*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!
I make no odds about the fact that this is usually the part of the process when I go into hiding: once my latest book is out of my hands and with the official reviewers. Waiting for that first review to come through is scary, as it’s so tough to predict how a book is going to be received. So when I got word that BLOOD DARK’s first review was posted on NetGalley, the palpitations hit hard and fast. Seconds later, I was squealing with joy.
So a massive thank you to Fiona’s Book Reviews for starting BLOOD DARK the second she got her hands on it, and reviewing it within a couple of days too. Here’s what Fiona had to say (don’t worry it’s brilliantly spoiler-free!):
“Wow wow and wow again! Lindsay has done it again. Just when you think you are starting to figure things out she goes and blows it out the water!
This book takes us back to the beginning, with the very first characters I fell in love with, Caitlin and Kane. Kane was the first paranormal bad boy Lindsay brought us, and the one which has always remained with me as being the one I would love to meet in real life! And yes, I do know he is purely fictional, I’m not that naive! But I can dream can’t I?
This book differs from the others in that it starts to bring together the characters we met in the previous books. Some are coming together to help each other. But there are others who want nothing more than to rid the world of all paranormal beings.
In starting to bring together these characters the author also brings in far more twists and turns to the story, including a few which will surprise and shock fans of the series thus far.
Caitlin really has to dig deep to figure out who she can and can’t trust throughout this story. With her own insecurities, with regards to her relationship, coming to the fore, she also has to work through her feelings for Kane. And, indeed, his feelings for her! Can this pair get through intact, or does fate have other plans for them? For fate, read ‘the author’!
A brilliant addition to an already brilliant series. And once again, a bit of a cliffhanger right at the end. Something the author is really good at giving us, leaving us breathless and desperate for more.
This is, without question, my favourite series of books ever, and I cannot wait to see what the author brings us next.
With huge thanks to Bookouture and Netgalley for the chance to read this.”
If you’d like to have an e-copy of BLOOD DARK within days, don’t forget you have two days left to enter my giveaway. All the details are on my previous post as well as on my Facebook page. A huge thank you to everyone who has joined in already! <3
Kane and Caitlin are on their way back! We have only 19 days to go until the official release of BLOOD DARK, book 5 in my Blackthorn series. But I know, for some, that still feels way too far away.
I’m therefore launching a giveaway for one person to win an early e-book of BLOOD DARK – and, if you win, it’ll be yours in less than a week!
TO ENTER:
All you have to do to enter is answer this question inspired by The Matrix:
WHICH WOULD YOU TAKE?
Option RED:
Take the RED pill and transport yourself to Blackthorn.
Who would you most like to meet? Or maybe there’s someone you’d avoid?
OR
Option BLUE:
Take the BLUE pill and bring Blackthorn’s characters to your world.
Who would you choose to bring here? Or who would you like to leave behind?
THE RULES:
To be eligible, tell me the (1) the colour option you’ve chosen and (2) answer the relevant question/s.
Only ONE entry per person.
The competition is open NOW and you have until midnight (UK time) on Tuesday 8th September to enter. No entries will be accepted after that time.
All entrants will randomly be allocated a number. The winner will be drawn using an online number generator and will be announced by 6 p.m. (UK time) on Wednesday 9th September.
You can post your answer in the comments section below, or on the relevant post on my Facebook page, or email it to me via my contact link.
Have fun making your decision – and good luck!
P.S. If you’ve not yet read any of the previous Blackthorn books, we’re now at the midway point in the series. As such, I strongly advise you read books 1 – 4 first, rather than start at this point.
P.S.S. If you’re a paperback fan, I’ll be giving away a signed copy in due course. Anyone who enters this giveaway will still be eligible to enter that too.
IF YOU’RE A REVIEWER, BLOOD DARK IS AVAILABLE ON NETGALLEY NOW.
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!
The countdown has officially started!! We have less than a month left until BLOOD DARK is yours!
Thanks for all the anticipation and excitement that’s already coming through. This is starting to feel like a military operation, especially for those who have informed me they’ve booked the day off work or made ‘alternative arrangements’ for their family! 🙂 I have to say, one of the best things about a Blackthorn release day is the build-up – and you’re the best at this. This wonderful comment left here my website this morning particularly made my day:
“Dear Lindsay,
I am from Romania and I just wanted to say that your books have made my world such a better place. I couldn’t put them down and I counting the days till the release of Blood Dark. Your characters and plot of the story has taken me on a wonderful journey. Thank you.”
Thank you so, so much, Alexandra. And thank you to everyone else who makes this journey not only worthwhile, but also so much fun. I’ll have a giveaway for you soon!
Yesterday was just fantastic. I’m still buzzing from the overwhelming response to the cover reveal and release date announcement (especially on Facebook), so I certainly wasn’t expecting to make another so soon. But less than 24 hours after Blood Dark‘s pre-order went live, I received news this morning that it had gone straight to the #1 spot on Amazon UK’s Gothic Romance chart -and the #4 spot in US equivalent! It had just fallen shy of being in the top 800 books on the overall Amazon UK chart. As I’m sure you can imagine, I am beyond thrilled.
In addition to that, Blood Dark also hit #1 in the Gothic Romance Hot New Releases!
That’s two Blackthorn books in a row now that have gone straight to No 1 from pre-orders alone (the last was Blood Deep). I can’t quite believe it.
Thank you so much to my fellow Bookouture author Caroline Mitchell for breaking the news to me via Twitter this morning (you are a top class stalker, Ms Mitchell), Tracey Rogers (Blackthorn’s original No 1 fan) for your excited email also making sure I’d heard, and to USA Today bestseller CC MacKenzie for doing the same by taking the time out of her own super-busy schedule to call and congratulate me.
And, of course, a massive thank you to you: all my incredible readers and supporters who got me there. This doesn’t happen without you – and I appreciate it so much. <3
xxx
* * *
UPDATE!!
After posting this, I found out the following morning that Blood Dark had gone on to reach #2 in Gothic Romance on Amazon. com. Thank you SO much to everyone still clicking that pre-order button. <3
Your patience has been amazing, your re-reads can almost come to an end… I’m super-excited to finally be able to reveal that BLOOD DARK, book 5 in my Blackthorn series, will be released on:
23rd SEPTEMBER 2015
I know, still seven weeks to go – but the great news is, it’s available for pre-order on Amazon NOW!
And we can’t have a release date without a cover and blurb reveal:
BLOOD DARK
Book 5 in the Blackthorn series
‘There are guardian angels, and there are monsters with wings’
Caitlin Parish should have been the last person to fall for a vampire. A member of the Vampire Control Unit, her relationship with master vampire Kane Malloy had explosive consequences. Caitlin’s colleagues count her as the enemy. And now she’s going back.
Kane has made powerful enemies of his own – and is being targeted by the head of the Global Council, Sirius Throme. With the stakes higher than ever before, Kane knows caring for Caitlin makes him vulnerable. Worse, her decision to return to VCU feels like betrayal.
With Throme threatening to tear Blackthorn apart, and the prophesied vampire leader finally revealed, Kane and Caitlin must both fight with everything they have to stop an all out war. But they’re fighting on opposite sides…
Right when she needs him most, Caitlin makes a shocking discovery about Kane. Has he been playing her all along? And can she trust him with her life when he won’t even trust her with the truth?
The choice Caitlin makes will change the game in Blackthorn forever.
WHAT READERS ARE SAYING ABOUT LINDSAY J. PRYOR…
‘I don’t think I have read such a finely executed dark PNR world before…This series truly surprised me. I didn’t think I would love it that much or be intrigued by it. I couldn’t stop thinking about these books once I was done with them… The world-building is spectacular. The characters are enthralling and addicting… Plain fabulousness.’ Gaga Over Books
‘I am completely enthralled with this paranormal series. You get so wrapped up in the story and characters that you lose track of time… This is one of my favorite series so far this year!’ Paranormal Book Club
‘This is a paranormal universe like none you have encountered before… There are stories that are so powerful, so intense that I do not believe anyone should warn you about what is to come… I truly do feel that if you love the Paranormal genre and have not yet discovered Lindsay J. Pryor or these novels then you need to read them, experience them firsthand.’ Keeper Bookshelf
‘I am officially addicted to this series. Why, you ask? Because Lindsay Pryor is my kind of fearless author. She isn’t afraid to “go there”, to create characters and situations that challenge me as a reader.’ The Demon Librarian
‘Not only are Pryor’s characters and fathomlessly dark love stories fabulous, but her continual world building of Blackthorn blows me away.’ Gravetells.com
‘If you’re looking for a new PNR series that has a dark world and complicated characters, then you’ll want to grab a copy of this. I can’t wait to read the next book.’ FictionVixen.com
‘She writes paranormal romance mixed with urban fantasy the way I like it – clever world-building, intense characters and no easy options for them to take.’ Nocturnal Book Reviews
* * *
I do hope you like it! I cannot wait to share the next stage of Kane and Caitlin’s journey. There will be lots coming your way over the forthcoming weeks including giveaways, a full cover reveal, the first three chapters posted live and a recap on the story so far (I know it’s getting complex in there). So stay close if you don’t want to miss anything!
Thanks for all the incredible support that has already been coming through on Facebook pending this announcement. I cannot tell you how relieved I am to finally be able to share it!
As you’ve probably guessed from my lack of presence here lately, edits are currently consuming most of my time. When it’s not edits, it’s my insistence on working on book six in between waits. I really hope I’ll have some Blood Dark news to share with you in the not-to-distant future. I can’t thank you enough for all the queries coming in about it and for your patience waiting to know when that release day will be.
I did, however, take Monday afternoon off, and for a very good reason: I met one of my U.S. readers! It was actually the first time I’ve ever met a reader from across the pond. Leticia has been a big Blackthorn fan for a while now and has even recently set up a brand new fan page on Facebook (this is aside to the official Blackthorn fan page where I post) where readers can go and chat about my books in a closed group. She once told me that she’d fly all the way from Portland in Oregon to the UK just to attend a Blackthorn book signing and meet me so, when she got in touch to say she was in the UK, we arranged to meet up.
Monday morning, Leticia travelled from where she was staying in London, across to the South West to meet me at The Magdalen Chapter Hotel in Exeter for lunch.
After lunch, I showed her the lounge area where I was sat back in 2012 when I received an email from Bookouture showing me the original Blood Shadows book cover (see below) – so Leticia had some Blackthorn history thrown in too!
Above: Me and Leticia in The Magdalen Chapter’s lounge.
Above: The original Blood Shadows book cover, the Blackthorn banner (both designed by Henry Steadman) and one of the first ‘Bites’ as emailed to me by Bookouture back in 2012 whilst I was sat in the room above.
I was so nervous about meeting Leticia, and promised myself I wouldn’t ramble like I’m prone to – especially considering my Welsh accent kicks in when I’m at top speed, which can be tricky to understand. Fortunately, she was lovely and we quickly fell into chats about her other favourite PNR author Stephanie Hudson (about whom I quizzed her mercilessly and is now on my TBR list), her life in the States (I’ve never been), and our cultural differences. The hot topic soon became about the language differences between the U.S. and the U.K. and there were giggles aplenty when we discussed how even some of our basic vocab (I think everyone knows about the spelling issues) is so different. It’s no wonder my U.S. readers get confused sometimes! It’s not quite the same when I’m talking about Kane fixing his bike in his vest (which is apparently called a tank top in certain U.S. states) and Leticia is envisaging him in what we in U.K. call a waistcoat. Kane in a suit?? Hmm, I’m not sure how that would work… (If anyone is drifting off at this point to try and imagine it, ahem, I’m not quite finished yet…) As an aside, I even learned what ranch sauce/dressing is!
Leticia, of course, got to quiz me about Blackthorn and its creation and my personal takes and thoughts about my characters. One of my favourite moments though was when Leticia looked me in the eye and told me that under absolutely no circumstances, whatever is ahead for Blackthorn, am I allowed to kill off Jask. And, heck, did she mean it! Apparently a little more suffering is kind of okay, but there has to be a HEA for him in the end. So, for all Jask’s fans out there, know that Leticia was right there fighting his corner.
Thanks, again, for spending your afternoon with me, Leticia. I’m so glad you enjoyed your first visit to the U.K. and had such a wonderful 30th.
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!
