Thursday, September 13, 2007

COMMENT on this post for a chance to win a signed print copy of Tempted Tigress by Jade Lee.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Children of mixed races have their own set of rules. As the daughter of a Shanghai native and a staunch Indiana Hoosier, Jade Lee struggled to find her own identity somewhere between America and China. Her search has taken her throughout Asian and the United States. In the end, the answer was found not only at home, but in her own head. Her imagination allows her to explore pre-Communist China in her Tigress series, paranormal energy and werewolf fun in her Crimson City books, and of course, the amazing power of love in all of them.

A USA Today bestseller, Jade “Lee has made her mark with sizzling romances whose unique settings, intriguing backdrops and exotic characters lure you into worlds where heaven is reached through the highest meeting of mind and body. It’s a world at once mysterious and erotic, secret and mind-expanding.” (Romantic Times BOOKreviews on Cornered Tigress)

Jade’s also a popular speaker appearing all over the country throughout the year. Her other joys include playing racquetball, rollerblading with a very large golden retriever, and watching her two daughters play volleyball. She loves getting mail from readers, so please e-mail her at jade@jadeleeauthor.com. Or visit her on the web at www.jadeleeauthor.com.


INTERVIEW:

Why did you become a writer? Was it a dream of yours since you were younger or did the desire to write happen later in your life?
Much later in life! In fact, I never dreamed I could write a book until I was a tech writer looking for something more fun to do…and decided to write a screenplay. Yes, I even got a MPW (master’s of professional writing at USC) in screenwriting, but then moved AWAY from the industry to Illinois. It wasn’t until then that I decided to try my hand at novel writing. And truthfully, it was when I really learned to write. I had read somewhere that in order to be a great screenwriter, start with a novel first. Whoever said it was right. I never really learned how to be a good writer until I went to the long form first.

What do you love about being an author? Is there anything you dislike?
I love thinking about what I’m going to write. I love reading it when it’s written. I even enjoy making it sparkle in the editing process. But actually facing the blank page? UGH! HATE THAT!

How do you balance your personal and writing time?
Badly. But I’m working on it. Personal time can eat up your life (I have two teenagers active in sports!) Promotional time can eat up your life (I love doing interviews and going to conferences!) Writing can consume your life. (I could write every day, all day, and not catch up!) So…I just do the juggling act that everyone is familiar with. I try to set time limits or page limits and boundary everything else in my life. Now is family time. Now is promo time. Now is writing time. But it never works perfectly. And rarely even well. *sigh*

How do you write? Do your characters come to you first or the plot or the world of the story?
CHARACTERS!!!! Plot is something the characters do. People inhabit my head. And it’s people who I write. I’ve done some great adventure stories, but that always comes second.

What genre(s) do you write? Why do you write the stories that you write?
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! Doodedoodedoo… I write romance. Adventure romance. Sensual romance. Fantasy romance. I NEED the love story first and foremost. It’s what I believe in, and what I want to read.

What is the biggest misconception about being an author?
That it makes money. After 15 novels, I finally broke the poverty line! Yippee!!

Do you tend to base your characters on real people or are they totally from your imagination?
Ummm….weeeeeelllll. Yeah, it’s real people, but don’t tell my mother! She’ll start looking for herself in my books and that would be BAD! Actually, I start with a real person then shift and adjust and push them out further onto the edge.

Out of all the characters that you've written, who is your favorite and why?
They’re all my favorite! Honest. That’s like picking between children. I have special fondness for Tempted Tigress. It was hard to write, hard to push through, but I think I ended up with something extra special. I also LOVE the people in my fantasy romance coming out in March: Dragonborn. Boy was that a great book to write. But honestly, I know it’s not the answer you want, but I love them all. Even the bad guys.

If you were writing a script for the big screen, who would you want to act in your movie?
Anyone who can act. Really. Please, please God, give me someone who can act.

What would you want readers to take away from your books?
That “ahhhh” feeling. That they loved reading it and can’t wait for the next. That’s the best feeling in the world!

Do you have any advice for beginning writers in regards to writing a book?
Write. Writers write. That’s it. Just keep writing. And maybe read a how-to book or two. But the more you write, the better you’ll get. Especially if you take the time to really study your craft while you’re writing. Get better. And don’t ever stop.

Who are your favorite authors?
Kathleen Korbel, JK Rowling, Linda Howard, Betina Krahn, Cindy Dees and Elizabeth Hoyt. Geez…there are so many, but I can’t think of them right now.

What are you reading right now?
Just finished Marianne Mancusi’s Shomi book titled Moongazer. Really enjoyed it!



ABOUT THE BOOK:

BLURB:

A DANGEROUS CURRENT

China's Grand Canal saw all kinds of transport-food, slaves, even deadly opium. And when one woman planned to sail it to freedom, her flight would end in the arms of a Mandarin prince. There her true journey would begin.

Orphaned and stranded, Anna Marie Thompson could trust no one, especially not her dark captor. Not when his eyes held secrets deadlier than her own. Though his caress was liquid fire, his arms a steely shield, Anna was still an Englishwoman and alone. She could not trust him when he swore they could tame the dragon, could together unearth the riches of the sweet cinnabar cave. But sadness and fear could be cleansed by soft yin rain, he whispered; safety and joy were but a breath away. And perhaps love. All was here for the taking, if she would just give in to temptation....


EXCERPT:

"You stink," he snapped in English.

"You're cruel," she shot back before she think better of it.

He reared back as if struck. "Prisoners are to stay silent," he roared in Chinese.
Then he folded his arms across the richly embroidered tunic the proclaimed him the Emperor's Enforcer. "Name!" he snapped.

She lifted her chin and did not answer. Before she completed the motion, the servant crossed the room and backhanded her with a brutal hand.

"You will answer!" the man boomed in Chinese.

"He said prisoners do not speak!" she cried out, furious to realize that her eyes watered from pain and humiliation.

"You are not a prisoner," the Enforcer responded evenly.

She blinked, completely thrown. "I'm..."

"Name!" bellowed the servant.

"Sister Marie," she answered in total truth. Except, of course, it wasn't the full truth. Marie was her religious name and the one she had been given the day she began swabbing the floors of the Shanghai mission when she was eight. "Why aren't I a prisoner?" she demanded. Then she frowned and rephrased in Chinese. "People who are not prisoners should not be shackled." She held out her arms as if expecting the chains to be removed.

The Enforcer made no move toward her. Instead, he leaned back in his chair and inspected her in a long, leisurely fashion, a grim smile on his face. "You are not a prisoner," he said coldly. "You are my concubine. And as such, I can legally do much worse than shackle you."


REVIEWS:

"Jade Lee's book Tempted Tigress is a passionate, steamy tale that would make anyone melt with envy. She gets into the heart of the characters making them emotionally appealing to the reader. Tempted Tigress is definitely one for the keeper shelf and I definitely will read anything by Jade Lee that I see around. "
-- Zollyanna, Night Owl Romance

"Anna Marie Thompson is stranded as an orphan in China. She survives by becoming an opium drug runner for her adoptive father, but quickly becomes addicted to the drug. However, she soon runs afoul of the Emperor's most zealous enforcer Zhi-Gang who destroys her current shipment and catches her.

Zhi-Gang is on a personal mission to rescue his sister from the traffickers who abducted her. During his quest he destroys their cash crop opium. However, his current prisoner Anna makes him reconsider all he does as he wants her. She reciprocates his deepest feelings and believes she has a reason to end her addiction. Although he does not trust her as opium users will sell anything even their body, they fall in love while teaming up to kill those human traffickers peddling young girls to the brothels.

Having the heroine addicted to opium and her beloved distrust her because of it make for a unique couple finding a delightfully different path to heaven as the lead pair refreshes the Tigress tales. Perhaps the most distinctive erotic historical romantic suspense around today, series readers will appreciate TEMPTED TIGRESS starring two fascinating heroes united in love and against the flesh vendors but initially on different sides of the opium issue that haunts late nineteenth century China."
-- Harriet Klausner


Tempted Tigress by Jade Lee
ISBN: 0-843-95690-9
Publisher: Leisure Books
Release Date: June 2007
$6.99 from Amazon.com


Purchase Tempted Tigress by Jade Lee HERE!!!