Over the next several weeks I'll be featuring our authors from this fabulous new line as they each tell us about their top 5 favorite paranormal characters. Today's guest is Abby Niles. Please join me in welcoming Abby and celebrating her new release!
I'm really drawn to the paranormal genre. I always have been. It doesn't matter if it's magic, vampires or shifters, if I see that a TV show, movie or book has a paranormal edge, you've caught my attention and I'm willing to give it a try. Not everything works for me, but there are some characters that I fall in love with and not always in the I-want-to-have-your-baby way. I fall in love with the complexity of the character. My list of favorite paranormal characters is actually way more than just five. I can list five vampires alone that are my favorite, so I decided to pick and choose. I'll start with my favorite, favorite.
DAMON SALVATORE
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*Drool* The yummy older brother from The Vampire Diaries, which is also my favorite show on TV right now. Damon came into the show just bad. That first season I was iffy on him. You had Stefan, the wholesome younger brother who thought rationally, was sweet and thoughtful. Damon was the opposite. He acted before thinking, was cocky as all get-out, and really didn't care what anyone thought about him, because he didn't like anyone. In the second season his character grew. Yes, he was still cocky and reacted before thinking and he still did some very horrible things, but you started to realize that even though he was like that, Damon was loyal, would do anything to protect the people he cared the most about, and he became a whole lotta hot for me!
KLAUS
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He's also from The Vampire Diaries, and unlike Damon, Klaus isn't bad, he's downright evil. He lacks remorse and emotions, has a superiority complex that makes him constantly show everyone around him that he is the original vampire and he'll do what he wants. He kills without care. Staked his sister and brothers and kept them in a box for centuries. (You can't kill an original with a regular stake, but you can put them out of commission for as long as the stake stays buried in them). He makes Damon seem like a playful puppy in comparison. Yet, I'm still drawn to him. He has these moments, especially with Caroline, where you can see just how lonely he is. Anyone watch the pilot for "The Orginals." It's a spin-off from The Vampire Diaries that will start this fall. I loved it! My favorite scene was him standing with that bartender as they watched a painter, and the bartender was saying how she believed the painter was expressing his loneliness and how much he wanted to be part of a family. The sheen of tears in Klaus' eyes? Oh. My. God. Right there, that moment, was exactly why I'm fascinated with Klaus.
RUMPLESTILTSKIN
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Are you seeing a pattern yet? When I first started watching Once Upon A Time, I was all about Charming. He was the good guy, fought against the evil queen and fought to win Snow White. I loved that. But the thing is, once he got the girl, there really wasn't anything left to tell, and he's faded into the background this season. Why? Really because when it comes down to it, he's a one-dimensional character. All good and no bad. Who stepped up to the plate for me? Mr. Gold. i.e. Rumplestiltskin. I've been watching the series from day one, and I've finally had to admit, when it comes to the paranormal, I like the characters who come across unredeemable, who do things that are horrible in their paranormal world. BUT just when you think they've gone too far, you see a flash of good in them. Those moments makes them so complex and deep. Regina (i.e. the evil queen) is another example of that.
JERICHO BARRONS
The entire time I read Karen Marie Moning's Fever series I was trying to figure out what the heck Jericho Barrons was. I kept guessing, and then something would happen that made me go, uh no, he can't be that. The mystery and danger that surrounded him was positively enthralling. I loved trying to figure it out, and when it was finally revealed? Wow.
GRIMM RODERICK
The man who was terrified of the blood-lusting Berserker who lived inside him. I loved Grimm from Karen Marie Moning's To Tame a Highland Warrior. He was a man completely besotted with the heroine, had known her for years, but refused to show his feeling for her because he was certain the berserker would one day hurt her. I loved Grimm's struggle. Seeing how much he loved Jillian, how much he wanted to be with her. Then berserkergang would seize him, and that love switched to terror at the violent creature that emerged and what it was capable of. One of my favorite books. Who are some of your favorite paranormal characters?
Katie, thanks so much for having me on A Book Obsession today!
Abby
Thanks Abby! Love the choices. Le sigh on Damon Salvatore. I loved him from the very first time he walked on TVD. Stefan who? Also Barrens, he's every woman's naughty pleasure. To spend a whole day with him? *fans self*
AUTHOR INFO:
Ever since Abby Niles picked up her first Sweet Valley High book in sixth grade and fell in love with Elizabeth and Todd, she's been hooked on romance. By the time she reached high school, she was devouring meatier romances with pirates, cowboys and knights. She never imagined that those years of reading would one day lead to her becoming a published author.
In her late twenties, after having twins and becoming a stay-at-home mom, she started doodling stories to keep her sanity. Next thing she knew, she was actually submitting to publishing houses. And was immediately rejected. That didn't stop her though. She found herself some kickass critique partners, honed her craft, and continued submitting.
And eventually sold a short story, then a novella, then a novel, and now a series.
Today, she juggles work, home life, and writing. It's not always easy, but hey, who said life was easy?
In her downtime, which isn't often, you can find her playing 'Just Dance' with her kids or trying to catch up on her never-ending to-be-read list. She also loves Zumba, and refuses to admit she looks more like Animal doing his Muppet flail than a sensual Latin dancer.
Find Abby online:Website Twitter Facebook Blog
BOOK INFO:
Is the gift of eternal love a blessing or a curse?
After years of counseling grieving shifters, psychiatrist and half-shifter, Dr. Jaylin Avgar has become jaded on shifter mating. She wants to marry a human and forget about the love for eternity crap. Then she meets Aidan O'Connell, an infuriatingly laid back shifter who represents everything she doesn't want. Yet, the more he pursues her, the more she craves a future with him. Only one thing stands in her way: death. Can she overcome her fear of losing Aidan to the one guarantee in life?
Millionaire consultant, Aidan O'Connell knows he'll one day meet a woman who'll awaken an unrelenting mating instinct. Unfortunately, that woman is Jaylin, who has no qualms about telling him that he and his so-called eternity can shove it. When she pushes him away, he takes a drastic step so she can no longer escape. The close proximity throws the instinct into overdrive. Can he control the need engrained in him until he's certain she will reciprocate the bond, or will a moment of weakness doom him to hell on earth?
