When A. Jacob Sweeny asked me if her hero Elliot De-Costa could do a blog post here, I thought it was a great idea. (Those who follow me know that my rascally lad, Cedric MacKinnon, has his own Twitter account and Facebook page.) I'm always interested in what characters have to say, so I give you, Elliot!
First of all I would like to thank ‘Immortyl Revolution’ for giving me the space to express my thoughts, although I have never seen ‘immortal’ spelled this way before. This must be a modern internet linguistic development. I try to keep up with as much as I can, but at times fads just come and go and it’s difficult to decide which ones I should spend my energy on.
I know that a lot of people want to know so much about me, but obviously it’s difficult to include everything in a few short passing words. I guess I should start with my age, as this is what people seem so shocked about. I am 4700 years old. I was born in the city of Nun-Ki, otherwise known as Eridu, in Sumeria, which is now encompassed within the modern day country of Iraq. The first thing you need to understand about my age is that I am not old. Old is a term attached to the passage of time. My body stopped its aging process somewhere between the ages of 20 and 30. I don’t know when exactly, because it wasn’t something I was paying attention to. So when people like yourselves worry that someone like Michelle is too young for me, what you are doing is applying human time standards onto someone that is not human, not entirely at least. Michelle is great. I adore her. I have adored many it’s true. But everyone is different and I can appreciate many people. Michelle, I believe, is more stubborn than I am. She was very set in her way about getting to know me. Now I’m glad that she didn’t give up. In a few years Michelle will be an outstanding woman. She’s a bit of a project, but a lot of that is my fault. I should have never left her that night… How about we don’t discuss Michelle anymore?
Of course being alive for so long makes me more knowledgeable than any of you can ever dream of being. I collect all my experiences into this mind of mine, and my brain files things away. I have had time to study in more universities than I can even mention. I have earned many degrees and doctorates, and in many different languages. Being alive for so long, you kind of have time to get to know yourself and your surroundings pretty well, although I can still have a few rough days here and there. The skill I use the most is probably my medical training. No, I don’t practice medicine, and never wanted to, although I could. I studied medicine in order to hone my abilities. You have a headache? I can help because I know which nerve is where. You have a broken bone? I can stimulate bone growth directly on the break. I think each and every one of us has studied medicine at one point or another. When I say us, I mean my friends, who are also of my kind. None of us know how many of our kind are out there. But I have lost good friends along the way. I don’t know if I will meet new ones. I haven’t in a long time.
The story of how I met Kahl, who is one of my dearest friends in the world, is actually pretty funny. I was working as a hired bodyguard and traveling the trade routes with my boss who was a wealthy merchant. This was before I made my own fortune. I will tell you a small secret. Yes, they were making crude glass before I was born, but I used my abilities to heat up the sand and experimented until I found the ideal heat and combination. After that, as they say, the rest is history. Where was I? Oh yeah, Kahl. Well my boss headed to one of the local ‘inns of the women’, you get my point right? Anyway, I was just resting under a tree close to our camels and horses when I heard people arguing. I got up to see what all the commotion was about and there was Kahl in the middle of a circle of men who were all yelling at him that he was a thief. They looked like they wanted to kill him. Off to the side there was a toothless merchant that was gathering his knifes off the ground. I guess Kahl had used his own abilities to figure out that the blades that the guy was trying to sell him were not pure bronze, which was important at the time because other metals were far too soft to be useful. But since they didn’t see Kahl melt the metal in a fire, he had no way to prove that he was right. He wanted his money back, while the merchant’s bodyguards were about to give him a good licking. I asked to see one of the blades and tested it myself. Kahl was right. The bastards were trying to cheat him and it didn’t look like a fair fight. So I decided to even up the odds and help the poor guy out. We kicked some serious ass together, and when Kahl and I were the only ones that remained standing, we could see that both our eyes were glowing. Kahl was the second guy of my kind that I met, after Devin of course.
Alright, back to the present. Yes I am here, and yes I know the ladies go crazy on me and my friends. At this point it’s no big deal, but I will confess that we have all had some good times… There is nothing better on this earth than spending a sweet night with a beautiful woman who is smart and knows how to laugh. With music in the air and good food… alright I’m getting off topic here. Sure, give me a call. Leave a message at the Hekademos Learning Center for me. If I’m not there, one of the other guys will be –
Thanks Elliot for the interesting view into your world! You've certainly been around and learned many fascinating things. Here's some more information on Pulse of Heroes.
Pulse of Heroes weaves together elements from several different genres: romance, suspense, myth/fantasy, paranormal, history and at its core, a heroine’s journey and transformation. It tries to craft a true and sensitive coming-of-age narrative of a quirky teenage girl protagonist becoming a confidant young woman with her own voice. And at the same time draw the reader into a gripping adventure filled with fantastic historical elements and the crushing intensity of first love. Pulse of Heroes is a YA/crossover novel with lots of (hopefully) memorable characters and multiple story arcs. It has a multi-cultural perspective with characters from around the globe, and a prominent female point-of-view. It is available from the official website: http://www.pulseofheroes.com/
where you will also find links to other available formats such as Kindle on Amazon.
Michelle used to feel like she was behind in everything, especially relationships. Her great aunt says she is like a bland meal, "no salt or pepper". But in junior year, everything changes. Her father takes a position on the Town Council, a popular boy in school is interested in her, and most importantly, the Hekademos Learning Center, a private school for 'troubled' students, moves into her quiet neighborhood amidst the protests of the entire town. Upon seeing the School Regent out with a group of young guys just before Christmas, Michelle is convinced that there is something odd about them. Her curiosity gets the better of her and she embarks upon a mission to figure out what is really going on. After an embarrassing fall over the school wall, Michelle meets Elliot and her ordinary ‘bland’ life changes its course forever.
Elliot is no ordinary human. No one at the Hekademos Learning Center is. Beautiful and fierce, they have survived throughout the millennia by weaving in and out of human events. Although Elliot carries numerous painful memories from his many pasts, he disregards his own better judgment and the advice of his friends, and finds himself falling for Michelle‘s offbeat personality.
At Elliot's side, Michelle must learn to deal with the bundle of contradictory emotions called love, but when History catches up with them, the difference between their life paths threatens to destroy any future that they might have had together. Ultimately, Michelle will have to trust her intuition in order to face the danger and uncertainty of being drawn into Elliot's wondrous world.
About the AuthorA. Jacob Sweeny holds a degree in History with an emphasis on Ancient Near East. Her immersion in world myths and her archaeological fieldwork provided the initial spark that led to the development of Pulse Of Heroes. Besides writing, A. Jacob Sweeny is a strong advocate for the protection of women and children worldwide. She enjoys cooking spicy food and regularly suffers from bouts of creative insomnia.
Some reviews of Pulse of Heroes
I love this book! Move over Edward and Bella, a new power couple has hit the scene! Michelle and Elliot from Pulse of Heroes by A. Jacob Sweeny will give Stephanie Meyer's characters a run for their money! I have read so many books, and it takes a lot to knock my socks off but A. Jacob Sweeny did just that! With her original storyline and unforgettable characters she has an award winning series in the making. -Dawn Hagan, I love Books Blog-page-
Sometimes I will come across a novel, which I classify as a rare jewel: a book that captivates me from beginning to end… an amazing story that it is impossible for it to not capture my heart and Pulse Of Heroes is a rare jewel.
There are only two other series' that I consider rare jewels: the Twilight series, and Vampire Academy ... I was wondering when the next book would come along that would really pull me in, make me feel emotionally attached to the characters, make me care about them in such a way that I would think about them weeks, months after I had finished reading the story and Pulse of Heroes did just that. -Alishia, Treasured Tales For young Adults Blog-page-
I have been waiting for a book to come along that has a new paranormal twist to it, Pulse Of Heroes is exactly that book! This book made me laugh, I wanted to slap characters, hide or cry out for help, and most of all it made me cry. Happiness, loss, pain, terror, and true love brought on an arsenal of tears that I couldn't stop no matter how hard I tried. I am absolutely on the edge of my seat for the next installment of this powerful moving series. I loved this book the same way I loved Twilight and The Hunger Games. The author signed my book "Enjoy the adventure and fall in love a little too". Her words were far shortcoming of what I experienced. Mirabolante the Italian word for astonishing is only cracking the surface of the multitude of words I really want to use. -Anne, Paranormal Book Club
I love this book! Move over Edward and Bella, a new power couple has hit the scene! Michelle and Elliot from Pulse of Heroes by A. Jacob Sweeny will give Stephanie Meyer's characters a run for their money! I have read so many books, and it takes a lot to knock my socks off but A. Jacob Sweeny did just that! With her original storyline and unforgettable characters she has an award winning series in the making. -Dawn Hagan, I love Books Blog-page-
Sometimes I will come across a novel, which I classify as a rare jewel: a book that captivates me from beginning to end… an amazing story that it is impossible for it to not capture my heart and Pulse Of Heroes is a rare jewel.
There are only two other series' that I consider rare jewels: the Twilight series, and Vampire Academy ... I was wondering when the next book would come along that would really pull me in, make me feel emotionally attached to the characters, make me care about them in such a way that I would think about them weeks, months after I had finished reading the story and Pulse of Heroes did just that. -Alishia, Treasured Tales For young Adults Blog-page-
I have been waiting for a book to come along that has a new paranormal twist to it, Pulse Of Heroes is exactly that book! This book made me laugh, I wanted to slap characters, hide or cry out for help, and most of all it made me cry. Happiness, loss, pain, terror, and true love brought on an arsenal of tears that I couldn't stop no matter how hard I tried. I am absolutely on the edge of my seat for the next installment of this powerful moving series. I loved this book the same way I loved Twilight and The Hunger Games. The author signed my book "Enjoy the adventure and fall in love a little too". Her words were far shortcoming of what I experienced. Mirabolante the Italian word for astonishing is only cracking the surface of the multitude of words I really want to use. -Anne, Paranormal Book Club
Giveaway! The author is sponsoring a drawing for a 2012 Pulse of Heroes magnet calendar for the giveaway. To enter, please become a follower of this blog and leave a comment with a contact email. Contest ends 10/4/11 at 11:59 PM EDT. Winner to be chosen by random drawing.
