Urban Fantasy, Noir, Detective
Date Published: November 25, 2020
Publisher: Indies United Publishing, LLC
Former ADA Alastair Maddox pursues Prohibition Chicago’s most dangerous monsters after witnessing the deaths of his parents and grandparents as a boy. When a former colleague in Chicago PD comes to ask Alastair for help, he comes face to face with the mysterious Alexandra DeLane. But something’s off. DeLane is way too calm and her eyes are the color of blood. After she escapes, Alastair goes on the hunt only to find himself the prey of an ambitious and mysterious mob boss who plots to have him murdered. The problem? Alastair doesn’t stay dead and comes back as something else. Something more dangerous and straight out of a horror novel.
Interview with Blaise Ramsay
For those interested in exploring the subject or theme of your book, where should they start?
Gangland, Chicago during Prohibition is a great place to start learning about my book. Noir lovers familiar with Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett and James M. Cain will get the overall theme and style.
How did you become involved with the subject or theme of your book?
My love of old mystery novels and the works of PN Elrod inspired me. I loved her work so much. With Vampire Chicago, however, I wanted to take my own twist on the subject matter by giving the main character, Alastair, a deeper story and making him the kind of broken character Noir and detective stories have in them.
What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them?
My only intention with writing any title is to have fun and entertain myself first, then my readers. From the way BloodLaw is being received by readers and the anticipation for the sequel, BloodMoon, I feel I’ve achieved those goals very well.
Anything you would like to say to your readers and fans?
After BloodMoon’s release, Vampire Chicago will be taking a short break due to a demanding publishing schedule for another series I’m working on. However, I do plan on at least a third (maybe a fourth) installment into the series. ARCs for BloodMoon are available upon request at my website: blaiseramsay.com.
What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
Finishing. It’s always the best part because it’s like having another child. I enjoyed exploring the lingo of the 1920s and taking Urban Fantasy back to what it was meant to be: gritty and filled with broken characters looking to fit in their world and fulfilling their goals.
Can you tell us a little bit about your next books or what you have planned for the future?
With Vampire Chicago taking a brief break in 2021, I do have another series in the works and under contract with a publisher. I can’t really say more on the subject since I have to wait for the big okay from the publisher. I will say, you don’t want to miss this. It’s the biggest under-taking I’ve ever performed with multiple installments and the possibility of ongoing series spin-offs.
How long have you been writing?
I started writing my first novel at the age of fifteen. It never went anywhere, but it was fun to work on. After that, I got into the world of conceptual art and character design for various clients and didn’t write much beyond the occasional character bio. It was during this time, I started scripting my own comic with plans of production, yet that didn’t go anywhere either. Since my first win with Blessing of Luna in NaNoWriMo in 2017, I’ve been writing consistently.
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in BloodLaw?Alastair Maddox - the main MC - is a guy haunted by the brutal murders of his parents and grandparents. After an encounter with the beautiful Alexandra DeLane, things start spiraling out of control into a plot that spans two novels. To avoid spoilers, I will say that Alastair is a broken character facing down the moral dilemma of being a vampire and wanting to be human. He copes with this through the help of his best friend and business partner, Mason Downing, and his girlfriend, Charlaine “Charlie” Ware.
If you could spend the day with one of the characters from BloodLaw who would it be? Please tell us why you chose this particular character, where you would go and what you would do.
That would probably be Mason. He is a walking enigma wrapped up in mystery while being the most fun character to write because of his affinity to use his charm first, then fists or dual Thompson machine guns when charm doesn’t work. He is heavily inspired by the historical figure Machine Gun Jack MCGurn.
About the Author
Blaise started her journey in writing at the age of the fifteen with her first unfinished urban fantasy novel based on a popular video game series known as .Hack. From there she moved her journey into designing characters and doing concept art for various paying clients. In her older career, Blaise moved into working for the Indie Gaming industry where she did concept art for the company HollowRobot and their debut game, Johnny Reboot and various other clients. Sadly, the game didn’t go anywhere and Blaise found herself losing interest in what she had done for fifteen years.
In 2017, Blaise embarked on her first ever NaNoWriMo challenge where she finished the Paranormal Shifter Romance, Blessing of Luna which she indie published. It has then produced a second installation into the Wolfgods series titled Bane of Tenebris. Both have recently been picked up by BlackRose Writing.
Both of these books gave birth to the first of Blaise’s three businesses. The first, FyreSyde Publishing, a small press, has recently opened its doors to authors and works alongside them in the ever difficult challenge of book marketing. A running joke is Blaise considers herself an “odd duck” in the sense that she loves the marketing phase more than the writing phase of production. Her other two businesses include full-time freelance ghostwriting and the independent bookstore, GreenWood Grove Booksellers.
After falling in love with the Dresden files by Jim Butcher and later Saints & Shadows by Christopher Golden, Blaise found a new love for Urban Fantasy. Reading the beloved Vampire Files by PN Elrod prompted Blaise to initiate her next phase and begin producing paranormal detective and noir novels. Now she combines the two and loves every minute of it.
She currently lives in the hometown of Bonnie & Clyde with her husband, two adorable kids, two cats and a dog.
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