Summary (Amazon)
The Master of Whitehall is a contemporary paranormal romance novel set in historic Charleston, SC, where Katelyn Corbin, a thoroughly modern twenty-one year old college senior, faces the prospect of restarting her life after the brutal murder of her parents. She soon finds love, healing and a brand new life in a most unexpected avenue.
This story follows Katelyn from her hometown just outside Atlanta to her new school in Charleston. There she meets James Dubois and is deeply intrigued by him from their first meeting; feeling as if he has touched her very soul. The more she considers him, the more intense her interest becomes. He is a wealthy patron of the arts at her school. He is tall and handsome with a strong persona; a young widower, living alone in a huge, but beautifully restored old plantation house called 'Whitehall'. Their friendship soon turns serious, becoming a full on relationship as Katelyn falls madly in love with him. James soon makes his love for her just as obvious. Their lives begin to blend, twisting and turning, as they continue to grow closer.
After several strange incidents, Katelyn begins to develop a series of unsettling questions about her new love. However, she knows that after facing the catastrophe of her parent’s deaths, she can face anything life throws at her. She begins looking at the questions, searching her own soul; finally deciding that she must know the answers. When she confronts him, dark secrets surface to make Katelyn question whether or not to continue their relationship. She soon discovers James' true nature; confirming her fears that he was indeed not the man she thought, but the man she feared him to be.
The confirmation of her suspicions are shocking to her, turning her world view on its side. She is forced to acknowledge things about herself and her world that she never thought possible. She discovers that old folklore and fairy-tales are real in a world where vampires live and love side by side with humans. With her new found knowledge, Katelyn realizes she must make a choice to live with or without James. She quickly decides to adapt her life and adjust her beliefs in order to continue to be with James.
Their love for each other develops and continues to grow as he assists her to close the gaping wounds left by the tragedy of her parent’s murders. Katelyn continues to uncover other secrets, discovering another existence, as she begins her new life with James. The story reaches a highly emotional and completely unexpected ending that fully illustrates Katelyn's personality of love and care for those around her.
The Master of Whitehall unfolds over the course of nearly a year, and features flashbacks that more fully develop each of the characters, offering insights into their personal histories. The story is narrated in first person perspective by Katelyn as she offers a window into the world of possibilities of love between mortal and immortal.
The Master of Whitehall will also appeal to the readers of Rachel Caine's 'Morganville Vampires', Charlaine Harris’ ‘True Blood’ series, and Anne Rice's 'Vampire Chronicles'.
Review:
The Master of Whitehall in my honest opinion was a better vampire love story than Twilight!! (Gasp) I liked the characters more and really got engaged with the story. It never became dull or boring while I was reading it, which is important! I loved how Katelyn reacts when she discovers that vampires are in fact real. You want to be right there with her, holding her hand as she listens to James. And speaking of James, he sounds like the hottest Vampire to walk this earth!! He is definitely book boyfriend material. : )
Rick delivers a sweet love story with hints of mystery and suspense to bring us a romance that is sure to stay with the reader for years to come. I loved this book, and I can't wait until book two!!
Rating:
Interview with Rick Veal:
Tell us a little about yourself!
There’s not really a lot to say … I think maybe my characters are more interesting than I am! I was born sometime during the last century and have lived most of my life in the Upstate of South Carolina. I left to do a tour in the Navy and then came back to take up my life again. I graduated from Presbyterian College in Clinton, SC with a degree in History. I like to tell folks that I have done about two thirds of everything there is to do and been accused of the other one third! I share my home with my cat, “Daddy’s Pretty Girl” but she will actually answer to anything except “Late for Dinner”.
What was the inspiration behind Master of Whitehall?
The idea has been around for a long time, I actually just started to take it seriously in the last couple of years. I think my inspiration actually came from running out of books! I have read for many years and enjoyed most of what I’ve read. I’m a big Anne Rice fan … Go Lestat! … So when I finished all the vampire books I could … Rice, Smith, Harris, Craine … I decided that if they could write a vampire story, then so could I; so I wrote my own.
I chose vampires because I have always enjoyed reading and watching movies about vampires … I was actually hooked by Barnabas Collins in “Dark Shadows” way back in 1966. The vampire stories and Charleston, SC, just seemed to fit together. I began thinking about how the two could play into each other, came up with an initial idea and just built on it from there. I wanted a setting in the Low Country of South Carolina with a lot of history surrounding it. Whitehall was a long ago plantation outside of Charleston and is now nothing but ruins. The tour I was on when I found it said that nobody really knows what happened to it … it just went away. That opened all kinds of ideas for some ‘what-if’s’ and so Whitehall was reborn.
What are you working on currently?
I am currently working on book two. The working title is “Lexi’s Legacy”. It picks up about a year after the end of the first book and continues with Lexi telling her story and adventures of a young girl that is also a new-born immortal. Lexi is kind of special to me … she became Katelyn’s best friend in book one and a sounding board for dialogue. She is an academic, had a good family and a great plan for her life. After becoming so involved with Katelyn and James, it was just inevitable to not give her a place to tell her story.
How do you pick your names?
I try to use names that fit the time period of the actual character. For instance, James, who was born in 1725, was a fairly common name during that time period being the name of several British Kings. Katelyn is a more modern name and plausible for a young college aged girl born in the early 1990’s. The best way to name a character is once you identify the current age of the character, subtract that age from the current year to determine when they would have been born. Then do a search for popular baby names around that time and choose one you like.
What do you like to do on your off time?
I like to read of course! But I really enjoy spending time writing … it’s actually very relaxing for me. I also like to travel and shop; especially antique shops. You just never know what kind of treasure you’ll run across that might follow you home.
Any advice for aspiring writers?
I suppose the best advice I can give anyone who wants to write is to repeat Anne Rice’s advice to writers: “If you want to be a writer, write. Write and write and write. If you stop, start again. Save everything that you write. If you feel blocked, write through it until you feel your creative juices flowing again. Write. Writing is what makes a writer, nothing more and nothing less. Ignore critics. Critics are a dime a dozen. Anybody can be a critic. Writers are priceless.”
When you write, try to emulate your favorite authors. You know how they write and what it is that you like about them, so look closely at their style. My favorites are Anne Rice and Clive Cussler. I think that if you have read either of those you will see their influence in my writing. I love Cussler’s storytelling ability and Rice’s attention to detail.
I would also add to not be a hurry to get your book out there – there will be plenty of time to see your name on the cover of a book (probably one of the best feelings in the world) but take your time and make sure that your book is right … because once it’s out there, it’s out there forever, complete with all the bumps and boo-boo’s. Note from the Author!!!
If any of your readers would like to keep up with James, Katelyn and the rest of the family, I’d like to invite them to drop by Facebook at HERE or my Deviant Art page at HERE to see all the artwork and read detailed backgrounds and bios for each of the characters. “The Master of Whitehall” is available in a signed/inscribed print edition (trade size, 418 pages, $19.99) or a fully illustrated e-book in pdf format for $5.00 directly from me. There is a book trailer posed at HERE and I can be contacted at author@prtcnet.com for further information or ordering. If any of your reader’s mention this interview, they will receive a 10% discount and free shipping on the print edition, approximately a $5.00 value. It is also available in Kindle format at Amazon HERE GIVEAWAY TIME!!!
Rick has graciously offered 3 readers an e-book and book mark! Go ahead and enter and good luck!
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