Title: Desiring Death

Author: C.P. Mandara

Series: Evading Death (Book 2)

Genre: Paranormal/Vampire/Erotica

Publisher: Chimera Books UK

Release Date: Jan 22 2015

Number of Pages: 154

Word Count: 62,000

Edition/Format Available In: eBook

Blurb/Synopsis:

Violetta is an executioner… of vampires. Famed for her fiery beauty and mesmerising personality, she has never failed an assignment.

Monsieur Martinet is no ordinary vampire, though. He is a master at his craft and can control humans with the merest flick of his eyelids. The vampire huntress with the porcelain skin and flaming red hair has killed all of his brethren, without exception. He now seeks the ultimate revenge: her submission in HIS bed.

If he’s allowed to stay alive long enough, that is.

Interview

Tell us a little about yourself and your background?

Well, I come from a sleepy little village in the east of England. There’s lots of sheep and cows… and sheep. (This could possibly be why I write…) As to my career, I’ve worked in sales and finance most recently and have travelled pretty widely. From the Taj Mahal in India to neon delights of Tokyo in Japan, I can officially say that I love jet-setting. These days, though, my two tots keep me very busy making sky-scraper lego creations and learning how to play ‘Minion Rush.’ I am still annoyed that a three year old can beat me at mostly every game on my iPad… go figure.

Do you have any special sayings or expressions?

You catch more flies with jam than you do with a swatter.

Curiosity killed the cat.

What is your favorite book? Why?

At the moment it’s the ‘All Souls trilogy’ by Deborah Harkness and my favourite book is number one. Matthew captivated me from the start, his angst at controlling his hunger around Diana… and all the wonderful witchy antics that went on in the book were lots of fun!

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer?

I think I’ve always wanted to be a writer. My mum has a ton of my unwritten books in the attic! Must look at those one day! But I think I started writing with a view to actually getting published at around 30 years of age. It’s all about plucking up the courage to do something new and seeing your project through to the end.

What books/authors influenced you to write your first book?

Jacqueline Carey of Kushiel’s Dart – I adore Phedre and Jocelyn, and the fantasy world of Terre D’ange! Also Anne Rice of the Beauty chronicles. I think the ‘Sleeping Beauty’ trilogy books were some of the first naughty tales I read and I was hooked immediately. I’ve heard on the grapevine that’s she writing a fourth and the series will shortly be made into a TV drama – now how much fun will that be?

~Questions about your Book~

Do you recall how your interest in writing originated?

Err… an overactive imagination, I should think. I always have characters in my head. The voices… they call to me. Seriously, my head is always up in the clouds. I get into lots of trouble because of it!

What inspired you to write your first book?

Boredom on a 13 hour flight! My laptop had run out of batteries, but I had pen and paper and ‘The Riding School’ was born. I never dreamt I’d find a publisher though…

Where did you get your ideas for your book?

Um… I have a really naughty imagination. With respect to ‘Desiring Death,’ I wanted a main character who was hurting pretty bad and a situation where a total exchange of power took place. Monsieur Martinet was going to be a vampire with a difference – he would be able to control humans from the inside out. He could get inside their heads, mess with their hormones, heart-rate… pretty much anything really. I wanted to give him that kind of power over the heroine and see where it led. The poor vampire is utterly grief ridden and out for revenge. Violetta has killed every member of his family, so he has score to settle and he intends to get even by making her fall in love with him and then changing her into her most despised creature – a vampire. Violetta is no cowering violet, however. As a huntress with a perfect record to date, she’ll use every trick in the book to end Martinet’s life.

Give us an insight into your main character. What does he/she do that is so special?

The heroine, Violetta, is a huntress who has a perfect score card of deaths to date. She will never give up trying to achieve her objective – Martinet’s death – and has quite a bit of fight in her. Whether the vampire will manage to tame her and get her house trained is anybody’s guess!

Martinet, the vamp, has lots of special abilities. He can burrow inside a human’s head, read all their innermost secrets and control everything about them. Speech, facial expressions, movement… everything can be under his complete control. Add to that his ability to read minds and I suspect he’ll drive Violetta mad sooner rather than later. Thankfully, he’s also quite good in bed and more than a little bit kinky. Being alive for hundreds of years does that to you. Ahem. (OK, I’m just naughty, and I wanted to write about a steamy hot vamp!)

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?

The BDSM aspects can be quite challenging and sometimes require a lot of research, but it’s all good fun. The most challenging part for me is editing my manuscripts – I’m terrible for repeating words over and over. Thankfully I have some amazing beta readers who iron out all my errors, and if they do miss anything, then my editor gets it.

What are your current projects?

I’m now writing ‘The Ties That Bind’ which is the sixth book in the Pony Tales series, about a non-consensual Pony-girl captive who gets whisked away and sent off to some extremely naughty riding stables. They feature medical edge play, breath play, abrasion play, humiliation and spankings galore. I’ve had a lot of fun writing the series. My inspiration was Anne Rice’s ‘Beauty’ series, but I’ve given my books a more realistic setting. They are erotic suspense and a pretty wild ride.

After I finish that, ‘Embracing Death’ is next on the cards and we’ll see what Martinet does with Violetta strapped to his bed for a week. Will she be able to sneak out of her handcuffs? That would be telling… It’s going to be such fun to write that I honestly can’t wait to get started…

What advice would you give to aspiring writers?

DO NOT GIVE UP! It’s hard enough to write a book, but to actually find a publisher or even an audience to read it can be heart-breakingly difficult when you first start out. Try to do something positive every day, talk to other writers, copy some of their marketing tactics, and make plenty of friends. Keep reading, too. The more you read the better writer you will become, in my opinion!

Excerpt

‘Drop that pretty little glass vial you’ve got hidden away in your right hand on the floor, now.’

That the voice and arm belonged to Martinet was not in question. He injected the words into her ear with such rancour that she wondered if he’d kill her there and then. A few seconds of terrorised silence passed. His grip tightened around her neck. Gurgling in protest, her hand stubbornly clutched the precious little bottle even more tightly because it might be the only lifeline she had left.

‘You’re a tenacious little chit, aren’t you?’ He growled as he shook her body forcibly. ‘Do you really want me to employ ‘other’ tactics?

She burbled insensibly as he began to cut off her air supply but she didn’t drop her precious cargo. If he was going to kill her, then it would be better if it were sooner rather than later.

‘You surprise me, Miss…’ He let the sentence hang in mid-air and Violetta felt him give her a push to answer it. She held on to the words that threatened to erupt from her lips, even though it was a hard won battle.

He frowned. ‘I’ll stamp that wilfulness out of your body, Violetta. Mark my words. All you are doing is waving a bright red banner saying ‘spank me’ in front of my face and the outcome for your arse, delectable though it may be, isn’t looking good.’ Sarcasm dripped off his tongue.

While Violetta did not respond to his words, she did stop struggling. The intelligent part of her brain said that the action was worthless, for his strength more than quadrupled hers. Feeling her hands shake around the smooth glass vial and a bead of sweat drip down her neck, she wondered why he didn’t just pluck the offending item from her fingers and smash it against the wall. He was more than capable of such a feat

‘Ah, but where would be the fun in that? It’s much more amusing to watch you do my dirty work for me and the more painful and unpalatable you find my ideas, the better.’ His arm softened around her neck, but she did not feel in the slightest bit relieved. ‘Last chance, Vi. Drop the bottle.’ Her spine stiffened at the use of her nickname, which had previously been reserved for friends, but her backbone did not waver. She would not drop her little present. He would have to take it from her. Smiling darkly at the thought, she imagined throwing the contents of the tiny tube all over his body and watching as his skin blistered and burned.

‘Oh, I think not, precious,’ he purred into her ear and with his free hand, he ran his fingers through the tempting, glossy red waves of her hair. Without warning his fist closed around a handful of her locks and yanked it tightly downwards. Her head flew back sharply and her eyes immediately connected with two bright blue orbs that had danger written all over them.

‘Your face looks so much better when it’s immersed in pain. Not quite so smug now, are we?’ His breath tickled her ear, as his hand purchased an even tighter grip on her hair. The ends that were buried into her scalp began protesting at the cruel treatment. ‘Drop it. Now.’

Violetta’s head stung furiously as he forcibly tried to wrench several follicles out at once, but still she retained her tight grip on the bottle. ‘What’s to stop me from flicking the cork stopper out of this bottle and throwing the contents all over you?’ She asked the question in a saccharine-sweet voice, laced with irony. They both knew he would not take the bottle from her. It was far too risky.

Sighing, Martinet released her hair and the impressive grip he had maintained around her neck, before walking backwards a couple of steps. She waited for something to happen, but the whole world had gone silent and the only thing she could hear was the sound of her strained breathing and a heartbeat that felt like it had just witnessed a murder. On the plus side, she guessed that he had released his hold on her. Turning around slowly, she watched his steely gaze bearing down upon her. Her internal organs began to liquefy.

‘Afraid, Violetta? What’s stopping you?’ He took another casual step back and lifted his arms in the air, as if urging her to do her worst. If that was the way he wanted to play things, so be it. Her thumb flicked at the cork stopper that held the precious water inside. Whilst there was probably only twenty centilitres of water held inside the small tube’s confines, it would be enough. With a little hiss, the cork popped free and there she was, holding her escape ticket, just a few scant inches away from her prey. All she needed to do was throw it. A quick flick of the wrist and her nightmare of an evening would be over. She would watch him writhe and roll around the floor in the throes of agony and not feel the slightest bit of remorse knowing that she had delivered his last steps upon the planet earth. He was a monster that needed to be stopped. She was a trained huntress. She had been primed for this moment for the last ten years of her life. It was time to put that training to good use. She thrust the contents of the vial at him.

Christina (C.P.) Mandara was born in the UK, but has spent most of her life travelling the world. She speaks three languages and has been chiefly employed in the fields of finance and travel. Her favourite city is Sydney and her favourite holiday destination is the south of France.

She loves keeping fit and enjoys running, cycling and water sports. No, not those kinds of water sports; think surfing or sailing. That doesn’t mean that she doesn’t enjoy BDSM in all of its glorious forms, be that pony girls, bondage, edge play, orgasm denial or a damn good spanking. Her favourite item in the toy closet (a box simply isn’t big enough) is her riding crop.

In her spare time she’s usually cuddled up with a good book, exploring the countryside or baking in the kitchen. In fact, she loves her kitchen so much she’s one of few woman who wouldn’t mind being tied to it! Her first and foremost love is writing, however, and more often than not you’ll find her on a laptop spinning tales of romance, erotica or dark, paranormal fantasies.

Places to find C.P.

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Barnes and Noble Author Page

Blog {Blissful Blog}

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Twitter {@naughtynell101}

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Places to find Desiring Death

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