Bounty Huntress
Sleepy Hollow Hunter
Book One
A Hotel Paranormal Story
Sheri Queen
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publisher: Wilda Press
Date of Publication: November 9, 2016
ISBN: ISBN-13: 978-0692803370
ISBN-10: 0692803378
ASIN: B01M226DL7
Number of pages: 163
Word Count: 40,422
Cover Artist: Kelley York, X-Potion Designs
Book Description:
Janda Gray’s a Lykoi—part werecat, part wolf—shunned by both sides of her lineage.
She yearns for the day when she can escape the disdainful glances and leave her home on the outskirts of Sleepy Hollow, NY. When she lands a lucrative bounty hunter contract, she thinks her life is finally turning around. All she has to do is lure her werecat target from the safety of the Hotel Paranormal.
Then she meets a werepanther. Her life will never be the same
Alexander Holden, second-in-command of a powerful werecat clan, is accused of murdering the woman he was to marry. He must find the real killer to clear his name or spend the rest of his supernaturally long life on the run.
Complications arise after Janda falls for the man she’s supposed to be capturing.
Now she must decide if following her heart is worth risking everything, including the love they’ve found in each other’s embrace.
Love is about making sacrifices. Saving him is all that matters.
Bounty Huntress is the introduction to the Sleepy Hollow Hunter series, as well as a Hotel Paranormal story.
The Hotel Paranormal is THE place for supernatural beings looking to get away from it all. Beings like werewolves, vampires, elves, sprites, djinn and more check in from all over the world for business and for pleasure—and sometimes for both.
Short Excerpt:
Half a block stood between me and my future happiness, but it might as well have been a mile for all the good it would do me. From the alley to the bar there was no cover, no shadows to absorb my presence. I’d scoured the surrounding area for another entry point to no avail. Barred windows and a padlocked backdoor thwarted me. I had one shot at getting inside before anyone could stop me, and that meant waiting until the barkeep kicked the last of his patrons out at closing time. While they were busy getting on their bikes, I’d make a mad dash to the front door. I was grateful the street was deserted at this hour, but it was almost too quiet. One stupid move on my part could mean disaster.
I calculated the distance from where I stood, hidden in the alley, to the bar’s entrance and figured I’d probably be fast enough to make it as long as the wolves were so drunk they wouldn’t notice me until it was too late. It was a long shot, but the only one I had. Wolves were quick, even inebriated ones. Their metabolism burned off alcohol within minutes of downing it, which meant my window of opportunity was about the size of a mouse hole. In my Lykoi state I was faster than a wolf—I’d honed that particular skill long ago with all the times I’d been chased—but I couldn’t go Lykoi. Paws didn’t lend themselves to turning doorknobs, so I’d have to do this the hard way. Nothing new there.
I leaned against the brick wall and let the cool autumn air soothe my restless body. My calf muscles twitched, and my stomach rumbled. It was tempting to give in to the urge to transform and run through the woods I’d passed on the way into town. Maybe even hunt a bit of rabbit. I let out a slow breath and resisted my primal desires.
I counted four bikes outside the bar. Mutther’s might be a neutral, no-colors establishment, but I still had to get past the owners of those bikes. Four big-ass obstacles between me and the portal to the Hotel Paranormal. I knew portals existed in most major cities—definitely in Manhattan—but, of course, my only way into the hotel would be through a wolf biker bar. My luck ranged from bad to stinking bad. I was long overdue for a bit of good luck, but I didn’t look for that to happen tonight. My usual mode of blending into the background to avoid attracting attention wasn’t going to work here. There were no crowds to lose myself in, and the glaring neon sign covering three quarters of the bar’s facade was a beacon spreading a swath of red across the sidewalk. Anyone wishing to enter the bar would be doused in light. This had to be the hotel’s idea of a joke—or a test.
My Review
I love finding new books that I love!! What a new take on shifter hybrids and the Hotel Paranormal anthology that features this story is the beginning of the series that follows the Sleepy Hollow Hunters series by Ms Queen. And I honk it's gunna be awesome!! With excellent characters that I can't wait to see more of, and some great world building and a pretty awesome romance, there's much to love her.
So Janda is a Lykoi- half wolf shifted and half cat shifted. Her pack sucks for her. So she made her life being a bounty hunter. She's great at her job and loves it. She does her job and keeps herself on target. Until her new target is Alexander. She definitely falls for him. Kinda hard to be a bounty hunter when you want your target. And it's complicated. And it's not love at first sight either. And along the way we meet some other awesome side characters that add a lot to the story too!!
The writing is well done and it is short and sweet since it's a novella in an anthology but it's still a good one. I'm definitely looking forward to reading more!! I'm impressed and want more!! 5 PAWS!!
Happy Tails and Tales Author Interview with Sheri Que
First, tell me a little about your book J….
Bounty Huntress is a story about a young woman of mixed heritage who longs to escape the side-glances of the wolf pack she grew up in. When she lands a lucrative bounty hunter contract, she thinks her life is finally turning around. Soon she’ll have the money she needs to get out on her own, but first she must bring back her werepanther target from the hotel where he’s hiding. The hotel is in an alternate dimension—one where time isn’t the same as her normal world—and her stay there becomes more complex than she intended. After meeting her handsome target, she’s smitten and must decide if the love she has for him is worth risking everything to help him.
Do you recall how your interest in writing originated or did you always just know?
I’ve always loved reading and making up stories in my head, but it wasn’t until the last ten years that I decided to act on actually writing those stories.
What inspired you to write your first book and what was it?
My first novel was a thriller that was inspired by a quilt I had been working on, as well as the idea of a woman who suffered from a brain tumor that severely altered her personality. She became obsessed with completing the quilt by using fabric from the clothing of those she murdered. That book has not been published, but it was a great writing experience.
Are experiences based on someone you know, or events in your own life?
I think it’s probably difficult for writers not to be influenced by events and people in their life, but my writing is never about any one person or event. It’s more like throwing a lot of different people together to become a new character—one who comes alive in his/her own right.
How do you chose when/which characters die in your books?
A character dies if and when their death promotes the story line. So, I suppose the story dictates who dies and when.
Are there any new authors that have grasped your interest?
I’m a bit biased with this one because I went to school with some amazing writers. I love KW Taylor’s time travel novel The Curiosity Killers. Also, Traci Douglass has a couple of awesome romance lines. Rebecca Halsey did a great jazz age romance called Notes of Temptation. Then there’s Carrie Gessner’s fantasy The Dying of the Golden Day. At the moment I’m reading Cara McKinnon’s series The Faye of Sky that I’m really enjoying. I could go on with this, but you get the idea.
Who do you look up to as a writer?
I think Shelley Adina is an amazing author. She does so much to help other writers just starting out. Her steampunk line, Magnificent Devices, is amazing.
If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your book?
I’m never completely satisfied with my work, so I have to stop myself from continuous edits or it would never get published. Bounty Huntress had some “rules” to follow, since it is part of a multi-author series, so if I could have I would have made it longer in order to develop certain characters and situations more. Still, it was a lot of fun to write and is a lead-in to a new series I’m writing—The Sleepy Hollow Hunter series.
Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
Time. I know that sounds trite, but my life is such that I can’t fit in as much time as I’d like to actually write. I’m hoping in the next year that will change, but until then, I write whenever and wherever I can.
What book are you reading now? Or what genre?
Cara McKinnon’s Essential Magic. It’s a fantasy with lots of fantastic world building.
Who designed the cover? And do you help with them?
My designer is Kelley York of X-Potion Designs. She and I worked very closely together to get exactly what I wanted. I gave her a few images to give her an idea of where I wanted to go with the cover design. She took it from there and did an amazing job.
Did you learn anything from writing your books and what was it?
I’m always learning and discovering more about me as a writer with each story I pen. Bounty Huntress had to fit certain criteria when it came to heat level (no sweet romance and no erotica). This was part of the group requirements in this multi-author series, and it was a bit of a challenge. I kept wanting to spice it up more, but I had to use my word limit to work on other aspects of the story. In the end, I think it was fairly balanced in heat level and story line, although I would have loved to have done even more with Janda’s relationship with Alex. I suppose that’s why authors like writing series—we can dive more deeply into different characters as the series develops.
If you could be one of your characters, who would you chose?
That’s a tough one. Janda, of course, is a favorite. However, as I was writing I have to say Sebastian—the ancient and powerful vampire—became a strong favorite. He will get a lot more air time in the next book.
Are there any books you think some of us should read, just because?
I don’t think I could answer that properly, since everyone has slightly different taste in what they enjoy reading. I read across genres, which others might not do as much. However, I’d say that even people who stick primarily to one genre should look into reading other types of stories. The authors I mentioned earlier all have good books, but for different reasons. For instance, Shelley Adina’s Magnificent Devices series is up to eleven books now. I highly recommend her stories for those who enjoy steampunk. Maria Snyder is another great author to follow. Heidi Ruby Miller writes some cool SF-Romance. My writing leans more towards urban fantasy and so I’d say check out Patricia Briggs. Her Mercy Thompson series is awesome. Darynda Jones writes a wonderful paranormal series—the Charley Davidson series. So, enjoy your “just because” reading list. Lol.
Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
Thank you. Really. I can write a story, but it’s the readers who enjoy it and give me constructive feedback that make me want to write the next one. And thank you, for having me as your guest today.
About the Author:
Sheri Queen received her MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. She grew up in the Hudson Valley region of New York—an area she loves to depict as a backdrop for her stories—and enjoys traveling to new places where she is constantly discovering inspirations for her writing. In particular, she loves visiting old graveyards.
Website: www.sheriqueen.com
Twitter: @SWQueenFlemming
Amazon author: https://www.amazon.com/Sheri-Queen/e/B01MEDJ1UP/
Tour giveaway
2 Packages of Swag - Each will contain the following:
1 Digital copy of Bounty Huntress to be emailed to the winner, (2) standard bookmarks, (2) cover art business cards, (2)button pins, (1) two-inch Hershey Kiss with custom sticker on lid, (4) additional stickers, (1) cover art stickie note pad, (1) custom beaded bookmark, (2) custom wine charms, (1) pair of custom earrings
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