This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Marilee Brothers will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.
Why do you write in your genre? What draws you to it?
Of the ten books I’ve written, I’ve only managed to write one without a touch of fantasy. I love the challenge of creating a unique ability and making it believable. In my five-book young adult series, Unbidden Magic, the magic flows from a piece of jewelry, a moonstone pendant. In the Soul Seeker series, I needed to come up with something new. I began to think about how fascinating, not to mention scary, it would be to have the ability to read the contents of a person’s soul by looking into his/her eyes. Good? Evil? Guilty? Innocent? Not to mention the problems this would create for the soul reader who may not want all that information. And, how would it affect personal relationships?
What world-building is required?
My biggest challenge was to describe what my main character, Honor Melanie Sullivan (Mel) might see in a person’s soul. Believe it or not, there are a number of weird websites where people claim they are able to read souls. I visited a lot of them, but eventually opted to figure it out for myself. I decided to use a variety of colors and markers, such as stains, blotches, ragged edges and dark streaks. For reference, I kept a notebook describing the souls of all my main characters in the series. In addition, I gave Mel the ability to detect a lie as it flashes across a soul.
Name one thing you learned from your hero/heroine.
When things look hopeless, stay calm and use your wits to save yourself.
Do you have any odd or interesting writing quirks, habits or superstitions?
Sorry, no. I’m incredibly ordinary.
Are you a plotter or pantser?
Definitely, a pantser. When I start a book, I usually know the beginning and the ending. The middle is a huge question mark. My characters lead me onward and have never let me down. If I write myself into a corner, I find outlining the next chapter gives me a kick-start.
Look to your right – what’s sitting there?
A bowl containing Dove dark chocolates and a coffee mug full of pens. What more do I need?
Anything new coming up from you? What?
Go to http://www.marileebrothers.com and click on the Work in Progress page. There, you will see the beginning of my new mystery, A Woman Scorned.
Do you have a question for our readers?
Have you read Affliction and Allegiance? They are books 1 and 2 in the series. You might want to check them out before you read Hope and Honor.
Life is becoming more complicated for soul reader Honor Melanie “Mel” Sullivan. Her boss needs help with his rebellious teen daughter who believes rules are made to be broken and Mel’s current boyfriend, Homeland Security agent Mick Petrov, is becoming an absentee lover, dropping hints about a major decision he faces. To make it worse, Mel’s ex, 3 Peaks detective “Billy the Kid” McCarty wants her back. And those aren’t the only challenges. When a paramilitary group called New Dawn wants her soul-reading skills, Mel meets five-year-old twins who steal her heart. Unwilling to abandon the motherless children, she strikes a deal with the compound’s charismatic leader. Drawn deeper and deeper into New Dawn’s twisted agenda, Mel must figure out a way to save the twins and herself before it’s too late.
Read an excerpt:
My peripheral vision catches sight of a sudden movement. I walk down the steps and turn right until I reach the edge of the building. I peek around the corner and see a little girl pressed against the rough siding. Her dark hair is braided. Her jeans and jacket are too big and look like boy clothes. Her gaze is fixed on the ground. Her thumb is in her mouth. She’s clutching a stuffed rabbit.
I take a step toward her and smile. “Hi. Are you waiting for your dad?”
She nods.
I take a step closer, trying not to spook her. “I’m Mel. What’s your name?”
Without removing her thumb, she mumbles something unintelligible. I take a step close and squat down until we’re eye level.
“I didn’t quite get your name. Maybe if you take your thumb out of your mouth it will work better.”
She lifts her head and I’m looking into eyes identical to those of the little blond boy. Bright and blue. My heart breaks when I look into her soul. Streaked with pale blue accents, it’s a soft shade of pink and bisected with a jagged black line. This little girl has experienced severe trauma.
“I think I saw your dad and brother go into the hall. Am I right?”
She nods. The thumb comes out of her mouth. “Papa and Gunner.”
“Can you tell me your name again, sweetie?”
“I’m Kimber.”
“Do people call you Kim?”
She shakes her head. “Nope. People call me Kimber, ‘cause that’s my name.”
“Got it,” I say. “How about you keep me company until the meeting is over. I’ve got nobody to talk to and I’m lonesome. We could go sit on the stairs and wait together.”
“Not there. No females. We can sit on the bench, though.”
She takes my hand and leads me to a rickety bench a few yards in front of the porch railing. We sit in companionable silence for a few minutes. I’m dying to know more about Kimber, but don’t want to bombard her with questions.
“This is Blossom Bunny,” she offers, thrusting the stuffed rabbit in front of my face.
Blossom Bunny is not attractive. Her fur is dull gray and splotchy. Her long, floppy ears droop down to her skinny legs. Black, beady eyes peer straight ahead atop a little pink nose.
“Very nice,” I lie.
“I love Blossom Bunny. She has zippers in her ears. I keep important stuff there.” She lays the bunny across her lap, lifts one of the floppy ears and points out the zipper.
“Very cool. It’s good to have a place to keep important stuff.”
She nods solemnly, unzips one of the ears and pulls out stubby pencil, a little rubber ball and a hair ribbon. Seeing her sparse array of treasures makes me sad.
About the Author:
Her author page on Facebook is: http://www.facebook.com/marilee.author and she occasionally tweets at http://www.twitter.com/MarileeB. Check out Marilee’s Amazon page here: http://www.amazon.com/Marilee-Brothers/e/B003RL7EWQ/. Marilee’s blog is Book Blather, http://bookblatherblog.blogspot.com where she features aspiring and published authors as well as some tidbits of her own.
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ReplyDeleteI enjoyed getting to know your book; congrats on the tour, I hope it is a fun one for you, and thanks for the chance to win :)
ReplyDeleteI have enjoyed the tour. The book sounds great.
ReplyDeleteI've really enjoyed following the tour for Hope and Honor and I'm looking forward to checking it out. Thanks for sharing all of the great posts along the way :)
ReplyDeleteI like Kimber. My name is Kimberly, please call me that.
ReplyDeleteYes, I would need to read the first 2.
ReplyDeleteCongrats on the tour and I appreciate the excerpt and the great giveaway as well. Love the tours, I get to find books and share with my sisters the ones I know they would enjoy reading and they both love to read. Thank you!
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