google-site-verification: google935433b691795853.html KRISTY BERRIDGE: 2011

Saturday 31 December 2011

Christmas, New Year & All The Inbetween

Christmas is done and dusted, yet another year gone and a new one fast approaching. I am sad to report that Santa did not pop an Audi in my mailbox. Nor did he deliver me Alicide from True Blood or invent fat free chocolate that doesn't give me diarrhea.
What I did get was an iPod nano, which is truly a blessing in disguise since I ate a lot of the real chocolate over Christmas and can feel my butt literally dragging on the ground behind me when I walk. Alas I'm too scared to jump on the scales, concerned that my endless chocolate indulgence may have just backtracked my urge to kick Cindy Crawford's ass in the modelling department by about three weeks. So undoubtedly there will be a 'Warring With My Waistline' part two on the blog within the next few weeks.
Hopefully this time I will look like picture one rather than picture two:


Anyway, while I battle a chocolate addiction and an endless tug of war with my my waistline, may you all eat drink and be merry on this New Year's eve. May you dance in the street, may you spit from the top of the Eiffel tower and may you swim naked in someone else's backyard pool. And while you're doing all that, I'll be fondling my jar of Nutella with wanton abandon.
Have a good one everybody, I'll see you all next year! (That joke never gets old ... Never)

Kristy :)

Friday 30 December 2011

Follow Friday #13

Happy Friday everyone!
Yes, it’s that time of week again where bloggers unite to participate in the Follow Friday venture. The idea behind #FF is to promote traffic to your own blog, make new friends with other like-minded bloggers and discuss new and interesting topics each week.
Participating is simple. First you need to follow my blog because I’m totally awesome, then you can follow me on Twitter @kristyberridge (actually you don’t have to do this, it’s wishful thinking), but do follow my blog or assassins will get you …
Then you must follow our illustrious hosts Rachel of http://www.parajunkee.com/ and Alison of http://www.alisoncanread.com/ If you want more details on how to enter your own blog in the follow and hop, all directions are on their webpages
Now, once you’ve followed, check out my answer to this week’s questions and don’t forget to leave a comment so I can do the right thing and follow you back!


This week's question: The New year is here - and everyone wants to know your New Year's resolution! What are you going to try and revise, revamp and redo for 2012 on your blog!


Answer: I'm really going to try and promote my own book The Hunted a little bit more rather than talking crap. If you've read a lot of my posts, you'll know what I'm talking about. Never fear though, I will still post random incoherent thoughts for those of you who like the ride on my crazy train. Apart from that, I might actually try to figure out how to use the blogger features without screaming at the computer like the techno world is against me.

Saturday 24 December 2011

Merry Christmas!

See? Even Santa reads The Hunted
This isn't a post today. I'm too busy packing for the holidays and dreaming about the food I'm going to eat on Christmas night. But I did want to wish everyone a very safe and happy Christmas. I wish you all big love and much thanks for your continued support of my blog.
Take care of yourselves - eat lots, drink plenty and generally just be merry!
P.S - If you didn't buy a copy of my book The Hunted to give as a Christmas gift, Santa's probably going to frown at you a lot. (Kidding. Not really)
Have a good one,

Kristy :)

Friday 23 December 2011

Follow Friday #12

Happy Friday everyone!
Yes, it’s that time of week again where bloggers unite to participate in the Follow Friday venture. The idea behind #FF is to promote traffic to your own blog, make new friends with other like-minded bloggers and discuss new and interesting topics each week.
Participating is simple. First you need to follow my blog because I’m totally awesome, then you can follow me on Twitter @kristyberridge (actually you don’t have to do this, it’s wishful thinking), but do follow my blog or assassins will get you …
Then you must follow our illustrious hosts Rachel of http://www.parajunkee.com/ and Alison of http://www.alisoncanread.com/ If you want more details on how to enter your own blog in the follow and hop, all directions are on their webpages
Now, once you’ve followed, check out my answer to this week’s questions and don’t forget to leave a comment so I can do the right thing and follow you back!

This week's question: If you had to spend eternity in the pages of a book, which book would you choose and why?

Answer: Truthfully? I think Harry Potter is an awesome answer. I mean who wouldn't want to run around the halls of Hogwarts, wave wands and fly on broomsticks? But if I had to spend eternity in someone else's shoes, it would probably be Laurell K Hamilton's 'Anita Blake Vampire Hunter' series. Not only is Anita too cool for school, she's shacking up with just about every supernatural entity in St Louis. So I think an eternity of being a badass and bedding a different hottie every day of the week wouldn't be so bad. At least, I think I'd try really hard to make it work ...

Tuesday 20 December 2011

Naughty or Nice?

Well, Christmas is upon us - That special time of the year when everyone is particularly cheerful and definitely more friendly and helpful than usual.
I am one of those people.
It's not that I love Christmas. I simply love the holidays brought upon by public banishment against work. I'm not super nice because Santa's coming. I'm super nice because I don't have to see you until the New Year!
Yes, I know. That sounds terribly unsociable and not particularly nice. But when you work in the public sector and meet a whole bunch of crazy people day in and day out - holidays are a Christmas miracle.
So, naughty or nice?
Well, it's been brought to my attention in recent days that I'm naughty. This of course is a completely foreign concept to me that has only recently been explained. You see, in my job I smile a lot. I try to be extra friendly and I give everyone the attention they deserve. Sometimes my face hurts from the effort, and sometimes I want to blow my brains out. Yet despite my seemingly innocent efforts to make everyone who comes into my work comfortable and welcomed, apparently I've been more than a little accommodating.
Little did I know that my work shirt gapes when I bend forward to fill in paperwork. So there are always smiling faces all round, especially now that I know that my totties have been making an appearance for several years now. And, I never would have known if it wasn't for the one guy recently gripping the counter top and hanging his head over the edge, his face practically buried in what I assumed was very well concealed cleavage.
I guess not.
So it now stands to reason that you really can't be nice without being just a little bit naughty, even if you reeeeallllly didn't mean it.
I suppose that also means I'd better crank up the smiling another notch now that the peep show is over - Don't want to disappoint the customers at Christmas. After all, I'm being paid to be nice ;)
Have a good one everyone!

Kristy :)

Saturday 17 December 2011

Crazy Shenanigans

I just finished watching the movie 'The Hangover Part 2' and needless to say, besides laughing myself stupid, I was left wondering WTF? Do people really get up so messed up when taking partying to the extreme that they simply forget all the crazy crap they got up to?
I realise this film exacerbates actuallity, but dang - Drug dealers, smoking monkeys, FBI stakeouts and extreme facial tatoos? I'm pretty sure I'd remember saying yes to a dirty needle in a Bangkok side alley, never mind the she-man sex in a seedy stripper club to top off the night.
Now I'm sure this sounds confusing to anyone who hasn't watched these movies, and though they are good for a laugh (several laughs), I do have to wonder if there's anyone out there that extreme. I mean, really, I'm just dying to know if you've got a similar tale. I may be too green or classified as boringly sensible to get wasted enough to ninja kick a random in the goolies, wear my underwear on my hands or try to fly from the neighbour's roof in a homemade space ship. But surely one of you out there has a tale more harrowing than that of the movies?
Please tell me that someone has faked their own death just to scare the crap out of a coroner, or that you made a raft entirely from blown up condoms and attempted a river race? Better yet, you filmed yourself cow tipping and got kicked in the face by a pissed off bull.
Classic.
Well, if you are game enough to leave comment, we'd love to hear it. And I say 'we' because I'm so publishing it if you do - no exceptions. Unless of course you use a mountain of filthy words or I vomit in my mouth just a little bit.
For those of you that have gotten up to no good but don't want to explain due to certain circumstance that could lead to future indictment, just tick the damn funny box - that always makes me laugh anyway.
Have a good one everyone!

Kristy :)

Friday 16 December 2011

Follow Friday #11

Happy Friday everyone!
Yes, it’s that time of week again where bloggers unite to participate in the Follow Friday venture. The idea behind #FF is to promote traffic to your own blog, make new friends with other like-minded bloggers and discuss new and interesting topics each week.
Participating is simple. First you need to follow my blog because I’m totally awesome, then you can follow me on Twitter @kristyberridge (actually you don’t have to do this, it’s wishful thinking), but do follow my blog or assassins will get you …
Then you must follow our illustrious hosts Rachel of http://www.parajunkee.com/ and Alison of http://www.alisoncanread.com/ If you want more details on how to enter your own blog in the follow and hop, all directions are on their webpages
Now, once you’ve followed, check out my answer to this week’s questions and don’t forget to leave a comment so I can do the right thing and follow you back!

This week's question: When you've read a book, what do you do with it? (Keep it, give it away, donate it, sell it, swap it?)

Answer: I keep it! I catalogue it on Goodreads and in on my own personal document with a rating system, and then stack it neatly on my bookshelves. I just can't give them away, they bring me so much joy!

Wednesday 14 December 2011

In My Mailbox ... Whatever

As you all know I'm relatively new to the blogging community. I mostly started so I could promote myself as a writer, but of course now this once a week foray into cyberspace has grown into an unstoppable force! People actually want to read the crap that spews forth from my mouth - You know ... My third leg, battle with bugs, my issues with not impacting my head on every solid object in sight and of course, my ongoing battle with Cindy Crawford (which by the way, I'm totally winning).
So for that alone, you guys are awesome for not cutting loose or rolling your eyes. Especially when I make it clear that today's post is the 'I'm crazy jealous of your freaking mailbox' post.
Are you still with me?
Good, because I've recently become aware of this semi regular posting on other book reviewers and writer's blogs known as 'In My Mailbox'. Generally it has a picture of the mountain of books these lucky people have received in the mail to review from publishing houses, authors and agents. Sounds pretty good, doesn't it?
Well, here's a picture of my mailbox.


See? That's what sweet f@#*k all looks like. 

So, in light of the fact that in the foreseeable future my mailbox will probably continue to look like a moldy shoe box filled with biting ants and mystery sand, I thought I'd feature what I wish was in my mailbox. Albeit not everything is going to fit. But let's pretend it makes perfect sense - Like a fat man in a red suit sliding down billions of chimneys every Christmas eve and never once having to call emergency services ... hmmm.

Okay, in my mailbox I would really like;
1. Alcide Herveaux from True Blood - Number one, he's totally delicious. Number two, delicious things are meant to be eaten. Number three, I'm hungry now.
2. An Audi R8 - What can I say? I like pretty cars and that is a very pretty car.
3. An exotic holiday - Now when I say exotic, I don't mean dump me in the jungle where I get Mange or Dengue fever. I'm talking about somewhere secluded, somewhere balmy ... somewhere Alcide feels comfortable without pants.
4. Fat free, non diarrhea inducing chocolate - Yes, I'm aware that such a thing is tantamount to finding the Holy Grail, but I'd really like it. Especially now that I'm hungry, have a pant-less Alcide swinging on a hammock, beckoning me with the promise of no calorie complications.
5. Well, how about a new mailbox? You've seen it, you know what I'm talking about ...

Anyway, I shall continue to seethe with jealousy when I witness these posts, hoping and praying that one day Santa does get his butt stuck in my chimney, owing me big time when I winch him free. I don't expect I'll ever get Alcide from the back of his sleigh, but I'd totally settle for the fat free chocolate and a cardboard cut out if the elves can't pull something off.
Have a good one everyone,

Kristy ;)

Monday 12 December 2011

Monday Moaning

This is just a super quick post today. I thought I'd let you know how my Saturday night out on the town went.
Well ... It went.
At 2.30pm I was tucking myself between the cool, crisp sheets of my bed, completely wide awake after a gigantic night of booze, debauchery and muscle bound weirdos dressed as Santa.
Okay, so I personally might have bypassed excessive alcohol consumption and debauchery on account of my Hobbitish nature and general lack know-how, but I still got up to mischief. Said mischief resulted in a sore bum from dancing the night away and bleary eyes from staying up waaayyy past my bedtime. But still ... I had a great time for someone that usually gets excited about cracking a can of 'V' and settling in to watch back to back episodes of Supernatural on the telly.
Needless to say I may just experiment a little bit more with this 'getting out of the house' venture.
1. I just may meet a vampire since I tend to look like one these days with my pasty indoor complexion.
2. Turns out there are lots of people that exist outside my front door. Some of them are even nice. Some of them make me scream and run in the other direction. I'm told this is called 'Chasing tail'.
3. I have no shame about busting crap-ass dance moves on the dance floor. Reckless abandon is good for you and the other crap-ass dancers next to you.
4. That face I'm pulling does an excellent job of repelling just about any gropey-ass git with a five fingered agenda in sight.
5. I don't have to stay at home listening to replays of 'All by Myself'.
Morale of the story? I'm breaking out, busting moves, and kicking it for the introverts everywhere.
Have a good one ... I will be.

Kristy :)

Saturday 10 December 2011

Book Review: The Immortals Series by Alyson Noel

I thought I'd give you just a quick book review today as in truth, I'm gearing up for an awesome night out on the town and undoubtedly need at least four hours to get myself ready.
Okay, so I just made it sound like I'm negligent about the review and a lost cause when in pursuit of a speedy beautifying process. Not true, I'm simply distracted by the prospect of actually wandering further than my own backyard. I've been writing, blogging and generally arsing around in cyberspace for far too long without interaction with the general public.
My weekends are fast becoming a snore-fest.
So it's time for me to get my nose out of a book or away from the computer screen long enough to scream at my curling iron, gyrate with unknowns, and laugh with mates until the wee hours of the morning.
Ever and Damon have loved and lost each
other for hundreds of years - facing deadly
enemies, dark secrets and a powerful curse.
Now their love will be tested to its limits.
Ever and Damon finally have their chance to
discover their true destiny. The choice they're
about to make will unite them - or tear them
apart - forever.
Anyway, that aside. I recently finished reading the Immortals series by Alyson Noel. There were six in the series in total; Evermore, Blue Moon, Shadowland, Dark Flame, Night Star and finally, Everlasting.
This series is highly geared towards the YA market. There are a few supernatural elements in it, but not enough to excite anyone drawn to the horror genre. It's more of a spiritual novel, exploring chakras, potions, gemstones and nature's magic. It's also a love story, one that makes you want to slap a few people along the way.
I enjoyed this series, following the story of Ever and Damon, two beings fated as soul mates, destined to always be separated by their own stupidity, lack of faith and general interference from others. I say enjoyed because I didn't dislike it, but it wasn't exactly enthralling either. The writer has a wonderful idea encapsulated with beautifully written words, but unfortunately, it just fell short on the excitement levels that I've come to expect from the YA genre.
Don't get me wrong, I'm all for ill fated romances, love triangles and even a bit of spirituality, but for two people wagering eternity, they both spend a lot of time complaining about what they don't have rather than the opportunities they do have. Fortunately the writer does wrap this series up smoothly. All characters are given their appropriate send offs, and any ill will between interacting characters is diminished. Overall it's wrapped up in a nice little bow for the reader, though I'm not certain I would have made the same choices if given the opportunity.
All in all, I'd give this series 3 out of 5 for it's light, but entertaining foray into the world of teenage immortality.
Well, have a good one - I will be ...

Kristy :)

Friday 9 December 2011

Follow Friday #10

Happy Friday everyone!
Yes, it’s that time of week again where bloggers unite to participate in the Follow Friday venture. The idea behind #FF is to promote traffic to your own blog, make new friends with other like-minded bloggers and discuss new and interesting topics each week.
Participating is simple. First you need to follow my blog because I’m totally awesome, then you can follow me on Twitter @kristyberridge (actually you don’t have to do this, it’s wishful thinking), but do follow my blog or assassins will get you …
Then you must follow our illustrious hosts Rachel of http://www.parajunkee.com/ and Alison of http://www.alisoncanread.com/ If you want more details on how to enter your own blog in the follow and hop, all directions are on their webpages
Now, once you’ve followed, check out my answer to this week’s questions and don’t forget to leave a comment so I can do the right thing and follow you back!

This week's question: Keeping with the spirit of giving this season, what book do you think EVERYONE should read and if you could, you would buy it for all of your family and friends?
Answer: My book The Hunted of course! EVERYONE should go out right now and buy it. Really ... right now. Your burning daylight just standing there.
Okay, so I'm kidding. Not really, but I do realise that I should give you an answer that's not self-endorsing.
So, if I had to choose a book that I think everyone should read, and I know this is going to sound supremely boring, but it's a dictionary. I don't know how many times a day I cringe, listening to people around me use incorrect words within sentences or spell them wrong in messages. And don't even get me started on the up and coming youth. Give them a dictionary? Some of them need to be slapped in the face with one!
So yes, this is probably why everyone says I'm a crappy aunt, because I suggest dictionaries instead of Steven King or Stephanie Meyer, but there you have it. I clearly suck (except my super awesome book The Hunted).

Tuesday 6 December 2011

Brain Farts

Well, despite the crude subtext, I can't deny that Brain Farts are in fact a serious medical condition that I myself have fallen victim to in recent times. Sure this plight may not actually kill you, but boy does it make you look like a right git to those unsuspecting of your current condition.
Thankfully most of my Brain Farts occur indoors, away from the prying eyes of others. Of course that does not stop me from slapping my own knees and cacking myself stupid when I realise what I've done. It also doesn't stop any bystanders that may be present from joining in on the self mockery either. But, it's not just me that this happens to. This is a decidedly good thing since I'm beginning to wonder if the blog doesn't present me as a somewhat hopeless case.
Anyway, I might start with the recent Brain Farts of friends and family. You know, just to shine the spotlight on someone else's stupidity for a while.
And it all begins with a colleague of mine on a midnight search for her lost mobile phone. Don't ask me why she woke in the wee hours of the morning in search of her phone, but clearly checking Facebook updates might have been on the agenda.
So after she grapples every item on the bedside table in search of said lost property, she finally finds a light, holds it in front of her and begins to overturn the bedroom looking for her phone. So I say to her at this point, 'How long were you looking for it?'. And she replies, 'It felt like hours.'
'So did you find the phone?' I ask, curious why anyone would look for a mobile that long unless limbs had recently been severed or Gerard Butler was calling in for a hot date.
'Yeah, I found the phone,' she said rather sheepishly.
I'd felt my eyebrow raise, waiting for the punchline. 'And where was it?'
'I had it in my hand the whole time. The mobile was providing the light I needed to find it.'
Enough said.
Case number two was dear old hubby. We were chatting in the car on the way home and he was telling me all about this text conversation he'd had with a customer on the phone. The weird thing was, he started making 'texting' motions, depicting his recent conversation and the detailed responses with his fingers. He did this for about ten minutes before I slapped his hand away and burst out laughing. I asked him if those fingers picked up HBO too.
Moving onto me, I probably take the cake with recent Brain Farts. Number one, I recently sat in the car, pulled the keys out of my pocket and proceeded to try and plunge it into my eye socket. Seriously, at the time, I was positive that was where you would find the ignition. Thankfully I spent the next half hour roaring with laughter instead of explaining an eye gouging in the emergency room - no damage done.
And finally, I made a beautiful dinner the other day, washed the dishes and looked at the sodden tea towel in my hands and opted to pop it in the laundry basket. I progressed to the bathroom where the linen press is kept, decided to slam dunk it like a pro basketballer and ended up slam dunking it in the toilet bowl on the opposite side of the room.
Nice.
Well, at least these incidents give us our laugh-out-loud moments when we realise the lights are on but nobody's home. Please tell me you all do stupid crap like this too?
Have a good one,

Kristy :)

Saturday 3 December 2011

Warring with my Waistline

(Warning - I'm not always 'PC', sorry about that)
Well, it's Saturday again, a day of rest, a day of good solid eating and a decidedly perfect day to break into my chocolate stash. Well, not anymore. The reason is I don't have one. Yes you heard right. I have diced all of the decidedly wicked food in my fridge for the waistline friendly, taste bud testing, merits of healthy eating.
Bleh!
As you can tell I'm not a fan. I'd much prefer to pick up a burger and fries on the way home than figure out the difference between flambeing and frying. Most of the time I simply look at the utensils in my kitchen draw and wonder what else I could do with them besides cooking. Again ... not any more.
So, in light of an earlier post where I kept talking about my third leg (long story, check out the link), I decided I'd better do something about this seriously unhealthy venture. Granted, I'm not fat. I didn't sink the titanic and I don't need a forklift to get to and from work.
But I'm also not like this either;


Anyway, I'm going to be. This is me in about a week's time.

So, due to this decidedly healthy turn, I've taken on this 21 day diet which basically means all I eat is well ... not much. And so far I've come to a few startling conclusions.
1. I bloody hate cucumbers - If I have to eat another one, I'm probably going to do it, but I'm going to bitch and moan about it the entire time.
2. Low calories equals low energy - Goodbye sex life.
3. Eating a piece of fruit is not the same as a piece of chocolate. I don't care if they both contain sugars. One tastes like heaven and the other tastes comparatively like poo.
4. My spice rack now looks like I actually know what to do with it.
5. I am hungry all of the time.
And with that, I have also clearly uncovered the true purpose behind all diets. It's not about losing weight at all, or getting 'healthy' as the skinny people like to say. It's about being so damn hungry that eventually you cave, grab a carving knife, and eat your own cellulitey body parts just to satisfy the cravings!
So I bid you goodbye, leaving you with the thought that while I may look like Cindy Crawford in a week, I may also be lunch if the hunger does not desist.
Have a good one, I'll keep you posted.

Kristy :)

Friday 2 December 2011

Follow Friday #9

Happy Friday everyone!
Yes, it’s that time of week again where bloggers unite to participate in the Follow Friday venture. The idea behind #FF is to promote traffic to your own blog, make new friends with other like-minded bloggers and discuss new and interesting topics each week.
Participating is simple. First you need to follow my blog because I’m totally awesome, then you can follow me on Twitter @kristyberridge (actually you don’t have to do this, it’s wishful thinking), but do follow my blog or assassins will get you …
Then you must follow our illustrious hosts Rachel of http://www.parajunkee.com/ and Alison of http://www.alisoncanread.com/ If you want more details on how to enter your own blog in the follow and hop, all directions are on their webpages
Now, once you’ve followed, check out my answer to this week’s questions and don’t forget to leave a comment so I can do the right thing and follow you back!


Now to this week's question: What is your biggest pet peeve when it comes to books? Maybe you don't like love triangles or thin plots? Tell us about it!


My answer is pretty simple. I hate the foretelling of weak and useless women. I personally have never met one yet. We all have spunk and uniqueness, our own way of taking charge of life whether emotionally, physically or spiritually. To read about a woman stumbling over herself, demeaned by those around her and simply accepting it as true makes my blood boil. No matter the plot or the circumstance, inside we are all strong, beautiful and ever evolving. To not see that in at least some written word can be deeply disappointing from a reader perspective.
Ooh, I also hate reading sex scenes that throw in words like turgid, opening tulip, quivering member and soft center  I know you're trying not to say Penis or Vagina, but bloody hell, stop picking on nature and one-eyed snakes.
Have a good one everyone and happy #ff!


Kristy :)

Thursday 1 December 2011

November Follower Frenzy Results!

I just want to say a big thank you to everyone who participated in this giveaway. Thanks to your support I have gained over 700 views of the blog in the last two weeks alone, 30 new followers on the blog and a whopping 48 new Twitter followers!
You guys rock!
Now. Down to business.
As you know, I'm giving away an autographed copy of my novel The Hunted, the very first in a series of five. There will also be a custom designed Hunted T-shirt, which I myself wear not only for promotion, but out and about. It's pretty damn cool if I do say so myself.
So, without any more stall tactics, the winner is:

Braiden Asciak - otherwise known as '@livin_thru-arts' on Twitter!

Yay you! Now once you're finished, write an excellent review or bad karma will slap you in the face! (Kidding ... okay, maybe it will just a little bit.)

Anyway, I also wanted to give a massive shout out to:

DeAnna Schultz '@SacredmOOn1', Kelly Mills '@Kellym2372' and Tracey Spiteri '@YABookAddict'

Not only did you tweet more often than I did, you re-tweeted on a regular basis. Now you obviously missed out on the T-shirt, but I'll be sending you a signed copy of the book anyway, mostly because you are awesome and put so much effort into helping me out. How can I not thank you with what you worked so hard to attain?
Have a good one everyone, and I'll be in contact with the winners very shortly for your particulars!

Kristy :)

Saturday 26 November 2011

A Vampire Fanatic!

Blade
This is another post, not dissimilar to my mid week post 'A Werewolf Leads'. It's in relation to the current giveaway I have happening on the blog - the 'November Follower Frenzy'. Basically I'm celebrating the recent release of my book The Hunted, the first in a series of five with the second to be released early 2012. I wanted to give everyone a chance to weigh in on my favourite supernatural entities and give you just a little bit of insight into my long held love of the inherently creepy.
So, without further ado, I'm going to run with the same traits I worked with my werewolves, and see if I can't think of a vampire to match each one. Here we go;

30 Days of Night
1. Hybrid Vampires - The best one I can think of is Blade. Besides being totally awesome, he's a serious bad ass. And, not only can he rock leather, he can kick ass in the daylight.

2. Freaking Scary Vampires - Vampires in general can be pretty damn scary, but I've never been able to forget the vamps from the movie 30 Days of Night. Although there's nothing that especially differentiates them from the standard characteristics, those suckers (pardon the pun), don't give up pillaging for thirty straight days! I think by day two, after wetting my pants on several occasions, I might have just walked outside and said 'I freaking give up.'.

Claudia

3. Female Vampires - Well, there are a lot of them. But I have to say that I'm a fan of Alice from the Twilight Saga, mostly because she never complains about being a vampire like the rest of them do. Plus seeing the future wouldn't be so bad. At least you'd see the stake coming.
There's also Anita, from the Anita Blake Vampire Hunter series by Laurell.K.Hamilton. She may not be a traditional vampire, but she makes sexy and bad ass seem like a hobby I want to commit to.
Eric Northman
I also can't discount Claudia from Interview with a Vampire. How genius to make a child into a blood drinking fiend! No one suspects the innocent *rubs hands together* she could kill everyone and you'd still buy her candy.

4. Super Hot Vampires - Where to begin? There are so many I'd let sink their fangs into me that I'll try and keep this brief and ... clean. Eric Northman from True Blood, Asher from Anita Blake Vampire Hunter novels, Mircea from the Cassie Palmer novels, Acheron from the Dark Hunter novels, Lestat from Queen of The Damned, Black Hat (AKA Karl Urban) in Priest and ... Yeah, clearly I like a lot of different men ... ehh ... vampires.

Stefan & Damon
5. Woe Is Me Vampires - The Cullen clan from the Twilight Saga and Stefan from Vampire Diaries. Boo hoo. You're a vampire, you're supposed to drink blood - get it into you and not the vegetarian variety.

6. Boring Vampires - The Master Vampire in Salem's lot. I haven't read the book, I was truly worried it would be as boring as the film. But I'm calling this lackluster vamp out because he spent the first two hours of the movie locked in his box and the last one hour just hissing at people.

7. Vampires You Wish You Could Assassinate - Bill from True Blood - Bad hair, pasty skin and serious Sookie issues. Put a stake in my hand and I'll show that joker the meaning of true death.

So that's my vampire list, but truly, I could have added a lot more to each category, especially under Super Hot Vampires, but I suspect I don't get out enough. Anyway, this will be my last post in relation to the November Follower Frenzy, as the next post on Wednesday will be to undoubtedly announce the winners! So let me know what you all think, I'll be sitting here, just waiting ...
Have a good one,

Kristy :)

Friday 25 November 2011

Follow Friday #8

Happy Friday everyone!
Yes, it’s that time of week again where bloggers unite to participate in the Follow Friday venture. The idea behind #FF is to promote traffic to your own blog, make new friends with other like-minded bloggers and discuss new and interesting topics each week.
Participating is simple. First you need to follow my blog because I’m totally awesome, then you can follow me on Twitter @kristyberridge (actually you don’t have to do this, it’s wishful thinking), but do follow my blog or assassins will get you …
Then you must follow our illustrious hosts Rachel of http://www.parajunkee.com/ and Alison of http://www.alisoncanread.com/ If you want more details on how to enter your own blog in the follow and hop, all directions are on their webpages
Now, once you’ve followed, check out my answer to this week’s questions and don’t forget to leave a comment so I can do the right thing and follow you back!


This week's Question: It's Thanksgiving day in the US, so we want to know what you are thankful for - blogging related of course. Who has helped you out along the way? What books are you thankful for reading?


Answer: You know, it surprises me how many wonderful people there are out there that support my writing and of course, my blog. To start with I have to thank Holjo at www.pedanticphooka.com She was the very first blogger willing to support my book The Hunted, including buying her own copies to review and put in a giveaway!
Plus I have too many Twitter supporters to even mention, so I'll stick with my faves - @bookbrats, @alexia_smit, @livin_thru_arts, @DPhilipose, @Denise_Carter, @JuliaIndigo, @jeffreadwrite, @JudeCMahoney, @kellym2372, @mdot417, @Millsyswife, @WriteTheFantasy and @YABookAddict
In terms of books I'm thankful for - that's easy - all of them! I adore to read, it's probably one of the main reasons I started writing in the first place.

Tuesday 22 November 2011

A werewolf leads ...

Remus Lupin
In keeping with my November Follower Frenzy Giveaway, I'm going to do a post about my favourite werewolves in books and in film. This brilliant idea came to me last night when I realised that my 'Hunted Series' is full of werewolves, or as I like to call them Vanators!
Anyway, my fictional beasts are pretty bloodthirsty and are often shape-shifting into the human beings they've most recently fed from. They aren't at all interested whether or not they have an eight pack or pretty blue eyes - they're all about the blood and sex.
So in good humour, I thought I'd think about one werewolf that matches every personality trait I can think of. Well, at least until I get bored and give up. Anyway, here we go;

Michael Corvin
1. Hybrid Werewolves - Remus Lupin from 'Harry Potter'. You gotta love a wizard who also moonlights as a werewolf. There's also Michael Corvin in 'Underworld', a vampire cross werewolf blend. He also comes under the category of 'super hot werewolf', but I'm trying to streamline here.

2. Freaking Scary Werewolves - Any of the damn wolves in the movie 'An American Werewolf in Paris' generally make me cringe at the screen, talk about no remorse ... bloody good entertainment (pardon the pun)

3. Female Werewolves - I adore the Riley Jenson novels by Kerry Arthur. There are nine in the series all together, and though I suspect most of my draw to the series is the rudie bits and trash talk, the violence is pretty damn awesome too. Go the kick-ass promiscuous girl with an aversion to silver!

Van Helsing
4. Super-hot Werewolves - Okay, since I'm Aussie, I'm sticking with my home turf, though I doubt many of you would disagree. Simple answer; Hugh Jackman in 'Van Helsing'. Okay, so he might only be a bad ass werewolf for a microsecond in the film, but it was enough to make me want to pet him for life. Also, I'm not going to discount Alcide from True Blood.
Deep voice - check. Super hot freaking gorgeous body - check, check. Would I let him bite me - um, hell yes.

5. Woe is Me Werewolves - Jacob Black from 'Twilight'. Sorry to the Team Jacob fans, but God damn, books or movie, it really doesn't matter. Someone needs to dart that wolf and hose him down - plenty more Bella's in the ocean! Have you ever seen someone with a glistening eight pack looking so unhappy? Please, somebody give the boy some chocolate!

Alcide Herveaux
6. Boring Werewolves - That has to be Lawrence Talbot in the remake of 'The Wolf Man'. Never have I been less entertained, sitting in front of the telly, slapping my knees and praying for decent bloodshed. Yes, I may be slightly disturbed, but lordy lordy lets put those claws and teeth to good use. I'm even okay with it a little slap and tickle as long as the damn wolf does something!

7. Werewolves You Wish You Could Assassinate - Easy answer here is Richard from Laurell.K.Hamilton's 'Anita Blake' series of books. Now, I love these books to death, again filled with plenty of action and plenty of ... trysts. But boy what a whining werewolf he is! I personally have a shotgun loaded to blow a hole in the middle of the next book if he pulls another 'emo' stunt again.

Anyway, I'm curious to know what werewolves you love or hate, or just which ones you want to roll around in the grass with. I'm sure there are million others out there that I haven't thought of, but leave a comment - I'm almost positive I'll have an opinion.
Have a good one,

Kristy :)

Saturday 19 November 2011

Interview with Lucas Manory

Hi, Lucas, thank you so much for stopping by the blog today, especially in light of my current giveaway 'The November Follower Frenzy'! I think interviewing you while organising a give away of The Hunted is very apt under the circumstances.
LM: No problems. Supporting the book in which I play a major supporting role seems like a really good idea to ensure I get more action in the next few books coming.

Lucas, I can assure you that you have a very large role in the next book. Actually, you have a major role in all five books.
LM: *Sighs with relief* Well, that's good. I was starting to think that the Vampires were going to get all the action. *Wiggles eyebrows at me* In more ways than one if you know what I mean ...


Yes, following you loud and clear, Lucas. And with The Hunted's release, how would you say life has changed for you?'
LM: Honestly? Everything has changed. Things aren't quite right with my parents, and Elena? Well, we all know she has a lot on her plate at the moment. I'm trying to convince her to change her mind about a few of her recent decisions, but I can't exactly let on that I have my own issues that I could really use her help sorting through.


And why is that?
LM: I'm her big brother. It's my job to protect her even if she can self-heal and apparently kick my ass. For the record, I would just like to remind everyone that although I may look weedy, I can hold my own. Plus, how many guys can shoot fireballs from their fingers? I am one bad ass Protector with an ever increasing magical repertoire and a big ...

*eyes widen* Thanks for that, Lucas. Just another quick question. Do you think the Institute of Magical Intervention have bigger plans for you?
LM: You mean besides dissecting Elena? *Scoffs* Of course they do. Do they think I'm stupid? I've been mastering my magical skills from a very young age. I'm pretty sure the other Protector kids aren't as advanced. *Rubs his shoulder, looks at me pointedly and frowns* Do you think my scar has anything to do with it?

At this point I have to steer Lucas in another direction. He's getting too close about revealing too much information from the up and coming release of The Damned.


So, Lucas, finally I'm just going to fire off a few quick questions to wrap up this impromptu interview
LM: Hit me.

Favourite Colour: Blue. It goes with my eyes.
Favourite Song: I like trance and dance music. I don't have favourites. Maybe I don't care enough to have one. *shrugs*
Favourite Movie: I like the Simpson's movie. *chuckles to himself* Spider Pig, Spider Pig ... such a classic.
Favourite Book: I'll say 'The Hunted' because I'm in it, but I suspect I might like the fifth one in the series best 'The Delivered'. *Shrugs* Or I suppose whichever one it is that I might actually get laid.
Favourite Holiday Destination: I've never really been anywhere. I lead a sad, sad life. I suspect at this rate I'll never get laid, *shakes head at me* despite all of your promises to fix me up with a hot blonde.
Right, I get it - you want to get laid. I'll see what I can do. Supposing I don't come through for you, if you had to pick someone famous, who would it be?
I'm not fussy. Just open a Playboy magazine anywhere and point.

Okay, so I let Lucas go. He was eyeing off my bathroom door and the tube socks drying on my dining room table like he had a pressing date. Needless to say I'm going to have to get writing before he starts complaining that blue is not his favourite colour due to certain appendage congestion.
Anyway, if you're curious about Lucas's role in The Hunted, check out my latest (and first) giveaway!
Have a good one everyone

Kristy :)

Friday 18 November 2011

Follow Friday #7

Happy Friday everyone!
Yes, it’s that time of week again where bloggers unite to participate in the Follow Friday venture. The idea behind #FF is to promote traffic to your own blog, make new friends with other like-minded bloggers and discuss new and interesting topics each week.
Participating is simple. First you need to follow my blog because I’m totally awesome, then you can follow me on Twitter @kristyberridge (actually you don’t have to do this, it’s wishful thinking), but do follow my blog or assassins will get you …
Then you must follow our illustrious hosts Rachel of http://www.parajunkee.com/ and Alison of http://www.alisoncanread.com/ If you want more details on how to enter your own blog in the follow and hop, all directions are on their webpages
Now, once you’ve followed, check out my answer to this week’s questions and don’t forget to leave a comment so I can do the right thing and follow you back!


This week's question: Letter to Santa: Tell Santa what books you want for Christmas!
Answer? In truth, I'm pretty damn excited about reading any supernatural or YA fiction. Books in general make me very happy, but if I had to choose, it would be for Santa to deliver my own book 'The Hunted' down everyone's chimney. Then they'd fall in love with the series as I've done and be super excited about the early 2012 release of 'The Damned'.
If you're curious, check out my November follower frenzy post below and you'll find out how you can get your very own copy and join me in Christmas bliss.

Saturday 12 November 2011

November Follower Frenzy Give Away!

This is my very first give away!
Well, it's come to my attention that there aren't nearly enough of you out there talking about and reading my book The Hunted *wink wink*. So I've decided that I'm going to give away a signed copy as well as a 'Hunted' T-shirt to the follower who helps celebrate this milestone with me! The competition will be open until the end of November and it will be international, so don't be afraid to go crazy!

All you have to do to enter is the following:
1. Post a comment with your name and e-mail address or alternatively your Twitter/Facebook details so that I can contact you should you win.
2. Follow my blog!
3. Follow me on Twitter if you have an account http://twitter.com/#!/KristyBerridge
4. 'Like' my Hunted page on Facebook if you have an account http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Hunted/116951581718393
5. Tweet or post on Facebook about the give-away and encourage other followers as much as you can. When you do post try to include my name in the post so I can see who it came from, as every mention is another entry against your name. You can re-tweet and post as often as you like, it simply gives you more opportunity to win!

SYNOPSIS:
Elena Manory is by no means an ordinary teenage girl. Being born with the ability to heal herself from any injury, and with the knowledge that on her eighteenth birthday she will become a Vampire, Elena is aware that she is more than a little different from other girls her age.
It isn’t until she meets William Granville, an alluring and impossibly handsome vampire, that she begins to question her destiny and what secrets the Institute of Magical Intervention and her adopted family have withheldsecrets that could change the fates of not only her own life, but of the lives of all the immortals.
As events spiral out of control, William may be the only person Elena can place her trust in. He, and Elena’s magical family, must fight to save her, joining forces to defeat a common, deadly foe. For William, it is his chance to save the girl that he has searched eternity to find.




Friday 11 November 2011

Follow Friday #6

Happy Friday everyone!
Yes, it’s that time of week again where bloggers unite to participate in the Follow Friday venture. The idea behind #FF is to promote traffic to your own blog, make new friends with other like-minded bloggers and discuss new and interesting topics each week.
Participating is simple. First you need to follow my blog because I’m totally awesome, then you can follow me on Twitter @kristyberridge (actually you don’t have to do this, it’s wishful thinking), but do follow my blog or assassins will get you …
Then you must follow our illustrious hosts Rachel of http://www.parajunkee.com/ and Alison of http://www.alisoncanread.com/ If you want more details on how to enter your own blog in the follow and hop, all directions are on their webpages
Now, once you’ve followed, check out my answer to this week’s questions and don’t forget to leave a comment so I can do the right thing and follow you back!

Q: In light of 11/11/11 and Veteran's day, tell us about your favourite soldier and how he or she is saving the world. Fictional or real life.

A: Unfortunately I don't know a real hero. I'm fortunate enough not to have to worry about someone not coming home or being injured in any wars past, present or future. So this week my answer is somewhat superficial. I'm going to have to go with fictional - Karl Urban as 'Reaper' in the movie 'Doom'. For one, he kicks some serious alien ass, and two, that guy would look super hot in or out of uniform. So yes, I'm choosing this soldier simply because I'd be more than happy to 'bunk' with him for all time.

Tuesday 8 November 2011

Obsessive Compulsive Idiot

I think it's fair to say that we all have our little idiosyncrasies. As you know I'm not a fan of bugs and I have serious issues with coordinating my head not to impact frequently with hurtful, solid objects. I have my hands full most of the time with making sure my bug spray is fully stocked and not to book myself out as a piñata at kids parties.
So it probably comes as no surprise to you that I'm also an obsessive compulsive idiot. What does this mean? Although I don't have to wash my hands repeatedly or count to one hundred before opening doors, I do have certain routines that I have trouble breaking. One of them is the washing. When I hear the timer go off, I find it almost impossible not to go and hang it up straight away. Logic dictates that it can wait until the next commercial, after I have finished eating, after ... well, after a lot of things, but for some reason I'm compelled to do it instantaneously. I suspect this also ties in with the notion that I'm a lazy bastard and don't want to iron it later if I can hang it up now ...
The second would be the dishes. I just can't leave them in the sink. I suspect this too stems not from laziness, but fear that the dirty kitchen will attract aforementioned bugs in droves that decide to burrow into my ears and lay eggs in my brain.
Right, so the point is not that I have a crazy imagination or that I'm seriously lazy (reserve all judgement please), the point is that I have some stupid habits that I can't break.
The one that bothers me at present is my reading capacity. I have recently been delivered a beautiful swag of not one, but nine books from Booktopia. Each book is one that I've been wanting to read for a long time, yet I haven't even browsed the synopsis.
Why you might ask? Because I'm already in the middle of reading another. Yes, you heard me. I cannot read more than one book at a time. Now, I don't know if this is because I have short term memory or because I don't like mixing my plots, but I suspect it relates to a whole lot of idiocy.
Jump back twenty odd years and you have me in my room playing with Barbie dolls. Mum, being sweet buys me a secondary one (apparently it needed the company). Of course now I'm confused about who Ken is supposed to play kissy with so the other one goes under the bed for safekeeping. I simply cannot work with more than one doll at a time. They tend to get jealous, you see.

Fast forward back to the present, and as incomparable as Barbie dolls and books may be, I still find myself stuck in the unbreakable cycle of the illogical. I want to read more books, yet I feel like I'm cheating on the one I'm currently vested in. So I ask this, is anyone else out there as ridiculously twisted as I am?
Anyone??
Who knows, maybe I'll try and break out of the cycle tonight, perhaps leave the dishes for at least an hour ...
Who am I kidding, I still don't want the bugs to get me.
Have a good one everyone,

Kristy :)

Saturday 5 November 2011

Supanova 2011

Welcome to Supanova ... Kristy!
What is Supanova you say? Only Australia's answer to ComicCon - a pop culture convention inspiring comic book creators, fantasy and horror authors, gamers and die hard fans of science fiction who dress up in storm trooper outfits and have a thing for swords.
With thousands upon thousands of people coming to meet and greet, it's sure to be an event to remember, and boy it certainly was!
I have to say, I wanted to point fingers at first, mumble under my breath about the crazy outfits and general dedication to looking ridiculous, but I found myself smiling, thinking I was somewhat under-dressed. The more people that poured through the gates, the crazier the outfits became. I saw Pikachu, Batman, Dr Who, Indianna Jones, the security team from the Umbrella corporation, along with many other Japanese Anime characters I've never bloody heard of.


So I've decided that next year I'm definitely going to join in on the fun. No, I'm not going to strap on a corsett and don purple hair. I'm not going to strike you with a light saber or kick your iron man costume. I'm going to be an exhibitor, especially now that I have a decidely awesome t-shirt design and lots of inspiration to 'Geek it up'. (Apologies to all Geeks for the generalisation. Apologies again for calling you 'Geeks' repeatedly).

I'm also going to need a security team to keep crazy fans at bay ... *rolls eyes* As if.
No, I don't need minders,  but I'll probably need help keeping my dad in line. I left him alone for five minutes today and a Cyberman got hold of him and nearly choked the living crap out of him!
Anyway, I had an ace time. Thanks so much to all the crazies of Brisbane, you guys rock and I'll see you all next year!

Kristy :)