*Warning: As this post is intended as a memory prompt, it contains spoilers for the first four books in the series.*
Now that we’re four books into Blackthorn and at the mid-way point in the series, I thought it might help to give you a quick recap on the characters you’ve come across in the first four books. I hope this glossary proves useful – and it’s in alphabetical order to make it easier should you need it for reference as you read BLOOD DARK.
I’ve also attached both my Pinterest board for Blackthorn’s Cast as well as a board compiled from readers’ suggestions as to who you could envisage playing our characters on the screen. Thanks to everyone who contributed to this last year!
PLEASE NOTE: THE TABLE ORIGINALLY POSTED HAS BEEN REMOVED DUE TO BEING UPDATED AS THE SERIES HAS PROGRESSED. IT CAN NOW BE FOUND VIA THE TAB ‘ABOUT BLACKTHORN’.
I’ll be back in a couple of days with a recap on where we are in the Blackthorn story so far, which will also hopefully prove useful to you.
Don’t forget, if you’d like to win an early eBook of BLOOD DARK, you only have a few hours left to enter! Please check out my previous post or my Facebook page to do so. You can also enter by email. Thank you to all the entries that have come in so far! The winner will be announced tomorrow!
It’s been over a year since I’ve had an interview and, in this one, I talk about my journey to publication for the first time. If you’re a writer yourself or you’d just like to know a bit more about who I am, what inspired me to write Blackthorn and what plans I have for the future, you might find this one interesting.
HUGE thanks to the extremely lovely Daniel Riding for hosting me – and for quizzing me mercilessly!
There are two other events to look out for this week. On Wednesday, if you’re a member of the ‘Into the World of Blackthorn‘ Facebook group (an additional group to the official Blackthorn Fan Page), I’ll be giving you the first opportunity ever to fire questions at our four Blackthorn heroes: Kane, Caleb, Jask and Eden – and you can ask them anything! If you love talking about all things Blackthorn, you’d be most welcome to join. And towards the end of the week I’ll be launching a competition to win an early e-book of BLOOD DARK. Stay close if you can’t bear to wait another 24 days until it’s yours!
I know it feels like a lifetime of waiting but I finally have some Blood Dark news coming very soon! Thank you so much for all the queries that continue to come in about its release. Stay close if you don’t want to miss anything! I should have news about its preorder before too long.
For those who still don’t know, especially anyone new here, our debut Blackthorn couple, Kane and Caitlin, are back in this latest installment. (And for Team Jask, Team Caleb and Team Eden – yes, they also make an appearance.)
As we’re talking Kane and Caitlin…
Although we’re almost in book five of the series, some readers are still entering Blackthorn for the first time. Last week, I found out that not one, not two, but FOUR of The Sirens of Fiction reviewed Blood Shadows – AND they enjoyed it! Thank you hugely to Maria, Ingrid, Anna and Scarlett for your time and your wonderful reviews.
“I absolutely love the characters in Blood Shadows…Every time Kane made an appearance I could hear my own heart pounding…Blood Shadows got me more hooked than any other vampire love story currently.” ~ Maria
“What blew me away first was that this was Pryor’s debut book. The detail she gives to the characters is intoxicating and that of a seasoned author…you will not regret reading this book.” ~ Ingrid
“A vampire’s way of putting a whole new twist to “Bite Me”!…I loved this paranormal romance novel from the beginning until the end…I would recommend this book and series to any that ever ask.” ~ Anna
“…the makings of an incredible paranormal series with vampires, lycans, angels, and more. Plot twists that you will never see coming leave you on the edge of your seat begging for more…” ~ Scarlett
Again, thank you hugely, ladies. I do hope you survive Blood Roses!
And for all the other new Blackthorn readers out there…
I’m aware that new readers are joining Blackthorn every day so I thought that between now and Blood Dark‘s release, I’d share a few posts from Blackthorn’s archives.
Last night on Facebook, I posted something for Team Caleb with a flashback to months before even Blood Torn was released.
Back in May 2013, the awesome GraveTells blog asked if they could have an exclusive interview with both Caleb and Jake Dehain in one of the most unique spins on a character interview I’ve ever been involved in. DaVinciKittie (the owner of GraveTells) and her fellow reviewer, Molly, didn’t want just any interview – they wanted to go into Blackthorn and, more to the point, into Caleb’s library to speak to the Dehain brothers face-to-face! Blackthorn readers put forward the questions, DaVinciKittie put together a story with Molly (featuring them as themselves), and I gave Caleb and Jake “a little help” with their answers.
If you missed it the first time around, you can find it HERE (don’t let the original Blood Roses cover throw you).
Another of my favourite interviews from the Blackthorn archives goes back to June last year when I was quizzed by author and reviewer Charles Phipps.
“The Blackthorn series…is the tale of urban segregation in a world where vampires and other supernaturals are regulated to living in crime-ridden slums while the elite of humanity dwell in their own districts. Each novel, a new couple of star-crossed lovers form along class lines as outsider heroines deal with the dangerous supernatural men who make the Blackthorn district their home. Despite the United Federation of Charles not being known for its Paranormal Romance reviews, I find this series one of the most evocative titles of the genre. Its excellent world-building and well-conceived mythology appeals to both my urban fantasy as well as Gothic Punk sensibilities. The seamy Noir mood is a cherry on top of an already rich dessert.” ~ Charles Phipps
It’s one of the most in-depth interviews I’ve ever done so if you’d like to learn more about Blackthorn, such as what inspired me to write it, this is the perfect one to check out HERE.
And whilst we’re still talking interviews…
If you’ve joined the ‘Into the World of Blackthorn‘ Facebook group (not the official Lindsay J. Pryor/Blackthorn fan page), I’m heading over tonight between 9.30-10.30 pm UK time for a live chat about Blackthorn in general or even my upcoming release, Blood Dark. If you want to be a part of the group, now’s your chance! Leticia (its founder) and Louise are the lovely ladies who run it and anyone who wants to chat all things Blackthorn is more than welcome. If you can’t make it for the live chat, you can still post questions which I’ll answer at another time.
I’ll be back with another post in the next few days – or even sooner if I have preorder news to share!
Thank you to every single person who entered this giveaway, both here and via email. There were so many incredible entries that I’m relieved it was Kim, Bookouture’s Publicity Manager, who volunteered to judge the contest and not me!
So, without further ado…
(…but make sure you read on, because this giveaway has a Blackthorn twist all of its own…)
…the WINNER of four signed Blackthorn books is:
ANGE JOYCE
Ange’s entry came via email. In it, she said:
“Blackthorn has to be one of my favourite series hands down! I tend to be a binge reader; I will read and read and read till I get bored then I won’t read for months even if there is a new release. But blackthorn has its claws and teeth in me so deep that I cannot wait for the next book! There are just so many layers to each character and then each character has an integral role in the main plot; which in turn is so twisted it blurs the line of good and evil.
When I finish a book I find myself getting excited about future scenes; as Lindsay knows all too well and loves to tease me about it on social media. I try to predict what’s going to happen and Lindsay manages to surprise me everytime.
The books are amazing and the six figure sales speak for themselves! Any and all supernatural book lovers will not be able to put any of these books down but truth be told Lindsay is the reason I love Blackthorn so much. For starters without her that world would not exist; there would be no vampire legends, no werewolf heart-throbs, no soul sucking demons, no evil councils judging and deciding everyone’s fate and no prophecies which means NO CALEB and that just hurts to even think about…
Another reason I love Lindsay is for her enthusiasm; her love for her creation, her baby, becomes extremely infectious when you speak to her or read her blogs but the way she interacts with her readers just blew me away.
Not many authors speak to their readers as if they are friends. She teases us about up coming scenes, chats with us about other books or TV shows, she will have a laugh with us and seems genuinely humbled by all the praise she gets.
Lindsay doesn’t just plug her own books like most authors, she will share little pieces of her life with us and in turn cares about our lives. I have had many conversations with Lindsay and I can honestly say that no one deserves this success more than she does! I am so happy for her and will be here to harass her for new books every step of the way on this awesome journey that is Blackthorn.”
HUGE congratulations, Ange! Your books are on their way!
The response from Kim, our lovely judge, was:
“Wow, picking a winner for this competition was one of the hardest things that I’ve ever had to do. There were some amazing responses and huge thanks to everyone who entered. I chose this particular winner because she brought a tear to my eye with her emotional and heart-warming response. She’s clearly a die-hard Blackthorn and a huge Lindsay J. Pryor fan who is always keen to get involved and sneak info on social media. Congratulations Ange.”
Thanks so much for your help, Kim! (It brought a tear to my eye too.)
And here’s the twist…
In fact, it was so tough to judge, that Kim decided to give an impromptu three runner-up prizes too! I’ll be in touch with the owners of the entries below to let you know what Kim has planned for you!
The entirety of each entry was taken into account, but here’s a sample of why they came so close:
CAROLYN (email entry):
“…Blackthorn has everything you are looking for in a book. It keeps you in suspense, not knowing what could happen next…The Blackthorn concept got my attention because of the…love and hate relationship between characters, the mystery, the challenges, the pressure, the obstacles that the 4 couples have to face and the fact that none of them are safe…The beauty of this series is that things get more complicated with every book and that is why I LOVE Blackthorn so much…”
SARAH/forever hopeful (blog entry):
“I love that all the books are intertwined with each other and don’t completely and utterly rely on conventional romance plots. I like that there are big conflicts…that connect all the different characters; I also enjoy the fact that these conflicts continue to build off of each other as the series progresses. Even though we may not see certain characters, we’re still left wondering…what decisions they’ll make or what reactions they will have in future books.”
SUZANNE (blog entry):
“The world-building is fantastic. Every scene serves to draw a picture of a stratified society…laced with oppression, segregation, and prejudice. The glaring differences between…Summerton, Midtown, Lowtown, and Blackthorn are heart-wrenching and make you feel the injustice of the situation…how prejudices and judgments can be perpetuated by those wanting to maintain power…instead of looking for ways to make a better world and society for all beings to enjoy. So, these books are not just a typical PNR…the message behind the stories is profound and I love it.”
Huge congrats to you too, Carolyn, Sarah and Suzanne! I’ll be emailing you very soon!
There are more giveaways to come!
Again, thanks hugely to everyone who entered – and for the amount of effort that went into so many entries. If you’ve been left disappointed this time around, don’t forget more giveaways are coming soon, including an early eBook of Blood Dark! I’ll think of something fun for us to do for that one… 😉
Earlier this month, I mentioned that Bookouture asked if my readers might like to be in with a chance of winning the first four Blackthorn books in a giveaway. My answer was easy, and you proved me right with a fantastic response to the prospect both here and on Facebook. Thank you!
Well, today’s the day!
Thanks to the uber-lovely Kim Nash, Bookouture’s Publicity Manager, we have a one-off-never-before-done giveaway of all four of the first Blackthorn books (in paperback) signed by me.
But, for the first time ever in a Blackthorn giveaway, the winner isn’t going to be picked out of a hat. This time, Kim is going to judge the entries and select the winner!
HOW TO ENTER
All you have to do to enter is give your response to:
WHAT ATTRACTS YOU TO BLACKTHORN?
It’s a wide-open question that allows die-hard fans to enter as well as those wanting to try the series for the first time. You can comment on what first drew you to the series, or what compels you to keep reading it. Maybe it’s your favourite series and you’d like to share why, or you simply want to say what (or who!) you love about it. How you answer is up to you!
THE RULES
You will need to post your answer either in the comment section below OR, if you’d prefer, you can email me. Please include ‘competition’ in the subject line.
You can only enter once.
CLOSING DATE
The competition is open now and you have until midnight (UK time) on Tuesday 2nd June to post your entry. I hope that gives you plenty of time to mull it over. The winner will be announced on Friday 5th June.
Whereas I usually like to jump on and comment on entries, as this is as judged competition this time, I’ll be good and stay quiet. The very best of luck to everyone who chooses to enter, and have fun coming up with your answer!
Whilst I’m immersed in Blood Dark edits, Bookouture’s fabulous Publicity Manager, Kim Nash, is already plotting the build up to its release.
Today, she asked if I thought my readers might like to be in with a chance to win all four paperbacks of Blackthorn so far – signed by me. That’s Blood Shadows, Blood Roses, Blood Torn AND Blood Deep.
I think it’s an awesome prize for a Blackthorn fan, especially as it’s the first time we’ve ever offered signed copies as a ‘collection’ so, obviously, I couldn’t say yes quick enough!
I just wanted to give you the heads-up to watch out for it in the forthcoming weeks. I have other giveaways and more blog posts to come soon too. Edits first though! I’m nearly there…
I’m thrilled to announce that this morning, whilst organising information for this year’s London Book Fair, my publisher emailed to let me know that Blackthorn sales have ventured well into six figures!
For those who have no idea why I’m so pleased, various online sources state that an average book sells around 10,000 copies with a major publisher. Being optimistic, the average first novel sells around 1,000. So with it being as tough it is out there for fairly new authors, let alone with a small independent publisher, six figures are quite an achievement – especially for a niche genre like dark paranormal romance.
With this in mind, I have to give a massive shout-out for my awesome publisher, Bookouture, whose ongoing work behind the scenes ensures that Blackthorn stays where readers can find it. Thankfully, they’re already being recognised for their achievements by being nominated as Digital Business of the Year alongside big names such as Kobo, Bloomsbury and Pan Macmillan in this year’s Bookseller Industry Awards – and it is so well deserved.
I know, I’m biased. I was the first author signed by Bookouture after Oliver Rhodes, its Founder and Managing Director, discovered me through an online romance writing competition. I was only a month into subbing elsewhere when he approached me to see if I would consider submitting Blood Shadows and Blood Roses (both finalist entries in the competition) to Bookouture. Knowing who Oliver Rhodes was, and his fantastic track record in publishing, it was a heart-stopping moment. I was also quite taken aback. I’d not long started researching online for prospective publishers for Blackthorn when the message echoing everywhere was that I was trying to catch the market right at the tail end of the PNR craze, where the big names were ruling, and publishers and agents were rolling their eyes and slamming the door on any further mention of the word ‘vampire’.
It also seemed that unique concepts, like Blackthorn, were a heightened risk for publishers, especially from a debut authors, so only added a challenge. On top of that, its dark and gritty, occasionally close to the mark, content was going to rule out some romance readerships, whilst the very prospect of romance and vampires would alienate a readership that may otherwise enjoy the complex and twisty thriller-style undertones of the series. In addition, Blackthorn’s British-isms could also cause problems if trying to appeal the biggest PNR market – the U.S.
But within a week, Bookouture were back in touch showing interest in both books, as well as a third (then to become Blood Torn). They put a detailed proposal in front of me including a marketing plan (very rare for debut novelists these days). Far from being intimidated by the alleged decline in interest in PNR, they had big plans for Blackthorn. More importantly to me, they had complete faith in it. All that remained was whether I had enough faith in them to sign over my beloved Blackthorn. It wasn’t a difficult decision. The rest, as the cliché says, is history. Since then, Bookouture have gone on to sign many incredible names, including both debut and established novelists, achieving superb reviews and competitive chart positions. I’m so privileged to have been there from the beginning.
So as well as a massive thanks to Bookouture for selecting Blackthorn and helping prove that readers still want PNR, here’s a massive thanks to you too for being so relentless in your support for my series, for being so vocal, and for ensuring that every Blackthorn book since has been signed. Those figures are just as much down to you spreading the word. Bookouture made my dreams come true, my loyal readers sustain it. Hugs to you all. xxx
All entrants were given a number and, using a random generator, the prizes were allocated to winners in the order shown below.
Soooo….the WINNERS of my audiobooks giveaway are…
MASSIVE congratulations to everyone who won! As soon as you’re ready, contact me to pass on your address, and then your signed audiobook/s will be on their way to you in the next week or two.
Huge thanks again to everyone who participated both via here and email. It’s been an absolute treat reading your choices and reasons. Sorry to those who didn’t win this time. 🙁 But, don’t forget, I have a couple more giveaways to come in a while, one of which will be an early copy of Blood Dark for one lucky reader!
I’ll be back in a couple of weeks with a post about Eden and Jessie from Blood Deep. 🙂
A couple of months ago, we celebrated the release of Blackthorn on audio with a giveaway of the first audiobook in the series, Blood Shadows. To enter, I’d asked you to let me know where in the world you are – and the response was amazing, both here and on Facebook.
I was so thrilled that I knew we’d have to have another giveaway once the next audiobooks in the series came out. And, thanks to the generosity of Bookouture and Lorella Belli Literary agency, and your incredible input, we decided we could make the next one even bigger than the last.
THE PRIZES…
Blood Shadows proved so popular that, this time, we’re going to give away a further 3 signed copies.
We were only going to give away one copy of Blood Torn too, but to celebrate it winning Best Paranormal Romance 2014 on Moonrise Book Blog (thanks to YOUR votes), we’ve added in an extra three to make a total of 4 signed copies of Blood Torn up for grabs as well.
Above: Blood Torn Audio CDs (unabridged, 12 discs, 14.5 hrs)
And then we have the GRAND PRIZE…a chance to win all three!
That means there are NINE prizes up for grabs in total!
HOW TO ENTER…
The whole point of giveaways is that they’re supposed to be simple and fun, so all you have to do is answer one question to enter. Inspired by one of my fantastic Facebook supporters, Dianne, who regularly chats to me about the prospect of my Blackthorn heroes turning up on her doorstep, your question is:
If you had the opportunity to invite THREE of Blackthorn’s main characters to a dinner party, which three would you invite and why? (You have to say why for your entry to be valid!)
Leave your answer either in the comments below or, if you’re not comfortable posting publicly, feel free to send me a private message via contact above. As I stated in a post yesterday, readers can no longer enter via Facebook sadly, but I do hope this won’t discourage you from joining in.
CLOSING DATE…
The competition will be open for ten days to give you plenty of time to think it over. It is open now and will close on the Tuesday 17th February (midnight, UK time). The winners will be randomly selected and announced on Thursday 19th February.
So whether you love audiobooks or just fancy an exclusive signed copy as a Blackthorn keepsake, now’s your chance!
A couple of weeks ago, I told you Blackthorn had been nominated as Best Paranormal Romance 2014 in Moonrise Book Blog’s Readers’ Choice Awards. Today, I found out that WE’VE WON!
Blackthorn was not only up against some terrific titles, but both Blood Torn AND Blood Deep were up in the same category. However, the crown went to…
…BLOOD TORN!
It seems our Jask just won too many hearts to be defeated – even by our lovely Eden (don’t worry, he’s made of stern stuff). I know some readers found it really tough to choose between the two books but either was a vote for Blackthorn, so thank you to everyone who joined in.
I’m doubly celebrating because this is actually thefirst time Blackthorn has ever won anything. Blackthorn had two nominations in the GraveTells Readers’ Choice Awards back in 2013 and, of course, was twice runner-up on in New Voices both in 2010 and 2011, but never quite got there. I’ll definitely be wearing the badge on my blog with pride.
Many thanks to Moonrise Book Blog for your awesome reviews which led to both Blood Torn and Blood Deep being eligible for nomination, repeated thanks to every reader who voted, and HUGE congrats to the winners in all the other categories too. 😀
