Some of you may already know Marla Mason from the books written by T.A. Pratt where as some of you won't know anything about the sorceress of Felport. Here is your chance to find out a little bit about the bad ass and if you enter this weeks contest you could even win one of the books T.A. Pratt has written about her.
Enjoy!
-----------------
Amber - I am sure alot of my readers have already met you in the books written about your adventures by T.A. Pratt but maybe you could tell my blog readers a bit about yourself?
Marla - Not much to tell -- I'm a sorcerer, I punch things that get in my way, I have a few loyal friends and a lot of fair-weather sycophants on my payroll, and my one single sacred duty is protecting my beloved city of Felport from whatever might threaten it. Mainly supernatural things.
Amber - There are alot of people out there who would love to be a sorcerer. Do you have any advice for them?
Marla - Keep your eyes open, your ears open, and your mind open. (But not too open, or something nasty might move in.) And just remember you're never as good as you think you are.
Amber - Being chief sorcerer of the city of Felport is, from what I have read, hard work. What do you like to do to relax?
Marla - Hard work *is* relaxing.
Amber - Have you heard anything from Pelham lately? How is Rondeau doing?
Marla - Pelly is still enjoying his world tour, disposing of a certain something for me. Last I heard he was in the Himalayas. He'll be back in a year or two or three, when his business is done.
As for Rondeau... Rondeau hasn't been himself lately. If you read what happened to us in Spell Games, you'll see what I mean.
Amber - How are you coping after your brush with death last year?
Marla - I like the occasional brush with death. It helps me keep my edge.
Amber - If you could change something in your past what would you change and why?
Marla - Not much in my distant past -- there were bad things in my childhood, sure, but they helped make me the person I am today, and that's a person I'm happy with, so I wouldn't risk altering it. I did, recently, have a very dear friend die, and if there were a way to save him... Well, let's just say I'm working on it. (Surely you realize your question isn't strictly hypothetical? There *are* ways to change the past -- they're just almost never worth the trouble they cause.)
Amber - How is it working with T.A. Pratt on the books? Do you feel he writes about your adventures well? Were there any disputes?
Marla - Ha, "working with." I don't have a collaborator; I have a stalker who digs through my trash and makes up motivations for what he observes of my behavior (which is never the whole truth anyway). And he's not above lying to make a better story. I'm just glad everyone assumes the things he writes are fiction. Makes my life impler when nobody believes I really exist.
Amber - As chief sorcerer of the city of Felport I am sure you have alot of stories to tell. How many more books would you like to see out on the shelves?
Marla - I could do without the books entirely, but things keep right on happening to me, so I guess this could go on indefinitely. Certainly I'm going to have to deal definitively with some of my more persistent enemies someday.... and more immediately, I've got that dead friend I want to bring back to life. That's probably enough for a couple more books right there.
Amber - Marla, I heard your brother is visiting. Is that going to be a new story? Or is he just passing through?
Marla - Yeah, my brother was in town, for a while, but he's gone now. It... wasn't a very successful visit. I don't want to talk about it. My stalker T.A. Pratt wrote a book about it, called Spell Games, if you want more details on our happy reunion.
Amber - If the books were going to be made into a TV series or film who would you like to see playing you and your friends?
Marla - I don't really watch TV. I'm sure if you asked Rondeau he'd have some opinion. He'd pick somebody more handsome than he is though.
Amber - You are stranded on a desert island. What 5 things would you both hope to have with you?
Marla - Sometimes I think it'd be a nice break to get stranded on a desert island. Maybe a few hundred books, a lot of rum and fruit juice, a couple of willing servant boys, a grass hut... Nah. I'm allergic to that much fresh air ans sunshine. I'd just teleport or fly back home in such a situation.
This week I am giving away one Marla Mason book to one lucky winner. If you win this weeks contest you get to choose which Marla book you would like. That means you can start at the beginning or get the book you are missing from the series.
To enter the contest post here saying who you would like to see playing you if your life was made into a movie or TV Show!
No actress or Actor = No entry!
Earn another entry for each place you link this contest on the net. Make sure you add links here for me to confirm your entries!
You can also earn extra entries by emailing your friends about the contest. Just make sure you send a copy to me at Amberkatzes_book_blog at gmx dot net.
The contest will stay open until Sunday 3rd of May 2009 4pm CET and the winner will be picked by a randomizer. Entrants should check back to see if they have won. I do not hunt down winners and will pick new winners for any prizes not claimed within 7 days.
If you are claiming a prize, have emailed me and have not heard back before the 7 day limit is up then post a comment here on the blog. Your email may get sucked into my spam filter.
Sunday is contest winner day and this week there is one winner to be annouced. If you entered Angie Fox's contest you had the chance to win a copy of The Dangerous Book of Demon Slayers. Did you win?
Congratulations to the winner! Please contact me via email - Amberkatzes_book_blog at gmx dot eu within the next 7 days to claim your prize. I will pick a new winner if the prize isn't claimed. If you email me and don't get a reply within 48 hours please post on the blog letting me know. Some email gets eaten by my spam filter.
Coming up there is an interview with Marla Mason from the books by T.A. Pratt.
Also tomorrow Amberkatze's Book Blog is getting a Revamp (which includes a some special guests and a contest) and will be moving! Make sure you pop by to find out more tomorrow!
Magic practitioners are being targeted and killed in Chicago and many more have disappeared. Harry Dresden is called in by his police friend to take a look at one of the murder scenes and he finds a very important clue. The murderer is leaving a calling card and it is a message for Harry. So he sets out to find the killer.
The list of suspects is short but one starts to stand out more than anyone else, Harry's half brother Thomas. Wanting to make sure justice is done and the real murderer is caught Harry goes about clearing his brothers name. All the while he is attracting the attention of the White Court of vampires and suddenly finds himself stuck in a power struggle.
This ninth book in the Harry Dresden series was, in my view, not the best yet. I really enjoyed the beginning of the series but as things progress I find myself not enjoying the stories as much as I used to. Less Bob, too much politics, an annoying apprentice and a lack of police support are just a few of the thoughts this book left me with.
Of course I will never give up on Harry. I do love this famous wizard and there is no way that I could not keep following his adventures. However when a series gets as long as this one there will always be certain books or aspects that every reader will like or not like. White Night is obviously my not like for the series but it isn't enough to put me off.
Aurora Teagarden is on her way to a meeting when one of her sister-in-laws who should be going with her phones and says she will be late. This is not exactly what Roe expected to hear from Poppy but goes along to the meeting with her other sister-in-law and waits for Poppy to arrive. When the woman doesn't appear Roe and Melinda are annoyed and go to Poppy's house to give her a piece of their mind. Unfortunately all Roe gets to do is call 911.
Who could have killed Poppy? Afterall she was a nice normal mother and wife. Or was she? As Roe tries to get to the bottom of things she comes across alot of secrets she wished would have stayed secrets and it looks like Poppy could have been murdered by one of many people.
To keep Aurora on her toes her half-brother turns up out of the blue and the the guy she is dating brings his mother for Thanksgiving. With all that going on it is a wonder that Roe manages to keep going. Tired and worried Roe does what she does best and asks the right questions to the right people. Hopefully she will come up with the right answers without getting herself hurt.
This is the last book in the Aurora Teagarden series and I will miss it. Poppy Done to Death is due for re-release but I managed to get hold of this copy a while ago. With all that Roe has been through I have to say that Charlaine Harris gave her a perfect ending and one that I had dreamt she would get. I can only hope that the author will visit Roe again someday and let us see how things turn out for her.
Charlaine Harris is an amazing author and I love all of her books. Lily Bard, Sookie Stackhouse, Harper Connelly and Aurora Teagarden are all wonderful characters and should all get together for dinner sometime. If you are a fan of the Southern Vampire series and need a fix between books then it is well worth taking the edge off with some of the other lovely ladies Charlaine has written about.
Just type in the author, book or keyword you are looking for and hit enter!
Previous Author Interviews & Guest Blogs!
Thank you to all the authors who have just popped in to comment, guest blogged or stayed around for an interview!
Here are all the previous author interviews & Guest Blogs!
by Kelley Armstrong
Some of you may already know Marla Mason from the books written by T.A. Pratt where as some of you won't know anything about the sorceress of Felport. Here is your chance to find out a little bit about the bad ass and if you enter this weeks contest you could even win one of the books T.A. Pratt has written about her. 
Marla - Not much to tell -- I'm a sorcerer, I punch things that get in my way,
Marla - Not much in my distant past -- there were bad things in my childhood, sure, but they helped make me the person I am today, and that's a person I'm happy with, so I wouldn't risk altering it. I did, recently, have a very dear friend die, and if there were a way to save him... Well, let's just say I'm working on it. (Surely you realize your question isn't strictly hypothetical? There *are* ways to change the past -- they're just almost never worth the trouble they cause.)
Marla - Yeah, my brother was in town, for a while, but he's gone now. It... wasn't a very successful visit. I don't want to talk about it. My stalker T.A. Pratt wrote a book about it, called Spell Games, if you want more details on our happy reunion.
Contest Time
Sunday is contest winner day and this week there is one winner to be annouced. If you entered Angie Fox's contest you had the chance to win a copy of The Dangerous Book of Demon Slayers. Did you win? 
Magic practitioners are being targeted and killed in Chicago and many more have disappeared. Harry Dresden is called in by his police friend to take a look at one of the murder scenes and he finds a very important clue. The murderer is leaving a calling card and it is a message for Harry. So he sets out to find the killer.
Aurora Teagarden is on her way to a meeting when one of her sister-in-laws who should be going with her phones and says she will be late. This is not exactly what Roe expected to hear from Poppy but goes along to the meeting with her other sister-in-law and waits for Poppy to arrive. When the woman doesn't appear Roe and Melinda are annoyed and go to Poppy's house to give her a piece of their mind. Unfortunately all Roe gets to do is call 911.
