Interview with Hanleigh Bradley

Today we're taking a few minutes to talk to Hanleigh Bradley about her upcoming release Cursed By The Crown. If you've not heard about the book yet, then you should definitely check it out. It's Hanleigh's first attempt at swapping genres. Instead of writing her usual Contemporary Romance, she's delving into a fantasy world where it's totally legit to have Seven mates.

Let's kick it off with a few questions about you, Hanleigh. Give us five words that you think describe you best.

Imaginative. Dreamer. Spontaneous. Silly. Ambitious.

What was the first book you ever wrote?

Broken Rules was the first book I ever published. I wrote that back in 2015. But before that I wrote under another name, writing Harry Potter fanfiction... yes, I was that geek. I wrote a whole load of stories. If you've ever read any of the Snitch of Secrets series... you've read my work and didn't even realise it.

Tell us about your current WIP.

I'm currently working on my second book in the Fate Series, Inexplicable Fate. It's a Romantic Suspense book; all serial killers and sexy arsed cops.

Do you have pets?

Two dogs; Manny and Missy. Although I secretly want to get a duck.

Talk to us about Cursed By The Crown. Rumour is you're very excited about this release...

My closest author friends say they've never seen me so excited about a book before. It's completely different to anything I've ever written before. It's still got all the juicy romance but it's so magical. It also incorporates some of the Asian themes I love so much. I'm currently learning Mandarin and so I've used my basic - very basic - understanding of some of the Asian languages to help me create the world Cursed By The Crown takes place in.

Tell us more! We want dets but no spoilers.

It focuses on the Kumari, or the Queen at the very beginning of her reign. She's in a bit of a rush to find her Seven mates to maintain magical stability.

Wow. Seven mates?

Yeah. That's quite a few, right? I was really excited to write about her seven mates. The challenge as an author of guaranteeing that their characters don't accidentally merge or that you don't diminish the others by focusing on one. To guarantee the stability of the realm she must choose seven mates, one from each of the seven tribes; Canku, Laoshi, Kumai, Dixia Muxue, Seom, Nun and Wenhe.

Do you have a favourite mate amongst the Seven?

Ewk. That's a question and a half. No and yes. I think Armel is really special because he's her first mate and I adore Maroo, but really, I'm not sure I can say they are my favourites. I love them all. They all have different strengths that make you love them.

Tell us about your female lead!

She's amazing. She's young and naive but she's also strong and independent. She thinks for herself and throughout the book you see her come into her own, especially with her mates support. Her name is Bae and she has fiery red hair and green eyes. I wanted her features to resemble magic. In this world magic is very corporal. It's not just something that you imagine is there, it's visible, at least to Bae. It's a silver fox - a Kitsune.

So, when can we read it?

The book is currently up for pre-order and will be released on the 1st of July.

Will there be another book?

At least three, if not five. The next book will be called Tainted By Prophecy.

You have a little giveaway for us all today, don't you?

Absolutely, you can all read the first two chapters for free today!

British Author with a world inside her head that insists on being put to paper.

Title: Cursed By The Crown

Release Date: 1st July 2018

Pre-order Price: $2.99

Release Week Price: $3.50

Normal Price: $4.00

Goodreads

Trust was a liberty that as Kumari, Bae could not afford, especially after the murder of Bae’s mother, the late Kumari.
The Kumari bloodline had to continue regardless of the cost, even if it was the life of someone she loved.
There were only two things that a Kumari should trust; magic and her seven mates.
The race was on for Bae to find and claim her seven mates before she would have to defend her realm from an unknown enemy.
With them, she still might not win, but alone she would definitely fail.

Inescapable Fate

Author:
Hanleigh Bradley

Release Date:
14th April 2018

Formats:
Planning to release to Kindle, e-pub, paperback.

Currently available for pre-order on Amazon.

Price:
Pre-order Discounted Price of 99c.

Key Words:

British, New Adult, Contemporary Romance, Police Drama, Police Romance, British Police, Women Police Officers, Serial Romance,

Synopsis:

Georgia Kently works for Scotland Yard, the central hub of the British Police System. Following a particularly nasty breakup with her long term boyfriend over the Christmas break she is excited to return to the mundane rhythm of work. But nothing goes to plan as she meets her new boss, DCI Trent. He might be hot as hell but he’s also a misogynistic pig, who insists on calling her a Bint. They hate each other from the word go but things quickly change when they have to go undercover together. Working together. Living next door to each other. Their worlds seem uncannily twined together. As if by fate.

Blurb:

When Georgia Kentley breaks up with her long-term boyfriend Darren over Christmas, she really can't wait to return to work on the 27th of December.
The excitement dies when she meets her new boss, Walker Trent. DCI Trent is a misogynistic pain in the arse. Being a young police officer, Georgia has met her fair share of men who don't understand that she can hold her own. Every single time she has proven them wrong.
Will she be able to prove to Walker Trent just how capable she is or will she get herself into a heap of trouble, danger and chaos? And when chaos ensues who will be there to save her?

Buy Links:
Amazon Pre-Order Link

Excerpt:

Worst bloody Christmas of my life! In all my life I never thought I’d be so grateful to get back to work on the 27th of December. We’d been sat there at the dinner table enjoying what should have been a fantastic dinner with the people we loved, and he had to go and ruin it all. His mum had asked a simple question, one my mother was itching to ask too. A question I had hoped they’d leave off for at least another six months but when I heard it, I thought we’d behave like grown-ups and answer it reasonably. What I didn’t expect was for him to have said what he did. I was just as shocked as everyone else at the table, at a complete loss for how to respond.
“So, when will you be getting married then?” His mum had asked in a teasing tone as she elbowed him gently.
I’d laughed slightly and gone to answer the question myself. We’ve not thought about it, was on the tip of my tongue. It was the truth after all. Even if we’d been together since high school, we’d never once considered getting married. There were so many things to discuss before we could agree to spending the rest of our lives together, like if we wanted kids and how many. We’d never once discussed the future, and part of me believed it was because we both knew that we were just passing time until something or someone better came along. It wasn’t that I didn’t love him, I did. I loved him more than almost anyone else, but it wasn’t the way I imagined being in love. Something was missing and over the years I’d convinced myself that that was okay, that eventually, we might find that missing component. Darren had apparently disagreed though because this Christmas he dumped me.
“We won’t be getting married,” Darren told me and our families in tandem.
His eyes were glued to the table in front of him as he continued, “actually I’ve decided we need to break up.” I wasn’t upset at the prospect of breaking up, not really. It had felt inevitable. I was downright pissed that he’d taken it upon himself to make the decision, not including me at all. What was worse was that he’d decided to tell our parents without my consent and on fucking Christmas Day of all days.
“What do you mean?” My father had jumped to his feet, prepared perhaps to defend his little girl.
“We’ve grown apart and there’s no point in continuing this farce.” His tone was cold and unfeeling. It left my heart like ice. He could have at least shown me some kindness, after all, we were friends before we started dating. We’d been dating for five years; ever since our last year at secondary school and before that, we’d been friends for over ten years.
“Why are you doing this now?” My father was furious and I couldn’t really blame him. I wasn’t exactly happy myself.
In a much quieter voice than my father’s, I asked, “why didn’t you discuss this with me before bringing it to our families?”
For the first time since his mother brought up marriage, he looked at me, “I didn’t think you’d let me go.”
“Let you go? I’m not holding you hostage,” the pitch of my voice increasing as I spoke.
“I… I didn’t mean it like that.”
“Then what did you mean?” I asked sharply.
My mother dropped her hand to my shoulder and suggested that everyone leave us to discuss the situation, but just as everyone got up from the table and began to make their way through to the living room, Darren abruptly told them it wasn’t necessary and that he was leaving.
“It’s not as simple as that,” I told him as he gathered his things together, “what about the flat?”
“You can keep it. I don’t want it.”
“What?” I was astounded by his complete lack of feeling. “Where will you stay?”
“I’ll find somewhere.”
“What about your belongings?”
“I’ll ask mum and dad to come and collect them in the New Year.”
“Why didn’t you talk to me about this?” I tried to touch his arm, but he flinched away from me as if burnt.
“There was never a right time.”
“There’s no such thing as the right time… As a friend, as your best friend, as someone you’ve known almost your whole life, I deserved to be told properly.”
“I can’t give you what you want.”
“I don’t know what you think I want.”
“Forever.”
“I never asked for that.”
“You didn’t need to.” With those words, he was out the door and I was left to deal with the aftermath. I had to apologise to our families for destroying Christmas, listen to his parents’ apologies, bear through all the absolute crap excuses that our siblings tried to make for him, and attempt to sooth my father’s anger. Worst Christmas of my life and it was all thanks to Darren Jacks. Thank fuck for being back at work is all I can say.