Sea Panther by Dawn Marie Hamilton – Review, Interview & Giveaway

 

Sea Panther
Crimson Storm #1
by Dawn Marie Hamilton
Genre: paranormal, Highlander, vampire, romance, time travel
Release Date: March 20, 2014

Amazon / Barnes & Noble / The Book Depository /  Smashwords

Description:
Sea Panther ~ a Scottish inspired paranormal romance with a Highlander vampire shifter hero, a modern damsel in distress, adventure, suspense, and romance. And a wee bit of time travel—just for fun.

Can love mend a fractured soul?

After evading arrest for Jacobite activities, Scottish nobleman Robert MacLachlan turns privateer. A Caribbean Voodoo priestess curses him to an eternal existence as a vampire shifter torn between the dual natures of a Florida panther and an immortal blood-thirsting man. For centuries, he seeks to reverse the black magic whilst maintaining his honor. Cruising the twenty-first century Atlantic, he becomes shorthanded to sail his 90-foot yacht, Sea Panther. The last thing he wants is a female crewmember and the call of her blood.

Although she swore never to sail again after her father died in a sailing accident, Kimberly Scot answers the captain’s crew wanted ad to escape a hit man. She’s lost everything, her fiancé, her job, and most of her money, along with money belonging to her ex-clients. A taste of Kimberly’s blood convinces Robert she is the one woman who can claim the panther’s heart. To break the curse, they travel back in time to where it all began—Jamaica 1715

Review:
Sea Panther is the first book in the Crimson Storm series by Dawn Marie Hamilton.

Robert MacLachlan is a Scottish nobleman cursed by the Voodoo Priestess Zola.  He is now damned for all eternity to walk his life as a vampire shifter.  He has spent lifetimes searching for a cure to his malady.  Now in the twenty-first century his yacht is down one crew member.  His faithful servant and friend Colin MacEwen has placed and ad looking for said crew member.  The answer to the ad may be Robert’s downfall or his cure.

Kimberly Scot is a wanted woman. A wanted woman being tracked by the wrong man. A hit man to be exact.  A shady financial deal coaxed on by her now ex-fiancé has left her jobless, homeless, emotionally and financially ruined.  Desperate to escape her impending doom – she decides to answer an ad for a crew member on the yacht the Sea Panther.  Kimberly hasn’t sailed in years, not since her father death.  She swore she would never said again, until now.  Desperate to leave behind her life in ruins, she meets with the Sea Panthers captain and practically begs him to take her with him.

Once Robert meets his new crew member, a female, no less.  That is the last possible thing he needs right now! He can barely control both his inner vampire and inner beast from the moment he meets Kimberly. And one small taste of her blood convinces him that he has found his mate! But will Kimberly still want to be with him once she knows about the curse and the beasts within him?

I knew within the first few pages of meeting Robert that I was going to fall head over heels in love and that is exactly what I did. From the Scottish accent to his rebel attitude. The loyalty of his friends and crew only leave you wanting more.  His sister Raven left a lot to be desired at first but she quickly began to grow on me.  The relationship between Robert and Kimberly was romantic and mysterious.  Each page left me wanting more.  The tale of woven imagery was good to begin with with but throw in time travel and the Port Royal Harbor, Jamaica, 1715 and I was hooked.

After finishing this book I desperately searched for information on a second book and was so please to find that book two will be Raven’s book.  So look forward to reading that! And I would love to know more about Colin

Reviewed by Erin

Copy provided by Author

 

The Reading Cafe is happy to welcome Dawn Marie Hamilton. Dawn is here today to discuss her new release, Sea Panther, as well as tell us what she has in store for us in 2014.

Let’s talk to Dawn.

 

TRC:  Please tell us about yourself

Dawn:  In pursuit of a longtime dream, I left a corporate career and became an indie author of Scottish inspired fantasy and paranormal romance. One of the highs on the roller coaster ride occurred when my paranormal romance ‘Sea Panther’ finaled in the Romance Writers of America® Golden Heart® contest.

TRC:  Did you always have an interest in writing?  When and how did you first start writing?

Dawn:  My first foray into writing was short stories for a creative writing class in high school. I wanted to be a writer, but life and a corporate career got in the way. I traveled often for business and spent many lonely evenings reading romance novels. To pass time while traveling, I made up stories about couples lounging in hotel lobbies and airport waiting rooms. Stories about how they met, the conflicts they faced, and what their future would bring. While riding in a taxi in Brussels, a whisky billboard sporting a hunky Highlander caught my attention and I thought perhaps I could write stories about men like him.

TRC:  Sea Panther is the first book in your Crimson Storm series.  Can you please tell us the premise of the Crimson Storm series, and how you came up with the idea?  

Dawn:  The official blurb: In 1715, political unrest plagues Britain. Pirates haunt the waters off His Majesty’s island of Jamaica. And a Voodoo priestess unleashes an unholy ancient power, triggering a bloody Crimson Storm.

The inspiration for the series came during the writing of ‘Sea Panther’. It all started with wanting to write a vampire pirate series. Robert, the hero of Sea Panther balked. He didn’t want to be a pirate. While researching a Scottish connection for the story, I stumbled across an historical hypothesis that Lord Archibald Hamilton, Governor of Jamaica, had gathered together and commissioned a fleet of private warships in Port Royal, Jamaica, intended as a Jacobite navy. The Jacobites were from noble Scottish families, and along with many Englishmen were determined to place James Stuart on the thrown instead of George Ludwig, King George I, the German wearing the English crown. So Robert became a privateer, who during a botched Voodoo curse is transformed into a Vampire and a Florida Panther shifter.

For the series, each vampire shifts into a different animal—Florida panther, raven, wolf, jaguar, hawk.

TRC:  Can you please give us a brief description of Sea Panther?

Dawn:  Tortured by his vampire and Florida Panther shifter selves, Robert MacLachlan sails the Atlantic, seeking a way to reverse the black magic that cursed him. During a return trip to his compound in Florida where scientists and doctors work on a cure under the guise of a Florida Panther research facility, he becomes shorthanded to sail his 90-foot sailing yacht. Kimberly Scot joins the crew to escape a hit man. Sparks fly between the couple as they stop at several port of calls—Chesapeake City, Annapolis, New Bern, Charleston, St. Marys—and escape those who stalk them. At Robert’s compound in Florida they learn of a way to end the curse, but they must travel to Jamaica 1715.

TRC:  All your books take place in Scotland.  Is there a reason they are all things Scottish?

Dawn:  The Highland Gardens series of time travel romances take place in both the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina and Scotland. The Crimson Storm series, although inspired by Scottish history, takes place in multiple locales around the world. I’ve always been enamored by the Scottish portion of my ancestry, and thread the history and culture of Scotland within my stories.

TRC:  When writing Hot Scottish hunks, what actors do you envision playing those roles?

Dawn:  This is a tough question. I would much rather read a book than watch TV and only occasionally watch movies, but here goes: Certainly, Gerald Butler. Perhaps Sean Bean, Hugh Jackman, or Kevin McKidd for a Highland chief. I’ve never seen him act, but I like the looks of Jason Lewis for Robert in ‘Sea Panther’

TRC:  What is your writing process? Do you have a favorite spot or time? Do you like to outline your stories or just go with the flow?

Dawn:  There is a really comfy overstuffed chair and ottoman in my office, which is my favorite place to write—usually during the day while my husband is out of the house. The process for writing each story is different, but all begin with the seed of an idea—a character, a setting, or a plot thread. I might start writing and research along the way or begin with research and move on to the writing. I start with a rough outline and use a storyboard to expand on the plot as I write. After a very rough draft is written, I go back and layer in more detail. The story gets passed off to critique partners then I edit, edit, and edit, before sending the manuscript to a professional editor for a couple of passes.

TRC:  You have written Fantasy, Time Travel romance, and Paranormal.  Do you have a preference, and are there any other genres you would like to write?

Dawn:  Never say never, but I write what I like to read. Genre lines are blurry, and my stories tend to bend the traditional rules. History, time travel, fantasy, paranormal, and romantic suspense merge.

TRC:  When not writing, what hobbies do you like to do to relax?

Dawn:  An avid gardener, I shed stress while getting my hands dirty. I enjoy cooking and sometimes share recipes on author Pat McDermott’s food website, Kitchen Excursions. I love the outdoors and camp, hike, bicycle, and canoe with my husband. Our recent favorite haunt is Shenandoah National Park.

TRC:  What are you currently working on?

Dawn:  Just Wait For Me, the third novel in the Highland Gardens series and a holiday novella are in the works in addition to Raven’s Revenge the second book in the Crimson Storm series.

TRC:  Is there a book or author that gave you the inspiration to write?

Dawn:  I can’t pinpoint a specific book or author. It’s been more of a culmination of all the books I’ve read by numerous romance authors over the years.

TRC:   Who are your favorite fictional character (male and female) (not your own)?

Dawn:  Wrath and Beth from the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J. R. Ward. I so enjoy revisiting with them in each book of the series.

TRC:   Would you like to add anything else?

Dawn:  Thank you for having me as a guest at the Reading Cafe.

LIGHTNING ROUND:

FAVORITE FOOD  Salmon

FAVORITE DESSERT  Smith Island Cake

MILK OR DARK CHOCOLATE  Dark

FAVORITE BOOK  Dark Lover  J. R. Ward

FAVORITE MOVIE  Somewhere in Time

LAST BOOK YOU READ  Edge of Darkness by J. T. Geissinger

CAT OR DOG?  Dog (Sheltie)

Thank you, Dawn for answering our questions. The Reading Café wishes you the best of luck with Sea Panther.

If you would like to learn more about Dawn, you can find her at the following links:
Blog  / Twitter /  Facebook  / Amazon  /  Goodreads

 

Dawn is graciously offering an e-copy of Sea Panther to one (1) lucky commenter at The Reading Cafe.

1. Please register using the log-in at the top of the page.

2. If you are using a social log-in such as Twitter or Facebook, please post your email address with your comment.

3. LIKE us on FACEBOOK and then click GET NOTIFICATION under ‘liked’ for an additional entry.

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5. Giveaway open Internationally

6. Giveaway runs from April 27 to May 1, 2014