Vampires, Werewolves and FREE Books, OH MY!

Today I'll be interviewing another one of my Independent Author Network sisters. (Hooray!) I am pleased to introduce you to Devyn Dawson, author of "The Legacy of Kilkenny".

LC: Welcome Devyn! It's great to have you along on the Authorpalooza! Why don't you tell us a little bit about your book and the genre it falls into?

DD: The Legacy of Kilkenny is a young adult paranormal book about the Great Wolf. After an incredibly boring summer, Abel Casey was looking forward to his junior year at Piedsville High School in his little town outside of Oklahoma City. But once he sees Pru Phelan, the gorgeous girl with the shiny red hair and piercing grey eyes he knows he is in for trouble. Abel’s boring little life is about to come to an end if Pru has her way. The stunning Pru has a secret to share with Abe, one that will change his life forever. Up until recently werewolf packs have been looking for the Great Wolf, a wolf of legend handed down over hundreds of years from Kilkenny Ireland. Her secret is she is a werewolf, and her secret is now his too. Abel learns that all the tales of werewolves and vampires are real and he is the wolf they have been searching for. To protect his destiny and his family the pack begins training him for his first shift, without a hold on to his humanity can cause him to shift to a werewolf and never return to his human form. 

Abel is torn between the family he has grown up with and the pack that claims he is the one of Celtic lore. Pru’s mentor and bodyguard Oakley is the one that her heart craves but she fears he has feelings for her friend Josie. Pru’s father the alpha wants her to stay focused on her assignment and forbids the two from becoming lovers and he threatens to remove Oakley from the pack if Pru can’t stay focused. Everything is going as planned until Abel’s sassy and moody sister Allie starts hanging out with an aggravating vampire Arien. Arien knows the pack’s secret and plans to expose them if he doesn’t get his way. This story of friendship, family, love and betrayal will leave the reader breathless and someone dead. 

LC: I like how you tied Celtic roots into your story! I've always wanted to visit Ireland. Speaking of traveling, where is the most exotic or strange place you've ever traveled to?

DD: **laughs** I’ve never been anywhere I’d consider exotic so strange will have to do. One time I was in nonametown Oklahoma when we stopped to get directions at a gas station. We wanted to know if there were any cemeteries around (we like to check them out), the guy showed us the way to a place where a witch was buried. It was probably really stupid going out to some random off the road cemetery to see a witch grave with a guy that only had 3 teeth and smelled like a sewer. I’ve seen more impressive graves but it was very strange and sci-fi tv worthy! Think 10 miles from civilization, dirt roads, 90 degrees, no birds chirping, cow carcass on the side of the road and a complete stranger. I lived to tell the tale. The witch was buried outside of a cemetery with her head facing the west - they wouldn’t allow her to be buried on holy ground.

LC: Oh my gosh, what a riot! So besides visiting graveyards, (which is so fun, by the way) what else do you like to do when you're not writing?

DD: I love reading, I carry my Nook everywhere I go. My husband and I go out on his motorcycle when the weather is nice. I come up with some of the best scenes while I have my arms around my husband and we’re taking in the lush landscape of North Carolina.

LC: Sounds absolutely delightful, and a great catalyst for inspiration! How long have you been writing, Devyn?

DD: I don’t remember a time I didn’t write.

LC: And have you always known that you wanted to write?

DD: It was always a passion, but only became a reality when my eye doctor rocked my world. Life was always in the way until the day I was told I can go blind any day with little warning…the fear of never finishing my book took over. I’ve had five operations on my eyes and I’ve finished a book, life is good.

LC: Wow, how scary! I'm glad you perservered and that things are literally looking up! Alright...random question...if you were stranded along on a desert island with one of your characters, who would you want it to be, and why?

DD: I would have to say Abel; he is the Great Wolf and has some pretty cool powers. With his status I know people would look for him thus saving us. He is probably the only character I’m not attracted to, probably because his description is very similar to my teenage son. I’d give away some spoilers if I explained any of his abilities…so you have to read the book to find out!

LC: It's on my to be read list, for sure. What, would you say, has been your greatest triumph as an author?

DD: Knowing that I finished a book and another person has actually read it and liked it… WOW! What a rush.

LC: And do you have any strange habits or rituals when you write?

DD: I’m obsessed with the ‘save’ button. I’m petrified of losing all of my work. It has happened once, and will never happen again.

LC: I can totally understand THAT obsession! There's nothing worse than losing stuff you've spent a ton of time working on! So, say that a big-wig Hollywood producer approached you about turning "The Legacy of Kilkenny" into a movie. Who would you want to play the lead roles?

DD: Oh, oh, oh! Oakley would be played by Jared Padalecki. Pru would be played by Miley Cyrus (for her husky voice alone). Allie would be played by Chelsea Staub. Abel Casey would be Micheal Trevino and Arien would be Ian Somerhalder.

LC: Sounds like you may have given this some thought already :o). While we're on the subject of movies, what's your favorite flick of all time, and why?

DD: Wizard of Oz. It came on Easter weekend every year, my mom would make a big ordeal out of it and we’d all sit mesmerized for two hours eating popcorn and drinking root beer floats. I miss that feeling. **sniffing** 

LC: No tears...unless, of course, you're sad that this is the last question! Here's your opportunity to SELL IT, SISTA! Tell us why we should read your book. (Don't panic! This is what you've trained for, hee hee!) 

DD: There are so many elements to the story; it is woven with friendship, love, and betrayal. The love story doesn’t happen between the obvious characters and the lead character starts the story being so plain and ordinary… by the end of the book he is strong and believable. The TLOK is the stepping stone for a journey throughout the supernatural world, meeting shifters, witches, and vampires along the route. This book is all about getting to know the back story and the characters that will last throughout the series (those that live). It is rumored if you don’t read this book, your eyelashes will fall out and you’ll sprout a tail.

LC: You've been warned, folks! Ya'd better get your copy quick! We don't want a bunch of eyelashless, tail-totin' bloggers running around! Thanks for playing with us on the blog today, Devyn!

Here's the scoop on "The Legacy of Kilkenny:

The Legacy of Kilkenny is the story of Abel Casey, an ordinary boy until the stunning Pru Phelan came to town and introduced him to his destiny. Pru a shaman werewolf had a vision that the Great Wolf was born and he can be found in Piedsville, Oklahoma, his name is Abel Casey. Pru's main assignment? To kill Abel... at least make his family believe he is dead. The Great Wolf is expected to become the leader of all packs. As Abel starts training he begins to have abilities of a werewolf, he hasn't shifted and he doesn't want his family to believe he is dead. Will he be able to convince the pack that he can protect his family. Just when everything seems to be going okay, Abel's sister Allie meets a new guy named Arien. Arien isn't any guy, he is a vampire and he knows the Phelan pack has found the Great Wolf, he wants to know who it is and he is threatening to turn Allie into a vampire if they don't tell him who it is. Allie is already moody, will she contract the Human Vampiric Virus (HVV)? Abel wants a relationship with Pru, but she only has eyes for her bodyguard Oakley. The story will have you cheering for the good guy.... hating the bad guy... dream of the sexy werewolves and love to hate the vampire Arien. The multiple scenarios may be too much to bear for our newly unshifted werewolf Abel, can he save his sister? Will he find love? Will Pru be able to fulfill her assignment? Will Allie become a vampire? Who will be brutally murdered? Enjoy this page turning supernatural story.

Now for more good stuff! Ms. Dawson is giving away not one, but TWO ebook copies of "The Legacy of Kilkenny", so let her know YOU want to WIN! Just leave your words of praise, inspiration, and/or wisdom before Aug. 26, at 11:59 p.m. EST. On or around the 27th, Devyn will pick two commenters as the winners! Comment a billion times if you must, but only one entry per person will be entered in the contest, and, as always, make sure to leave an email or other contact info so we can let you know that you've won! Go get 'em, tiger! 

     Devyn writes paranormal YA books about the characters that live in her head. You'll usually find her either writing or reading and sometimes doing both. She has always been the 'eccentric girl' the one with the big imagination and colorful stories. She was born and raised in Oklahoma City, a place she'll always call home yet lives in the lush green and humid climate of North Carolina. She was Goth before Goth was a style, she dreamt of being Star from The Lost Boys and knew Keifer would one day find her and they'd fall madly in love. Since Keifer never came around, she decided to write books.
     Her love of the paranormal (The Lost Boys reference confirms it's been a passion long before Edward met Bella) has her interested in things such as ghost hunting. She is an avid reader of all things Young Adult and John Grisham. Her menagerie of pets serve as her muse for her characters - the only royalties they request are hugs and treats.