Today I am excited to have Anne Kane join me. She's a new author to me and I can't wait to read her books and the many books she'll have out in 2011.
Tonya: Anne, please tell us about your latest release,
Imperial Command.
Anne:
Imperial Command is the first book in a new series about the Imperial Were-Panthers. It's the story of Gregory and Danika. Danika is running from an arranged marriage when she crash lands on the Dark Planet, and is found by Gregory. The attraction between them sizzles as they get to know each other. Her fiancee is not about to let her go without a fight and things get very interesting.
TC:
Imperial Command is part of your Mating Season Series. Where did the idea for this series come from? How many books can we expect to see from this series?
AK: The Mating Series is the second series about Imperial Were-Panthers. The first series, Shifting Priorities, dealt with their lives after the fall of the Earths Empire. In the second series, tehy have settled on a new home world, The Black Planet and for the first time since the fall of the Empire, they are coming out in the open. I plan to have four books in this series. Each can be read as a stand alone story, in the same manner as the Shifting Priorities books.
Here's the blurb to Imperial Command...
BLURB:
When a flitter-craft crash lands near Gregory's lair, the Imperial were-panther doesn't expect to find an unconscious female dangling from the captain's harness.
The fact that she's his bond-mate and in her first heat cycle is complicated by the reptilian cyborg who'd been sent to take her to her father's estate, and an ex-fiancé who just won't take no for an answer.
TC: On your website it says you play guitar. How well do you play? Any certain tunes you are great at? Is playing guitar the only instrument you can play?
AK: I usually qualify my guitar playing as being more enthusiasm than talent. The tunes are recognizable, but I don’t think I’m going to be offered a record deal any time soon! I have a variety of tunes I like to play, from old time rock and roll, to Cat Stevens, Simon and Garfunkel tunes, some gospel and a handful of kids and campfire type songs. My favorites, though, are Christmas songs. I just love Christmas. Much as I’d love to play the piano or organ, I’ve never managed to find time to learn, so yes, the guitar is the only instrument I play.
TC: It also says you sing, what types of songs do you sing? Since you are a writer do you write songs as well?
AK: What I sing depends on my mood. I sing just about anything but opera or rap. I don’t have any affinity for rap, and I can’t hit the high notes in opera. I sing silly tunes for the kids, and blues when I’m feeling down. I sing a lot of stuff from the 60’s through the 80’s just because so many of the songs have memories attached to them. I remember sitting in the front seat of my boyfriend’s red ‘74 Ford the first time I heard Wildfire, and I loved it immediately. When I married him the next year, he found a copy of it on a 45 ( who remembers those?!) and had them play it at the reception.
TC: Why do you think paranormal and urban fantasy have become so popular amongst the readers?
AK: Escapism. We all want to believe in something magical and wonderful, something that is bigger and better than the hard reality that sometimes defines our existence. We like to imagine that we can run free like a wolf, or close our eyes and will things into existence just because we want them. We all know it isn’t real, but that doesn’t matter. The best thing about imagination is that it has no limits. And if we are really truthful, a tiny part of us wonders if maybe, just maybe, there really are shifters, and other strange beings hiding among us.
TC: Do you work on several projects at one time? Or wait until you finish one before moving on to the next?
AK: Mostly, I finish one thing before I start another. The only excerption to that is a story I started a couple of years ago, and seem to work on in fits and starts whenever I have time. It’s about a Druid and a Selkie and if I ever manage to finish it, it will be a full length novel. I think my poor test reader despairs of me ever finishing it!
TC: When I write, I love to have background noise, when it's a rainy day I love to listen to the rain. But most days it's music. Do you have any music or backgroun noise that inspires you while writing? Or does it have to be totally quiet?
AK: I like background noise. Usually, I go for quiet music, something that you might hear in a spa, or a hair salon. If I’m trying to write something with a lot of action in it, I’ll put on something livelier. But if it’s raining, I just listen to that. Both of my neighbors have tin roofs, and the sound is so nice.
TC: What's ahead in the future for Anne Kane and your writing?
AK: I’m really thinking I should try to finish that novel about the Druid, but to be honest I enjoy writing novellas so I don’t have any plans to make major changes in the near future. I have agreed to bi-monthly releases from Changeling Press in 2011, so that would be the rest of the Mating Season Books and a couple of others that I haven’t actually planned yet.
Also in 2011, the first story I ever wrote, Kellen’s conquest, will be released as part of the Secrets 30 Anthology from Red Sage Publishing in June. As my first completed story, my first sale, and my first print release, it’s very special to me. It’s going to be an exciting year!
TC: How often do you read? What genres do you most enjoy? And where do you go to cuddle up and read?
AK: I read a lot, and I’m a fast reader so I go through several books a month. I enjoy paranormal romance, science fiction and fantasy. On top of my writing, a full time job and my other hobbies, that keeps me busy. I have a porch swing on my deck and I love to curl up on it with a good book and a glass of wine on a warm summer afternoon. When it gets cold, which it tends to do in the Canadian winters, I curl up in an overstuffed leather chair in my living room. I have a Himalayan cat that wraps himself around my neck when he sees me settle in to read. He makes a lovely neck warmer.
TC: Which book or series have you received a lot of fan mail on? What email address or how can fans contact you?
AK: I think the Shifting Priorities series has generated the most fan mail, although I have to admit I don’t get a whole lot of it. Most of what I do get though is very nice. I can be contacted at: anne_kane.author@yahoo.ca
You can also visit me at :
Website: http://www.AnneKane.LiteralSeduction.net
Blog: www.annekane.wordpress.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/annekane
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/anne.kane.author
Thanks so much Anne! I had a blast learning more about you. Now guys...are you ready for that steamy excerpt I teased you with yesterday.
Oh, wait. Do you want your chance to win a free copy of Imperial Command? The following question's answer can be found in the excerpt provided by Anne. Please send your answers to sassic123@yahoo.ca
Question: What Pride does Gregory belong to?
You have until Saturday, September 25 at 11:59 PM to get your answers in. Good luck!!
If you have any questions you would like to ask Anne feel free to leave it in our comment section.
Series: Mating Season
Title: Imperial Command
ISBN : 978-1-60521-330-9
Genres: Paranormal, Sci–Fi, Futuristic
Themes: Shapeshifters
Release Date: September 17, 2010
Author:
Anne Kane
Changeling Press - Erotic Fiction
BUY NOW!
EXCERPT:
This e-book file contains sexually explicit scenes and adult language which some may find offensive and which is not appropriate for a young audience. Changeling Press E-Books are for sale to adults, only, as defined by the laws of the country in which you made your purchase. Please store your files wisely, where they cannot be accessed by under-aged readers.
Danika opened her eyes and found herself looking directly into a pair of dark amber eyes. Imperial Were-Panther eyes. A soft sleeping platform cradled her body, and for a moment she stared in confusion at her surroundings. She flared her nostrils, inhaling deeply as she tried to identify where she was. Natural smells, rock, water, woods and plants mingled together in a pleasing aroma. This was no space flitter, but she couldn’t remember how she got here. The last thing she remembered was the flitter running out of fuel, its flight path destabilizing.
She moved her head, and the smell of aroused adult male wafted past her nose. She gasped, naked lust flashing through her veins. The mystery of her surroundings became unimportant as she turned her attention to the male.
Dark as sin, his crisp short hair invited her to run her fingers through it, and she lifted one hand to touch it. Heat flared in his eyes, amber streaks swirling in their depths. From his stance at the side of the platform, he lowered his head, his mouth searing across hers in a kiss that sent caution fleeing.
Hunger. Need. Want. Feelings flashed through her, one following the other in rapid succession while his lips moved on hers. Danika felt herself drowning in the unfamiliar feelings running rampant through her body. She opened her mouth wide, sliding her tongue along the side of his in an erotic caress.
He groaned, and the kiss deepened, became more demanding. He ran a finger down her cheek, tracing a line of fire down to her throat. His tongue dueled with hers, sending lust spiking through her.
Danika stirred, turning her head toward him to let him take full advantage of her. She wound her arms around his neck and pulled him closer, her body craving the feel of his skin against her. The crisp hair on his arms bushed against the bare skin of her breast, and she jerked away, the realization that she was naked sinking into her consciousness. “Where are my clothes?”
The male stretched out an arm to hold her still. “I had to remove your suit to make sure you weren’t injured in the crash.” The amber streaks in his eyes swirled dangerously.
Danika surged up, swinging her feet over the side of the platform. “Who are you? Where am I and how did I get here?” The call of her heat cycle temporarily quashed, she glared at the male.
Unperturbed, he let her go. “I’m Gregory Anatolia of the Seething Pride, and this is my home. I pulled you from the wreck of the flitter that you crash landed in my territory and brought you here.” He raised his brows, his eyes narrowing. “And now you can tell me who you are and what the hell you thought you were doing using a flitter shuttle for interplanetary flight.”
Danika felt a knot forming in her stomach. Seething Pride was known for their ruthlessness and cunning. Of all the prides she might have thrown herself on for mercy, it wasn’t even on the list. She tried to keep the fear from her eyes as she judged the distance to the entrance. If she could distract him for just a moment, she could shift and be out of here before he realized what was going on.
“My name is Danika.” No point in lying. Her mother would mobilize every resource she could find in this sector of the galaxy when she realized Danika had escaped. “I came to beg asylum from the ruling junta. My mother arranged to sell me into a marriage I didn’t agree to, so I ran.” She shrugged sheepishly. “The flitter was the only craft available, so I took my chances.”
Gregory cocked his head. “This marriage -- why do you object? You are definitely in need of a protector.”
Danika snorted inelegantly. “Protector maybe, but the man my mother chose to foist me on is the worst kind of male. He isn’t even a shifter himself; he’s a mere human. He wants to use me to breed his heirs, use my Were-Panther blood to strengthen his bloodline and improve his offspring’s strength and intelligence.” She snapped her teeth together, she’d already said more than she intended to.
“I don’t recognize you, and I thought I knew all the Were-Panthers in this sector.” Gregory studied her intently. “What pride are you from?”
Just then, a loud boom echoed across the jungle, most likely her ship exploding. Danika didn’t care what caused it, only that it took Gregory’s attention away from her long enough for her to sink to the floor and will the shift to come. She felt the familiar tingle of magic sweep through her, and then she was up on all four paws, streaking toward the exit.
Buy Now!
Sorry guys I tried to upload the cover for this book, but it wouldn't work tonight for me. But you can see the cover on either the author or publisher's site. Look to the right of my blog and you'll see it there as well!!
