I'm thrilled to have Shelly Chalmers debuting on the Crew today. She's one of my Golden Heart sisters from the Dreamweavers Group. WELCOME SHELLY!
Before we get to the juicy details- Shelly wants you to know she's giving away two 2 ebook copies of MUST LOVE PLAGUE (winner’s choice of platform)
MEET SHELLY CHALMERS
Shelly Chalmers has been writing since before she could properly string words together, and even her first stories were romances (although probably more because she was better at spelling ‘love’ than ‘like.’) A Golden Heart Finalist in 2014, her stories run the gamut from Regency paranormals all the way to contemporary paranormals, but they all include a touch of magic, a dash of humor, and a dab of geek. She currently makes her home in Western Canada where she wrangles a husband, two imaginative daughters, and two nutball cats.
THE STORY BLURB
Piper Bane wants nothing to do with her pesky Pestilence bloodline and
would give anything to be a Normal. In fact, she put Beckwell--land of the
paranormal and home of the weird--in her rear-view ten years ago, and hasn't
been back since. Until an invitation to her best friend’s wedding coaxes her
back home and reminds her what it means to continue the legacy of the four
horsemen of the apocalypse. She receives a typical Beckwell welcome the second
she reaches the city limits where she's stalked by a toad and wraps her car
around a tree. And is rescued by the one person she most wants to avoid: Daniel
Quilan. Town doctor, genuine nice guy, and her ex-fiancé.
“I don’t think I’ve ever met a magical toad,” Daniel mused aloud as he reached for the door and held it open for her.
“Yeah, well, see how much you like it when it starts stalking you.” She stepped into the school, the yellowed floor tiles and chipped paint on the walls and lockers not much different than she remembered. Even the bright, elementary school artwork did little to alleviate the beige gloom.
Daniel waved at the secretary as they passed, someone Piper didn’t recognize, and she peered into the next-door window that allowed a peek into the energetic room pulsing with knee-high kindergarten kids, splattered with paint and joy.
Ah, kindergarten. The crayon-laden gateway to education hell. Those poor critters in there had no idea yet that they were stuck at Beckwell School until they graduated high school. Probably had no concept of how long that imprisonment would feel.
The children’s happy cries stuck with her, bringing her back to when she’d first started here. How she’d met the girls. Anna, so pale and gaunt, a new arrival in town without parents or friends, and taken in by Ginny’s family like a charity case. Piper had been terrified of her, but shared the Play-Doh anyway. It was in that room Piper, Anna, Nia, and Ginny had first received the slightly uneasy reactions when people first heard the whispers. They were from the horsemen clans. They might end the world.
Nan: Yikes!
SHELLY: Definitely tea, loose leaf preferably, and I’m always on the hunt for the perfect almond tea. An almond rooibos is the closest I’ve come yet. Besides, I need a good excuse for why I have so many teapots. ;)
SHELLY: I write humorous paranormal primarily because
that’s also what I love to read – who doesn’t like a laugh and a bit more magic
in our world? I also sometimes find it easier to enjoy and get lost in the
story when there’s some kind of fantasy element (this includes historical too)
because it’s disconnected from our modern world and the fact that real romance
takes real work…and disappointingly doesn’t always end in a happy ending.
Spreading
disease isn't all it's cracked up to be.
Piper Bane wants nothing to do with her pesky Pestilence bloodline and
would give anything to be a Normal. In fact, she put Beckwell--land of the
paranormal and home of the weird--in her rear-view ten years ago, and hasn't
been back since. Until an invitation to her best friend’s wedding coaxes her
back home and reminds her what it means to continue the legacy of the four
horsemen of the apocalypse. She receives a typical Beckwell welcome the second
she reaches the city limits where she's stalked by a toad and wraps her car
around a tree. And is rescued by the one person she most wants to avoid: Daniel
Quilan. Town doctor, genuine nice guy, and her ex-fiancé.
Ten years hasn’t been long enough for Daniel Quilan to forget the only
woman he’s ever loved. His responsibilities as Beckwell's only doctor keeps his
mind off the hole Piper Bane left in his chest when she broke his heart and
skipped town all those years ago. His not-so-ordinary patients and his
trouble-making twin brother keep Daniel occupied twenty-four-seven, not to
mention magic going haywire throughout town. But his plan to stay busy as the
town's golden boy is shattered when his latest patient turns out to be Piper.
How good she looks isn't his concern. How she still makes fire shoot through
his veins isn't his focus. But the fact that someone wants to end the world and
will use Piper to do so......that makes her impossible to ignore.
Nan: I cannot wait to read this book! Such a fun premise.
READ A LITTLE
“I don’t think I’ve ever met a magical toad,” Daniel mused aloud as he reached for the door and held it open for her.
“Yeah, well, see how much you like it when it starts stalking you.” She stepped into the school, the yellowed floor tiles and chipped paint on the walls and lockers not much different than she remembered. Even the bright, elementary school artwork did little to alleviate the beige gloom.
Daniel waved at the secretary as they passed, someone Piper didn’t recognize, and she peered into the next-door window that allowed a peek into the energetic room pulsing with knee-high kindergarten kids, splattered with paint and joy.
Ah, kindergarten. The crayon-laden gateway to education hell. Those poor critters in there had no idea yet that they were stuck at Beckwell School until they graduated high school. Probably had no concept of how long that imprisonment would feel.
The children’s happy cries stuck with her, bringing her back to when she’d first started here. How she’d met the girls. Anna, so pale and gaunt, a new arrival in town without parents or friends, and taken in by Ginny’s family like a charity case. Piper had been terrified of her, but shared the Play-Doh anyway. It was in that room Piper, Anna, Nia, and Ginny had first received the slightly uneasy reactions when people first heard the whispers. They were from the horsemen clans. They might end the world.
Nan: Yikes!
BUY THE BOOK
A LIGHTING ROUND OF Q&A WITH SHELLY CHALMERS
NAN: How
often do you get lost in a story?
SHELLY: As often as I can, especially while the kids are
watching television and I have the opportunity to open a book and disappear for
awhile…usually until they demand food. ;) I love getting lost in a story with
characters and plots that are so wild and imaginative, I have to keep reading
just to see where the writer will take me next!
Nan: Me too!!
NAN: Tea
or Coffee? And how do you take it?
SHELLY: Definitely tea, loose leaf preferably, and I’m always on the hunt for the perfect almond tea. An almond rooibos is the closest I’ve come yet. Besides, I need a good excuse for why I have so many teapots. ;)
Nan: I love that teapot. (I just bought a frog teapot!)
NAN: What
would you say is your most interesting quirk?
SHELLY: I’m a collector. A collector of quirky treasures, juicy
swears, teapots, family history, and interesting people. The people part
probably sounds creepy, but I mean collecting them as friends / acquaintances,
that’s all, I swear! I collect things that I find beautiful, that make me happy
or curious, or that need me to remember or protect them.
Nan: I'm not sure what a juicy swear is?? But the rest is fascinating.
NAN: Why do you write what you do?
SHELLY: I write humorous paranormal primarily because
that’s also what I love to read – who doesn’t like a laugh and a bit more magic
in our world? I also sometimes find it easier to enjoy and get lost in the
story when there’s some kind of fantasy element (this includes historical too)
because it’s disconnected from our modern world and the fact that real romance
takes real work…and disappointingly doesn’t always end in a happy ending.
Nan: We need more laughter and magic in the world!
NAN: Which era would you least like to have lived in,
fashion-wise and why? Most?
SHELLY: Fashion-wise,
I wish we still all had to dress like in the forties and into the early fifties
(post-war years when the skirts start to widen again.) Seriously, men are so
gorgeous in those suits, and those skirts and women’s suits are gorgeous! I
have to content myself now with collecting vintage sparkly jewelry (it’s
possible I’m part magpie), and which I always wear at conference.
Nan: Pretty! And the colors match your book cover!
NAN'S GOTTA ASK: Which
of your characters would you most/least to invite to dinner, and why?
SHELLY'S GOTTA ANSWER: I’d love to have dinner with Loki. He isn’t the hero in this book (shh, don’t tell but he has to wait until book 4), but when Loki enters a room, everyone notices. He founded my imaginary town of Beckwell on the mouth of a magical vortex where all magical things end up mostly just to see what would happen. I’d probably be pretty tongue-tied since he is gorgeous, but I’d like to ask his side of the story. So often he’s cast as the villain in myth and modern incarnations, but there are curious inconsistencies when it comes to his history, so I’d like to find out the truth. Plus, you know, drool over him a bit.
Nan: LOL!
FIND SHELLY CHALMERS
Contact: shellychalmers@scchalmers.com
Website: https://shellychalmers.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ShellyC.Chalmers/
Twitter: @scchalmers
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17169147.Shelly_Chalmers
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.ca/shellychalmers5/
Blogs: https://shellychalmers.com
UP NEXT
Right now I’m working on MUST LOVE FAMINE, the
second book in the Sisters of the Apocalypse series. Ginny Lack has a sexy-new
husband she doesn’t know, a dirty-minded grasshopper who won’t stop talking,
and a looming apocalypse to deal with. She’s going to need wine and chocolate. Coming early 2018.
Nan: These books sound like so much fun!!
SHELLY WANTS TO KNOW:
I love looking for the
potential other side of the story, like with Loki. So do you have a favorite
myth/ fairytale or paranormal creature you think should have their story
told? Maybe even a romance of their own?
Shelly is giving away 2 ebook copies of Must Love Plague (winner’s choice of platform) to lucky commenters. Make sure you leave your email address!
can't think of any
ReplyDeletebn100candg at hotmail dot com
No problem - but thanks for stopping by. :) - Shelly
DeleteThanks for celebrating your debut with the Crew, Shelly! I think I would like to see more of the fairy tales I don't know -- like from China or Japan or Polynesia. Just to expand my horizons. (I love Muana and it's a tale I'd never heard before)
ReplyDeleteGreat idea, Nan! And a big thank you to you and your Crew to having me. :) Yes, I love some of the lesser-known fairy-tales and myths, especially from our perspective here in the West. I think that's part of why I love the Cinderella story - almost every culture has some version of it.
DeleteSigh, sorry - Google is leaving me as "unknown" - but thank you from Shelly. :)
DeleteI always loved Rose Red over Snow White. There's a bear shifter romance somewhere in there...
ReplyDeleteCan't wait to read Must Love Plague!
Thank you, Laura! And yes, I recall Rose Red in a foggy kind of way and remembered I really liked it too. I'll have to look that one up again. :) And LOL! There probably are a few different kinds of shifters in that fairytale and others. Like the one where the two kids get turned into geese? I think it's a version of Hansel and Gretel. Thanks for stopping by. :) - Shelly
DeletePopping in to say, the cover stopped me in my tracks on Twitter--it's fantastic. So glad I saw it because the book sounds just as great! Good luck.
ReplyDeleteHi Tara! Thank you, my cover designer did such a beautiful job, didn't she? I'm glad it caught your attention, and that the blurb matches the cover. :) Thanks for the best wishes and for stopping by!
DeleteWelcome to Get Lost in a Story, Shelly.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for having me, Angi. :)
DeleteOoh I am really liking the sound of your book Shelly! I love the myth of Selkies... thanks for sharing! :) greenshamrock atcox dotnet
ReplyDeleteThank you, Colleen! And selkies, yes! One of my favorites too - great suggestion! Thanks for stopping by. :)
DeleteOops, forgot the "sincerely, Shelly" part. ;)
DeleteOkay, Shelly, you know I'm going to need to see your collection of juicy swears!
ReplyDeleteLol! You're on. My swear collection is only partially written down - but I love finding or inventing the perfect one. I have a few that are in Georgian (the country and culture) waiting for their book. :) Thanks for stopping by! - Shelly
DeleteGreat post, you two! Shelly, I'm so excited to read Must Love Plague.
ReplyDeleteI remember a book I had as a child that I absolutely loved: The Light Princess. I've always thought it would make a lovely animated movie. I just looked around for the book and discovered it was a BBC movie and it was made into a musical as well. Hmmm ... I must check it out. Anyway, thanks for the great post!
Carrie, I love the sound of that book! I'll have to look it up! And thank you for both your enthusiasm for the book and for stopping by. :) -Shelly
DeleteAbsolutely love this premise and the series should be a blast...I, too, love humorous paranormal-hi GiniKoch and Maureen Lovelace-; can understand collecting interesting people-they're fun! Thx for the interview...
ReplyDeleteKathleen Bylsma
Hi Kathleen - and happy waves to another humorous paranormal fan! Thank you for your kind words on the series, and for stopping by. And people in all their variety and character are indeed fun. :). -Shelly
DeleteI LOVE Loki, too. I will be there with bells on for that book!
ReplyDeleteHi Amy! Thanks for stopping by. :) Yes, Loki has been one of those myths that has long intrigued me--there's definitely a story there! And Loki plays a role in pretty much each of the books (he may be attempting to take over the series, just sayin'). ;)
DeleteLOVED your debut, just finished it this morning, Shelly. Congratulations! I can totally see Loki needing a starring role, glad to hear he's in Book 4. :)
ReplyDeleteBest of luck on the series!
Oh, Sarah, thank you!! I'm so glad you enjoyed it. And yep, Loki generally demanded a starring role, and we see more of him in each of the coming books until he finally gets his own story in book 4 (he's Loki - he's got plans of his own.) ;) Thank you so much for stopping by, your best wishes, and your kind words!
DeleteThanks for celebrating your debut, Shelly!
ReplyDeleteThe winners of her ebooks are Tara and Colleen! You'll receive notification via email!
Thanks Nan & Shelly!!!
ReplyDelete