Mia Darien is an indie author of speculative fiction, and a New England Yankee transplanted into Alabama clay. No matter her geography, she continues to stubbornly and rebelliously live the life of her choosing along with her family and pets. She doesn't miss the snow.

Website: http://www.miadarien.com
Twitter: MiaDarien

• New Character Interview! Sarah Lalonde & Bastet from 'True Form' http://t.co/0FjFtKDlvF
• Guest Post from Marcelo De Vivo today! http://t.co/oYdBJVsEp7
• Ten Questions with... Sarah Lalonde http://t.co/kpZ9T65zR8 #author #interview
• New Character Interview! Stan Morris & Kathy from 'Surviving the Fog' http://t.co/wbAyCMBLCO #character #interview
• Hungry for more Adelheid? http://t.co/tFkRyVPenU

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Blog: http://www.miadarien.com

• Character Interview: Sarah Lalonde & Bastet from ‘True Form’
• Guest Post from Marcela De Vivo
• Ten Questions with… Sarah Lalonde
• Character Interview: Stan Morris & Kathy from ‘Surviving the Fog’
• Adelheid: Cover Reveal & Release Date!

a christmas carol    adelheid    aftermath    antiparanormal    antipreternatural    antisupernatural    apocalypse    archaeology    assassin    beast of gevaudan    beauty and the beast    bounty hunter    bounty hunters    camerons law    christmas    connecticut    contemporary fantasy romance    dakota    erotic romance    fae    fantasy    female detective    female protagonist    fighter pilot    gender role switch    gevaudan    halloween    high school students    historical romance    holiday    horror    lohav    lost love    main character is a man    main character is woman    mia darien    modern fairy tale    mystery    paranormal    paranormal mystery    paranormal rights    paranormal suspense    postapocalyptic    preternatural    preternatural mystery    preternatural rights    prostitute    provincial france    psychological suspense    quest    retold fairy tale    robot holidays    robots    romance    scifi    serial killer    shapeshifters    shifters    short story    space opera    supernatural    supernatural mystery    supernatural rights    supernatural suspense    ten years later    theriomorph    theriomorphs    urban fantasy    vampires    werewolves    zombie    zombies   

• Black Market Romance: Three Love Stories from the Draconian Underworld on Sep. 08, 2011
  
  I will confess that I was a little... scared when I "picked up" this book. Dragon sex? A little concerning, but I was too intrigued to resist. And I'm glad for that, because I did enjoy the stories. I enjoyed the "set" feeling to it, with one M/M, one M/F and one F/F. Though I did also find Tanya's "voice" to be over the top and somewhat distracting. Ultimately, I think my only real issue with this book was that there wasn't enough. It was such a fascinating and detailed world that 30,000 words really didn't seem like enough to do it justice and I'd like to see more. But the author has an engaging writing style and it a quick, enjoyable read. And more than worth it's 0.99 price tag. I would recommend this to anyone who wouldn't mind a little dragon pr0n.
  
• The Steampunk Detective on Sep. 13, 2011
  
  Over all, I found this to be an enjoyable story and a breezy read. The characters had enough to them that I did care what happened to them and I was intrigued enough to keep with them till the end. However, I did find the "non-stop action" to be a little too non-stop to the point of being distracting. I also found the profuse number of historical and literary references and figures to be too much. I felt that it burdened the story rather than enhanced it. As it was a detective story, the Holmes/Doyle references suited, but other names, characters and concepts seemed to be added not for their own sake or what they could add to the tale but just because they were from the same era. I will confess that I'm a novice to steampunk stories, so perhaps this is typical of the genre, but for me, I thought the story would have been better off if Mr. Pitt had spent a little less time cramming as much "cool stuff" into the story and more time on character/story development between the action scenes. However, I did enjoy the book. And should Doyle and Mason return for another adventure, I would read along.
  
• Zombie Tales: Primrose Court Apt. 205 on Sep. 22, 2011
  
  I enjoyed this story for its psychological view and was intrigued by the character. The author has a good grasp for a Voice for the character. My only issue with it, which I can't really call an "issue" was that it didn't really feel like a story set in another world but a straight out introduction to that world. It didn't have a stand-alone story feel to it and the zombies' appearance at the end felt like a sort of afterthought to the rest of it. I realize, however, that this is part of a larger story world, so I didn't mind it that much and I'm interested to read more in this series/world.
  
• Viridis - A Steampunk Romance on Sep. 22, 2011
  
  I really wanted to like this book, and there were elements of it that I did. Ms Taylor is a good writer. The "world" was well set-up and engaging, the technological aspects of it were not over-done and helped enhance the background, and I thoroughly liked all of the secondary sympathetic characters. My problem with the book and why, sadly, I cannot say I wholly liked it or give it a higher rating was because I did not like the main characters. Seth was okay, but I had trouble tolerating Phoebe. I found an air of "Saint Phoebe" and recurring martyrdom of her that was over-played and I didn't agree with/see justified, in my mind. I also found her rather unforgivably foolish for a woman reputed by other characters in the book to be so smart and savvy. As such, the selfless devotion of several of the other characters towards her to be... annoying. I hate to say these things, especially as a fellow writer, because like I said, there were many aspects I did like to the book. But my distaste for Phoebe and the reactions of others towards her, as well as a rather slow beginning, made it hard for me to finish it but I liked the writing and the world enough to do so anyways. As a reader, I would be interested to read more from Calista Taylor, but not with Phoebe as the main character again.
  
• Ancient Echoes Book One of the Elese Saga on Sep. 25, 2011
  
  I will admit that I actually found the story very slow to get into, but I definitely was caught up later on (maybe about half way through) and then propelled more quickly to the end. I think perhaps my struggle was that it can be hard to "connect" with adolescent Main Characters, but I thought that the author did well to convey the age/situation in the Voice believably and I think I will be continuing to follow the tale.
  
• Don of the Living Dead on Sep. 26, 2011
  
  I read this book after reading the three Primrose Court short stories and I wasn't disappointed. I enjoyed those stories, although I kind of wish they had been more connected to this story other than just sharing the world but both those three and this one were very good. The main character I found to be very realistic and I liked the ending. My only real complaint is that it could have used a more thorough editing. It jumped tenses several times and had several noticeable spelling/word use/grammatical mistakes that were enough to draw me out of the story at times. And certain pop culture references will not be lasting, but I can understand their use. On the whole, however, this was an engaging and gripping read that I would recommend to any friends who like zombie fiction, and can handle the grossness that is common to the genre. I'd give it a shout out that fans of the movie 'Shaun of the Dead' will find a treat in this. Unless they are looking for lunatic Brits. It doesn't have any of those.
  
• Resurrection Blues on Oct. 04, 2011
  
  I found the premise of the town too intriguing to resist, and while I was a little worried that it might get "preachy," I was pleasantly surprised when it didn't. It was a quirky, fast-moving story with characters I liked and while some of the plot-threads felt a little wandering at points, it all wrapped up nicely. I really enjoyed it.
  
• Unbecoming on Oct. 20, 2011
  
  I rarely give any review five stars, but this one called for it. I can't really find anything wrong with it. It was the right length for the story it was telling and fleshed the characters out succinctly. The author has interesting word choices that really work for the tale. This one was intense and a little heart-breaking. Good job, Mister Crowder. I will definitely be checking out more of your work.
  
• Mysfits on Jan. 02, 2012
  
  This was a very interesting set of stories. They were quirky and intriguing, and definitely fit their title, as well as easy reads. Thus far, I think Mr. Langston has style and I will be looking to read more of his work.
  
• Under Saint Owain's Rock on Jan. 04, 2012
  
  This was a fun story. It romped through a lot of crazy, in the best of senses. There were a few parts I would have liked to see more of and some kind of odd points, but I was laughing quite a bit at part of the big finale and over all, it was a satisfying book.
  
• BECOME (Desolation #1) on Jan. 11, 2012
  
  To be blunt, I found the pacing of the character development and the dramatic moments to be done very heavy-handed. Moments that should have been singular and climatic were repeated till they were over done and things swung between dragging out and being too sudden and motivationally... fuzzy. I also struggled a little with the main character, finding her inconstancy frustrating. Though I understood the concept of Choice and how that played into it. Still, it was a little extreme for my tastes HOWEVER. All that being said, this was a good book and I did, ultimately, like it. The story itself was engaging and despite my troubles, the heroine was sympathetic and intriguing. I found the mixture of mythos to be fascinating, though perhaps could have borne with a little more finesse. I also thought Michael was a pretty awesome character, and I hope to see more of him next time. I will be keeping my eye out for Book Two.
  
• The Questionable Tales: A Steampunk Quintet on Jan. 24, 2012
  
  This isn't an easy set of stories for my to rate, I find. I found that I liked the ideas, the cores of the stories, but found their execution - in setting, in dramatic tension, and in their morals - to be done with too heavy a hand for my taste. Too many sections that were clearly "info dumps" and things over-stated. I like a little more subtlety. But they were not incompetently written, and done with more finesse, the basic stories are good ideas, though the final story's point, it's moral, was so expansive, that being confined to so short a length felt almost like an injustice to its meaning.
  
• Flash Gold on Jan. 24, 2012
  
  That was fantastic. I don't give 5 Stars very often, but this deserved it. The steampunk elements blended seamlessly into integral parts of the plot and character. Kali was wonderful and Cedar was just the kind of hero I like. The plot was a fun, fast-paced racing romp and adventure. For anyone who wants to write a smart, sassy tough chick and anyone who wants to write a sympathetic Alpha hero, with wonderful interaction, this is how it's done!
  
• Hidden - a dark romance (Marchwood Vampire Series #1) on Feb. 08, 2012
  
  This book is very hard for my to rate, mainly because these places won't let my give half stars. I would give this 3.5, I think. As it is, I'll go with three for "liked it" because I can't quite say that I "really liked it." The pacing of this book felt very weird to me. It didn't feel consistently paced, and it wasn't until after the first hundred pages that I really got into it. There were elements of the story that I liked. The dual story lines working towards a merging point was good. Madison was scrappy and I really liked Alexandre, as he was in the latter portion of the story. I think part of why I couldn't fully connect with the characters is a fault of mine. I didn't understand teenagers when I was one and I struggle with it now, so teen protagonists are hard for me. I would have liked more show and less tell on the actual "falling in love" part of their relationship, but once I got over that, I did feel it. I liked a lot of their exchanges and the Alexandre versus the modern world was very well done. But, I just keep coming back to the pacing. It felt slow, slow and then burst of action and then slow, skimming events, jumping around, then suddenly lots of stuff and tension and drama and... end. I think it would have suited my tastes, and my ever so humble opinion, if the plot and story telling had been more streamlined. That being said, it was a competently told story and fairly written. It's not a bad story or book at all, and there were things I really liked. There were just elements that weren't quite to my reading tastes.
  
• Ruined City on Feb. 18, 2012
  
  When I read the description of this story, I immediately liked the idea. I liked the dark fantasy, the "post apocalypse" feel of it (though that's not precisely the case), and the idea of the intertwining perspectives of the after effects of a single terrible event. The book didn't disappoint. I liked it. It could have done with a bit more editing in terms of the Tense, as some Present Tense stories shifted in and out of Past Tense at points and that got distracting. A couple stories also had this odd... removed feeling in the narrator, when it should've been more immediate for the topic and Voice. Otherwise, though, I really don't have any complaints. The author has a very interesting concept and shows it over the course of a span of time, showing it in a multi-faceted way that makes for some interesting reading. I just wish some of the stories had been longer, so we could see more!
  
• Bakkian Chronicles, Book I - The Prophecy on March 03, 2012
  
  Okay, a strange thing happened to me while I was reading this book. I thought it was supposed to be... heavier. Darker. And it wasn't, and it threw me. In retrospect and in rereading the description, I have no conceivable idea why I thought it would be. My only excuse is that I just finished reading an anthology of dark, gritty fantasy and was still stuck in the wrong world. Anyway, about halfway through, I was unable to tell if I liked this story or not but then it started reminding me of a Xanth novel. I smacked myself upside the head and realized this was a... lighter fantasy than I had expected it to be. (I've been a Xanth lover since I was eleven, so this is a good comparison.) Once I got that through my head, this book got a lot more fun. The fact that Steve and Sarah read more like teenagers to me than their purported ages wasn't a problem any more. The casualness of the writing became quirky, like characters that actually say "omigod!" in dialog, or "cool!" being in the exposition. I'm usually a dictator about Point of View and not a fan of Omiscent unless it's Austen or Dickens, but it kind of worked for me here. My only two... complaints about this book were that I would have liked a slightly heavier (more realistic) treatment of serious matters, like when Steve fends off some bad guys and drives them to their deaths. That didn't seem to affect him at all. Even though they were bad guys, and he didn't technically kill them, the way it rolled off him to no effect did bother me. Similar "deeper events" were treated as lightly and I did struggle with that. Secondly, my inner consistency meter didn't understand sending Steve and Sarah off for the key instead of staying with Mikal. Being who they were, it didn't make a lot of sense to me. I would have liked to have had more of a reason for them to make the journey themselves before they left, rather than seeing it later on when they got there. (If there was a reason and I missed it, then my bad but I don't recall one.) There were other little similar things, but in the breezy spirit of the story, I got over it easy. Otherwise... the fire stuff was cool, I liked Rhenyon (I think I spelled that right), and the key 'surprise' at the end was funny. It was a fun, breezy kind of fantastical read. I give it a 4 and will, once I catch up with the rest of my reading list, get to Bakkian II and future Bakkian tales!
  
• Bred on March 27, 2012
  
  This book was really good. My housework got done late today, because of this book. It wasn't quite perfect. There was some world building and politic details that played big parts in the finale scenes that I thought should have been foreshadowed earlier. And despite the professional editor, there was quite a few edits missed. The beginning wandered a little bit, for my tastes. Oh, and I am not happy with the author about one of Thamus' actions. (You'll know it when you read it.) *shakes menacing finger* ...and YET. The narrator, the characters, the world, the plot were all engaging and active enough that I didn't care about the "defects" and was glued to my ereader. I really liked all of it. I found some of the characters complex and some straightforward, yet only as I wished. (Characters I wanted to be straightforward were, and characters I didn't mind being twisty were.) The world was quite fascinating. I really liked what the author did with the Prologue and Epilogue set-up, although I didn't "get it" until the Epilogue. And I had to laugh, my apologies to the author, at the Glossary. It was useful, though still missed a couple titles I wanted better explanations for, but there was one part that looked like something Branning meant to go back to and fix before publishing and didn't. Namely, the wrong name of a father's character beside the son's name with a ? beside it. The name with ? was the name of one of the gods, but the father was correctly named in his own listing. Don't worry, I've done it myself. Still, having been there, I did have to giggle. Anyways. Despite my minor issues with some of it that might have meant a 4 or 4.5 otherwise, any book that holds on to my attention the way this one did once I was about a third of the way in deserves a 5. This author has another novel, which is awesomely free, that I totally just grabbed and will read soon.