Monday, February 20, 2012

Welcome Annabel Horton (Character Interview)


***Thank you for coming to chat with us today. Why do you think Vera Jane Cook chose you to represent her/him?
I am in spirit form. It is interesting to chat with a spirit, is it not? I told Vera Jane my tale. I don't think she believed me, but she has had it published. There must be some truth to it then.

***Tell us a little about yourself?
I am a Puritan, though I became a Christian, and later, even a Catholic. It is all these lives I live, but God never changes, no matter what religion I am. I am Annabel Horton, yet I have walked in the flesh many times, as a nineteenth century man, a priest, a girl from the witch trials, a contemporary woman, as you would call her.

What is your birth date?
I was born centuries ago, in Salem, during the witch trials I was eighteen when I hung by my neck. My spirit was born in Loudon in 1632 when all those deranged nuns were seduced by the demon, Urbain Grandier. You may not think it's possible, but hear my tale. It is possible.

Where do you live?
I could live anywhere but I live here now, in your time. My two youngest children were born to it, so I call it home, though I do not like your modern life.

 What is it about that area that drew you there?
Nothing at all drew me to Brooklyn, New York, but my children's wish to remain here. I hate your boom boom music, your discontent, your underground rails. I lived here a long time ago when Brooklyn was known as Nieuw Amersfoordt. You would not remember. It was nicer then.

What do you wish people would know about you? I mean you no harm

What music do you listen too? Shubert, Brahms, Mozart.

Will we be seeing more of you or are you stepping out of the lime light? You cannot see me, you do not have the gift to see me as I am, so no, I never step out of the limelight.

Where have we seen you before? In the eyes of your neighbor, perhaps?

What is your perfect evening? Holding my husband's hand before the fire. My husband, who is lost, as I am.

What do you do to relax? Take myself to another time, when life was not so frenzied, when carriages traveled the streets, when men bowed at the waist for women.

Is there anything you wish Vera Jane Cook had kept their mouth shut about? The world did not need to know about my granddaughter's marriage to that woman. It was horrid. She paraded as a man. I tried to rid the world of her back in the nineteenth century but fate played a trick. Alas!

Do you feel you were portrayed fairly? Ah yes. This is my tale and it was told as it was told, in my words, not Vera's. She merely transcribed while I spoke.

Tell us about what drew you to him/her? Michele is a man of great height. His hair is black and his features are so handsome. But it was the gentleness I saw in him that drew me, not the magic. I fear it is the magic that separates us now though.

What really pushes your buttons? Your world. It is too loud, too disjointed, too self involved.

What’s your favorite sports team? What? I like Rugby sometimes.

Do you believe in ghosts? There are no ghosts, time is now. Your ghosts are not gone, they live in the moment where all time meets. Soon, you will be there too.

What is your biggest fear? That I will never again see Michele, my beloved.

***Why should the readers be interested in your story? I have been here, there and everywhere. In my tale there are secrets worth sharing. Secrets I give you.

LINKS:








Book Blurb:
From the Salem Witch trials through the Nineteenth Century and beyond, Annabel Horton is pursued by the devil’s disciple, Urban Grandier, the demonic priest from the incident at Loudon. She must take the bodies of those that the devil favors to protect her family. She must uncover the motive behind the illusive Ursula/Louis Bossidan, the scandalous cross-dresser who is pursuing her beautiful granddaughter, and she must learn, being one of God’s most powerful witches, how to use her power. But will it be enough to save her husband from Urbain’s fiery inferno? Will it be enough to save her children from demons greater than themselves? Read on, you will learn more…..

Excerpt:

When I am not in the form of flesh, I live in the confines of shadow. The psychics of your dimension have said that I can be seen floating between the kiss of dusk and the evening moon. Yes, some of you can actually see me, though you are unaware of what I am. You usually ignore me because I vanish so quickly. I simply blend into the surface of your world and disappear,  into objects, into trees, into the soft fur of a sleeping squirrel, into anything that will have me.

 Before I begin my tale, you must know this: I can also blend into a human body. I can steal your flesh if I choose. But before you judge me, you must understand my loneliness. You have no idea how desperately I desire the physical senses you so cavalierly take for granted. But please, do not fear me. I will not harm the innocent. Hear me out before you cast any stones. There are secrets in my tale worth knowing.

The snap of my neck appears to have granted me immortality as a captured soul, doomed to live over and over again in stolen flesh and blood. Therefore, I take bodies in exchange for my freedom. I want you to understand that if I were to ever choose your flesh, I would mean you no harm. I would simply borrow the luxury of your language and take comfort in the pleasure of your warm, beating heart.

The process of my abduction is painless. You see, the earth holds time. When I consume a body all I do is absorb time. It is quite simple. My soul moves out of one perception and into another. Let me reassure you that though I can take any one of you, I prefer the flesh of those whom the devil favors, and I do not have to go very far to consume the devil’s own.

Bio:
Dancing Backward In Paradise, Ms. Cook's first published novel was the recipient of the Eric Hoffer and Indie Excellence award in the Literary fiction category for notable new fiction in 2007. Her next southern fiction title, The Story of Sassy Sweetwater, was published by Musa Publishing this year. Annabel Horton, Lost Witch of Salem, is her first paranormal fiction, part I of a trilogy. It will be followed by Annabel Horton and the Black Witch of Pau, and Annabel Horton and the Demon of Loudon.

The author lives in New York City. To learn more about her books you can visit her web site at http://www.m/www.verajanecook.com
To contact the author send an email to jane@verajanecook.com

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