Welcome Guest Author D. B. Reynolds

Hi everyone, please welcome new author D.B.Reynolds to the Island. She'll be here for the next two days blogging about her favourites books and why alpha females rule! LesleyW

First of all I want to thank Lesley W. for making it possible for me to guest blog here on the island, and Christine for giving up some of her time to make room for me. My reaction when I saw this site for the very first time (many, many months ago) was, Ooooh, I’d like to do that! And here I am.

I’ll introduce myself first, so you don’t have to wonder why the heck I’m here. I’m D. B. Reynolds and my very first book, RAPHAEL, is coming out on March 31st from ImaJinn Books. RAPHAEL is an Urban Fantasy set amid the beaches and beautiful people of Malibu, California, the first of my Vampires in America series. I’m always torn when people ask whether my books are Urban Fantasy or Paranormal Romance. I guess it depends on how central the romance is to the story, but it’s a fine line. In RAPHAEL, there’s definitely romance, but there’s also a kidnapping and a conspiracy that brings the Vampire Lord Raphael and the human P.I. Cynthia Leighton together in a passion of blood and violence that is destined to destroy them both.

I’ll be giving away a signed copy of RAPHAEL at the end of my two-day gig here on DIK. Everyone who comments on either day will be eligible. I’ll throw the names into a hat, or whatever receptacle is handy, and draw one out. As I said earlier, the book releases on March 31st and I’ll send the winner her/his autographed copy as soon as I get my hands on one! You can find more details about me and my book, including reviews by Kelley Armstrong and Adrian Phoenix, on my blog at http://dbreynolds.wordpress.com/.

Okay, on to my five books. We’ve all done stuff like this before, what books, what albums, which characters from a specific book would you want to be stranded with? Of course, the most important, and really only, criterion has to be not readability, but RE-readability. It’s a deserted island; I’m going to read these books over and over, right? For years, the first book on my list would always be The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by Tolkien. Because you get three books for the price of one, and because, well, it’s The Lord of the effing Rings!

But I’m going to confess a secret here. Ever since the movies came out? Ever since Peter Jackson put such a wonderful face and voice on every character? I’d much rather watch the movies. I know! It’s like a heresy or something, but it’s true. So, assuming I can’t take along my battery operated DVD player (and an endless supply of batteries), here’s my books, in no particular order.

The Rhea Lynch, M.D. series by Gwen Hunter. I’m hoping that by the time I get stranded there will be an omnibus with all four of the existing books. If not, I’m getting out the duct tape and making my own. These characters are so real, so completely human and likeable that I can read them over and over again. It’s like visiting a dearly loved, old friend. You pretty much know everything the characters will say and do, but it makes you feel better just being with them again. Maybe it’s because you know everything about them. It’s comforting.

The Keltiad by Patricia Kennealy-Morrison, specifically the Tales of Aeron, which are The Copper Crown, The Throne of Scone, and The Silver Branch. More duct tape. This is a wonderfully fantastic series which hypothesizes the escape from Earth of at least some of the population of Atlantis before the disaster. They have traveled far away from Earth and set up a new civilization, which has broken into two major empires. In Kennealy’s books, the Atlanteans were Celtic, so the books are full of Celtic myth and culture. I love these books. Kennealy is a tremendously evocative writer. I can and have read these books many, many times.

The Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop. Now this one I know has an omnibus, so I’m free and clear. Bishop created such an interesting and unique world with her Blood warriors and their witchy and sometimes bitchy Queens. And Daemon and Lucivar can snarl at one another in front of my fireplace any time. I love those guys!

Bitten by Kelley Armstrong. Of all Armstrong’s books, I love this one the most. It’s a close race between Bitten and Stolen, but in the final analysis, this is the book that I’d take along. Elena’s struggle to accept her wolfiness, Clay’s unapologetic disdain for human norms and Jeremy’s cool authority. A great combination, and it doesn’t hurt that Clay is such a HUNK!

And finally, I think I’d go for another omnibus I’m not sure exists (I’m going to need a lot of duct tape.) That’s the Continuing Time series by Daniel Keys Moran. This extremely well-written and complex look at the future of the human race offers a new discovery with every reading. I only hope Moran writes at least one more book before I get stranded.

So, that’s it. That’s my five. As for the rest of my time, the best book of all would be the one I was writing in my head as I sat there all alone on the island. I’d close my eyes and listen to the waves, and, in my head, I could be anywhere, do anything, and be with anyone I wanted. That story would never have to end.