Why do we love tortured heroes?

Seriously, I'm just asking you readers, what is so gosh darn appealing about them? I know for me it's the fact that inside of a book, I know the hero will change. I know he'll become the better man, maybe thanks to the love of the woman, maybe not... but in the end he will be redeemed.

Is that why we're so attracted to bad boys? Because I gotta admit, what I love to read, and what I love in real life... two totally different things. LOL.

I love tortured heroes, love to see them hitting rock bottom, watching as their life spirals slowly out of control, then watch the metamorphosis begin to take hold. See their first steps back out into the light, see them become whole again... and I just think bad boys have hotter sex. I don't know, is that just me?? *wink*

Point is, I love to write about them. I loved Hatter's lunacy, Wolf's obsession with finding Red again... and Hook's downward spiral into madness as he battles demons from his past.

I just wrote a book, hope to put it up in the next few days... (very different from my normal fare of paranormal/fantasy) This is a sexy, angst riddled, contemporary New Adult novel. I do hope that you readers will trust me to take you on a new journey, (don't worry, I haven't given up on my fantasy/paranormal romances, I love them too much to switch over to contemporary's completely) because Ryan Cosgrove is one of my favorite heroes I've ever written.

He's got dark in him, but he's got goodness too. In fact, he's one of the best men I know. And yes, I'm talking about someone in my head, but for me he's as real as you are. He's a man struggling with something awful that happened to him, struggling to find out who he is, and he doesn't always get it right. Sometimes he falls, and when he does it's ugly and terrifying and heartbreaking. But he's so strong, he wants to be better and he will be. Not just for the woman he's met who he's madly in love with, but because he knows he can't continue on this destructive path. There's a choice to be made, fix himself, or lose himself completely.

I adore Ryan, and to me, he's the ultimate bad boy. See, I don't think bad boys are born, I think they're made and when you strip away the fake, you see what caused them to become what they have... its right there that I, as an author, become intrigued. Because sometimes what makes a monster is something monstrous. So if I can make you fall in love with the villain, I've done my job.

And since this book will be out soon, here's the blurb for their story...

Ryan Cosgrove and Liliana Delgado are on a collision course with destiny. They don't know it yet, but before the night is over their lives will be forever changed.

Spending Valentine's Day at a burlesque bar, hadn't been Liliana's ideal way of spending a Saturday night. She'd much rather be back at campus, doing homework... until she meets Ryan. Tall, athletic, and gorgeous, Lili can't keep her eyes off him, and despite his gruff manners and drunken disposition she's intrigued.

Ryan's got demons, and they're deep, dark, and eating him alive. Regardless of his attraction to the petite brunette he's tired of fighting, of pretending the last fifteen  years haven't been a daily struggle just to get out of bed every morning. That night he decides to end his pain, to leave it all behind and float away into the blessed darkness of oblivion. But fate has other plans for him, Lily finds and rescues Ryan, determined she'll not only save his body, but his soul too.

This is their moment...



I'll have cover art to show you real soon (I hope)! :D

Happy reading all,
~Marie

PS... anyone who responds will have my undying gratitude, since I feel my blog stays entirely too quiet! :p