Thrall
Supernaturals
of Las Vegas, #1
by Carrie
Harris
Date of Publication: March 7th 2020
Publisher: Inked Entertainment
Cover Artist: Inked Entertainment
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Tagline: Undeniable attraction. Blood magic. Vampire politics. Murder...Just another day in Las Vegas.
BLURB
Liss Lorensson is a thrall–born to be a servant of the vampire crown prince.
Gregor Valdemar is a vampire prince who chafes under the strict rule of his sire and longs for a different life.
When the two finally meet on Liss’s 21st birthday, sparks fly. But blood magic, murder, and political intrigue stand in the way of their growing romance. Vampire seduction meets the power of the blood in this first volume of the Supernaturals of Las Vegas series.
Excerpt
Liss Lorensson
fastened a length of pearls around her neck and tried not to think about
biting. It would happen right there, at the sensitive juncture where the
shoulder met the neck, just under the slightly uneven orbs that distinguished
real pearls from fake baubles made in factories. She was resigned to getting
bitten—it was part of her new job, after all—but after all of the time she’d
spent preparing for this night, it had gotten built up in her mind. Anyone who
knew her would say that Liss Lorensson was never nervous or underprepared for
anything. She’d practically sprung from the womb with a to-do list, according
to her mother. But now, she felt both of those things, and she didn’t quite
know how to deal with it.
She settled the
pearls into place, eyeing her reflection, ignoring the minute tremor of her
hand. No one who saw her would guess at her agitation. Her face was a perfect,
pale oval with the kind of complexion that usually only comes with Photoshop.
Makeup accentuated the cold intensity of her icy blue eyes. Her long blonde
hair was twisted back into a chignon, not a strand out of place. A shimmery
silk dress gave her an air of understated yet virginal elegance, topped off
with a pair of silver, strappy heels. She usually skipped heels, since at 5’10”
they often made her taller than her dates, and most men didn’t like that sort
of thing. But Gregor was tall, so she’d been practicing with these particular
shoes for weeks now. She could do anything in them now without stumbling—walk,
dance, sneak into locked rooms, or engage in hand to hand combat.
Even so, all the
preparation felt insufficient. Only a few days earlier, she’d graduated from
her small private college with a dual degree in finance and political science,
summa cum laude. She’d moved out of her dormitory the next day, ignoring the
protests of casual friends who didn’t know anything about the world she came
from. Today was her 21st birthday, and they’d begged her to stay so they could
take her out on the town. A small part of her was curious to know what that
would be like, to drink until her head swam, to pick up some boy she didn’t
care about and do as she liked with him. She’d never done anything like that.
There had never been time. She’d been taking a huge load of classes in order to
graduate early and return home for her presentation tonight.
Her eyes fell on
the stack of textbooks on the divan. She’d moved back to her family’s penthouse
in a hurry, and her normally immaculate bedroom was still in disarray. The
marble floor was dotted with half unpacked suitcases and boxes of dorm
essentials she’d need to donate or move to storage. Normally, she was on top of
that kind of thing, but there hadn’t been time for that either. She hadn’t even
had time to process the fact that she was no longer a college student. As of
tonight, she’d take her place with her family, thralls to Gregor Valdemar,
prince of the vampire kingdom of Las Vegas. Each vampire was allowed four
thralls, who protected their masters during the day and served them at night.
She’d help her father run the Renaissance Casino and Hotel, one of the biggest
resorts on the Strip. No one knew it was owned by the undead. One vampire in
particular—Gregor. Her new master, as of tonight.
She’d seen him a
few times from a distance, but vampires weren’t allowed to associate with
thrall minors, so they’d never spoken in person. But she had pictures, of
course, and plenty of stories about him from her parents and her older brother
Tait. He seemed to be a good boss and patron from what she could gather. At
least she wasn’t stuck with one of those anachronistic morons who couldn’t or
wouldn’t change with the times, the kind that made their thralls dress up in
white powdered wigs and corsets just because it reminded them of the good old
days. In order to be successful, one needed to stay current, and Gregor seemed
like he managed that. He’d financed her college education, for starters, and
had sent her a note of admiration when she’d won a particularly exclusive
finance and economics prize. She’d kept the note, reading it over and over
again in the hopes of getting a glimpse at the mind behind it. But it simply
said, “Congratulations on winning the Stepford Prize. I hear it is particularly
competitive. Gregor.” It was handwritten in neat, small print. There was
nothing to be gleaned from that except for the notability of him sending it at
all. For him to take a few moments to celebrate her accomplishments before
she’d even reached the age of maturity seemed to bode well for their working
relationship.
Who was she
kidding? She grimaced at herself in the mirror. She wanted him to like her. She
wanted to like him.
Author Info
Carrie Harris is a geek-of-all-trades who writes genre fiction for all ages. If it has monsters, mayhem, or murder in it, she’s all in. Because all authors are required to have a history of weird jobs, she worked as an autopsy coordinator and in a lab full of brains in jars. Now she’s a full time writer in Utah, where she lives with her ninja-doctor husband and three teenage children. Carrie has done a variety of cool things like organizing WriteOnCon (an online writers conference) and serving as the president of the Class of 2k11 (an author marketing group), and her book BAD TASTE IN BOYS was named a Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers. If you bring any of this up to her, she will blush a ridiculous amount. As you read this, she is probably drinking something caffeinated and talking to people that only exist in her head.
The Book Junkie Reads . . . Interview with Carrie Harris . . .
I get this question a lot, because I write for a variety of different ages and in a variety of different genres. But overall, if you pick up a Carrie Harris book, you can expect something that’s fast-paced, high-action, and with a big hook. I don’t do quiet books about feelings; although I enjoy reading them, it just isn’t what I do. I write books in which monsters stalk the streets, normal people go on extraordinary adventures, or things blow up while people walk away from them in slow motion. So even though I write PNR, fantasy, sci-fi, thrillers, and horror, I try to make them feel like you’re watching a movie.
Do you feel that writing is an ingrained process or just something that flows naturally for you?
I used to think writing was a talent you just had (or not), and I refused to outline or do anything that interfered with what I thought of as my natural process. Then I sold my first book and had to rewrite everything that came after chapter 8. I learned so much about plotting from that editor, and gradually, I’ve come to develop a much different process. I love my outlines now, and so I definitely think that for me, it’s ingrained and constantly developing as I discover new things that work better.
What mindset or routine do you feel the need to set when preparing to write (in general whether you are working on a project or just free writing)?
I have three kids, and I also do freelance technical writing, so I don’t have much of a routine. But when I sit down, I always get myself a Diet Dr Pepper, and I put my feet up on the table and put my nice fuzzy blanket on my lap. I like it as silent as possible while I write, so that I can say bits of dialogue out loud and hear what they sound like. I don’t always get these things. Sometimes, the only time I have to write is in the car while I’m waiting for soccer practice to get out, but I definitely find it easier to write when I’m in the right environment.
Do you take your character prep to heart? Do you nurture the growth of each character all the way through to the page? Do you people watch to help with development? Or do you build upon your character during story creation?
I love characters, and I used to spend hours playing twenty questions and writing down all of their answers and really getting into their heads. Now I have a little less time on my hands, but I still think it’s super important to get to know the characters as I’m developing the story so I’m not stuck in the middle of drafting because the character would never do that thing they’re supposed to do to keep the plot moving. I tend to make character spreadsheets, so I can see all of the characters at one time, and get a sense of their strengths and weaknesses and how they would interact. And I people watch constantly. It’s obnoxious how much I listen in on people.
Can you share your next creative project(s)? If yes, can you give a few details?
All of the Supernaturals of Las Vegas books are done, and I’m so excited to see them out in the world over the next 2 months. After that, I’ll be releasing Tryst, which is a collection of short paranormal romance novellas. Each one is a complete story that you can read in less than an hour, so it’s perfect for lunch breaks or busy days. They’re about normal women who meet paranormal guys, and together they work through some mystery or danger as they slowly begin to fall for each other. The first one is called Neighbors with a Necromancer, and personally, I think everyone needs a hot necromancer next door neighbor, don’t you?
If you could have dinner/dinner party with 7 fictional character, who would they be?
OOOOOH. I would love to have a dinner party with some fictional characters. I think I’d pick Lord Peter Wimsey (from the Dorothy Sayers mysteries), Georgia Mason (from Mira Grant’s Feed) Elizabeth Bennet (from Pride and Prejudice), who could verbally spar over drinks. And then Kate Daniels (from the Ilona Andrews books) Sandman Slim (from the Richard Kadrey series), Senneth (from Sharon Shinn’s excellent books) and Myfanwy Thomas (from Daniel O’Malley’s The Rook) could have a rousing discussion about magic as we ate barbecue. Why barbecue? I don’t want to spend all my time cooking—I want to listen in on the conversation!
Thanks so much for letting me visit! I had a blast answering these. ☺
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Thanks for having me! I really want to have that barbecue now!
ReplyDeleteLovely, glad I found out about this book.
ReplyDelete