![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
Today, Lily's Reviews welcomes author Victoria Sue to the blog with a guest post. Ms. Sue would also like to offer a free book from her collection for a lucky commenter. For a list of her books, please visit the Amazon link provided near the end of the post.
"How real do you like your paranormal?
Witches? Dragons? Superheroes? Or all of the above, hmm? Yeah, me too usually. But with my Enhanced World I wanted something a little different.
All my enhanced humans are merely humans. They haven’t been zapped by lightning, cloned by aliens, and have been no where near a magic wand. They don’t suck blood or change into animals.
Not that I’m not into shifters…or blood suckers even, but not for this series.
My enhanced characters are simply humans that are undergoing evolutionary changes that I may be guilty of speeding up a few thousand years or so – but that science tells us will be possible.
For example – one of my characters in the Human Enhanced Rescue Organization (HERO) team is called Gael Peterson. Gael has an over production of the KL4 gene in his body. The KL4 gene is present in everyone and what makes your skin waterproof. I moved this theory on a little and made it bullet proof. Here’s an excerpt from Five Minutes Longer:
“I want to know what just happened,” Finn demanded as they shut the truck doors.
“You okay?” Vance asked Gael as Gael winced a little and took his shirt off. Vance brushed a hand over Gael’s back. No bullet hole, no blood.
Finn looked at the material on the shirt suspiciously, then picked it up. He carefully poked his finger through the hole in the back where the bullet had gone through, and with a sinking feeling, raised his eyes to where Vance was watching him steadily.
He thought a second before he ran his mouth off. Then he turned to Talon, who was sitting quietly in the front seat, watching him. “So next time someone’s waving a gun around, can I stand next to Gael, boss?” Finn asked innocently.
Gael guffawed and slapped Finn on the back. Finn tried not to wince.
“I take it this is your other ability? What is it, rapid healing?” Finn frowned. That still didn’t explain the lack of blood, though.
“Not exactly,” Gael answered.
“Gael,” Sawyer said warningly.
Gael looked at the guys sitting around the truck. “We’ve got a decision to make. We can’t work as a team without trust.” He looked at Finn. “To be honest the TV cameras saw me take the bullet, saw me move fast. There’s going to be questions anyway.”
Finn took a breath. “I know you don’t trust me.”
Talon interjected. “It’s not as easy as that. Even Gregory doesn’t know all our abilities, and we can’t expect you to lie if you’re asked a direct question.”
“I can change the…. I dunno.” Gael shrugged. “Last year I got skin cancer.”
Finn gaped.
“Cutaneous Melanoma, to give it its full title.” Gael’s scars twisted when he tried to smile. “It was shit really. It’s the most aggressive form of cancer, and you’re pretty much out of luck if it’s spread.” Gael gazed at Finn. “Mine had. Anyway, Talon and Gregory gave me a chance. We can’t get health insurance, and because the team wasn’t official, the bureau wasn’t gonna pay for anything…. So you met the Doc?”
Finn nodded.
“Well, turns out her daddy is one of the most renowned dermatologists there are, and he was fascinated with me. I had a shit-ton of tests, and I was waiting for the results when we were asked to help with a special op last year. Drug running, but they thought an enhanced was behind it, so they asked for our help… unofficially.”
Finn returned Gael’s smile automatically, even though his heart was doing its best to escape his chest.
“Things went wrong, and Talon got knocked out so he couldn’t help. They had Vance pinned down and were just going to shoot him. I thought, what the hell. It was likely I was going to die anyway so—”
“What he means is, he threw himself at the dick-head with the Tec-9 that was just about to blow my brains out,” Vance interrupted.
Gael chuckled. “The thing happened with my skin like you saw today. None of the bullets touched me. I went for a load of tests, and they found out there’s something called a Klf4 gene in everyone that is responsible for making human skin a barrier. Anyway, I won’t bore you with science, but basically the levels of it in me are off the charts. This gene doesn’t just protect the skin, though—it can have something to do with melanoma and other cancers. The doc called it ‘a double edged sword.’”
Finn swallowed. “It’s an activator and a repressor. That means it helps as well as harms.”
“How the hell do you know all this shit?” Sawyer burst out.
Finn shrugged. “It took me so long to learn to read, once I had, there was no stopping me.”
“Anyway, my skin changing didn’t just save Vance. When I got back and went to Doc’s, all traces of my cancer had gone, and Gregory doesn’t know because Doc’s father doesn’t work for the FBI. Doctor-patient privilege.”
“We keep it secret because we don’t want to end up as lab rats,” Talon said quietly, his blue gaze resting on Finn’s.
Finn frowned. “Secrecy won’t necessarily help that, though. The public knows you saved Cryer’s life—they’re gonna be more on your side.”
“Agreed with provisos,” Talon said. “I don’t want a perp suddenly deciding to see if Gael can withstand armor-piercing rounds.”
They all winced.
Talon started the truck and looked around at everyone. “We agreed on secrecy a long time ago. I get where Finn is coming from, but I’m not gonna insist on it. You all will have to come to your own decision.”
Without waiting for a reply, Talon added, “Gregory wants us back at the office.”
Finn stared at his back. He hadn’t forgotten what that reporter said, and despite his nice little speech there, he hadn’t done any sharing. Finn now knew more about Gael than Talon. What he knew about Talon, Vance had told him, and Talon was supposed to be his partner, not just a member of the team. It all came down to trust. Talon gave him no direction out there. He didn’t even tell Finn to stay with him. That showed a glaring lack of trust as far as he was concerned.
He gazed out of the window. He was squashed up against the door, as Gael’s bulk sat next to him. He thought about what that reporter said about Talon. Had Talon really lost control and killed his father? Finn remembered the tightness in his chest when Talon demonstrated his ability on him, how he couldn’t breathe, how he couldn’t move.
Maybe Finn should be the one not trusting the team, not the other way around.
Did you know a human can actually change their DNA? I simplified it a little (maybe more than a little) but there’s a whole science called Epigenetics behind that question. Epigenetics doesn’t come in until the second book – One Step Sideways, but it’s just as fascinating as someone getting bullet-proof skin from the same gene that develops in the uterus to make a baby’s skin waterproof.
The third book in the series – Beneath This Mask will be out in January. Here’s the blurb from the first book—Five Minutes Longer—to explain what it’s all about.
Talon Valdez knew that when he transformed into an enhanced human, his life and his dreams were finished. Reviled, mistrusted, and often locked away, the enhanced are viewed as monsters, despised by the public, and never trusted to serve in the military or any law enforcement agency.
Years later he gets a chance to set up a task force of enhanced to serve in the FBI, but with one proviso: each enhanced must partner with a regular human.
Finn Mayer dreamed of joining the FBI since he was fourteen and made every possible sacrifice to make it happen, including living with his selfish mother and bullying homophobic brother and never having a boyfriend. But his undiagnosed dyslexia stopped his aspirations dead in their tracks. His last chance is to partner with Talon, an enhanced with fatal abilities who doesn’t trust regular humans with their secrets and wants Finn to fail.
Four weeks to prove himself to the team. Four weeks for the team to prove itself to the public. And when another group threatens their success—and their lives are at stake—four weeks for them to survive.
I can’t wait to see everyone at Coastal Magic! Don’t forget to check out our event on Friday night. Charlie Cochet, Mary Calmes, Poppy Dennison and I are hosting “Take Your Alpha To The Beach” and there will be cocktails, goodies, and prizes to be had.
Victoria Sue…
Victoria Sue fell in love with love stories as a child when she would hide away with her mom’s library books and dream of the dashing hero coming to rescue her from math homework. She never mastered math but when she ran out of library books she decided to write her own. Loves reading and writing about gorgeous boys loving each other the best—especially with a paranormal twist—but always with a happy ending. Is an English northern lass currently serving twenty to life in Florida—unfortunately, she spends more time chained to her computer than on a beach.
Loves to hear from her readers and can be found most days lurking on Facebook where she doesn’t need factor 1000 sun-cream to hide her freckles.
Where to find the author:
Victoria Sue's Amazon Page
Web Site
Twitter
Facebook – sign up for my newsletter and download a free story The Wrong Alpha
Thank you very much, Ms. Sue, for stopping by Lily's Reviews!
Witches? Dragons? Superheroes? Or all of the above, hmm? Yeah, me too usually. But with my Enhanced World I wanted something a little different.
All my enhanced humans are merely humans. They haven’t been zapped by lightning, cloned by aliens, and have been no where near a magic wand. They don’t suck blood or change into animals.
Not that I’m not into shifters…or blood suckers even, but not for this series.
My enhanced characters are simply humans that are undergoing evolutionary changes that I may be guilty of speeding up a few thousand years or so – but that science tells us will be possible.
For example – one of my characters in the Human Enhanced Rescue Organization (HERO) team is called Gael Peterson. Gael has an over production of the KL4 gene in his body. The KL4 gene is present in everyone and what makes your skin waterproof. I moved this theory on a little and made it bullet proof. Here’s an excerpt from Five Minutes Longer:“I want to know what just happened,” Finn demanded as they shut the truck doors.
“You okay?” Vance asked Gael as Gael winced a little and took his shirt off. Vance brushed a hand over Gael’s back. No bullet hole, no blood.
Finn looked at the material on the shirt suspiciously, then picked it up. He carefully poked his finger through the hole in the back where the bullet had gone through, and with a sinking feeling, raised his eyes to where Vance was watching him steadily.
He thought a second before he ran his mouth off. Then he turned to Talon, who was sitting quietly in the front seat, watching him. “So next time someone’s waving a gun around, can I stand next to Gael, boss?” Finn asked innocently.
Gael guffawed and slapped Finn on the back. Finn tried not to wince.
“I take it this is your other ability? What is it, rapid healing?” Finn frowned. That still didn’t explain the lack of blood, though.
“Not exactly,” Gael answered.
“Gael,” Sawyer said warningly.
Gael looked at the guys sitting around the truck. “We’ve got a decision to make. We can’t work as a team without trust.” He looked at Finn. “To be honest the TV cameras saw me take the bullet, saw me move fast. There’s going to be questions anyway.”
Finn took a breath. “I know you don’t trust me.”
Talon interjected. “It’s not as easy as that. Even Gregory doesn’t know all our abilities, and we can’t expect you to lie if you’re asked a direct question.”
“I can change the…. I dunno.” Gael shrugged. “Last year I got skin cancer.”
Finn gaped.
“Cutaneous Melanoma, to give it its full title.” Gael’s scars twisted when he tried to smile. “It was shit really. It’s the most aggressive form of cancer, and you’re pretty much out of luck if it’s spread.” Gael gazed at Finn. “Mine had. Anyway, Talon and Gregory gave me a chance. We can’t get health insurance, and because the team wasn’t official, the bureau wasn’t gonna pay for anything…. So you met the Doc?”
Finn nodded.
“Well, turns out her daddy is one of the most renowned dermatologists there are, and he was fascinated with me. I had a shit-ton of tests, and I was waiting for the results when we were asked to help with a special op last year. Drug running, but they thought an enhanced was behind it, so they asked for our help… unofficially.”
Finn returned Gael’s smile automatically, even though his heart was doing its best to escape his chest.
“Things went wrong, and Talon got knocked out so he couldn’t help. They had Vance pinned down and were just going to shoot him. I thought, what the hell. It was likely I was going to die anyway so—”
“What he means is, he threw himself at the dick-head with the Tec-9 that was just about to blow my brains out,” Vance interrupted.
Gael chuckled. “The thing happened with my skin like you saw today. None of the bullets touched me. I went for a load of tests, and they found out there’s something called a Klf4 gene in everyone that is responsible for making human skin a barrier. Anyway, I won’t bore you with science, but basically the levels of it in me are off the charts. This gene doesn’t just protect the skin, though—it can have something to do with melanoma and other cancers. The doc called it ‘a double edged sword.’”
Finn swallowed. “It’s an activator and a repressor. That means it helps as well as harms.”
“How the hell do you know all this shit?” Sawyer burst out.
Finn shrugged. “It took me so long to learn to read, once I had, there was no stopping me.”
“Anyway, my skin changing didn’t just save Vance. When I got back and went to Doc’s, all traces of my cancer had gone, and Gregory doesn’t know because Doc’s father doesn’t work for the FBI. Doctor-patient privilege.”
“We keep it secret because we don’t want to end up as lab rats,” Talon said quietly, his blue gaze resting on Finn’s.
Finn frowned. “Secrecy won’t necessarily help that, though. The public knows you saved Cryer’s life—they’re gonna be more on your side.”
“Agreed with provisos,” Talon said. “I don’t want a perp suddenly deciding to see if Gael can withstand armor-piercing rounds.”
They all winced.
Talon started the truck and looked around at everyone. “We agreed on secrecy a long time ago. I get where Finn is coming from, but I’m not gonna insist on it. You all will have to come to your own decision.”
Without waiting for a reply, Talon added, “Gregory wants us back at the office.”
Finn stared at his back. He hadn’t forgotten what that reporter said, and despite his nice little speech there, he hadn’t done any sharing. Finn now knew more about Gael than Talon. What he knew about Talon, Vance had told him, and Talon was supposed to be his partner, not just a member of the team. It all came down to trust. Talon gave him no direction out there. He didn’t even tell Finn to stay with him. That showed a glaring lack of trust as far as he was concerned.
He gazed out of the window. He was squashed up against the door, as Gael’s bulk sat next to him. He thought about what that reporter said about Talon. Had Talon really lost control and killed his father? Finn remembered the tightness in his chest when Talon demonstrated his ability on him, how he couldn’t breathe, how he couldn’t move.
Maybe Finn should be the one not trusting the team, not the other way around.
Did you know a human can actually change their DNA? I simplified it a little (maybe more than a little) but there’s a whole science called Epigenetics behind that question. Epigenetics doesn’t come in until the second book – One Step Sideways, but it’s just as fascinating as someone getting bullet-proof skin from the same gene that develops in the uterus to make a baby’s skin waterproof.The third book in the series – Beneath This Mask will be out in January. Here’s the blurb from the first book—Five Minutes Longer—to explain what it’s all about.
Talon Valdez knew that when he transformed into an enhanced human, his life and his dreams were finished. Reviled, mistrusted, and often locked away, the enhanced are viewed as monsters, despised by the public, and never trusted to serve in the military or any law enforcement agency.
Years later he gets a chance to set up a task force of enhanced to serve in the FBI, but with one proviso: each enhanced must partner with a regular human.
Finn Mayer dreamed of joining the FBI since he was fourteen and made every possible sacrifice to make it happen, including living with his selfish mother and bullying homophobic brother and never having a boyfriend. But his undiagnosed dyslexia stopped his aspirations dead in their tracks. His last chance is to partner with Talon, an enhanced with fatal abilities who doesn’t trust regular humans with their secrets and wants Finn to fail.
Four weeks to prove himself to the team. Four weeks for the team to prove itself to the public. And when another group threatens their success—and their lives are at stake—four weeks for them to survive.
I can’t wait to see everyone at Coastal Magic! Don’t forget to check out our event on Friday night. Charlie Cochet, Mary Calmes, Poppy Dennison and I are hosting “Take Your Alpha To The Beach” and there will be cocktails, goodies, and prizes to be had.
Victoria Sue…Victoria Sue fell in love with love stories as a child when she would hide away with her mom’s library books and dream of the dashing hero coming to rescue her from math homework. She never mastered math but when she ran out of library books she decided to write her own. Loves reading and writing about gorgeous boys loving each other the best—especially with a paranormal twist—but always with a happy ending. Is an English northern lass currently serving twenty to life in Florida—unfortunately, she spends more time chained to her computer than on a beach.
Loves to hear from her readers and can be found most days lurking on Facebook where she doesn’t need factor 1000 sun-cream to hide her freckles.
Where to find the author:
Victoria Sue's Amazon Page
Web Site
Facebook – sign up for my newsletter and download a free story The Wrong Alpha
Thank you very much, Ms. Sue, for stopping by Lily's Reviews!
