About
the Author:
Liz Long is
lucky enough to have a dream career in magazine publishing as an editor and
writer, yet still have time to create adventures on the side. If you catch her
staring off into space or talking to herself, don’t worry – it’s just her
imagination at work.
Liz graduated from Longwood University with a BA in English,
though her professors might be disappointed to hear she reads more fantasy
fiction than literary novels. She also loves action and thriller genres. This
book probably won’t change your life, but she hopes it steals you away from reality
for a while.
Author
Links:
Even in a world of freaks, being a Firestarter is considered
a dangerous Gift.
Lucy was born with the ability to create and control fire.
She longs to leave the human world for one filled with Earthshakers,
Transporters, and Chameleons, to name a few. When she rejoins the circus, it’s
everything she hoped it could be—new friends, a potential love interest or two,
and a place where she can be herself.
When troupe members begin turning up dead, however, Lucy is
suspected of foul play. She must not only prove her innocence but also realize
the full extent of her power. To find the real murderer, she must uncover the
truth behind her father’s fiery legacy while figuring out whom to trust within
her new circle. Little does she know the history of the Donovan Circus and its
enemies might actually destroy the entire gifted world.
How does a witch stay safe if a killer can get through her
protection spells?
Witches like Ruby and Courtney can take care of themselves.
So when Courtney is murdered, Ruby’s world crashes to a halt. The only thing
keeping her grounded is the return of Courtney’s brother, Cooper. He seeks
revenge, but Ruby wants to help other witches stay alive. To do that, she’ll
have to reunite with her old coven’s High Priest, who also happens to be her
cheating ex-boyfriend.
If that wasn’t awkward enough, when the killer gets too
close, Cooper temporarily moves into Ruby’s place while a police officer tails
her every move. Cooper’s presence distracts Ruby as they fight their desire
against their need to stay safe. Then Courtney begins to haunt Ruby’s dreams
and secrets are spilled, things from Cooper’s past that could get them both
killed. The killer continues to stalk Ruby and the more she discovers, the more
she fears she won’t be able to keep her heart in her chest.
Cooper and Ruby hopped on his
bike and drove back to her place. She even managed to peek out from beneath her
helmet to see the city whip past her in a blur. When they finally came to a
stop, she untangled herself from him – albeit a tad regretful about it – and
handed him back the helmet.
“Thanks again for everything
tonight. I know it wasn’t the most fun you could have, but I want everyone to
be safe,” she said.
“I understand. I’m glad I went,
too. I don’t want anyone else in danger. Plus, you’re good company.” He stood
up as he said it, hooking the helmets on his bike.
“You don’t have walk me in or
anything. I don’t want to keep you any longer than you need.”
He snorted. “You’re not keeping
me from anything. I want to do it, but especially because I want to make sure
you’re safe.”
Ruby bit her bottom lip. Her
nerves fluttered a bit at the thought of a possible goodnight kiss. She could
hardly believe how immature she sounded in her head.
It’s your best friend’s
brother. This is Cooper we’re talking about, a voice in her head screamed at
her.
Another voice spoke up. Yeah.
It’s Cooper. And your thoughts about him have never been exactly brotherly.
Shaking both voices away, she
swiped her key fob by the entrance door and Cooper held it open for her. They
took the stairs up to the second floor and walked around the corner to her
apartment. Ruby stopped as soon as she saw her door.
“Something’s wrong,” she said.
“What? How can you tell?” He
looked up and down the hallway.
“There was a barrier when I
left. Remember I checked, put my hand on the door when we left? My spell was in
place.”
“There was a soft glow on the
door,” he said absentmindedly, as though remembering. His eyes narrowed and
Ruby could see his veins throb in his neck as his jaw tightened.
“Only witches would be able to
see it, but it’s not there.” Ruby took a few steps forward, placing her hand on
the door, which was now simply cool and wooden. She retrieved her key and
turned the lock, but Cooper stopped her.
“I’ll go in first.”
He swung the door wide open; he
held his hands up in case of a fight or a spell, but silence greeted them.
Cooper did a quick sweep of the apartment while Ruby waited in the entryway. He
returned with Aziza in one arm and a letter in his hand.
“This was on your coffee
table,” he said grimly. “Aziza was hiding behind the couch. She hissed until
she realized it was me.”
Ruby took the note from him. As
she opened it, Cooper stood beside her to read over her shoulder.
“Not all witches are equal.
Some are born with extraordinary gifts; anyone can practice, but few are truly
powerful. You are one of the lucky ones, Ruby. I apologize about your friend
Courtney. She was powerful, but nowhere near your capabilities. I’m afraid that
in order for my powers to thrive, yours must come to an end. I’ll be seeing you
very soon. –X”
Q&A:
1) What
is your all-time favorite book and why?
I think that would have to be Harry Potter and the Order of
the Phoenix. To me, it's the first book in that series that really shows
emotional angst for Harry between being a teenager, dating your first crush,
and of course, being hunted by Lord Voldemort. We get to see our characters
developing into real wizards with the DA (like Neville growing into being a
badass), plus the introduction of accepting those deemed a little strange, like
Luna Lovegood. We feel our first real loss with a major character as well as
the real danger now that dark wizards are out in the open by the end. It's a
full scale of emotions and really sort of sets the rest of the stage for the
series, IMO.
2) Is
there an author you could be compared to or popular fictional characters your
book's characters could relate to and why?
Oh gosh, it's probably still a little early in the game for
me to presume I can be compared to another author. BookBub compared my Donovan
Circus book to the Hunger Games, with a female character destined to discover
who she is and stand up for her world. I'm sure my circus folks could hang with
any X-Men character, while my characters from WITCH HEARTS would get along well
with the Halliwell sisters from Charmed or Sookie Stackhouse and her friends.
3) Can
you give us your favorite quote from one of your books and explain it?
One of my favorite lines is one Lucy says in the first
chapter when explaining why she’s rejoining the Donovan Circus:
“I wanted to be normal amongst the freaks.”
Family and a sense of belonging are heavy themes in my first
book and this line sums Lucy up perfectly. Lucy has never been “normal”
anywhere in the human world. She thinks – hopes, really – that she can find her
place in the gifted world in the circus she used to know. She’s been a loner
her whole life because of her gift and now that there’s an opportunity to be a
part of something, she’s happy to include herself in the strange gaggle that is
the Donovan gang.
4) What types of things/people/music inspires you and makes
you want to keep writing?
I listen to a lot of soundtracks, especially movie scores,
like Avengers, Sherlock Holmes, and anything else that contains some action
type of music. Honestly, nothing has been more motivating for me lately than to
hear a reader I've never met before tell me how much they loved my work and
can't wait for another book to read. It's such an amazing feeling to affect
someone's book list and I'm honored to be a part of it. It's a total kick in
the butt to know people are eagerly anticipating another title and makes me
want to write that much faster.
5)
Describe your typical writing day or week.
I work full time, so I write when I can in my spare time.
Often my husband will go to the gym for a couple hours after work, so I take
advantage and try to crank out a few hundred words. I also give him lots of
time to play video games or watch NBA so I can sit on the couch with him and
write. And of course, the weekends contain my biggest chunks of writing time,
so there's nothing I like better than a rainy Sunday with coffee and my laptop.
6) Is
there a food or drink do you have to have when you're writing?
I love Skittles to snack on during the process, though my
teeth beg me to stop. I'm also never opposed to a fresh new 20 oz. Diet Coke
within reach, but that's only once a week at most. The rest of the time it's
H2O!
7) Can
you tell us what you're working on right now (& possibly provide an excerpt
& cover)?
I am currently working on the second book in the Donovan
Circus series. Next up is an NA fantasy novel with a unique twist on Reapers.
