The Thing About Weres Blog Tour

*Where did you get the inspiration for the Mystwalker series?

I wanted to write about a girl who wasn’t naturally kick-ass. Someone who wasn’t thin, beautiful or particularly brave—a girl whose first instinct in the face of danger would always be to haul ass as quickly as she could! That’s how I came up with 22 year-old Canadian barista who didn’t know she was asleep until life forcibly woke her up again. Meet Hedi Peacock—half Were, half Fae, all Trouble.

*How many books do you have planned in this series? Any hints you can give us for what's in store next?

I’m signed for four books which should nicely cover Hedi’s coming of age story:-) In the third novel, THE PROBLEM WITH PROMISES, Hedi’s got a promise to keep. Can she honor it? The sand in the proverbial hourglass is already trickling fast when the leader of the NAW steps in to do his best to thwart her from fulfilling her vow. An action driven thriller—complete with witches, bikers, murders and mayhem—this story follows Hedi and Trowbridge over six tense hours. During that pivotal night, we will see Hedi step up, forever claiming her talents. There will be no turning back—from Karma or fate—after this book. Which is good, *grin*, because the fourth and final book’s title is The DANGER OF DESTINY.

*If your books were to be made into a movie, who would be your top picks for the cast?

I couldn’t tell you who I’d pick for Hedi or Trowbridge, as they’re both are very vivid to me and none of the current high-profile actors come close. That being said, Cordelia’s drawl owes much to John Malkovich…

*Could you tell us a little about the ups and downs you have experienced in publishing?

Hardest lesson of all: that first draft is really that. Trust me, you will revise your manuscript several times before the book finally goes to print. Your beta will say something casual like “WTF?” and bang—you’re into a bit of scene revision. Your editor’s letter will begin with high praise and then be followed by several paragraphs detailing stuff you need to fix or address. You’ll meet copy editors who don’t like your spelling and proof readers who want something tweaked... It’s never done until it’s out there.

Second lesson: That’s completely normal.

*What are some of your favorite books in the paranormal genre?

I’m a big fan of Charlaine Harris, Patricia Briggs, Jim Butcher, Chloe Neill and Darynda Jones. Also, for those who like the Fae, I can highly recommend Suzanne McLeod’s series. Another recommendation would be Nicole Peeler’s Jane True books.

*If you could tell readers one thing about yourself or your books, what would that be?

I was born in Montreal, Quebec to parents who were born in the same city. And yet, when I first began talking, I did so with a very thick Bostonian accent. (All together now—freaky!)

*What is the craziest or at least most interesting thing you have ever done? 

I was a bad, bad girl when I was twenty. ‘Nuf said.

*Finish this statement: "You'll like the Mystwalker series if...

..you appreciate any of the following: a unique spin on fairies and werewolves; a character in obvious need of reformation; a winning romance with a hot, hot, guy; and/or amulets with attitudes!


Thanks Leigh!!

Author Info:

I was born in Montreal, Quebec but now live in Southern Ontario with my husband. I've raised two kids, mothered three dogs, and herded a few cats. Other than that, my life was fairly routine until I hit the age of 50. Some women get tattoos. I decided to write a book. A little tardy, but then again, Mum always said I was a late bloomer.

So how old are you now?
I'm not telling you.

Have you always written?
No. I wrote about that here: http://leighevans.wordpress.com/for-perspiring-authors/step-one/ That post is the first of many that charts my journey from the start of writing Hedi's story to winning my agent, Deidre Knight, through the Speed-Dating-With-Deidre contest hosted on The Knight Agency blog.

Is The Trouble With Fate your first novel?
Yes. With all the hell that implies.

Do you have plans for more?
Indeed I do. St. Martin's Press has contracted me for four books. I delighted to add that the UK has picked up on the Mystwalker series too!

Were you always so awesome?
Sorry to disappoint, but I was the kid with the speech impediment in grade school and the wrong hem-length in high school. Let's not even discuss college, where I discovered all the things that were cool and not so cool, and realized that I probably fell into the latter category. Truth be told, I doubt I'll ever be awesome, but damn, I keep trying.

Seriously, how old are you?
I'm still not telling you.

Is there a bottom line in life?
Yes. Never give up. Ever. Even bad things eventually turn around. Take that from someone who'd all but farmed herself out into the pasture.

You can reinvent yourself. You truly can.

Find Leigh online:

Website Facebook Goodreads Blog Twitter

Book Info:

THE HEART IS A LONELY HUNTER

In the never-ending saga that is my love-hate relationship with Robson Trowbridge, I, half-Were Hedi Peacock, have had a change of heart. Ever since I shoved Trowbridge through the Gates of Merenwyn, I’ve been the leader of the pack—hard to believe, right? The thing is: I’m half-Fae. So even though my Were side is ready to heed the call of the wild, the other part of me is desperate to take flight. And much as it pains me to admit it, life without Trowbridge is really starting to were me down…

I AM WERE, HEAR ME ROAR.

To make matters worse, the wolves of Creemore want my blood—and the North American Council of Weres wants me dead. So I’m just counting the days until Trowbridge returns from the other realm…and comes to my brave rescue…and becomes my alpha mate. Wishful thinking? Of course it is. But given all the mess I’ve been through already, what’s the harm in doing a little bit of daisy-plucking? Besides, Trowbridge owes me bigtime. A girl can dream.

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Early Review: The Thing About Weres by Leigh Evans

The Thing About Weres by Leigh Evans

Mystwalker #2

THE HEART IS A LONELY HUNTER

In the never-ending saga that is my love-hate relationship with Robson Trowbridge, I, half-Were Hedi Peacock, have had a change of heart. Ever since I shoved Trowbridge through the Gates of Merenwyn, I’ve been the leader of the pack—hard to believe, right? The thing is: I’m half-Fae. So even though my Were side is ready to heed the call of the wild, the other part of me is desperate to take flight. And much as it pains me to admit it, life without Trowbridge is really starting to were me down…

I AM WERE, HEAR ME ROAR.

To make matters worse, the wolves of Creemore want my blood—and the North American Council of Weres wants me dead. So I’m just counting the days until Trowbridge returns from the other realm…and comes to my brave rescue…and becomes my alpha mate. Wishful thinking? Of course it is. But given all the mess I’ve been through already, what’s the harm in doing a little bit of daisy-plucking? Besides, Trowbridge owes me bigtime. A girl can dream.

Half-Fae, half-Were, Hedi Peacock doesn't quite fit in anywhere. Yet as alpha-by-proxy since she sent her mate, Trowbridge into the Fae realm to save his life, she's having to supress her Fae nature and embrace her Were one. Too bad she spent her entire lifetime doing the exact opposite, and now her Were side doesn't want to play ball. The pack is getting restless without a true Alpha to lead them and it's only a matter of time before they rebel. She'll have to remember the spell to bring Trowbridge back, and quick or she'll wind up being puppy chow.

Much of the same things that frustrated me from the first book were present in THE THING ABOUT WERES as well. Particularly, the romance and the lack of cohesiveness in the writing. The romance part I'll get into in a bit, but the cohesiveness I'll talk about now. After finishing this book, I realize that it may be less of a cohesive issue, but more of a genre bending issue. I honestly felt like this book is a pure fantasy trying to masquerade itself as an urban fantasy. Urban fantasy is supposed to be our modern world (or something similar) with supernatural elements or twists. However, the Mystwalker series seems to be spending more and more time focused on other worlds. I have to be honest that I found myself horribly skimming over the parts involving Threall as whenever I tried to follow them my eyes crossed, which is never a good thing when you are trying to stay immersed in a book. This honestly lessened my enjoyment of the book, but perhaps will work better for fans of true fantasy.

So if you have read my review of the previous book, you'll know that I never fully warmed up to the relationship (if you can honestly call it that) between Trowbridge and Hedi, at least until the end. And then of course that nasty cliffhanger ending with Trowbridge getting sent to the Fae realm kinda squashed all that. Now, what I'm going to talk about here might be considered a spoiler, something I usually avoid, but since it happens rather early in the book, I think it's okay and really warrants talking about. So, my bit of fair warning aside, getting into the relationship aspect in this book. I had really high hopes for Trowbridge's return, and frankly so did Hedi. Did I think all their issues would magically disappear? No, but I still thought the connection between them would have held strong. So imagine my dismay when he comes through and despite a near death episode on her behalf that leads him into a panic, he's all detached and secretive. And considering the circumstances, it really wasn't a good time to clam up. The conclusions she drew in his silence, well let me just say that I wouldn't have stuck around, life long mystical bond or not. To make matters worse, even when things are brought out into the open, I just didn't feel like they fully discussed things. It just went from both of them feeling utterly betrayed to physical intimacy, and yet nothing was fixed. Now I love a good sex scene as much as the next gal, but honestly this one just made me mad, because there was just too much left unsettled for me to "enjoy the moment." At this point, I'm pretty much resigned to just accepting that these two have a bond, even if I don't actually feel it. 

This series has been incredibly tricky for me. On one hand I really enjoy the premise and the really three dimensional characters, but on the other hand I find myself more frustrated than not with the stilted romance and the pacing/fantasy issues. In a word, I'm conflicted. So basically, I'm just going to boil down all my thoughts to one simple statement: Did I enjoy THE THING ABOUT WERES enough to continue onto the next book in the series? Yes, and in the end, that's all that really matters.

(Received a copy from the publisher via Netgalley)

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Previous Books:
     1. The Trouble With Fate

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