GUEST POST and GIVEAWAY
Dare to Dream
(Dark Dreams Book 1)
(Dark Dreams Book 1)
by K. Margaret
Dare to Dream is currently on tour with Bewitching Book Tours. The tour stops here today for a guest post by the author and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.
Description
Nellie O’Malley has spent her afterlife hunting and killing demonoids. As a slayer she never faced one she couldn’t destroy, until now.
The hunter has become the hunted.
A nameless, faceless enemy stalks her every move. Nellie must find a way to stop the unstoppable before it kills her, or worse, goes after the one person she can’t live without.
He is her best friend, she is his soul.
Nathaniel Ogapoge has been in love with only one woman. Unfortunately, she sees him only as her best friend. With her life now in peril, he will stop at nothing to protect her. Even if it means putting himself in the direct path of evil and risking everything.
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Excerpt
“It is time for another,” Renata, the Queen of the Damned, announced as she straightened the flowing silk material of her silver gown so it draped perfectly around her. Perched on the edge of a reflecting pool high up in her tower in the middle of Gehenna, she glided her fingers over the surface of the water. The rippling effect caused the face of a young blonde female to come into focus. “She will be my newest creation and she will be perfect.”
Glancing away from the reflection, she peered up at Berith, Gehenna’s warden, who stood opposite her, hands tucked into the front pockets of his jeans. His perpetual scowl present across his chiseled face, Berith’s eerily-glowing orange eyes narrowed on her with annoyance. Not that she gave him her full attention, her thoughts were still lost in the vision appearing in the water. She didn’t particularly care he was even in the room.
“Have you lost your bloody mind?” Berith questioned. “I mean look at her. She doesn’t look old enough to know how to use the rifle she’s holding, let alone be able to kill demonoids. Is this what you are left with then? Is this where your abilities have taken you? You now recruit scrawny females to do your bidding?”
Renata raised a brow, watching Berith jab an accusing finger at the girl’s reflection. Too many years had passed since she’d last been given a slayer, and at the moment she didn’t need to hear Berith’s opinion on the matter. While her husband, Buer, was in charge of capturing and keeping the deadliest of demons within the confines of Gehenna, it was her duty to keep reign on the demonoids.
Two types of demons inhabited in the world: the ones born that way and the ones who were turned into such. The most dangerous, however, were the ones created. Those creatures were known as demonoids.
Demonoids were contrived from the darkest of all human souls. Ones so beyond redemption their evil called to certain gods and demons. These gods and demons would feed on those souls, transforming what once was a man into the deadliest and most nefarious of creatures. The job of her slayers was to eradicate them; to make sure no demonoid remained on the mortal realm or any other.
Renata dismissed Berith’s comments with a flip of her strawberry blonde hair. “You know as well as I do I have no choice in who is brought to me. At this point, I would take a ten-year-old girl with bowed legs if that was my only choice. I haven’t received a soldier in over a century and my troops on the mortal realm are dwindling.” She glanced back down at the image in the water. Yes, the female was young and not the usual soul given to her, but she would make do. All her slayers were chosen for a reason and Renata would not question the decision. All she concerned herself with was whether her new slayer would be strong enough to kill the demonoids when they came at her.
The female about to become Renata’s newest slayer was not a warrior or a soldier as she was accustomed to. Those females were easy to convince to take on the duty of a slayer.
No, this female never fought a day in her life, but as soon as the breath left her body and her heart stopped beating, the contract of services would already be signed. She would belong to Renata until the day the Queen of the Damned decided to release her of her duties. As of present, not one of Renata’s slayers relinquished her duties.
However, the job of her slayers came with its benefits. Renata bestowed one power upon them. A power already lying dormant inside them. Upon their agreement of service, they would also gain the abilities of speed and strength. Abilities to help assist them in their tasks.
Berith’s low growl snapped Renata’s head up, scattering her thoughts. She didn’t need to ask what agitated with him. By the way he stood ramrod straight with a far off look in his eyes, she knew he held a conversation with another in his mind. Only one female could cause him to look both distressed and fascinated all at the same time. A demoness, who happened to also be the bane of Renata’s existence.
“Oh just go to her, will you? We both know if you don’t then you’ll become even more of an ass than you usually are. I have to concentrate on this, and apparently you need to find a way to lock the demon-whore up so she isn’t a constant distraction.”
The way Berith’s eyes narrowed on her, along with the slow curling of his lip and twitch to his left eye, proved her assumption on whom he conversed with. He hesitated for a moment, as if trying to decide whether he should stay or go. Just as he turned to leave, he crossed over and knelt down beside her.
“Don’t mess this one up, Renata. Make sure she knows what she’s getting herself into. I would hope you have learned from past mistakes.”
Renata refused to acknowledge the statement. She always knew what she was doing. Swirling her finger around in the water, she watched as the images rippled amongst the waves. This one here would do just fine, and judging by the progress being made, the time to meet her newest slayer neared. By the bright yellow sun rising in the horizon, Renata knew the female’s time grew shorter. It wouldn’t be much longer before her final breath escaped her lips. Renata wasn’t heartless though, she mourned the loss of such a brave girl, but she knew the ugliness of death must take place in order for others to be saved. That was the motto of her slayers - to protect and serve those who could not protect themselves.
Praise for the Book
"This is a fantastic start to a series with a well-developed plot, likeably characters and a fantastic conclusion what more could I want. Nellie is a strong independent woman who can take care of herself. Nathaniel is a strong caring man who supports Nellie in her work. He wants to protect her but knows that she can do that herself so instead he looks after her and provides comfort. All of the characters are developed and I cannot wait to see what comes next for them all. I love a book where I like the main characters rooting them on all the way through and truly dislike the villain. K Margaret defiantly provides me with this and from the beginning I’m waiting for Nellie to get the life she deserves. This is a great book with interesting paranormal aspects, a strong romance and enough blood and gore to satisfy me. I would happily recommend it." ~ parker2030
"I have to say that I loved, loved, loved this book. It reminded me, in a lot of ways, of 'Buffy, the Vampire Slayer', which was one of my favorite television programs. However, it isn't so much like it as to feel derivative. The author has an excellent ear for dialogue and the world she has created has left me wanting to know more. I really want to know more about the secondary characters so I am hopeful that this is but the first book of many. There are a few sex scenes and they are hot, so I would have to recommend this book to 18+." ~ HR Duby
"Great story. Can't wait for the next book." ~ Amy Jones
Guest Post by the Author
My Love of Mythology
Hey everyone, I’m K. Margaret and I write paranormal romance. One of the best things about writing in the paranormal genre is getting to dive into and explore all different types of mythology. There isn’t a type of research I love more.
My editors and betas found this out really quickly. I thought their questions would range from, "Why did you make Zeus such a jerk?" to "How does Empusa have two mothers?" To my surprise, they forgot how much I love Norse Mythology. When I received my first set of edits back, every single one of them corrected my spelling of "Hel" to "hell" every time my character, Berith, used the word. It made me smile, because I was referring to the Norse Goddess, and I really meant, Hel. And I promise, there is a reason Berith uses the goddess name instead of the Christian realm.
There isn’t a pantheon I don’t love to read about and research. In my series, Dark Dreams, I explore every type of mythology I can get my hands on. Dare to Dream has a special appearance by Osiris, the Egyptian God of Rebirth, and even the Welsh goddess, Arianrhod, is mentioned. Each book in the series will focus on a different mythology, from Greek, to Norse, to Navajo.
Researching has created new storylines and characters for me. Writing a series can be tricky, tying everything together and having not only story arches within a particular book, but also in the series as a whole. While researching demons, I came across the Greek demon, The Ardat Lili, and an entire series plot was created just by reading up on her. It’s like being a kid in a candy store for me. Every time I pick up a mythology book, new worlds open up and new characters are discovered.
About the Author
K. Margaret is a paranormal romance author living in Georgia. Her love for words, storytelling, and mythology started as a teenager and continues to grow. When she isn’t sucking down pots of coffee and writing, or hanging out with her teenage daughter, she can usually be found in front of her TV watching football, her other obsession.
Giveaway
Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win a signed paperback copy with swag or one of ten ebook copies of Dare to Dream by K. Margaret.
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