The Edge of Hope is the debut novel of writer Alina Popescu, the first book in the Bad Blood Trilogy, a story of vampires, love, struggles, and a constant fight for survival.
Edge of Hope (Bad Blood I)
When tall, dark, and gorgeous shows up on your self-prescribed emotional recovery vacation, some would call it fate smiling down on you. If he also happens to be interested in your work and ready to make all the room you need in his life, it starts to sound too good to be true. Alexa skips the doubts and jumps right in, only to be thrown into the mysterious world of vampires.
The secrets of their origin and their very existence are far more important than her life to some of her new acquaintances. They are ancient, they are powerful, they have unlimited resources, and they are keen on controlling what the world knows of their kind. As Alexa discovers their complicated, blood feud bound world, she tries to better understand herself, heal old wounds and give love chance after chance. Will she survive the journey?
Find out more: alina-popescu.com/badblood
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Excerpt:
He gently helped me get dressed and the more he touched me, the more I
felt safe around him. So safe that, for a moment, I forgot how weak I was and,
as I completely lacked the needed power to hold myself up, I nearly fell. He
caught me and held me tightly in his arms. My internal dam gave in at that
precise moment and I really started to cry. Not just tears casually flowing,
but anger and pain making their way out through my eyes and mouth.
“It will be all right. Don’t worry,” I heard him whisper, but I had a
really hard time believing it.
Exorcising part of what was making my soul and mind rumble helped me
regain a bit of my strength so I slowly nodded when he asked if I could walk. I
was taking the steps, but he was still supporting most of the process. We went
down the stairs, but instead of going through the club, we went outside through
another door, some kind of service entrance. There were a few cars parked out
back. He got me into the back seat of a Honda Civic. I couldn’t tell what color
it was.
Just when he was about to get in the car, Anthony appeared out of
nowhere right next to him. I instinctively moved to the farthest point from him
I could possibly squeeze into.
“Leaving so soon?” he asked, a touch of anger in his voice.
“Anthony, I can’t really help if you’re never careful enough and leave
girls in a state of shock. Be more careful next time,” his friend scolded him.
“What’s the point if you can’t go all wild and enjoy their
helplessness? That just diminishes the pleasure,” Anthony said and shrugged. I
felt a surge of anger, but fear quickly overpowered it when his gaze met mine.
“The point is she can stay out and play longer, but you have a horde
more inside so I get it. Now I need to take her to your place and clean up your
mess… again!” I didn’t really know him, but even I could sense the disgust in
his tone.
“Fine, have it your way. I won’t be going there for a few days. I need
to keep her alive and I am sure you can guess how tempting her blood is. Keep
an eye on her. I don’t want sweet Alexa getting any ideas and making me chase
her around Europe.”
He turned on his heels and left. Apparently, he had no need to wait
for any form of consent.
I finally relaxed when the car drove off and I could feel the distance
growing between me and Anthony. The car was very warm and I allowed myself to
lie down on the seat and close my eyes.
I woke up as I was being carried inside. I looked up at him and he was
smiling warmly. I wanted to smile back, but I could feel that my face wasn’t
moving. He placed me on the big sofa in the living room and covered me with a
blanket he had brought in from a different room. He stepped into the kitchen
and I could hear drawers and cabinets being opened and closed, and then the
microwave opened. He came in ten minutes later with a big bowl of steaming
liquid.
“Here, drink this. And drink it all,” he ordered.
It was a thick soup that didn’t look or smell half bad so I ventured
and took a sip.
“Easy, it’s really hot,” he said, jumping from his armchair.
“Don’t worry,” I said in a barely audible voice. I had always had an
abnormal tolerance to hot liquids. When I could finally taste it, I frowned and
forced myself to swallow. It had a metallic aftertaste, as if he had mixed iron
dust in it.
“God, this is awful!” I complained.
“Just drink it. You’ll thank me in the morning.” He winked and gave my
shoulder a little squeeze. He stayed with me, giving me an occasional nudge to
make sure I kept drinking. He kept shifting and frowning, even after I showed
him the empty bowl.
“What’s wrong?” I asked, annoyed by his overbearing care.
“You’re very weak. You almost passed out three times while drinking
this.”
“I didn’t realize. I’m sorry.” I really hadn’t. I didn’t feel
anything, neither light-headed nor sleepy, so it came as a surprise.
“Well, you managed to drink it all. Now you’ll get some sleep and you
should be fine.” He tried a smile to reassure me, but it wasn’t really working.
“What’s your name?” I asked. I probably was feeling better if I had
realized we had never been introduced
“Louis,” he said, taking the bowl from my hands and tucking me in.
“Thank you, Louis. And nice to meet you…sort of.”
“Go to sleep, Alexa. And you’re welcome.”
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About the author
Writer, traveler, and coffee addict, Alina Popescu has been in love with books all her life. She started writing when she was ten and even won awards in local competitions. She has always been drawn to sci-fi, fantasy, and the supernatural realm, which explains her deep love for vampires and is also to blame for this trilogy.
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Author Interview:
I would like to welcome author Alina Popescu and thanks her for stopping by today to tell us a little about herself and her work.
What is your favorite
part of the story, The Edge of Hope?
I loved writing this
book, as it was my way to deal with certain events in my own life and Alexa is
probably the closest female character to who I am. My absolute favorite bit was
actually added later in the editing process, it is a conversation Alexa has
with her vampire friend Hesrah. It’s about grabbing onto a sliver of hope and
never letting go, no matter what.
How long did it take
you to write The Edge of Hope?
I started working on
it about three years ago. It took about a year and a half to complete, but I
worked on it on and off, it wasn’t a continuous thing. About 50% of it was
actually done during my first NaNoWriMo. Thought it would help me create the
habit of writing daily and I was right. There were long breaks at first, I’d go
for months without writing.
If you were stranded
on a desert island which of your characters do you want by your side?
Definitely not any of
the vampires, I’d be the only food source! The werewolves in one of my WIPs would
do though. They could hunt for me and keep me safe, so one of them. I’d pick
one that does not have a mate though, I don’t want to be cruel.
If you could be best
friends with one of your characters, who would it be?
Anthony. I know his
the baddie of the story, but I can’t help loving him and I happen to think he
would have done things differently if he had better friends.
What is your favorite
book that you wrote?
The Edge of Hope will
always be my absolute favorite. It was my first and nothing will ever compare
to that feeling of seeing your first novel live in the online bookstores or of
holding your first paperback.
What is your typical day
like?
It always starts with
coffee! My dog joins me, I have my coffee with milk and sugar and he drinks his
milk at that time. I’m either reading or on facebook while I have my coffee.
Then it’s a walk outside with him.
My typical day involves
a lot of time spent in front of my laptop. I write blog posts, articles, do
client work, promote my book, connect with my online friends through social
media. I try to write every day on either of my WIPs, but I’m not always
successful. I go to the gym as often as I can, usually in the evening, and then
there’s another walk with my dog. Before bed, there’s some more reading
involved.
How do you overcome
writer’s block?
My problem is time,
not a real block. I do get stuck sometime, but I developed a habit of working
on several stories at once and that is extremely helpful. I usually am able to
find some inspiration for at least one of them.
Can you share a little
of your current work with us?
I am currently working
on book 3 of Bad Blood (book 2 is completed and the third one is about 50%
done), a sci-fi story that I’ve been plotting and planning for a while, a
werewolf novel and a few romances.
Character Interview:
I would like to thank Alexa from Alina Popescu's Edge of Hope for stopping by today to talk with us.
What is your name? Do
you have a nickname?
My name is Alexa. I
don’t really have a nickname, well, not anymore. I used to have a few growing
up, my very first one being Mushroom. That’s what I call my car now.
What is your hair
color? Eye color?
My hair is brown and
my eyes are hazel brown.
Where were you born?
Where have you lived since then? Where do you currently call home?
I was born in Romania,
in a relatively large town called Ploiesti. I’ve lived in Bucharest for the
past decade and I’ve recently moved to Amsterdam.
Who are the people you
are closest to?
I’m closest to my
friend Hesrah and to Louis. Or at least I thought I was close to Louis. Hesrah
I am sure about, she’s my closest friend right now. It’s hard to feel at ease
with any of my human friends, I can’t really talk to them about what’s going on
in my life. Keeping secrets is a bitch.
What or who is the
greatest love of your life?
Umm, I’d rather not
say who. I always get that wrong, think I’ve found my soul mate and it blows in
my face, so I don’t want to jinx it. What? I think life is my greatest love. No
matter what happens, I feel this joy of living that some might call delusional.
What is your greatest
regret?
Refraining from
punching people so many times! I’ve learned over the past months that is quite
liberating to slam your fist into people’s faces when they make you angry.
Sure, they might not feel it, but you will, and you’ll feel great about it.
What do you most value
in your friends?
Not surprisingly,
their loyalty and honesty. It’s what I value in all relationships. If you’re
honest about everything and if that friendship is important to you, the rest
doesn’t matter. Everybody screws up, but if you use your words and tell the
truth, the rest should be easy.
Who is your favorite
hero of fiction? In real life?
In fiction it’s
Lisbeth Salader from the Millennium trilogy. I found her fascinating, extremely
smart and one of the strongest female characters ever. In real life? I can’t
pick one. I am blessed to know so many amazing persons, vampire and human
alike, it’s just too hard to choose.
Which living person do
you most admire?
Someone I’ve never
met, but I hope I get to. His name is Magnus, he’s the trueborn who reopened
the portal to Earth. He went a little crazy at some point, killing vampires for
sports…But he seems so interesting to me, a true explorer! Also, he survived
the crazy, so I definitely want to meet him!
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