Saturday, April 7, 2012

Review: The Sin Eater's Prince by Keta Diablo, Interview & Giveaway


ebook, 150 pages
Published February 15th 2012 by Keta Diablo 
ASIN: B0079QQBCY
Source: Blog Tour/Author, for the purpose of an honest review
Genre: Paranormal Romance, m/m
Stars: 4
Flames: 4

Owen is the local sin eater. The people he lives amongst only have need of him when someone has died. They expect him to take those persons sins so that they may go forth into the afterlife. Owen has grown accustomed to his lonely existence. He spends his time waiting for the local physician to call him to his next departing soul. It is the only thing he looks forward to, the local physician summoning him. Owen has become attracted to Andras. Owen knows that wanting the touch of another man is forbidden. He has little care. He knows that the Andras would never desire one as lowly as the sin eater.

Andras has his own secrets. One is that he desires Owen. The biggest secret is that he is a vampire. He has hidden the truth of what he is for five years. After he was attacked and left in the forest to bleed to death he returned to his home and physicians practice. He holds true to the oath he took as a physician to never harm.

I enjoyed the world immensely. The characters believe heavily in their superstitions. The townspeople also fear what they do not understand. When some of the young maidens turn up killed by a viciousness they do not know they quickly seek for a scapegoat in the sin eater. Andras and Owen both know what was responsible for their deaths, but to expose the vampire responsible is to expose Andras. Vampires are not the only creature that needs to be feared. Keta has also woven werewolves and dragons into the mix for this fantastical read. 






Vanessa: Let's give a big warm welcome to the Diva that is Keta Diablo. She has cruised by today with an interview & giveaway!




Keta: Hello Vanessa and lovely followers of The Jeep Diva.  Thanks so much for hosting THE SIN EATER'S PRINCE (here on Kindle) today.



Vanessa: What is one thing about you that your readers would find surprising or never guess about you?

Keta: Oh-oh, we could be entering turbulent, deep waters here. LOL. Let me tell you a little about my childhood, which now, looking back it’s a wonder I survived. I was raised with all boys. Sigh and Drat! I always wanted a sister too. I had numerous near-death experiences and painful accidents growing up with “the boys” as I call them now. At five, I ran into the street chasing a ball and was hit by a truck. At seven my youngest brother and I fell into an ice-encrusted pond and lived only because a neighbor heard us crying and saved us. I was hit in the head with a wooden bat during a game of baseball (eldest brother said I could play if was the catcher).  I still have the lump and scars to prove that one! And at ten, I was stabbed in the hand by a knife while playing a game of stretch with “the boys”. To this day I ask my mother, “Where the heck were you during my childhood?” All kidding aside, I should have died many times, but here I am through the grace of God writing novels.

Vanessa: I am now thankful I was an only child! Wow...I am glad you survived all of that to bring us all these wonderful characters and worlds you have in your head. 

Vanessa: Can you tell us about your current work in progress? Perhaps you could share a teasing bit of information about it.

Keta: Thanks so much for asking. My latest novel, The Sin Eater’s Prince, is a gay fiction vampire that takes place in the mystical, wonderful country of Wales. I had enormous fun researching the paranormal creatures in the novel, including gnomes, the Fae, vampires, werewolves, Hag of the Mist and many more.  Here’s the blurb below and a short snippet from the beginning of the novel (with setup).

Blurb:
Owen Rhys, the sin eater, has been shunned by the local villagers all his life--except for Andras Maddock, the local physician. In love with the one man he believes will never return that love, Owen is shocked when Andras saves him from death at the hands of a vampire.
Dagan, Dark Lord of the Underworld, vows to avenge his father’s death and obtain the Prince of Wales’s mystic sword from Andras. The claymore’s power holds an immunity the vampires have coveted for centuries.
Star-crossed love, sorcery, and bloodlust collide on a vengeful path where only one side will remain victorious.
* * *

Setup:
Owen Rhys, the sin eater, has attended a dying woman at her abode. The local physician, Andras Maddock, is also present. With his duties complete, Owen must travel back to his humble dwelling outside the village. Andras warns him to be careful since the forest is not always safe at night. In this scene, Owen encounters a vampire and Andras suddenly appears to save him from death.

Snippet:
What else had his father said? ‘A vampire can not enter a private dwelling unless the occupant grants permission. Most vampire attacks occur outside the home in isolated areas at night.’ Get up, Owen, you dolt! Run! You’ve got to make it home!
Clambering to his knees, he stilled from a flash of something in the clearing ahead. Beneath a canopy of evergreens, a bestial being appeared in his line of vision. No, not a predator of the forest but an upright human form. Shrouded in a black cloak, his white skin shone like a beacon under the inky sky. Danger seized Owen as the phantom advanced at a foot-dragging pace. His eyes crazed with blood lust, his lips were drawn into a snarl that bared his lethal white fangs. Owen’s throat constricted with fear, yet he remained seized by the timeless features and hypnotic eyes. Time ceased to exist, and his immortality rushed to the forefront. Death was imminent; he felt it with every beat of his thundering heart.

Vanessa: I read it & really enjoyed it!

Vanessa: If you were to write yourself into one of your books/series which would it be, what role would you pick and why?

Keta: I really love the Civil War era. I wish more books were written during this time period. It seems there’s an abundance if not overkill of Regency Romance, but very little Civil War. So I wrote one. It’s called Land of Falling Stars (more info here). I loved Sophia from this story and relate to her. Some reviewers have said they wanted to shake her silly, and I understand that. Women in the deep South lived a very pampered, wealthy life. When the War came, they didn’t know how to cope with the devastation, the death and illness. As a result, many resorted to doing things they never would have thought of before the war. I like any book where the character develops and grows, and so many women were forced to during the Civil War.


Vanessa: How do you spend your down time between edits, deadlines, writing and creating new and fascinating books? Do have a favorite pastime to fill you spare time with?

Keta:I don’t have much down time. Thankfully, my children are grown, but . . . visit often. I love gardening and reading. I wish I had more time to read and play in the dirt, but those two are high on my priority list when I need a break from writing. I also love animals and spend as much time as possible at my local animal shelter. I wish I could bring them all home.

Vanessa: What have you read and loved recently?

Keta: Like millions of readers I read the Hunger Games. Loved the first book, adored the second and liked the third. I think the author came up with an amazing plot at the right time. People are very interested in dystopian stories right now. Before that it was vampires. I don’t always write erotica or erotic romance, but it’s one of my favorite genres to write. Fasten your seat belts everyone – I hear erotica is going to be big this year. Oh, and follow my blog, Keta’s Keep here: http://ketaskeep.blogspot.com

Vanessa: I love author stalking. Do you have any 2012 convention plans? Where can fans stalk you?

Keta: I don’t attend many, if any, conventions or conferences. I’m really a loner. Last year Where The Rain Is Made, my paranormal shifter was nominated by Authors After Dark for a Bookie Award. If I was going to attend a conference and party-on, that would have been the one.  I am so appreciative of the nomination or any nomination for my books, but I just don’t travel much. What does that say about my life? Can we say boring and mundane? Read more about Where The Rain Is Made on Kindle:  http://amzn.to/ylR4gy. * Nominated for Bookie Award by Authors After Dark, * Nominated for Best Romance of the Year by Deep In The Heart of Romance, *37 Five-Star Reviews.



Thanks so much again for hosting me, Vanessa. Love your blog.
Here’s my bio and where your followers can find me on the Net

Keta is a multi-published author of paranormal and historical romance and gay fiction. In 2009, her erotic romance Decadent Deceptions was a finalist in the RWA Molly contest. In 2010, Keta's entry Phoenix Rising finaled in the Scarlet Boa contest and in 2011 Keta's acclaimed paranormal shifter, Where The Rain is Made, was nominated by Authors After Dark for a Bookie Award and by Deep In The Heart of Romance for Best Romance of the Year.
Many of her books, including her gay fiction series CROSSROADS, have won numerous awards: Top Reviewer's Pick, Recommended Read and Best Book of the Month.
If you'd like to know more about Keta and her latest releases, she haunts the Net here:



Keta is giving away 2 copies of her novella Blood Oath. Just comment below with email address to enter. I will announce the winner Tuesday April 10.




Be sure to check out the other stops on this tour for more chances to win this book!

The Sin Eater's Prince Virtual Blog Tour
1. April 2nd - Redheads Review It Better  
2. April 3rd - A Redheads Guilty Reads  
3. April 5th - Red Hot Books  
4. April 6th - Queentutt's World of Escapism  
5. April 7th - The Jeep Diva  
6. April 8th - Guilty Indulgence  
7. April 9th - Fetch Me My Fainting Couch  










7 comments:

  1. Great interview! You poor thing being an only girl..I feel bad for my Goddaughter now as she is raised with my 5 boys. I will definitely keep a sharp eye out!! Can't wait to read more from Keta. I have several books and love them all.
    Mel
    bournmelissa at hotmail dot com

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  2. Wow loved the interview i can say i ive been there my self i had major surgery on my leg by the time i was 14 due to an accident i had and i had bad luck it seemed almost every year after i broken something. Thank god i havent broken any thing in many of years though. My email is butterfli262002@yahoo.com

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  3. Very nice interview and review. All the books sound good.

    bn100candg(at)hotmail(dot)com

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  4. Thanks for the giveaway. I would love to read these books. They sounds very good. Please enter me in contest. Tore923@aol.com

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  5. Now this was an awesome and refreshing Interview, review, and giveaway. Great job Vanessa, I like how you did this arrangement.

    Now for Keta, I absolutely love your work and loved this book The Sin Eater's Prince, it was very interesting and enjoyable read. We have something in common, I am the only girl in my family too and had 3 brothers, one of them being my twin and boy what fun I had growing up. I bet you were a total tom boy and did everything your brothers did. I know i did, I was actually even better than they were at sports and could out run them all - LOL

    It is neat how we can reflect back on our childhood and wonder how we made it to were we are now in life. I also think it is neat how we can laugh when we reflect back on things as well.

    It is really neat getting to know more about you, I look forward to reading more of your fabulous writing.

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  6. Hello Jeep Diva and friends,

    What a fantastic job on the interview, girl! I'm so impressed. And thank you so much, followers of Jeep Diva for stopping by today. I would have been sooner, but I was called out of town. Nothing serious.

    Isn't this a lovely blog? And one I'll be visiting often. I'm following you, Jeep Diva. Got my eye on you now.

    Thanks so much too for your lovely words about The Sin Eater's Prince. Ya know, sometimes I think I enjoy the research more than I enjoy writing the book. Just kidding.

    Be sure to leave a review if you read The Sin Eater's Prince and good luck to all in the contest,

    Namaste, Keta
    http://ketaskeep.blogspot.com

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  7. I really enjoyed the interview. The blurb and the snippet are great. I can't wait to read this.
    sstrode at scrtc dot com

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