Please welcome Erin Quinn to The Qwillery.
TQ: What would you say is your most interesting writing quirk?
Erin: I talk to myself. Technically, it's more like I tell myself the story as I type. It's not a problem when I'm alone in my office working, but many times I need to leave the house to get away from my DH and kids and so I go to Starbucks, start writing, forget where I am and the next thing I know I'm talking and people are staring. Sigh. Evidently I also make faces too....so picture me there writing my love scene, speaking it aloud, making all the faces.... Yeah, I probably shouldn't be telling you all this. :)
TQ: Are you a plotter or a pantser?
Erin: Pantser who always gets to about page 180 and wishes desperately that she was a plotter.
TQ: What inspired you to write the Mists of Ireland series?
Erin: The same thing that always inspires me--my belief in miracles. I read a quote somewhere that said writing a book is an act of faith and belief in miracles. I agree 100%. I'm always amazed when I finish a book and readers like it.
TQ: What sort of research did you do to create the world in the Mists of Ireland series?
Erin: I did massive amounts of research on Ireland, it's history, it's present and it's people. I always cast my net wide and then narrow down my research. I read everything from popular fiction by local writers to travelogues to history to fairy tales. Diaries are my favorite source of research but they were harder to get my hands on when I turned my pen to Ireland. I loved how rich and (sometimes) twisted many of the Irish legends are. In Haunting Warrior, I used a variation of the Connla's Well mythology (since it’s Irish, it’s also known by a dozen different names including the Well of Wisdom). In this mystical pool of water, salmon possessed of knowledge frolic and hazelnut trees deposit chunks of wisdom into the water (which the salmon then consume). Drinking from this well or eating the salmon can boost your intelligence factor greatly. It certainly helped Ruairi MacGrath (hero of Haunting Warrior) in his time of need.
TQ: Describe
Haunting Embrace (Mists of Ireland 4) in 140 words or less.
Erin: Argh, I'm never good with a word limit, ha ha--23 words over but here you go. :)
ENDLESS LOVE
Within Meaghan Ballagh surges the blood of an ancient sorceress whose long ago love for the druid Áedán ended in treachery—a fate that ensnares Meaghan herself when she is thrust into the past. She can feel the desire between the sorceress and the handsome druid rise inside her. To ensure her survival, she must piece together the history of the woman who haunts her and the man who needs her.
ETERNAL BETRAYAL
Áedán recognizes Meaghan. He always will. For the spirit of his one true love—and immortal enemy—is in her. A woman for whom Áedán once risked everything he ever had only to be repaid with betrayal and eternal damnation. This time, he’s not going to let Meaghan escape—because together they have the power to change their destiny.
As the passion between them grows, so do their fears of arousing an ancient, haunted, and forbidden love, and for changing a past that could irrevocably destroy the future.
TQ: Without giving anything away, what is/are your favorite scene(s) in
Haunting Embrace?
Erin: One of my favorite scenes happens early in the book when Áedán and Meaghan begin their wary dance of attraction. For millennia Áedán has considered himself above humanity, better than a mere man, and distanced from emotion. But of course Meaghan shakes all that up and makes him feel again. I've included an excerpt below if you're interested. :)
TQ: In
Haunting Embrace, who was the most difficult character to write and why? The easiest and why?
Erin: Meaghan Ballagh was the most difficult which isn't surprising. I always feel challenged by my heroines. It's a hard line to draw between making a heroine warm and sympathetic without making her helpless and wimpy. The same goes for making her strong and independent without being bitchy and mean. We women are complex beings and I work really hard to make sure my heroines exhibit all the facets that make us so wonderful. (looking behind me to make sure my husband isn't reading over my shoulder and laughing, lol)
TQ: Do you have a favorite character from the Mists of Ireland series?
Erin: Wow. You are really pulling out the big guns with these questions. I'll just answer it the only way I know how. Yes, I have a favorite character. (and no, I'm not going to tell you who it is, ha!)
TQ:
Haunting Embrace is the final book in the Mists of Ireland series. Is there a chance there may more stories set on the Isle of Fennore in the future?
Erin: Yes! I have a great story in mind for Eamonn and I really want to tell it. Liam has always had a story to tell, which I think will intersect with his older brother, Michael's story. I loved all the brothers that I introduced in Haunting Warrior and really want to give them their own HEAs.
TQ: What's next?
Erin: Next up is a story I'm still fleshing out (and haven't even shared with my publisher). I have an intriguing concept that I need to hone down and get right before I talk about it, though. It will be paranormal and probably more character driven as opposed to plot driven then some of my other stories, but if I can pull it off, I think it will be a compelling. I'm also busy re-releasing my backlist novels which is taking up some time. And then..... Well, let's just say I need more time in the day to tell all the stories I want to tell. :)
TQ: Thank you for joining us at The Qwillery
Erin: Thank YOU for having me!
About The Mists of Ireland SeriesHaunting Embrace
Mists of Ireland 4
(Berkley, October 4, 2011)
ENDLESS LOVE
Within Meaghan Ballagh surges the blood of an ancient sorceress whose long ago love for the druid Áedán ended in treachery—a fate that ensnares Meaghan herself when she is thrust into the past. She can feel the desire between the sorceress and the handsome druid rise inside her. To ensure her survival, she must piece together the history of the woman who haunts her and the man who needs her.
ETERNAL BETRAYAL
Áedán recognizes Meaghan. He always will. For the spirit of his one true love—and immortal enemy—is in her. A woman for whom Áedán once risked everything he ever had only to be repaid with betrayal and eternal damnation. This time, he’s not going to let Meaghan escape—because together they have the power to change their destiny.
As the passion between them grows, so do their fears of arousing an ancient, haunted, and forbidden love, and for changing a past that could irrevocably destroy the future.
Excerpt from Haunting Embrace: “I’m still waiting for you to answer my question, Áedán,” Meaghan said, as he’d known she would. “Are you the Druid that Saraid warned about?”
“The evil Druid? The one who could destroy the world if he so wanted?” Áedán mocked.
“Yes.”
“Well, of course I am. And can’t you tell by looking at me that I’m all powerful? That’s why I’m working on a fecking boat the size of a shoe, just for the privilege of eating and sleeping somewhere dry. You heard Hoyt O’Shea. I’m slave labor, beauty. If I had a choice, if I had the power to change things, I’d be living under better circumstances, wouldn’t I?”
She narrowed her eyes and he knew she’d seen through his sarcasm. She was not some brainless child who’d accept the attempt to deflect her questions. Not this woman.
“What were you doing in the world of Fennore, Áedán?” she asked softly, and yet, in her voice, he heard steel and anguish. As if it was
she who’d been betrayed.
“I was a prisoner, just like you,” he said. “You know that.”
“Really? Then why was I the only one who could see you?”
“Perhaps you are the Druid.”
She spun at that and stopped him with a hand on his wrist, her fingers cold against his heat. That simple contact seemed to draw all of his energy, all of his attention until the rest of the world faded and there was only this moment, this woman. He felt that unnerving vibration rattling his teeth and stretching his nerves, but overpowering it was something more primal and fierce.
“Stop it,” she said. “This isn’t some fecking game. I want answers from you. Why were you a prisoner?”
Her demand sparked against his sudden—maddening—arousal. “You think I’m playing games? What about you, Meaghan? What secrets do you hide? Your own grandmother said there was something
off about you. That you are
different. Let us explore that instead.”
He took a step forward, forcing her to step back, and then he kept going until he had her pinned between his body and one of the many boulders that littered the side of the road. The primitive male within him roared, but his voice, when he spoke, was soft and deep, the voice he’d used a million times or more to seduce the unwary.
“How are you different, beauty?”
“I told you to quit calling me that.”
“But you are very beautiful.”
The eyes she turned on him where wide and wounded, as angry as they were injured. He’d poked at something hidden and now she would come out snarling. “Tell me,” he said, leaning closer still, his body pressed against every lush curve of hers. A part of him wanted her to fight, to resist, and another part desired only that she yield.
“How are you different?”
“Well, I’m a fecking time traveler, aren’t I?” she said, using his own tactic to deflect him. But her sarcasm worked no better on him than his had on her. “I’m her granddaughter, come from the future. I’d say that’s different enough.”
He smiled, admiring her defiance even as he worked to tame it. “That’s not what she meant,” he said, lips against her ear.
She tried to evade his mouth, but he kept her pinned, one hand at her waist the other at the base of her skull. She was too proud to openly fight him, too stubborn to show him that his nearness disconcerted her.
“You seem to be an expert on the subject,” she said, her voice wavering. “You tell me what she meant.”
“I feel something around you. A vibration—a disorder to the natural flow of things. It’s disturbing. You are disturbing.”
She jerked away, surprising him with the sudden violence of her movements. Before he knew it, she’d escaped his hold and stood a few paces away. Her chest heaved and her blue eyes snapped.
“There’s nothing wrong with me,” she choked.
Ah. A reaction she hadn’t wanted to reveal, it was there in every line of her stance. “I never said there was. I only said you were different.”
“Disturbed.”
“Disturb
ing. Not the same thing.”
He realized then that the shine in her eyes had less to do with rage than it did with pain—not physical pain, but something deeper, rawer.
“I’ve hurt you,” he murmured, his tone a dark brew of fascination, shock, and revelation.
“Feck off.”
She turned and began walking again, her steps tight and fierce, her arms stiff at her sides, fists balled in the pockets of her borrowed jacket. Intrigued, he followed, catching up easily enough. The indignant silence that hung around her felt as cold and abject as a blustering storm. It spurred something inside Áedán that he didn’t recognize at first.
Remorse. He was sorry for baiting her. The emotion staggered and dismayed him.
“Meaghan,” he said. “Meaghan, wait.”
She turned on him like a predator. “Wait for what, Áedán? Do you want to tell me lies? Or do you want to insult me? Tell me that I’m not normal? Well, I fecking know that already. I’ve never been normal. But I’m not some freak—no matter what has happened or why I’m here, I know that.”
“I never implied that you were.”
“No? Then why did you bring it up?”
“To distract you,” he stunned himself by saying.
The taut silence that followed toyed with the myriad of exposed emotions twisting tight inside him. Cautiously, he stepped closer to her, stopping less than an arm’s length away. Too close, he knew, but he could not bring himself to retreat.
The flesh between her brows puckered again, and without thinking, he brushed his thumb over the silky flesh, smoothing the furrow away. And once the frown vanished, he found his hands cupping her chilled face, wanting nothing more than to heat her flesh with his, wanting nothing more than to hold her. It confounded him, the need to comfort her, but it seemed that where this woman was concerned, his actions came with a will of their own. He pulled her to him, her body stiff and unbending.
“I am sorry,” he said, meaning it. Astonished by it.
Her rigidness ceded just a bit, just enough to give him a measure of hope.
Hope? He shoved that away, refusing to analyze it.
“You came from the future, Meaghan,” he said, reluctantly giving her the explanation she deserved. His lips hovered once again over the fragile shell of her ear. “I came from the past.”
Haunting DesireMists of Ireland 3
(Berkley, April 5, 2011)
A woman lost in a nightmare
Shealy O'Leary thought the ancient Book of Fennore a myth until she and her father are sucked into the past-and into the cursed no-man's land called Fennore. There Shealy learns that she has a rare power that their enemy seeks. Aided by the dangerous and compelling warrior, Tiarnan, Shealy must find her father and learn how to wield her gift to save those she loves or die in this waking nightmare...
A man desperate to regain his honor
After failing both his land and people, Tiarnan was damned to spend eternity in the black heart of Fennore. His only hope comes in the shape of a beautiful, frightened woman from the future. For she possesses a gift she is unaware of. A gift with the power to save ...or destroy them all.
A desire that drives their destiny
Together, Shealy and Tiarnan begin their perilous quest-a mission that draws them closer and closer together. And as the odds against them mount, so does their passion. The intensity of their bond electrifies the couple, their love powering Shealy's gift and Tiarnan's strength. But their newfound connection threatens to ruin them both-and bring to life a long ago prophecy of devastation and betrayal...
Haunting WarriorMist of Ireland 2
(Berkley, October 4, 2010)
A past he couldn’t forget.
Rory McGrath’s life changed the night his father mysteriously vanished after uncovering the secrets of the ancient Book of Fennore. The trauma turned Rory from an innocent boy into a troubled, cynical man. Leaving Ireland, he shunned his family, his heritage—and the very magic that has defined his people for centuries.
A dream he couldn’t ignore.
Then the dreams begin…dreams of an ethereal beauty whose touch is more real that any he’s known. And in these dreams, she has a message—a calling for Rory to return home to a destiny that will take him beyond the realm of anything he imagined.
A woman he couldn’t resist.
Lured to the castle ruins where his father disappeared, Rory is plunged back in time, and into the body of another man—a man betrothed to the very woman of Rory’s dreams. In possession of the secrets of his past, his family, and his identity, her hold on Rory is inescapable. For she is his doom. His salvation. And his destiny.
Haunting Beauty
Mists of Ireland 1
(Berkley, September 6, 2011)
A mysterious stranger . . .
Danni Jones believed everything about her past—that she was an unwanted child abandoned by her mother. That she was an outcast set apart by her clairvoyance. That she was alone. Then came the stranger. Dangerously seductive Sean Ballagh appears out of nowhere with a startling story that will challenge everything Danni thought was true.
A lost woman . . .
He claims that Danni’s family has been searching for her ever since she disappeared twenty years ago. He’s come to bring her home to Ireland. But Danni fears there’s more to his story than he dares to reveal. And the only way to find out is by following Sean back in time, to a forgotten past, to a world where nothing is what it seems.
A terrifying legacy . . .
Now, in a land where the mystical and the occult are as vivid as the emerald fields, Danni must rewrite history to save her family, to fight a force more evil than she ever imagined, and to reunite with the one man she was destined for—or live forever in time as nothing more than an ethereal memory, a tragic and haunting beauty…
About ErinErin Quinn is an award winning author. Her books have been called “riveting,” “brilliantly plotted” and “beautifully written” and have won, placed or showed in the Booksellers Best, WILLA Award for Historical fiction, the Orange Rose, Golden Quill, Best Books, and Award of Excellence. The fourth book in her
Mists of Ireland series,
HAUNTING EMBRACE, will be in bookstores October 2011.
Erin's Links:
Website:
www.erinquinnbooks.com FB:
http://www.facebook.com/ErinQuinnAuthur Twitter:
http://twitter.com/#!/ErinQuinnAuthor Blog:
http://quinnessentials.blogspot.com/ Erin has a
Spread the Word contest running at her website. You could win 1 of 6 swag bags! Check out the contest here:
http://www.erinquinnbooks.com/Spread_the_Word.htmThe GiveawayTHE RULES
What: One commenter will win a signed copy of
Haunting Desire from Erin.
How: Leave a comment answering the following question:
If you could travel through time to when would you like to travel?
Please remember - if you don't answer the question your entry will not be counted.
You may receive additional entries by:
1) Being a Follower of The Qwillery.
2) Mentioning the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter. Even if you mention the giveaway on both, you will get only one additional entry. You get only one additional entry even if you mention the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter multiple times.
3) Mentioning the giveaway on your on blog or website. It must be your own blog or website; not a website that belongs to someone else or a site where giveaways, contests, etc. are posted.
There are a total of 4 entries you may receive: Comment (1 entry), Follower (+1 entry), Facebook and/or Twitter (+ 1 entry), and personal blog/website mention (+1 entry). This is subject to change again in the future for future giveaways.
Please leave links for Facebook, Twitter, or blog/website mentions. In addition please leave a way to contact you.
Who and When: The contest is open to all humans on the planet earth with a mailing address. Contest ends at 11:59pm US Eastern Time on Wednesday, September 14, 2011. Void where prohibited by law.
*Giveaway rules are subject to change.*
