With Chris still raising all kinds of insane hell, Daemon makes it his mission to keep Paige safe, and teach her how to stay safe if he isn't around. He tests her physically and emotionally throughout the entire book, much like Buddy did when they were younger.
Paige starts off a strong woman, but realizes quickly that she has room to become even stronger, and lets Daemon help her with (mostly) open arms.. except when it comes to evil zombie clowns, and 80's music. But no matter how strong Paige is, no matter how much Paige and Daemon have grown together and individually, nothing can fully prepare them for everything that happens in their story.
God I love this series, and I love love LOVED the conclusion to Paige and Daemon's story. As usual M. S. Willis has given us an amazing, well written, suck-you-in, fall-in-love-with-everyone-involved book. It had me laughing, crying, and gasping throughout. She has a way of writing that actually makes you feel like you are involved, feel like you are standing along side these characters and watching them grow. Every.. single.. one of them grows. What I think I loved most about Conquered were the times where we read Daemon's POV. It was so well done, they were the exact times where I would find myself wondering what he was thinking, what he was doing. Perfect. So Perfect.
I can't wait for the next two books in this series to come out! We are getting Alex's story (Captured), and Annie's story (Changed). I fell in love with them in these books, and can NOT wait to see more of them.
"Forever used to feel like a long time; but then this girl walked back into my life, one I'd dreamed of and carried with me from the moment I'd thought I lost her. Suddenly forever could never be long enough."
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INTERVIEW WITH M. S. WILLIS!!
Hello Melissa! Thank you
so much for taking your time to give an interview to I’ll Be Reading! I’ve
absolutely loved this series, so I am very excited to hear your thoughts!!
So, tell us a little bit
about yourself..
I’m a native Floridian who
is a mother to three wonderful kids. I
write in my spare time and I also love to play music. I’m a nature enthusiast and spend a lot of
time outdoors.
When did you first realize
you wanted to be a writer?
I’ve always loved to write
but I could never find the time when my children were young. Now that they are older, I have more time to
devote to writing.
What inspired you to write
the Control Series?
The underlying theme of
strength, determination and redemption has played a role somehow in my
life. The idea for the series started
with an idea of how to express that theme and the story seemed to create itself
in my mind. It was my hope to inspire
others by telling a story of how people can survive even the worst traumas and
reminding them that they are not alone in their struggle.
Can you relate to your
characters?
Yes…actually, very much
so. Paige is loosely based on myself in
my twenties. I’ve always been headstrong
and had to learn a lot of tough lessons as I went along. LOL.
Where did the idea of the
Dragonfly Necklace come from?
When I was little, my
mother told me that if I saw a dragonfly, it meant that a loved one who’d
passed on was coming back to check on me.
Since then, the symbol has come to represent not only family, but the
qualities of ones I have lost. For the
purposes of the book, the dragonfly represents strength and the ability to
overcome, but also, that people are not alone.
What’s the hardest part
for you while writing?
The emotional scenes are
always the hardest. When I’m writing, I
try to place myself in the shoes of the character and really feel the emotions
that particular person is feeling. There
have been many days where my family and friends knew I was writing a tough
scene just because of the grumpy look on my face. J
Which book in the series is
your personal favorite?
My personal favorite in
the series is Conquer, I enjoyed finally bringing these characters to the light
at the end of the tunnel. I knew where
they would end up the entire time I wrote the series, but to be able to finally
lead them through it was fun and satisfying.
I’m also looking forward to writing Annie’s book. It will be the most difficult to write, but I
believe it could be the most inspiring as well.
Which genres do you mainly
read, favorite books?
I read all different
genres and especially love paranormal and suspense. I have many favorite series including The
Graveyard Queen series by Amanda Stevens, the Captive series by CJ Roberts and
The Black Jewels Trilogy by Anne Bishop (this also happens to be the series
that made me fall in love with the name Daemon.)
What’s the biggest compliment
you could receive as an author?
That I inspired a
reader. I had a story to tell with these
books that carried an underlying message.
When I heard someone had not only picked up on it, but also was
strengthened by it, it meant a lot.
Do you have any quirks
that help you write? Music, snacks? What kind?
Games on my phone. I couldn’t tell you how many hours I spent
playing solitaire and Minion Rush while writing. I try to keep my mind busy on games while I
think up exactly how a scene is going to play out. So far, it’s worked!
What was your favorite
book as a child?
Where the Sidewalks Ends
and Where the Wild Things Are were my two favorites.
What’s your guilty
pleasure?
Video games. I’ll admit it, I’ve amassed quite the
collection over the years and its not something a lot of people would guess
when they met me. But yeah, I’m
definitely the one yelling at the screen and throwing a small fit when I lose.
LOL.
What’s up next for you?
I have a darker novel,
‘Madeleine Abducted” coming out in October 2013 and another, more inspiring
novel, ‘Because of Ellison’ being released on January 14, 2014.
Do you have any advice for
aspiring authors?
My only advice is that
they should have as much fun writing as they can! Also, they should never give up. Take bad reviews and learn from them and take
pride in the good ones!
________________________________
Excerpt
Pulling me to the center of the ring, Daemon
stood as his eyes raked over my body. I
felt heated from his gaze and my eyes flicked to ‘Joe and the Gang’ to see if
they had taken notice. All four men
stood silently smoking their cigarettes, paying apt attention to what was about
to go down in the ring. I looked back to
Daemon and noticed a crooked grin peeking out from the corner of his sculpted
lips. “You ready for this, Damsel?” I nodded hesitantly in response. “Good.
Now, I want to see what those ninja skills of yours can do for you. You stand there, and I’ll attack. Show me how you would normally defend
yourself, okay?”
“Fine, Daemon. However, I can’t promise I won’t hurt you in
the process, so don’t blame me if you leave this place limping. In fact, you might want to put on a cup or
something to protect your manhood, because I would hate….Ahhhhh!” Before I could finish my sentence, Daemon
lunged forward, managing to grip both my wrists. He tugged me forward, while at the same time
placing his foot in front of my feet, tripping me as I tried to steady
myself. I went forward into the mat as
Daemon brought my arms to my back and locked them to the middle of my spine
with one hand. His other hand came down
between my shoulder blades as he straddled my lower half, using his weight to
hold me in place. Joe and the Gang
instantly broke out into hoots of laughter and I turned my head to see them
slapping their knees and each other’s backs.
My mouth was forced open into an ‘O’ from the mat pushing up against my
cheek.
Daemon leaned forward, his mouth softly
brushing against my ear as he spoke, “Your first mistake, Damsel, is that you
talk too much. While you’re busy
distracting yourself with your own voice, your opponent will be watching and
waiting for the moment when you let down your guard.” His voice lowered an octave and seductive
tendrils dripped from his words as he said, “If I wanted to, I could take you
from behind right here and right now, and there’s not a damn thing you could do
about it.” His teeth nipped at my
earlobe causing an involuntary pull within my core and a whimper to escape my
lips. I believe drool may have dribbled
a little from the corner of my mouth, causing Daemon to chuckle wickedly. “Keep that up and I might be asking our
audience to give us some time alone.”
________________________________
Author Bio:
M.S. Willis is a romance novelist whose debut novel, Control, was released in 2013. Although currently writing in the romance genre, Willis has plans to expand her literary pursuits into multiple genres and has no fear conquering difficult subject matters in her writing. Willis is a native Floridian who is also a photographer and musician. When not absorbing herself in written, visual or musical expression, Willis is an adrenaline junkie, a ‘closet’ video game enthusiast, and an avid outdoors person and nature lover.
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Cover Artist Bio: Jason L. Lee
Jason L Lee is a Florida Native. The arts have always been a big part of his life. Science, nature, and spirituality have been inspirations to him. He started displaying his work in 1993. In 1996 he started to venture from drawing & photography into acrylic painting. This led to painting live with local bands starting in 1998. His paintings are now created mainly at home. He uses a combination of impressionistic and illustrative painting techniques to create fantastical imagery. He is currently a Scenic Artist working for The Nassal Company and Co-Founder of the Arts Hub Organization.
________________________________
Dragonfly Necklace Creator: Verita Bolin
I started making jewelry in the 80's. In middle school I sold bracelets. In 2004 I started selling my jewels to the public. I went to The William Holland School of Lapidary Arts to learn stone identification, wire wrapping, and chain making. In 2009 I met Jason L Lee, an artist and curator. He liked my jewelry and invited me to display in Creative Spirit Art Gallery, at 1st Friday Art Strolls and on Orange Ave. I have a company with my mother, Tita. We set up all over Florida, have an Etsy store, and Facebook page. People around the country own my jewelry.
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