Mash Ups and More Update - September 30, 2010

I found two new alternates. Both books are written by Maureen McGowan. They are the start of the Twisted Tales series.

Cinderella: Ninja Warrior

Maureen McGowan

(Aprill 2011)

In the familiar story of Cinderella, familiar to kids everywhere, the kind young girl suffers at the hand of her evil stepmother, triumphs with the help of her fairy godmother, and lives happily ever after with the prince — and it happens the same way every time. In Cinderella: Ninja Warrior, that stepmother is more than a mean woman — she’s a mean wizard. That fairy godmother appears in the form of a cat, and Cinderella has trained herself in the art of kung fu. Each reader get’s to deicde how it all happens. It’s totally twisted!

Told in nine sections, readers reach three decision points that allow them to choose Cindarella’s path. With ninja skills, multiple magic wands, and super spells, getting to the happy ending is a different and exciting journey of fun and surprises, even for devoted fans of the original story.

Cinderella: Ninja Warrior is an entirely new type of fairy tale - one that will keep today’s kids guessing and offer them hours of magical fun.

Sleeping Beauty: Vampire Slayer
Maureen McGowan
(April 2011)

In the familiar story of Sleeping Beauty, the beautiful princess is cursed by the hand of an evil queen, destined to spend her life in slumber until a handsome young man falls in love with her--and it happens the same way every time. But in Sleeping Beauty: Vampire Slayer, that evil queen is an evil vampire queen. Sleeping Beauty still sleeps through her days, but now she wakes at night to protect the people of her kingdom from the bloodsuckers that threaten their very lives. The spell is broken not with a kiss, but with a bite. And it’s up to each reader how it all happens. It’s totally twisted!

Told in nine sections, readers reach three decision points that allow them to choose Sleeping Beauty’s path. With rival kingdoms, vengeful vampires, and an army of sleeping slayers, getting to the happy ending is a different and exciting journey of fun and surprises, even for devoted fans of the original story.

Sleeping Beauty: Vampire Slayer is an entirely new type of fairy tale--one that will keep today’s kids guessing and offer them hours of magical fun.

Please note that I've found different covers and publication dates for these books. I'll update this as necessary.

Wednesday Comics on Thursday - Novels to Comics - September 30, 2010

Yesterday was an extremely light comic book day for me. While that makes my wallet ecstatic, it makes me sad. Nonetheless, I did pick up some comics that I'm really enjoying so it's all good.

Three of the comics that I picked up are based on or are adaptions of novels.

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

It was made into an animated film in 1982. Mia Farrow was the Unicorn. Christopher Lee voiced the bad guy, King Haggard.

A brave unicorn and a magician fight an evil king who is obsessed with attempting to capture the world's unicorns. IMDB

And it's a gorgeous comic from IDW Publishing.

As the threat of the terrifying and mysterious Red Bull looms, so does the dark and foreboding castle of King Haggard, the keeper of the bull. The Unicorn, the magician Schmendrick, and Molly brave ahead until they are forced to defend the unicorn from certain death. But Schmendrick’s solution may make her wish she hadn’t survived at any cost.

Issue 4, Cover A

Issue 4, Cover B

Page 4

Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick

 I love the title. Brilliant. This is the book that inspired the Blade Runner film.

Here's the trailer from Blade Runner:

The comic that I got yesterday is Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Dust to Dust from BOOM! Studios. It's the authorized prequel.

A science-fiction publishing event! Who hunted androids before Rick Deckard? Taking place immediately after World War Terminus ends, the problems with artificial life - androids - become apparent. The government decides they must become targets, hunted down, but who will do the dirty work? Two men are assigned: Malcolm Reed, a 'special' human with the power to feel others' emotions, and Charlie Victor, who's the perfect man for the job - or is he? Meanwhile Samantha Wu, a Stanford biologist, fights to save the last of the world's animals. John W. Campbell Award-nominee Chris Roberson writes the prequel to John W. Campbell Memorial Award-winner Philip K. Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?, one of the greatest science fiction novels ever published. BOOM! Studios

Issue 5

The Eye of the World, The Wheel of Time 1 by Robert Jordan

A movie is in the works for The Eye of the World. The comic is published by Dynamite.

About Issue 5:

The next chapter in the ROBERT JORDAN'S thrilling WHEEL OF TIME! Thanks to Moiraine, Rand Al'Thor has found out why his quiet life has erupted into chaos and what the myrddraal seeks -- and those answers will change his life forever. Plagued with visions of a great evil, and forced to leave the only home he's ever known, THE EYE OF THE WORLD continues here! DYNAMITE

Issue 5

Apparently I really like comics based on novels!

Urban Fantasy or Paranormal Romance? Giveaway

I've been thinking about Paranormal Romance (PNR) vis-a-vis Urban Fantasy (UF) lately. I like both subgenres though I lean a bit toward Urban Fantasy. Maybe this is because I cut my teeth on H.P. Lovecraft, Isaac Asimov, William Tenn, Thomas Burnett Swann, tales of King Arthur, and The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. I did not read much romance at all. So I came to PNR via the PN part. Please note that the simple distinctions that I draw are mine. Others have and will continue to define PNR and UF differently than I do.

For the most part I read Paranormal Romance because of the paranormal elements not because of the Happily Ever After (HEA). The endings are not really meant to surprise. I know that there is going to be an HEA. It's how the main characters get there that can make PNR interesting and enjoyable. It's the romance that's important in PNR. The trials and tribulations of the couple-to-be is what drives the story.

In Urban Fantasy events and the world in which the characters exist, rather than romance, drive the story. There can be romance and relationships, but the building to an HEA is not the point of the story. In general UFs tend to be more gritty than PNRs. If you want to strictly define "Urban" Fantasy it should be set in an urban landscape, of course.

This is not to say that there has not been a lot of blurring of the imaginary lines between PNR and UF. Some paranormal romances are very close to urban fantasies and vice versa.


What: Either The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance 2 or Mean Streets. Winner's choice.





This exciting follow-up to the successful Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance contains more than twenty stories to take you to another time and place. Including the best names in the field, this collection is filled with mythical beasts, magical creatures of all shapes and sizes, handsome ghosts, angels, and mortals with extra-sensory perception that play out their extraordinary desires.

Please note that this book will be published on Oct. 12, 2010.







An anthology of "solid and suspenseful" novellas from

#1 New York Times bestselling author Jim Butcher

New York Times bestselling author Simon R. Green

National bestselling authors Kat Richardson Thomas E. Sniegoski

Here are four novellas featuring Harry Dresden, John Taylor, Harper Blaine, and Remy Chandler...paranormal private investigators who walk the streets no one else can walk and take the jobs no one else will take...

Of course, if a case involves werewolves, zombies, demons, or other "unusual" circumstances, it may cost a bit extra.



How: Leave a comment telling The Qwillery if you prefer PNR or UF? Have you read any books that you would classify as both? How do your definitions differ than mine? Can someone tell my why so many UF heroines appear on their book covers bare-midriffed and tattooed?

You can receive additional entries by:

1) Being a Follower of The Qwillery.

2) Mentioning the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter. Even if you mention the giveaway on both, you will get only one additional entry. You get only one additional entry even if you mention the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter multiple times.

3) Mentioning the giveaway on your on blog or website. It must be your own blog or website; not a website that belongs to someone else or a site where giveaways, contests, etc. are posted.

There are a total of 4 entries you may receive: Comment (1 entry), Follower (+1 entry), Facebook and/or Twitter (+ 1 entry), and personal blog/website mention (+1 entry). This is subject to change again in the future for future giveaways.

Please leave links for Facebook, Twitter, or blog/website mentions. In addition please leave a way to contact you.

When: The giveaway is open to all humans on the planet earth with a mailing address. Giveaway ends at 11:59pm US Eastern Time on Monday, October 6, 2010 so have your comment in by then.

New Release Tuesday Vlog - September 28, 2010

One of the bookstores that I shop at treated me to coffee and cake this morning! I felt special. Apparently it was because I buy a lot of books. Sadly the other bookstore I shop at lost its shelver on Sunday. She has retired, and there are no plans to replace her. I will be visiting that store later in the day on Tuesdays from now on. That way the staff won't have to spend so much time in the back looking for books for me.




The books that I wanted but was unable to get at either bookstore I frequent:

Haunted Honeymoon

THERE’S MORE THAN HER HEART AT STAKE. . . .As the only human to survive vampire infection, Milagro de Los Santos has become quite a celebrity among the blood-drinking elite. Too bad the perks of her condition—increased strength, super-fast healing—don’t pay her condo fees. There are other complications too. She’s feeling guilty about her fling with enigmatic Vampire Council member Ian Ducharme, and pining for her ex-fiancé, Dr. Oswald Grant . . . the fabulous man whose kiss changed her life. It’s when Milagro—irked by Ian’s attentions to his neighbor—travels to London and enjoys a sexy flirtation of her own, that the blood really hits the fan. Suddenly, those around her are dying gruesome deaths and Milagro’s being interrogated. Who would kill to set her up as a murder suspect? Milagro just wants to turn back the clock and have another chance to make things right, but no sooner has she escaped to Oswald’s ranch than an accident obliterates her memory. Will the murderer come after her now? And will amnesia spark a romantic do-over with Oswald—or will she make all the same mistakes before she ever gets to say "I do"?


Angel Souls and Devil Hearts

The second Peter Octavian novel in the classic urban fantasy series- reissued in a brand-new package-by the award-winning author.

The View From Monday - September 27, 2010

Happy Monday! Last week was not a very good week for reading. I'm still reading the Connor Grey series by Marc Del Franco. I'm enjoying it and am not thrilled that I've had so little time to read! Tomorrow there absolutely will be a New Release Tuesday Vlog. Below is a list of books that are coming out tomorrow. Not all of these books will be in the vlog, of course. Wednesday there will be a giveaway. Thursday will be either Wednesday Comics on Thursday or Thursday Flicks. On Friday I hope to share some fall foliage photos with you.

Please note that Dorchester Publishing (Love Spell/Leisure) books are no longer on the list due to Dorchester's decision to drop Mass Market Paperbacks starting with the September titles. The Books are supposed to come out as e-books on the correct dates with Trade Paperbacks following later. You can read Dorchester's statement about that here. The Trade Paperbacks will be on the release lists as they come out.

There are quite a few books being reissued tomorrow, some at bargain prices. Take a look at the list at the bottom.


September 28, 2010

Haunted Honeymoon	Marta Acosta	Casa Dracula 4
Siren Song	Cat Adams	Blood Singer 2
Blood Lite II	Anthology
Taken By Midnight	Lara Adrian	Midnight Breed 8
Bayou Moon	Ilona Andrews	Edge 2
Everlasting Desire	Amanda Ashley	vampire romance 18
Bespelling Jane Austen	Anthology
Left for Undead	L.A. Banks	Crimson Moon 6
When Pleasure Rules	J.K. Beck	The Shadow Keepers 2
Masques***	Patricia Briggs	Sianim 1
Double Cross	Carolyn Crane	Justine Jones 2
Aching for Always	Gywn Cready
Afterlife	Merrie Destefano	The Resurrection Chronicles
Venom	Jennifer Estep	Ele­men­tal Assas­sin 3
Dark Slayer**	Christine Feehan	Dark 20
Fangs for the Mammaries	Anthology
Poison Kissed	Erica Hayes	Shadowfae Chronicles 3
The Dark-Hunters. Vol. 3	Sherrilyn Kenyon	Dark Hunter Manga 3
ReVamped*	J.F. Lewis	Void City 2
Twilight Forever Rising	Lena Meydan
Hungry For Your Love	Anthology
Dreadnoughtt	Cherie Priest	Clockwork Century 2
Eat Prey Love	Kerrelyn Sparks	Love at Stake 9
The Midnight Guardian**	Sarah Jane Stratford	Millennial 1

*     Previously issued as a Trade Paperback. Now being issued as Mass Market Paperback (MM).

**   Previously released in Hardcover. This is the MM or Trade release.

*** Rewritten


September 28, 2010 MM reissues

Kiss of Crimson	Lara Adrian	Midnight Breed 2
Midnight Awakening	Lara Adrian	Midnight Breed 3
Dime Store Magic	Kelley Armstrong	Otherworld 3
Industrial Magic	Kelley Armstrong	Otherworld 4
Haunted	Kelley Armstrong	Otherworld 5
Full Moon Rising	Keri Arthur	Riley Jensen 1
Kissing Sin	Keri Arthur	Riley Jensen 2
Tempting Evil	Keri Arthur	Riley Jensen 3
Angel Souls and Devil Hearts	Christopher Golden	The Shadow Saga 2
Dark Moon	Lori Handeland	Nightcreature 3
Thunder Moon	Lori Handeland	Nightcreature 8
Aphrodites's Flame	Julie Kenner	Superhero Central 4
Aphrodite's Kiss	Julie Kenner	Superhero Central 1
Aphrodite's Passion	Julie Kenner	Superhero Central 2
Aphrodite's Secret	Julie Kenner	Superhero Central 3

Anthologies:

Blood Lite II: Overbite

Bespelling Jane Austen

Fangs for the Mammaries

Hungry For Your Love

Banned Books Week 2010 - September 25 - October 2, 2010 - Giveaway

Banned Books. The phrase makes my hair curl, well curl more. Read something that you find objectionable? You could stop reading. You could make sure that your children don't read it. But trying to ban it so that others can't read it. No. As the ALA poster above says, "Think for Yourself and Let Others Do the Same." Really!

The American Library Association has a lot of information about banned and challenged books here. You can read or download a PDF of books challenged or banned in 2009-2010 here.

The ALA describes Banned Books Week much better than I:

Banned Books Week (BBW) is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read and the importance of the First Amendment.  Held during the last week of September, Banned Books Week highlights the benefits of free and open access to information while drawing attention to the harms of censorship by spotlighting actual or attempted bannings of books across the United States.

Read more here.

Banned Books Week is sponsored by the American Booksellers Association; American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression; the American Library Association; American Society of Journalists and Authors; Association of American Publishers; and the National Association of College Stores. It is endorsed by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress.




What: The Qwillery is giving away a copy of Vampire Academy (Vampire Academy 1) by Richelle Mead and a copy of  Marked (House of Night 1) by P.C. Cast to one commenter.

Why: Both the Vampire Academy series and the House of Night series were banned in their entirety including unpublished books by the same school district last year.

How:  Just leave a comment.

You can receive additional entries by:

1) Being a Follower of The Qwillery.

2) Mentioning the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter. Even if you mention the giveaway on both, you will get only one additional entry. You get only one additional entry even if you mention the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter multiple times.

3) Mentioning the giveaway on your on blog or website. It must be your own blog or website; not a website that belongs to someone else or a site where giveaways, contests, etc. are posted.

There are a total of 4 entries you may receive: Comment (1 entry), Follower (+1 entry), Facebook and/or Twitter (+ 1 entry), and personal blog/website mention (+1 entry). This is subject to change again in the future for future giveaways.

Please leave links for Facebook, Twitter, or blog/website mentions. In addition please leave a way to contact you.

When: The giveaway is open to all humans on the planet earth with a mailing address. Giveaway ends at 11:59pm US Eastern Time on Monday, October 4, 2010 so have your comment in by then.

October 2010 Releases

Here's a list of some of the books that you may see in New Release Tuesday vlogs. Please note that release dates are subject to change. Also note that I generally do not list YA or Teen books. If there is something that I've missed, please leave a comment with the information. Also note that this list is always under revision. (Covers for anthologies are below.)

October 1, 2010

Poisoned Kisses	Stephanie Draven	Mythica 1
The Keepers	Heather Graham	The Keepers 1
The Cowboy and The Vampire	Clark Hays & Kathleen McFall
To Wish or Not to Wish	Mindy Klasky	As You Wish 3
Bitten to Death	Jennifer Rardin	Jaz Parks 4
Harvest Moon	Anthology
Twilight Hunger*	Maggie Shayne	Wings in the Night 7
Sins of the Flesh	Eve Silver	Otherkin 3
Alpha	Rachel Vincent	Shifters 6
H.G. Wells Classic Collection	H.G. Wells

October 5, 2010

Scoundrel	Zoe Archer	The Blades of the Rose 2
The Iron Duke	Meljean Brook	The Iron Seas 1
The Wolf Age	James Enge	Ambrose 3
Never After*	Anthology
Selfish is the Heart	Megan Hart	Order of Solace 3
Hunting Memories**	Barb Hendee	Vampire Memories 2
Memories of Envy	Barb Hendee	Vampire Memories 3
Dark Viking	Sandra Hill	Viking Series II
Demon’s Fire	Emma Holly	Tales of the Demon World 6
Kill the Dead	Richard Kadrey	Sandman Slim 2
Styx’s Storm	Lora Leigh	Breeds 21
Grave Witch	Kalayna Price	Alex Craft 1
Something Wicked	Michelle Rowen	Living in Eden 2
Seducing the Succubus	Cassie Ryan	The Sisters of Darkness 1
Crave	J.R. Ward	Fallen Angels 2
Eternal Hunger	Laura Wright	Mark of the Vampire 1

October 12, 2010

The Mammoth Book of Paranormal Romance 2

Anthology

October 16, 2010

Mysteries of the Diogenes Club

Kim Newman

Diogenes Club 3

October 18, 2010

The Rebel Prince

Celine Kiernan

Moorehawke Trilogy 3

October 19, 2010

Against All Things Ending	Stephen R. Donaldson	The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant 3
Zombies: The Recent Dead	Anthology
The Year's Best Dark Fantasy & Horror 2010	Anthology
Blood Trinity	Sherrilyn Kenyon & Dianna Love	Belador Series 1
The First Book of Grimm	Shiloh Walker	Grimm's Circle
All Clear	Connie Willis

October 26, 2010

Daughter of Darkness***	V.C. Andrews
Geist	Phillipa Ballantine	Book of the Order
When Wicked Craves	J.K. Beck	The Shadow Keepers 3
Entice Me at Twlight	Shayla Black	Doomsday Brethren 4
Servent of the Underworld	Aliette de Bodard	Obsidian and Blood 1
Side Jobs	Jim Butcher	Dresden Files Short Stories
A Highlander Christmas*	Janet Chapman	Highlander Series 7
Secret Legacy	Anna DeStefano	Legacy Series 2
How to Lose a Demon in 10 Days	Saranna DeWylde	10 Days Series
The Light of Burning Shadows***	Chris Evans	Iron Elves 2
Drink of Me	Jacquelyn Frank
The Stranger***	Max Frei	Labyrinths of Echo 1
Haunted by Your Touch	Anthology
Harvest Hunting	Yasmine Galenorn	Otherworld 8
The Wolf Prince	Karen Kelley	Princes of Symtaria 3
Trio of Sorcery	Mercedes Lackey
Echo City	Tim Lebbon
Blood Heat	Maria Lima	Blood Lines 4
Dreamfever***	Karen Marie Moning	Fever Series 4
Highborn	Yvonne Navarro	Dark Redemption 1
Vampire Uprising	Marcus Pelegrimas	Skinners 4
Souls Stealers	Andy Remic	Clockwork Vampires 2
Road to Bedlam	Mike Shevdon	Courts of the Feyre 2
Ecstasy in Darkness	Gena Showalter	Alien Huntress 10
Shotgun Soceress	Lucy A. Synder	Spellbent 2
His Darkest Embrace	Juliana Stone	Jaguar Warriors 2
Crown of Crystal Flame	C. L. Wilson	Tairen Soul 5

October 27, 2010

Heaven's Spite

Lillith Saintcrow

Jill Kisment, Hunter, 5

October 31, 2010

Nell Gwynne's Scarlet Spy

Kage Baker

Nell Gwynne 2

*reprint
** previously released as a Trade Paperback
*** MM release

Anthology covers:

October 1, 2010

October 5, 2010

October 12, 2010

October 19, 2010

October 19, 2010

October 26, 2010

Photo Friday - September 24, 2010 - Shine on Harvest Moon

These are photos taken a few hours before the true Harvest Moon, but I say close enough! They were taken with my Nikon D70 with a Nikon ED AF Nikkor 70-300mm lens on a tripod.

I love the pumpkin-y color of the Moon. So appropriate for the Fall season.

I have a lot of pictures, but I believe that 3 will suffice. The moon is the moon after all. For those who like trivia - the last time a Harvest Moon nearly coincided with the Autumnal Equinox (this year at 11:09 PM US ET 9/22/10) was in 1991. Happy Fall!

This is an absolutely wonderful rendition of "Shine on Harvest Moon" by Laurel & Hardy. It left me smiling. Enjoy!



Not long after I captured the moon a storm blew in. Here is video of the storm that obliterated my chance to take more photos. The video was taken safely by my 9 year old son.

Wednesday Comics on Thursday - September 23, 2010

I finally picked up my comics this morning. It's a lot calmer on Thursday than on new release day. I did not get a lot of comics this week. Here are my favorites:


IDW Publshing:

Mario Acevedo's Killing the Cobra, #4
Chinatown Trollop, Part 4




The action gets hyper-kinetic and bloody when detective-vampire Felix Gomez and his lover Qian Ning escape the carnage unleashed by the gangster Jiang Chow and his goons. Felix retaliates and his victory turns hollow after Qian is taken hostage. She's bait and Felix has no choice but to enter Jiang's trap.


If you are a fan of Mario's Felix Gomez novels, you must get this comic!







MGM Drive-In Theater: It The Terror From Beyond Space, #3



This retro-1950s saga follows the harrowing tale of the spaceship Challenge 142 as it carries the only survivor of an earlier failed expedition who is suspected of killing his crew for their lifesaving rations. Traveling Earthbound… they discover a hungry man-eating creature that is killing the crew one member at a time…













Marvel:

Sense & Sensibility, #5 of 5




After their trip to London proves a positive disaster, the defeated Dashwood daughters forge their way home to Barton. And when a broken heart pushes fragile Marianne over the edge, it's beyond even her sister Elinor's means to help her. But can the shocking revelations of a surprise gentleman caller prove Marianne's salvation? Find out in the fantastic final chapter of Jane Austen's beloved masterpiece!









Dynamite:

Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson: Moon Called, #1


Five Mercy Thompson novels have topped the NY Times best-seller list, and her premiere graphic novel did the same. Now Patricia Briggs' heroic shape-shifter returns to comics.

Mercy Thompson inhabits two worlds without truly belonging to either.

To the human inhabitants of the Tri-Cities she's an oddity, a female mechanic operating her own garage.

To the town's darker residents, werewolves, vampires, and fae, she's a walker, a last-of-her-kind magical being with the power to become a coyote.

Mercy warily straddles the fine line dividing our everyday world from that darker dimension.

Till a boy, mauled by vicious werewolves and forever changed by the attack and on the run from those who committed the crime, appears at her door.

Now her two worlds are about to collide. Outnumbered and out-muscled, can Mercy possibly save the boy? Or even herself?

Mercy Thompson: Moon Called volume 1 #1 begins Dynamite's eight-part adaptation of Patricia Briggs first Mercy novel. Personally supervised by Ms. Briggs, the series is sure to thrill fans both old and new!

Brett Booth is the cover artist. He was the main artist for the Anita Blake comics.


Boom! Studios:

Dracula: The Company of Monsters #2

From the mind of Kurt Busiek, the all-new ongoing horror series continues! When a powerful, predatory corporation acquires the valuable asset that is Dracula, they are not prepared for what they have awakened. Despite being trapped by the corporation, Dracula will let no one stop him from rebuilding his kingdom. Even if it takes a hundred more years. And many more bodies. It's bloodsuckers vs. bloodsucker, as Busiek brings an incredibly modern spin to the Dracula mythos.

Werewolves and Shapeshifters and a Vlog

It's all explained in the vlog except the bits that aren't:




What: 1 copy of Werewolves and Shapeshifters: Encounters with the Beasts Within,  edited by John Skipp.

Werewolves and shapeshifters have morphed into the latest pop culture stars. This mind-bending collection includes thirty-two new and classic stories from the best writers in the genre.

Werewolves and shapeshifters are the latest literary craze following vampires and zombies. The phenomenal success of the Twilight series, and the blockbuster movies that followed, has spawned a new obsession with these supernatural beings. From John Skipp, the master of horror, comes this definitive collection of thirty-two classic and new stories, written by favorites of the genre including George R.R. Martin, Charlaine Harris, Chuck Palahniuk, Neil Gaiman, H.P. Lovecraft, Joe R. Lansdale, Angela Carter, David J. Schow, Kathe Koja, Bentley Little, and more. Skipp provides fascinating insight and details, through two nonfiction essays, into the history and presence of shape shifting in popular culture. Resources at the end of the book include lists of the genre's best long-form fiction, as well as movies, websites, and writers.

How: Leave a comment telling The Qwillery if you prefer to read about werewolves, shapeshifters, vampires, zombies, or something else. Recommend some books if you like.

You can receive additional entries by:

1) Being a Follower of The Qwillery.

2) Mentioning the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter. Even if you mention the giveaway on both, you will get only one additional entry. You get only one additional entry even if you mention the giveaway on Facebook and/or Twitter multiple times.

3) Mentioning the giveaway on your on blog or website. It must be your own blog or website; not a website that belongs to someone else or a site where giveaways, contests, etc. are posted.

There are a total of 4 entries you may receive: Comment (1 entry), Follower (+1 entry), Facebook and/or Twitter (+ 1 entry), and personal blog/website mention (+1 entry). This is subject to change again in the future for future giveaways.

Please leave links for Facebook, Twitter, or blog/website mentions. In addition please leave a way to contact you.

When: The contest is open to all humans on the planet earth with a mailing address. Contest ends at 11:59pm US Eastern Time on Wednesday, September 29, 2010.

Historical Vampire Fiction - Chelsea Quinn Yarbro

I am an unabashed fan of the Le Comte de Saint-Germain. This is one of the first vampire series started reading back in 1978! I really enjoyed Hotel Transylvania and I've all of the St. Germain novels and related series. I really like how Saint Germain is woven into the tapestry of the time period of each book. Here is the series. Please note that there are multiple covers for some of the books. I've tried to use the most recent.

What long running series do you read?

1. Hotel Transylvania (1978)



The classic tale that introduced the legendary Le Comte de Saint-Germain, first published in 1978 and spawning 14 titles in the Saint-Germain epic, is now available in paperback. A fixture in 1740s Parisian society, Saint-Germain is a perfect gentleman--and a vampire. When the fiery young Madeline falls in love with him, a group of evil sorcerers targets her for their black mass--and only Saint-Germain can save her soul.










2. The Palace (1978)



The anticipated paperback release of the second title in Yarbro's long-running Saint-Germain series featuring immortal vampire Francesco Ragoczy da San Germano. Secluded in his Renaissance Florence palace, he falls for a beautiful courtesan and loses all desire for isolation.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
   
3. Blood Games (1980)



Blending the dark eroticism of the vampire with the suspenseful adventure in history's most exotic locales, Yarbro's Saint-Germain epic continues in this third book that takes place in the last chaotic days of Nero's Rome.















4. Path of the Eclipse (1981)



There is trouble in 13th century China. A wind blows from the west and has a name--Jenghiz Khan. Pledged to help a beautiful woman warrior, St. Germain has a terrible secret--he has the power to bestow death or eternal life as a vampire














5. Tempting Fate (1981)



The Russian Revolution and the end of World War I sets in motion Saint-Germain's flight into Germany with his adopted daughter only to find tragedy on the streets of Munich as the Nazi party begins its rise to power.*















6. The Saint-Germain Chronicles (1983)


Five stories of Saint-Germain's activities in the twentieth century.*





















7. Darker Jewels (1993)

Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's immortal vampire, the Comte de Saint-Germain, is one of the most popular characters of his kind ever created. Publishers Weekly has called him a "veritable Prince Charming of the darker arts."

In Darker Jewels the Count is sent by the King Of Poland to the court of Russia's Ivan IV, to use his alchemical skills to craft unearthly gems for the mad emperor. there he finds not only dark intrigue and heart-stopping danger, but a breathtakingly beautiful woman to whom he loses his heart.







8. Better in the Dark (1993)

Here at last is a long-hinted-at chapter in the undead existence of the immortal Count Saint-Germain: the story of Ranegonda of Saxony, one of the three great loves of Saint-Germian's life.

937 A.D. The Saxon fortress of Leosan is under the almost unheard-of rule of a woman. The Gerefa of the fortress has become a monk, leaving his sister, Ranegonda, to rule in his name as best she can--and to deal with his embittered, headstrong wife as well. Into this tense and dire situation comes Saint-Germain. Shipwrecked on the Baltic shore, near the true death, he is found by Ranegonda, whom he will come to love for the gift of blood she gives him, and for her own indomitable spirit.


9. Mansions of Darkness (1996)

Ambitious in its scope and provocative in its content, the saga of Count Saint-Germain is a monumental feat of the imagination. Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's powerful and evocative novels have captured Saint-Germain throughout his long existence, from the temples of ancient Eygpt to our present century.

Now the count's endless travels bring him to seventeenth-century Peru, where he finds solace for his loneliness in the arms of an Incan priestess. But mighty Spain has conquered the Incan people--and brought the dreaded attention of the Holy Inquisition to the New World.






10. Writ in Blood (1997)

1910: The great powers of Europe are united by ties of blood, but divided by conflicting ambitions and alliances. Now residing in Russia, Saint-Germain accepts an urgent commission from Czar Nicholas to deliver a top-secret peace proposal to the Czar's kinsmen, King Edward VII of England and Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany. The Czar dares not trust his own ministers: only through Saint-Germain can he hope to avert the coming war. But the Count's mission attracts dangerous enemies, most notably Baron von Wolgast, a scheming manufacturer of munitions who sees no profit in peace. Employing a network of spies and assassins, Von Wolgast plots against Saint-Germain, and when the Count becomes involved with Rowena Saxon, an independent-minded young artist, she too becomes a target of the Baron's malevolence.


11. Blood Roses (1998)

In this lush new novel of the vampire of Saint-Germain, plague has come to France. As the people's fear manifests itself as xenophobia, Saint-Germain flees to avoid the scrutiny that could reveal his true nature -- only to find himself traveling deeper into the peril of the Black Death.

These solidly researched novels show us a Saint-Germain who genuinely learns and grows from a fiend into a being of great gentleness, wisdom, and compassion. The series is probably the most sustained and impressive treatment to date of extreme longevity.





12. Communion Blood (1999)

Olivia Atta Clemens, Saint-Germain's love from the days of Imperial Rome, has died the True Death and left her lavish estates to her servant, Niklos Aurilios, but they have been claimed by a young noble who says he is the long-lost son of Olivia's dead husband. Saint-Germain may not be able to convince a court of Niklos's rights without revealing Olivia's true nature, and therefore, his own.













13. Come Twilight (2000)

Beginning in the 600s, Spain's old blood rituals of animal sacrifice were replaced by the new gods of Christianity and Islam, who demanded no less obedience and allegiance. Saint-Germain becomes trapped in this cauldron of blood, fear, and faith when, he makes a vampire of the beautiful, haughty, tempestuous Csimenae.

Csimenae kills without mercy. She makes vampires without a second thought; and they,

For five hundred years, as waves of war and religion sweep over Spain, Csimenae hunts until her marauding, willful ways expose her vampiric nature. Saint-Germain's centuries of life have taught him that to fall out of step with history is to risk the True Death, a fate Saint-Germain wishes for none of his kind. He must try to save Csimenae-and her clan-but at what price?


14. A Feast in Exile (2001)

A Feast in Exile draws readers back to the time when the Mongol hordes of Timur (known in the West as Tamerlane) swept across fourteenth-century India and Asia. Delhi's civilized veneer crumbles along with its walls. Foreigners, which the vampire Saint-Germain-here called Sanat Ji Mani-surely is, lose their positions, homes, wealth, and sometimes their lives, if they cannot escape the falling city.

Before he can flee Delhi, Sanat Ji Mani must ensure the safety of Avasa Dani, his beautiful ward, who has been abandoned by her husband. Sanat Ji Mani's love has awakened Avasa Dani's every sense; even she will become a vampire upon her death, but she finds no terror in this fate.

Avasa Dani and Rojire, Sanat Ji Mani's servant, successfully make their way out of Delhi, but Sanat Ji Mani himself is trapped. His life is bought by his skills with medicine, but, at Timur's command, he must travel-by day, and exposed to the sun-with the conqueror's army. Crippled and unable to escape, he knows that his vampire nature will soon be revealed, and then...

Avasa Dani, with a worried Rojire at her side, considers her options as a woman without a visible male protector in a land and time ruled by men. While one of Sanat Ji Mani's allies searches desperately for the missing vampire, Saint-Germain and a young acrobat, with whom he has escaped from Timur's forces, make their slow and painful way to freedom. The journey changes them both forever.


15. Night Blooming (2002)

Set in the court of Charlemagne the Great, this is the 15th novel in the popular series about the immortal vampire, Le Comte de Saint-Germain, who meets an albino woman afflicted with stigmata who is accused of witchcraft.
















16. Midnight Harvest (2003)

Blending the dark eroticism of the vampire with high adventure in history's most compelling locales, the story of Saint-Germain is the enduring drama of a lonely hero who walks the earth throughout time, battling for honor...and love. To escape the horrors of the Spanish Civil War, Saint-Germain travels to San Francisco, where he reunites with Rowena Saxon, a past lover whose beauty and wisdom have matured with time. There he offers Rowena a choice: a natural death-or immortality as a vampire. But unknown to the noble exile, an assassin has followed him from Spain, torturing his friends and his associates at every step. The next target will be Rowena, unless the vampire recognizes the peril that both he and his lover face. Will his ignorance achieve what time itself cannot-the death of Saint-Germain?

17. Dark of the Sun (2004)

It is the 6th century of the common era. The vampire Saint-Germain, known in this time as Zangi-Ragozh, is peacefully doing business in Asia when the island of Krakatoa explodes in a massive volcanic eruption. Tidal waves swamp harbors hundreds of miles away, destroying trade ships and their cargoes; tons of ash and dirt are flung into the air.

In the months to come, the world grows colder and darker as the massive volcanic cloud spreads across the globe, blocking sunlight. Sea trade is ravaged. Crops fail. Livestock, and then people, begin to starve. Disease spreads. Panic rises.

As always in times of trouble, foreigners-and the vampire is always a foreigner-become targets. Fleeing toward the West, where he hopes to find safety and sanity, the vampire travels with a nomadic tribe led by Dukkai, a female shaman who soon becomes Zangi-Ragozh's lover.

But Zangi-Ragozh's problems are far from over. His vampire nature is discovered by an enemy; he begins to starve; he is betrayed by one he cared deeply for; he loses everything, even his last sack of his native soil.

With the True Death looming, Zangi-Ragozh tries to reach sanctuary in his ancient homeland.  Transylvania.


18. States of Grace (2005)

Franzicco Ragoczy di Santo-Germano is a successful merchant in Venice. His lavish lifestyle and rumored cache of magnificent jewels have attracted the wrong sort of attention, and without Santo-Germano’s noble—and papal—connections, he might be imprisoned, his property confiscated. Also under surveillance is the vampire’s mistress, the lovely and talented musician Pier-Ariana Salier.

Elsewhere, Ragoczy’s publishing business is being investigated by the Inquisition. Erneste van Amsteljaxter, a writer whose intelligence Ragoczy finds attractive, is tarred with the brush of heresy. Ragoczy is trying to help her, when he learns that Pier-Ariana has disappeared.

Back in Venice Santo-Germano finds that his fortune has been embezzled, and that he is accused of kidnapping, and possibly murdering, a young man who had been spying on the vampire and his mistress. Another spy has discovered Santo-Germano’s true nature and intends to kill him before he can feast on all of Venice!


19. Roman Dusk (2006)


In the unsettled time when Imperial Rome totters on the brink of collapse, the vampire Ragoczy Germainus Sanct’ Franciscus—the Count Saint-Germain—finds himself targeted by a corrupt Roman official and accused of bribery, tax evasion, and treason. The storm that hovers over the vampire grows darker when he is accused of corrupting Ignatia, a young virgin. Her brother, a zealous covert to the new religion of Christianity, threatens to purify Saint-Germain with fire. And fire can destroy even the undead.







20. Borne in Blood (2007)



Borne in Blood is the landmark twentieth volume of the Saint-Germain cycle. Historically accurate, these deeply emotional novels have a devoted readership.

The year is 1817. In Switzerland, the Count has become intrigued by the work of an Austrian noble who is investigating the properties of blood, a subject always of key interest to a vampire. But when the noble’s beautiful young ward fixates sexually on the Count, the vampire fears that it is his blood the Austrian will be most interested in!






21. Saint-Germain Memoirs (2008)


Focusing on Saint-Germain—one of the genre’s most memorable vampires—this collection follows the dark immortal from ancient Greece to the present as tales of his timeless life are recounted. Also included is a brief essay by the author about her world-renowned vampire, with an Introduction by Sharon A. Russell.













22. A Dangerous Climate (2008)


The vampire Count Saint-Germain, disguised as a missing Hungarian nobleman, is on a spy mission in the heart of Czarist Russia.  Almost by the power of his will alone, it seems, Peter the Great is wrestling the city that will one day be St. Petersburg out of swampland.  Representatives of the heads of all European states are living in tiny, frigid, wooden homes as they jockey for power and influence over the Czar.  When a man shows up claiming to be the Count Saint-Germain, the vampire must figure out how to protect his title and wealth without revealing either is true identity or his True Nature.




23. Burning Shadows (2009)

Two decades strong, the Saint-Germain cycle is one of the most compelling works of dark fantasy and horror of our age. Historically accurate, these deeply emotional novels have a devoted readership.

In Burning Shadows, Yarbro looks at the legendary Huns from the perspective of the people who faced the brunt of their attacks. The vampire Saint-Germain seeks sanctuary at an isolated monastery, unwilling to abandon the hundreds of terrified villagers he has led in flight from the Huns. A few Roman soldiers and some village Watchmen are the monastery’s defense force—and they are undermined by the religious fervor of some of the monks, who argue that since everyone’s fate is in God’s hands, it is foolish to defend themselves. In the hothouse atmosphere of the high-walled monastery, Saint-Germain must take special care when slaking his vampire thirst, for discovery of his True Nature will result in his True Death.


24. An Embarrassment of Riches - set in Bohemia, 1269-72

25. Commedia della Morte - set in France & Italy 1792-94.

Note that The Saint Germain Chronicles and The Saint Germain Memoirs are short story collections and not novels.

 
Related series:
 
Atta Olivia Clemens

A Flame in Byzantium (1987)



Atta Olivia Clemens, forced to leave Rome, journeys to the Constantinople of Justinian and discovers how much she has lost.*

















Crusader's Torch (1988)

Caught up in the hysteria of the Crusades, Olivia seeks to leave Tyre and return to Rome; this proves to be far more difficult than she had expected.*



















A Candle for D'Artagnan (1989)




Olivia Atta Clemens, immortal vampire, Roman noblewoman, beloved of the Count Saint-Germain-has come to Paris seeking only peace. But the year is 1637, and there is no peace to be found in the Court of Louis XIII, where Cardinal Richelieu maneuvers to control the throne.

Caught up in the intrigue against her will, Olivia seeks and wins the protection of a young guardsman named d'Artagnan-a man destined to become one of the greatest heroes of all time.






Madelaine de Montalia

Out of the House of Life (1990)

More than a third of Saint-Germain's long, long life was spent in the shadow of the Pyramids, in service to the temples of Egypt--but the tale of those years has never been told before.

In Out of the House of Life, readers of Yarbro's series can at last discover how a bloodthirsty demon, captured and enslaved by the high priests of the temple of Imhotep, was transformed into priest and physician and then, finally, into an immortal being of great power and greater wisdom.






In the Face of Death (2001)

This erotic and historical vampire novel is set in America in the years before and during the Civil War and features Madelaine de Montalia, sometime lover of Count St. Germain; General William Tecumseh Sherman; and, in a supporting role, St. Germain himself. Madelaine lives with and studies the native tribes of America, trying to document their culture and knowledge before they are changed unalterably by contact with the settlers new to North America, only to find herself in the middle of some of the most horrifying events of the war. The stubborn and highly disciplined Tecumseh wrestles with his conscience as he falls in love with Madelaine, while the strong-willed Madelaine is torn between her love for Tecumseh and the demands of her nature.


 
 
* From Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's website.