by Shane KP O’Neill
I had so much fun writing this book. I wrote the first chapters back in November 1992, but didn’t touch it again until September 2006. With a complete re-write of the original and an extra seventy chapters of the new, Bound By Blood, is a finished product at last.
I have opted to begin the series with this book, Chronicle III. This is where my reader will see Dracula as a vampire for the first time. A dear friend suggested to me that my readers probably wouldn’t want to wait until a third book before they saw a vampire. He was correct of course. Even though the first two books are laced with some stomach-churning horror, I will not release Chronicle I: The Gates Of Babylon at least until the summer in 2013. I promise it is worth waiting for though.
The ability to be able to cleverly manipulate famous historical figures and events to suit my purpose is so inspiring for someone like me. I use the context of the story to expose the shortfalls of the Catholic Church in that period, the weaknesses of that institution and the corruption of the men at the helm. As a Catholic myself this was a little challenging, but exciting nevertheless.
The story allows me to play with such amazing characters as Henry VIII, Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Thomas Wolsey, Elizabeth I, Emperor Charles V, Francois I of France, Pope Alexander VI aka Rodrigo Borgia, Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, Pope Pius III, Pope Clement VII, Niccolo Machiavelli, Pope Sixtus IV, Pope Paul V and Martin Luther among others. In all areas of the book I have striven to use real people where possible. Even though some people may find how I have used some of my characters as somewhat controversial, I am sure you will still find them very engaging. In every scenario, and in whatever setting I have placed my real historic characters, I have striven to portray them as real people with real emotions and feelings and I have tried to show them in their true light.
But it is the fictional character, Jean Pelou, who steals the show. I needed someone special to see out the closing sequence of chapters to the story, and chose him. He is inspired by two of my favourite movie characters. The first came from Sam Neill’s Brian de Bois-Guilbert in Ivanhoe and Hugh Jackmans’s Van Helsing. I tried to mould those two images I had in my mind into one to create Pelou. He certainly turns out to be the hero of the piece.
This is where Dracula’s journey through the ages begins. His descent into darkness is complete. He is at one with Lucifer. With Dracula and the other members of his entourage I have endeavoured to add some new dimensions to the vampire genre and indeed, to take the vampire to another level. This was no easy task in light of the production line of great vampire movies and books over the last two decades. I am confident I achieve this despite that fact. My Dracula is certainly like no other that has gone before. At least I like to think so.
Bound By Blood is not just a vampire or Gothic horror novel. It is also an historical adventure, a tale of paranormal fantasy, and a romantic tragedy laced with erotica. I am sure there is something there to attract readers of every genre.
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About the Author:
The author developed a fascination with Dracula from an early age. Like many others he was enthralled by Christopher Lee’s portrayal of him on the big screen. It was in his late teens that he discovered Dracula the man and the love affair began from there. An avid historian, he studied the period in which the real historical Vlad Dracula lived, 15th Century Balkan, for many years. It followed from there then that with his love of writing he would always choose Dracula as his subject.
Away from writing, the author has a wide range of interests. He has lived and travelled all over the world. He has a love for all things historical, with a particular fascination for medieval Europe. Anywhere he travels he likes to search out locations with an historical interest. He is well read and in recent times has a preference for the work of James Patterson, Carlos Luis Zafon, John Grisham, Jeffrey Archer and Stephen King. He also keeps his library well stocked with historical texts.
For a time he played scrabble on the international stage and represented Wales at the 2007 World Championship in Mumbai, India. He has a real love of sport, most notably football, rugby union, cricket and boxing. His great loves in the football world are Manchester United, Glasgow Celtic, Internazionale and lowly Luton Town. His sporting heroes include George Best, David Beckham, Roy Keane, Ian Botham and Muhammad Ali. His only other activities away from these are long country walks and time spent with friends and family.
www.draculachronicles.co.uk website
www.draculachronicles.co.uk/blog blog
@ShaneKPONeill Twitter
http://www.facebook.com/ShaneONeillsDraculaChronicles FB author page
http://www.goodreads.com/user/show/12341417-shane-o-neill Goodreads
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About the Book:
The Dracula Chronicles: Bound By Blood
Shane KP O’Neill
Genre: Gothic Horror
ISBN: 978-0-9556701-0-7
Word Count: 261,281
Cover Artist: David Evans – GraphicStudio4
Book Trailer: http://youtu.be/MxL9XzO7x28
The Dracula Chronicles is the brilliant and terrifying new concept of Dracula. It is an epic journey through the ages where the forces of Light and Darkness struggle for supremacy until the Second Great War, as foretold in the Book of Revelations. This bitter feud began after the creation of mankind. Lucifer’s jealousy leads to the First Great War of the angels. Hundreds of thousands of years on the feud simmers beneath the surface. It plots the course of history as we know it today. Both sides manipulate the major players through the centuries to seek an advantage over the other.
On a cold night in December 1431 in Sighisoara an old gypsy woman delivers a prophecy to the great Vlad Dracul. She tells him he is about to sire two sons, one an angel and the other a devil. He returns to his fortress just as his wife bears him a son, whom he names Vlad. In the very same moment across the country on the border between Transylvania and Hungary a gypsy girl gives birth to another son, Andrei. The die is cast. The twin souls are born. The young Vlad Dracula becomes the instrument of the forces of Darkness. To balance this, the baby Andrei is blessed by the angels and bestowed with awesome powers. These chronicles are their story.
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Giveaway:
As part of his Bound by Blood tour, Shane is offering a signed copy of the book to one lucky commentor as a prize (open to international shipping).
All you have to do is leave a comment below, letting us know who your favourite fictional vampire is!
giveaway ends Sunday (Nov 25th) at midnight
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