Tuesday, June 10, 2014

Interview: Rachel Higginson's Kane Allen from "Love and Decay"

 
 
Today I have a special treat for you ladies!! I've had the wonderful opportunity to interview the sexy and sometimes scary Kane Allen from the amazing Rachel Higginson's "Love and Decay" Series. If you haven't read it, what have you been doing?? No really, you should start it's exciting, adventurous and at times a little freaky!!  Before we start, I'd like to show y'all just how YUMMY Kane Allen is!!
 
 
Josh Bowman Rachel's Kane
 
 
 
checking for zombies Kane??
 
 
 
Ok now that we've had our um... *coughs and clears throat* eye candy, are you ready to hear what Kane had to say? All my questions and comments will be in pink and Kane's answers in blue. Let's get started!!
 
 
 
I thought it would be easier if I came to Kane, so here I am sitting in his house on the compound. Um yeah remember how creepy Reagan said it was here??? It's far worse than you'd imagine. *shudder* the town is so small town American when you first approach. Clean, well kept & happy people bustling along their day. Upon closer inspection, you'll see guards with guns are posted everywhere should anyone think to step out of line. The town's people are forcing smiles out of fear & not happiness. THIS is the stuff that nightmares are made of & I have to grab onto my seat to force myself from running screaming out of Kane's front door & into the guards standing on the porch.
I hear murmuring of voices outside the door & see a smiling, confident & handsome Kane step through the front door & walk across the room towards me. Reagan also didn't do the sexiness that is Kane justice (thanks a lot Reagan)
Taking a big breath I stand up & reach out my hand to shake Kane's (hoping my hand isn't shaking) Hello Kane, thank you so much for meeting with me today! *OMG he even smells good*
Hi, Kelly. It was nice of you to come all the way out here. Thank you for having me.
Kane motions for me to take my seat & I open my note book.
 
Your family has quite a set up here, has your father always been interested in being prepared for the end of the world?
*Smiles patiently* Matthias has always been a bit of a doomsday prepper. Years before the infection spread, he outfitted our cabin with not just a bunker and rudimentary plumbing system but a self-destruction button of sorts as well. Not only that, but our home, our original home on our old farm, was also built to run without modern water or electricity. I guess you could say he likes to be in control. And for him, preparing for every possible scenario helped him keep that control. As you can see, all that preparation worked in his, our, favor. Interesting
 
Tell me about your childhood. Do you have any favorite memories of time spent with your father?
I didn’t realize this was a therapy session? *nervous giggle* No, I’m kidding. My childhood? There’s not really much to say. My parents stayed happily married. Matthias was a successful farmer, and he’s been successful at… well, whatever he’s doing now. My mama always stayed home and kept the home running to Matthias’s standards. We are, or were, an all-American family. At least on the outside. *smiles sadly and nods*
As for a favorite memory… let’s see… He took me to the track when I was ten. We stayed all day. He let me pick my own horses to bet on and didn’t seem to mind that I couldn’t pick a winner. After a while, it got to be a joke. *smile* He would pick horses that won. His always won. And I would pick the losers. I didn’t care that they lost. He didn’t let me bet that much money anyway. But his kept winning. That’s all I cared about. His kept winning and he was in a good mood. And it was a good day. That's wonderful!
 
*shifts in seat* these questions maybe a little difficult. *clears throat*
 
 
How old were you when you noticed the abuse your siblings were taking from your father?
*Clears throat* *looks around the room and plays with shirt collar* I don’t know. Tyler and I are only three years apart, so I can’t remember a time when he didn’t… When he didn’t discipline the way that he does. Miller was the baby, so I think he got off easy for a while. Matthias had Tyler and me, so he didn’t need to bother Miller. Of course, Tyler’s discipline was a different kind than mine. He was more manipulative with her, more verbally and emotionally aggressive. My parents think Miller was spoiled for too long. That Matthias waited too long to whip Miller into shape. And they might be right. Not with their methods, obviously, but Miller can be… difficult. *Clears throat again* Miller was seven when my dad first took the belt to him.  *whispers* That must've been terrible, I'm so sorry Kane.
 
Was your mom ever strong enough to step in & stop the abuse? Did you ever discuss it with your father?
You keep calling it abuse,*looks down and whispers and shrugs* Well..... but my parents never once thought of it that way. Still don’t. To them it’s discipline. To them, they are doing what it takes to raise children into successful adults. They do what it takes to make us behave. They’re like that with everything and everyone. And did I ever discuss it with my father? *Lets out a bitter laugh* That is a conversation we will never have. I can understand why you still have anger toward him, it's hard. *sigh*
 
How do you think this has changed your relationship with your siblings?
The thing about being raised in a household like we were, is that day-to-day living becomes all about survival. We tried to stick up for each other in the beginning but Matthias made sure that we learned those efforts would be in vain. When we stood up for each other, things only got worse. *frown* It became natural to ignore each other, so we didn’t make it worse for each other. And when you do that, when you shut everyone else out in order to protect them, you build walls. You have to build walls or it’s impossible to stay uninvolved. Once those walls are there… It’s hard to have a relationship with people you avoid in order to protect and who you turn your face from while they’re in the middle of something… dark. It’s hard to build trust and have that normal-sibling relationship. We’re as afraid of each other as we are our parents. *scoffs* Matthias really made your life a living hell.
 
Ok let's move on from your family to a little bit of the bigger picture. Take me back to the day the world changed. What was your father's process to set up this town?
It was simple really. Shut everyone else out, set up border patrols and kill anything that threatened. He was ready. And we come from a community where men owned guns and knew how to use them. Sounds like it all just fell into place.... We hardly noticed the rest of the world falling apart. But when it did, it was just another opportunity for my father. He’s an opportunist at his core. When towns surrounding us fell to the infection, we raided them and took what we needed. When people would come through that had something he wanted, he found a way to make it his.*rolls eyes* That first day we could see the world changing was no different than any other day, except that people finally respected those skills and called them what he’d always wanted them to be… leadership. His ruthlessness, greed, and insight put him ahead everyone else. When everyone else was scared and uncertain, he was ready. And because he was ready, he got what he wanted. Yes that's true, he defiantly did.
 
Do you agree with the actions your father has taken to get where he is today & to stay on top?
*Shifts in his seat* Matthias has saved a lot of lives doing things the way he has. That town of people wouldn’t have survived this long, with that much peace, if he hadn’t taken over and ran things how he saw fit. *Shifts again* Lately, though… I don’t know… I’ve been wondering if there wasn’t another way, you know? Um, yes!! I’ve been thinking that maybe it doesn’t have to all be black and white, my way or the highway. But here’s the bottom line, Matthias isn’t the only power hungry tyrant out there. This is a country up for grabs and the person with the biggest stick is going to get it. If it isn’t Matthias, then it’s someone else. At least I understand this monster. At least I know how to survive and what role I have to play. Well, that's true.
 
Ok on to Reagan *avoids eye contact* the moment you met her you became obsessed with possessing her. What was it about Reagan that made you so captivated?
*Smiles to himself* Goddamn, that spunk. *snort* She called me out right away. At first, I just saw this pretty girl, with a pretty laugh and a pretty smile. I wanted that. I wanted something lovely in my life, something blindingly beautiful. But then… it was like she saw me. She saw through all the bullshit and image I wanted to throw up to intimidate her and she just called it all out. *leans  forward and nods* She demanded to know who I really was. That. Right there. Not anyone I have ever known has cared about that person. They just want what I give them, the surface of me. Or what I can give them. Like Matthias. He wants what I can do for him. He wants the power I help him keep. But Reagan didn’t want anything from me but the truth. And for the first time in my life, I felt tempted to give that to someone. To her. Ok, *sigh* I admit, I've never looked at yall's situation that way before....
 
 
It’s not always a good feeling. Sometimes… sometimes she sees more than I want her to. And sometimes she demands more of me than I am. But at the end of the day, I can’t imagine going back to a world without her in it. I can’t imagine living out the rest of my days without someone seeing me anymore. Without someone wanting me. Not what I can give them or do for them. But just… me. *sigh and nods dreamily* Yeah....
But it’s not just about me. That girl… I want her too. I want her every day for every day I have left. I want the real her too.
 
You spend much of the book following & capturing Reagan to then realize your behavior was a bit um.....crazy & let her go. Does your father's influence or fear of him have anything to do with this?
I’ve crossed some lines. Not just with Reagan but with Matthias too. He does not acknowledge losers or losing and with what has happened with Reagan… He’s not exactly supportive of my feelings. But he knows that I can’t focus unless she’s with me. So one way or another I have to have her. Every other possibility is unacceptable to Matthias. This isn’t just about me and what I want anymore. This is about him. And his reputation. And the Colony’s reputation. I can’t fail him. Not if I want to keep on living.
 
After spending a good amount of time with Reagan I must admit there could be something there. If Reagan did choose to be with you, would you change the way you're currently living your life? Maybe breakaway from your father & his town?
I would do anything to keep Reagan safe. And happy. If she chose me… yeah, I would do anything for her. *deep sigh* UmmHmm
 
* coughs and clears throat* So......If all this zombie junk didn't happen & ruin your life plans, what would you be doing?
*Chuckles* Good question! *blush* Although, I don’t think my life would be much different. I mean, in ways yes. But I would still be working for Matthias. I’d still be in that town. I’d still be who I am. I just… Mostly I’m glad for the Zombie junk. *cocks head to the side* What? I wouldn’t have met Reagan without it. I don’t even want to think back to how empty my life would be without her. Oh! *giggles, stares and smiles at Kane*
 
*shakes head* I look out the window & notice it's late afternoon & time for me to leave before I have to face zombies in the darkness.
Looks like it's getting late, but one last question before I go. What are you future goals for yourself?
Reagan. That’s all I can see in my future. *sigh* Oh!! Um... Once I figure her out… we’ll figure the rest out together. And if she isn’t in my future, then one way or another I don’t have one. *whispers* Wow!
 
Thank you so much for meeting with me this afternoon Kane. It's been very interesting. Um, *looks around nervously* your dad is going to let me leave right??
Thanks, it was nice to meet you. And sure, he’ll let you leave. Just don’t try to take anyone with you. *giggles nervously* No worries!

 
 Ok, so what did ya'll think of Kane?  He's much deeper than you thought isn't he? How do you feel about his um..."feelings" for Reagan?  I see him causing a lot of problems for her and Hendrix!!
 
This isn't the only awesome work Rachel has, have a look!!


OTHER WORKS:
 
 

 
Star Crossed Series

Reckless Magic (book 1)

16 year old Eden Matthews has been in and out of private schools for the last two years. Kingsley is her last chance to finish high school and she is determined to simply do that. But when she meets Kiran Kendrick and her world opens to something she thought only existed in fairy tales, she's unsure what her future will hold. Suddenly she is captivated by a boy who seems to be the source of all of her problems and struggling to rescue her best friend from a foreign prison. When attempts are made on Kiran's life, Eden alone must save him. Thrust into a world that is more make-believe than reality, Eden has to find her own destiny without losing those she loves most. Reckless is an intricate story of mystery, adventure, magic and love. Eden Matthews is an unlikely heroine set on a path to save the world and her loved ones before its too late.



Hopeless Magic (book 2)

After returning home from Romania, and successfully saving her best friend Lilly, Eden Matthews must now come to terms with her future as an Immortal. She is in love with the Crowned Prince, but he is betrothed to someone else.
Her family desperately wants her to join their rebellion, but that would mean fighting against her one, true love, Kiran Kendrick. She must fight off assassins that want her dead, an Immortal rite of passage that takes her to India and a deadly disease that no one has thus far survived. Danger seems to lurk around every corner as Eden Matthews struggles to keep her true identity a secret and protect those that she loves.
Eden must find a way to be with Kiran, or turn her back on him forever and fight to save her people. Hopeless Magic is the second installment of the Star-Crossed series.



Fearless Magic (book 3)

Eden Matthew's world is in shambles. Her grandfather viciously murdered, her twin brother held without magic, and her best friends imprisoned, all at the hands of the one man that was supposed to love her for eternity. She has been betrayed, and now she is being hunted by a king that wants her dead. Eden must pick up the pieces of her life and stand alone against the tyranny that threatens to destroy her world. Alone she must find a way to rebuild the Resistance, locate her missing parents, save her loved ones and take down the monarchy. Everything is against her, including forbidden feelings of a love that she thought was buried. She has declared war and now stands on the precipice of defeat. Losing is not an option however, and Eden must find a way to overcome her emotions, fight through her pain and restore the magic to her kingdom. Fearless Magic is the third installment of The Star-Crossed Series.



Endless Magic (book 4)

In the final installment of the Star-Crossed Series, we find Eden Matthews a prisoner in the very household she set out to destroy. She is without magic and engaged to the same boy who betrayed her and everyone she loves. With her wedding looming on the horizon, conditions for her people continue to worsen and her goal of offering her kingdom freedom seems further away than ever. Her brother is free however, and building a Rebellion that hopes to rescue her. Eden's parents are working with the Resistance and inside the Citadel Eden finds more allies than she thought possible. However, there is more at stake for Eden than just an unwanted marriage. Her heart is on the line too, as she fights the pressures of palace life, the prejudice ingrained in her people and a seemingly unbeatable king. Endless Magic is the fourth and final installment of the Star-Crossed Series.



Reluctant King (book 5)

Avalon St. Andrews has endured Hell and war in an attempt to secure freedom and immortality for his people. Raised and conditioned to be both warrior and leader, he now sits on a throne with his sister Eden, governing the Kingdom in peace. While his people enjoy the benefits of his struggle and loss, he is restless, bored and alone.
Avalon is summoned to fight to save his people once more as the Kingdom is threatened by a brand new evil. In addition to reigning in a kingship he doesn’t want, he is fighting against the very people he has fought so hard to protect. They are determined to throw away their newfound freedom and their newfound leaders.
In this war and in this kingship he feels alone. And for the first time he feels hollow. That is until Amelia Cartier shows up, invading his every thought and shaking up his carefully controlled world.
 

The Relentless Warrior: (book 6)
 
 Jericho Bentley is disillusioned by life. He feels lost in a world of peace and restless in a time threatened by war. He has given up on love, forgotten how to trust others and decided a lifetime of bachelorhood is all that remains for him.

Olivia Taylor was struggling to find her way in a human world. Now taken from the only life she’s ever known and changed on a molecular level, she is more lost than ever. With her sister struggling to survive the after effects of one of Dmitri Terletov’s experiments, Olivia sets off with Jericho to find a cure for both herself and her sister.

Together, Jericho and Olivia find more than vengeance and answers, they find a deep friendship that might teach them both to trust again. Maybe even to love again. As long as they can both put the hurt of their past behind them for good.
 
 
Love and Decay Season 1 Episodes 1-12
 
Zombies- as if that wasn’t enough to ruin any girl’s dream of a happily ever after.

A vaccination gone oh so wrong and a huge portion of the world’s population was turned into Zombies. Reagan Willow is forced out of her home when her parents become casualties of the horrid Zombie Apocalypse. With the help of her best friend Haley, they’ve become somewhat of experts on surviving the dangers of a world thrust into chaos and decay.

Reagan and Haley are on a vague mission to find somewhere safe to live out the remainders of their terrifying life when they stumble upon the Parkers, a pack of brothers that seem to have the survival thing down in a much more efficient and successful way than Reagan could ever have imagined. They are also protecting their eight year old sister, Page, and will do anything to keep her safe.

The brothers decide that Reagan and Haley need help with being kept safe as well, and as a group they set off to find the Zombie-free utopia Reagan is dreaming of.

Zombies are a daily problem, constantly threatening the lives of their group, but they’re not the only peril on the journey ahead. Militia groups of power hungry men are also a constant concern. And settlements of paranoid, suspicious people turn out to be just as hazardous.

Danger looms over every inch of the way, but Reagan, Haley and the Parkers are determined to get to their goal and remain together. Soon the Parkers become more to Reagan than just traveling companions and more than friendship starts to develop between her and Hendrix, the second oldest brother.

But at the end of the world, nothing can be as simple as life and death. Now, Reagan is going to have to schedule falling in love between hunting and surviving. Hopefully she can last long enough to find out if true love can still exist when everything else has started to fall apart.

Love and Decay, Volume One, is a compilation of the first six episodes in a twelve episode season. It is a Dystopian Romance Novella Series about Zombies, the end of the world and finding someone to share it with.

This story takes place over multiple episodes, with a release date every two weeks. Each episode is approximately 20,000 words
 
  
 
 
Avalon St. Andrews has endured Hell and war in an attempt to secure freedom and immortality for his people. Raised and conditioned to be both warrior and leader, he now sits on a throne with his sister Eden, governing the Kingdom in peace. While his people enjoy the benefits of his struggle and loss, he is restless, bored and alone.
Avalon is summoned to fight to save his people once more as the Kingdom is threatened by a brand new evil. In addition to reigning in a kingship he doesn’t want, he is fighting against the very people he has fought so hard to protect. They are determined to throw away their newfound freedom and their newfound leaders.
In this war and in this kingship he feels alone. And for the first time he feels hollow. That is until Amelia Cartier shows up, invading his every thought and shaking up his carefully controlled world.


 
A life not her own—A future already decided.

Every facet of Ivy Pierce’s life is meticulously planned out and plotted. Cynical and jaded by sixteen, Ivy’s only hope is to escape the legacy she was born into.

She has a plan, a carefully thought out, feasible plan. She just has to play by the rules until everything falls into place. Unfortunately as predictable as her life can be, she never sees Ryder Sutton coming. He tumbles into her life unimpressed and untouched by her and the life she lives. He’s an enigma to her. A gorgeous, frustrating, sincere mystery and a complete phenomenon in the ugly world she lives in.

What blooms between them is a fiercely intense attraction that cannot be ignored. Even though they would both be better off without each other—Even if both their lives depend on staying apart.

Stella is a Star, sent by a Council of Elders to live on Earth and protect the planet from the Darkness, a terrifying evil that would suck the good from every living thing and leave the planet empty and desolate. She has until her twenty-fifth birthday before the Protectorship becomes hers and Earth is left solely her responsibility.
Stella’s fate goes on fast forward as she struggles to balance the rest of high school with the duties of protecting humanity from the deadliest kind of evil.
With her parents and Seth, the boy intended to be her Counterpart, by her side she faces down demons and fallen angels in an effort to protect the last inhabited planet in the universe.
But evil is not her only enemy. She also fights her future as she tries to decide if she’s willing to give up her human relationships, especially that of her best friend Tristan, in order to save humanity.
 
 
 
Stella is a Star, sent by a Council of Elders to live on Earth and protect the planet from the Darkness, a terrifying evil that would suck the good from every living thing and leave the planet empty and desolate. She has until her twenty-fifth birthday before the Protectorship becomes hers and Earth is left solely her responsibility.
Stella’s fate goes on fast forward as she struggles to balance the rest of high school with the duties of protecting humanity from the deadliest kind of evil.
With her parents and Seth, the boy intended to be her Counterpart, by her side she faces down demons and fallen angels in an effort to protect the last inhabited planet in the universe.
But evil is not her only enemy. She also fights her future as she tries to decide if she’s willing to give up her human relationships, especially that of her best friend Tristan, in order to save humanity.
 
 

Written with Lila Felix

Cami Montgomery stole a car and smashed it into the front of a building in upscale Beverly Hills after a lousy date with the epitome of sleaze balls. The worst part, her parents are following through on threats after this latest plea for attention. Banished from her L.A. paradise and plunged into the Appalachian Mountains with her industrious aunt and uncle, Cami is about to find out how precious life really is.


Stockton Wright has been thrust into a hard life. He sacrifices everything to give his family and community what they need. He’s exhausted from life and work—and he’s only twenty four. What he needs is some change, and some sunshine. Even he will agree to that. He just doesn’t expect to find it in a stuck up, pompous, entitled Californian.


Cami bursts into Stockton’s life like wildfire, consuming all his thoughts and tangling him in her web. What starts out as a contentious rivalry evolves into a desire neither of them expected. When hammer meets metal, will they crack under pressure or be forged as one?


Cami and Stockton might just end up being exactly what the other one needs, but first their love will have to be drawn out in fire.
 
 
 
In Ivy Pierce’s world, Greek mythology is reality. Sirens, like herself, use men for money, power and status; but she has the greatest gift of all. Stronger than any of the Siren’s before her, Ivy’s attraction alludes to a prophecy that could mean the rebirth of Greek gods and goddesses for our modern time.

The Fates believe she is the symbol of a new era. Her mother believes she is the key to ultimate power in their Greek circle. And Nix, her godfather and god of the sea, believes she belongs to him.

Ivy doesn’t want any part of her world or the people that demand so much of her. With the help of Ryder Sutton, her closest friend, she will fight against fate, against the expectations of her society and against the desires of a monster that will do anything to possess her.

And through it all she will deny her feelings for the one person she loves more than anything in order to protect him.

While her future crumbles around her, Ivy will go to extreme lengths to free herself from her glass prison—or drown trying.



COMING SOON!!!!
 
 
 
The Star-Crossed Series:
 
The Relentless Warrior, Book 6 - Out Now!!!


 Breathless Magic, Star-Crossed Series Novella -Out Now!!!


 The Redeemable Prince, Book 7 - September, 2014 
 
 
The Starbright Series

Sunburst, Book 2 - Out Now!!!!

Firelight, Book 3 - March, 2014

Super Nova, Book 4 - January, 2015

Star Fight, Book 5 - May, 2015
 


The Siren Series:
 
 The Heart, Book 3 - November, 2014
 
 
 
Bet in the Dark Series:

Beckett's Book still untitled - TBA, 2014 (NA)

Grayson's Book still untitled - March, 2015

Lennox's Book, Still untitled - August, 2015
 
 
 
Contemporary Stand-Alone

The Five Stages of Falling in Love - TBA, 2014 (Adult)
 


Co-Author Project with Lila Felix

Brazing - TBA, 2014
 
 
 
Love and Decay, A Novella Series

Releases every other Friday

 Love and Decay, Season Three- October, 10th 2014
 
 
 

 
 

 About my girl Rachel:


was born and raised in Nebraska, but spent my college years traveling the world. I fell in love with Eastern Europe, Paris, Indian Food and the beautiful beaches of Sri Lanka. But I came back home to marry my high school sweetheart and now I spend my days raising our growing family. In those few spare moments I have, I am either reading or writing Young Adult Fiction, because I am obsessed with it.
Five other things I'm obsessed with right now:
1. My Kuerig Coffee Machine. Genius.
2. 90's music. Oh man, the 90's speak right to my soul.
3. Chocolate smelling body wash. Who doesn't want to walk around smelling like a bakery?
4. Colored Chapstick. And if it's Dr. Pepper Flavored, that's kind of my nirvana.
And.
5. Spotify. It's like the mixed-tape of this generation and I have probably three hundred hours of music on there. Can't get enough
 
Where to Stalk Rachel:









 
 
 
you're welcome!
 

2 comments:

  1. Love everything that Rachel publishes! She is a word goddess! And I love all of her bbf's ♡

    ReplyDelete
  2. Isn't she freaking fantastic???? LOVE, LOVE, LOVE her!!!!!

    ReplyDelete