Interview & Giveaway with Jaye Shields

Hello everyone!  Book Monster Reviews is very happy to welcome author Jaye Shields to the blog today!

Jaye Shields holds a degree in Anthropology from San Francisco State University with an emphasis in archaeology. Her previous claims to fame include being a bass player for a grunge band called the Hymens, being mistaken for Britney Spears while in Tokyo, and commercial model. She insists the commercial still counts even though her lines were cut.

​Born and raised in Seattle, she now lives in the realm of fog, skyscrapers, and redwood trees. Happy to call the SF Bay Area home, she spends her time writing sensual paranormal romance and urban fantasy. Thanks to her grandmother, she's been reading romance novels since she was ten years old. Jaye sprinkles her love of history, mythology, and the occult into flaming hot reads.

Jaye is the creator of the IMMORTALS and the SEX DEMONS series.  In case you are not yet familiar with these series, check out the synopsis below so you can get hooked on them too. J

IMMORTALS series:

Secrets of the Fog

IMMORTALS, Book 1​

A-Sexual Goddess + Giant Tree = Dryad. Or at least that’s how Tera was born.

​When Tera’s friends inform her that the portal on Alcatraz Island was buzzing with an arrival, she thinks her goddess mother has come to visit. Quite the contrary. Another goddess has plans to kill Tera, and is sending a bunch of demons to do her dirty work. Instead of finding a goddess at the portal, Tera finds a gigantic otherworldly warrior causing mass destruction amongst the San Francisco tourists. Being a Forest Dryad born from the Goddess of the Hunt has its perks, and kicking ass is one of them.​ 

​Sabin is six-feet-six of hard-bodied soldier, used to subduing demons twice his size. One day after chasing an elusive smoke demon through a portal into the human realm, Sabin is brought to his knees by a beautiful woman, literally. After arriving to a pier full of dead bodies, Tera issues a passionate smack-down before Sabin can explain that he’s the good guy. He becomes dedicated to saving her as an ancient grudge comes to life.

Secrets of the Sky

IMMORTALS, Book 2

​Release Date:  Feb. 4th, 2013

 When Sparrow Reed is forced into a world of demons and warfare, two good things come out of it: Immortality, and Rowen. Hottest. Conquest. Ever.

​ Rowen is an immortal knight charged with guarding the realm of portal travel. He never thought hed fall for a young mortal with a back full of tattoos and a wiccan enchantment. But he did. And according to a soothsayer, it will be her demise.                               

          

 When his rejection sends Sparrow into the arms of a dangerous rebel, Rowen must decide which is more dangerous, the oracles grim warning, or forsaking his hearts one desire.

SEX DEMONS series:

Confessions of a Sex Demon

SEX DEMONS, Book 1​

September 17, 2012

Amazon / B&N

Zahra proves that sex demons do it better as she goes from captive to captivator.

​

Sex Demon Zahra Aniron is a closet romantic. Too bad she spends her time having hot, kinky sex with paying strangers. But she needs the money to pay off her sister's debt to wizard thugs. There could be worse things than getting paid for pleasure, especially since a sex demon needs climax to survive.

​

As a blacksmith, Lennox Aegros puts his fury to good use pounding steel into swords. When he arrives at a new town, his real cause for being there isn't to sell weaponry, it's for revenge. When he finds the succubus he's been searching for, her beauty means he can mix business with pleasure. But the joke's on Lennox, because as he succeeds in torturing his victim by repeatedly bringing her to the brink of orgasm and then denying her the release that she so desperately needs, he realizes that Zahra's slow demise means the breaking of a heart he didn't think he had.

Claiming of a Sex Demon

SEX DEMONS, Book 2

December 17th, 2012

Amazon / B&N

​

Emmerie Winter has been married only a few months, but depression has made her a fragile stranger in the arms of her husband. When a sex demon with a boyish grin and a sinful body moves into town, Emmerie's world is turned upside down. His intense passion for life sends her depression into hiding, but her feelings for the sinful man could get her in deep trouble.

A sex demon needs climax to survive, but thats never been a problem for Reza Aniron. When the glorious specimen of a male arrives in a small village, the women fall at his feet, only a timid blonde angel doesn't seem to take notice. But he can see in her eyes a fire waiting to be released. And he always did love a challenge.

Addictions of a Sex Demon

SEX DEMONS, Book 3

Release Date: February 18, 2013

​

Sephina is about to trade one addiction for another—his name is Axel.

​

Moving to a new village was supposed to help Sephina Antara get clean. After all, she’d gotten into a lot of trouble as a sex demon with a drug addiction.  This time her relapse comes with a side of hot dragon man.

​

Axel Stavros may be a drug dealer, but he’s also the town healer. Half-human, half-dragon, his blood can cure just about anything, but it has some erotic side effects for its user. And the new beauty in town is about to find out...

Don't they all sound awesome?!  I know I already bought the first two SEX DEMONS books, and damn are those covers are hot!  Before you run off to buy your copies, check out my interview with Jaye to learn more about the incredible woman behind the books…

Book Monster Reviews:  Hi Jaye!  Welcome to Book Monster Reviews!  I’m so happy to have you with us  today! 

Jaye {opening comments}: Hey doll, thank you for having me. It’s a pleasure to be sitting in an airport, listening to live piano, sipping a latte and enjoying your company. Now, let’s talk Sex Demons and Immortals. ;) Just how I like to start every morning!

Book Monster Reviews/LITERAL ADDICTION:  We like to start out by finding out a bit more about our guest author, and then we’ll dig into the books… 

Q1): Can you tell us 3 things about yourself that we can't find out on the Internet?

Jaye:        1. Right now my nails are horribly adorned with two chipped layers of nail polish. Red and pink. This of course, could get me written up at my day job.

         2. In the past week I’ve gone through 3 cartons of Ben & Jerrys, all different flavors. I’m turning 25 in March so I think I might have to begin looking into a gym membership soon…Damn ice cream pints seemed to affect me a lot less when I was 22.

         3. In the past six days I’ve been to 15 different cities scattered around 2 countries. All of them were some kind of cold by the way.

Q2):  As a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Jaye: A flight attendant and a writer. No joke. I am thankful every day that my family was so supportive. I went through a brief phase where I wanted to be a Spice Girl (infamous pop band), but other than that, it was always to be an author or flight attendant.

Q3):  What made you decide to go from Anthropology to writing about immortals and sex demons?  Just so you know, we are VERY happy that you did.  J

Jaye: Anthropology (and my emphasis in that realm was archaeology) dives into a lot of very interesting history and myths. My imagination is already nuts, so I had written all six of my books before I graduated with my degree. At one point I was even sitting in my Osteology class, a human skull in front of me, while writing Addictions of a Sex Demon!

Q4):  I come up with my best ideas while I'm in bed "trying" to fall asleep.  Where do you come up with your best ideas?

Jaye: Oops, guess I somewhat divulged that secret. I come up with ideas anytime, anyplace. Whether it was at school, in the shower, or on the plane performing the safety demonstration. Maybe I’m showing everyone how to use a seatbelt…then I think…what if someone got tied up with this seatbelt?? *insert mischievous giggle here* :D

Q5):  What are some of the books in your TBR pile right now?

Jaye: Lothaire by Kresley Cole. It’s the only one by her I haven’t read and I’m very sad about that. I’m dying to read it and I know it will be good. Lately I’ve been busy either writing, editing, or reading my fellow author friends and enjoying their work.

Q6):  Who or what inspired you to write your first novel?

Jaye: My first completed novel was Secrets of the Jaguar (which I sold to Crimson Romance as part of the Immortals in Alameda trilogy) and they have decided to release it last. I got the idea in my Mayan Civilization archaeology class. I was looking at ancient Olmec figurines and the entire storyline just hit me. My notepad was filled with characters, plot, you name it. One of the scenes in that book is actually straight out of my experience in Mayan archaeology.

Q7):  What, in your opinion, are the most important elements of good writing?

Jaye: Characters, loving them, hating them, fearing them, crying for them, laughing with them. I’m also a bit of a stickler for point of view. Some people don’t care, but I find myself getting irritated when I can't stay in someone’s head long enough to get to know them. There are many writers that I love, and I still read them, but I get taken out of the story because it’s jarring to me to be tossed back and forth between characters so suddenly.

Q8):  What was one of the most surprising things you've learned while writing your books?

Jaye: That point of view makes such a difference in writing. When I first began writing, I never ever realized that I was head hopping. Then I thought about it, reread some of my favorite authors, realized I was an infamous head-hopper, then learned from that.

Q9):  What traits do you feel are paramount for a hero and  heroine to have?

Jaye: Chemistry, emotional depth, and twisted conflict. Like in my book Addictions of a Sex Demon, I love that my characters are totally wrong for each other. She’s got a drug addiction. He sells drugs. He refuses to sell her drugs though, and she hates/loves him for it. Both characters in Addictions of a Sex Demons have obstacles to overcome, and they overcome them together. Oh yes, and there’s lots of hot sex involved in traditional sex demon fashion. After all, poor Sephina needs climax to survive!

Q10):   For readers out there that are not familiar with your IMMORTALS or SEX DEMONS series, can you please give us a brief description of what each series is about?

Jaye: Well, with the Sex Demon trilogy, the novellas are centered around characters that need climax to survive. Each book has one sex demon and they end up falling for an other, whether it be human or some other sort of demon. The books are HOT!

With the Immortals series, the books are sensual, not quite as scandalous. The books take place in modern times with heroines that we can really relate too, but are sucked into a mystical world that they never fully existed. One with really hunky immortal law enforcement. The Knights of the Fog are our heroes, men charged with making sure no demons escape through the realm of portal travel and into the human realm. These were the first books I ever wrote and are very much inspired by history and mythology.

Q11):  What was the inspiration that lead to the concept and creation of the SEX DEMONS series?

Jaye: I guess I just have a devious mind because the title hit me and I just went from there.

Q12):  And the inspiration behind the IMMORTALS series?

Jaye: My classes taken to get my degree in anthropology, mainly Mayan archaeology and Classical archaeology courses.

Q13):  What were the challenges (research, literary, psychological, logistical, etc) in bringing the IMMORTALS and SEX DEMONS series to life?

Jaye: The writing part is easy. It was navigating the publishing industry that was hard. I wouldn’t have succeeded without joining a writers group to help enlighten me.

Q14):  If you could spend the day with any one of your characters, who would you pick and what would you do?

Jaye: I would love to hang out with Sparrow. I feel like she’s my best friend and I love writing scenes with her. I still do even though the book is published, just for fun. As far a hero. I could never choose. Orgy much?

Q15):  How many books do you have planned for both series and what's coming up next? 

Jaye: I would love to write a spin-off for the Sex Demon trilogy, and I have a few books plotted out already, I just haven’t had time. As far as the Immortals in Alameda series, I have already written the fourth book, Pyrrhus’s book and have outlined Sodor’s book. Both I am super excited about, but haven’t subbed them to my publisher yet. So that will be a while. I just finished my very first contemporary, and that is what I am focusing on right now.

Q16):  Who was (is) your most difficult character to write?

Jaye: Egret. Only because she broke my heart. Read about it and find out why in Secrets of the Sky. I was crying in the coffee shop while I wrote her scenes.

Q17):  I LOVE the covers for both the IMMORTALS & SEX DEMONS series.  Who designed the gorgeous covers for them? 

Jaye: Thank you soooo much. My Sex Demon covers were done by Fantasia Frog Designs who handle all the covers for Beachwalk Press. I was really excited about the cover for Addictions of a Sex Demon because the artist had to work really hard, especially since the hero is half human/ half dragon-demon! And Sephina looks just as I imagined her in my head. The designer is so incredible and worked really hard with me to get everything perfect. I’m really luck that way because a lot of the time, authors don’t get a say. The artist is so great, I never doubt her abilities to bring anything to life on a cover. For my Immortals series, Crimson Romance (the publisher) handles everything and they have their own artists that take care of everything.

Q18):  Do you have any other projects that you're working on?

Jaye: Just about to submit my very first contemporary. I’m nervous because all I’ve ever done is paranormal!

Q19):  What legacy do you hope to leave behind with your work?

Jaye: Characters that you never forget and worlds that leave you contemplating the possible.

Q20):  Is there anything specific you would like to say to your readers while we have you here today?

Jaye: I love you and I love hearing from you. Don’t ever hesitate to contact me on fb, twitter, or through my website, JayeShields.com

Book Monster Reviews/LITERAL ADDICTION:  Thank you so much Jaye for taking the time out of your busy schedule to chat with us today.  We'd love to have you back in June to help you promote the release of the third book in your IMMORTALS series.

Jaye {closing comments}: Thank you so much for having me and sharing my stories with your readers. I’m so excited for both of my latest February releases to be out. Secrets of the Sky and Addictions of a Sex Demon just happen to be my favorites!

XOXO  Jaye

Connect with Jaye:

Website / Facebook / Twitter / Goodreads

Jaye is giving away winners choice of eBook,  "Secrets of the Sky" or "Confessions of a Sex Demon"

to one lucky winner.

TO ENTER:

Fill out the Rafflecopter form below and answer Jaye's question:

Okay, I can’t help it. I’m going to go way off the beaten romance path here. What is your favorite airline and how often do you fly? 

a Rafflecopter giveaway