by: Kate SeRine
Series: Transplanted Tales
Genre: Paranormal Romance/Romantic Fantasy
Release Date: April 1, 2014
The author of Red “takes urban fantasy, crime thrillers and fairy tale characters and creates magic" in this paranormal romance novella (Caffeinated Book Reviewer).
To put it lightly, Nate Grimm has a dark past. Fortunately, no one's bothered to look too closely at the Fairytale Management Authority's lead detective and part-time Reaper. And Nate wants to keep it that way. After centuries of torment and loneliness, he's finally found happiness with the hot and hard-charging love of his life, Tess "Red" Little.
Of course, his love for Tess is the reason there's a posse of Reaper judges after him, led by a sadistic bastard acquainted with Nate from once upon a time. Now, Tess will pay the price for Nate's transgressions unless Nate severs his ties to the transplanted Tales—and Tess—forever. His enemy has the advantage of speed, malice and brutality. But the Reapers have underestimated the depth of Nate's love. And the fury of his wrath.
Nate Grimm’s Musical Evolution
Nate Grimm came over in the forties and had been so enamored with the post-WWII era he’d never really left it. Let’s just say if he’d suddenly faded to black and white and started doing his own voice-over narration in that world-weary raspy voice of his, I wouldn’t have been entirely surprised. –from RED (Transplanted Tales #1)
When I wrote the description of Nate Grimm in RED, I immediately heard the music of the thirties and forties playing in the background—jazzy swing music or maybe the slow, sultry music so popular in the film noir detective movies of that time period. And I loved it! Having always been a huge fan of this era of music, I quickly added several of my favorites to my writing soundtrack, including the following:
- Sing, Sing, Sing by Benny Goodman
- Moonlight Serenade by Glenn Miller
- At Last by Etta James
- There, I’ve Said It Again by Vaughn Monroe
- The Very Thought of You by Billie Holiday
So, it would naturally follow that when I began writing GRIMM CONSEQUENCES, the novella sequel to RED, that I’d use the same music, right? That’s what I thought anyway. The problem was, it just wasn’t working for me this time around and I couldn’t figure out why.
Finally, one day, after struggling to write the first big action scene in the novel, it finally hit me: The music worked for Nate in RED because that story was told from Tess’s POV, and she saw Nate as this dashing, sexy, detective who could’ve given Humphrey Bogart a run for his money. But that’s not how Nate saw himself. So now that I was writing from Nate’s POV, I had to approach his character in a whole different way.
Nate has a far darker past than even Tess realizes, one that haunts him and brings on a certain amount of self-loathing and determination to become a better man. For Tess. But in order to be a man worthy of Tess’s love, he has to come to terms with that darker side, embrace it, and overcome it.
When I made this connection, I began to hear an entirely new soundtrack, one that was ominous and harsh and totally kickass. And it was exactly what I needed to set the tone for Nate’s battle against the sinister forces he would face to protect the woman he loves. Here are just a few of those songs*:
- Demons by Imagine Dragons
- My Songs Know What You Did In the Dark by Fallout Boy
- Monster by Skillet
- Bitter End by Veer Union
- Burn and Kick in the Teeth by Papa Roach
- High Road by Three Days Grace
*Some videos have disturbing images. High Road contains flashing lights.
Ruthlessness was one of the defining characteristics of Reapers, one of the reasons we were selected for service in the first place. But even among Reapers, Demetrius was known for his sadism. Most of us went in and did the job we were given. Everyone and everything died eventually. We were just the instrument of that universal truth. But not Demetrius. He relished the killing. He reveled in it. It fed his soul, made him stronger and completely heartless. And I’d nearly followed the same path. Until the day a scheduling snafu had brought me to a patch of woods in Make Believe. Until Tess.
I shifted uncomfortably, my muscles stiff from sitting for so long. At least, that’s what I told myself. I’m sure it had nothing to do with the sins weighing heavily on my soul. Maybe I should’ve been in the AA meeting with Tess and Lavender, facing my demons with everyone else.
Hi, my name is Nate Grimm, and I have a problem—
I laughed out loud in the confines of the car. God, even my name was a lie. I couldn’t even tell the truth about something that basic. How in the hell was I going to tell Tess everything else? The last time I’d tried to come clean, things between us had nearly ended before they got started.
I ran my hand down my face, suddenly weary. I wondered how she’d see me, what she’d think of me, when I finally grew a pair and spilled my guts to her. I imagined the first thing she’d do was clock me. Then she’d probably spit in my face and tell me to go fuck myself. And I couldn’t blame her if she did. If I’d had even a modicum of integrity, I would’ve left her alone, stayed away instead of insinuating myself into her life and becoming an integral part of it. It would serve me right if she left me and never looked back.
As I sat there waiting for the meeting to end, I hardened my heart with resolve, vowing I’d tell Tess everything, share every ugly secret I harbored. And suffer the consequences. Because there was no doubt I’d suffer one way or another.
At that moment, the doors to the cathedral opened and my beautiful Tess emerged into the evening sunlight, breathtaking in her loveliness even from where I was parked across the street toward the back of the lot. She briefly lifted her face to the summer breeze, inhaling deeply, her lips curving into a contented smile. She loved the wind on her face, I knew. I’d seen her lift her face this way on many occasions over the years when she thought I wasn’t looking.
Tess was so afraid to be seen as weak, vulnerable, that few people ever got a chance to glimpse that softer side of her—the side that ached when her friends were hurting, that wept when she’d failed to protect the ones she loved, that would say a few kind words to a woman struggling with her guilt and grief and give her hope on a night when years of being buried in a bottle could no longer numb the pain.
But I saw it all, had witnessed it that day in the woods when I’d seen the depth of her love for her fellow Tales. And I wanted to feel that love, to wrap it around me, immerse myself in its healing warmth. Over the years I’d seen Tess save more lives than I could count. And I prayed that maybe—just maybe—she could save me, too.
My God, she was everything to me. Maybe one day I’d actually deserve her. I sure as shit was going to spend the rest of my days trying.
I shifted uncomfortably, my muscles stiff from sitting for so long. At least, that’s what I told myself. I’m sure it had nothing to do with the sins weighing heavily on my soul. Maybe I should’ve been in the AA meeting with Tess and Lavender, facing my demons with everyone else.
Hi, my name is Nate Grimm, and I have a problem—
I laughed out loud in the confines of the car. God, even my name was a lie. I couldn’t even tell the truth about something that basic. How in the hell was I going to tell Tess everything else? The last time I’d tried to come clean, things between us had nearly ended before they got started.
I ran my hand down my face, suddenly weary. I wondered how she’d see me, what she’d think of me, when I finally grew a pair and spilled my guts to her. I imagined the first thing she’d do was clock me. Then she’d probably spit in my face and tell me to go fuck myself. And I couldn’t blame her if she did. If I’d had even a modicum of integrity, I would’ve left her alone, stayed away instead of insinuating myself into her life and becoming an integral part of it. It would serve me right if she left me and never looked back.
As I sat there waiting for the meeting to end, I hardened my heart with resolve, vowing I’d tell Tess everything, share every ugly secret I harbored. And suffer the consequences. Because there was no doubt I’d suffer one way or another.
At that moment, the doors to the cathedral opened and my beautiful Tess emerged into the evening sunlight, breathtaking in her loveliness even from where I was parked across the street toward the back of the lot. She briefly lifted her face to the summer breeze, inhaling deeply, her lips curving into a contented smile. She loved the wind on her face, I knew. I’d seen her lift her face this way on many occasions over the years when she thought I wasn’t looking.
Tess was so afraid to be seen as weak, vulnerable, that few people ever got a chance to glimpse that softer side of her—the side that ached when her friends were hurting, that wept when she’d failed to protect the ones she loved, that would say a few kind words to a woman struggling with her guilt and grief and give her hope on a night when years of being buried in a bottle could no longer numb the pain.
But I saw it all, had witnessed it that day in the woods when I’d seen the depth of her love for her fellow Tales. And I wanted to feel that love, to wrap it around me, immerse myself in its healing warmth. Over the years I’d seen Tess save more lives than I could count. And I prayed that maybe—just maybe—she could save me, too.
My God, she was everything to me. Maybe one day I’d actually deserve her. I sure as shit was going to spend the rest of my days trying.
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The Transplanted Tales Series:
Kate SeRine (pronounced “serene”) is a hopeless romantic who firmly believes in true love that lasts forever. So it’s no surprise that when she began writing her own stories, Kate vowed her characters would always have a happily ever after. She’s the author of the award-winning TRANSPLANTED TALES paranormal romance series as well as two romantic suspense series: PROTECT AND SERVE and DARK ALLIANCE.
Kate lives in a smallish, quintessentially Midwestern town with her husband and two sons, who share her love of storytelling. She never tires of creating new worlds to share and is even now working on her next project — probably while consuming way too much coffee.
Places to find Kate SeRine:
You can follow the Grimm Consequences Blog Tour here.
Very creative cover and sound very interesting.
ReplyDeleteSuch a fun post! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI am so loving the cover of this one super cool.
ReplyDeleteheather
Great cover!
ReplyDeleteI like the cover. It looks very intriguing.
ReplyDeleteThe cover is amazing! I love the design.
ReplyDeleteStunning cover
ReplyDelete