Interview and Giveaway: Jennifer Estep + Deadly Sting

Today I'm thrilled to welcome author Jennifer Estep back to the blog to answer a few questions about the latest release in her Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series, Deadly Sting. It's no secret I'm a massive Jennifer Estep fan, and I just cannot get enough of both this series and her young adult Mythos Academy series. I thinks she writes absolutely brilliant characters and tells a fabulous story, so I hope if you've yet to read anything by her that you remedy that immediately!

One of the things I love most about the Elemental Assassin series is each book always features a new and brilliantly despicable villain. Aside from Mab, which villain has been the most fun to pit Gin against?

Thanks! I appreciate that. I always have a lot of fun coming up with the villains, trying to make them evil and charismatic at the same time, and really trying to give them that someone-you-love-to-hate vibe.

I’ve enjoyed writing all of my villains, but if I had to pick one, I would go with Elektra LaFleur, the assassin with electrical elemental magic in Tangled Threads. She’s like Gin in a lot of ways, and it was fun for me to write an evil version of Gin and have them go toe-to-toe with each other.

Let’s say instead of taking a class at the local college, Gin pops over to Mythos Academy to further her education. What class offered at Mythos would Gin most be interested in?

Good question! I think Gin would definitely be interested in Professor Metis’s myth-history class. Gin loves to read, so she’d enjoy learning more about the various myths, gods, goddesses, creatures, warriors, and artifacts that make up the Mythos Academy world.

The secondary characters in this series are hugely entertaining and almost as big of a draw for readers as Gin herself. What book features your favorite cast of secondary characters?

I would say that one of my favorite cast of characters is in the Dortmunder series by Donald E. Westlake. The books are about a group of thieves who get into some really funny and strange situations. So all of the characters are a bit odd and quirky, but still funny and lovable at the same time.

The Elemental Assassin books are always ones I devour in a single sitting because I can’t bear to put them down no matter how late at night (or early in the morning) it’s getting to be. What’s the last book that kept you up reading?

I enjoyed Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo. I’m looking forward to Siege and Storm, the next book in the series.

Gin’s the type of woman who keeps her emotions under wraps, never truly allowing the people in her life to see how much their words and actions sometimes hurt her. If she were to open up to just one person about her current relationship troubles with Owen, who would it be and what’s one thing she’d like them to know about how she feels?

Hmm. Good question. I would say that if Fletcher were still alive, that Gin might confide in him. Fletcher really molded her into the person that she is, so in some ways, I think that she feels closest to him and that he understands her the best (even though he’s dead).

I think Gin would tell Fletcher that she’s grateful for how strong he made her. However, I also think that she would tell him that while she wouldn’t trade that strength, her being an assassin has still cost her more than she thought it would.

Is there a possibility we’ll get a novella or spinoff book featuring Phillip and Eva, or will their relationship unfold more within Gin’s story?

It’s an interesting idea, but I don’t have any plans to do a spinoff story with Phillip and Eva right now, although they will continue to appear with the other characters in my Elemental Assassin books.

But I’ll never say never. I’d love to write more stories from the various characters’ points of view and show their adventures, along with Gin’s. I’ve had several people ask about a Finn and Bria-centered story or book, which I think would be a lot of fun to write. But it just depends on my writing schedule, which is already pretty full for this year. We’ll see what happens.

There’s a piece or two from the Elemental Assassin series, like the name of Gin’s restaurant the Pork Pit, that have been worked into the Mythos Academy series. Is there anything from the Mythos world that’s crossed over into Gin’s?

Definitely. In Widow’s Web, the seventh book in the series, Gin talks about someone growling and sounding like a Fenrir wolf, which is one of the mythological creatures in my Mythos Academy series.

I also have references in my Elemental Assassin and Mythos Academy books to characters from my Bigtime superhero paranormal romance series. For example, in the Elemental Assassin books, Finn often wears suits made by Fiona Fine, who is a fashion designer character in my Bigtime series. In my Mythos Academy series, Gwen has a poster of Karma Girl, a character from my Bigtime series, on the wall of her dorm room.

I think that the references to my other books are fun little Easter eggs for readers. I’ve gotten a few e-mails and comments from folks saying that they like the references, and it’s a lot of fun for me to figure which characters, places, etc. to use and where to work them into the various books and stories.

In the opening chapter of Deadly Sting, Gin is tortured by Finn with dress shopping for a museum gala, and thanks to some things that happen, she determines that red is a color that suits her. What color would you say is going to suit Gin best in Heart of Venom?

Oh, I think that red will continue to be Gin’s color for the foreseeable future. LOL. That’s really all I can say without giving out spoilers for Deadly Sting or future books in the series, though. Happy reading, everyone!

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JENNIFER ESTEP

I’m a Southern gal through and through. Sassy, sarcastic, and just a tad crazy.

I spent my formative years doing the usual kid things – playing, hanging out with my friends, and making up wild stories in my head.

It’s the last one that’s gotten me into trouble.

I don’t remember the first book I read. Or the second. Or even the third. But somewhere along the way, I fell in love with books and reading. Fairy tales, fantasies, adventure stories, mysteries, romances, westerns. As a kid, I read every book that I could get my hands on.

My mom, bless her, encouraged this obsession by taking me to the library every week. It’s one of my favorite childhood memories. Most folks think penicillin, indoor plumbing, and the Internet are the world’s best inventions. Not me. The greatest thing ever created was a library. Indoor plumbing is a close second, though.

The more I read, the more I thought about writing my own stories. I penned a few poems and short stories over the years, mainly for class assignments. Somewhere along the way, I realized that I wanted to write books for a living.

In college, I majored in English because of my love of books. But what can you do with an English degree? I didn’t know. One semester, I got a job with the college newspaper and discovered you could write stories and make a respectable living. Since that light-bulb moment, I’ve earned a bachelor’s degree in English and journalism, and a master’s degree in professional communications. Currently, I’m an award-winning features page designer for a daily newspaper.

Now, after many, many years of toil and trouble, I’ve achieved my dream of being a bona fide, published, fiction author. I plan to keep on keeping on – writing, dreaming, making up wild stories in my head.

And getting myself into trouble.

Website • Blog • Twitter • Facebook • Goodreads • Amazon

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DEADLY STING

Red is definitely my color. Good thing, because in my line of work, I end up wearing it a lot.

Most people shy away from blood, but for an assassin like me — Gin Blanco, aka the Spider — it’s just part of the job. Still, it would be nice to get a night off, especially when I’m attending the biggest gala event of the summer at Briartop, Ashland’s fanciest art museum. But it’s just not meant to be. For this exhibition of my late nemesis’ priceless possessions is not only the place to be seen, but the place to be robbed and taken hostage at gunpoint as well. No sooner did I get my champagne than a bunch of the unluckiest thieves ever burst into the museum and started looting the place.

Unlucky why? Because I brought along a couple of knives in addition to my killer dress. Add these to my Ice and Stone magic, and nothing makes me happier than showing the bad guys why red really is my color.

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GIVEAWAY

Thanks to Jennifer, I have one print copy of Deadly Sting to give away on the blog today. To enter, please just fill out the Rafflecopter form below. Giveaway is open to US residents only. Good luck everyone!

a Rafflecopter giveaway