I'm pleased to welcome back my good friend and awesome writer Rosanna Leo to the bear skin rug today. Rosanna thanks so much for joining me I have stoked up the fireplace to scare out the chill. You know I am a major fangirl of you and your work especially this series I want to find Gemini Island so that I can find myself one of your wonderful weres. As I was reading...ok ok devouring Predator's Refuge last night a few questions came to mind.
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t: Why did you pick Northern Ontario for the location of Gemini Island?
R: I knew I wanted something remote, where shifters could possibly reside without a lot of human interference. Being Canadian, I know Northern Ontario boasts so many beautiful, rugged locales. I just knew it was perfect fictional place for my island.
t: How did you come up with the name Gemini Island?
R: It actually came pretty easily to me. Because the series is about shape shifters, who have dual animal/human natures, I thought of how the Gemini nature is the same, at least according to all those horoscope books I read as a teenager. Knowing some Geminis, I've seen how they can turn on a dime (one of their charms), and I loved the idea for shape shifters.
t: Will you have a Hero/ine that is not a Predator??
R: For me, the hero always has to have somewhat of a predatory nature- that's one of the things I love about our beloved Alpha men. Of course, the heroines of the first two books were very much human. The heroines of books 3 and 4 will be shifters, and so are their men, however I think future heroines will be human in this series. I love the shifter male/human female trope.
t: How many books do you think this series wil have total?
R: Tricky to say exactly, but book 4 comes in March, and I foresee at least two more. Beyond that, I guess the fans will tell me if they're still interested! :)
Woot!! That means there will be MORE!! *grin*
t: Why Hungary for the Tiger shifter?
R: Somewhere in my travels, I did some reading on Hungarian history. There actually was a Grand Prince of the Federation of Hungarian Tribes in early Hungary. To me, the stories from that time period worked well with a shifter mythology. I liked the idea of various tribes breaking off and coming together to form modern Hungary, and I thought one of the tribes could have been a shifter tribe. Plus the accent is sexy. ;)
t: What is a whoopie pie?? and will you make me one?? *grin*
R: t'irla, a whoopie pie is the best thing!!! It's basically two cookie layers with buttery filling in between. There are scores of decadent recipes out there, and you have to try it. As Anton says in the book, "These really are sex pies."
t: I loved that Predator's Refuge was a bit more twisty and turny...will we be seeing more suspense in future books?
R: Thank you! I love twists myself and have always tried to throw little ones in here and there. I did a lot of mystery reading in my youth, and even though I don't write mystery per se, I guess I do like the "whodunit" factor. For me, it's not a must, but it ups the ante in a plot, I believe. I don't think I'll ever write pure suspense though, but it's fun to include those elements.
t: Have you planned for your next book in this series yet? Can you reveal anything about it?
R: Yes! Book 4 has been accepted by my publisher and will release March 24. Predator's Claim will be the story of Bart Cairo and Charlotte Moffatt, two of the wolf shifters at the resort. Bart, as you saw in book 3, the is lovelorn security specialist who's been secretly obsessing over co-worker Charlotte, Marci's best friend. In his book, he finally decides to stake his claim to her...and she makes him work for it.
t: I would love to read Charlotte and Bart's story...as well as Killian's is there hope in the future for these guys to have their story told?
R: LOL- well I think I have come through with the first part, and I hope to tackle the sexy Killian for book 5! Book 6 (cross fingers) may end up as a ménage for Killian's dishy brothers, but I'm not sure yet.
OHHH!! menage! that is exciting...*jumps in her chair* I wanna read it now! *clears throat* umm sorry got a bit carried away there.
t: I felt so sorry for Shawn, have you considered writing a Y/A novel with one of your mentorees as the hero??
R: Sorry T'irla, but Y/A is not my cup of tea, sadly. LOL I don't think I can write romance without the hot and heavy. But you never know what might happen on Gemini Island. People do have a way of popping up when you least expect them. ;)
Thanks so much for being here on the release day of Predator's Refuge! This was truly exciting for me. I hope I can expect you back in March when the next one Predator's Claim comes out!
Rosanna graciously gave us the blurb and except for Predator's Refuge Book 3 in Gemini Island Shifter Series just to tease you!
Blurb:
Lynx shifter Marci Lennox has worked at the shifter-friendly Ursa Fishing Lodge and Resort all her adult life. It’s more a home to her than a job. When her boss goes on vacation, putting her in charge, Marci is thrilled. Finally a chance to prove she has the mettle to run a resort.
Her confidence is shaken when new employee Anton Gaspar appears. One look at the mysterious tiger shifter spells trouble for Marci and for her sex-crazed lynx. Anton is judgmental, condescending, and a little misogynistic. Unfortunately, Marci’s lynx thinks his tiger is more delicious than an oversized bag of Maltesers.
It becomes difficult for Marci to remain neutral near Anton, especially when she learns of his troubling past and unusual family circumstances. However, when dangerous incidents occur on the resort, the lynx woman and tiger man join forces to combat the threat to the lodge and its guests.
Harder still is the quest to combat their explosive feelings for one another. As they explore their mutual passion, they realize the danger at the resort is more insidious than they ever envisioned. Their dreams, their love, and their very lives are at stake.
Excerpt:
Immediately, the fragrance hit him, activating his Jacobson’s organ. He swallowed, tasting it on his tongue and at the back of his throat, and wondered if he was mistaken.
No, how could he mistake the unique scent of a female cat in heat? It was too delicious a scent to forget. Sweetness coated his taste buds, winding a delirious path down his throat. As his head swam, he blinked and tried to clear his thoughts of the sexual imagery racing through it.
The scent did not belong to another tiger shifter, but some other type of predatory cat. One whose perfume he hadn’t sampled before. One who must be particular to this region. Cougar? No. Mountain lion? Surely not.
Whatever she was, her scent teased him with its delicious flavor.
Don’t, he warned himself. Wasn’t it enough that he spent the last few years of his existence trying to escape the sick wiles of the grasping women at court? And God only knew how hard he’d worked to maintain a state of abstinence at Pannonhalma, devoting his life to meditation. He’d come here to work, not lose himself in a sweet piece of…
Stop it. This was no time to think of pussy, even though he’d never been more desperate for a taste of creaming woman.
I'm totally excited about this book and series...please take a few minutes and check out my review of PREDATOR'S REFUGE BY ROSANNA LEO
