1. What is the name of the book where we would meet the animal? What genre is it?
Make-Believe Lover
Paranormal Erotic Romance
The animal is: Gizmo, a talking cat
2. Who wrote the book?
Ashley Ladd
3. What would the animal that of the author? You can tell us the truth.
Gizmo, of course, adores me! I'm his master and best friend and creator.
4. Tell us a little about the animal. How would you describe their appearance? That's more than just cuddly and furry. Give us enough detail to get a clear idea of how they look.
Gizmo is a gray and black tabby domestic cat. He's large (overweight) and cuddly but sassy.
5. What part does the animal play in the book? Are you the hero, the best friend, the side kick, the hero... ?
Gizmo is Becca's best friend and constant side-kick. He constantly gets her into trouble with his big, sarcastic mouth. He even brings evil dragons and evil armies down on her.
6. Is there a specific reason why the animal is in the story? Don't give us any story spoilers, but you can share some teasers if you want.
Gizmo provides comic relief and also a sounding board for Becca, the heroine.
7. What time period does the animal live in?
Gizmo and Becca start out in contemporary times but are sucked into a medieval cartoon where the majority of the story takes place.
8. Where is the animal from?
He's from Planet Earth.
9. Do they live in the same place now?
No, Gizmo and Becca have been sucked onto the world of Templar.
10. Tell us about the place where the animal lives.
Templar is a medieval world filled with an evil king, armies who fly on dragons, and is in dire need of a savior.
11. What special skills or abilities does the animal have?
Gizmo speaks and understands English since he's been transported onto Templar and poses as an ordinary house cat and so is invaluable as a spy to help the good guys.
12. How do those skills or abilities affect the animal's part in the story?
Since he can pose as an ordinary cat, he should be a wonderful spy. However, his big mouth keeps getting him in trouble.
13. Tell us about the animal's past. Can you share one really good experience and/or one really bad experience? I know that bad experience can be tough, but it would tell us more about what they have been through.
Gizmo's worst experience is when an evil dragon swoops down and almost eats him.
14. Who is the most important person in the animal's life? Tell us about them.
Becca is Gizmo's master and best friend. Together they are transported onto the mythical world of Templar where suddenly Gizmo can speak and won't keep his big mouth shut. Together with a rag tag band of locals, Gizmo and Becca are called upon to oust the evil King Heinrich, his army, and his evil dragons.
15. Is that person in the story we're talking about?
Yes, Becca is the heroine of the story.
16. How does that person impact the animal's life?
Gizmo is completely devoted to Becca and will risk his life for her, as she does for him. If not for her, he would still be an ordinary, misunderstood cat on Earth.
17. What do you see in the animal's future?
Gizmo will probably be knighted and have to deal with a very irritating talking dog.
18. Is the author going to write another story that includes this animal? Or, is this book part of a series?
Yes to both! The sequel is in the works now and Gizmo is extremely excited to be back int he spotlight.
Ashley Ladd
http://www.ashleyladd.com
http://www.ashleyladd.blogspot.com
chinara@aol.com
An Excerpt From: MAKE-BELIEVE LOVER
© Copyright ASHLEY LADD, 2006.
All Rights Reserved, Ellora's Cave, Inc.
Available at:
They must have trudged five miles over the arduous hills when a thunderous sound startled her. A moment later, wide-winged dragons straddled by primitive warriors roared from behind a mountain.
Her hand trembling, she pointed at the sky even as she squatted down in self-defense. “Oh my God, Giz. Do you see what I see?”
The cat gulped and he covered his eyes with his paws. “If you see big flying dinosaurs, uh huh.”
When one of the gigantic winged creatures nose-dived not far distant, Gizmo threw himself to the ground, covered his head, and hissed, “Hit the deck and don’t make a sound.”
Way ahead of him, she flung herself to the rocky terrain.
A lyrical voice announced out of nowhere, “You have walked six point two miles, seven-thousand three-hundred, twenty-one steps.”
Cripes! Her bigmouth pedometer chose this moment to go off?
Yanking the lousy thing off her elastic waistband, she dashed it to the ground. “Thanks for nothing.” The least it could do was tell her how many calories she’d burned or sing a decent song, instead of that funky aerobic workout music.
One of the flying lizards picked that instant to spin and make eye contact. Baring its filthy, razor-sharp teeth, the beast swooped down from the air, swallowed her pedometer, and then plucked her from the ground.
The no-good gadget kept chirping from inside the monster’s belly, mocking her. At least, it had gotten its just rewards, having given away her location to the fiend.
Kicking and struggling with all her might, she screamed, “Gizmo!”
She clawed at her barbaric captor’s eyes. “Put me down!”
The armor-clad creep astride the dragon guffawed and clamped meaty vice-like hands around her wrists pinning them to her side. His malevolent beady-eyed gaze bore into her. “Keep this up, wench, and I’ll drop you here—from a thousand meters. Your pretty face will get all mangled.”
The dragon turned its reptilian face to leer and dipped its right wing so that she would have tumbled off if not for the brute’s slimy hold. Then it snorted a fireball in her direction that fried the bush a mere foot to her right.
She got the message that she was their guest—or their Bar-B-Q. “What do you want with me? I have no money. This is dollar-store jewelry, but it’s all yours.”
“You will inform the King whose army you are spying for.” He fingered her tousled hair and grunted. “What kingdom has blue-haired nymphs?”
Then he tugged at her psychedelic nurse’s tunic. “And what matter of outlandish garb is this? What form of material?”
Army? Kingdom? Nymph?
She glanced down at her hot pink, cotton-blend tunic that rained cats and dogs. Should she give him her employer’s name? In the war movies the prisoners offered their name, rank, and serial number. “I’m Rebecca Weiss, I’m an office manager for a pediatric clinic, and I’m not giving you my social security number and having you steal my identity.”
“Stay cool, Becca! We’ll get out of this.” Gizmo yelled from the back of another dragon as it pulled around them.
The man’s bushy uni-brow puckered. “You speak in strange riddles. You will be truthful with King Heinrich or you will be locked in the dungeon.”
Dungeons? Dragons? King Heinrich?
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