Category Archives: Books

Why Ravens in the Brightest Kind of Darkness series?

Ravens

Why did you feature ravens in your BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS series?

I’ve always been fascinated by ravens, by their perception in society and the fact they’ve been depicted in old drawings and stories since the beginning of time.

In researching ravens, I fell in love with their duality; every culture has a mythology about ravens. Some associate ravens with evil, believing them to be a witch in another form, others believe them to be the devil’s minions. Then there are the cultures that feature the raven either as the creator of their world or as having had a hand in it’s creation like creating the sun or finding water. Other cultures see ravens as tricksters with the talent to predict the future and the ability to bring messages to the gods. Ravens were also considered birds of war by some, who watched the ravens and used that knowledge to help predict a battle’s outcome.

While ravens feature in just about every culture, their roles spanning from one extreme or the other, one aspect is definitely true in every culture; their presence is never innocuous. It always means “something”! 🙂

And this is why I choose ravens. They have such a rich and varied mythology. I wanted to put my own spin on it in BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS.

Raven Facts: Wiley, Smart, Opportunistic, Loyal, Territorial, Playful and Affectionate

  • Ravens can solve complex problems, like figuring out how to add rocks to a deep jar in order to raise the water level so they could get to the meat floating in the water. Ravens are called “wolf birds” for a reason. They’ve been known to lead wolves to injured (potential) prey so that they can also share in the feeding. Ravens have worked together as a team. One pulls on the dog’s tail and gets the dog to chase after him, while the other raven raids the dog’s bowl for kibble.
  • Ravens mate for life and hold funerals for their dead.
  • Ravens can mimic human speech and other bird calls.
  • Ravens can live in extreme temperatures from the tundra to the desert.
  • The oldest raven in the wild lived to be 17. The oldest raven in captivity lived to be 44. He was a Tower of London raven.

Ravens in Action

How to tell a raven from a crow: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guBwMUAWAJI&NR=1&feature=endscreen

Ravens are much bigger than crows. Here you can see a raven and a crow side by side to see the difference in their sizes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZyBNWVD70w&feature=related  (around 2:38-2:40)

Ravens can be very playful and gentle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAj_SkR8lJY&feature=channel&list=UL

Ravens can talk in various voices: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GusdG_SSWw&feature=relmfu  AND https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zA9KTw07Ax0&feature=relmfu

Brightest Kind of Darkness Book Trailer!

Hi everyone! In case you missed it during the blog tour, we shared the reveal of BKoD’s book trailer. Here ’tis!

Also, speaking of the blog tour…you’re still able to enter to win prizes for a little bit longer. Here’s the page with all the tour stops where you can 1) Learn more detail about the BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS world and 2) Enter to win!

Good luck!

P.T.

Lucid

LUCID is now available!

LUCID: BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS (Book 2)

Once Nara combines her prophetic ability with Ethan’s power to outsmart Fate at his own deadly cat-and-mouse game, she’s more determined than ever to help Ethan learn the meaning behind the raven sword tattoo that suddenly appeared on his back after their confrontation with Fate.

During her quest to uncover the tattoo’s secrets, Nara enlists the help of some new friends and discovers her own surprising connection to Ethan.

While Nara digs deeper into the mystery, her desire for answers leads her down a dangerous path full of powerful and ruthless enemies. Swept into an age-old battle, Nara quickly learns that keeping one’s enemies close can be a necessary evil, making an intangible enemy she can control far more preferable to the human enemies she can’t.

Excerpt from LUCID!

“What’d he say to you?” Ethan said in a low tone.

I tilted my head and decided to tell him the truth. “He thinks you’re bad for me. That you’ll consume me.”

Ethan’s gaze narrowed sideways and his jaw muscle jumped.

I ran my finger along the twitching muscle. “Do you plan to consume me, Ethan?”

His gaze snapped back to mine and he clasped my shoulders, pulling me so close I had to crane my neck to meet his darkened gaze. “Not in the way he meant.”

Every bone in my body melted at the heated look in his gaze as he stared at my lips with hungry intent. But instead of kissing me, he pressed his lips tenderly to my forehead and spoke in a desperate whisper, “You totally break me apart, Nara. You’re the only one who has the power to do that. You consume me.”

Lucid’s Goodreads Page

Purchase Links
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Smashwords


Quotes from LUCID!

“Even in bright sunlight, your eyes are crystal clear. There isn’t a flicker of uncertainty. You know who you are and never apologize for it.”

~*~

“If there’s enough darkness, even light can be completely consumed by it.”

~*~


ETHAN SPECIAL POV Scene from BKoD!

Did you see the SPECIAL ETHAN Point of View Scene from BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS?  No? Go here and check it out!

~*~

I hope you love LUCID!

Ethan and Nara wouldn’t be touching so many hearts if if weren’t for you telling your friends about the series, blogging about it, posting reviews and the covers. Thank you for your continued support of the BRIGHTEST KIND OF DARKNESS series!

Best,

P.T. Michelle