Goddess Fish VBT: Gabrielle Bisset

Contest Information is at end of interview and before the excerpt.

Welcome to Dawn’s Reading Nook, Gabrielle. Please let my cabana boys/girls get you a drink and make yourself at home. Comfortable? Great…now let’s get down to business.

So tell us about yourself. What got you interested in writing? Who are your publisher(s)?

I always loved reading, and one day I found I had a story to tell.  From that day on, I was writing. I published my first book with Siren, but since then I've been an indie writer.

How did you start your writing career?

I've been writing since I was a young girl, but I put off any ideas of it being a career while I attended undergraduate and graduate school. My writing career began a few years ago.  I'd been writing all along, and I submitted a book entitled Stolen Destiny to Siren Publishing. They accepted it, published it last June, and it's been a whirlwind ever since with three novellas and two novels published, including my current release, Blood Avenged.

Tell us about your favorite character from your books.

I have to say it's a tie in the favorite character category.  My two villains-turned-heroes, Amon and Vasilije, are my favs.  Both men are bad boys who were villains in earlier books and in their own books, Destiny Redeemed and Blood Avenged, they take center stage. I think I love them because while they take on the characteristics of heroes, they still keep their dangerous edge.  I love that!

Where do you dream of traveling to and why?

I dream of traveling to Europe again.  I lived in Germany in my early twenties, and I look forward to getting to see southern Europe when I return there.  I love history, and Italy, Spain, and Greece have so much to explore.

Tell us about your current/upcoming release. What inspired it?

In my current release, Blood Avenged, the main character, Vasilije, travels to New Orleans to find out who staked one of his vampires and meets Sasa, a woman who is far more than meets the eye.  The chemistry between them is combustible, to say the least, and as she helps him find the killer, Vasilije's past comes to haunt his present and put both of them in danger.  Blood Avenged is the beginning of the Sons of Navarus series about a group of eight vampires, the Sons of Navarus, who must fight against the law and order vampires, the Archons, who seek to take control of the vampire world. 

The second book in the series, Blood Betrayed, scheduled for release this May, continues the action with the story of Saint and Solenne.  The war with the Archons is intensifying, and Saint, a vampire who has been an outcast from his world for years, is called to fulfill his duty to this Sons of Navarus.  But he's been marked for death and the only one of his world who can help him is Solenne, the woman he loved and lost nearly a century earlier. In Blood Betrayed, readers also get to find out more about the other Sons of Navarus, who will each have their own story told in future books as the vampire civil war threatens everyone, friend and foe.

Has someone helped or mentored you in your writing career?

I have a wonderful friend who is also a fellow author, and his advice has been extraordinary.  He doesn't write in the same genre, but he's been involved in the business for years and knows the ins and outs. I'd be lost without him.

Who are some of your favorite authors/books?

I love Charlotte Featherstone's work.  She has such a sumptuous way of turning a phrase that as a reader I relish.  Her book Lust is just one decadent scene after another.  I love Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett too.  Their book Good Omens is just incredible!

What was your first sale as an author?

I sold Stolen Destiny to Siren Publishing last March.

When in the day/night do you write? How long per day?

I'm a nighttime writer because I work during the day.  Usually, I write a few hours each night, with an all-day marathon every Saturday that goes 12-15 hours. After that, I have to take Sundays off to give my brain a chance to recharge, but I'm back at it on Monday night.

If you could visit any time and place, where and when would it be and why?

This question is so hard for me because as a history buff, I love so many times and places. If I had to choose one time and place, it would have to be ancient Rome at the end of the Republic period and the beginning of the Roman Empire. It was a time of such power, which I find very intriguing. And to be around during Caesar's time would be incredible.  Of course, I'd want to be of the Roman upper class to enjoy all that Rome could offer.

If you could be any shape shifter, what form would you take and why?

I'd take the form of a dragon.  I've been playing around with a dragon story for a while and what I've found about dragons has made me very interested in them.  There are so many varieties, each with its own particular power, which is so much fun to explore.

What else would you like readers to know about you or your work?

I love the paranormal!  That subgenre of romance gives me so much freedom to let my creativity run wild.  I've created my own brand of paranormal characters, Aeveren, in my Destined Ones books (Stolen Destiny and Destiny Redeemed), and I'm loving my time with vampires in the Sons of Navarus series. 

Who's more fun to write: bad boys or perfect gentlemen and why?

Bad boys, hands down.  I read in an interview once with some actor that playing villains was so much more fun than playing the good guy.  Bad boys are the same way for me in my writing.  With bad boys, I can put characters in a variety of situations, and bad boys get to behave in ways that perfect gentlemen could never get away with.  Vasilije in Blood Avenged does things no good guy would ever even think of.  He's a perfect hedonist, interested in enjoying the physical pleasures of this world.  A perfect gentleman wouldn't dare, but Vasilije does and as often as possible.

If you could meet any fictional character, who would it be and what would you do together?

I know my English professors would hope that I would mention someone like Hamlet or Gatsby, but I'd want to meet Vishous from Lover Unbound.  As for what I'd do....well, a woman has to keep some things a mystery, but if you've read the book, you know.

Out of all your books, do you have a favorite one? If not, then which one is closest to your heart?

I don't have a favorite, so to speak, but I loved writing Blood Avenged.  Vasilije is such a decadent character he made it easy, especially compared to Blood Betrayed, which was so much harder to write and left me wrung out emotionally some nights.

What character out of all your books is the closest to your personality?

I think the character closest to my personality is Solenne from Blood Betrayed.  She's tough but when it comes to love, she'll sacrifice for the man she loves.

Anything else you would like to add?

Readers can find me at my blog, website, Facebook, and Twitter. I love to meet readers, so stop by where I am and say hi!

Website:  Gabrielle Bisset
Blog:  Gabrielle Bisset: A Writer's Blog
Facebook
Twitter
Amazon Author Page

Thank you for being my guest today and may you have lots of sales.

Thanks so much for having me. It was a blast! 

CONTEST INFORMATION:

Gabrielle will be giving away signed bookmarks from Blood Avenged and the upcoming books Blood Betrayed and Blood Spirit at each tour stop; $10 gift card for one randomly drawn commenter and $10 gift card for blog host with the most comments (excluding the host's and the author's).

the more you comment, the better your chances of winning. The tour dates can be found here: http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2012/03/virtual-book-tour-blood-avenged-by.html

Blood Avenged by Gabrielle Bissett

I am everything you desire. I am vampire.

Powerful and manipulative, Vasilije does as he pleases. A vampire beholden to no one, he takes what he desires, drinking deeply the pleasures this life has to offer.

When one of his own is staked, Vasilije must travel to New Orleans to exact his revenge. There he meets Sasa, a beautiful woman who arouses him like no other has for centuries. Vasilije’s need for vengeance is equaled only by his passion for her, but what he finds in his revenge is just the beginning...

Teaser Excerpt

Vasilije looked around the room he’d just appeared in, his body alert to any danger. He’d followed the sense he’d gotten before Teagan’s spirit had been extinguished and knew he was in his home in New Orleans. Everything about the place was Teagan—from the Turkish cigarettes he smoked, to the bottle of Guinness that sat on the coffee table, to the musky scent that identified him as one of Vasilije’s vampires.

And the beautiful woman staring at him.

“Who did this?” Vasilije demanded.

Big brown eyes stared back at him. “I don’t know. It happened so fast. I left to grab another six pack and when I got back, someone had a stake...”

 Vasilije stood watching the stranger as she cried, needing more information but forced to wait until there was a break in her tears.

“Who are you?”

The woman dried her eyes and sniffled. “Sasa. I was his girlfriend.”

At the use of the past tense, she began tearing up again, but Vasilije didn’t have time for it. Whoever had staked Teagan couldn’t have gone too far and any more time wasted with Sasa’s crying may mean he’d lose the fucker.

He moved to leave and her hand caught his arm.

“Please don’t go.”

She looked up at him with such a sad expression for a moment he didn’t want to go. But he couldn’t let Teagan’s murderer escape. Vasilije touched his hand to hers to remove it from his arm, but all this did was make her squeeze tighter.

“Please,” she begged in a voice that matched the pathetic look in her eyes. “Don’t leave me alone now.”

The urge to tear his arm from her hold and leave her to her misery spiked in him, but it was overruled by that small part of him that understood her sadness.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Author Bio:

Gabrielle Bisset spends her days teaching college students American and European history, but by night she's an erotic romance author.  Her first book, Stolen Destiny, was released by Siren Publishing in June 2011, and since then she's released the novellas of The Victorian Erotic Romance Trilogy--Vampire Dreams, Love's Master, and Masquerade--in addition to Destiny Redeemed.  In December 2011, she released Blood Avenged, the first book in the Sons of Navarus series about eight vampires who must protect their world against an enemy that travels among their kind.  She lives in Pennsylvania with her teenage son and a herd of pets.

Links:

Website:  Gabrielle Bisset Romance  http://www.gabriellebisset.com/

Blog:  http://gbisset.blogspot.com/
Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002481284652&sk=info
Facebook Fan Page:  https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gabrielle-Bisset/135134056553049
Twitter:  @gabriellebisset  https://twitter.com/#!/gabriellebisset

Email:  gabriellebisset@gmail.com