Today I have a special treat for all of you! Today we have author Alyson Noel for a question and answer interview. Alyson is the author of the Immortal Series including: Evermore, Blue Moon and Shadowland. Let’s get started!

1. Can you tell us a little about your books?

I’m the author of ten books for teens and adults, including my bestselling series, The Immortals—a paranormal romance about two, star-crossed, soul mates who come together again and again through the centuries only to be confronted by bitter enemies determined to keep them from their happily ever after.


2. Which characters were the easiest to write about? The hardest?

Ever was the easiest for me to write as I could totally relate to her grief of losing her loved ones and how lost she felt because of it. I’d gone through my own bout of grief and loss just a few years before—it was an experience that ended up inspiring the series. But Damen was the most challenging as he evolved quite a bit from how I originally pictured him. He first started out as too perfect—too “good.” Not that I have a problem with good guys—I married one! But when I considered the fact that he’d been around for six hundred years, well, I figured he’d have his share of baggage, and once I started writing him that way he became way more complex and interesting to me!

3. Meeting you was a wonderful experience! Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed at your success with your Immortal series?

That was a really fun book singing and I was thrilled that so many people showed up! Writing can be such a solitary endeavor—it ’s usually just me, my computer, and the voices in my head!—so getting a chance to meet with readers, whether it be in person, on facebook, myspace, my blog, or my bulletin-board is definitely one of the best parts. I’m continuously amazed by what a generous, enthusiastic, and friendly, group of readers I have—and I’m incredibly grateful for them!

4. I know that you gave me great advice at the book signing for Shadowland. When you first started writing, did a certain author(s) inspire you to write as well?

After I read Judy Blume’s book ARE YOU THERE GOD, IT’S ME MARGARET way back in sixth grade, I knew I wanted to be a writer too. I’d always been an avid reader, but Judy Blume’s books were the first I could relate to directly. At the time, she was one of only a handful of YA authors who were addressing adolescence as it really is—in all of its wonderful, glorious, poignant, difficult, and at times, downright heartbreaking glory, and I knew that someday I wanted to try to do that too. I was lucky enough to meet her a few years back at a library conference in Washington DC and I got the chance to tell her how much she inspired me, and she was as wonderful and amazing and gracious as I hoped she would be!

5. Can you tell us a little about what is next for the characters in The Immortal Series?

**SPOILER ALERT!!! If you have not read Shadowland, please scroll down to #6!!**

Okay, now that that’s done with, all I can say is that Dark Flame will pick up right where Shadowland left off, with Ever having to determine what’s really up with:

Jude—is he good or evil?

Ava—what was she really doing at Roman’s?

The twins—can they ever get back to Summerland?

Roman—just how far will he go to antagonize her?

The dark magick she unwittingly cast—will there be side effects?

Miles’s trip to Florence—why is Damen so worried?

Munoz—will he really keep her secret from Sabine?

Stacia and Honor—is there more trouble ahead?

And, of course, Haven—how will she use her new powers?

Ever will really have her hands full!

6. Next up are 5 random favorites:

Color: Purple—but turquoise, pleas know that you run a close second!

Drink: Green tea

Music: Classic rock

Book: Impossible to chose one, so: Catcher in the Rye, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Wuthering Heights, Rebecca, Jane Eyre, The Lovely Bones, Perks of Being a Wallflower, High Fidelity, . . . for starters!

Food: French bistro—mostly because of the herbed frites dipped in mayonnaise!

7. When you sit down to write, what are 3 things that you must have?

My laptop, my headphones, a fresh cup of green tea, and a candle (I know that’s actually 4 but they are all necessary!)

8. Do you have any websites that fans can keep up with you and your books?

Yep! Here’s the list:

www.alysonnoel.com

www.immortalsseries.com

http://www.alysonnoel.com/blog.html

http://www.facebook.com/ImmortalsSeries

http://www.myspace.com/alysonnoel

Thank so much, Amy!

If you haven’t read Alyson;s books yet, WHY NOT?! LOL…Go out and read them! You won’t be disappointed! Thanks you so much Alyson!

Jamye over at Fiction Fanatic was kind enough to give me the Honest Scrap award! Thanks so much!

When you’re given this award you must post 10 honest things about yourself and then pass it along to 10 blogs you follow. Here it goes!

1. I have an addiction to books! (oh that isn’t a secret is it?!)
2. I want to write a book, but don’t have the nerve!
3. I taught myself how to play the piano by ear.
4. I use to be in love with the New Kids on the Block.
5. I have a hard time figuring out computer stuff. (Hence the dull title at top and button)
6. I have a hubby who I am totally head over heels for! (Love you Dan)
7. I am also known as an ebay addict!
8. I use to make cards and scrapbook alot, but books are my passion now.
9. I am one of those Twilight addicts as well! And proud of it!
10. I have never lived outside California. I have lived in the same town since first grade.

And here is who I am passing the award to:
EVERYONE who is a follower! LOL
I can never just pick one because I appreciate all of you!

KNIGHT OF PLEASURE
Author: Margaret Mallory
Source: Publisher (Thank you Anna)
* I received this book free of charge in exchange for an honest review*

ISBN-10: 0446553387
ISBN-13: 978-0-446-55338-4
Publisher: Grand Central
Release date: December 2009

SYNOPSIS:

THE GREATEST PASSION

Lady Isobel Hume is an expert swordswoman who knows how to choose her battles. When the king asks her to wed a French nobleman to form a political alliance, she agrees. But that’s before the devilishly charming Sir Stephen Carleton captures her heart-and tempts her to betray her betrothed, her king, and her country.

IS WORTH THE GREATEST PERIL

Sir Stephen Carleton enjoys his many female admirers-until he dedicates himself to winning the lovely Isobel. When a threat against the king leads Isobel into mortal danger, Stephen must prove that he is more than a knight of pleasure … and that love can conquer all.

EXCERPT:

“Do you want to learn how to protect yourself?” Stephen asked.

Green eyes sparking with fire, Isobel raised her sword and said, “Teach me.”

“You should carry a short blade as well,” he instructed as he fended off her attack.

“Why? You think you can knock my sword from my hand?”

“I can. But I will not have to. You will drop it.”

He forced her to step back, and back, and back again. She threw her hands up, sending the sword clattering against the wall as she tumbled backward.

“I’m afraid you have the advantage of me,” she said, reaching her hand up for him. He took it and sank to his knees beside her.

“Not true, Isobel,” he said in a harsh whisper. “‘Tis I who am at your mercy.”

His eyes fixed on her lips, full and parted. The moment their lips touched, fire seared through him. She was kissing him back, mouth open. Slowly, he lowered his body …

He froze the instant he felt the prick of cold steel against his neck.

“You are right,” Isobel said so close to Stephen’s ear that he could feel her breath, “’tis wise to carry a short blade.”

AUTHOR Q&A:

Q: What inspired you to trade your legal career for writing medieval romance novels? Why?
MM: The short answer is that I went into a midlife crisis after two bosses in a row died young and a third got fired. I could have done a lot worse than to come out of it as a novelist.

Q: How has your extensive years in the law affected your writing?
MM: I was a policy wonk; West Wing was my kind of TV show. Since I like political intrigue, you’ll find the medieval version in my books: conspiracies against the king and wily bishops politicking behind the scenes. On occasion, I’ll throw in an issue around property inheritance or marriage laws. By the way, the best legal status for a female in the middle ages was to be a widowed noblewoman with money.

Q: You make the point in your website that you love history, so what role does that play in the All the King’s Men trilogy?
MM: The biggest challenge is to include enough history—and the right bits—to give the reader a sense of being in a different time and place, without being boring. I love to make real historical figures come alive as secondary characters in my books. In my first book, for example, I make my heroine a childhood friend of Prince Harry (later Henry V) and have her taken hostage by the Welsh rebel whose descendent will many years later start the Tudor dynasty. In my third book, I make Henry V’s young widow, a French princess, a close friend of my fictional heroine. The widowed queen begins her true-life affair with Owen Tudor, her Clerk of the Wardrobe, in that book. (If I made this up, no one would believe it.)

Q: You also mention that you visited Alnwick Castle in Great Britain, which is used as a scene in Knight of Pleasure. What is the significance of this castle? Any other momentous places that have made it into your trilogy?
MM: I use several important medieval castles throughout the trilogy. In the first one, Knight of Desire, my heroine spends time in three of the fortresses built by Edward I as a “Ring of Iron” around Wales. Caen Castle in Normandy is the setting for a number of scenes in book 2, Knight of Pleasure. The prologue of Knight of Passion, book 3, is set in the Louvre in Paris, while the English castles of Windsor, Westminster, Eltham and Leicester figure prominently in other parts of the book.

Q: Aside from travel, what other modes of research have you sought out?
MM: I do on-line research, gets books from libraries, and buy a few books on-line. For my third book, websites for the City of London and London Bridge Museums have been very helpful, as well as a book I bought on medieval architecture.

Q: What would you like readers to walk away with after reading your books?
MM: I want to sweep my readers away to another time and place. Women need pleasurable escape reading. I want my book to help them forget about the hassles of their day and to leave them with a warm and satisfying happy ending.

AUTHOR BIO:

MARGARET MALLORY recently surprised her friends and family by abandoning her legal career-and her steady job-to write tales of romance and adventure. At long last, she can satisfy her passion for justice by punishing the bad and rewarding the worthy-in the pages of her novels, of course. She lives in the beautiful Pacific Northwest with her husband and their two college-age children. KNIGHT OF DESIRE is her first book so she would dearly love to hear from readers.

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

Thanks to the publisher, I have 5 copies up for grabs! Here are the rules:
1. Copies will be sent directly from the publisher.
2. Only residents of the U.S. or Canada are eligible to win.
3. No P.O. Boxes are allowed.

HOW TO ENTER:

1. You must be a follower of my blog.
2. Leave a comment with your email address for your entry.
3. Contest is open until Dec. 12th, 2010. Winners will be announced the following day. You will have 48 hours to respond.
GOOD LUCK!

Just a heads up, if you do any stamping or scrapbooking I am selling off my entire craft room on ebay right now. If you use buy it now on any of the auctions, just let me know you saw it on my blog and I will give you 5.00 off the shipping price!!

BUY IT HERE!!

More will be listed over the weekend!

Yep. It’s time. I had so many people enter and I just want to thank everyone who signed up to follow, left comments and entered the contest! Now I have to announce a winner!

I used Random.org and had it do the honors of picking! The winner is:

ninefly

CONGRATS! You have 48 hours to respond or I will have to pick a new winner.

Again, thank you to all who entered! Now that this contest has ended, I will be doing giveaways differently. You will have to be on the look out. I might just review a book and offer it as a contest in the same post. LOL…hunt..hint..