Book Blog Tour: The Watcher by Lisa Voisin Interview & Giveaway

Title: The Watcher 
Author: Lisa Voisin
Published: March 4, 2013
Publisher: Inkspell Publishing
Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Synopsis
Millennia ago, he fell from heaven for her.

Can he face her without falling again?

Fascinated with ancient civilizations, seventeen-year-old Mia Crawford dreams of becoming an archaeologist. She also dreams of wings—soft and silent like snow—and somebody trying to steal them.

When a horrible creature appears out of thin air and attacks her, she knows Michael Fontaine is involved, though he claims to know nothing about it. Secretive and aloof, Michael evokes feelings in Mia that she doesn’t understand. Images of another time and place haunt her. She recognizes them—but not from any textbook.

In search of the truth, Mia discovers a past life of forbidden love, jealousy and revenge that tore an angel from Heaven and sent her to an early grave. Now that her soul has returned, does she have a chance at loving that angel again? Or will an age-old nemesis destroy them both?

Ancient history is only the beginning. (Goodreads)

Interview

I am happy to have Lisa Voisin, author of The Watcher, as a guest today on Courtney Reads A Lot. She was nice enough to answer a few questions I really wanted answered. So without further ado...

Me: Why did you decide to write paranormal romance?

Lisa: I had this idea kicking around in my head for years about a boy who wakes up one day to discover he's an angel. Writing it from his perspective didn't feel right. I've been a fan of paranormal romance and urban fantasy since I first read Guilty Pleasures by Laurell K. Hamilton years ago. But when I noticed the YA paranormal genre pick up with some of the great stories out there, I really liked the first-person perspective. I knew the boy who was an angel needed to be seen through the eyes of the girl who loved him. Thus, The Watcher was born.

Me: If you could be any character from The Watcher, who would you pick and why?

Lisa: In some ways I would have liked to be as wise as Mia is. She's an old soul, and I admire her inner strength. But, ultimately, I think I'd like to be Arielle. She's really kick ass, with super powers and the ability to smite demons, and is really low key about it.

Me: What are some of your favorite authors/books? How have they inspired you?

Lisa: Well, my favorite author is Neil Gaiman. I love his voice and I've been a fan of his since I read the Sandman series back in the day. His first novel, Good Omens, which he co-wrote with Terry Pratchett blew me away. I've also been inspired along the way by Kelley Armstrong, Cassandra Clare, Eileen Cook, and Melissa Marr.

Me: Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?

Lisa: Well, I was inspired by Neil Gaiman telling people to "keep writing." It was some of the best advice I ever got, so I'm passing it along. Don't let anyone tell you that you can't do it, whatever it is and no matter what stage you're at. People seem to want to do that and I don't know why. As you learn the craft of writing and the art of storytelling, keep in mind that nobody's perfect and don't be too hard on yourself in the process. The harder you are on yourself, the harder you'll be on others, and that seems to create a great deal of harshness in the world.

And just for fun, here's a round of This or That:

City or Country?
City! I'm into the convenience of the city, the cafes and shopping. But I love being able to go out into the woods too. Luckily, where I live, I can do both.

Peeta or Gale?
Peeta, even though Gale is a total dish. Peeta has the right disposition for Katniss.

Zombies or Vampires?
If I have to choose, I'll go with vampires, I guess. I appreciate that they don't look as scary.

Coffee or Tea?
Coffee! Though I love both!

Thank you so much Lisa for answering my questions! Here's a little bit about Lisa Voisin.

About the Author
A Canadian-born author, Lisa Voisin spent her childhood daydreaming and making up stories, but it was her love of reading and writing in her teens that drew her to Young Adult fiction.

A self-proclaimed coffee lover, Lisa can usually be found writing in a local café. When she's not writing, you'll find her meditating or hiking in the mountains to counteract the side effects of drinking too much caffeine!
Though she’s lived in several cities across Canada, she currently lives in Vancouver, B.C. with her fiancé and their two cats.

Find her: Twitter | Facebook | Website | Blog

Rafflecopter Giveaway

If you've stuck around to the end, you deserve a reward!

Lisa Voisin and Inkspell Publishing are giving away print (US/Canada/UK) and ebook (INT) copies of The Watcher as well as this lovely angel wing necklace! Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway below for a chance at winning these awesome prizes!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Thanks for stopping by! Don't forget to check out what's up next on The Watcher blog tour.

Interview: Shanae Branham, Author of DiSemblance

For today's post, I'd like to welcome Shanae Branham, author of YA techno-thriller DiSemblance. She has graciously agreed to an interview!  After reading and enjoying her debut novel, I was excited to pick her brain and find out the inspirations behind this book.

DiSemblance
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Jason Tanner’s life has always been different from the ordinary citizen’s. It started when he was an infant and his parents were only teenagers. A computer science prodigy, Lloyd attended MIT but left a pariah in the eyes of the school’s dean—but a computer physics genius in the eyes of his primary investor. Then his theories and ideas created a holographic machine and their world shrunk as contact with the outside world became less and less frequent. A computer prodigy now himself, Jason is about to learn that the world never waits for you if you have the ability to change it: it will come for you.

Detective Bruce Durante has been handed the case of the Comfort Killer, a serial killer so named because he appears to abduct terminally ill patients before returning their corpses to their families in refrigerated coffins. When he picks up the trail, it leads straight to the home of Lloyd Tanner.

Jason has been living life through the world of Lloyd’s invention and wishing he could carry on a relationship with Boston, the beautiful girl next door. When his father is murdered and framed as the Comfort Killer, he is brought back to reality in a hurry. He is forced to destroy all of the planted evidence—and finds he is being targeted as the killer’s new fall guy. But the secrets of his father’s invention run deep and Jason, his brother Isaac,Boston, the Comfort Killer, and Detective Durante hurtle towards one another on a deadly collision course that leaves everyone’s life hanging in the balance. (Goodreads)

I had lots of questions for Shanae, but I managed to pick out a few that I really wanted answered.

How did you come up with the premise for DiSemblance?

As a mother of six children, my concern about the negative effects too much television and video and computer games can have on young people led me to choose digital reality as the subject of my first young adult techno-thriller novel. I wanted to play with the idea that there can be a point where digital reality can seem so real that you lose track of where you are – thus the name DiSemblance, which means the state of being disguised or concealed behind a false appearance.

Why did you decide to write young adult?

I chose to write young adult because I am surrounded by teenagers. The ages of my six children range from 11 to 21. At the current time, I have two children in college, three teens at home and a preteen who acts more like a teenager than a child. At times when my kids have their friends over, the number of teenagers in my home easily ranges from four to 14 – CRAZY!

Who is your favorite character from your book and why?

Sheffield Roads.  Although Sheffield is not a major character, I like him because of his Western style and the way he supports his brother, Bruce.

What authors have inspired you?

Suzanne Collins, Dean Koontz, Kate Wilhelm, Nicholas Sparks, and James Patterson

Here's a little bit about Shanae:

"I am a professional writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and a minor in grammar. I have also attended several years of classes and workshops in screenplay writing at the Los Angeles Screenplay writer’s Expo. I love suspense, adventure, fantasy, and some romance. I am also a master at plot who happens to enjoy stories with happy endings."

Thank you Shanae for stopping by and answering my questions! Also thank you for giving me a chance to read your debut novel! And don't forget to check out my review of DiSemblance.