Interview with Sondrae Bennett

Please help me welcome Sondrae Bennett to the blog for an interview!




How long have you been writing? How many published books do you have, and what genres?

I’ve been writing for as long as I can remember, but I only started writing professionally about three years ago. Since then it’s been a whirlwind, and a complete dream come true. My sixth book, Kalindra, recently came out with Lyrical Press. All six have been paranormal romance.

Do you write in multiple genres or just one? If just one, do you ever consider straying outside your genre?

Right now, I only write in paranormal romance, but I have considered writing in some other romance subgenres and I have an idea for a series that would be urban fantasy. But for at least a little while, I’m sticking with paranormal romance. It’s my favorite genre to read and write.

Who do you love to read? Favorite authors, favorite books?

The first romance book I ever picked up was Dance Upon the Air by Nora Roberts, and since then she has always been one of my favorites. Shelly Laurenston is another favorite of mine. I just devour anything and everything by her (although Beasts Behaving Badly is my favorite).  I love Maya Banks, Kresley Cole, Patricia Briggs, and Karen Marie Moning.

If you could have one paranormal ability, what would it be?

The other day someone made the joke that they would like to be able to eat anything without gaining weight, which sounds like a pretty good ability to me! All joking aside, I’d probably chose the ability to slow down or manipulate time. Time is at such a premium to me, that sounds like a dream come true.

If you could keep a mythical/paranormal creature as a pet, what would you have?

Oh, I love this question! I’ve never given it much thought before, but I would want something  without too many negative side effects. Wouldn’t want a gremlin that I couldn’t feed after a certain time or get wet because we’ve all seen that movie and it ends badly. But I’d like something equally cute and cuddly. Either that, or a griffin, but only if I could fly with it.

Favorite color?  Green and Purple (tied)

Weather: Hot or Cold? Cold

Favorite place to read? In bed

Favorite meal? Hamburger and French fries

Favorite non-alcoholic drink? A chai tea latte from Starbucks


Tell us a little about your latest release.

Kalindra is about a harpy who has been tasked with protecting a gateway between our world and the paranormal. During her job, she discovers a man has gotten through the gateway without her knowing and has been taken prisoner by a group of vampires. In order to learn his secrets, she kidnaps him herself, and they end up falling for each other. It’s a great story that will make you laugh at points and cry at others.

Blurb:
What happens when a warrior woman meets her match?

Harpy Kalindra stumbles upon three human corpses who've mysteriously crossed from Earth into Outremer through the portal she guards. A human prisoner with two traveling vampires seems her only clue. She captures the man, and brings him back to her lair to discover the truth-not only why he came to Outremer, but how he got past the defenses of the gate. She expects answers. What she doesn't expect is the intense attraction she feels for him...attraction he seems to share.

Cameron has a secret. For years, he's used a shard of the gateway to cross worlds without detection-for his own gain. When the gatekeeper saves him from the clutches of vampires who want the shard, he learns she's not just another monster from Outremer. He can't resist his attraction to her human form, and before long he's feeling more than simple lust for her.

Kalindra's gateway comes under constant attack from creatures who want what Cameron has. The assaults are his fault, but he can't hand over the shard, which is a family legacy. He must convince Kalindra he can help defend the gate...but how?

Excerpt:
Kalindra’s anger drained away. This was her fault. She never should have let him get this close. Never should have let him kiss her.

“Damn it, you can’t do this. You can’t try and protect me.”

He snorted in response.

“I am a warrior, not a woman. Protecting the gate is my task, not yours.”

Cameron tilted his head, his eyes sweeping down her form in a slow caress that made heat rise to the surface. Biting the inside of her lip, Kalindra barely managed to hold off the shiver as awareness woke the insatiable hunger for him inside her. The desire in his eyes echoed the emotions whipping through her, destroying all control.

“You look like a woman to me.” His deep voice rolled through her, bringing the shudder she could no longer hold back. When he looked at her like that, she felt like one. Not just any woman, but a sexy one.

When he looked at her with naked desire shining from his eyes, she felt…alive. After coming so close to death moments before, she needed that feeling. Needed him. Passion tore through her until she shook from the force of holding herself back.

Understanding shone on his face, in the roguish tilt of his lips and the fire kindling his gaze. This time when he took a step forward, Kalindra did retreat. Not from him, but from what he made her feel. But he was faster. Wrapping his arm around her waist, he yanked her forward until she stood plastered against him. Every inch touching him.

She melted into his heat, her arms gripping his shoulders as she stared into his eyes. Her body, still churned up from the fight, demanded satisfaction. The fight had denied her any. Here stood a means of getting what she needed.

Their lips met in the middle. Tongues tangling together in desperation for the other. She jumped into his arms as he moved backward, slamming her back against the tree trunk behind her. She grunted at the impact.

He let up for a moment, staring into her eyes as if trying to determine if he’d been too rough. Sweet.

She didn’t want sweet. The fire inside her demanded to be conquered by the warrior inside him. She ached to be taken. Hard, and fast.