The Good Guy: Haint-working runs in Dan Miller’s blood. Not everyone can help the restless dead cross over, especially when the haunting threatens the Living. But the death of his parents six years ago forced Dan to give it up in exchange for raising his brother and sister, all the while struggling to keep their rural NC farm afloat.
So when the flamboyantly goth Leif Helsvin shows up on Dan’s doorstep looking for help with an evil necromancer named Runar, Dan’s first instinct is to turn him down. With two teenagers to look after, he’s already got all the trouble he can handle. Besides, the sexy Leif is too much of a temptation, and Dan is firmly in the closet.
The Bad Boy: Pierced, tattooed Leif never has sex with the same guy twice. It keeps things simple, especially since his oath to stop Runar has him constantly drifting from one town to the next.
But this time, it looks like Leif is going to need help, in the form of the very down-to-earth Dan. Since Nice Guys are off the menu, Leif just has to keep his hands to himself for as long as it will take to stop Runar’s latest scheme. But as Leif finds himself drawn deeper into Dan’s life, he quickly realizes he’s not just in danger of breaking the rules, but breaking his heart as well.
My Review:
Hainted by Jordan L. Hawk
Hainted is what I
would say is an excellent, well written novel by Jordan L. Hawk. This story is full or suspense and of course
a romance and paranormal elements. But this is not just a paranormal romance novel,
there is a lot more to this story, it was refreshing to read and learn about
being a Hainted something new in the paranormal genre.
We meet Dan who has
come home from college to take care of his brother and sister when his mother passes
away, Dan’s family has being doing Haint
work for many years but now his goal is to take care of his brother and
sister. Keeping his feelings repressed Dan
knows he will never be able to be an openly gay man. Leif who is out trying to stop an evil that
has been unleashed, is openly gay and when his and Dan’s life’s cross paths
there is an instant attraction between both men. Dan knows he will never allow himself to have
a relationship with Leif ….he has so many secrets hidden within himself….and is
very worried about the people in the community and the fear of losing his
siblings.
There is sadness and
heartbreak while you read this story as you want Dan to overcome his issues and
find happiness with Leif. I have to say
there are times when you may need a Kleenex.
I love knowing there is going to be a happy ending and at times I was
worried I wasn’t going to see these two men together in the end. But you will have to read it to find out what
happens.
Interview with Jordan L. Hawk:
1. How would you describe Hainted?
A pair of sexy ghost hunters must stop an evil necromancer from unleashing hell on earth. Along the way, there is angst, drama, zombie-slaying, and lots of hot sex.
2. Which character you had most fun writing?
Dan’s friend Taryn, because she has no filter and says whatever pops into her head, usually laced with profanity.
As for the main characters, it’s a toss up, but I’ll go with Leif because even though he’s this very pretty (and angsty) goth, he’s a serious badass when it comes to fighting the undead.
3. What was your main source of inspiration for the story?
I was mainly inspired by the area where I grew up, which may seem odd for a paranormal. Things are changing, but even today people still paint hex signs on the their barns to ward off bad luck. I grew up hearing ghost stories passed down through generations, some of them dating back to the earliest white settlers if not before.
Hainted is something of a love letter to that experience, if a love letter can be about the flaws as well as the positive experiences. Ransom Gap and Dan’s way of life are very much based on an amalgam of places and people I knew growing up (minus the laying of ghosts, of course).
4. How did you come up with the title of your book?
In the southern Appalachian dialect, “haint” is essentially a way of pronouncing “haunt.” It can be used as both a noun and a verb: a haint is a ghost, a hainting is a haunting. The two main characters in the book not only lay haints to rest, but are themselves “hainted” by their pasts.
5. What books have most influenced your life most?
I grew up primarily reading science fiction and fantasy, although the ones I liked best always had some kind of romantic element to them, even if deeply buried. Louise Cooper’s Time Master Trilogy profoundly changed my perspective when I read it as a teen, but I was also influenced by The Silent Tower and The Silicon Mage by Barbara Hambly, the first two Vampire books by Anne Rice, Michael Moorcock’s Elric Saga, Tolkien, and the works of H.P. Lovecraft.
But that’s really just the tip of the iceberg. Truthfully, I believe I take some lesson, no matter how small, from every book I read.
6. What are your current projects?
My next novel, Widdershins, is currently in the editing stage. It’s a Lovecraft-inspired paranormal set in 1897, and tells the story of an uptight scholar hired by an ex-Pinkterton detective to translate an arcane book. Lots of monsters, magic, and of course fun in the bedroom.
Right now I’m working on a contemporary paranormal novella tentatively titled “Eater of Demons,” about a man possessed by a vampiric spirit and an exorcist who works for a government agency tasked with solving paranormal crimes.
7. Do you see writing as a career?
Absolutely! It’s my full-time job, and I hope it continues to be for as long as I can put words together.
8. As a child, what did you want to do when you grew up?
I secretly hoped I’d grow up to be a dragon or a werewolf, but unfortunately neither of those things have happened yet. Archaeology was my back-up plan, and I actually did that for little while.
But I’m still hoping for the dragon thing.
9. Where do you hope to take your writing in the future?
The first thing I ask myself before committing to any novel is “does this project scare me?” That is, do I fear that I don’t have enough talent, that I can’t pull it off, that I must be crazy for even trying? If the answer is yes, I get to work. The only way to improve is to keep challenging myself. I want to continue to grow as a writer, to keep pushing my boundaries.
10. What was the hardest part of writing your book?
Figuring out how to portray Leif’s relationship with Runar, the evil necromancer who also saved Leif’s life as a teen and made Leif his apprentice. Leif owes him everything, but at the same time the guy is pretty evil. It was hard to make myself push their relationship as far as it needed to go, but I had to for the sake of the story.
Any last thoughts or words of wisdom you would like to share with the readers?
Thank you for having me on the blog! And thanks to everyone who has taken time to read this interview. Never forget: love has the power to change the world.
Jordan L. Hawk grew up in the wilds of North Carolina, where she was raised on stories of haints and mountain magic by her bootlegging granny and single mother. After using a silver knife in the light of a full moon to summon her true love, she turned her talents to spinning tales. She weaves together couples who need to fall in love, then throws in some evil sorcerers and undead just to make sure they want it bad enough. In Jordan’s world, love might conquer all, but it just as easily could end up in the grave.
