Release Week Spotlight & Guest Blog: Code Name Jack Rabbit by Elizabeth Noble

Breaking Tradition

Hello and thank you for hosting me today! I’m Elizabeth Noble, author of Code Name Jack Rabbit (book #1 of The Vampire Guard.)

Traditionally vampires and werewolves in non-romance literature are thought of as scary and evil. They hunt down and kill weaker, innocent humans or turn them into one of their own in some gruesome and dastardly manner.

Not so in The Vampire Guard.

In this series humans aren’t prey, they’re protected. A vampire can only turn a human during a short period each year. Werewolves don’t hunt down and bite humans to add to their numbers. All werewolves are born, not made.

I tried to think what it would be like if these two species actually existed alongside humans. Just like any population there would be good guys and bad guys. Then I considered logistics such as imprisoning someone who couldn’t be seen on camera or that morphed into a large, dangerous beast every full moon. How to deal with those individuals has the potential to become a very sticky, ethical situation. Following the law can be at odds with seeing that justice is done. The path to protecting a group of innocent people has many unexpected turns and gray areas.

In this series the vampires and werewolves use their unique physical abilities to protect others as part of a secret global security force. The paranormal abilities of the vampires and werewolves are enhanced by modem technology. They use computers, hologram technology and the perspective of longer lives to see patterns in criminal activity. Each team member has different skills that are combined to make them an efficient group that is more than the sum of each part. The story takes mythical and legendary creatures and uses them in unconventional ways.

During the story, Code Name Jack Rabbit we’re introduced to Lucas, a werewolf who reads body language so well it’s like he can read minds. Forge and Blair share a powerful empathic bond that fringes on telepathy. Last but not least, Declan who is a talented artist and con man capable of adopting different personas to blend into any situation.

I modeled the organization, The Vampire Guard, after the nine largest modern intelligence organizations such as the CIA, Mossad, and ASIS. Then I tried to imagine what it’d be like if the operatives had the advantage of living hundreds of years, healing very quickly and couldn’t be seen on camera. How would that affect how they did their jobs personally and as an organization? They don’t affiliate with one nation, and take work based on need not politics. Since vampires have the potential to live thousands of years they’ve naturally seen regimes rise and fall so The Vampire Guard prefers to remain independent from any particular government or political group but at the same time offer aide where needed.

However, The Vampire Guard, as an organization, is much older than any of today’s. Over the centuries this group has developed a rich heritage of philosophies, traditions and symbolism unique to their mission.

During their unorthodox indoctrination into The Vampire Guard, Lucas, Declan, Blair and Forge are faced with some very difficult choices and in the process learn quite a bit about themselves. They also discover a world previously unknown to any of them. The characters have to face prejudice and reconcile with each other their personal beliefs and ideologies in order to accomplish their task of protecting innocent lives.

Probably the most fun I had writing Code Name Jack Rabbit was finding ways to incorporate the series tagline of where legend and myth meet science and technology into the world of spies, espionage and a non-traditional thriller.


Title: Code Name Jack Rabbit by Elizabeth Noble
The Vampire Guard Series Book One
Publisher: DSP Publications
Genre: Paranormal, Mystery & Suspense
Length: 200 pages/Word Count: 68,145

Summary:

Meet the newest members of the Vampire Guard, where legend and myth meet science and technology.

Jonas Forge, vampire. Once a spy and soldier, now a cop, Forge enjoys the life he’s built with his friends in Flint, Ohio.

Blair Turner, PhD. Blair, a vampire and computer hacker with exceptional skills, shares a powerful empathic bond with Forge, his soul mate.

Declan, vampire, ex-pirate, ex-fur trapper, thief, and con man. Declan is Forge’s former lover and soul mate to Lucas Coate.

Lucas Coate, MD, Flint’s medical examiner. A werewolf living among vampires, Lucas is also one of Forge’s best friends.

Their lives become complicated when an impending Presidential visit throws them headlong into a world of high-tech vampire spies and espionage. Recruited into the Vampire Guard by the secret society of the Akhkharu Nasaru, they uncover a werewolf terrorist organization known as the Qiguan.

Together they must thwart a murder attempt on the open waters of Lake Superior while tracking a previously unknown biological weapon controlled by the Qiquan—a weapon which may very well mean death for one of them.

Add to Goodreads.

Purchase Links: DSP Publications (eBook) * DSP Publications (Paperback) * Amazon * OmniLit * B&N


Excerpt

“Heads up. There she is. She’s about to walk through the door,” Kai said. He pointed to the monitor. “Got to love predictable people.”

Lucas and Declan leaned closer and peered over Forge’s shoulders. Forge hunched over the microphone and talked. “Focus on her heartbeat, Blair. Forget the other stuff we’ve practiced. You’ll remember later how her heartbeat changes as you talk to her, trust me.”

Declan grabbed the mic and swung it toward him. “Don’t forget what I showed you about distracting her so you can—”

Lucas put his hand over the mic. “Leave him alone!”

“She’s inside. I’m at the bar, eyes on her,” Ori chimed in. “Blair, just be your charming self and you’ll do fine.”

Forge pulled in a breath and opened his mouth. Lucas silenced him before he could say anything more by clapping one hand over his mouth. When Forge twisted in his seat and glared up, Lucas pulled his hand away and put one finger to his lips. “Shush.”

On the camera feed they could see Bronwen enter the restaurant and walk to a center counter. To the left was a small bar. Ori shimmered into view for a few seconds. He let go of the wristband he wore and disappeared a few breaths later. Blair had been given a similar wristband. A simple way for any vampire to be seen on camera was with a shot of adrenaline to their systems. Among other things, the wristbands were a delivery mechanism. If Blair wanted to be seen on camera, he’d push a small button and get a miniscule injection of adrenaline.

“He’ll tell us if he changes location,” Kai explained. “Those bands are only good for two or three hits of adrenaline before needing a refill.”

There were tables arranged along the window and to the right of the counter. Blair was waiting in the men’s room on the far right behind the tables.

“Hold your position… another minute…,” Kai said in a low voice.

Bronwen turned her back to the restroom doors and leaned against the counter while she paid for whatever she’d ordered.

“Okay,” Kai said.

Declan grabbed the mic and bent over it. “Hold on. Wait until she picks up her order. She’ll be more flustered if you ‘run into her’ then.”

Kai looked over his shoulder at Declan, then turned back to his mic. “We’ll do it Declan’s way.”

Lucas immediately picked up on what Kai was doing, deferring to Declan in such a way. It would instill confidence in Blair to have his guidance come from someone he knew, as well as building trust on both sides. He tapped Kai’s shoulder and nodded once. Kai glanced over his shoulder at Lucas, dipped his chin, and offered him a small smile. Apparently Kai appreciated his team-building techniques being noticed and approved of.

“All right,” Blair answered.


Author Bio

e nobleElizabeth Noble lives by the adage “I can’t not write”. She can’t remember a time when she didn’t make up stories and eventually she learned how to write them down. A part of every day is spent living in worlds she created that are filled with intrigue and espionage. Using a real love of scifi and urban fantasy highlighted by twisty plots she crafts stories taking place in a slightly altered version of our world.

When she’s not chronicling the adventures of her many characters Elizabeth is a veterinary nurse living in her native Cleveland, Ohio. She shares her little brick house with an adorable canine princess and her tabby cat side-kick. Elizabeth is a fan of baseball, basketball (go Cavs and Indians!) and gardening. She can often be found working in her ‘outside office’ listening to classic rock and plotting her next novel waiting for it to be dark enough to gaze at the stars.

Elizabeth received several amateur writing awards. Since being published two of her novels have received honorable mentions in the Rainbow Awards. Her novel Jewel Cave was a runner up in the 2015 Rainbow awards in the Gay Mystery/Thriller category.

Author Links: Website * Facebook * Facebook Group * Twitter * Goodreads * Pinterest * Email

Visit The Vampire Guard: Website * Email (Members of The Vampire Guard)

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4 Comments

Filed under Guest Blog, Spotlight

4 Responses to Release Week Spotlight & Guest Blog: Code Name Jack Rabbit by Elizabeth Noble

  1. Thank you for hosting me!

  2. Timitra

    I’m intrigued…Thanks for sharing