[Note from Frolic: We are so excited to welcome author Katie Reus to the site today! She’s sharing her love affair with paranormal romance with us. Take it away, Katie!]
Almost all the books and series I’ve picked up have been because of word of mouth. In the romance community, and I’m sure in general, word of mouth is huge. I take suggestions from friends who know my reading tastes faster than I will from reading a review online. Word of mouth is how I fell head over heels in love with paranormal romance to begin with. I’ve long been a big fan of romantic suspense—ever since my last year of college when I finally started reading fiction for fun again. And before that, I’d been sneaking my mom’s Harlequins from the age of twelve-ish. But paranormal romance was something I’d somehow convinced myself I didn’t like. I have NO idea why I was so resistant to it. I might have even read some paranormal romance and it just hadn’t been right for me. I don’t remember because it was ages ago, but I was SO stupidly resistant.
But my best friend (fellow author, Kaylea Cross) kept telling me about the Black Dagger Brotherhood. For some reason I thought I didn’t like vampires. But because she was insistent (and I trusted her taste) I picked up book 1 right in the middle of a move to another state. My husband had already relocated because of his job and I was packing up the house and organizing a full house move basically on my own. Before I’d even finished Dark Lover, I’d already run down to my local bookstore (this was when I still read mainly print) and bought all available books in that series. If I’m remembering correctly, there were 7 books out at that point and I devoured them instead of packing. We had this hideous orange couch at the time and I remember just laying on that thing and reading until I fell asleep every night! I wish I’d known about audiobooks then because I could have multi-tasked.
After that I devoured everything paranormal I could get my hands on for years. And not long after that move, I did discover audiobooks and ended up listening to most of the Fever series in one long swoop (what was out at the time, that series is much longer now). Then it was on to another series, and then another. I devoured the Dark Hunter books, and any vampire books I could get my hands on. For years I was all about paranormal romance. Ha, I still am.
And yet, when another author friend told me to try Nalini Singh’s Angels’ Blood, I was all “I don’t like angel books, how can angels be sexy?”. But I trusted her and by the end of that book I was ugly crying and demanding more. Now, the Guild Hunter series is one of my favorite all-time series AND Dmitri, a character I thought I hated, holds the slot of top 5 favorite characters. I ugly cried reading his and Honor’s book (Archangel’s Blade) and she’s one of the few authors I still buy in print because I want those books on my shelf. In case the world loses power one day and I can’t charge my kindle, I want to be able to read those books. (Her Psy-Changeling series is also one of my favorite series. No one writes emotion like Nalini Singh!) I love it when a reader is just discovering her because I know they’re in for a treat and have this huge backlist to check out.
Today I’m not resistant to trying new paranormal series (or any romance genre really) because I’ve realized it’s the characters more than anything that pull me in. So it doesn’t matter if they have angel wings or sprout fur, if the blurb is enticing or even better, if a friend recommends it, I’m pretty much guaranteed to pick it up. Lately my love of paranormal characters has turned to dragons, which is pretty clear in my all new Ancients Rising series. I definitely have a thing for growly heroes!
While I fell in love with paranormal romance because of the BDB, I stayed in love because of all the other books that followed. Romance, especially paranormal romance, is full of hope, kickass women, incredible world building and did I say hope? Hope and a guaranteed HEA make the world a better place and I can never get enough.
About the Author:
Katie Reus is the New York Times, USA Today, and IndieReader bestselling author of the Red Stone Security series, the Moon Shifter series and the Deadly Ops series. She fell in love with romance at a young age thanks to books she pilfered from her mom’s stash. Years later she loves reading romance almost as much as she loves writing it.
However, she didn’t always know she wanted to be a writer. After changing majors many times, she finally graduated summa cum laude with a degree in psychology. Not long after that she discovered a new love. Writing. She now spends her days writing dark paranormal romance and sexy romantic suspense. Her book Avenger’s Heat recently won the Georgia RWA Maggie Award for Excellence in the fantasy/paranormal category.
Website: https://katiereus.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katiereusauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/katiereus
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1563059.Katie_Reus
Blog: http://katiereus.blogspot.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/katiereusauthor/
Ancient Protector by Katie Reus, out now!
Even as he fights for their future…
With the world still rebuilding after massive dragon attacks, famous singer Star isn’t willing to rely on a stranger to protect her family—though dragon shifter Lachlan is difficult to resist. Something about him is strangely familiar, but she doesn’t understand why. He’s already helped Star rescue her sister from a recent abduction, but trust doesn’t come easy when his kind has nearly hunted her race to extinction. When her sister’s kidnapper launches another violent attack, Star has no choice but to accept Lachlan’s aid. But no matter that he’s stepped up to protect her, she’ll never allow the ancient Scottish dragon into her heart.
They’re bound by the past.
Lachlan lost the woman he was meant to mate millennia ago. Unable to live in a world without her, his pain drove him to hibernation. He never thought he would move on—until Star. He’s well aware the feisty shifter is his new destiny, so if tailing her to New Orleans is what he has to do to be near her, then so be it. When Star is attacked, Lachlan resolves to protect her at all costs. And he won’t have to do it alone. It will take Lachlan, his clansmen, and Star’s misfit band of friends to rain fiery vengeance down upon their enemy if she and her sister are to ever be truly free. Only then can he claim her and discover the shocking truth that lies buried in their past.
