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Tuesday, September 11, 2012

GIVEAWAY!! "Blood and Whiskey" by Clark Hays and Kathleen McFall

SUMMARY


Wanted: Lizzie Vaughan, Dead or Alive.
Relationships are always hard, but for a broke cowboy and a newly turned Vampire, true love may be lethal. After barely surviving an undead apocalypse in The Cowboy and the Vampire, Tucker and Lizzie hightail it back to quirky LonePine, Wyoming (population 438), to start a family. But she’s got a growing thirst for blood and he’s realizing mortality ain't all it's cracked up to be when your girlfriend may live forever. With a scheming Vampire nation hot on their boot heels and a price on her head, how far will Lizzie and Tucker go to protect their unlikely love?

Blending evolution, religion and an overly sensitive cow dog named Rex, Blood and Whiskey drags the Vampire myth into the modern west.
 
PARTICULARS OF THE BOOK :
Publisher:  Pumpjack Press
Pages:  365
Genre:  Paranormal/Mystery
Authors: Clark Hays and Kathleen McFall
Purchase the book:  Amazon  and Barnes and Noble
 
 
RAVE REVIEWS FROM THE BIG WIGS!

From Kirkus Reviews

...Introducing racial issues isn’t the only adjustment the authors have made to the vampire mythos, but it’s more than just the details that set this series apart. Rather, it’s the way the authors utilize those details to create meaningful conflicts and world-altering choices for the characters. While a number of existentialist underpinnings give the series some depth, the book is first and foremost a thriller, upping the ante in every chapter as bullets fly and relationships strain under the weight of old loyalties and new revelations. In a way, it’s a shame more time isn’t spent exploring the existence of this meta world where consciousnesses wait out the daylight hours and immortality has all sorts of ramifications for human spirituality. But with strong writing, funny characters (no irony is lost on one vampiress who takes to sporting a “Future Farmers of America” jacket) and plenty of action, it’s hard to fault the authors for keeping the focus on a story this riveting.

Those who missed out on the first book will really have to hang on if they want to follow what’s happening, but it’s worth it for this tale of love and blood in the modern West.
 
 
About Kathleen and Clark:
 

Clark Hays grew up in Montana in the shadow of the Tobacco Root Mountains. In addition to his fiction work, he is a cowboy, a published poet and occasional food critic. Recently, he was nominated for Pushcart Prize for short fiction and not so recently for a Rhysling award for poetry. Clark brings a deep knowledge about the modern west, weaponry, country music and existentialism to his writing.

Kathleen McFall grew up in the heart of Washington, D.C. She worked as a petroleum geologist and, later, as a journalist, and has published hundreds of articles about scientific research, energy and natural resources. An interest in the overlap of science and mysticism are an essential aspect of her fiction writing. She received an Oregon Literary Arts Fellowship for fiction writing.

Visit McFall and Hay’s Website at:  http://pumpjackpress.com
 


Sneak Excerpt from "Blood and Whiskey"
 
Tucker was already in the shower, steam billowing out from the bathroom. Rex was curled up on his clothes tossed haphazardly at the foot of the bed and he thumped his stubby tail cautiously as she entered.

“Traitor,” she whispered and sat down on the toilet seat, watching Tucker through the glass door. His head was bowed down under the spray of water, shoulders slumped and lost in thought. He was motionless for so long she wondered if he was drowning himself, but at last he sighed and turned the knob off.

He opened the shower door and jumped when he saw her. “You scared me.”

She handed him a towel and watched as he dried off.

“Listen to me,” she said. “I’m scared too. Of everything. Of what’s happening around us. The baby. Losing you. What I’ve become.”

“Just ignore me,” he said. “You ain’t no different.”

“I am. You can’t deny that. It’s been months since I’ve seen the sun.”

“Maybe you’re a little different.”

“What you saw must have been terrifying. I know you must think less of Vampires. You should. It’s the only rational conclusion. I’m sorry. I would rather die than cause you unhappiness, and I would never kill someone innocent.”

He sighed and wrapped his arms around her waist. “I know. Just shush now. Ignore me and my stupid mouth.”

She pushed him away and he marveled, again, at how strong she was becoming.

“Listen to me. There’s one thing I have to know. Do you think I am a freak, a monster?”

“That’s two things,” he said. “And the answer to both is no.”

“I am,” she said, turning her head to the side. “Really, on some level, I’m no longer human.”

“Yes, you are.” He caught her chin in his hand and tipped her head up so she was forced to look in his eyes. “On the best level. You’re human plus something extra. The best part of you is still human, the other part is just different. Something we haven’t quite got our arms around yet.”
 
 
THE DAME'S REVIEW :
 
"Blood and Whiskey" and the first book in the series ,"The Cowboy and the Vampire," are like no vampire books I've ever read before!  Campy and cool, these authors know how to rock the vampire world and turn the wild west, wild again as they conquer everything you thought you knew about vampires and their associates!
 
Clark Hays and Kathleen McFall are original and entertaining authors.  Brilliant!These authors will excite you and turn you on your ear as you find out what's really happening in LonePine and worlds outside of our "natural" USA.
 
The dialog of this book is such fun.  Hilarious in parts, always witty, and fraught with some depth of humanity and feeling that is often missing between humans and vampires...and human males together in all books of this genre. I loved Tucker's relationship with Dad and Lenny, especially.  Tough western men with hearts of gold.
 
Characters are full-bodied (no pun!) and have extraordinarily humane, and at the same time crazy interactions that are juxtaposed against a world crisis of vampire vs. vampire in a universal take over where Lizzie is Queen. 
 
And while I'm speaking of it, Lizzie is a fabulous Queen!  Strong and feminine, a wise woman, a gentle wife, and a kick butt vampire fighter.  I loved this balanced combination of the modern woman in Lizzie.  This is a book with a perfection of a vampire feminist who could rule the world very well, thank you, Sir!
 
The setting of the west lends an odd, campy feel to the book.  This is an area of the US that's completely unfamiliar to me, so that culture and quality alone gave the book an other worldiness. 
 
I found Lenny the loose cannon of a brave and loyal friend to Lizzie's Tucker, just hilarious and fearsome as any vampire I'd ever read about.  The quintessential warrior with a heart, Lenny takes no prisoners where his family and friends are concerned.
 
Situations we found this crew of vamps in were unique.  Trucker vampire beds just killed me!  And, I couldn't believe the poor human victims hooked up to blood drains at a cattle farm!  Ugh!!  Vampires against vampires from different sects, times and with major political, spiritual and philosophical backgrounds was just unprecidented, I believe.  This is a treasure trove of a novel.
 
"Cowboy and the Vampire" is the first book in the series and it introduces us to Tucker, the handsome and virtuous western guy who falls in love with Lizzie, the journalist soon turned vampire Queen.  You don't have to read this one before "Blood..." but it's fun to do that for the sequencing.  I actually read them in reverse and liked it that way.
 
All in all these are fabulous vampire books with some existential twists, some humorous froth, and a dot of down right fantastic storytelling.  There's a question at the end about the baby of Tucker and Lizzie...when will it be born, boy or girl...vampire or human?  Can't wait to find out in the next book in the series.  And, will Lizzie make the new vampire confederacy rock to her tune?
 
For a break from the ordinary, I suggest you take a trip to "Blood and Whiskey" territory.
 
5 stars              Deborah/TheBookishDame
 


You can follow the Virtual Book Tour and learn more about this book at:  http://pumpupyourbook.com   Search:  Blood and Whiskey


Summary




Overview

Reporter Lizzie Vaughan doesn’t realize it, but she has 2,000 years of royal Vampiric
Lizzie battles for her life—and her soul—as she and Tucker find themselves caught up in a vampire war, pursued by hordes of Julius’ maniacal, bloodthirsty followers.
Who will be left standing when the sun rises?
“Deliciously dark.”—BOOKLIST

Find it here:  Amazon


For the GIVEAWAY:  Just leave your email address and follow me on GFC on the sidebar!
This one ends on Sept. 31st and is for the US and Canada only.  Your choice of ebook or paperback!


3 comments:

The Cowboy and Vampire

Thank you so much for your very kind, thoughtful review. We are so pleased that it seemed to really resonate with you, and loved that the hearts of gold in our western men managed to shine through their rough exteriors. Stay tuned for book three!

Chrissy

Awesome excerpt and wonderful review. I enjoyed it. : ) Thanks for sharing. I'd love to win this! My e-mail address is alexandchrissy(at)yahoo(dot)com.

ESLAM UWK

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