Today’s guest, MaryJanice Davidson, writes her paranormal books with a hefty dose of humor and hijinks. This makes it no surprise that the star of her Undead series, Betsy Taylor, is not your typical Vampire Queen. Betsy needs all of her resources when she faces everything from vampires to ghosts, werewolves to the suburbs. Today Betsy tackles an urban legend near and dear to that suburban heart, the scourge of our living rooms: the television. And thanks to Berkley, two of you will win a copy of the latest book in the Undead spinoff series, Wyndahm Werewolves, WOLF AT THE DOOR. See details below
Click to see the Spooky Legends Master List with links to all the previous posts and giveaways
Betsy Taylor on “ABC-TV Wants You Dead”
by
MaryJanice Davidson
Is there anything scarier than knowing TV wants you dead? Well. Yeah. Knowing lots and lots of vampires want you dead; that’s scary. Friends dropping dead all around you: that’s scary. Knowing you’ll be ancient and have crappy taste in clothes: almost too scary to contemplate. TV wanting you to bite the big one, that’s a close second, though. Wait: third? A close fourth? Whatever.
 | Title: Wolf at the Door
Sexual Content: A few sex scenes Rating:
Okay – A few good points, but with significant flaws. Library/swap/borrow if you want. |
Welcome to the third day of Turkey Tales! Everyday this week, some of my favorite bloggers will be sharing some of their worst reads with us in the first Turkey Tales event.
Jackie from Literary Escapism is joining us for day three of Turkey Tales. I had the privilege of guest blogging for Jackie when her baby was born back in August and I’ve been looking for the opportunity to have her here on ATUF ever since. So today she’s carving into MaryJanice Davidson’s Queen Betsy series. Make sure to check out the giveaway details below.
By Jackie @ Literary Escapism
When Abigail first asked me to write about my worst read ever, I had the hardest time trying to figure out what that was. I really don't think of any novel as being a "worst" read; I'm firmly on the side of "it doesn't work for me, but it might for someone else", so I've been having to think about this for awhile. Then Abigail gave me something to think on - it doesn't necessarily have to be about a single novel, it could be an author.
I loved Undead and Unwed by MaryJanice Davidson. The whole premise was new and fresh and Betsy is hilarious. I couldn't wait to get my hands on the second novel, Undead and Unemployed. This continued until I came to Undead and Unworthy and the completely different cover it has. I understand that marketing thought that too many novels were starting to go with the cartoon look and they didn't want the Betsy novels to get lost, but that was part of their appeal. They were fun and flirtatious, much like Betsy, and this new one didn't scream Betsy to me. It was like they were trying to make Betsy someone she hasn't been. Then they came out with the cover for Undead and Unwelcome. Seriously, what did the art department do? Get someone's daughter's barbie and posed her? Not only did the model look fake, but it changed the whole feel of the book. The tone of the novels didn't fit their covers any more, and honestly, I think it took away from the story.
I never really thought of myself as a cover junkie, but with Undead and Unworthy, I totally am. Amber, from Amberkatze's Book Blog, was one of the first I started following and it was rare for us to disagree on a book. In fact, one of the reasons I did follow her was because I agreed with her on every book. If she endorsed it, I knew I would love it. That all changed with Undead and Unworthy. She loved it. I couldn't put it down fast enough. Since then, I haven't picked up another Davidson novel. There's been two novels since then - Undead and Unwelcomed and Undead and Unfinished - plus the tenth one (Undead and Undetermined) due out next year and I can't dredge up any excitement. It's sad really because I do love Sinclair and I'm curious to see where their relationship has gone. But that would mean picking up not one, but two covers that were bad. With so many novels coming out in the paranormal genre, Davidson has totally lost me. I don't feel like I am going to get a great Betsy story when I know that Betsy is more fun than what her covers portray.
So I guess that Undead and Unworthy would have to be my worst read if I had to choose one. It made me stop reading a series that I was enjoying. I'm really hoping that the art department finds a new model for Undead and Undetermined. Now if I could get my hands on the UK versions, maybe I'll start reading them again.
Thanks so much Jackie! And check back tomorrow for another Turkey Tale from Angela from Dark Faerie Tales
5 winners will get to pick 1 of the books from the list below that I’m truly thankful for this year:
You can comment once a day on each Turkey Tales post (any post with the Turkey Tales graphic) for up to six entries. On Nov 26th, I’ll add up the entries and choose five winners to pick one of the 5 bat! Reviewed titles above to win.
Giveaway Guidelines
**Visit Tynga’s Reviews today for her PSF Interview & Giveaway with Jocelynn Drake author of PRAY FOR DAWN & WAIT FOR DUST**
I’m so glad to welcome MaryJanice Davidson to the festivities today. I happily stumbled onto her Queen Betsy series years ago and have since enjoyed her snarky Fred the Mermaid series & her bionic Gorgeous series. I’m no where near finishing her more than 50 books to date, but just give me time. Back to Betsy, the ninth book in the series UNDEAD AND UNFINISHED is releasing on July 6, 2010, and MaryJanice was kind enough to accept my interview request and giveaway a couple Betsy books too. Details below.
Undead and Unfinished (Queen Betsy, Book 9) by MaryJanice Davidson
To be released July 6, 2010!
MaryJanice Davidson once again proves that her humorous New York Times best-selling Undead series is unlike any other. In Undead and Unfinished, the ninth novel featuring the adventures of Vampire Queen Betsy Taylor, Betsy strikes up a deal with the devil. Now, Betsy has the ability to read the Book of the Dead without going insane and she finally gets the chance to discover all the dark mysteries it holds. When a visit to Hell turns into a time traveling journey filled with risky encounters, Betsy gets more than she bargained for. As she interacts firsthand with her past generations, Betsy’s meddling will impact the future in ways she does not yet understand.
Interview
ATUF: There was a major style change in the Undead cover art between books 6 and 7. What motivated that change and what are your thoughts on the two styles?
MJD: My publisher changed the look of the covers for 3 reasons: 1) I was getting a lot of fan mail from 11 and 12 year olds who were buying Betsy because of the cartoon covers. 2) When my first Betsy book, UNDEAD AND UNWED, came out it was the only game in town. Before Betsy, there really wasn't anything out there in paranormal chick lit. But these days, you have to elbow cute cartoon-ey covers with young hip heroines who collect designer...suits (or earrings, or sneakers, or...get it? :) I was looking at an end cap filled with these kinds of book, and I had trouble picking mine out of the crowd. When your books are blending in with absolutely everything else, it's time for a change. 3) Although the Betsy books are funny and will always be funny, the series did take a darker turn beginning with UNDEAD AND UNWORTHY, and the covers reflect that.
ATUF: Betsy has said in the books that she reads Gone With the Wind at least once a year. Do you share her love for Scarlett O'Hara?
ATUF: The Undead books really epitomize for me Paranormal Chick Lit. Are you comfortable with classifying the series that way?
MJD: Oh, sure. I don't lose much sleep wondering where they're going to display my books. "What if they end up in True Crime? Or Cooking?" The thing is (I'm gonna get really arrogant here, so apologies in advance) since I invented that new subgenre, Paranormal Chick Lit, I certainly don't mind if my books are classified that way.
ATUF: UNDEAD AND UNFINISHED marks the ninth title in this series. Has it been hard coming up with fresh stories for Betsy, and how many more books would you like to see for her?
ATUF: Which of your series leads would you say are most and least like you? Vampire Queen Betsy, Fred the Mermaid, Caitlyn the bionic woman, Jennifer Scales the dragon, or Christina the Alaskan Princess ?
MJD: Well, I'm tall and blonde and vain, and also never learn from any mistakes, ever, so Betsy's probably the most like me. On the other hand, Fred is moody and sour and a disaster at a party, and I certainly have my days when I'm grumpy...but then Caitlyn is superficial and easily distracted, so...oh, hell. They're all me, in one way or another. Jennifer Scales is probably the least like me: an honorable and clever young lady who never hesitates to put herself in danger to help someone else...yeah. Jennifer is pretty much my polar opposite. ;-)
ATUF: If the Queen Betsy series was ever made into a movie, who would your dream or, to keep things interesting, nightmare cast be?
MJD: Jenna Elfman (Dharma) for Betsy, natch. Clive Owen as Sinclair (oofta! I'm sweating just typing that), and Queen Latifah as Jessica. A reader suggested the guy who played Jack from WILL AND GRACE would be a good Mark, which I thought was a cute idea. And the woman who plays Bones on BONES...I thought she'd be a great Fred. She's got that dour, socially clueless thing going on.
ATUF: Can you tell us about your favorite scene in UNDEAD AND UNFINISHED?
ATUF: What other projects can we look forwarding to reading from you soon? Specifically Me, Myself and Why. The excerpt on your Coming Soon page already has me hooked (and I hope Mr. Donald Duck tattoo shows up again).
MJD: Yep, ME MYSELF AND WHY is the first in my new trilogy from St. Martins Press. It's about an FBI agent with multiple personality disorder. She works for BOFFO (Bureau of False Flag Ops), which is a secret FBI division that only employs nutjobs. Kleptomaniacs, schizophrenics, manic depressives, sociopaths...so, it's actually like many government agencies. What I'm having fun with (and so's my editor!) is that these guys are catching killers because of their psychoses, not in spite of them. My editor calls their various diagnoses "their super powers". I'm working on the second book, ENEMY MINE, right now.
ATUF: What are some of your favorite titles/authors in the paranormal genres?
ATUF: What was the hardest thing you had to learn in order to become a published novelist?
MJD: Rejection slips are not personal. They aren't. I swear! (No, really, it's true...)
ATUF: In honor of Paranormal Summer Fest, can you describe your perfect Paranormal Summer read? And where would you love to be vacationing while reading it?
MJD: That would be GONE WITH THE ZOMBIES...you know the trend about re-writing classics, like PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES? My ideal would be someone doing that to Margaret Mitchell's GONE WITH THE WIND. And I would read it in the Caymans...my brother-in-law got married there and it was one of the most beautiful places I'd ever seen. I hardly even missed having a television. Hee!
ATUF: Thanks so much for stopping by MaryJanice. Come back anytime!
Visit MaryJanice online:
Want to read more from MaryJanice Davidson (courtesy of Fantastic Fiction)?
Queen Betsy
1. Undead and Unwed (2002)
2. Undead and Unemployed (2004)
3. Undead and Unappreciated (2005)
4. Undead and Unreturnable (2005)
5. Undead and Unpopular (2006)
6. Undead and Uneasy (2007)
7. Undead and Unworthy (2008)
8. Undead and Unwelcome (2009)
9. Undead and Unfinished (2010)
Betsy the Vampire Queen (omnibus)
Dead and Loving It
Dead Over Heels
Alaskan Royal Family
1. The Royal Treatment (2004)
2. The Royal Pain (2005)
3. The Royal Mess (2007)
Wyndham Werewolf
1. Love's Prisoner (2000) (in Secrets 6)
2. Jared's Wolf (2002) (in Secrets: 8)
3. Derik's Bane (2005)
Cyborg series
1. Hello, Gorgeous! (2005)
2. Drop Dead Georgeous (2006)
Jennifer Scales (with Anthony Alongi)
1. Jennifer Scales and the Ancient Furnace (2005)
2. Jennifer Scales and the Messenger of Light (2006)
3. The Silver Moon Elm (2007)
4. Seraph of Sorrow (2009)
5. Rise of the Poison Moon (2010)
Fred the Mermaid
1. Sleeping with the Fishes (2006)
2. Swimming Without a Net (2007)
3. Fish Out of Water (2008)
Novels
Adventures of the Teen Furies (1998)
By Any Other Name (1998)
Thief of Hearts (2001)
Under Cover (2003)
Doing It Right (2007)
Me, Myself, and Why? (2010)
Anthologies
Secrets 6
Naughty or Nice
Secrets: 8
Cravings
Perfect for the Beach
How to Be a Wicked Woman
Merry Christmas, Baby
Men at Work
In Other Worlds
Charming the Snake
Kick Ass
Mysteria
Fangs Again
Surf's Up
Valentine's Day Is Killing Me
Over the Moon
Demon's Delight
No Rest for the Witches
Mysteria Lane
Faeries Gone Wild
Bite
Bad Boys with Expensive Toys
Really Unusual Bad Boys
Wicked Women Whodunit
Giveaway courtesy of MaryJanice Davidson
Hardcover copies of Undead & Unpopular and Undead & Uneasy by MaryJanice Davidson
Vampire Queen Betsy Taylor already has plenty on her plate. For one thing, next week is her birthday—the big 3-1 in human years, and one in undead years. (Yes, she bit the dust on her birthday last year.) On top of that, she still has wedding plans to finalize—and it's not helping that the prospective groom is avoiding anything to do with it. And then there's her decision to stop drinking blood—something she has yet to share with Eric Sinclair, her fiancé—who also happens to be the vampire king.
The last thing she wants to deal with is uninvited guests, even if they happen to be the powerful European vampires who have finally come to pay their respects the week before her birthday. Some of them don't want Betsy as their queen and will do anything to get ride of her. As if turning 30 last year (not to mention dying) hadn't been traumatic enough. And trying to give up blood is making her really cranky.
In the days leading up the The Big Day, Vampire Queen Betsy Taylor seems to have a full house—and the wedding guests have yet to arrive. Along with her human buddies, there's a ghost, a werewolf and a Fiend crashing at her place. And though her fiancé, Vampire King Eric Sinclair, conveniently disappears when the conversation turns to seating charts and flower arrangements, he does manage to make his oh-so-sexy presence known at other moments.
Betsy knows the next few weeks won't be smooth sailing—but she never expects just what's in store for her. Cold feet are no surprise, especially with an undead groom. But when Sinclair truly goes missing—and not just to avoid wedding preparations—along with most of her friends and loved ones, Betsy is frantic. Alone and afraid for the fate of everyone she loves, Betsy can't trust anyone as she tries to find them and whoever is behind all the disappearances. And what happens next will shake the foundation of the vampire world forever.
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