranormal world she wants nothing to do with. Family secrets come to light, and Elle discovers she’s part shadow elf. To make matters interesting, a sexy gargoyle and hot phoenix both claim to be her mate. In order to make sense of everything, including her growing abilities, she has to find her fate. Her father will do anything to prevent that from happening.

I’m always intrigued when an author picks a creature you haven’t seen in a million books and creates a character around that. YOU chose a gargoyle as the mc’s love interest. *giggle* And by the reviews, that’s a going well. I love the comment by Katie Dalton, “All I saw was ‘he can turn parts of himself to stone at will’ yeah, I’m SOLD!!!!!!!”. That had me laughing. How’d you decide on a gargoyle?

I hadn’t heard that one, but that’s hilarious! I chose a gargoyle because I had nothing new to add to the vampire/werewolf genre. Don’t get me wrong, I love those books, but I wanted to do something different, and gargoyles have always fascinated me. In fact, they get a bad rap. Most people think of them as ugly, creepy creatures, but they were originally used to ward away evil spirits. Well, and also as rain spouts, but that’s far less sexy. So I wanted to bring that protector to life and see what happened.

What inspired this book?

I love mythical creatures, and wanted to do my own twist on elves, phoenix and oracles. I wish I could claim I had a brilliant epiphany, but I simply started with gargoyles and worked my way out from there. My creative process for this book was equal parts random and methodical.

Tell us something about your characters that we wouldn’t be able to figure out by reading the book.

Oh, gosh, that’s a hard one. I’m always surprised by how readers perceive characters, because it can vary wildly. I wanted each of the characters, especially Jax (the gargoyle) and MacLean (the phoenix) to have to work for readers’ affection as they try to win Elle. With that said, Jax is one of the more complex characters. Although he’s the strong, silent type, he has a soft spot for big dogs (think Irish Wolfhounds), and romantic gestures. Readers get to see more of that when he turns up the heat in Stone Cold Revenge.

Is there a book 2 in the works? Can you tell us a bit about it?

Yes, Stone Cold Revenge is the second book, and Stone Cold Destiny rounds out the trilogy. I should know release dates very soon. Stone Cold Revenge introduces a couple of new characters, and Elle comes into her full abilities (with some very surprising twists). She chooses her mate, but it doesn’t go quite as planned. And readers get to see exactly what a gargoyle can do. *winks*

Where can readers purchase your book?

Readers can purchase a copy of STONE COLD SEDUCTION at: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Books On Board | Powell's | BAM | Diesel

May we read an excerpt from the book?

Absolutely!

Get in, get out. Get in, get out, I chanted in my head.

I could do this. I crept toward the stairs, keeping to the shadows and the outer edges of the room. Footsteps moving at a fast pace were coming toward me. I touched the small mark for the cloaking ward and silently chanted the words, and pressed against the wall. Please let this work. A split second later, two gargoyles rounded the corner. My mouth went dry, and I was afraid they’d hear my heart pounding, it was so loud.

They were full gargoyles. Their stone feet made dull, heavy thuds against the stone floor. Hysteria bubbled, and I wondered what happened if they got a chip in gargoyle form. Did they ever break a toe or finger off? Wings tucked behind them, horns on their heads, they were an awesome sight. Long faces, pointy chins and bright, glowing silver eyes. No clothes and very, very…naked.

I brought my gaze back to their faces as they neared the stairs. I held my breath. Silently, they brushed past me, oblivious to my presence. So close, I could have reached out and grabbed their…er…wings. I waited until I could no longer hear their footsteps, before releasing the ward and my breath in a quiet exhale.

I sucked in a deep, shaky breath. That had been far too close for comfort. I made my way down the stairs, one cautious step at a time.

Candle sconces lined the walls. Tiny flames flickered and cast sinister shadows down the curving stairwell. I felt like I was walking down to the dungeons, which is what I’m sure the lower levels used to be. Fear snaked along my spine. I didn’t want to be here.

Which was more motivation to hurry the hell up.

Because of the candle sconces, I couldn’t hug the walls. I crouched down and took the steps as quickly and quietly as I could. Every five steps, I paused to listen. The gargoyles must be faster than I gave them credit for, because I didn’t hear their footsteps receding.

The growing silence strained my nerves. Where were all the guards and oracles MacLean had spoke about? I’d heard one female and seen the two gargoyles. There were five upper levels and three lower levels. I should hear something.

Keeping one hand on the wall, trying to avoid the hot, dripping wax, I made my way downstairs, into what felt like the pit of hell. Was it getting warmer?

The spiral stairs continued down. I was almost there, when the next ward hit me. If I’d thought the first one was big, this one brought me to my knees. Literally.

I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t see. I couldn’t hear. Raw energy consumed me. It ripped through me with the force of a tsunami. As quickly as it started, it was over. Huddled on the stairs, I gasped for breath. A twinge in my shoulder indicated where the new mark was.

“The ward is down. Did you hear that?” The low, nasty voice came from below. It echoed in the stairwell. Heavy thuds on the stairs had me scrambling to my feet.

Shit. They were coming.

Quiet, calm shadow. Quiet, calm shadow, I repeated mentally, squeezing my eyes shut. I held the image in my head, praying it would hold. If I got out of this alive, I’d donate more. Volunteer my time. Be nice to every person I met. No more take-out food. I’d exercise and get enough sleep. I’d…

The two gargoyles raced up the stairs. Fast and agile, they ran right through me. Right through me.

Shock held me still.

Time was running out. I moved down the stairs, despite the way my legs threatened to give out with each step. Hitting the second level, I ducked into the first room I found. Hoping there was electricity down here, I fumbled for a light switch. Success. I flipped the switch.

With horror, I took in the scene in front of me.

Where can your readers connect with you on the web? (provide links)

Readers can connect with me at | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | JessMacallan |

Thanks so much for having me at ParaYourNormal today. I hope you all enjoy Stone Cold Seduction and watch for Stone Cold Revenge to hit shelves this spring!

Thanks so much to Jess for letting us interview her! She's also giving away a copy of her book to one lucky winner, so if you'd like to enter for a chance to win then please post a comment with your email in the following format: parayournormal(at)blogspot(dot)com