Book Crazy: Blog Tour & Giveaway: Star Cursed [Curse of the Beast 02] by Ashley Lavering!

Interview!

To start us off is there anything you'd love to tell us about yourself?

I am a huge fan of outdoor recreational sports. I love to scuba dive. When I was young I would dream of breathing underwater, and now I can! However, I now live in a high desert. Lol. Yet, I love how the sagebrush smells after it rains.

For the readers out there that haven't read your Curse of the Beast Series could you tell us a quick bit about it please?

It is a YA paranormal romance and a retelling of Beauty and the Beast with a werewolf twist. It takes two books to tell this modern-day retelling, but I am going to continue their story in book three.

Are you surprised by the response you have had for your books?

I have been overjoyed by the response of my fans! It is hard to know how your creation will be received and when you start hearing how people couldn’t put it down or stayed up all night reading it, it give you such a high! So thanks to all my fans for making my life brighter.

How did you come up with the idea to write the Curse of the Beast Series?

I was daydreaming. And oft times it is about a book I read or something I saw that will collide with another thought and produces a scene in my mind. In this case, I was reading a lot of werewolf books and then read a Beauty and the Beast retelling. Then I saw this girl in a city and with a snarling wolf by her side. She was trying to protect her friends from the beast and the beast was trying to protect her from the boys he thought were threats. So I played the question game and that was the birth of the Curse of the Beast Series.

Who designed your gorgeous covers?

I took the pictures for both of my covers. Curse of the Beast cover was designed by the oh so talented Jessica Drollette from Mystic Manuscripts LLC. Star Cursed cover was my first attempt at designing a cover, but I am very happy with how it turned out J. I still of a lot to learn in the digital art arena.

Who is your favorite character from the Curse of the Beast Series & why?

Beast, because of his southern charm and strength. He can be sweet but when he needs to be he can be commanding and a protector. Besides, he has this adorable grin and eyes that will melt your insides. Oh and did I mention he has lots of wonderful muscles? What werewolf doesn’t.

Do you have a favorite quote from Star Cursed?

The one that makes me laugh is from Tayla: My grin was so large my cheek muscles ached. “You got it. Exclaim gleeful happiness before puking. Anything else?”

Are you currently writing anything? Can you tell us anything about it please?

The first novel that I ever wrote is a part of the Land Magic Saga, a YA high fantasy. I am very excited to get back to this magic filled world of Chagoric Lords (the bad guys) and the Chosen of the Land and her warriors, who fight them. Plus, there are some guys I’ve been missing: Bear and Marek.

Along with writing on that story, I will start on book three in the Curse of the Beast Series. I have a very funny scene where werewolves are on yoga mats. Not sure why yet, but it is too funny an image to not put it in.

Is there anything you'd like to say to your fans/readers?

Just that you all Rock! Thanks for supporting me in my love for writing and sharing my worlds with me.

Quickfire Round!
Favorite Food: Fajitas
Favorite Country: Besides my U.S.A. It would be Ireland.

Favorite Color: Forest Green
Favorite Animal: Dolphin
Favorite Book: Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Favorite Movie: How to Train Your Dragon
Favorite Drink: Juice smoothies
Favorite Restaurant: Dos Amigos

Seventeen-year-old Tayla will never forget Beast’s fiery-venom spreading through her body like an infection. Now, with her best friend Chel’s help, she must find a human true love before the last petal falls from her enchanted rose or the full moon will transform her into a wolf forever.

But Tayla never expected that her biggest obstacle would come from inside—a wolf presence threatening to take her very soul. At every turn, the she-wolf exploits Tayla’s weaknesses and gains enough control to sabotage her dates. Tayla struggles to control her unruly wolf and her forbidden attraction to Beast. But can she resist his southern charm, the she-wolf’s attraction to his alluring scent, and still fall in love with a human?

Tangled in a web of wills, Tayla must risk everything to break the Curse of the Beast. With failure and possible death looming overhead, Tayla will do anything to find true love. But will one moon cycle be long enough to conquer her wolf and remain human? Or will she become a permanent member of Beast’s pack? Find out in the second installment in the Curse of the Beast series.

Add to your Goodreads shelf: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16155124-star-cursed

Available as E-book: Kindle, Nook, Smashwords; and paperback: Amazon

Author bio:

A nomad at heart, I currently claim Nevada as my home. I have a wonderful husband and two young children that put up with my “writing time.” When I’m not pondering on a spell that will magically calm the ferocious winds that plague the air around me, you can find me, with notepad in hand, frantically jotting down ideas in those short moments between caring for my girls.
Art and science have always been my yin and yang. Throughout my college career, I shifted between the two, but in the end I graduated with a Bachelors of Mathematics and Science from the University of Wyoming.
Charging into adventures and discovering something new has always been a passion of mine, but as a teenager I use to run screaming from a reading or writing assignment. Looking back, the irony isn’t lost on me. Now you can’t catch me without a book in hand or without an open word document. Every time a new idea pops into my mind my heart races and my hand twitch to write it. In that moment, I have my writer's high and pray it will sustain me through thousands of hours of revision.