Please welcome Rhani D, Chae to Fiction Favorites. She is here to discuss her book Shadow of the Drill and give some insights on her character Decker. Rhani you have the floor.

The character of Decker came about in a sort of left-handed way. I was working on a different novel (I can’t remember a thing about it now), and I called a friend for help with a character’s name. I wanted a one-word name that readers would associate with that character, kind of like when people hear the name ‘Rambo,’ a specific image comes to mind. I told her that the character was very tough, very macho, and I wanted the name to somehow reflect that. She gave me a couple that just didn’t click with me, and I think it frustrated her that her suggestions didn’t work with what I was trying to do. She finally shouted ‘Black & Decker’, and that was pretty much the end of the call.

It wasn’t remotely what I was looking for – wasn’t even a name – but the more I thought about it, the more it started to take shape. Black & Decker made power tools, including drills. An electric drill is efficient, getting the job done quickly and with no wasted effort. An enforcer who handled business the same way might be nicknamed the Drill – especially if his name happened to be Decker.

And so the character of Decker was born. A blend of the enforcers that I had known in my younger days, he’s a man who has no time for what he considers ‘high school’ methods of getting a message delivered. Instead, he primarily uses torture to gain information, make a point, or as a form of retribution. Not because he enjoys it, but because people tend to fear prolonged physical pain more than almost anything else, which makes it a highly effective tool. His way of doing things has made him a legend on the streets that he calls home, which greatly increases his value to an employer.

Of necessity, Decker keeps his heart protected behind thick walls. He loves rarely but with unconditional devotion. He would not hesitate to kill to protect someone that he loves, and he would willingly die for the same reason. He is also a man ruled by logic in a world where emotion has no place. His actions and decisions are calculated with an analytical precision that leaves little to no room for an emotional response, no matter what situation he finds himself in. As the Drill, his loyalty is to those who pay him to get his hands dirty, and to the people who make ‘his’ streets their home. Powered by his personal code of ‘right and wrong,’ he does his best to protect the vulnerable from those who prey upon them.

Though he occasionally thinks about what his life could have been had he been dealt a different set of cards, he has earned his living through violence for more than a decade and doesn’t know how to be anything other than who and what he is.

Shadow of the Drill centers around a man whose life was destroyed by violence, who then embraced violence as a means to a very brutal end. It follows Decker and Rudy as they come face to face with their oldest enemies and attempt to close that chapter of their lives. The book contains graphic violence as well as sexual situations and is not intended for young or easily offended readers. Shadow of the Drill is the first in the Drill series and the second book, Winter of the Drill, will hopefully be completed in the next month or two.

Thank you all so much for allowing me to share a bit of my journey with you today.  To follow the rest of my tour, please visit 4WillsPublishing.  John, you were a great host and thank you so much for having me!

BIO:

RHANI D’CHAE spent her teen years bouncing between WA, OR, and OK, but has lived her adult life in Tacoma, WA. She likes to read, though she doesn’t read as much as she used to due to diabetic vision loss and is a fan of Chelsea Quinn Yarbro, Brian Lumley, and James Clavell. She loves The Walking Dead, and any zombie film with a high-body count. Ms. D’Chae enjoys connecting with people on social networking sites and loves getting feedback from those who have read her work, so please don’t leave without sharing your comments. 

PURCHASE LINKS:

“SHADOW OF THE DRILL” by Rhani D. Chae  www.amazon.com/dp/B00GBHQZZU

CONTACT INFO:

Twitter:  @rhanidchae

Facebook:  www.facebook.com/rhani.dchae

Google +:  http://google.com/+RhaniDChae

Website:  www.rhanidchae.com 

Review of Shadow of the Drill at NONNIE’S “RAVE” REVIEWS
***This tour was sponsored by 4WillsPublishing.wordpress.com  To book your own tour, please contact us.***