Review, Interview and Giveaway - The Circle: Blood Gift by Amy Lee Burgess

The Circle: Blood Gift
by Amy Lee Burgess

Blurb:

When Claire became a vampire, she hoped she could forget her abusive past. But her mentor, the sexy, perfect Parker destroys her dreams of a new start. Soon, Claire devotes her new found psychic powers to helping abused women.

Drawn to the mysterious and handsome Andre, another master in the London Circle and Parker’s archrival, Claire enters into a passionate clandestine affair which causes her powers to ramp out of control. Wild, sensual sex morphs into something deeper and, for Claire, terrifying. Andre soon discovers her abilities and realizes he is her trigger–the one vampire in the world who can help her control her spiraling powers.

Bonding with him requires Claire to trust and accept his love, two things she cannot bring herself to do. The gift of love is something her past won’t allow her to accept. Even so, Andre will have to reach her in time to save her life or stake her when her powers drive her insane.

Excerpt:

“Claire.” Andre’s voice was heavy with desire. The way he said my name with his slight Irish accent was different from the way everyone else said it. I felt special. Different. As if I mattered.

I turned my head to look at him. He had me pinned to the grass, one hand on either side of my shoulders. I’d locked my ankles so my heels pressed into the small of his back. His eyes were smoldering dark, and my lips parted.

That was all the invitation he needed. The burning shock of his mouth against mine was electric, and I brought my hands up so I could bury my fingers in his soft hair. I had just enough presence of mind to weave a shield of privacy so that mortals didn’t register we were there and avoided walking near.

Andre and I connected like interlocking pieces of a vast puzzle. Our kiss went supernova hot in an instant. I curled my tongue around his, and the whole world froze. Mortals were nearby, but their thoughts abruptly cut out of my head. For all I was aware, Andre and I were the only two beings on earth .

The explosive taste of his blood made me moan. He’d deliberately nicked his tongue on his fang. My own fangs burst from my gums, and I scraped my tongue against one of them. Blood spurted, and it was Andre’s turn to groan. The cold grass beneath my body seemed to disappear as if I floated weightless with only Andre’s kiss to anchor me. Time sputtered and died, and nothing mattered but his hot mouth moving against mine.

“Claire,” Andre said again through the blood in his mouth.

Four golden weeks I’d waited for him to kiss me, and now he was, and it was glorious.

“I’m going to make love to you in the grass if we don’t stop.” He increased the pressure of his lips against the hollow of my throat. “Come home with me, angel.”

“Dre,” I whispered, shaking with fear and desire—I wasn’t sure which was stronger. On fire for him, I didn’t want him to stop touching me. While his body was pressed to mine, we had all the time in the world, but when he moved away, would everything crash? “I’m scared.”

“Of me?” He lifted his head so he could look into my eyes. The night around us was alive with the sound of crickets. Stars wheeled in the sky, and the earth pressed against my back. I was suspended in the universe. Nothing mattered but him.

Us.

I touched his cheek with the tip of my finger, traced a line to his sensual mouth. I wanted to kiss him and taste my blood mingled with his. “Of everything. Of this not being real. That this is all a lie like Parker says. That I don’t matter. That nothing matters. That this is a race to see who can hurt the other first.”

He winced as if in pain, and I buried my face in his shoulder. He pulled me tightly into his embrace and rested his forehead against my head. “I won’t hurt you. I swear I won’t.”

Buy Links: Amazon | Loose Id | Barnes & Noble

My Mini Review:

OMG!  This story was fantastic!  This is not your typical vampire story, it is more about a woman who has had one abusive relationship after another and she believes that becoming a vampire will magically change her life.  Claire is a strong yet fragile woman who is trying to find love and acceptance but finds that turning into a vampire does not mean she will suddenly have a perfect life.  She is given to Master Parker as his apprentice and finds that he is not the loving and caring savior she dreamed of.  Claire also finds herself attracted to Master Andre, a rival of Parker, though she knows she should not encourage a relationship with him, she is unable to help herself.  There are  many secrets and mysteries surrounding the London Circle and she starts to feel the pressure of hiding her own special powers.  This story totally drew me in and I have to say I read it in one sitting with a box of tissues by my side.  This was a beautifully written and engrossing story of a woman trying to find love and getting beyond her past.  I am adding Amy Lee Burgess to my author watch list and am looking forward to the next book in this series!  ~Booklover Sue

Lets Learn a Little About:  Amy Lee Brugess:

1.      What is your writing environment?

I have a writing desk in my living room. I have a shelf for writing and travel books that I can reference when needed.  The desk is also cluttered with meaningful knick knacks including oils and incense, candles, a framed picture of the cover of my first novel and other odds and ends.  I listen to house/trance music when I write and my dogs are generally asleep nearby.

 

2.      Who is your perfect hero/heroine?  Why?

My friend Beth is my perfect heroine right now. She volunteers to help orphaned and injured baby seals and has selflessly campaigned for animal rights ever since I’ve known her. Plus she is one of the sweetest women on earth. At some point I’m going to write a fictional heroine with some of Beth’s traits and passions.

 

3.      Which authors have caught your interest lately?  Why?

G. A. Aiken and her Dragon Kin series is a current favorite. Damn, those dragon shifters are sexy and funny as hell.  I’m also on a William X. Kienzle kick. He wrote The Rosary Murders and about twenty other Catholic-based murder mysteries. His protagonist, Father Koessler, starts off in Rosary Murders in his mid-forties and by the end of the series he’s in his seventies. It is a fascinating journey.

 

4.      What type of book have you always wanted to write?

The ones I have written and am writing – paranormal erotica and urban fantasy. I just have to have that touch of darkness in my novels.  Plus, I love writing about paranormals. They can be just that much different from real-life people making them so much fun to create.

 

5.      What’s the last movie you watched and loved?

Tora, Tora, Tora with my dad over Christmas. I’ve been on a World War II kick for the past several months and it sort of combined everything I’d learned and mixed into one cohesive and really fun movie.  (I go on a lot of “kicks” don’t I?)

 

6.      Top 3 things on your bucket list

Visit Ireland (This April I get to check this one off)

Fall in love with someone who will stay the course with me for the rest of our lives (Third time’s the charm, right?)

Become a full-time writer who doesn’t need a “day job” (Wish me luck!)

 

7.      How did you get the idea for this particular novel?

I’ve always been fascinated with vampires, but it wasn’t until after Hurricane Katrina when I had to leave New Orleans that I decided to write out my PTSD.  So I don’t think  came up with the idea so much as it seized hold of me and helped me work through one of the most difficult periods of my life.

 

8.      What is your favorite scene in your new release?

When Claire shows up at Andre’s door uninvited and they have sex on the kitchen counter. I love her spontaneity and the way she overcame her fear to go to him instead of waiting for him to invite her.

 

9.      What would you consider a “perfect” date?

Anywhere/anytime with Stuart Townsend. Ha. Getting back to reality, I think a perfect date would be one where we both were on the same wavelength the entire time and there were no awkward pauses or moments. One where we laughed a lot, drank some wine together, held hands and maybe sat on the beach and made out a little. 

 

10.  What are you working on right now?

The sequel to Blood Gift. Claire still has some work to do in her Circle!

 

About the Author:

Amy Lee Burgess lives and writes in Houston, Texas but her heart belongs to New England – especially in the autumn.

Ruled by two dachshunds and addicted to Irish breakfast tea and the Walking Dead, she loves to write about vampires, wolf shifters, gargoyles and other assorted paranormal creatures. Amy loves to travel to places like London England, Edinburgh, Scotland, Paris France and Providence, Rhode Island where she stalks the coziest Irish pubs she can find.

She writes to trance and house music by candlelight and welcomes email from her readers – especially if they want to talk about the supernatural.

Amy’s Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Giveaway:

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