Interview with Donna Augustine - Dead Ink - Review **GIVEAWAY**

Hey gang I'm so happy to be bringing back an author who has become a go to for me in the Paranormal Romance/ Urban Fantasy genre. Her latest in her PR Karma series, Dead Ink, is available now and Donna has graciously offered one lucky entrant an e-copy of the novel. Don't worry if you haven't read the Karma series, Dead Ink stands well on it's own and if you are a fan like me it's a fabulous continuation.
Enjoy the chat and see below for contest deets!

ISBN-13: 2940151361989
Publisher: Strong Hold Publishing
Release Date: 06/06/2015
Length: 307 pp
Buy It: B&N/Amazon

  

Overview

Within the walls of his tattoo shop, Dead Ink, Lars hides in plain sight from the past he walked away from. But he still battles every day with the dark urges that drove him from his position as the Grim Reaper. Then Faith Dover appears, seeking his aid, and Lars discovers that he isn't as hardened as he thought.

Giveaway is for one e-copy of
Dead Ink - Open Internationally
Please use Rafflecopter form below to enter
Thanks Donna!
Good Luck!

Donna Hi! Welcome back to the blog.

Tell us about Dead Ink.

Thanks for having me again!

Dead Ink centers around Lars, the retired Grim Reaper, who now owns a tattoo shop. Dead Ink is a paranormal romance set in the same world as my urban fantasy series, Karma. Just a warning. It’s fairly dark and gritty as most of my writing is.

What was it about Lars that convinced you he would have a romance and not Cutty, or Bic or any of the other ex Universe enforcers?

Lars was always more prominent in the Karma storyline and he just spoke to me. He’s a bit gruff and rough around the edges and I was just feeling that at the time.

Is this the last in the Karma series do you think?

I honestly don’t know. There are other angles I’d like to explore but there are all sorts of stories floating around my head. I’ve learned to give up trying to plan and just listen to the loudest idea.

In a previous conversation you mentioned your muse taking you in a certain direction in your writing, in this instance in a paranormal romance direction.
For the benefit of those of us who wouldn’t know a muse if it bit us, explain that if you can.
A muse is supposedly where the ideas come from. To be honest, I like to use the muse as an excuse because I often have no idea what direction or story is going to come next. Most of the time, I really don’t know how I ended up writing what it is I’m writing. I never sit down and think, hey, this might be a popular idea. I wish I did. It would be better business. The way it works is a character or scene pops in and sometimes I just can’t get rid of it. It’s one of those things where you get slammed in the head with a story that screams to get out or drive you insane.

Donna, Karma isn’t your only series.
What do you as the artist like about writing series?
I want to write a standalone. I’ve tried to do it but even if that’s the way it starts out, the stories that usually come to me tend to have story arcs that don’t fit neatly into a single book. Normally I start and it’s a very simple clear concise story that should be a one-book slam dunk. The next thing I know, I’m typing along and the story is playing out like a movie in my head, and all of a sudden things are revealed and I find out there’s nothing simple about it.

Donna you also write urban fantasy. 
For those of us ignorant in the genre distinctions what’s the difference between Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance.
Urban fantasy doesn't have to have a romantic storyline at all, even though it does in a lot of cases. It also doesn’t require a happily ever after at the end of each book. Paranormal romances, as I’m sure most of you know, are usually a standalones that focus on the relationship as the main storyline and are supposed to end well.

Is there any other genre that you’ve wanted to take a crack at?

Scifi maybe? Historical romance? I’ve got story ideas for lots of genres but I’ll most likely just keep branching out into larger fantasy stories. The thing I love about fantasy is, I don’t have to hold back. The world is whatever I want to make it. There’s no rules. I hate rules so I LOVE that more than I can put into words. For a writer that says something because I want to put everything into words : )

Donna let’s get a little personal for a moment.
What do you like to do in your down time?
Down time? I work seven days a week. If I take a day or two off my fingers are itching to get back to the keyboard. I’m getting worse, too. I have no balance. I eat, breath and sleep writing. I keep telling myself I’m going to take a break but it’s always next week, next month… I plan vacations but I write on them too.

Are you a full-time novelist?

Yes, I’ve been extremely fortunate that this gig pays my bills.

Donna thanks again for letting me pick your brain.
What is said brain up to next?
I’m working on a new series that I’m extremely excited about. It’s a fantasy/dystopian/alternate history. Anyone that reads me knows my writing leans towards dystopian and I’m starting out with a crazy world right out of the gate this time. No slow build up, you’re right in the muck from page one. 

Are there events/signings listed on your website?

I don’t have any signings planned but I will be trying to do more giveaways soon to make up for it!

Connect with Donna - Website - Facebook - Twitter

My Review

Donna Augustine continues her dark paranormal romance Karma series with Dead Ink staring Lars the tattoo artist aka Grim Reaper, retired who’ve readers have met before and brand new heroine Faith, a murder victim who ends up immortal instead of dead. Her world building is an alarming portrait of our current world in a whole lot of trouble, and rocks. Her dialogue is a heady mix of street-wise gritty and quirky humor and her characters range from funny to scary and are all exceptionally well rounded. It was nice reconnecting with friends from past tales and getting to know the stars of this story. I especially love the bittersweet love story and the hope Donna instills in the tale and the series in spite of all the hopelessness.

The universe is going to hell in a hand basket and usually, Lars the immortal formerly known as death is on the periphery of all the madness of whatever is screwing with the balance between good and evil, just minding his own business running his tattoo shop, Dead Ink, I mean he is retired. Then she walked into his parlor looking like a deranged wood nymph and mentions the name of his and apparently the world’s newest worst immortal enemy.

Faith Dover’s had a rough week, first she died even though she’s still a little foggy about how it all happened. Then she ends up in the lair of a diabolical bad guy named Malokin, who apparently wants her to work for him, doing what she’s so not going to find out. So when she finds a chance to escape she takes it along with the name and address of a man on Malokin’s hit list. Now here she is, staring at said man on said list and it’s looking like she’s jumped from one scary frying pan into a blazing inferno.

Bio:

Donna Augustine was an odd child, had a brief moment of conformity in early adulthood and then decided to embrace her craziness as the years rolled by. It's her inner crazy that she credits with coming up with the ideas for her books. One part hypochondriac, a few dashes of paranoia, topped with a sliver of uptight and delivered with a relaxed flair, she kicked the proverbial box down the yellow brick road a couple years ago to embrace her true self.

She can be reached by a carrier pigeon, set free in a south by north direction, where she resides in Neverland with her two Siberian cats. Cats who, by the way, aren't as hypoallergenic as she believed they'd be.

For the conventional minded, and those of you without a pigeon on hand, she can be reached at donna@donnaaugustine.com. She responds to most emails within three dusk periods.

P.S. For those of you looking for the discarded box, it was sitting beside the road for a while but has since disappeared completely. 

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