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Wednesday 4 April 2012

Blog Tour: Crave by Melissa Darnell: Review + Author Interview

Publisher - Mira Ink
Publication Date - 6th April 2012
Paperback - 432 pages
Genre - Young Adult/Paranormal Romance

Source - Received from publisher for review

Rating - 3 out of 5: I liked it

Book Info - Bloodlust. Magic. Forbidden secrets.

When Savannah Colbert returns to school after a mystery illness, the fact that she has changed is clear to everyone. None more so than every school girls golden boy Tristan Coleman. Ever since their first kiss in fourth grade, Savannah and Tristan have been cruelly and inexplicably banned from associating with each other. Now, as the pair navigate the tricky social life of high school, the truth is about to be revealed.

As Savannah learns of their paranormal ancestry and Tristan deals with the repercussions of her new powers, the relationship they have been denied for so long becomes utterly irresistible and all consuming. Like Romeo and Juliet centuries before them, Savannah and Tristan’s love is destined to fail; and Tristan’s powerful magical family, the Clann, are watching.

My Thoughts - I was very excited when I was asked to take part in the blog tour for Crave as I have heard a lot of good things about the book. And, for the most part, I did really enjoy reading it.

The characters of Savannah and Tristan were both likeable and realistically written. At times I found Savannah to be a bit too whiny for my liking but overall I thought she was caring, brave and selfless. And I loved the way Tristan looks out for Savannah throughout the novel, showing that he really does care about her. He also comes across as very charming and friendly, making him seem pretty irresistable.

The romance between the two is sweet and slow-burning. They have known each other since childhood but have never been able to act on their feelings due to the fact that their families have forbidden them to talk to each other. I am glad that this book wasn't another case of insta-love that seems so common in paranormal romance these days.

The only complaint I have about this book is that the storyline does move along at quite a slow pace and there were a few times when I wished that something would happen. But Crave does have a unique plot that I haven't come across before so in that respect it was quite a refreshing read.

I would definitely recommend this book to fans of young adult paranormal novels.

Author Interview

I am also very excited to welcome Melissa to Once Upon a Series today to answer a few of my questions! Thank you Melissa!

What three words would you use to describe Crave?
Bloodlust. Magic. Forbidden love. (I know, I know, that's four not three; I tend to write long!)


How long did it take you to write Crave?
A month to plot it and a few weeks to write it. And then a year to revise it.

Where did you get your inspiration for the Clann series?
When the YA vampire craze started to take off, as a long time lover of vamp romances I was thrilled but felt the genre was really missing something...namely a vampire heroine. Why should the boys get all the fun here?! But I wanted to see her start off as a normal, clueless human and then have to experience this crazy transformation process as well as learn how to deal with the final result of becoming a vampire. I also wanted a real Romeo and Juliet forbidden kind of love, one where both the hero and heroine were equally powerful, equally interesting in a paranormal way, and equally dangerous to each other so the forbidden aspect of their love would have a huge rippling effect not just on each other but on their worlds as well. When I considered what kind of hero could possibly be as strong and powerful as a vamp, the answer seemed natural...a male witch.

Do you already know how the series will end, or do you just see where your writing takes you?
I've already plotted the third book, which will probably be the final book for Savannah and Tristan, and am currently working on its rough draft. So I definitely know how their saga will end. As for a few key other characters, they "might" end up getting a story of their own in the series.

What made you want to write about forbidden love?
I hate sucky endings to romances (and by "sucky" I mean anything short of a full on happy ending!). Therefore Romeo and Juliet simply had to be rewritten with a better ending. And what could make that classic story even better than reworking the ending? Why, to throw in some witches and vampires, of course!

Please feel free to visit my sites at www.TheClannSeries.com and www.melissadarnell.com to learn even more about the history of Savannah's race of vampires and the Clann, listen to each Clann Series book's playlist online, contact me with any additional questions you or your readers may have, and much more!
And a HUGE thank you for featuring me on your blog today!

1 comments:

Shelagh said...

Lovely interview and Crave does look like a book worth exploring if I stumble onto it.

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