We are super excited to welcome author Dannika Dark to Urban Girl Reader today!! This book is on a couple of our want lists and although we aren’t reviewing on this tour, I’m sure one of us will be reading this one in the future.
We were also able to interview Danni and asked her a couple of questions about the series and characters. Check out her responses below. Be sure to also enter the Giveaway that Danni is hosting. You can win a copy of Seven Years as well as some super swag. So let’s get on to the good stuff!
UGR: Hi Dannika and welcome to Urban Girl Reader! First of all congrats on the release of SEVEN YEARS, the 1ST book in your Seven series! Can you tell us a little bit about the series and what about the genre inspires you?
Dannika: It’s great to be here, and thank you so much for having me! The Seven Series is a paranormal romance that focuses on the lives of Shifters. In this series (and my world), Shifters live in secret among humans and live ordinary lives, as much as can be expected from a pack. They’re sexy, dangerous, and blend right in with the rest of us. These are men who respect family, but it seems that Cupid is running amok.
What inspires me about the genre is the possibilities that are otherwise limited in straight fiction. Paranormal romance always brings the unexpected, and I think many readers are captivated by the idea that these fantasy Breeds could exist. Not to mention the alpha men can hardly be beat. 
UGR: So let’s start out with the good stuff and talk about Austin. What are some of the conflicts he will have to face in SEVEN YEARS?
Dannika: Austin is a whole lot of good stuff, isn’t he? The biggest conflict Austin faces is confronting his place in Lexi’s life. Lexi is our main character, and she and Austin go way back. They’ve reconnected after spending seven years apart and while he has strong feelings to protect and look after her, he also realizes that he might not have a place in her life anymore. He is conflicted between doing what’s good for the pack and following his heart. The only problem is, we don’t seem to know where his heart really lies.
UGR: What are three words that would best describe him? What three words describe Lexi?
Dannika: Austin would be loyal, sexy, and dangerous. Lexi would probably be optimistic, resilient, and funny.
UGR: If you had to pick a theme song for this book, what song would you say best describes SEVEN YEARS?
Dannika: “Landslide” by Fleetwood Mac not only has a scene in the book, but is really how I envision the story as a whole.
UGR: What upcoming projects are you working on and when can your fans expect to look for them?
Dannika: Definitely working on the next books in the Seven Series. In addition, I’m writing a Mageri Series novel/novella (we’ll see how that goes) and I have several projects on the radar. Fans can expect a lot more urban fantasy, paranormal romance, and perhaps some contemporary romance.
UGR: If you were a supernatural creature, what would you like to be?
Dannika: I’d probably choose a Shifter. I can see the pros and cons of each Breed that live in my world, but Shifters seem the most level-headed. There’s something sexy about transformation, but I think I’d like to be a panther.
Quickfire Questions:
UGR: Hardcover, paperback or ebooks?
Dannika: ebooks (but still love my paperbacks)
UGR: Bookmark or dog ear page turner?
Dannika: Bookmark
UGR: Early bird or night owl?
Dannika: Night owl and early bird
UGR: Coffee or tea?
Dannika: coffee
UGR: Chocolate or vanilla?
Dannika: CHOCOLATE!
UGR: Plotter or pantser?
Dannika: Pantser all the way
Seven Years
by Dannika Dark
Series: Seven Series #1
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Release Date: October 22nd, 2013
Paperback/Ebook, 330 pages
Book Description:
Seven years ago, my world ended.
Seven years later, my new life began.
It’s been seven years since Lexi Knight lost her brother in a tragic accident. On the anniversary of his death, her brother’s best friend shows up unexpectedly – a man she hasn’t seen since the funeral. He is no longer the boy Lexi once knew, but a dangerous-looking man with tattoos and dark secrets. He broke her trust and abandoned her family, yet what he reveals makes it impossible to stay angry. Lexi has been secretly infatuated with Austin since childhood, so finding out he’s a Shifter just makes him sexier. Dammit.
Austin Cole has returned to the city where he grew up, and just in time. He’s lived a hard life these past seven years, and the shadows of his past are threatening to destroy Lexi’s family. It’s time that she learned the truth about her brother, but there is a shocking twist that Austin never saw coming. Now he must protect her family when her mother and sister wind up in mortal danger. Will Lexi learn to accept the truth about who he is, and can Austin salvage a relationship from the ruins of their past?
Purchase Links: Amazon • Barnes & Noble • Add to Goodreads
Excerpt
The closer I snuggled up to Austin, the more I craved that cozy familiarity—more than I would have cared to admit. I’d missed him. How do you not miss someone who was a huge chunk of your childhood and young-adult life who disappeared off the face of the earth? Almost every memory I had from kindergarten to age twenty involved Austin Cole.
The next thing I knew, my cheek rested on his bicep and I tucked my body against his like a puzzle piece.
Just when I closed my heavy eyelids, he groaned.
Oh God, please don’t let him wake up now.
It was deep and guttural, and he shifted on his right side, facing me.
“You okay?” he murmured.
I didn’t reply. I played dead and pretended I was asleep. It seemed like a good plan to avoid the embarrassment of explaining why I was latched on to him like a man-sucking leech.
A rough, warm hand cupped my cheek and I felt him scoot down a little. Maybe he thought I had fallen asleep, because his thumb brushed over my right eyelid softly.
Five times. I counted.
When his lips lightly touched mine, my brain just shut down. It was a soft, almost nonexistent kiss, but I felt it all the way down to my toes. Then it zinged back up to my hips and damn if I didn’t moan.
Now we were both aware I wasn’t asleep and he was kissing me. But it didn’t stop. His kiss pressed a little bit harder and tingles roared through my body, and my breath was shaky and erratic.
When his tongue touched my lip, I quickly opened my mouth and kissed him back.
Hard.
Deep.
Kissed him like I’d fantasized about doing for the last seven years.
About Dannika Dark
This is the segment where you learn a little more about who I am, so here's what I can tell you: I drink copious amounts of vitamin water placed precariously close to my laptop while writing. These are two healthy habits I have no intention of breaking. I'm a transplant living in the south, but I was born in the 70's to a military dad who moved us around the world.
When I'm not writing (which is all the time), I'm hunting down Indie music, watching movies, reading, eating Tex-Mex, discovering new ways to humiliate myself bowling, and burning up my laptop battery on the Internet. I have a relaxed, easy-going personality and don't like drama. I live with a cat who thinks she is a dog, or a goat (she eats plastic, so I'm not sure which).
Throughout my life, I've had insomnia. Counting sheep never worked and eventually I would imagine those sheep were the sole source of food after an apocalyptic battle where only thousands survived. I made up stories in a futile attempt to bore myself to sleep. The problem was, I got so wrapped up in my "head stories" that I would continue them through the following nights, changing it up each time to make it more exciting. Eventually, I started writing my ideas down - creating short stories, and then I discovered my love for poetry.
It's almost embarrassing how many spiral notebooks and stacks of paper I have of poetry and lyrics.
Another passion: digital art. I design all my book covers, marketing, and series art. I'm a very visual person and pursued photography as an avid hobby for many years.
I am not a YA author (I feel like I have to state this only because I've had a few people ask), but I think it's wonderful there are so many books available to teens in Urban Fantasy and Paranormal.
I am finally doing what I have always wanted to do: giving my characters a pulse through writing full time. I focus on adult urban fantasy romance, but I don't like labels and I enjoy blending genres to break out of the confines of predictability.
But it's what I love to do.
Website • Twitter • Facebook • Goodreads
Tourwide Giveaway
1st prize: 1 autographed paperback of Seven Years 1 key necklace 5 autographed bookmarks
2nd prize: 1 autographed paperback of Seven Years 5 autographed bookmarks
3rd prize: 1 Dannika Dark ebook (Winner’s choice) 5 autographed bookmarks
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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