Readers, please join me welcoming today’s guest blogger, debut author Jill Myles. Gentlemen Prefer Succubi (Succubus Diaries) is the first of two fun and sexy paranormal romances featuring a succubus, a vampire, and a fallen angel.
About the Book – Jackie Brighton woke up in a Dumpster this morning, and her day has only gotten weirder. Her familiar B-cups have somehow become double Ds, her sex drive is insatiable, and apparently she had her fi rst one-night stand ever…with a fallen angel. All she remembers is gorgeous Noah’s oddly hypnotic blue eyes…and then a dark stranger whose bite transformed her into an immortal siren with a sexy Itch. With help from Noah, Jackie begins to adapt to her new lifestyle — until she accidentally sends Noah into the deadly clutches of the vampire queen and lands herself in a fi erce battle for an ancient halo with the queen’s wickedly hot righthand man. Who just happens to be the vampire who originally bit her. How’s a girl supposed to save the world when the enemy’s so hard to resist?
Succubi have had a bit of a bad rap in the past. The earliest mentions of succubi-like creatures come from Ancient Sumeria, where lascivious, nasty demons preyed on people in their sleep. Lilith (Adam’s first wife depending on your religion) is sometimes considered to be a succubus and the demon-mother of multiple other demons. Nice, right?
It gets worse in the middle ages. Succubi began to crop up in all kinds of theological stories – of priests and monks that had been visited by demonic women in their sleep. These women would hop on and (pardon the french) ride them until exhaustion and it was only through luck they would break free and wake up. Even one pope confessed to an affair with a succubus! This only proved the point that in medieval times, women were evil and boners were never the fault of a man. Yeah.
According to the Malleus Maleficarum (written in the middle ages as well), succubi would collect semen from the men they slept with. They would, in turn, give this semen to incubi (I don’t know how, but I’m guessing it involved turkey basters). The incubi would then impregnate women with someone else’s semen, and create evil babies called ‘cambion’.
Sounds so pleasant, right?
Knowing all that grim history, I wanted to write something a little more pleasant when it came to succubi. Given the fact that some of the worst stories surfaced in medieval times, back when women were considered to be just one step up from a goat in the hierarchy of things…I wondered if there was room in succubi lore for a bit of revisionist history.
What if it was all just a bad rap? Why does any woman with a mind of her own and a few powers automatically mean EVIL and DEMON? What if a succubus wasn’t a demon at all?
Armed with nothing but a few ideas, I decided to play around with the succubus legend and see if I could make it fit my setting but still keep the inherent concept behind it – a female who needs sex with men to survive. The first mentions of succubi started in ancient history, so I went there first. And it seemed natural to make my succubi as companions/servants to the fallen angels that populated my world.
So to recap – no sperm-sucking female demons in my books. Just good clean (well, okay, maybe not so clean) fun!
Current Popularity
Succubi are definitely more popular now than before. While I wouldn’t say that they’re everywhere, they’re definitely encroaching on mainstream media.
If you’re looking for big-screen succubi, your best bet is Jennifer’s Body. This is a film that stars Megan Fox who turns into a succubus that has to eat male victims. For succubi on TV, you have a lot of guest-star options. Succubi have been everywhere from South Park to Supernatural to Charmed.
Succubi in video games? They’re there too. World of Warcraft allows characters that are the Warlock class to summon a succubus pet. In Everquest II, it’s the necromancer that can summon the succubus. Succubi also show up in older games like Diablo and Planescape: Torment.
Want to read up on succubi instead? The most popular series is Richelle Mead’s adult urban fantasy series, the Georgina Kincaid books. They start with Succubus Blues, and follow Georgina, a succubus in Seattle who falls in love with a human guy. There’s also the terrifically dark Hell on Earth series by Jackie Kessler (start with Hell’s Belles) that look at how a succubus on the run from hell would try and blend in on earth. Hint: it involves stripping. If you’re looking for a more glam-lit version of succubi, check out Nina Harper’s Succubus in the City.
A start of a delish new series, wouldn’t you say? I look forward to reading it. Here’s wishing you, Jill, lots of success in the upcoming years!
The Prize
A copy of this book will go to one lucky reader.
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Read Jill’s guest post and leave a thoughtful question or comment for her.
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Deadline Midnight CST of Feb 24, 2010.
Eligibility US only.
Please read the Disclaimer. Good luck!
Note – This book was received for review/feature consideration.
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