Welcome to Casablanca
author Kris DeLake, here to celebrate the release of her sci-fi romance, A Spy to Die For!
Escapes
By Kris DeLake
Honestly—and
let’s be honest here—it’s Fourth of July week, and I’m hiding. In my office.
Staring at the beautiful sunny day and listening to—sirens. Ambulances, fire
trucks, police cars. Mixed with car alarms, explosions, and lots of screaming
people.
Welcome
to the Oregon Coast during the first week of July.
I
used to love the first week of July. The weather was warm, the sun was out,
people were nice. Then I moved here. The Fourth of July turns our town into an
armed camp of us against them.
The
locals converge on the grocery store during the last week of June, stockpiling
for the onslaught. Only one road goes the length of our town—Highway 101—and
it’s stop-and-start traffic from the day before the Fourth until the Monday
after. Weeks like this, where the Fourth is a Thursday, we have stop-and-start traffic
from June 28 to July 7.
Tourists
take over, and they bring fireworks from every state in the nation. If it’s
illegal here, they still bring it. Right now, two of my cats are under the bed.
The former stray, who spent one entire Fourth outside the year we rescued her, has come to my office
where it’s safe.
I’m
in my office too. I live here during Fourth of July week. My music is cranked
up (right now: classical—it goes better with sirens) and I let my imagination
roam. It roams everywhere. I rarely see this room for what it is, a narrow
book-filled space with great windows overlooking our very private garden. I see
whatever I’m working on, and generally what I’m working on involves outer
space.
I
have no idea why my imagination loves to explore outer space. I suspect two
reasons: First, I’m a child of the Space Age. I grew up in an era when the
world stopped to watch rocket launches and so I’ve always thought about
traveling to space. Second, I imprinted on Star
Trek at thirteen. My first finished novel (okay, my second: my first
involved Keith Partridge; we shall not speak of this) was about James T. Kirk
coming to Earth to take me with him on the Enterprise.
I
really haven’t changed much. A month ago, I watched the first J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie to “prepare” myself to
see the second. Really, I watched it to fantasize about Kirk.
I’m
not that into William Shatner, even when he was younger, and I’m not that
interested in the very pretty Chris Pine. But if James T. Kirk appeared in our
very private garden this afternoon, I’d go to the Enterprise with him. I’m sure my husband would understand.
My
husband understands the next best thing. He knows I fantasize about outer
space. He also knows that I populate some of my outer space stories (especially
the ones I write as Kris DeLake) with very handsome men. That the men have
dodgy backgrounds only makes them more attractive to me.
Because,
you know, I imprinted on James T. Kirk, but I fell in love with Han Solo.
Jack
Hunter of A Spy To Die For is more
Han Solo than Jim Kirk. There’s no Federation here, no obvious good guys. Jack
has his own code and it’s enabled him to survive in a hostile (and somewhat
grungy) universe.
When
he meets Skylight Jones, a woman with her own agenda and her own code, of
course he’s attracted. And of course, he can’t really trust her. No one trusts
anyone in that difficult universe.
Which
is quieter than mine at the moment. No sirens. No car alarms. No screaming
tourists. Okay, there might be screaming tourists in the middle of the book.
Just a few. Because they seeped into my consciousness as I was writing.
But
mostly, you’ll find space adventure, romance, and a world where locals don’t
have to hide to get through a holiday weekend.
Me,
I’m writing this week. Next week, I’ll have barbecue and a walk on the beach.
Right now, I’m going to outer space.
I
hope you join me.
A big thank you to Kris for joining us here today. To enter to win one of
two copies of A Spy to Die For, tell
us in the comments—are you more of a Hans Solo fan, or Captain Kirk? Or tell us
your favorite sci-fi hero! US and Canada only, please leave an email address so
you can be notified of your win. Winners will be announced in the comments on Wednesday,
July 10.
A SPY
TO DIE FOR BY KRIS DELAKE – IN STORES JULY 2013
When Spy Meets Spy…
Agent:
Skylight
Profile:
Seasoned Assassin Guild Super-Sleuth. Talented enough that she can write her
own rules.
Budget:
Unlimited.
Agent:
Jack
Profile:
Main investigator for the loosely federated Rover Assassins. Guided by a strict
moral code, fierce loyalty, and a sense of duty.
On opposite sides of a high-stakes game, lust lures two spies
together in a passionate encounter. Little do they know that the heat of the
moment would bind them, turning their worlds upside down. Hunted by deadly assassins,
can the pair and their love withstand the onslaught?
Praise for A Spy to Die For:
“DeLake takes readers
on a hair-raising and enjoyable journey with engaging characters and tight,
smart plotting.” —Publishers Weekly
“Inventive and
charmingly funny…The emotional connection between the main characters is so
heartfelt, and the witty repartee so engaging, that it’s easy to get wrapped up
in their story.” —RT Book Reviews
“The story of a
courageous hero and heroine facing imminent danger in a not-so-glamorous future
is sure to appeal to readers who like a sensual romance novel with a
fast-moving plot and lots of adventure.” —Booklist
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kris DeLake is a pseudonym of Hugo Award winning author Kristine
Kathryn Rusch. Writing under three pseudonyms, she has sold 10 million copies
of her books. As Kris DeLake, she is launching a new name for her
fantasy/sci-fi romances. She lives with writer Dean Wesley Smith in Oregon. For
more information, please visit http://krisdelake.com/.
Kris, sorry about the invasion on the fourth! Maybe you should go invade another town. I like Kirk and Solo, but I have to say Solo wins!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on your new book. I am a Han Solo fan.
ReplyDeleteCrystal816[at]Hotmail[dot]com
I pretty much love them all. I watched all the Star Treks repeatedly lol. I also enjoyed Star Wars. My current love is for Nathan Fillion and Firefly - such a shame it didn't stay on the air! I like the way you think so I'm pretty sure I'd really enjoy your book!
ReplyDeletecatslady5(at)aol.com
Congrats on the release! As for your question, I have to say that I'm a fan of the Chris Pine version of Captain Kirk (I've only seen the recent movies, lol).
ReplyDeletechibipooh(at)gmail(dot)com
Wow, the whole week? I thought my tourist town had it bad. We pretty much hide out for the day.
ReplyDeleteHans Solo
ReplyDeletebn100candg at hotmail dot com
We get invaded in our little town on most summer holidays because of a little park south of town called Turner Falls. Thousands flock to the area for water sports, swimming, camping and fun all summer long so we're familiar with tourists...but not at that level...bless your heart!
ReplyDeleteMy cats crawled out of their hiding places this morning, only to return when someone exploded an M80 a block away. :-) Nice to see so many Han Solo fans! (And I'm fond of Nathan Fillion too)
ReplyDeleteBetween Hans Solo and Captain Kirk, I'd choose Hans. If it's just Star Trek Captains, my favorite is Captain Jean-Luc Picard. But my all time favorite sci-fi hero is Captain Malcom Reynolds from Firefly.
ReplyDeleteWhile I love Star Trek, I was never really a Kirk fan... much prefer Picard and Riker.
ReplyDeleteI like 'em scruffy, so definitely a Han Solo fan
ReplyDeletelittle lamb lst at yahoo dot com
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI fell in love with Star Trek at a young age but agree that bad boys Han Solo and Lando Calrissian really caught my attention when I first was introduced to Star Wars. Congrats on the new book, sounds exciting!
ReplyDelete(sorry, always forget address:
elewkf1 at yahoo dot com)