BLOOD ETERNAL Book Tour: Guest Post and Giveaway with Marie Treanor

Dangerous Secrets

 by Marie Treanor

How exciting is this? My first guest blog in my virtual tour with BLOOD ETERNAL! Thank you, Diana for having me here at Book of Secrets. It feels a great place to start things off, because BLOOD ETERNAL is really all about secrets.

But perhaps I should begin by explaining a bit about the book. BLOOD ETERNAL is the finale of the Awakened by Blood trilogy that began with BLOOD ON SILK and BLOOD SIN. They’re a mixture of vampire romance, urban fantasy and old fashioned gothic – with a little modern steam to the romance.  In the beginning, academic researcher Elizabeth Silk accidentally awakens Ancient vampire Saloman, a powerful, sensual being out for revenge and world domination after being staked three hundred years ago. 

Without getting into complicated explanation, let me just say that if ever two people needed to kill each other it was Elizabeth and Saloman. However, unwanted love got in the way and by the beginning of BLOOD ETERNAL the secret of their relationship is out. The undead world knows of it, and so do Elizabeth’s friends the vampire hunters.

However, there are many other secrets just waiting to erupt. Saloman’s domination has changed vampires’ behaviour, and now they see no reason to hide. But if vampire existence is revealed to humans, will it begin a devastating human-vampire war that humanity can’t possibly win?

Just about every character in BLOOD ETERNAL is hiding secrets, not least Elizabeth and Saloman themselves. Although they’re acknowledged companions, they keep secrets from each other. Secretive by nature, he doesn’t discuss all of his powers, or the minutiae of his plans with her. After all, she still opposes his quest to rule the world, and she’s quite capable of fighting – and killing – him. One secret that he has shared with her – the depth of his feelings for his cousin Luk, his friend and mentor whom he was forced to kill hundreds of years ago – is not known to anyone else. So when Luk is awakened by an old enemy, can Saloman really “kill” him a second time? 

Saloman soaks up experience, physical and emotional, like a sponge. And yet he reveals very little emotion , even to Elizabeth. An immortal, thousands of years old – can his love for a mortal woman be anything other than transitory? He never says how deep his love goes, and she never asks, because her biggest secret is the strength of her desire to be loved as much as she loves him.

But she’s carrying other secrets too, not least the mysterious illness that afflicts her with increasing frequency. And the fact that she thinks about the immortality Saloman has never offered her…

And of course, Elizabeth’s friends are keeping secrets too. The hunter Istvan has always loved her from afar. Mihaela, troubled and lonely, will do anything to save Elizabeth from Saloman. And they’ve never told Elizabeth about the disturbing prophecy they uncovered, one that implies Elizabeth will kill Saloman but must still die to save the world.

And as revolt against Saloman spreads across the vampire world, who can he trust? His elder “son”, the reclusive Maximilian comes home to help – but he’s betrayed Saloman before, and can easily do so again. Saloman has taught this vampire everything he knows about secrecy!

Inevitably, all those secrets emerge. Saloman must face the secret fears and vulnerabilities  of his past if he’s to save Elizabeth from his enemies. The threads of doomed love, prophecy, divided loyalty and betrayal explode in a climactic confrontation that will change Elizabeth and Saloman, and their entire world, forever.

There is one more secret here: mine. 

I’ve lived in this world with these characters for a long time. I’ve fought with them, shouted at them, torn my hair out over them, let them overrule me and drive me to distraction. And now that I’ve at last struggled through to the finale, I find, even more annoyingly, that I don’t want it to end.  Sh-sh.

Giveaway Details: 

Marie is giving away a print copy of BLOOD ETERNAL to one random person who comments on today's post!  The contest is open to US shipping.  To enter, please leave a question or comment for Marie and your e-mail address.  Contest ends on 9/30/2011 at 11:59 pm CST.  Good luck!