I'm very excited about Cherie's The Nightmare Collection. Three chilling tales of horror. You can read my review of it here. Two of the stories feature a brave young woman named Cassie Richards, and I'm lucky enough to get a chance to sit down with her today. Getting through my questions won't be nearly as difficult as surviving what happened in the woods!
Thank you for joining me, Cassie. Let's start off easy. I know you're a teacher. What do you teach and what made you go into teaching?
I teach high school history, mainly American History and World History. I’ve always loved the past, so I knew I wanted to study history. But my choices were limited in what to do with a history degree, so teaching was the most likely option.
I'm a history fan myself, and I had a lot in my hometown. What's your hometown? Do you miss it?
Although I was born in Roanoke, Virginia, I lived in New Haven. It’s about as small southern town as you can get in Virginia, filled with rednecks. I was glad to leave. But there are a few things I miss. The mountains, my family, the familiarity of home.
My town was really small too. What was your family life like? What's it like now?
I suppose my family life was pretty normal. I’m an only child, so their focus tended to be on me. I was in everything— soccer, theater, choir, etc. I was an overachiever, and I always felt they were there for me. But everything changed overnight. Now we rarely talk and our relationship is strained. Before I went with Tim to Virginia, I had only seen them twice in ten years.
Ah, that fateful night. It's absolutely horrifying what happened. Do you consider yourself a heroic or just lucky?
I’m no hero. I just got lucky. If that car hadn’t come by and struck me, the monster would’ve likely grabbed me, dragged me back into the woods, and killed me too.
Then you were accused of the murders. To what lengths did you go to convince people to believe you about who actually committed those atrocious acts?
I begged them to believe me when I woke up in the hospital. They thought I was crazy, so imagine how hard it is to get people to believe you then? When I got out of Grayson Sanatorium, I used my resources as a history major to research local history. We couldn’t be the only ones to cross the monster’s path. I sent my findings to New Haven Police, but they didn’t believe me. Eventually, I stopped trying. It was easier that way. If I hadn’t, then those other people might not have died.
Do you feel any anger towards those people who wouldn't believe you?
Uh, yeah. Wouldn’t you? The worse was they wouldn’t believe me. I knew what I saw. Even when my name was cleared, they wanted to believe the worse in me. It wears a girl down.
I have no doubt. Do you think there's anything different you could've done that night to help your friends survive?
I go over that night every day. It’s the first thing in my mind when I wake up and keeps me awake at night. I still don’t know what I could’ve done differently. Maybe I could’ve been stronger, faster, smarter. I just don’t know.
I guess we'll never know. Thank you again for being here, Cassie. It was a pleasure chatting with you.
Author Links:
Website: http://cheriereich.webs.com
Blog: http://cheriereich.blogspot.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/bookworm0753
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorcheriereich
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4268457.Cherie_Reich
Book blurb: A legend is hungry tonight.
A child monster will get its first taste of blood in Nightmare at the Freak Show. Four friend will enter the forest on December night, but only one can survive in Once Upon a December Nightmare. Almost ten years after Cassie's December nightmare, the monster awakens to hunt again in Nightmare Ever After.
Add to Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16089321-the-nightmare-collection
Buy the book!
Smashwords https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/256004
Amazon US http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A93EMNE
Amazon UK https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00A93EMNE
Nook http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-nightmare-collection-cherie-reich/1113808878?ean=2940015726503
Nook UK http://uk.nook.com/ebooks/the-nightmare-collection-by-cherie-reich/2940015726503
Kobo http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/The-Nightmare-Collection/book-NTs2Bn-DK0-ypSR2cseCvA/page1.html?s=K9KRpcbL8UC68DBm7NN-KA&r=9
Createspace https://www.createspace.com/4043291
GIVEAWAY!
Cherie is giving away prizes to two lucky people!
The prize packages are open internationally and include: a signed copy of The Nightmare Collection, a signed copy of Gravity: The Complete Trilogy, and a $10 Amazon Gift Card.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
