Tuesday 12 January 2016

Blog Tour, Excerpt, Review, Author Interview & Giveaway ~ Isadora (Masters Among Monsters #2) by Ella Frank


Title: ISADORA (Masters Among Monsters, #2)
Author: Ella Frank
Genre: Erotic Paranormal Series
Publication Date: January 12, 2016

Book Description:

A TRAGIC BEGINNING…

Isadora Nikitas understands what it means to be betrayed. That lesson was taught to her in the prime of her life, and when she is offered a chance to exact revenge, she finds it difficult to refuse.

Instead, she entrusts her survival to a mysterious vampire known only as Diomêdês, a male who wants nothing in return but to watch over her—in every way imaginable.

Gifted with speed, strength, and immortality, she determines that her life will no longer be governed by the needs and wants of a mere man. She has cowered for the last time, and with her Ancient by her side, she thrives and blossoms into the most formidable female vampire in existence.

But, once upon a time, like all little girls, Isadora believed in love. She believed it because she once had it. So, when it comes along a second time, she knows that it’s possible—but when you love someone, they become your weakness. Unless, in fact, they become your enemy instead…

A MYSTERIOUS PAST…

Fulfilling your life’s prophecy should be empowering. At least, that’s what Elias Fontana always believed. But, as he stands guard over the beautiful vampire he’s taken hostage, his convictions start to crumble. Made to believe by his creators that he and two others have been designed to destroy a dangerous race, he has difficulty connecting his current reality to the woman he once loved.

A TANGLED TALE TO UNRAVEL…
When friends become enemies and enemies become lovers, who can you trust in the webs of lies and despair? And, when your life is at stake and blood has been shed, how much are you willing to sacrifice to fulfill your destiny?


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Excerpt:

Isadora (Masters Among Monsters #2) by Ella Frank
Copyright © 2016 by Ella Frank

ALASDAIR KYRIAKOUS LOOKED over to where his human yielding lay stretched out beneath his Ancient and marveled at the predicament he now faced.
            The depraved image on his bed had his cock standing at full attention as he walked closer to the scene that was unraveling. A feeding. And not just any feeding. One between the most formidable of their kind, Vasilios, and a human who he wasn’t fully convinced was human at all.
            Tension filled the bedchamber, and Alasdair understood that one wrong move, one misspoken word, and the man he’d had his dick inside minutes earlier would be dead before he ever found out what he really was.
            Although Vasilios was fully clothed, he was a shocking sight to behold. Covered in blood from the earlier butchery in Thanos’s chambers, he appeared every bit the savage he was. But that didn’t seem to faze Leonidas Chapel. Even naked and vulnerable as the man currently was, Leo was still enraptured by Vasilios.
            Alasdair had previously suspected it, but that right there was proof positive. The sinful, wicked side of their nature, the killer instincts they possessed, intrigued this human. With every new detail Leo learned, he became more attracted and more involved. So much so that, when his life had been in danger, he’d offered them the use of him in any way they desired.
            Leo was fearless.
            Much like he himself had been when he had been mortal, and that made Alasdair…protective.
“Vasilios,” he said.
When his sire pivoted towards him, Alasdair had to tread carefully.
“Yes, agóri?”
Fuck, he knew that tone. It was Vasilios’s version of you dare interrupt me?
“Be mindful,” Alasdair said. “He is not like other humans.”
“Which is exactly the reason this must be done. This way, we will know where he is, what he is thinking, and I can bring him to me whenever I desire…” Vasilios turned back to Leo and trailed the tip of his bloodied finger along his cheek.
Leo’s lips parted.
“Wouldn’t that be a treat for you, human? To come to me—and for me—whenever I command it?”
Alasdair’s cock throbbed under Vasilios’s sensual tone, and when Leo arched off the bed, he knew that the invitation was affecting him in much the same way. He didn’t need to verbally respond—Leo’s body was speaking for him.
“You were right to keep him, Alasdair.”
Alasdair climbed onto the mattress so his knees were by their heads, and when Vasilios straightened to straddle Leo’s waist, he took Alasdair’s mouth in a possessive kiss.
He opened to his sire’s demanding lips, and as their tongues battled for dominance, Leo groaned underneath them. Alasdair pulled his head back and found Leo stroking his thick shaft.
So needy, file mou, he pushed into his mind. Are you sure you understand what you are offering?
A frown furrowed Leo’s brow, but the flush on his cheeks made Alasdair aware that, even though he might not have understood the finer details of his offer, he did understand he would get access to the both of them.
“He is different,” Vasilios nipped at Alasdair’s jaw. “And I want him to be ours.”
Leo was focused on the two of them, and when his teeth clenched and he gave a stiff nod, Alasdair relented.
“Then that is what he shall be.”
“So, you agree?” Vasilios asked as he lifted his head.
“Would it matter if I said no?”
When Vasilios arched an eyebrow, it gave Alasdair his answer, but his sire was quick to add, “Not particularly. However, I would prefer your acceptance.”
“Then be at ease. I want nothing more than to give you what you desire.”
“Ahh, agóri, you always know exactly how to please me. I shall endeavor to reciprocate the gesture. Keep him here. I shall return.”
Vasilios faded in an instant, and as Leo moved to his elbows, Alasdair shook his head. If he knew his sire, he would be back in less than—“Ahh, yes”—a second.
“Now, where were we?” Vasilios asked from where he’d reappeared—kneeling over Leo, minus all of his bloodied clothes, and clean as if he’d taken a lengthy shower.
This was a first for them. They had shared many lovers in the past, but never had they joined with another or fed another their blood with the sole purpose of connecting their lives. And Alasdair wondered where they would go from there.


Trailer:



Our Review:
Reviewed by Donna ~ 5 stars
***ARC received for an honest review***


“Damn her for being the one he could never forget. And the one he was destined to destroy.”

 
I am not a huge paranormal reader, I even body swerved it at any and every opportunity before I became addicted to anything that Amy Bartol penned thanks to a friend that strong armed me to read it, but sometimes you have to hold your hands up and admit you were wrong.
 
I have followed Ella Frank from the beginning, an author I stumbled across thanks to an Amazon recommendation and I have never looked back. Ella Frank has turned her hand to many genres and in my opinion she has excelled in all of them, I have to put my hands up and say is there anything that Ella Frank cannot write? This is one author whose writing style I can connect with, Ella Frank never fails to draw me into her stories and her characters. She always nails character connection to the point where I personally am totally immersed in their life and feel like I am living it, that is an amazing talent to have and not many authors can pull it off.

 
“Se empistevome. I trust you.”

 
I loved the first book in this series, Alasdair, and I was eagerly anticipating reading Isadora. I had become so immersed in this world of vampires that Ella Frank had painstakingly created that I didn’t want to leave and the next book could not come soon enough. So, when Isadora hit my kindle I was buzzing with anticipation, after the ending of Alasdair I needed to dive in and so I did.

 
“I believe it was a footprint of sorts. A moment imprinted in time.”

 
Once again it did not take long to be whisked away into Ella’s world of our incredibly hot Greek God sired vampires. A clan that were fighting for their survival and after Alasdair, a clan that knew they were up against an unknown yet formidable opponent. In this book the story continues on from Alasdair so it is imperative that you have read Alasdair before starting Isadora. While this book does centre around Isadora and her sire Diomedes it also centres around her past/present relationship with Elias. Alasdair, Vasilios, Leo, Thanos et al however, still have a major part to play and their stories are continued throughout this book.

 
“What kind of monster have you become?”
“The one you have made me.”

 

There is something for everyone in this book, in true Ella Frank style she turns up the heat with some exquisite and heart wrenching M/M, M/M/M, M/F, M/F/M and F/F scenes, nothing gratuitous and all scenes having their part to play in this amazing story. As I mentioned in my Alasdair review I love the history that is woven in amongst this story and find myself being transported back to Ancient Greece as Ella Frank paints the history of these vampires with intense clarity. The fight continues for these vampires and while I would love to go into details it would ruin it for you the reader so I will have to refrain.

 
“If your god is up there, I am sure he will soon show his hand. Because, as of now, his pawn has become my queen.”

 
This series is proving to be one intense read, the suspense element keeps the pages turning frantically while the angst is perfectly balanced with their pasts and their romantic liaisons. This is a story about incredible bonds, loyalty, love and lust all interlaced with the ever present threat of danger, sacrifice and ultimately death. While this web is extremely tangled Ella Frank steers you through their stories with visceral descriptions, intense dialogue and deep connections that cannot fail to grab you by the heart.

 
“You are the strength in my backbone, the fire in my blood. You are the conviction in my actions, and with you beside me, it is easy to be brave.”

 
I take my hat off to you once again Ella Frank, I cannot express how much I am in love with this series and am desperately itching for more. Thanos is up next and knowing the pain and depression that this formidable Vampire is currently going through I cannot wait to see how his story is going to evolve while still keeping up with all the others. The fact that the life and demeanour of a vampire directly affects their sire and Eton’s pain is so vividly reflected throughout this story just pulls me into Thanos’s story even more. Will the prophecies come true or will Vasilios, Diomedes and Eton keep their family from an untimely and unwarranted demise?

 
“And you are far too interesting to hide away in a room full of darkness and shadows.”
 

Bring it on, as quick as possible please!

 Other Books in the Series:
Alasdair



A DANGEROUS ALLURE

Bestowed with eternal life by the Ancient Vasilios, Alasdair Kyriakous is one of the most feared and ruthless vampires in existence. His name carries weight across all of the seven continents. 

But he is a mystery to his kind, an anomaly among the self-indulgent. While he enjoys the pleasures of the flesh, he is exceptionally particular in his choice of partners and prides himself on his ironclad self-control. 

Yet with one look his control will become a thing of the past, and Alasdair will discover that eternal life doesn’t always last forever… 

A DEADLY ATTRACTION

Thrust into a world he could never have imagined, Leo Chapel awakens in his worst nightmare. Taken hostage by the dangerously mesmerizing vampire, Alasdair, Leo must rely on his intelligence to escape before he reveals a secret he isn’t even aware he’s hiding. 

A FORBIDDEN DESIRE

Unaware that they’ve been brought together by an outside force and are little more than pawns to a higher power, Alasdair and Leo spend time trying to uncover the other’s secrets, the attraction between them growing stronger all the while. 

But enemies are watching and preparing to act against them. When decisions that will alter lives and destinies have to be made—can a dead, grey heart learn to beat again?


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Author Interview:
1.         Why did you decide to write romance novels?
- Because I love reading them! I fell in love with love around the age of fourteen/fifteen when my Nan gave me my first Sandra Brown novel, and after that I was done. From there I knew exactly what I wanted to do. I wanted to fall in love in real life, and I wanted to write and read about it in books!

2.         Do your leading men come from any place in particular? Dreams? Movie stars? Your partner? Past partners?
- I always think every character you create has a little piece of someone you know, and maybe a piece of yourself. But really, my men are all from my overactive brain!

3.         What do you do in your down time?
- Read! Or binge watch Netflix. I love TV shows but hate commercials. So Netflix and Hulu are possibly the best things that have happened in modern times IMO.

4.         When you walk into a bookstore, where do you head first?

- The erotic section. Hands down. I make a beeline in that direction and my husband heads to the DVD’s. I used to take great joy in taking the risqué titles to the cashier’s and smiling sweetly at them. But now I buy them on my kindle…ahh, some of the thrill is gone because of that!

5.         Who, if anyone, has influenced your writing?
- Well, that would be the author’s I grew up devouring. That list includes, Sandra Brown, Nora Roberts, Janelle Denison, Lori Foster, Carly Phillips. There are so many wonderful writers in the genre. I also grew up reading James Patterson, who I love.

6.         What research did you have to perform to back up your story? Any research, which really opened your eyes or gave you new respect for a topic or profession?
- With this recent series (Masters Among Monsters) I’ve been able to go back to my first love of Ancient History and do some digging and research on several topics. Some were not so pleasant like torture, and others much more so, such as clothing, locations, and myths.
In other stories, such as Blind Obsession I got to research all about Paris and violins and classical music and it really gives a whole other level of appreciation.

7.         What is your method for writing a book? A certain amount of hours every day? A certain routine? Are you character/story builder or an outliner or some other method?
- Up until recently I would’ve said I was a total pantser (as in writing by the seat of my pants). However, I have recently become an outliner of sorts. It’s messy and no one really understands it but me, but it’s definitely helped with this series for sure. Not that I always stuck to it!

8.         How do you get past writers block or distractions like Facebook?
- I walk away. Sounds simple, right? It’s not always so. If I’m stuck on something I will usually try and push through until I’m so annoyed I get mad, throw a tantrum, and THEN walk away. As for Facebook, the trick is checking once in the morning, and once in the evening, and really even then sometimes I have to take time-outs to make sure everything gets finished on time.


9.         What is your favorite book from childhood.
- Looking for Alibrandi by Melina Marchetta. This is such an amazing book about finding out who you are, and being proud of it. I also got to go and listen to the author speak as a teen which was phenomenal.

10.       What’s on your desk? Can you see your desk? Describe what you see when you look around.
- I usually sit at my kitchen table first thing in the morning at 4:30a.m. when I get up. I know I’m insane. That’s actually where I am right now, and there is an unopened bottle of wine, waiting for tonight and my headphones to block out all noise. Later when the rest of the world wakes up, I will move to my actual desk which is a varidesk! Sometimes I sit, and other times it folds up so I can stand. I love it.

11.       What's the weirdest thing you've Googled?
- Well, it wasn’t weird so much as unexpected for a woman to be searching it. I write in the m/m genre and considering I am a female I had to research quite extensively through videos and words and also chatting with people, the sexual interactions and situations I wanted to use. Now I just imagine it all in my head and go from there. But you always want to be as accurate as possible.

12.       What is your favorite line from any of your books?

-           That’s hard! Like making us pick our favorite child. I have a couple that come to mind.
“You are going to ruin me.”
She placed her palm over my heart and tapped 1,2,3. 1,2,3—before whispering, “You’re going to save me.” ~ Veiled Innocence
“Before this, I didn’t know you were essential for me to feel alive.” ~ Trust
When did this story morph? When did it change from a tale of two to a tragedy of three? ~ Blind Obsession

13.       Do you believe in love at first sight?
 - Not really! I believe in lust at first sight. I think you can be very attracted to someone as soon as you see and meet them. But usually it takes a few conversations to find that deeper connection. It might only be one or two conversations, but there usually needs to be some talking. However, in some books it totally works! After all, it’s the fairytale and it’s fiction, where anything is possible!

14.       What do you do when you are not writing?
- I love movies, reading, TV and relaxing with good food and wine.

15.       What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author? What has been the best compliment?
- It’s always tough to hear that someone doesn’t love a character you may particularly love writing or feel a connection with. That’s always the toughest for me. It’s almost like you want to defend them like they’re your blood relative. But in the end, you are putting your work out there to be read and enjoyed (or sometimes not). That comes with the territory, you just have to develop a thick skin and not let it mess with your head.




About the Author:


Ella Frank is the author of the #1 Bestselling Temptation series, including Try, Take, and Trust and is the co-author of the fan-favorite erotic serial, A Desperate Man. Her Exquisite series has been praised as “scorching hot!” and “enticingly sexy!” 

A life-long fan of the romance genre, Ella writes contemporary, M/M romance and erotic fiction and lives with her husband in Portland, OR. You can reach her on the web at www.ellafrank.com and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ella.frank.author 

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Giveaway:
 - SIGNED COPY OF ALASDAIR & ISADORA
 - PLUS SWAG PACK - $50.00 AMAZON GIFT CARD
- 3x Ella Frank eBook of winner’s choice

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