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Dark Academia and Magic
House of Pain follows a half-witch who attends a prestigious witchcraft university where she’s a target of one of the rival Houses and fights a dangerous attraction. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
When I sat down to write House of Pain, I wanted to write the darkest story I could. I wanted something gritty, toxic, and filled with characters that are very hard to like. I’m a huge fan of dark academia, but I often want fantasy with it. So, I wanted to mix fantasy with dark academia and magic and then add a sprinkle of high-society drama because who doesn’t love Gossip Girl?
Your characters are intriguing and well-developed. What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?
Thank you. Honestly, I took a lot of my inspiration for the main characters, Alecto and Blaze, from social media, particularly TikTok. I’ve stumbled across so many real-life stories of women struggling with sexual trauma, men who treat them poorly, and similar stuff, and so Alecto became a combination of it all. Val’s personality and drive, the cutthroat approach to getting things done no matter what, and the hunger for more power was inspired by my grandmother in a way. It’s hard to pinpoint one source of inspiration, really.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
I would say that the most important one was toxic family dynamics and family trauma. We are often affected by our surroundings growing up more than we think, and it’s very easy to turn into our parents/grandparents and repeat the cycle of toxic behavior because it feels familiar. In House of Pain, the main cast of characters is all from prominent families that look pretty on the outside but hide dark secrets. I loved writing about how the main characters navigate the expectations they have and what they truly want.
Another theme that was very important for me to explore is the true nature of love. In House of Pain, Alecto is struggling with her place in a world that doesn’t want her, with her sexual trauma, and she finds herself gravitating toward bad men, looking for validation and probably some form of affection. On the other end, we have Blaze, who appears to have all the love and admiration from the outside world, yet he’s as lonely as Alecto. Maybe even more so. I also talked a lot about the nature of love and whether there is one right person for us, a soulmate if you will or if we’re meant to love more than one person in our lifetime. I find the topic of love to be fascinating.
What can readers expect in Precious Villains Book 2?
Precious Villains Book 2, House of Ruin, will be a wild ride. Readers can expect lots of steamy action between Alecto and Blaze, dark family secrets uncovered, high society drama and the themes of vengeance explored.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website
Gothic Harry Potter meets Gossip Girl, House of Pain is the first book in a dark fantasy romance trilogy set in the magical world of Inathis, where the witches are beautiful just as much as they’re wicked.
Alecto Black has spent her whole life in Inathis, yet she never quite fit in being the half-witch amongst the purebloods. When she finally enrolled in the most prestigious witchcraft university, The Venefica Academy, last year and joined the House of Snakes as a rightful legacy member, she thought she had finally found her place.
But every year, The Venefica Academy students that belong to 12 Houses all participate in the deadly Game that many witches don’t survive. And when the second year at Venefica starts, Alecto finds herself a target of one of the rival Houses while also having to face the enemy from the inside — fellow Snake, Blaze Leveau. As secrets start unraveling, hate turns into something more dangerous and deadly.
While Alecto tries to fight her new dangerous attraction to Blaze, she also finds herself asking how far she is willing to go to secure her place in the world that wants to destroy her?
House of Pain will be perfect for dark academia and Dramione fans who want morally grey characters with spice and loved The Atlas Six, The Ninth House, and Zodiac Academy. It’s a dual POV, steamy (extremely) enemies-to-lovers bully romance, so please read the content warning list before reading.
House of Pain
House of Pain by Karoline Wilde is a gripping story that follows the lives of witches who attend the Venefica Academy. More specifically, the witches dwell in the House of Snakes as one of the five houses in this story. This tale centers around the Games and how everyone involved, including the House of Snakes, includes Val, Blaze, Alessandro, Jolene, and Alecto, who are the inner circle of the house.
This imaginative story is rich in the intensity of human interaction, with lots of love, conflict, and familiar connections. Morals and loyalty all come into question, and the notion of things being black or white is muddled to gray. During the Games, the inner circle accidentally summons a demon to help do their bidding in an attempt to take down the House of Tigers. Their aim becomes complex, impacting their house and creating a darkness that the characters must ultimately face. Actions have consequences.
This action-filled book offers an excellent but dark and complex story that I found interesting. The author creates a unique storyline with lively characters and an exciting plot that’s not too overpowering or complicated. There is just enough complexity within the characters and their dilemmas to give the reader enough action to keep them engaged from the beginning.
House of Pain is an exhilarating dark fantasy romance novel. Readers are taken on a wild ride that kept me turning one page after the next, and I highly recommend this book for its creative, exciting plot and rich character development. Karolina Wilde does a great job setting each scene and adding multiple twists throughout the book. As this is the start of a trilogy, I can not wait to see where things head in book two.
Pages: 476 | ASIN : B0B85KDWKB
Can Good Win Over Evil?
Denna Holm Author Interview
House of Pain is a uniquely creative story unlike any fantasy story I’ve come across. What was the inspiration for the idea behind this novel?
For the setting of this story, I imagined what could happen if we continue the self-destructive path we seem to be walking. Wars, hatred, greed, power-hungry politicians. I’ve always worried about the possibility of a nuclear war, but what if Mother Nature herself finally got fed up and decided to help wipe us out? The little, insignificant people are usually the ones who suffer most. I imagined those in power wouldn’t hesitate to call on demons for help if they thought they could maintain control over them. And, as with most arrogant people, they have no idea what they’re getting into.
Maggie is a human-demon hybrid who grew up in a whorehouse, but still manages to hold onto her humanity. What were the driving ideals behind her character?
Maggie represents all of us who struggle with our dark half to hold to good. It would have been easier for her to let go and embrace her evil side, but she held tight to her dream of one day having a family to love and who loved her. Of course, as in real life, she couldn’t fight this battle alone. Maggie understood the concept of love and goodness because center stage in her horrible childhood were three men, her handlers, who pushed her toward another path, one where she didn’t need to hurt others. Under almost impossible circumstances, they helped her develop a conscious, gave her choices. Though obviously exaggerated with Maggie, I used my own struggles trying to raise my daughter to show the difficulties we face as parents in today’s world. There are so many distractions fighting for our children’s attention, and much of it not good. It’s difficult to try to keep them on the right path?
The world in this story is a dark post-apocalyptic Earth and I enjoyed the unique backstory. Did you develop the backstory before writing or did it develop organically while writing?
The backstory came first. Watching the news, it worried me to think about a possible nuclear war and what it would do to our planet. I also noticed that we appeared to be having more and more natural disasters and I wondered if Mother Nature had finally had enough of our abuse and decided to fight back. But no matter what happened, I imagined some people would find a way to survive. But how? This is where the demons came into play and the people who thought they could control them. There will always be evil in the world, but I believe there will always be good too. The real question is can good win over evil? I believe it can. Maggie became my representation of this battle. Daniel, her love interest, and his young son were her reward for holding strong. They gave her hope for a new and better life, one I think we all strive for.
What is the next book that you are working on and when will it be published?
I’m working on a Science Fiction Romance called Claimed by Nicolai right now. It is an alien abduction story involving a young woman from Oregon. My novels tend to revolve around the woman in the story, how she must fight for her own path in life and not just depend on a man to provide what he thinks she needs. Love can develop from this struggle, but it needs to be a relationship where both parties are equal. Claimed by Nicolai will be published by Crimson Cloak Publishing sometime in the spring of 2019.
Author Links: GoodReads | Twitter | Facebook | Website | Amazon | Crimson Cloak Publishing
![House of Pain (The Forsaken Ones Book 1) by [Holm, Denna]](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41By1tpH6iL.jpg)
Maggie Shelbador is a half-breed succubus with a heart. Though raised inside one of the worst whorehouses in the world, all she wants is to find one man who will love her despite what she is. She dreams of one day being free of her nightmarish life but fears no man will ever truly trust her.
The year is 3515 and most of the world has been destroyed by a combination of natural disasters and man’s neglect. The whole human race faces extinction. To survive, the leaders of the day approach demons for help, not understanding the high price they will be forced to pay. Normally bound by the summoner’s magic, the demons know Maggie is the key to giving them free access to Earth.
Daniel is a widower with a young son. He is out hunting one day when his settlement is attacked and his son abducted. He tracks them to House of Pain, not realizing a trap is being set for him. Though tortured, Daniel refuses to break when they try to force him to prostitute himself—until a beautiful blonde woman is brought into the room, her power stripping away his self-control.
House of Pain
House of Pain, by Denna Holm, is a dark, provocative and devilish book that will leave you lusting for more! The novel opens with a brother and sister cowering before a terrifying demon to whom they have made a promise. They must deliver on this promise or spend eternity kept alive simply to be tortured by this diabolical creature. Their promise comes in the form of the beautiful Magdalena, Maggie, who is half human/half demon. Although raised in a whorehouse she is our lovely virgin full of kindness but also the ability to suck life from people through sex! Holms paints a grim story of the future and it is not one of hope but one in which humans and nature have destroyed the Earth and demons can enter the planet and are on the cusp of entering to stay.
This is a dreary story in many ways, due to the state of the world in which it is set and the predicament of many of the characters but also ends up being very much a love story. Yes, there are erotic scenes and themes, but this story is truly about the endurance of family and the strength of love. It is slightly odd to write that about a book which includes incubus’s and succubus’s, a whorehouse full of debauchery and more but it is truly fitting in this first novel in what seems will be a series. I can definitely see future challenges arising for our main characters as well as the possibility of the portal re-opening. Demons are quite clever, after all!
I was impressed with the originality of this story. I love when authors create truly original story lines. It felt like this was a story in which the author was truly enmeshed. I want to know how she got the idea for this story. It was so uniquely creative and unlike any other fantasy story I’ve come across.
As stated earlier, there are some adult scenes, which are done respectfully but not appropriate for people under 17. I loved Holm’s writing style. It was dripping with tension, drama, romance, and a dark-side that I truly found intriguing. Her story did not drag on, the scenes moved quickly, and I did not want to put it down. I found it quite easy and fun to read! Be certain you are one who is down for some macabre, some romance and some sexiness in this fantasy fiction novel.
Pages: 335 | ASIN: B07HLP7QN1
House of Pain Trailer
Maggie Shelbador is a half-breed succubus with a heart. Though raised inside one of the worst whorehouses in the world, all she wants is to find one man who will love her despite what she is. She dreams of one day being free of her nightmarish life but fears no man will ever truly trust her.
The year is 3515 and most of the world has been destroyed by a combination of natural disasters and man’s neglect. The whole human race faces extinction. To survive, the leaders of the day approach demons for help, not understanding the high price they will be forced to pay. Normally bound by the summoner’s magic, the demons know Maggie is the key to giving them free access to Earth.
Daniel is a widower with a young son. He is out hunting one day when his settlement is attacked and his son abducted. He tracks them to House of Pain, not realizing a trap is being set for him. Though tortured, Daniel refuses to break when they try to force him to prostitute himself—until a beautiful blonde woman is brought into the room, her power stripping away his self-control.
LITERARY TITAN 