BOOK OF THE WEEK: Archives

Romance Readers Book Of The Week
June 5, 2006
ARCHIVED FEATURE

EMBRACED BY THE SHADOWS
by Mayra Calvani

Genre: Paranormal Romance, Vampire
Format: eBook
ISBN: 1-93335389-9

Buy This Book:
Available at FictionWise

FROM THE BACK COVER:

In a bazaar in Istanbul one evening, ten-year-old Alana Piovanetti glances into the shadows to find a man watching her. He smiles, and over time she convinces herself that it was just her imagination that placed sharp fangs amongst those flashing teeth.

Twelve years later, Alana is surprised when she is chosen to manage a new restaurant opening in her home city of San Juan. She has neither training nor experience to justify her success. But La Cueva del Vampiro has the kind of ambience she adores, for Alana has always had a penchant for horror and the dark side of life. Yet she is also plagued with dreams of dark sensuality, dreams that take on shattering reality when she meets the stunningly handsome, charismatic Sadash.

For Sadash is the man she saw in the shadows so many years before...and Sadash isn't human….

WHAT OTHERS ARE SAYING ABOUT THIS BOOK:

“[Embraced by the Shadows] is a superbly written, deftly balanced story of love and death and twisted loyalties that will keep you enthralled from beginning to end. More importantly, it will make you think and perhaps take a closer look at the shadowed corners of your own psyche.”

–The Blue Iris Journal

"Mysterious, intriguing and somewhat unsettling at times, this novel is a must for all vampire reading fans. A rich, twisting plot and a surprising ending awaits you."

--The Midwest Book Review

"[Embraced by the Shadows] is a wonderful tale of a woman torn between a love she can not resist and a life she does not understand. Alana is a character to fall in love with... Mayra Calvani did an exemplary job in weaving this story of passion, love and betrayal. Once the reviewer started the prologue she was hooked and could not put this book down. This is a must read for fans of paranormal!"

--Love Romances

“A dark brooding novel, Calvani takes us on a journey into the darkest corners of our hopes and desires, especially the desire of all humans to somehow survive and how far would we go if we were given the chance to live forever...This is a must read for all fans of vampire romance novels.”

--Murder & Mayhem Book Club

"...For any of you female readers that have always had the fantasy of your masculine vampire following you all through your life and not revealing himself until he thinks you are ready, this book is for you. This was an excellent read."

--ParaNormal Romance Reviews

MEET THE AUTHOR:

Mayra Calvani is an author and book reviewer. Her stories, articles and reviews have appeared on many online and print publications in the States, England and Puerto Rico. She is assistant editor of “The Voice in the Dark,” the official newsletter of www.MysteryFiction.net. She lives in Belgium with her husband and two children. Her hobbies include astronomy and playing the violin.

READ AN EXCERPT:

It was a very subtle stirring of the curtains, an almost imperceptible surge of cool air, what made her open her eyes.

Sadash, clad in a loose white shirt and black Levis, his dark hair hanging free on his shoulders, stood inside the room beside the sliding glass door.
“Since you didn’t come to me, I decided to come to you,” he said. “Really, Alana, I can’t say much for your manners, leaving me waiting like that.”

The bottle of wine fell from her grasp, spilling most of the wine on the floor. She straightened up and lowered her feet from the bed. But she remained seated, glued to the armchair, staring wildly at him from across the room.

“Don’t act so astonished,” he said. “You were waiting for me. You know you were. With music, with wine, with your armchair turned just the right angle to face the balcony--a welcoming reception.”

His words swept through her like subterranean heat.

“How did you get in here?” she breathed.

He shrugged. “I flew over,” he casually said.

Alana swallowed dryness. It hurt to swallow. With his raven hair and amber eyes, he was almost painfully beautiful. And even as she sat there, looking at him and loathing him, she desired him.

For a split second he narrowed his eyes and fixed on her the most keen, predatory gaze. As though he had smelled her lust.

Flushing, her gaze dropped to the floor. But when she looked back at him the menacing expression had left his face, and he was staring at her with softly mocking eyes.

“I enjoy flying in this weather,” he said.

“You enjoy flying in this weather,” she repeated numbly.

“Surely you remember your flying dreams...don’t you? The panther taking you into his arms and into the night sky?”

Alana burst out laughing. “You’re not here. You’re a hallucination. You’re nothing. You are not here. I refuse to believe that you are here. You do not exist.”

His action took her completely by surprise.

In less than a second Sadash was in front of her, pulling her to him with a sudden husky groan and lifting her off the floor so that they were eye to eye.

“No, my angel. If there’s something I am--that’s real,” he told her in a voice that was as cruel as it was gentle. “Surely you can’t believe otherwise...after all our nights of passion.”

Clenching her teeth, Alana tried to push him away, her hands flat against his chest. But how to push away a stone tower? Yet she refused to give up, to be forced to surrender, and she wrestled, or tried to wrestle him, with unsteady hands and legs.

“You’re drunk,” he said.

“I hate you,” she whispered harshly. “What gives you the right to…to do this to me? You think you can come here--just like that--out of hell and...and...drive me insane! Who the hell are you? What are you? What do you want from me!”

“You know what I am...and I want you to say the word,” he said.

“I don’t know what you are!”

“I want you to say the word, Alana. I want to hear it from your lips--what I am.”

Alana spat into his face. Then she flinched and expected the worst.

But he only cleaned his face with the sleeve of his shirt. “You daring little fool. Don’t do that again,’ he said.

Alana stared wide-eyed at him, her breasts heaving wildly against him. His reaction had taken her by surprise. For a second she had been truly terrified, prepared for the worst. And yet, had she not spat at him because in fact she felt totally, perfectly sure he would never harm her?

“That’s right, I would never harm you. You’ve always known that. But that doesn’t mean you can play with my patience. And now say the word. I want to hear it from your lips.”

For a second Alana battled in her mind, a torrent of thoughts muddling her vision, for a last grasp at reality. For after she said the word her concept of the world would totally change, and she would never, never be allowed to come back.

“Why?” she breathed. “Why is it so important to hear it from my lips?”

“Because we have a lot to talk about, and that’s a good place to start.”

To say the word...

No, no....She couldn't say it.…How could she possibly admit the impossible?

“No, you can’t be that. You’re...you’re something else. You can’t be that,” she said. And yet she knew what he was, she knew it was true, she had always known.

“Say it, and we’ll take it from there,” he said.

Her eyes lowered to his mouth. She knew what lay behind that sensual mouth, behind those beautiful lips, and instantly she felt herself yearning for it.

Say the word.

“Say it,” he said, pulling her tighter against him.

She shook her head. “No, you’re not.…No, no, you cannot be. If you are--then I am--I don’t know what I am.”

Sadash smiled, though his brows rose quite menacingly. “Are you teasing me with philosophy?” he drawled, caressing her face and neck with a sweep of his predatory eyes.

“You don’t understand. I can’t say it.” She was vaguely aware that she had stopped trying to push him away, that it was feeling increasingly pleasurable to be in his arms, and that she was suddenly overcome with a vengeful urge to provoke him and make him mad. And yet she had never known such raw fear...the anticipation of what was to come, of what was to happen to her was perfectly shocking, yet the thrill of it all was too much.

What if she started screaming and yelling for help? But she didn’t want to yell for help. She wanted to be right where she was, imprisoned in his arms. She averted her eyes, trying to shield her thoughts from him.

“It’s no use,” he told her.

“What’s no use?”

“Trying to hide your thoughts. You’re crystal clear. Now stop debating with yourself and say the damn word. God, you’re stubborn.”

“Me, stubborn?”

“Say it!”

“I can’t!”

With his left arm clasped around her waist, he gallantly took her left hand as a waltz partner might. Smiling, he gave her a formal nod, as if he were bowing. Then he lowered his head, at the same time lifting her wrist to his lips. He kissed the inside of her wrist, pressing his cool mouth against the translucent paleness of this delicate part of her flesh., and for an odd moment his lips lingered here, his silky black locks shielding his face and her wrist.

Alana watched him, too mesmerized to utter a sound.

Abruptly she felt a sharp pain, quickly followed by a burning, stinging sensation on her wrist.

“No...!” she gasped, trying to jerk her wrist free.

But already he was drinking. He began to walk very slowly and randomly about the room, carrying her in this waltzing fashion as easily as a grown man holds an infant. She shuddered, the fever of her passion burning her cheeks and in her eyes. Steady, spasmodic ripples of illicit pleasure surged from her wrist and through her limbs. She arched against him, her dark red hair hanging well below her waist. She moaned and shut her eyes. With her free hand she pressed his head still harder against her wrist, her fingers twisting the black strands of his hair.

It was a long moment after he had pulled himself away from her wrist that Alana finally opened her eyes to look at him.

“Reality springs into focus, Alana,” Sadash said.

Sadash had uplifted her arm for her to have full view. A dark ruby trail of blood flowed from her wrist all the way down to the short sleeve of her white T-shirt. The collar and the front part of his white shirt were slightly stained and splattered with blood. The sleeve of his shirt was stained with blood, too.

Alana screamed.

She stared wildly at him, at that perfect mouth which was now shiny with blood, HER blood...like a jewel, darkly crimson, such a rich and lovely hue.

“Say it,” he whispered hoarsely, almost cruelly.

And she saw his evil teeth, glistening with a mixture of saliva and blood, elongated and sharp, instruments of death...and yet so overwhelmingly luring and beautiful.

“My wrist...I’m going to die...” She began sobbing, looking at her wrist.

“Of course not. There’s no wound.” He lowered her arm.

Looking again through her tears, Alana saw there were no open punctures, there was no open wound. Only a fresh thick trickle of blood remained.

“I don’t want to die,” she sobbed. “I don’t want to die.” But she was not begging him, it was more as if she were saying these words quietly to herself.

“For heaven’s sake! What the hell do I have to do to you…”

“Vampire!” she breathed against him, filled with resignation and rage, her face falling against the crook of his neck, her arms lovingly wrapping themselves around him.

ROMANCE READERS CHATS WITH THE AUTHOR:

Please tell our readers about your recently released novel, EMBRACED BY THE SHADOWS, and where it can be purchased.

EMBRACED BY THE SHADOWS is one of those books which go beyond the established genres. I would call it romantic horror because there are as many elements of horror as there are of romance. It also has an ethnic, Hispanic flavor. The book is about a young woman’s inner turmoil, a woman split between a love she cannot resist and a life she cannot accept nor understand. The bond between the hero and heroine is dark and obsessive and borders on hate. It’s also about the power of one being to mesmerize another. I suspect under the horror/love story there’s a hidden metaphor, an allegory for something else, though what that ‘something else’ is I’m still trying to decipher (hey, I just wrote the book!). EMBRACED BY THE SHADOWS is currently available from the publisher, www.twilighttimesbooks.com, as well as Fictionwise, www.fictionwise.com. The paperback will follow later this year.

When did you start writing?

My love for books at an early age got me into writing. By the time I was 15 I had read all of Agatha Christie’s and Sherlock Holmes’ mysteries. I also had a bad case of addiction with Barbara Cartland romances. At 12 I wrote my first novella—about a serial killer who left a rose next to each victim. The murderer turned out to be the female protagonist, who was a journalist covering the murder cases. At the same age I wrote a comedy play which was staged at the end of school. At 15 I wrote my first novel, a romance which students secretly read during class. So yes, by the time I was 16 I knew I wanted to become an author. A shy, quiet child, writing was my way of escaping to adventure and danger, and also my way of acquiring a certain level of popularity. I was considered ‘strange’ and I lived up to my reputation. :--) Not surprisingly, I majored in Creative Writing at college, where I had my first short stories published.

What impels you to write?

Above all, I think it is that need to escape the real world, to create my own where anything can happen. Yet it is not a conscious decision. Like many authors, I am ‘cursed’ with those voices in my head—characters talking, persuading me to write their stories, obsessive images. More and more I’m beginning to see writing as channeling. Somewhere in another ‘virtual’ dimension, whole novels are finished from beginning to end, and my job is to listen carefully and write the words down. The art of creation can be quite mysterious.

Do you write in more than one genre?

Inspiration has made me explore many genres—romance, horror, fantasy, children’s, paranormal, humor/satire, and mainstream. I also write non-fiction. I could never constrained myself to only one genre. I’m sure many writers don’t have problems with this, but I would find it completely claustrophobic. If I had to choose one genre, however, I’d say I’ve always had a special weakness for the paranormal. Wherever my inspiration takes me, it’s always an adventure, and there’s nothing more exciting to me than exploring a new genre. Some authors would argue that this is not a clever promotional tool, and that authors should associate their names with only one type of fiction in order to make their names known, but when I write I primarily focus on the process of creation and not so much on the finished product or the idea of becoming ‘known.’ This creates a marvellous sense of freedom that is essential for good writing. Besides, if you are actually listening and taking dictation, you don’t have much choice in the matter, now do you?

You’re also a professional reviewer. Can you tell us a bit about reviewing and what got you into it?

Though I’ve written over 100 reviews for online publications during the past six years, it was not until last year that I was finally able to break into print for print publications like The Bloomsbury Review and Mosaic. Soon after I started reviewing I knew I would be hooked for the rest of my life. I realized I had a critical, discerning eye when it came to novels, and that I could grasp the book’s essence and narrow it down into a short paragraph with fair ease. Since I’m an author myself, reviewing keeps me keenly aware of what works and what doesn’t, as well as what mistakes to avoid. At the moment I’m a reviewer for Midwest Book Review, The Compulsive Reader, Armchair Interviews, Curled Up With A Good Book, and Mystery Fiction, but if an author or publisher asks me directly for a review, I’ll usually post my review in about 8-10 websites, including Amazon and B&N. I good review is a skill that not many people have but that can be learned. Most “reader reviews” in places like Amazon aren’t really book reviews. The web is overflowing with overly positive reviews that lack credibility. A review must be thoughtful, fair and honest. A reviewer’s loyalty must be with the reader, not with the author. This doesn’t mean that it is okay to be harsh or mean to the author. Negative reviews should be fair and tactful, and the reviewer should always support his/her stance with examples.

Your love for music comes across clearly in your novel. Do you use music as an inspirational tool?

Do I ever! Indeed, listening music—mainly baroque and classical--is a source of keen inspiration for me. I only have to put a Vivaldi or Bach cd for the unstoppable images in my mind to appear. I become obsessive and will listen to the same composition over and over for months at a time. I wrote a fantasy novel listening again and again to the track of The Phantom of the Opera. I wrote a horror novel while listening to the track for the movie “The Village,” which has haunting violin music. I am an amateur violinist, so music is pretty much a part of my life.

How do you promote your novel?

I hate the business part of writing. I would much rather sit and write than promote, but unfortunately, promotion has to be done if you expect your book to have any success at all. I usually make a marketing plan before my book is published. At least 3 months in advance I begin to request reviews—usually 25-30. I send press releases, do interviews like this one, join contests, join several online groups to announce my release, buy book and newsletter ads in strategic websites related to romance and fiction in general, etc.. I guess I spend several hours a week promoting. I also discovered that marketing your articles is a great way to promote your book, so I’m trying to concentrate on this for the moment. Being a reviewer also helps if you can mention your book in the byline.

You’re also assistant editor for The Voice in the Dark newsletter. Tell us a bit about this.

“The Voice in the Dark” is the official newsletter of MysteryFiction.net. It is edited by mystery author Anne K. Edwards. It is not solely focused on mystery, however, and we regularly interview authors of all genres, publishers, publicists, review site editors, publicists, etc.. It is a newsletter aimed at readers of all types and authors alike. In each monthly issue we try to include 2-3 interviews, an article, sometimes a poem or a piece of short fiction, a book review, as well as promotional resources for authors. We have now three columnists who write each month, with me being one of them. My monthly column is called “Sanctuary,” and I always try to keep it informative, short and upbeat. For sample issues you may visit www.MysteryFiction.net. Subscription is free. We have subscribers from all over the world, including places like Japan and India.

Would you leave us with some words of wisdom?

I’ll quote Muriel Rukeyser… “The World is made up of stories, not of atoms.”