Read Our Lips! Book Review Blog: Guest Post–J. Ann and her book, Tormented

Hello, Fellow Readers! Please join me in welcoming J. Ann to the blog. She’s here today to talk about her book, Tormented as well as host a giveaway!

I am a single mother who has been telling stories since as far back as I can remember, even to the point of telling them to my family on long car rides. I started writing in high school with a group of friends. They are the ones I want to thank, they inspired me to write.

After High School, I continued to write on my own just because I found it relaxing and enjoyable.

When I am not working or writing, I can be found playing with my daughter, listening/dancing to music, or just lounging around most likely watching movies. My favorite kind of novels are those with romance in them!

I am currently working on the sequel to Tormented called Reborn.

It's been over 200 years since Humans drove the affected into hiding. Now out of nowhere, people are dying on both sides. When one of the few female specially trained fighters; also known as an Ultorum, is added to the body count, Angelina is forced to make a decision. Now she must betray everything she knows, including her best friend Michael, and follow the one creature she doesn't trust.

Ethan watches this young Ultorum with leery eyes. He is deeply impressed with her abilities, and even more so with her determination. It's just to bad she smells so good.

Together they set out to find the one responsible for all the killings, but what they find, they are not going to like.

Tormented is my first novel and it is a Paranormal Romance/Suspense. Tormented features a 22 year old woman named Angelina who fights vampires with a group of people called Ultorums, for a living.

When one of the Ultorums she is close to is killed, Angelina drops everything she has ever learned and joins with the last person she would ever want to, a vampire. Together they go on a mission to figure out what happened. But what they find they may not necessarily like.

…The sun had just finished setting when she heard someone behind her, “It’s about-,” she began as she turned her head around. “OH!” she yelped in surprise. She jumped to her feet.
A Youngling stood in front of her. His greasy black hair was pulled away from his face in a tight band. It made his eyes bulge out. He wore all black except for a white beater under his black trench coat. She scrunched her nose in disgust. He was probably the least attractive one of them she had ever seen. “Don’t move,” his scratchy voice forced. He charged exposing his white teeth. Ducking she flipped him over her. Cursing he faced her again, “I said don’t move,” he hissed urgently this time.
“Sorry but I don’t take orders from the lot of you,” she bit back forcing a smile at him. His pale skin grew taught across his face with frustration. Taking a deep breath he could smell her fear for David and the creature that attacked him, misunderstood it. His face contorted with pleasure believing her fear was for him. Once again he ran towards her, jumping angrily, aiming for her neck. Rolling her eyes she sidestepped him, allowing him to hit the ground with a thud.
Pulling out her gun again, she kicked him over, slammed a foot down on his chest, and pointed it at him. “Why did you cross into the city?” she demanded. He began to laugh. “ANSWER ME!” she ordered cocking her gun.
“I don’t take orders from you either,” he laughed wickedly. It was then that she felt it. The same power she had felt the other day. She knew it was too late but she spun anyway. What happened next seemed to go in slow motion. “The difference is dearie I’m not stupid enough to come alone,” he taunted.
He was enormous compared to her. The powerful cloaked vampire kicked the gun from her hand with little effort. She tried to do a round house kick, but he grabbed her leg then threw her into an alley wall. Pain shot through her as she fell to the ground.
“Stay down,” he called out calmly yet forceful, “I would hate to ruin that pretty face of yours,” he mocked. She could feel the force of his words, her body wanting to obey. She shook off the desire and pushed herself up. “Intriguing,” he stated sounding humored.
She threw herself at him. They both managed to dodge some of the other’s blows. He fared a lot better than her. His demeanor changed from laughter, to shock, and then finishing with anger during their struggle. She had fought her fair share of difficult battles in the 4 years since she had graduated from the academy, but this was different. He was different. Faster. Stronger. “Who are you,” she gasped surprised. His shadowed smile made him appear even more menacing.
“Someone who is honestly impressed, if I do say so myself,” he replied dodging another one of her blows. She could feel the warmth of her blood begin to glide down from her brow. He hesitated just for a moment at its scent. She knew she was growing weak. Taking the last advantage she could while he was distracted she kicked him as hard as she could in his abdomen. He flew to the other side of the alley hitting the far wall. His hood finally fell from his head.
She smiled to herself as he bent over slightly. A dent was now creased in the wall from where his body had hit. Spitting out some of his own blood he eyed her proudly. It was then that she realized that they were in the exact same position. Her body was so exhausted it couldn’t support her any longer. “You are quite good, probably one of the best I have had the pleasure of fighting with in a long while,” he laughed still holding her gaze. In a flash she was pinned against the wall behind her. He held both of her wrists captive above her head with one of his hands, a thigh holding her off the ground. His body was pressed inch for inch against hers. “Not good enough though,” he finished eyeing her curiously. Realization hit Angelina and she gasped, he had beaten her. That had never happened before.
“OH YES!” the creepy vampire that had first attacked her squealed. They both turned their heads to look at him surprised by his outburst, “Bite her!” Angelina snapped her gaze to the one that held her captive. While he was still glaring at Creepy she saw the color of his eyes from the glare of a street light. Red.
“You’re a myth,” she shrieked in distress.
His gaze returned to hers amused, “Really? A myth, you’re not the first woman to say that to me.” He tilted his head slightly in thought, “Or maybe she said I look like I could be a man from mythology either way, do I feel like a myth?”
“No,” she managed to say. “You are no man either,” she continued with disgust. She eyed what little of him that she could, taking in his wide shoulders and muscular arms. Judging by the way he felt against her, he was just as muscular all over, completely masculine. Even his face, from what little she could see in the shadows of the alleyway, seem to radiate masculinity, from his short hair to his square jaw that had a day’s worth of growth on it.
He laughed off her comment, “Though I can see why she said that about you,” she thought to herself.
“Why thank you,” he whispered.
Her mouth dropped, “You…can hear…my thoughts?” she stammered. Her heart started to race with shock and fear.
“It’s hard not to when you project them so loudly from your mouth,” he breathed out quietly. With his free hand that up until now had been braced against the building, he turned her head sideways exposing her neck. Bowing his head towards her throat he closed his eyes. A devious smile crossed his lips as he inhaled deeply. “You do smell delicious,” he practically purred. “I have always enjoyed a good Ultorum every now and then. It’s been so long,” he rubbed his nose against her throat. She struggled in vain to release herself from his grasp. “But your eyes,” he pause turning her head back to meet his gaze. She stopped struggling to lean as far from him as she could, “Are so different,” he continued analyzing her. With nothing else she could do she glared at him. “You are unlike anything I have ever seen before.”
“Gee thanks,” she bit back sarcastically tired of everyone noticing how different she really was.
“It’s a compliment,” he returned unfazed, “and I have been around for plenty of years you should treat it as such.”
This time she laughed, “A compliment coming from the likes of you, yeah right!” His face turned to pure anger. She leaned towards him slightly, “Well come on,” she urged. "Aren’t you going to eat your well-deserved dinner?”
He raised a brow, “So eager to please are we?” He leaned next to her ear. She could feel him graze his teeth against her shoulder then slowly he trailed them up her neck. “Want me to feed on you so when your other friends that will come for him,” he nodded slightly over to David, “they’ll find me with you.” He pulled back slightly tilting his head listening. “Don’t worry I’m not that stupid.” In a flash she was standing alone in the alley, both the First and Creepy gone.