Character Daisy LaRue Goes Scorched
Earth on the Writer of Her Story and Doesn’t Hold Back
Meet Daisy LaRue, the sassy, quick-witted burlesque comedian
from the new monster romance release, Running with the Orcs. When we sat
down to chat with this feisty rebel, she had a lot to say about what the author
Loretta Kendall put her through in this monster romance that just might be her
undoing.
Q. Daisy, let’s start simple. How are you holding up
after being ripped from your life and dropped into an orc-run world like it’s just
a casual Tuesday in fairy land?
Ugh, where do I start? One day, I was grabbing a caramel
latte from my favorite coffee house, and the next thing I knew, I was kidnapped
by Commander Hot Pants and taken to be a dancing puppet for a bunch of orc
jerks. I love that I can still perform my comedy act, but being a slave to
these twirps isn’t sunshine and roses. And Commander Gronk, we’ll get to him
later.
As an example of the cruelty of this place, last week I was
minding my own business when one of the guards started messing with me in the cabaret
bar. Well, I’m not just going to stand around and let him grope me like I’m a
piece of meat. So, I socked him in the family jewels and ended up in an
oubliette overnight as punishment.
What do these guys expect? I’m not just going to take this
stuff lying down.
Q. It seems the author, Loretta Kendall, forced you into a
lot of chaos with her writing. Do you think it builds character?
Character? Are you for real right now? She had me kidnapped
and forced into some fairytale nightmare version of Medieval Times. I have
character out the wazoo that came long before being dumped on this rock. I’m a
burlesque comedian, and my character comes from being on stage and building a
tough skin when the hecklers give me a hard time. When those fans are orcs, you
have to have a backbone, and fast. That’s what a true artist does. She learns
to adapt, and that’s what I did.
Q. What would you like to say to her directly, if she
were standing right here now?
I’d give her a piece of my mind, that’s what. I’d tell her
she can take her monster story, with all the nightmare situations of being
chased by orcs in a messed-up game of tag, and shove it right up her… (Insert
expletives here… and here… and here…)
Okay. We’ll take a break here and give Daisy a moment to
get it out of her system.
Ten minutes later…
Q. Daisy, are you good? All better now?
Yeah. I just needed to vent. Go on.
Q. So we’ve derived that you have a deep disdain for the
writer of your story. She put you through a lot then?
That’s an understatement. I didn’t even know orcs existed,
then I was thrown into slavery by them to work in one of the clubs on the
entertainment crew. I get she’s writing something deeper about how beauty and
corruption drive people to do things they think are right, but it’s been a lot
on the women in these camps. We don’t even know what the men do with us as they
catch us in the biannual Running of the Orcs. Are we going to be sex slaves or
their next monster buffet? I don’t think I’d taste very good either way. I’m
too salty.
Not to mention I’m convinced my fairy best friend, Jubilee,
is losing her mind in this place. We all are.
Q. Author conflicts aside, what was your first thought
when you met the orcs? Be careful, they might still be listening.
Well, I thought before that they were going to be ugly
monsters from what I saw in video games on Earth. When I got here, what I saw
was nothing like that, other than the tusks and grumpy demeanors. Most of them
are ridiculously hot, and it can be exciting and equally unnerving. I don’t
exactly like the idea that the guy over this place is the hottest man I’ve ever
seen. He’s my enemy, and I can’t stop drooling over the big, green blowhard.
Q. The camp is described as only women captives, from
fairies, pixies, elves, to humans. Do you find it a girlhood bonding
experience?
Are you kidding me? These women are ruthless and fighters in
their own right. If you turn your back on so much as one of them, you’ll not
only get your rations stolen, but could end up six feet under. We have to
scrape to get by here, and that’s the truth of it. There are no spa days and
lunch out with the girls. It’s a game of survival.
Q. What would you
like readers to understand about your situation?
That nothing here is as it seems. Just when you think you
have it figured out, Loretta goes and throws a new plot twist for me to
navigate. And the biggest one of all is the commander of the orc warlords being
so painfully irresistible. I think she did that just to piss me off.
I hate that I want him so much, but if you tell him, I’ll
kill you.
Bramwell Gronk is the bane of my existence. He’s the reason
I keep having to work out trades with the orc scavengers assigned to Earth to
keep my vibrators' batteries stocked.
Q. So there’s a chance of some romance then? Maybe life
here isn’t so bad.
(Blush) Let’s just say I wouldn’t mind finding out if
the rumors are true about their tribal implants of a sexual nature. I heard
from the other girls in the village that those men are ribbed-for-her-pleasure.
And if Bram has those nods too, all the better. A girl has to have something to
look forward to in this place. Maybe he’s that something for me.
I can’t believe I just admitted having a thing for my
captor. I seriously think I’m developing Stockholm syndrome.
Q. Finally, if you could say one thing to entice readers
to check out your story, what would it be?
If you like orcs, fantasy, monster spice, and a lot of
snark, this is the book. I’m not exactly the damsel in distress type, but I
think you’ll be rooting for me in the end.
Running with the Orc: Excerpt 2
“Might as well get comfortable. We’ll be here a while.”
“You saved my life,” I blurted out. I was shocked to even say it as we settled into the cave, rain pouring down outside.
He didn’t say anything, but the knowing glance he gave me almost seemed sincere. “What good would you be to me dead?”
This asshole. “Wow. Such chivalry.”
“What do you want me to say? You’re sitting there thinking right now of a way out of this, so you don’t become my next dinner option. So what’s it going to be? Take my sword and slit my throat this time? Maybe take my other eye?”
“You act like the eye thing is worse than death.”
He shrugged, poking at the fire with a stick. “Sometimes it’s hard to see that death isn’t such a bad option.”
“That’s a little dark, don’t you think?”
“So is thinking a man’s goal in life is making a meal of you.”
He had a point. I wasn’t exactly sunshine and lollipops over all this. “You can’t blame me for being cynical. You kidnap us from our homes and force us into this barbaric game of hide and seek. Excuse me if I’m not grateful.”
He actually chuckled at that. “I guess you’re right. But not everything is as dire as you may see right now. You never know. You might enjoy being eaten, little taste.”
“You’re an ass.”
“And you’re still blushing that I mentioned it.” He sat back, resting his head on the wall with a smirk as the flame lit his beautiful face with ironic glory.
“Sometimes I really hate you.”
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