The Dark Side: Larissa Ione

The Dark Side aims to shed light on that deep, dark, mysterious side of an author, a face that she rarely, if ever, shows to the public. What secret is she hiding behind that enigmatic smile on her official photo (if any)? what juicy tidbit is she keeping from the world? What are some of the things that she liked, things we would never know, because it's not part of her bio?

Today, we have with us LARISSA IONE, author of SIN UNDONE, who regaled us in a previous post with some fun facts about her book and an exclusive excerpt.

Remember, think dark, dark, dark...

What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you?
Wow...there are so many! I'll just go with my most recent, which happened this August while at my class reunion. I actually fell on the dance floor and broke my arm. These people haven't seen me in 25 years, and I manage to fall and break myself. Yep...nothing has changed...

Do you believe in ghosts and supernatural phenomenon? Have you ever had a close encounter? Do tell us about it.
I do believe. I've had several experiences with supernatural phenomenon, but the one that sticks with me most is meeting my spirit guide. See, when I was six, I lost a tooth, put it under my pillow, and expected to find money under the pillow the next morning, which was Easter. I woke up, rolled over, and in the morning sun, I saw a woman in a white dress standing by my bed. I thought it was the tooth fairy. Well, I blinked, and when I opened my eyes again, the beautiful blond woman was gone. (As a side note, instead of money, my parents left me a chocolate Easter bunny.)

Fast forward twenty-five years. I went to listen to the psychic Sylvia Brown speak. She was there with her son, who is also psychic, and I happened to run into him in the hotel hall. We chatted, and I asked him the name of my spirit guide. He told me it was Veronica...but I could call her Ronnie. Then, he smiled and said, "You've met her." I was like, um...okay. He said, "You were a child. You woke up one morning and saw her. She has blond hair, blue eyes, and she was wearing a white dress. You thought she was the tooth fairy. Oh, and it was Easter morning."

Yeah...if I wasn't a believer before, that pretty much did it!

Please share one deep, dark secret from your childhood/young adulthood.
This isn't really a secret as much as it is just...weird...but when I was around 5 years old, my mom put me down for a nap, and when I woke up, my memory was gone. I remembered nothing about the days/years leading up to my waking up. I still don't remember.

What did you learn from the dark time/s you’ve experienced?
That as bad as things might be at the moment, time eventually makes things better. Life can be hard, but I've learned that I'm a lot tougher than think.

What television series featuring dark themes did you enjoy the most? Why?
I love Angel. It's dark, but punctuated with moments of lightness that keep it from being too depressing. I love the atmosphere, the serious issues, the way happy endings are never easy, just like in real life.

Lightning Round.

white or dark chocolate : Ugh...neither! Gimme milk chocolate!
milk or coffee: Coffee!
night or day : Night
coke or 7-up : Coke. 7-Up takes like sickness and death...it was what my mom always gave me when I was ill. I still drink it, but only when I'm sick.
New York cheesecake or black forest cake : Tough one. I love cheesecake but I'm picky about it. Would rather have the black forest cake than most cheesecake.
vampire or werewolf : Vampire
football game or candlelit dinner : candlelit dinner
ebook or print : print
spring or autumn : autumn
sweet or salty : salty
kitten or puppy : kitten
cook or take-out : take-out

Larissa Ione's SIN UNDONE is now available at Book Depository (print). This title is also included in the list of giveaways for our ongoing contest.

Larissa Ione's other titles:

Pleasure Unbound  (41% off at Book Depository!)
Tempting the Fire

Exclusive Peek: Sin Undone by Larissa Ione

From Larissa Ione:

Series: Demonica, Book 5
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Publication Date: August 24, 2010

Summary from Author's Website:

HER TOUCH IS DEADLY

As the only female Seminus demon ever born, master assassin Sinead Donnelly is used to being treated like an outcast. She spent decades enslaved, and now vows she’ll die before she’ll relinquish her freedom again. Then Sin’s innate ability to kill her enemies goes awry: She creates a lethal new werewolf virus that sparks a firestorm of panic and violence.

HIS HUNGER CAN’T BE DENIED

Half-werewolf, half-vampire Conall Dearghul is charged with bringing in Sin to face punishment for the plague. And she’s no stranger: He’s bound to her by blood, and the one sexual encounter they shared has left him hungering for her raw sensuality. Worse, Sin is the underworld’s most wanted and Con soon learns he’s the only one who can help her . . . and that saving her life might mean sacrificing his own.

Exclusive Excerpt:

On impulse, Con folded Sin into his arms. “Let it go."

For an unbearably long time, she shook. And then she cried out, an agonizing, terrified animal-like wail that made Con's heart clench.

“It hurts,” she moaned. “Oh, God.”

Her sobs came hard and fast, and he supposed he should be taking some measure of pleasure from her pain, but all he wanted to do was make it stop. Maybe he’d made a huge mistake. He almost released her, almost apologized, but when she started to push away, he tightened his arms around her. She was strong, and as her struggles grew more frantic, he had to crush her to him.

“Let go!” She tried to throw herself backward, tried to kick him, claw at him, bite him. He took it all, let her do as much damage as she wanted to. “Let...go...” The order came out as a moan and a plea, and as her struggles weakened, she began to sob again.

“Sin,” he whispered into her hair. “Shh..." Relaxing his grip just a little, he hooked a finger under her trembling chin and lifted her face to his. Black eyes swam in tears, which left a trail down her cheeks.

Without thinking, he kissed her wet face, first one side, then the other.

“No,” she groaned, but her body sagged against his. And when he pressed his lips to hers, she clung to him as if he were a life raft and she was drowning.

He licked at her lips, easing his way in, not wanting to rush this. In his arms she felt tiny, fragile, in a way she never had and in a way he hadn’t believed possible, and some crazy instinct surfaced, making him want to take care of her, pamper her, and make her strong again.

Though she wasn’t actively participating in the kiss, she wasn’t fighting, either, and he took his time, nibbling at her mouth, stroking her lips, her teeth, and finally, her tongue. He began an easy rhythm in and out of her mouth, and slowly, so slowly, heat built and she began to respond.

Sin’s hands eased up his back, tentatively at first, but as the kiss deepened, intensified, her touch became firmer, until she was rubbing not only her palms against him, but her breasts against his chest.

“That’s it,” he whispered against her lips. “Touch me.”

Sin dropped her hand to his fly, but he gripped her wrist to stop her.

“Not there. Not yet.”

“But—”

He shut her up with another kiss, this one more urgent, as he carried her to the floor. With one hand, he cupped her buttocks and tucked her beneath him, and with the other, he cradled her head, holding her for his kiss.

Her thighs cradled him in a tight fit, her soft sex rubbing, driving his hips forward even though he wanted to keep this whole thing at a leisurely pace. But his loins were already full, his animal blood ran thick and hot in his veins, and the mountains, the wilderness around them called to his primitive nature.

It demanded that he take her with surety, a rough joining that would make them both howl. And as she came, he’d take her blood too...

Available at Book Depository (print). Now at 25% off with free international shipping!

SNEAK PEEK: Ecstasy Unveiled by Larissa Ione

Guess what came in the mail yesterday? (pre-ordered)

YESSSS!!!!

ISBN-13: 978-0446556828

Series: Demonica series, book 4
(c) January 2010, Grand Central Publishing
Larissa Ione's website

Buy Links (paper): Amazon, Book Depository, Barnes and Noble
Buy Link (ebook): Barnes and Noble Ebook

A Demon Enslaved…

Lore is a Seminus half-breed demon who has been forced to act as his dark master’s assassin. Now to earn his freedom and save his sister’s life, he must complete one last kill. Powerful and ruthless, he’ll stop at nothing to carry out this deadly mission.

An Angel Tempted…

Idess is an earthbound angel with a wild side sworn to protect the human Lore is targeting. She’s determined to thwart her wickedly handsome adversary by any means necessary—even if that means risking her vow of eternal chastity. But what begins as a simple seduction soon turns into a passion that leaves both angel and demon craving complete surrender.

Torn between duty and desire, Lore and Idess must join forces as they battle their attraction for each other. Because an enemy from the past is rising again—hellbent on vengeance and unthinkable destruction. 

Excerpt (provided by the author):

Lore hoofed it toward UGH’s Harrowgate, away from his brothers.  But he wasn’t heading home.  Not yet.

Casting a covert glance over his shoulder to make sure his nosy siblings weren’t watching, he slipped past the triage desk and down a hall, knowing exactly where he was going.  He’d learned all about the hospital, right down to studying the blueprints, when he’d plotted out the hits on Shade and Eidolon.  The recovery rooms, three suites outfitted with various types of baths, chairs, and heated and chilled beds, were at the end of the wing, just past the sea-water pool that was big enough for a killer whale to do laps in.

He found Idess in the first recovery room.

Everything but her head had been immersed in a vat of what was probably water infused with magical herbs.  A spicy, medicinal fragrance permeated the air and made him want to sneeze as he closed the door behind him and moved toward her.  The water bubbled around Idess, and steam swirled over the surface, but none of that hid the fact that she was naked.  Shadows thrown by the dim light accented full breasts and slim hips, but left details tantalizingly to the imagination.

Lore had always had a great imagination.

Someone had taken the gold rings out of her hair, and now her chestnut mane fanned out across an inflatable pillow and the tiled floor behind her head, and he had the strangest urge to touch it and see if it was as silky as it looked.

Instead, he went down on his heels at the edge of the pool and studied her profile, so feminine and peaceful, as if she were lounging in a Jacuzzi instead of recovering from an injury that would have killed anyone else.  Her long, sable lashes cast shadows across the delicate ivory skin beneath her eyes, and her cheeks had pinked up, maybe from the heat of the water — or a sexy dream.

“Don’t suppose you can hear me?”

Her eyelids fluttered, but didn’t open.  Maybe she could hear, but not respond.

“What’s your deal?” he asked quietly.  This time, her eyes opened and fixed on him.  There was no recognition there, no sign that she even knew where she was.

“Rami?”  There was hope and desperation in her voice, both of which made a person vulnerable.  Exploitable.

He could use that.  “Yes,” he said, running with the exploitation thing.  “It’s Rami.”

Her lush lips curved into a smile that punched him right in the gut.  That was a mouth any man would kill to taste — or to have taste him.  “You’ve come for me?”

He couldn’t help it; he let his gaze slide down the long, lean length of her.  Freaking gorgeous.  “Yeah,” he rasped.  “I’ve come for you.”

“Good,” she sighed.  “Take me to heaven.”

His dick jerked, all, sure, we’ll take you up on that offer, and Lore had to admit, if circumstances were different — meaning, she hadn’t tried to kill him — he’d be all over that. 

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REVIEW: Desire Unchained by Larissa Ione

ISBN  978-0-446-40098-5

Series: Demonica, Book 2

(c) 2009, Forever Imprint, Grand Central Publishing

Larissa Ione's website

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Buy Link (ebook): Barnes and Noble Ebook

"A rollercoaster ride from start to finish, and I don't want the ride to end!"

Larissa Ione is defnitely an author to watch! I'm amazed at her skill in creating such a fascinating and rich world, a world so vast that I anticipate spending a lot of hours enjoying the interesting and intriguing stories of her complex and equally intriguing characters. Take for example, Kynan Morgan. We saw him in book 1, and I don't think it'll be a spoiler to say that his storyline has taken a captivating turn at the end of book 2. I'm sure we'll read his story someday, but when??? Certainly not by book 4. I'm dying of curiosity here.

So, anyway, back to my review of Desire Unchained.

The first time I came across Shade and Runa was from a review, I think. Or something. I'm not too sure. But I do remember reading about Runa walking in on Shade when he was in bed with two females. And I didn't like Shade because he was cheating on her and I hated him because Runa would have been devastated by the discovery.

Fast forward to many many days later and I read Pleasure Unbound (book 1) where Shade was introduced. Didn't like him much either, though I could understand his nature as a Seminus demon better now, wherein he couldn't help but have intimate contact with women whose needs he could sense. It read like a helpless addiction to me. Still, it was no reason to cheat, and the fact that he gave it as a reason doesn't hold much water with me. I agree with Runa on that score.

It was only when things were presented from Shade's point of view that my feelings toward him thawed and I could empathize with him. Shade woke up to find himself chained in a dungeon, with Runa in the same cage. His enemy forced them to bond, in order to unleash unimaginable torment for Shade as part of his revenge. When Shade and Runa finally escaped, he was stuck with her, not that he found it a bad thing. When his brothers threatened to do her harm, he found himself protecting her, unable to bear the thought of her coming to harm.

Shade's secret longings and curse were also revealed, and I couldn't help but like him, even rooted for him to have his HEA with Runa. Shade's eventual strong feelings for Runa could have been because of the bond, but I like that Ms Ione clarified for us that no, Shade already felt something for Runa even before, which was why he ran like hell from her. I like that toward the end, Shade's nature as a Seminus warred with his own feelings for Runa, and in the end, which do you think won?

Runa is not the wimpy, lovelorn woman I thought her to be. Instead, she's pragmatic and she's grown strong because of her experiences, a fitting mate for Shade in all ways. Her "hatred" for Shade was worn down by Shade's expert lovemaking, but mainly because she still has feelings for him, despite the "lies" she told herself.

I confess, I hadn't thought to like this story much, but I love it much much better than Pleasure Unbound, mainly I think because of Shade . Not only do we have Shade's and Runa's romance, but the book is also filled with mayhem and revenge and loyalty and a curse that may take Shade's life. Of the three brothers, I think Wraith's the baddest of the bad boys, and I can't wait to read his story next.

Rating: 5 stars

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REVIEW: Pleasure Unbound by Larissa Ione

ISBN 978-0-446-40103-6 
Series: Demonica, Book 1
(c) 2008, Forever Imprint,Grand Central Publishing
Larissa Ione's website 

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"An awesome start to a new paranormal series!"

Larissa Ione crafted a rich, unique, spellbinding world of demons, wargs and vampires that drew me in long after I've finished reading the book. Her demons are the good guys, hot (hot, hot, hot!), gorgeous, wicked, witty males whose mega-watt smiles are guaranteed to melt the bones of any female they meet. (Seems to be every female.) Her writing flowed with non-stop action and conflict, keeping the tension carefully on the edge. Each scene, seemingly small and insignificant, plays an essential part in the bigger picture.

Eidolon, our demon hero, is a doctor at Underground General Hospital, a facility he built that catered to the needs of demons. Whoever thought demons would do that? In fact, his two younger brothers are involved as well--Shade is a paramedic and Wraith is a procurer of rare artifacts and potions that aimed to bring about healing. Though Eidolon is the hero of this book, the different personalities of the other characters shone through, and their interactions are real and genuine. You could see that his brothers mean a lot to Eidolon, no matter how they difficult they are and how they made his life hell. Literally.

Take, for example, Wraith, the youngest brother. There's one situation wherein he made me laugh out loud.

Wraith rubbed his hands together in cheesy horror-movie glee. "Join us or die." He grinned. "I've always wanted to say that."

Now, you wouldn't catch Eidolon saying that, no matter the many cracks he made throughout the entire book.

As a Seminus demon, a rare breed of incubi, Eidolon couldn't resist any aroused female. More so when he is nearing the Change, the final maturation stage of a Seminus demon's life, after which he is able to procreate and shapeshift into the male of any demon species. Needless to say, he is resisting the Change, because without a mate, he will turn into some sort of insane sex monster and lose his personality. At the same time, a demon-organ harvesting operation is going on, killing friends and family, and being a principled demon (sounds like an oxymoron), he vows to get to the bottom of things and put down the operation for good.

He has reasons for suspecting the Aegis, demon slayers and general scourge of demons, of being behind the operation, of which Tayla Mancuso is one, Tayla, the sexy female whom he couldn't get to orgasm.

And Eidolon is insulted and challenged to try until he succeeds.

Unfortunately, Tayla doesn't like demons, hates them in fact. Demons are evil and the world is better off with them dead, especially after the way a demon killed her mother when she was sixteen. Tough, no-nonsense and strong, Tayla gives as good as she gets, though she can't help falling under Eidolon's spell. At times, she wonders if it is her own attraction to Eidolon (considering that he's a demon and she hates them) or merely the Seminus demon working his spell on her.

Though Eidolon and Tayla are strong characters, it's easy to empathize with them, because we see their struggles and conflicts, their thoughts and emotions, their weaknesses and redeeming characteristics. Complex, complicated characters like them generated fireworks especially when there's inherent conflict in their situations, and oh man, the sex scenes are way too hot to describe. The only place where I was jarred out of the book was the scene after the battle toward the end. The happenings in the aftermath was kinda...awkward, to say the least.

Pleasure Unbound abounds with more twists and turns than a mountainous road, and it's the journey toward the end that provides all the fun. However, the end is not yet in sight, because there are four more books and one novella to devour--lots more enjoyable reading time ahead!

Rating: 5 stars

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