Q & A with Author Mari Hamill + Giveaway

Werewolf Nights
by Mari Hamill

Catherine Mercy never dreamed of fame or finding love again, but her financial difficulties and her town’s prompt her into acting. Acting leads her to the Wolfern Manor, a place her grandmother forbade her to visit, warning that a werewolf awaits Catherine there. As it turns out, she encounters two: Greg, who plays Wolfern in the movie and the real Wolfern, who fixed the casting to lure Catherine into his lair. She’s a living replica of her great-aunt, his original bride. But if he finds out she’s the wrong woman, Catherine will face certain death like the first actress who was cast on the film. To trick Catherine into his arms, Wolfern possesses her love, Greg, making her doubt at times whether she’s with Greg or Wolfern. 

Her nerdy friend Steve, an expert on werewolves, argues that the solution would be to find a way to kill Wolfern, but if she does, Greg could also die, since they’re slowly becoming one and the same. To safeguard her life and happiness, Catherine must find a way to separate the the man she loves from the beast she fears, before the next full moon illuminates the dark night allowing Wolfern to empty Greg’s body of his soul and taking over forever. For that, she must consult her great-aunt’s honeymoon diary, which can provide insight into Wolfern’s heart and mind. In the meantime, she must not give in to Greg’s advances, for they can result in a child with the curse of the wolf. To complicate matters, the husband she thought dead, Frank, now a werewolf bounty hunter, has been hired to kill Greg/Wolfern during the full moon.

I hope you’ll enjoy Werewolf Nights, a novel with humorous tones, appealing to both male and female audiences. At heart, this story is about overcoming the fear of the unknown and battling the monsters that oppose true love.

Paperback, First Printing, 216 pages
Published May 19th 2014 by Dog Ear Publishing

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Read It & Reap: March 12, 2015

 

Mari Hamill begins her career as a novelist with Werewolf Nights. She has an English degree from Harvard, a comparative literature degree from the Sorbonne Nouvelle, and a PhD, also in comparative literature, from the University of Michigan–Ann Arbor. Middlebury College, the Johannes Gutenberg University, and McGill University are among the other institutions where she’s pursued academic endeavor. A world traveler, she speaks Spanish, French, German, and a little Italian. The Princess Bride, Harry Potter, Don Quijote, Love in the Time of Cholera, and Archie Comics have served as an inspiration for her work. Her love of fantasy began in her family’s comic book store, Metro Comics, located in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico.

After residing in Guaynabo, Cambridge, Boston, Ann Arbor, Middlebury, Montreal, Lausanne, Paris, Venice, Italy, Mainz, Vallejo, and Chapel Hill, she now lives in Venice, California, and dedicates her free time to community service.

Website: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8296035.Mari_Hamill
Twitter: @MariHamill
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/8296035.Mari_Hamill

Q & A with Author Mari Hamill

Q:  Tell us a little bit about your main characters. 
A:  In spite of having several suitors, the financially struggling baker Catherine Mercy hasn’t dated anyone in years. An aura of mystery surrounds her because Jimmy, her high-school sweetheart, and years later her husband Frank disappear. People wonder if she’s a werewolf. Once she’s cast as the leading lady in a movie about her town’s most infamous werewolf legend, her life turns into a fast-paced adventure filled with romance, mystery, passion, and danger. 

Greg Byron is a handsome actor with a reputation as a ladies’ man. The moment he sees Catherine, he’s smitten. But before Catherine can see his face—she meets him wearing a werewolf mask—a wolf bites him transforming him into a man with wolfish features. If he turns into a werewolf, he’ll become a threat to Catherine and those around him. 

Steve Van Boek is a nerdy werewolf legend buff who hangs out at Catherine’s bakery because he’s madly in love with her. Steve helps Catherine and Greg decipher the mysterious incidents taking place around them. 

Wolfern is the villain of the story. He’s John Cooper, a 19th century rich businessman who turns into a werewolf after the death of his bride Helen. Every time he meets a woman under the full moon, he confuses her with his lost bride and discovering she’s not Helen, he devours the woman. Wolfern believes Catherine is Helen and plans to get her. 

Q:  In your opinion, what makes a good, strong female character? 
A:  I like heroines that can adapt to unexpected circumstances and find solutions to their problems proactively. A strong female character evolves to make her own decisions instead of searching for others’ approval. 

Q:  Who designs the covers for your books and what is that process like for you as an author? 
A:  Puerto Rican artist Ivonne Falcón designed the cover of Werewolf Nights. Luckily, my mother owns a comic book store frequented by artists. Without telling the artist that she needed a book cover for Werewolf Nights, my mother asked Ivonne to draw a woman, a werewolf, and a pie. When I took the first glance at the original black and white drawing, I immediately knew I had my cover. 

Since the cover art of Werewolf Nights has become so popular, I’m working with Ivonne on a quiz about the novel that will have drawings of the main characters. 

Q:  Describe your ideal writing spot. 
A:  I prefer to write at home in complete silence. Sometimes I wish I didn’t have Internet while I write, since it’s such a distraction. lol A quick glance at my Facebook or Twitter often turns into a longer conversation with a friend or fan. 

Q:  What is the best advice you have been given? 
A:  Someone once said “if you want inspiration, fix your relationships.” This idea stayed with me. Every time I feel blocked, I think about the people in my life and evaluate the way that I’m interacting with them. 

Q:  Which do you prefer: hard/paperbacks or ebooks? 
A:  I must admit that I’ve read very few ebooks in my life and that I don’t yet own a Kindle. I still like to carry a book around with me. That said, books take a lot of space and it’s more practical to keep them in electronic format. I’m going to try to make the switch. 

Q:  If you could be any supernatural creature, what would you choose and why? 
A:  When I was little, I wanted to be a mermaid. I would swim for hours hoping that I would grow a tail, but it didn’t happen. Today, I would definitely say werewolf… of the kind that can control the rage and hunger during a full moon.lol I would not like to go on a killing rampage, but having a werewolf’s sharpened senses, strength, and ability to run faster than any man or beast would be awesome. 

Q:  What book are you reading now?
A:  The Choice by Nicholas Sparks

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