Blood and Eternity by Shira Anthony Blog Tour, Guest Post, Excerpt, Review & Giveaway!

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Hiya guys! We have Shira Anthony popping in today with the tour for her upcoming release Blood and Eternity, we have a brilliant guest post from Shira, a great excerpt, an awesome giveaway and Shorty’s review, so check out the post and leave a comment to enter the giveaway! ❤ ~Pixie~

Blood and Eternity

(Blood 03)
by

Shira Anthony

Vampire hunter Adrien Gilbert never dreamed he’d fall for his prey or that his love, Nicolas Lambert, would give him the gift of immortality. But when a hunter bent on destroying the truce between vampires and hunters throws the gauntlet at Adrien’s feet, Adrien must travel through time to save Nicolas, and with him, the entire vampire race.

The time has come to make a choice—one they will live with for eternity.

In this final installment in the Blood Trilogy, Adrien and Nicolas must face their greatest enemy in a deadly last confrontation. But to prevail, they’ll need to master the enemies within.

When Adrien awakens to a future he doesn’t recognize, he faces an impossible decision: live a perfect life with Nicolas in a shattered world, or risk everything to repair a broken past. But before he can challenge vampire hunter Verel Pelletier, he must master the demon who lives in his own mind—and learn to control his ability to travel through time. With Nicolas by his side, he prepares for a final battle against a powerful adversary who likes to play games with the past and future.

But the price of ensuring a future for their loved ones may be an eternity spent alone.

Sequel to Blood and Ghosts and the final installment in the Blood Trilogy

Release date: 31st July 2018
Pre-order:
Dreamspinner Press
paperback: Dreamspinner Press 
Amazon US | Amazon UK

Shira Anthony!

Thanks, Pixie and company, for inviting me to talk about the final Blood Series book, Blood and Eternity, which will be released from Dreamspinner Press on July 31st. The series blends paranormal, fantasy, and time travel themes. Oh, and sexy vampires and vampire hunters, of course. Be sure to read to the bottom to see how you can enter to win a cool unisex bat-themed bracelet!

Creating any universe in a story, regardless of genre, always presents both challenges and rewards. When you think about it, you’ll realize even contemporary stories require some world creation, or what writers call “world building” so that readers can understand why the characters do what they do. Because in the end, it’s really all about characters!

I’ve written fantasy before. In my Mermen of Ea Series, I created an Earth-like universe where shifter mermen exist. But writing the Blood Series, I faced some particular challenges that seem to be part and parcel of writing vampires.

Why is it challenging and rewarding to create a vampire universe? Two reasons, in particular. First, readers are familiar with vampires and vampire lore. Second, readers are familiar with vampires and vampire lore. No, I didn’t make a mistake in writing that last bit! The challenges are the same as the benefits. Let me explain….

Readers know vampires. Or at least, they know them from the books they’ve read in the past. Which means they may expect vampire books to have certain elements. There are so many vampire myths in existing vampire lore: blood as food, immortality, sensitivity to light, undead/living creatures, sexuality, power. I could go on, but you get what I’m saying.

When someone says “vampires,” chances are you think of one or more of these things. Those familiar themes make readers like vampires (or hate them, I suppose). And to some extent, readers want familiar themes because they’re comfortable. But the flip side of this is that if you write a new vampire story with all of the familiar elements, your readers may get bored. Readers are looking for more than just the old vampires they’ve been reading.

It’s all about the balance. Truly. Each author needs to work to strike the balance of familiar and new/original in their vampire stories. And that’s where both the challenge and reward to me as a writer come in.

In the Blood Series, you’ll learn that vampires are essentially immortal because they live extraordinarily long lives. But my vampires are not “undead.” They are very much living, breathing creatures. And they don’t have any issues with sunlight. Yes, they crave human blood and they struggle with control of their urge for blood.

The vampires in the Blood Series also mate and have children. Vampires can either be born or created. Born vampires, or “ancient” vampires, are the most powerful and are a sort of vampire royalty. Some of the ancient vampires intermarried with humans, and created quasi-humans who become vampire hunters. The hunters are long-lived, but not immortal. Hunters can become immortal, however, with the help of an ancient vampire. Hunters can also become vampires in the same way a normal human would.

Building upon old vampire lore and creating my own new lore makes for such a fun universe to play in! I love mixing old and new, and the interplay between the hunters and the hunter makes this series so much for me to write. There are old dilemmas, such as whether to drink human blood or abstain. There are new dilemmas to be discovered in the interplay between the hunters and the vampires.

I’ll leave you with a short excerpt from Chapter 8 of the first book, Blood and Rain. I don’t want to spoil the ending of the series! Don’t forget to comment to be entered to win a unisex handmade bat-themed bracelet!

Happy reading. –Shira

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Excerpt!

from Blood and Rain

“Monsieur Gilbert,” said Nicolas as he offered his hand. “Thank you for coming.”

Adrien didn’t take Nicolas’s hand. Nicolas appeared momentarily taken aback by Adrien’s rebuff but then offered Adrien a warm smile, revealing the tips of his sharp eyeteeth.

Adrien found it difficult not to stare. Nicolas appeared to be in his late twenties, although Adrien knew better. Vampires were immortal, or nearly so, since they aged slowly and could live for millennia. Nicolas could be hundreds, even thousands of years old. And yet his eyes seemed to sparkle with the curiosity of youth, and his pale, perfect skin glowed in the firelight.

Nicolas wore an exquisitely tailored velvet jacket in nearly the same shade of brown as his eyes. It accentuated his graceful body and strong shoulders. Nicolas’s matching wool trousers fitted his long legs so well Adrien could imagine the corded muscles beneath. The gold embroidery on the white silk of Nicolas’s vest made his hair appear even darker than Adrien remembered. Adrien wondered what that hair might look like freed of its binding. Long, past his shoulders, and nearly black. And although he told himself he was attracted to Nicolas because of what Nicolas was, Adrien couldn’t deny the intensity of Nicolas’s physical beauty, nor could he deny that being so close to Nicolas left him ill at ease. He felt underdressed and unsophisticated in his simple tweed jacket and trousers.

The doors to the sitting room opened again, and a servant entered carrying a tray with several glasses and a decanter filled with red wine. Adrien was thankful for the interruption—it gave him time to regain his composure. The servant set down the tray and quickly retreated, leaving the two men alone once more.

“May I offer you some wine, Monsieur Gilbert?”

“Thank you.” Adrien took the crystal wineglass from Nicolas’s hand and their fingers brushed, sending a jolt of energy up Adrien’s arm.

Nicolas looked at Adrien in obvious surprise, as if he, too, had felt something. Adrien hastily withdrew, barely managing not to spill the wine.

They stood in silence until Nicolas raised his glass. “To your health, Monsieur Gilbert.”

Adrien drank deeply and schooled his features, willing himself to focus on something other than his companion. Not a simple feat, given that every fiber of his being cried out for more of the vampire’s touch. He took a slow breath and allowed the alcohol to do its work, relaxing his body and allowing him to regain his composure.

“My brother will join us for dinner.” Nicolas sipped his wine and turned back toward the fire.

“Your brother?”

“Jean is the leader of our clan. He was the one who asked that you come.”

Jean Lambert. The leader of the Lambert clan was known in the hunter community as much for his reclusiveness as for his immense powers.

Whatever they want from me, it must be very important to the clan.

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Blood series!

Blood and Rain (book 01)

Dreamspinner Press | Amazon US | Amazon UK

Blood and Ghosts (book 02)

Dreamspinner Press | Amazon US | Amazon UK

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About Shira!

Shira Author Photo CropShira Anthony was a professional opera singer in her last incarnation, performing roles in such operas as Tosca, i Pagliacci, and La Traviata, among others. She’s given up TV for evenings spent with her laptop, and she never goes anywhere without a pile of unread M/M romance on her Kindle. You can hear Shira singing “Vissi d’arte” from Puccini’s Tosca by clicking here: Shira’s Singing

Shira loves a great happily-ever-after and never writes a story without one. She’s happy to write what her muse tells her, whether it’s fantasy, sci fi, paranormal, or contemporary romance. She particularly loves writing series, because she thinks of her characters as old friends and she wants to visit them even after their stories are told.

In real life, Shira sang professionally for 14 years, and she currently works as a public sector attorney advocating for children. She’s happy to have made writing her second full-time job, even if it means she rarely has time to watch TV or go to the movies. Shira writes about the things she knows and loves, whether it’s music and musicians, the ocean, or the places she’s lived or traveled to. She spent her middle school years living in France, and tries to visit as often as she can.

Shira and her husband spend as many weekends as they can aboard their 35′ catamaran sailboat, Prelude, at the Carolina Coast. Not only has sailing inspired her to write about pirates and mermen, her sailboat is her favorite place to write. And although the only mermen she’s found to date are in her own imagination, she keeps a sharp lookout for them when she’s on the water.

WebsiteFacebook | Facebook Author Page | Twitter | Pinterest |  Goodreads | Google+

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Giveaway!

Win a unisex handmade bat-themed bracelet!

(Just leave a comment on this post)

(Ends when Shira picks a winner!)

Review

Title: Blood and Eternity

Series: Blood 03

Author: Shira Anthony

Genre: Time Travel, Vampires, Fantasy

Length: Novel (214pgs)

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (July 31, 2018)

Heat Level: Moderate

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ 4 1/2 Hearts

Blurb:Vampire hunter Adrien Gilbert never dreamed he’d fall for his prey or that his love, Nicolas Lambert, would give him the gift of immortality. But when a hunter bent on destroying the truce between vampires and hunters throws the gauntlet at Adrien’s feet, Adrien must travel through time to save Nicolas, and with him, the entire vampire race.

The time has come to make a choice—one they will live with for eternity.

In this final installment in the Blood Trilogy, Adrien and Nicolas must face their greatest enemy in a deadly last confrontation. But to prevail, they’ll need to master the enemies within.

When Adrien awakens to a future he doesn’t recognize, he faces an impossible decision: live a perfect life with Nicolas in a shattered world, or risk everything to repair a broken past. But before he can challenge vampire hunter Verel Pelletier, he must master the demon who lives in his own mind—and learn to control his ability to travel through time. With Nicolas by his side, he prepares for a final battle against a powerful adversary who likes to play games with the past and future.

But the price of ensuring a future for their loved ones may be an eternity spent alone.

ISBN-13: 978-1-64080-742-6

Product Link: Dreamspinner Press 

Reviewer: Shorty

Review: I will start off by saying I do not remember the first two books in this series so at first I was lost when I began reading. This is not the first time this has happened to me when reading a series.

The story begins with Adrien in a time stream with Nico and given a choice. Now I knew he would choose not to stay there so I did not get why he waited. Nico going with him surprised me though.

The only question I kept asking myself until near the end was why Adrien did not go back to before Nicholas was taken to begin with. That was where I would have began myself in his shoes. But then again he would not have succeeded as he was not as strong then with his powers.

Great ending with intense battles. The different timestreams added the extra bonus of seeing what could happen if things were left as they were. I really enjoyed this story and will some time in the future re-read to get the full story.

Great read.