Contest Winner and DRAGON BLUES

**Note: Congrats to the winner of the t-shirt and CD: Maria Geraci! I'll get that sent out to you next week. Hope you'll enjoy both!!**

And now for an extra Friday treat -- the absolutely wonderful Edie Ramer is here, and we get to celebrate with her the recent release of her latest book, Dragon Blues!!

1. Welcome, Edie! What's the premise of DRAGON BLUES?

Marilyn, thank you for having me as your guest. And thanks for asking about the premise! Here’s the summary:

Once a dragon…

Saxophone player Noah Long shifted from dragon to human 2500 years ago, but the dragon blood still coursing through his veins has kept him healthy and virile. Now his secret is out, and the man who discovered it will do anything to make Noah’s blood his own. Noah’s only ally is martial arts expert Lila Fox, who heats up the fire in his belly…and his heart.

Twice a killer…

Lila Fox’s first kill was at age sixteen after her stepfather put her mother in a wheelchair. Fourteen years later, she kills another abuser to save a woman’s life. When the man who wants Noah’s blood kills her sister, she can’t let the death go unanswered. She teams up with the strangely compelling Noah, and discovers he’s not all man and has a few tricks of his own.

2. You've combined two fascinating elements in the creation of your hero: a saxophone player who was once a dragon. What was your inspiration for Noah?

I love my inspiration! Leonard Nimoy’s Spock from the original Star Trek TV series. He’s always been my favorite. There’s a Zen quality to his portrayal of Spock, a serenity and a wisdom that fits a former dragon.

The saxophone and Noah’s love of the blues adds a sadness to his character. I don’t know how the saxophone happened. Music shows up in several of my stories, which is odd because I don’t play an instrument and I sing off-key. (LOL, Edie! ;)

3. Your heroine, Lila, is a martial arts expert. Have you ever learned a martial art? If so, which one?

I haven’t dabbled. A member of my Milwaukee chapter, who writes as Leigh Morgan, is a fourth degree black belt in Kung Fu and has done a couple of demonstrations (with her wonderful husband playing the bad guy) for our group. She’s about 5’3 or so, but she can easily throw her much taller husband around.

When I finished the few scenes in which my heroine uses martial arts moves, Leigh was nice enough to read them and give me her thoughts.

4. What are one or two of the themes that you explored while writing this story and/or what do you hope readers will come away with after having read the book?

Change and rebirth are themes in my book, starting with the change 2500 years ago when Noah turned into a human. Lila’s life is changing, too, big-time. She’d left Nashville for southern California to start a new life, away from her troubled sister. But it wasn’t a fully lived life. Her past was keeping her heart closed. Now she’s back to Nashville to help her sister, and in the process her life is ripped apart and she’s reborn.

This also becomes an emotional rebirth for Noah. And Lila’s sister is the poster child for rebirth. Noah recognizes her in the first chapter as a woman he’d known (and thought he’d loved) 2500 years ago. She’s reincarnated and making a mess of this life, just as she’d done back then.

I hope readers will come out of it with a warm, lingering glow, already eager to read the next adventure of these two fascinating characters.

I'm sure they will, Edie :-). Thanks so, so much for being here. It was wonderful to have you -- as always! Anyone have big weekend plans? What's going on for everyone?