<>

Albert Camus

Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.

Friday, June 21, 2013

Character Interview and Giveaway Shield (Allie's War #2) by J.C. Andrijeski

Description:

“And they say Death will live among them in the guise of a child....”

Grappling with her new identity as “Bridge,” a being meant to herald the end for all of humanity, isn’t even Allie’s biggest problem. She’s also coping with a whole new set of rules around her seer marriage, as well as the power-hungry Rook she helped put in the White House, who is currently doing his best to start a war with China.

Then the boy appears. A sociopath with all of the energetic markings of Syrimne, a highly dangerous telekinetic seer who killed thousands during World War I, he doesn’t appear to have aged in one hundred years.

Worse, he thinks Allie belongs to him.

About the Allie’s War Series:

An urban fantasy paranormal romance set in a unique, gritty version of Earth, populated by a second race of beings called seers, the Allie’s War series centers on the relationship of a strong female protagonist, Allie Taylor, and her antihero guide, Dehgoies Revik. Falling into the new adult genre of books, the Allie’s War series takes place in a modern version of Earth you’ve never seen, that spans centuries along with the lives of its main characters, the seers, and the wars they fight with themselves and their human allies and enemies, (steamy sex scenes in parts!).

Allie's INTERVIEW:

1. What is your real, birth name? What name do you use?

Alyson May Taylor...well, as far as I know. That was my adopted name, the one my human parents gave me. I go by Allie, mostly. My brother calls me ‘Al’ a lot, and Cass does sometimes, too.

2. What do you look like? (Include height, weight, hair, eyes, skin, apparent age, and distinguishing features) How do you dress most of the time?
Jeez, what are you, the cops? Uh, around 5’7” now, but I’m still growing, which is kind of weird, but it’s a seer thing. My hair, well it’s natural color anyway, is kind of a dark brown. Green eyes. Skin? What does that mean? I’m more or less white, if you’re looking for ethnicity, but again, that’s kind of complicated when you’re a seer. I look a little young for my age (I’m 29, but I look closer to early 20s, I’ve been told). All of this is only if you’re thinking ‘human,’ though. For a seer, I’m super young...like, ridiculously young, since some of them live to be around 700 years old. Distinguishing features? I have some tattoos, but most people do, really, so not much there. I don’t know, ask Jon.

How I dress...uh, well, I guess, normal? San Francisco tattoo artist type normal? I like combat boots. I had a lot of cool second-hand type clothes when I still lived in the city. I do wear the occasional dress, despite what my brother might tell you, but yeah, mostly jeans, stretchy-shirts, funky jackets, that kind of thing.

3. What is your most prized mundane possession? Why do you value it so much?

A silver ring I wear on a necklace, or have for the past year, anyway. My husband gave it to me. Well...boyfriend, friend...whatever he is.

4. What was/is your family like?

I have an adopted brother, Jon, who’s like three years older than me. That’s pretty much it, these days. Our dad died of MS when I was in high school, and my mom...well, my mom is dead. She got killed not long after I found out I was a seer. I was lucky, though, my parents were really cool...even though mom kind of fell apart when dad died, they were always there for me, too. My dad was an engineer, so one of those tinkering types. My mom worked for the post office. I think she probably hated it, actually, but she had a good sense of humor, and read a ton of books. My brother’s like kung fu master meets San Francisco surfer-boy with a splash of Buddha. He’s a big book nerd, too, like mom, and studied philosophy in college, which of course insured he’d end up teaching martial arts, since he couldn’t get a job doing much else. He’s my best friend.

5. How old were you when you went on your first date? What was it like?
Oh, jeez. This is probably going to get me in trouble with Revik. Thirteen? Fourteen, maybe? Does groping in a broom closet count as a date? I was a little freaked out in puberty, honestly. Looking back, I think most of that probably had to do with being a seer and not knowing I was a seer or what was wrong with me, but I got labeled a nympho pretty quick by some of the jerks in school. It wasn’t fun, believe me. Luckily, my parents were cool about it, and tried to protect me, instead of blaming me for it. I know from my best friend, Cass, that’s not always the case...

6. What were you like in high school? What clique did you belong in?
My ‘clique’ was like three people...me, Jon and Cass. We had other friends, though, some of them from the neighborhood. Frankie, Sasquatch, Hesh, Tommy, Laura, and a few others. Most of us didn’t leave San Francisco in our twenties, so we still hung out, at least until I found out I was a seer and had to go on the run. Oh, and yeah, now they all think I’m a terrorist or whatever...

7. Who was your idol? Who did you first fantasize about in your life?

I really wanted to be either Deborah Harry or Carrie Fisher when I was about 12. Well, until I saw what drugs and too many tater tots did to them...both of them got kind of scary there for awhile.

8. Do you have a job? What is it? Do you like it? If no job, where does your money come from?
I was a waitress in SF. Did I like it? Are you kidding me? Would you like working some crappy diner for chump change and getting groped by bored jackasses? No, I didn’t like it. Now I’m ‘The Bridge’ and sort of the leader of the seers...well, the traditional ones, anyway, the ones under the Seven Tribes. That’s my job now, I guess, although, really, THAT’S kind of a scary thought. Money? What money? The seers here, in Seertown, I mean, like Vash and the rest, they give me money if I need it for something, but otherwise, yeah, I’m pretty much broke.

9. Who is your closest friend? Where do you hang out and/or what do you like doing with one another?
My best friends are my brother, Jon, and Cass, who I pretty much grew up with, too, since she only lived a few blocks away. I think we met in some play group when we were three or something, and our mom’s became friends for awhile, so we spent a lot of time at each other’s houses for daycare stuff and playdates and that kind of thing. Right now, most of what we do to hang is wander around Seertown or hang out in Vash’s compound or screw around at the local bars. In San Francisco it wasn’t that different, come to think of it. Well, we saw more band shows in SF...and got to hang out at the park more, and see movies, that kind of thing. And, yeah, there wasn’t the whole seer thing, or me having to bless babies as the Bridge and all of that crazy religious and political stuff I have to do now.

10. Who is your worst enemy? Describe them and why you don't get along?

My worst enemy? Well, at this point that would have to be Terian. Why we don’t get along? Uh, you mean besides the fact that he’s trying to start a war between the United States and China? Tortured my husband and my two best friends for months on end, and cut off my brother’s fingers? And, oh yeah...killed my mom? I have no idea why we aren’t best pals, come to think of it...really, I should invite him over for a barbecue.

11. What annoys you more than anything else? What makes you the happiest of anything else?
People messing with my friends probably ‘annoys’ me more than anything, especially if they’re doing it to get to me. As far as what makes me happiest...well, hanging out on a white-sand beach under palm trees and blue skies, a hot sun and blue waters, a margarita in my hand and my pals at my side, along with some decent tunes and a few heaping plates of Mexican food certainly wouldn’t suck right about now. Especially if it meant I got to see Revik in a bathing suit. Which, come to think of it, is kind of funny for more than one reason. Hot, yeah...but yeah, funny.



About the author:
C Andrijeski has published novels, novellas, serials, graphic novels and short stories, as well as nonfiction essays and articles, including the Allie’s War series, The Slave Girl Chronicles and bestselling novella, The Alien Club. Her short fiction runs from humorous to apocalyptic, and her nonfiction articles cover subjects from graffiti art, meditation, psychology, journalism, politics and history. JC has traveled extensively and lived abroad, but currently lives and works on the Oregon Coast.

4 comments:

Unknown said...

All I can say is "WOW!" You have such an amazing imagination. I cannot wait to travel in your world...michelle_willms@yahoo.com

JC Andrijeski said...

Hey, thanks so much, Michelle! I really hope you enjoy the series, and thanks for checking out the blog! :)

Unknown said...

Allie sounds like a very interesting character. I look forward to reading more about her. Thanks!

JC Andrijeski said...

Thanks, Ty! And good luck on the giveaway! :)