Someone (I think it might have been Brooke?) posted the cover of Tempest Rising on their blog and it caught my eye. From there I wandered to the author's site and found her twitter page and I knew I had to get this book. I was not disappointed as you will see from my review and since Nicole is such a fun and friendly person I mustered up the courage to ask her to participate in my 5 Questions feature. Lucky for me she agreed! Without further ado - my mini-interview with the author of the Jane True series!1. Congrats on a wonderful and original first novel! As a huge Urban Fantasy fan myself, I have gotten to the point where I feel many stories are so similar I sometimes get confused about which series I am reading! Tempest Rising has such unique characters and creatures, did you set out purposely to create a story where the creatures were more than just vampire and werewolf?I did, indeed. But it wasn't because I thought there were too many werewolves/vampires. To be honest, I hadn't been reading urban fantasy for years, as I was busy doing my Ph.D. and was only reading stuff for my research. Instead, the reason I wanted to use all those myths is because the nature of my world is one where I try to explain that age old question: Why do all these really different cultures have the same mythologies? I couldn't apply that question to just a few creatures; I had to take that idea forward and involve lots of mythological beasties.2. I'd also like to thank you for making the story more about the mystery than just the romance between Jane and Ryu. There's really only so many tragic-emo-vampire stories I can read in my life. Did you have any trouble keeping a decent balance between mystery and romance?Well, you're welcome! To be honest, it was easy to keep that balance when it comes to Jane and Ryu's romance. Because, while Ryu is definitely wooing Jane, and there's lots of lust between the two characters, there's is not a traditional romance, at all. Jane's had real love, and lost it, and she knows that what Ryu offers is something very different. It's not bad, what he offers. In fact, it's quite fun, and it's absolutely what Jane needs at this time in her life. But it's certainly not the traditional, Happily Ever After soul-mating you see in a real romance novel.3. Your favourite supernatural creature would be?I don't know if I have a favorite, and I'm finding new ones all the time in my research for the books. But I've always been especially fascinated by the creatures like centaurs and minotaurs: things that are half human and half beast. Don't ask me why. It's probably all very Freudian. ;-)4. Your favourite Manic Panic colour?Pillarbox Red, for the win!5. Are you a Joss Whedon fan? If so why and please list your favourite shows in order of preference. If you are not... why the heck not?I loved Buffy, obviously. But I really enjoyed Firefly, and I adored Serenity. I haven't seen any of Dollhouse. Is it any good?I think I am the only Whedon fan who didn't like Firefly or Serenity! I don't know why. Dollhouse is, er, well, I find it disappointing and gave up watching it.BONUS QUESTION: Exactly how long have you been stalking me and have had cameras in my house while you were creating the character of Jane True? I promise I am not about to file any lawsuits against you, I just feel I would sleep better at night knowing how long you've been spying on me. Was my husband in on this at all? Because if so I will be having one heck of a chat with him very soon.That's hilarious! And I love hearing people say that to me. I hate to tell you this, but you're not the first to tell me they found a little of themselves in Jane. Which makes me very happy, because part of what I was trying to do with Jane was to create an Everywoman character who is suddenly surrounded by this totally irreal world full of these preternaturally powerful and beautiful creatures. She is, pardon the pun-tastic overtones, a fish out of water and it makes for a lot of fun tensions in the novel.But she's my height! And bosomy! And dark hair! And jeans and t-shirty! I'm so playing her in the movie.Thanks so much Nicole! I can't wait for the second book to come out and I hope to have another 5 questions ready for you this summer with the release of Tracking the Tempest!