And Four Copies of TARNISHED by Karina Cooper go to ...

 

 

Thank you to everyone who visited and help me celebrate my

one year anniversay here at UNWRAPPING ROMANCE.

 

 

A great big THANK YOU to Karina Cooper for playing

along with me and lending me the fabulous Cherry St. Croix for a Q & A.

You're the best and thank you for spreading the word, too.

xoxo

 

 

Well, I've got four (4) print copies of TARNISHED

to award to four (4) lucky commenters.

 

The Winners Are:

 

 

ELIZABETH H.

 

SHARON STOGNER

 

STEAMPUNK GYPSY

 

JAYE SHIELDS

 

 

 

 

All the winners have been notified by email and I hope they

check their mailboxes and SPAM folders so they don't

miss the notifications. Congrats to all of you and I hope you

enjoy this fabulous steampunk romance.

 

 

Thank you to everyone who visited and who entered for a chance

to win, I'm sorry I don't have copies for everyone.

 

This has been a great week of celebrating and it's not over yet.

Join me Friday for yet another Giveaway and this one

will be OPEN to EVERYONE!

 

Y'all are wonderful and have made my year so great!

 

Happy Reading Everyone!

Amy V  xoxo

Wacky Wednesday: A Visit With Cherry St. Croix from TARNISHED by Karina Cooper

UNWRAPPING ROMANCE is one year old today!! It's so amazing to think that a blog started on a whim and a rant could have actually caught on and is doing so much better than I ever expected after a year. I owe it all to you, my wonderful readers. Thank you.

To celebrate this auspicious occasion and to keep the party going, I'm happy to tell you that I have a very special guest visiting with me today. Of course, I was only able to procure her company with the gracious cooperation of her creator, Karina Cooper, who I would like to congratulate on the release of her newest Dark Mission Novel, SACRIFICE THE WICKED - available now from Avon in print and ebook formats.

Today, we have are joined by Miss Cherry St. Croix. She's come all the way from an alternative London to be with us and to help me give away FOUR (yes, 4) PRINT COPIES of her first written chronicle - TARNISHED.  Several weeks back, I reviewed this amazing steampunk romance so if you'd like to read my review, please click on the title but hurry back because Cherry will be joining me any moment.

While we await Cherry's arrival from where a choking fog blankets Victorian London—and in a stroke of discriminatory genius, Society has raised London to the sky. Let me tell you just a bit about our unusual guest.

Her name is Cherry St. Croix. Society would claim that she is a well-heeled miss with an unfortunate familial reputation. They’ve no idea of the truth of it. In her secret world, she hunts down vagrants, thieves… and now, a murderer. For a monster stalks London’s streets, leaving a trail of mystery and murder below the fog.
Eager for coin to fuel her infatuations, she must decide where her attentions will turn: To her daylight world, where her scientific mind sets her apart from respectable Society, or to the compelling domain of London below. Each has a man who has claimed her time as his – for good or for ill. Though as the corpses pile, and the treacherous waters of Society gossip churn, she is learning that each also has its dangers. One choice will see her cast from polite company… the other might just see her dead.

Ah, she's arrived! Please join me in welcoming Miss Cherry St. Croix to UNWRAPPING ROMANCE.

Amy:  Hi Cherry, thank you so much for taking time from your busy life to join us here today. Please feel free to make yourself comfortable. You may set your knives aside for I can assure you that you are quite safe here.

Cherry:  Well, and thank you for having me here today! I'm quite delighted to be given an invite that does not include ball gowns and frippery. Although I, ah, may or may not choose to keep hold of my weaponry, if 'tis all the same to you.

Amy:  By all means, whatever makes you feel most comfortable. Perhaps you'd like to tell us a little bit about yourself for those of who don't know you yet.

Cherry:  Very well. My name is Cherry St. Croix, and I am the daughter of Dr. Abraham St. Croix and his wife, Josephine. They are quite dead. If that makes me sound cold, I do apologize. 'Tis only that I was very young when they died in a terrible laboratory accident and I don't recall either very well. I am not well-liked by Society, but they can stuff it for all I give a toss. I spend my evenings, when I've the need, below the foggy drift, collecting bounties for coin.

Amy:  I'm sorry you lost your parents at a young age and that you feel such animosity. You do live quite a duplicitous life in a city that has two very distinct personalities, so perhaps you may wish that your life was more settled in one or the other?

Cherry:  Oh, heavens, no. Can you imagine? Stuck into a single world where there is only ever one path laid out for you? For me, more importantly. I certainly don't mean to be rude, please excuse me, but you must understand that in Society above the drift, there is only one thing for a woman to do: marry. Marry well, have children, raise them to be good sons or daughters to be married and inherit and breed like... like kennel hounds. No, thank you. And below! Below can be just as bad, though it takes a good deal of effort to see the similarities. In the fog, a woman must be as ready to fight as the men, to protect herself, her things. Her desires. Most free women below are doxies, and then "free" if only because they've managed to avoid the efforts of a man to collar them and sell them himself.

No, while I enjoy the means of London high and the freedoms of London below, I do not think I'd be willing to marry myself to either. I possess too broad a palate for one.

Amy:  Well,  you're certainly of a strong mind. I admire that quality in anyone but especially in a woman. You mentioned spending your nights collecting bounties for coin - as a collector you live a dangerous life and now that there is a murderer on the loose in London, you are in even more danger. Are you truly prepared to collect this extreme criminal?

Cherry:  Certainly. A murderer of this ilk—this "Leather Apron", if you will—is not a creature of extreme cunning or wit. He is an animal, savage and without conscience, and animals can be corralled. It may take some effort, but I've a promise to keep and the sweets are counting on me. The hardest part will be figuring a place to start. This beast has been roaming free too long; he has made the streets his home. But he will, in time, make a mistake. He likely already has. I only need to find it out.

Amy:  I wish you the best of luck in your endeavor. Perhaps with some help ... then again, I don't suppose you'd ... never mind. You've got two men in your life, one who society prefers you be with and the other who keeps himself at a distance but always seems to be there. Who do you feel you are more likely to put your trust in, Hawke or Compton?

Cherry:  Neither. A woman's trust placed in a man is tantamount to gift-wrapping her freedom and placing a delicate little bow atop. I have no interest in relying on one or the other for anything but company, and even then I'd rather lick a toad than force myself to accept Hawke's company for the pleasure of it. And the earl, good gracious. Earl Compton is playing at a game I don't understand. His mother despises me, and as the unfashionable daughter of Mad St. Croix, it's utterly confounding that he sees me worth any amount of his time. He's a ruddy earl, for heaven's sake. And certainly, I've never given any indication that I am interested in marriage to the man. To any man, for that matter.

No, there will be no trust placed in the hands of either, for trust is a gift that comes with strings. It is power. I prefer my life to be in my own hands.

Amy:  [aside ] I think she protests too much.  *wink*
I have to admit that I find it difficult to put my trust in Compton, for I think there is more there than meets the eye, but Hawke ... he, well ... never mind.

You've recently discovered a lot of things about yourself and those around you. Where do you see yourself heading next in your search for the truth and when can we expect to read the next installment of your St. Croix Chronicles?

Cherry:  There is, of course, a debt to be paid. I believe I shall have to start by visiting a certain laboratory, for all the idea gives me the shivers. In the meantime, I am given to understand that there are those in my circle who know something more of my family than expected. I will have to walk subtly and bide my time, but I am eager to learn what is known that I do not know myself.

There is definitely a mystery afoot, no?

Amy:  Most definitely and we are just as eager as you to get to the bottom of it.
Cherry, it's been a delight meeting you and having you visit today. I understand you're expected elsewhere, some social event I suppose, so I won't keep you any longer. You're such a brave and exciting woman. Do you have any advice for my lovely readers for living a more exciting life admist the day-to-day doldrums?

Cherry:  You are ever so kind; are you sure I can't cajole you into tea? Perhaps a lively game of—no, no, you're right. I mustn't keep Fanny waiting.

As for your readers, why, I am no expert on social matters. Perhaps, then, I should say that one should always strive to be what is unexpected. Society has so many demands levied upon us all: marry well, don't smile in public, walk with an escort, make such frivolous smalltalk as one's eyes must resist rolling back in one's head. Do this, think that, feel this... It's enough to drive a woman mad. Be the person you want to be. None of this 'perhaps one day' rubbish. Live your life as if you already have the life you want, and these things will happen.

Oh, and perhaps look into becoming a collector. It's a dangerous life, but it certainly adds a little kick to one's skirts.

That said, the lady rises from her seat. Gathers her 'tools of the trade' and saunters off into the fog that has suddenly arisen in the corner of the room. As soon as she is through, the fog disappears.

Amy: Wow, what an amazing woman. I hope you enjoyed her visit and learned a little bit more about Cherry St. Croix, the heroine of TARNISHED by Karina Cooper because I've got four - yes, 4 print copies of TARNISHED by Karina Cooper to give away in celebration of UNWRAPPING ROMANCE surviving and actually thriving in blogger world.

So, if you're interested in winning one of these FOUR PRINT COPIES, please tell me what you do to overcome the day-to-day doldrums of every day life?

Remember to leave an EMAIL ADDRESS with your comment in order to be entered in the Giveaway. This Giveaway is open to US Residents Only and will run until 11:30PM EDT on Thursday, September 27, 2012. Four (4) winners will be chosen at random, notified by email, then announced in a special post on Friday.  Remember the formula for entry:

COMMENT + EMAIL ADDRESS = ENTRY

 

 

GIVEAWAY PRIZE:    THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW CLOSED.

 

Blurb of TARNISHED:

My name is Cherry St. Croix. Society would claim that I am a well-heeled miss with an unfortunate familial reputation. They've no idea of the truth of it. In my secret world, I hunt down vagrants, thieves . . . and now, a murderer. For a monster stalks London's streets, leaving a trail of mystery and murder below the fog.

Eager for coin to fuel my infatuations, I must decide where my attentions will turn: to my daylight world, where my scientific mind sets me apart from respectable Society, or to the compelling domain of London below. Each has a man who has claimed my time as his—for good or for ill. Though as the corpses pile, and the treacherous waters of Society gossip churn, I am learning that each also has its dangers. One choice will see me cast from polite company . . . the other might just see me dead.

If you'd like to learn more about Karina Cooper and her books, please feel free to visit her at her website, follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest (she's got some awesome boards).
Also, Cherry's steampunk adventures will continue in GILDED by Karina Cooper, due to release on December 26, 2012 - how 'bout that for a Christmas gift!  

In the meantime, Happy Reading Everyone and Good Luck!!
Thank you for making this past year so awesome and I'm eagerly awaiting the year ahead of us.  xoxo

TARNISHED, the St. Croix Chronicles by Karina Cooper, Avon Romance, available now in print and ebook formats.

                                   

Unwrapping: Review of TARNISHED by Karina Cooper

Being a huge fan of Karina Cooper's Witches, I was very excited when Avon Romance asked me to read and review an ARC of TARNISHED by Karina Cooper, the first book in the St. Croix Chronicles.  I was happy to oblige.

Blurb for TARNISHED:

My name is Cherry St. Croix. Society would claim that I am a well-heeled miss with an unfortunate familial reputation. They've no idea of the truth of it. In my secret world, I hunt down vagrants, thieves . . . and now, a murderer. For a monster stalks London's streets, leaving a trail of mystery and murder below the fog.

Eager for coin to fuel my infatuations, I must decide where my attentions will turn: to my daylight world, where my scientific mind sets me apart from respectable Society, or to the compelling domain of London below. Each has a man who has claimed my time as his—for good or for ill. Though as the corpses pile, and the treacherous waters of Society gossip churn, I am learning that each also has its dangers. One choice will see me cast from polite company . . . the other might just see me dead.

                     *                        *                       *                       *                       *

London, 1888 - only this isn't the London, England we know, it's an alternative reality with an upper world and lower world. Of course, those with means live above the fog and gloom and those without live below where it's difficult to breath. Cherry St. Croix lives in both worlds. By day, she does her best to tolerate the society she's forced to be part of and by night, she's a collector. She hunts down criminals for meager coin so that she might keep her laudanum addiction fueled. Things may change when she finds herself hunting down a murderer who tries to turn the tables on her.

If you’ve become as fascinated with steampunk romance as I have lately, then TARNISHED by Karina Cooper is a novel you MUST read. It’s dark, gritty, and action-packed as well as imaginative and well-researched. Karina pulls the reader into an alternate Victorian London timeline that feels so real that you can nearly feel the heaviness of the air, the thickness of the fog and the elegance of being on top. Cherry St. Croix is a complex character believably living two lives, attracted to two men, and balancing herself precariously as she deals with a dangerous occupation, addiction, and keeping up appearances in the world of society.

As a fan of Karina Cooper’s apocalyptic witch series, I was sincerely looking forward to this steampunk romance introducing a new steampunk series. As much as I enjoyed this book, which I will admit took me longer to read than I expected because I kept setting it aside to read others, I did have one problem with it. I was disappointed that it was written in first-person rather than third because I’d truly like to know what’s going on in Compton’s mind BUT I suppose with two men vying for Cherry’s romantic HEA, writing from the point of view of three people would certainly over-complicate the story. As has become rather common with the first in a romance consecutive series, there is no HEA at the end of this story but I suspect that as we travel through this imaginative London, we will see even more steaminess as Cherry discovers to whom her heart truly belongs. I have my druthers and I hope Karina goes that way.

TARNISHED by Karina Cooper is a new, exciting, creative, and imaginative start to the steampunk romance series that is The St. Croix Chronicles. I am very much looking forward to reading the next one. I recommend to everyone looking for something unique and adventurous, read TARNISHED by Karina Cooper, you'll end up as hooked as poor Cherry is to her laudanum.

Happy Reading Everyone!

TARNISHED: The St. Croix Chronicles by Karina Cooper, Avon Romance, Release Date June 26, 2012, and will be available in print and ebook format.

                                                               

Unwrapping: Wacky Wednesday with Witches

     Double, double toil and trouble; Fire burn, and caldron bubble.  - William Shakespeare 

     Let's get started Unwrapping Paranormal Romance with what is associated the most with Halloween - WITCHES!

     One of my favorite authors who writes riveting tales about a world where witches exist and are hunted by a Holy Order for their 'murderous deeds' whether guilty or not is Karina Cooper.  She has written an exciting series called the Dark Mission. If you haven't tried them, please do, they are well- written, read like an adventure while even being a little rough around the edges taking you to a world where things aren't so soft and cozy as you'd like to believe.  The series consists of novels and novellas but all worth reading not to mention the delicious covers. 

     So, for your Wacky Wednesday enjoyment, enjoy an excerpt from BLOOD OF THE WICKED by Karina Cooper:  (I've done a version of censorship bleeping on some words ... this blog isn't quite R rated - LOL!)

     These days, life for a witch was injustice and persecution in a very real sense. It was survival in a society desperate to blame something - hell, anything - for the devastation of fifty years ago. 
     Hadn’t Jessie spent her whole life running? Seen her own mother murdered? Didn’t she learn anything from the streets that had tried so hard to chew her up and spit her out?

     Hadn’t she taught her baby brother the very same thing?
    Which was why, she reflected grimly as she raised her collar against the rain, she knew better than to stay in one place for as long as she’d wallowed in the Perch. Stupid.
    Jessie could have been the next notch on the Mission’s docket tonight. When the hunter had looked her in the eye, she’d have sworn she saw her own death there. It had been damned hard to play at calm, not to panic then and there, take off running right over the bar.
    She took a deep breath, barely noticing the familiar stink of rotting garbage and the faint tang of the cold rain. So she couldn’t work at this particular club anymore. So what? She’d find another. These lower city levels were chock-full of dives like the Perch.
    If Lydia Leigh had taught her children anything, it was how to rebuild.
    She stepped off the broken stoop as lurid purple light flickered through the dismal drizzle. Each do-over just got harder and harder, but hell, she didn’t have much choice. Witch hunters killed witches.
    Exclamation point.
    Her boots splashed in stagnant puddles, stirred up loose grit and gravel. She barely noticed when a wide shadow detached itself from the mouth of the alley, then hesitated when it stepped into her path. She didn’t have time for this.
    Pink neon outlined his heavy build, the blaring smear of tattoo ink and the light-catching saturation of beaten synth-leather spiked with metal. Big. Grabby, probably. He seemed the type.
   She dealt with it before. A casual smile, a flirty wink, a breezy reminder of the bouncers right around the corner, and he’d be back inside eyeballing someone else.
   “Nice.” The burly man spread his arms to block her way. “Way nice. Easiest score I ever made.”
   Vapors washed over her; alcohol and the spicy afterburn of something less legal, even in the Perch.
   Just her luck.
   She shaped her mouth into a sassy smile and made damn sure it reached her eyes. “You’re in the wrong spot, honey. All the best girls are–“
   “Right here,” he drawled, bending until he was all but nose to nose to her. The scent of sweat and beer wafted over her face in a nauseating combination.
   She stepped backward before she could stop herself, giving ground she knew was going to cost her.
   Never show weakness.
   “I’m on a break,” she lied smoothly, praying he was to far gone to notice the heavy backpack slung over shoulders. “You want to see me dance, you’ll want to be inside in five minutes.”
   “Maybe I’ll just see you wiggle right here.” He took another step forward. Jessie’s body tensed, mouth dry.
   Shit. She didn’t have time for this. Any minute that hunter was going to come sniffing. The back of her neck itched with the certainty.
   Neon popped overhead, highlighting the alley around them in vivid purple. It bled through his full brown beard, glittered off his array of facial piercings and toothy smile. It picked out a lot of sweaty, veined muscle.
   And the leering jester inked into one thick arm.
   I see death and a laughing joker.
   Her heartbeat leaped into her throat. “F—,” she whispered, and jumped when he laughed.
   “Not yet, baby,” he said, reaching for her. Her vision tunneled in on the biker’s stained, shit-eating smile, and without warning, Jessie’s patience guttered out.
   She felt herself go. Almost like when she tapped into the power that simmered beneath her conscious mind, but this was sharper. Angrier. Focused.
   He was every man who’d ever leered at her. Every man who’d ever groped her in the dark confines of every bar she’d worked at. The ones who’d laughed at her and her baby brother on these goddamned merciless streets.
   Jessie’s body surged into motion before her brain made the call. She stepped into him, into the wild clasp of his arms, and pure satisfaction rippled through her as his smile cracked into surprise. Her fist collided with his smirk and sent him reeling.
  His flat features contorted into shock. Rage. “Bitch!”
  Adrenaline pushed her forward; she tried to dart past him, choked on her own collar as a meaty hand snagged the back of her jacket and hauled her back into the alley. Slammed her back against the broken, pitted brick, hard enough to force the air from her lungs. Jessie’s vision dimmed as she swung again, connected with something metal on his coat, and yelped as her arm went numb from fingers to elbow.
   If the joker gets his hands on you, Jessie, that’s it. That’s the beginning of it all. Don’t stop for him.
   Her brother’s voice, the memory of it, rang sharply in her head. Too damn late.
   She tried to jerk away, cried out again as his tagged her mouth. Pain exploded inside her skull, lights flashing violet and pink and red as she dropped to her knees.
   Blood pooled on her tongue, coppery and warm. Jessie choked on tears of pain, of humiliation and fury, even as she struggled to get off her hands and knees, and hit him again.
   And again. And –
   “What the f—,” she heard, and a riot of energy roiled around her. For a dazed moment it looked as though her attacker split into two, dancing awkwardly away from her like two halves of a broken mirage. One staggered upright, thick and meaty, the other long and lean as they wrenched apart. With a bellow, the biker swung at the second man who was nothing more than a trim, fast-moving shadow dancing just out of his reach.
   Jessie shook her head hard, forced herself to her feet. She stumbled hastily for the alley mouth. Get out, run like hell. She couldn’t get caught up here, not as long as that hunter was – Oh, God.
   Her knees buckled violently. She whirled to plaster her back against the wall, grabbed rough brick for support as she stared at the fighters. Him. Shocked, she jammed her fingers against her bleeding mouth.
   Neon flickered, seared, and she saw tanned skin, black ink, and rough denim as the witch hunter blocked with his left forearm, snarled something, and curved out a wicked right hook.
   His body moved like an oiled machine, brutally efficient as he followed up with two jabs to the drunk’s nose and an elbow that crunched loudly on impact.
   Blood spurted, near black in the neon light.
   “Run!” The witch hunter threw it over his shoulder, only to twist awkwardly when the biker stomped hard on his knee. Jessie saw his face go shock-white, heard his agonized grunt of pain.
   Fury and fear forced her to move. She caught her backpack in one hand, swung it with all her might. The black canvas bag sailed through the violent neon air, graceful as a brick, and slammed into the side of the biker’s head with a dull crack.
  He toppled, slowly.
  Jessie stared in horror. He didn’t move. God. Had she killed him? She had enough problems without adding murder and cops to the list. She panted for breath, unable to suck in enough air to keep spots from mottling the corners of her vision. Was he dead? She didn’t know if a thirty-pound bag could kill someone of that size, and she desperately didn’t want to check.
  She reeled.
  Strong fingers curled over her upper arms. “Hey!”
  She blinked. Stared into a face carved from something even more unyielding than the brick surrounding . “Can you walk?” he asked. Demanded.
  Jessie’s brain flailed. “Is he–?”
  “Try,” he ordered, and hauled her bodily out of the alley.
  He was limping. It was the only rational thought she managed to form, and wordlessly she ducked under his arm and slipped it over her shoulders. He hesitated, resisting her, but she dug her fingers into his side and held on. She felt the flex and slide of hard muscle as she fisted her hand in his shirt.
   As much as Jessie wanted to slip away from him, use his injury to put as much space between them as she could, she couldn’t just leave him there. He’d helped her. She had to help him.
   And the truth was, she needed something to hang on to, just for a moment.
   She followed his lead as he pointed to a rusty orange pickup truck. He wrenched open the door, half lifted, half shoved her inside the driver’s side, and pushed her farther over as he swung up painfully behind her. He wasted no words, and she had plenty of time to study the implacable set of his features as he gunned the engine and slammed in into drive.
   Talk about a rock and a hard place.
   A witch hunter. And a hero, at least for the five seconds it was taking her brain to process and reboot.
   He’d saved her.
   She’d saved him, too. She wondered if he’d have been so heroic if he knew who and what she was. She’d bet her tip money that he’d have left her there to die if he’d had any real clue she was a witch.


OOPS! Sorry, folks that's all for now ... if you want to find out what happens, you'll have to get your own copy of THE BLOOD OF THE WICKED by Karina Cooper. 

Happy Reading Everyone!