Interview/Giveaway with Kenya Wright, author of Fire Baptized

Check out my review of Fire Baptized HERE

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Synopsis:

Since the 1970’s humans have forced supernaturals to live in caged cities. Silver brands embedded in their foreheads identify them by species: a full moon for Vampires, a crescent moon for Shifters, a pair of wings for Fairies, and the list goes on, for each supernatural species has been tagged and categorized by humans.
 Lanore Vesta is marked with a silver X, the brand of Mixbreeds, second-class citizens shunned by society. She stays to herself, revealing her ability to create fire only during emergencies. All she wants to do is graduate college and stop having to steal to survive. But when she stumbles upon a murder in progress, she catches the attention of a supernatural killer. Now all she wants is to stop finding dead bodies in her apartment. 
Enlisting help from her Were-cheetah ex-boyfriend Meshach and a new mysterious friend named Zulu, she is steered through the habitat’s raunchy nightlife. But their presence sometimes proves to be more burden than help, as they fight for her attention.   
 While the corpses pile up, and the scent of blood fills the air, Lanore is left wondering: will she find the psycho or die trying? 

Kindle    Paperback

Hi Kenya!  It’s so nice to meet you, and thank you for taking the time to talk to me today!

 First, the basics.  Can you please tell the readers about Fire Baptized?

 Supernaturals exist among humans; however, the humans have forced the magical species to live in caged cities. My book is set in one caged city called Santeria.

My main character Lanore is a supernatural college girl that stumbles upon a murder in progress, catches the attention of a supernatural killer, and attempts to discover the person’s identity for the rest of the book.

There are also romantic elements within the book.

In Fire Baptized you’ve built this really fantastic supernatural world, just outside of The United States.  Was this hard to do, and what kind of steps do you take to accomplish this?

Well the habitat is actually right outside the city of Miami.

Initially, it was difficult. I had to create an entire city. I drew maps and themed the whole area after the Santeria religion. I even broke up the city into district where each district represented a Santeria god or goddess. It really ended up being a lot of fun!

The main character, Lanore, grows quite a bit within this story.  Even though she has a bit of a stealing problem, she is a good person with a good heart.  How did she come to be, so to speak?

I love flawed main characters. There is nothing more boring to me than a perfect hero. Making her a kleptomaniac just came to me one day and I ran with the idea.

I also believe that in the end there are no truly evil groups of people. Supposed bad people tend to do those evil things for a reason that they think is completely moral. I wanted Lanore to want to protect something bigger than herself, so that’s why she is big on Mixbreed equality.

Fire Baptized deals with so many different types of paranormal/supernatural beings.  Do you have a favorite species, and why?

 I love Shapeshifters! The ability to heal quickly and shift into an animal really interests me

Kenya, when you write, do you have a certain method that you follow?

I usually outline the entire book first and then begin to write it. The majority of the time the plot line will still change by the end of the second draft, but the outline at least keeps me on a particular path.

Your bio page from your website says you spent six years in the Navy as a Persion-Farsi linguist.  Do you have any exciting or interesting stories you could share with us?

Well, the job has a top secret clearance so I can’t say anything about it.

As far as being in the Navy, a lot of those stories tend to involve Puerto Rican rum and result someone going to jail.

  

Can you give us any hints of what is to come for Lanore?

The Burning Bush was so much fun to write! There are two major plot lines and one sub plot. Lanore and Zulu battle with Dante Botteli in this book. Lanore is also forced to solve a murder mystery. Additionally, Angel, who was introduced at the end of Fire Baptized, has a pretty significant role in this book.

I was really enthralled with MeShack.  He was confident, sexy, and protective.  If someone were to play him in a movie, do you have any ideas of who could fill such a fascinating role?

 Jason Momoa!! (actor who played Khal Drog in Game of Thrones and Conan in the Conan movie )

Thanks for answering those questions, now for the easy stuff!

  

Favorite book?

Daughter of Smoke and Bones

Favorite food?

Foi Gras

Favorite music?

Sexy R&B

Favorite travel destination?

Bahamas

Favorite Candy/treat?

Snicker!

Ok, that’s about it!  Thanks again for joining us today, and I wish you the best of luck with both of these books!  I can’t wait to read The Burning Bush!

About the Author:

Kenya Wright always knew she would be famous since the ripe old age of six when she sung the Michael Jackson thriller song in her bathroom mirror. She has tried her hand at many things from enlisting in the Navy for six years as a Persian-Farsi linguist to being a nude model at an art university.

However, writing has been the only constant love in her life.

So here we are Kenya is publishing her first book, Fire Baptized, the urban fantasy novel she always wanted to read. This novel is the first book in a series.

Will she succeed? Of course.

For she has been coined The Urban Fantasy Queen, the Super Iconic Writer of this Age, The Lyrical Genius of Our Generation. Granted, these are all terms coined by her, within the private walls of her bathroom as she still sings the Michael Jackson thriller song.

Kenya Wright currently resides in Miami with her three amazing, overactive children, a supportive, gorgeous husband, and three cool black cats that refuse to stop sleeping on Kenya’s head at night.

http://kenyawright.com

https://twitter.com/#!/Firebaptizedd

Fire Baptized - Kenya Wright

Title: Fire Baptized (Book One, Habitat Series)
Author: Kenya Wright


Format: Ebook provided by Bewitching Blog Tours for review

Since the 1970s humans have forced supernaturals to live in caged cities. Silver brands embedded in their foreheads identify them by species: a full moon for Vampires, a crescent moon for Shifters, a pair of wings for Fairies, and the list goes on, for each supernatural species has been tagged and categorized by humans. 

Lanore Vesta is marked with a silver X, the brand of Mixbreeds, second-class citizens shunned by society. She stays to herself, revealing her ability to create fire only during emergencies. All she wants to do is graduate college and stop having to steal to survive. But when she stumbles upon a murder in progress, she catches the attention of a supernatural killer. Now all she wants is to stop finding dead bodies in her apartment.

Enlisting help from her Were-cheetah ex-boyfriend MeShack and a new mysterious friend named Zulu, she is steered through the habitat’s raunchy nightlife. But their presence sometimes proves to be more burden than help, as they fight for her attention.
While the corpses pile up, and the scent of blood fills the air, Lanore is left wondering: will she find the psycho or die trying?

Fire Baptized really takes a whole different perspective at the entire paranormal world.  I liked this book quite a bit, it drew me in from the first page and I was interested the entire way through.   The female protagonist is Lanore, who is a mixbreed supernatural being.  Most importantly, she can create fire, which is totally awesome.  She lives in Santeria, which is pretty much a caged city holding all supernatural beings in one place while regular humans live on the outside.  It’s gritty and raw, and everything just seemed electric.  Kenya Wright even goes further and defines districts in Santeria, she gives you fantastic details and you really feel like you are right there.   Interesting fact: all supernatural beings have a brand that shows what kind of being they are, and mixbreeds (like Lanore) have a silver “X” on their forehead.

One night when Lanore is on her way home she witnesses a murder.  A really horrible murder.  And even worse, the killer sees her.  There are some really gruesome things in this story, but they are written about in such a way that it isn’t stomach churning.

This book is really a treat because there is this storyline about the murder, and Lanore’s witness of it.  She is trying to find the murderer, who is also taunting her and obviously knows more of her than the other way around.  But aside from that, you also get a bit of romance in the form of a triangle between Lanore, Meshack, and Zulu.  MeShack is the were-cheetah she has known since she was a child.  They’ve been in a relationship and it didn’t work, but there is still definite feelings and chemistry there.  Zulu is also a mixbreed, and the leader of the MFE (Mixbreeds For Equality).  He has some serious feelings for Lanore, and she definitely feels something back.  But life with Zulu would mean a lot of danger; rallies, rebels and revolutionaries trying to change life for mixbreeds within Santeria.

Personally, I am pulling for MeShack.  I love a good shapeshifter, and he has all of those alpha qualities that I love to read about in books.  He is fiercely protective of Lanore, strong and cunning.  I can’t tell you who she picks, obviously, but I can tell you it is a treat to watch how it all plays out.

The characters were all very well developed and you get enough history on each to really feel like you know them.  The storyline is pretty awesome in itself, and the action really packs a punch when it needs to.  Even better, there are quite a few surprises along the way that keep the whole book entertaining and fresh, keeping your intrigue every step of the way.  This is the sort of book I would absolutely love to be made into a movie with some great special effects.  I would love to see Santeria and all of its inhabitants come to life.  I definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves a good mystery, a bit of horror, a bit of romance, and a whole lot of supernatural and paranormal.


And be sure to check out my interview with author, Kenya Wright and enter for a chance to win a copy of Fire Baptized HERE