Terry Mastriano and his twin sister, Tempie, have become reluctant assassins, swearing a blood oath to avenge their father's assassination. The target? E. "Needles" Puzzoli, a man who went to prison but not for their father’s murder. For eight years, prison kept Needles safely out of the twins' reach, but now he's out and planning to leave town. If the twins want revenge, they must act now. When Tempie attempts to kill Needles, a strange woman attacks, and warns both twins to stay away or die.The dangerous woman is so much more than a fellow killer—she's a sensuous, deadly vampire with an undisclosed connection to both Needles and the twins. An unexpected event forces Terry into a bargain with the vampire. Honor and vengeance demand satisfaction, and the twins are out for blood. No matter who gets to Needles first, a debt will be owed. Blood always wins. Just ask the vampire. |
Interview with the Author!
I knew that I had a series I was prepping and I wanted to "test the waters" and introduce my favorite bad girl vampire, my alter ego, Drahomira. Up to that point I had only poetry and photography and I needed to get into the fiction market. I find it easier to give folks a quick read when you have only one plot point and a direct adventure. I wanted to share some fun and Drahomira actually gave me the idea. Plus her relationship with the twins' father comes up in the series prequel I just released, The Gypsy Thorn. Other things are connecting to this first story too, so in a way it was a multi-plot vehicle besides being a bit of raw fun.
Are any of the main characters modeled after someone you know in real life?
Dra is my alter ego. I like black and white noir movies so I modeled this story off of old noir novels by folks like Mickey Spillane. There is a ganster-noir feeling to it despite it's modern time which adds some emotional flavor to older characters. The diner lady is modeled after my grandmother. Rhea, my scarlet phoenix, has many of my mother's characteristics as well as mine.
Terry and Tempie are Twins; how do you think that affected the book rather than if they were regular siblings?
The twin element gives a dynamic push-pull that explains their uber close relationship. Siblings years apart do not operate the same as twins. A twin element ups the ante in the drama.
What is your favorite genre to read? Why?
I read mostly dark fantasy (urban or straight paranormal). I love vampires, fae, angels, witches and sometimes a good werewolf. I enjoy blending human characterisitcs against the supernatural or preternatural elements and the interplay and complexity rather than just "plain" humans. More to play with!
You have published 7 books so far which was the most exciting to write? Why?
I started my life and my writing career as a poet doing commissioned work, publishing small press poetry and later, working as an asst. poetry editor for the Amateur Poetry Journal (now closed). But I always wrote stories, so despite not publishing those yet, I was writing them. I tried contemporary romance and got a cavity trying to be nice and that's when I took my love of the darkside (since I was 6) and just dove into the gothic end of the pool. I've been lurking there ever since. I once ran a web site where live writing storytelling was done. Long before there were all these magazine sites and role playing places. We did live writing and told stories in real time with a variety of characters. We did this from 1997 to 2001. It was groundbreaking and cemented my genre love. Actually my phoenix, Rhea, has lived online and in my stories since 1997.