Jennifer Estep Guest Blog Post and GIVEAWAY!

Greetings and salutations! First of all, I want to say thanks to Melissa for inviting me to blog today. Thanks so much, Melissa!

I’m the author of the Elemental Assassin urban fantasy series. The books focus on Gin Blanco, an assassin codenamed the Spider who can control the elements of Ice and Stone. When she’s not busy killing people and righting wrongs, Gin runs a barbecue restaurant called the Pork Pit in the fictional southern metropolis of Ashland. The city is also home to giants, dwarves, vampires, and elementals – Air, Fire, Ice, and Stone.

The first book in the series, Spider’s Bite, was released in February. Web of Lies, the second book in the series, just came out on May 25. Venom, the third book, will be released on Sept. 28.

Today, Melissa suggested that I share some fun tidbits about the books, so here goes:

My favorite character to write in the series: Finnegan Lane. As much as I love writing my heroine, Gin Blanco, I love writing Finn even more. Finnegan Lane is a charming, shameless womanizer and an investment banker who loves money and all the pretty things that he can buy with it. It’s always fun to write a character who is so passionate about something, who knows all his flaws, and revels in them. Finn knows that he plays the part of the comic relief in many cases, and he’s okay with that.

My least favorite character to write: Background characters. You know the ones I’m talking about. The characters who maybe have one or two lines of dialogue, if that, but have to be included to keep the story moving forward. Mostly, these are the minor bad guys that Gin kills or people eating at the Pork Pit. Coming up with throwaway names for those folks is really tough sometimes. 

Yes, most of the recipes are real: Gin loves to cook, and I mention a lot of different dishes that she makes in the books. Most of these are tried and true favorites that I’ve found and made myself over the years from friends, family, magazines, and more, like the chocolate chip pound cake. I’ve posted some of the recipes on my Web site. Here’s the link (scroll down until you get to Gin’s Recipe Box): http://www.jenniferestep.com/books-series/elemental-assassin-series/. 

Pay attention to Gin’s T-shirts: Most of the time, Gin is wearing jeans, boots, and a T-shirt, and most of her T-shirts that I describe have some kind of food item on them, like cherries, blackberries, etc. I thought that was another clever little way that I could bring out her love of cooking.

I like to think my books exist in the same world: I’m also the author of the Bigtime romance series, which focuses on sexy superheroes, evil ubervillains, and smart, sassy gals looking for love. Books in that series are Karma Girl, Hot Mama, and Jinx.

In every one of my Elemental Assassin books, there’s a small reference to one of my Bigtime books. For example, in Spider’s Bite, Finn mentions that someone is wearing a Fiona Fine suit. Fiona is the fashion designer heroine of the Hot Mama book in my Bigtime series.

As an author, I like to think that my characters all live in the same world -- that a character from one series could walk down the street and bump into a character from a different series. These references are just a little something extra and fun that I include for folks who enjoy both my series. 

So there you have it. Some fun facts about the Elemental Assassin series. Happy reading! ;-)

What about you guys? What are some of your favorite urban fantasy books? Share in the comments.

Jennifer is also giving away a signed copy of "Web of Lies" to a lucky poster (US only). All you have to do is answer her question, post one of your own (she'll be around the first day to answer questions), or just comment below! Also, please include an e-mail addy if you do not have one connected to your profile. I'll end the contest on Sunday night of this week and pick a winner and list them on Monday! Good luck everyone!
Giveaway is now closed.