Sam Blood

Cameron Sam Blood

FAMILY IS EVERYTHING. When Griffin and Calvin Cameron set out to complete their family's dream of connecting the worlds, they have no idea that everything they know is about to change, or that they'll be plunged into a vicious fight for their own lives. Struggling to understand his purpose for existence, Eclipse feels he will never be loved by his own kind. When he and his worst enemy are caught in the crossfire of a civil war, their only chance for survival may lie in the most unexpected of alliances. However, Eclipse is still haunted by Cirrus, the Shadow he once was... and a dangerous new Empress has risen, seeking to dominate the Shadow world at any cost. Cameron is the third book in the Shadows series, a saga of unlikely friendship between human and monster that will appeal to fans of Pokémon, set against the backdrop of a darkly thrilling mystery. Interview with the Author Q: Is it true you started writing the Shadows Series when you were nine? A: It is! I think it was around that time that I started feeling the lonely feeling, that sensation of missing something, but I wasn't quite sure what. So I started telling Shadows as bedtime stories to my godsister, and it grew from there. I wrote countless drafts in the back of the class at school, and when I was fourteen I tried to get it published. It took a wee bit longer than that for it to get out into the world, but it feels so good that it's here now and people are reading it and each having their own unique experience of it. Q: If you had to compare Shadows to something, what would you compare it to? A: I hear people saying it reminds them slightly of Saturday morning cartoons, and it definitely carries that inspiration; I grew up with Beyblades, Pokémon and those sorts of anime on TV, and also those old movies on VHS like Dragon World, where the young human befriends a magical creature. Personally I think those comparisons exist because the soul-linked magical creature thing, what I like to call "monster buddy" fiction, is less of a genre these days- so I'm hoping that Shadows helps bring it back! I'd love more authors to be putting out books like that so I can read them. Q: So what other genres does Shadows fall into? A: It's a young adult thriller, amongst good company like the Hunger Games, the Maze Runner and the Chaos Walking Trilogy. It's definitely fantasy/science fiction, but it's based in our own modern time. I see it as less a typical fantasy adventure quest, and more so a thriller where the characters are running for their lives, being hunted, trying to survive just long enough to unravel whatever the heck the conspiracy is they've gotten themselves caught up in. It's emotional, thrilling, laugh-out-loud (I hope), and a lot of fun. Q: Be honest. Is Griffin Cameron based on you? A: No. He's much shorter. Q: Anything else to add? A: Read Shadows for Cirrus, the Fruit-Loops loving, slightly unhinged dragon-parrot. See, you've got to read it now. Thanks for reading!