Q+A with Brian Bandell (Mute)

Please welcome today's paranormal guest author Brian Bandell!  Brian is the author of MUTE.

Q+A with Brian Bandell

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Brian:  I filled my notebook in sixth grade with a sword and sorcery story. My first serious attempt to write a novel started my junior year at the University of Miami as I sat on the shores of Lake Osceola listening to Radiohead on my headphones. My first book deal came four novels later but the joy of creating a story that I could escape with kept me writing for years and persisting in the face of rejections until I found my touch. I still listen to music during most of my writing.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Brian:  My novel Mute is a blend between murder mystery, science fiction and paranormal. I love incorporating the unworldly into my stories and, in this case, I do it through an environment that people have been abusing that fights back. Sea turtles, dolphins, gators, manatees, all of them become deadly for those who approach the Indian River Lagoon.

I enjoy reading books by Stephen King and Dean Koontz, two authors who also incorporate scifi and paranormal. The key question in all such stories is how the characters react to situations that seem unbelievable and force them to make difficult choices. In my novel Mute, Officer Moni Williams must choose between protecting a mute girl who saw her parents murdered and getting the child to reveal information that could help them catch the unconventional killer.

EJ:  If you could be any paranormal or have any one supernatural talent, what would it be? Why?

Brian:  To jump inside someone's head and know what they're feeling. Not just their thoughts, but their emotions and their body. We see so much joy, pain, amazing athletics displays, those who are feeble and fragile - what does that feel like?

EJ:  Tell us why readers will enjoy your new release.

Brian:  It keeps them guessing until the end as I rip through the story at a fast pace. One of my favorite things is hearing all the different reactions from readers. Some cried at the plight of the speechless girl. Some were terrified of going near the water. Nearly everyone was shocked by the ending.

I don't want to stick to a safe formula. This novel is a thrill ride.

EJ:  If your book(s) were being made into a movie, who would you cast for the leading roles? Why?

Brian:  Jasika Nicole (who played Astrid on Fringe) would be the lead as Moni. She has the right mix of sensitivity and toughness as a cop. I can see her being conflicted over how to care for the girl.

The girl Mariella would be played by Brighton Sharbino (Lizzie from Walking Dead). She did an amazing job as a stone-cold, psychotic kid. The part of Mariella has sympathy on the outside, with an undercurrent of fear and mystery.

Mute by Brian Bandell.

Officer Monique “Moni” Williams, has never lived an easy life—with an abusive ex-con father, a two-timing, pistol-wielding ex-boyfriend and a racist boss—it’s hard to see how things could possibly get more difficult for her. After she meets a child that she bonds with, but Moni must protect the girl from a mysterious threat stalking everyone near the Indian River Lagoon.

A serial killer is on the loose on Florida’s Space Coast, and Moni has been put in charge of the key witness in the biggest case of her life: an eight-year-old girl called Mariella. The child has gone mute after losing both her parents one harrowing night. Now, Moni struggles to protect the child and break her silence, while more reports of inexplicable deaths and animals with eerie purple eyes pile up. Her bond with the child is tested by a police force demanding answers. What does the lagoon’s rotten stench have to do with a mute little girl? Can Moni save Mariella from what lurks along the water? Who is really facing the most danger? Find out in this suspenseful, page-turner that will keep you guessing until the very end.

Genre: Paranormal, Science Fiction, Mystery
Add to Goodreads.

Thank you Brian for joining us here today at From the Shadows!

To learn more about Brian Bandell and his books, please visit his website.

Q+A with Shawn McGuire + Break My Bones Giveaway

Please welcome today's guest author, Shawn McGuire!  Shawn is the author of BREAK MY BONES.

Keep reading for a chance to win a handmade bracelet and Break My Bones swag!

Q+A with Shawn McGuire

EJ:  When did you begin writing?

Shawn:  I first started writing when I was 11 or 12. My cousin and I started writing our own Star Wars episodes and gave ourselves starring roles. I don’t remember what my name was, but she was Smudgie Holo! Sadly, I no longer have those notebooks. It would be so much fun to read those stories now.

EJ:  What brought you to the paranormal genre?

Shawn:  Things happen that can’t be explained and I love the thought that there are other forces at work in the world. Also, my books deal with some heavier topics (death of a family member, divorce, dating abuse, substance abuse, rape) and adding some fantastical elements makes it a little easier to deal with, I think, without minimizing the seriousness.

EJ:  If you could be any paranormal or have any one supernatural talent, what would it be? Why?

Shawn:  Invisibility! Mostly because I’m kind of snoopy. I’d love to be able to get into places I shouldn’t go and listen to conversations I shouldn’t listen to. Also I could move stuff around and people wouldn’t know what was going on!

EJ:  Tell us why readers will enjoy your new release.

Shawn:  The basic premise of the books in my series is that someone makes a wish, the wish is granted, and then things don’t go so well. If you’ve read the first in the series, STICKS AND STONES, you’ll want to know who gets the next wish and what kind of trouble the genie (known as a Wish Mistress in the books) is up to.

Crissy is the main character in BREAK MY BONES. Crissy simply wishes for a brighter future. Her mom is a drunk, her older sister is following in their mom’s footsteps, and Crissy’s boyfriend is abusing her.

This book deals with some heavy topics, but it’s a story about finding your own strength and the importance of friends and family. And Desiree, the Wish Mistress, is a lot of fun. She’s a hippie and…well, you’ll have to read to find out more.

EJ:  If your book(s) were being made into a movie, who would you cast for the leading roles? Why?

Shawn:  Crissy – Ashley Benson. I found a picture of her when I was writing BREAK MY BONES where her hair is messed up and she looks small and fragile. Although Crissy has street smarts and isn’t afraid to speak her mind with her friends, she is small and physically fragile.

Desiree – Mary Kate Olson. She’s got that pouty look so often – and Desiree is quite moody – but when she smiles her face just lights up and you want to be her best friend. And she’s tiny. Desiree is tiny.

Mandy – Selena Gomez. She has that fresh, girl-next-door but still in-charge look about her that is totally Mandy to me.

Kaf – I have a picture on my Pinterest page of him. I have no idea who this man is but he is 100% my Kaf.

Break My Bones (Wish Makers #2) by Shawn McGuire.

Everyone makes mistakes. Crissy’s just might kill her.

Seventeen-year-old Crissy Sheets was so sure Brad was the one, she believed him when he swore the first bruise was an accident. She believed him when he told her he loved her after the second. Now trapped in an abusive relationship with no idea of how to get out, she’s all but given up on ever having the life she dreams of. With little to lose, Crissy wishes for a better future.

She’s told her wish has been granted, but nothing has changed. Her house is still a dump, her mother is still drinking, and Brad still wants to control her every move. Then Lance moves into the house across the yard. He’s hot, chivalrous, and wants to help Crissy break free. Will standing up for herself push Brad too far?

Release Date:  September 1, 2014
Genre: Fantasy, Young Adult
Add to Goodreads.

Thank you Shawn for joining us here today at From the Shadows!

To learn more about Shawn McGuire and her books, please visit her website.

Break My Bones Giveaway

The author is giving away a handmade bracelet and fab Break My Bones swag!

To enter, use the Rafflecopter form below.  This giveaway is INTERNATIONAL.  This is a tour giveaway, so the winners will be randomly selected by the author or publisher.  Giveaway ends September 15, 2014.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Good luck!

Paranormal Road Trip: Destination New Orleans with Suzanne Johnson

Come on boys and ghouls!  It's time to hop on Route 666 for a spooktacular Paranormal Road Trip.  This week's stop is New Orleans and our special guide is Suzanne Johnson author of the Sentinels of New Orleans series.

The Sentinels of New Orleans series is set in New Orleans, Louisiana so it seems fitting that our guide for this week's Paranormal Road Trip be the amazing Suzanne Johnson.  Let's see what terrifying places Suzanne has planned for our tour.

New Orleans' Top Five Spooky Places

There are plenty of reasons why my hometown of New Orleans is considered the most haunted city in America, and one of the most haunted in the world. I mean, you have the whole voodoo thing, an old city by U.S. standards with a very non-American vibe, an extremely violent history, rumors of vampires flying out the attic of a convent (really!), and—oh yeah—we bury our dead aboveground so occasional heavy floods send coffins and skeletons floating down the street.

Man, I love this place.

The ghost of pirate Jean Lafitte is said to hover around the Lafitte Blacksmith Shop Bar and the Old Absinthe House, and half the rooms in the Hotel Monteleone are said to be haunted. But if you really want to send the chill bumps racing up your spine and raising the hair on the back of your neck, check out these five spots, in no particular order.

St. Louis Cemetery Nos. 1 and 2.  These are the oldest of New Orleans’ famous “Cities of the Dead,” with tombs dating back to the 1700s. No. 1, the most well known, opened in 1789, a good 15 years before our pirate Lafitte wandered the streets of the city. Probably the most famous grave in No. 1 is that of voodoo priestess Marie Laveau, although you can also find Barthelemy Lafon, an architect who joined Lafitte’s pirate legions. In No. 2, cozy up to the crypt of Dominique You, Lafitte’s closest ally and alleged half-brother. (Alas, the whereabouts of Captain Lafitte himself are not known. Well, except in my books, where he lives on forever, the handsome scoundrel.) Even if graveyards in general don’t creep you out, I defy you to wander around the maze of St. Louis No. 1 or 2 with its rows of aboveground tombs and not feel a chill breeze or two. Not to mention that crow that hangs around Marie Laveau’s grave.

The Hotel Monteleone.  More than a dozen different spirits are said to hang out at the hotel (not including the ones in my books), and history oozes from the walls of the marble lobby with its antiques and revolving Carousel Bar, where local literati such as William Faulkner were said to imbibe. The thirteenth floor—renumbered fourteenth—is said to be the most haunted, and includes the ghost of a young boy believed to be a child who died nearby in the late 19th century.

The Bourbon Orleans.  Another hotel, this one haunted by the ghosts of the orphaned children the site once housed, as well as the nuns who ran the orphanage. There’s also believed to be a pirate ghost hanging out in the stairwells, and TVs have been known to turn themselves on and off.

The Napoleon House.  A great spot to people watch, original patrons of this 18th-century building constructed as a home-in-exile for Napoleon Bonaparte (he never made it) are said to sit in the upper-floor windows and watch the current, living, denizens of the place. There’s no better spot on a sultry, stormy night.

Six Flags New Orleans. Okay, okay, it’s probably not haunted, but it might as well be. In 2005, almost exactly nine years ago, Hurricane Katrina sent the waters of Lake Pontchartrain and the Mississippi River Gulf Outlet over and through the levees, putting 80 percent of the New Orleans metro area underwater. Including Six Flags. The park never reopened and, caught in terminal litigation, it still sits there, its rusted swings moving in the breeze, weeds and vines winding through the silent roller coaster and other rides. It is by far and away THE creepiest spot in New Orleans. Maybe anywhere…which is why I had to use it as a setting of a novel, of course!


Thank you Suzanne for giving us such a haunting tour of New Orleans!  To learn more about Suzanne Johnson and her books, please visit her website and don't miss our Q+A with Suzanne Johnson here at From the Shadows.  Also, don't miss my review of Elysian Fields, the newest book in the Sentinels of New Orleans series, and our character interview with Drusilla "D.J." Jaco.  You can add her Sentinels of New Orleans series here on Goodreads.

Readers, was this your first visit to New Orleans?  Have you experienced anything supernatural in and around New Orleans?

What did you think of Suzanne Johnson's picks for spooky places?

Last week on Paranormal Road Trip we visited Savanna, Georgia with J.D. Horn.  Next week we'll be traveling to Manhattan with Melissa De La Cruz.

Join us for another spine-tingling Paranormal Road Trip...
if you dare!

Readers: What do you think of this new weekly feature?  Your feedback is important to us as we strive to bring you fresh new content that you want to read.