With the help of the fine folks at GOODREADS, we’re giving away one Advance Reading Copy (ARC) of Carrie Vaughn’s THE IMMORTAL CONQUISTADOR, the vampire origin story of Kitty Norville’s famed ally, Rick—and his sudden turn to darkness in the seventeenth century. More than 500 years before his friendship with Kitty, noble Ricardo de Avila’s life met a fate-changing twist, and his morally-complex, blood-soaked existence as an immortal began.

“No surprise to anyone, but Carrie Vaughn can write the sixteenth century up through the Old West as well as it’s been done. And it just feels so good to sneak back into the Kittyverse through the vampire door.”

—Stephen Graham Jones, author of Mongrels and The Only Good Indians.

Before being turned, Ricardo de Avila would have followed Coronado to the ends of the earth. Instead he found the end of his mortal life—and a new one, as a renegade vampire.

For over five hundred years as an immortal, Ricardo has followed his own moral code, upsetting the established order in the demon world. He has protected his found family from marauding evil, joined up with a legendary gunslinger, tended bar, appointed himself the Master of Denver, and discovered a church buried under the Vatican.

The life of a vampire is frequently long, but for Rick, it is never easy.

For full details visit GOODREADS.

“Vaughn presents a gratifying origin story for Ricardo “Rick” de Avila, vampire Master of Denver and partner to the popular werewolf heroine of her Kitty Norville series. Compelled by the vampire Order of Saint Lazarus of the Shadows in Rome, Rick recounts a series of menacing and melancholy stories from the past 500 years of his life spent striving to be a bad vampire and a good man. In the 16th century, Rick, then the living teenage son of a Spanish nobleman, accompanies Francisco Vázquez de Coronado on his search for gold in Mexico and the American west, where a betrayal leads to Rick’s transformation into a demon. Repulsed by his condition and ignorant of his newfound powers, Rick traverses the desert territory for centuries, encountering the formidable vampire Mistress Catalina of Mexico City, confronting the devilish Carlos de Luz, and meeting with American gunfighter Doc Holliday. Fans will wish that the short vignettes of Rick’s adventures, which take place between books in the Kitty Norville series, received greater development but will nevertheless admire Rick’s clever battle tactics and compassion toward his companions. This fun character study works as a standalone but will hold special appeal for series fans.

—Publishers Weekly

“THE IMMORTAL CONQUISTADOR was a captivating read that finally shed some light on one of the most interesting and secretive characters from the Kitty universe. This book is sure to please all the Kitty Norville fans out there!”

—Pat’s Fantasy Hotlist

“Carrie Vaughn’s THE IMMORTAL CONQUISTADOR is an excellent addition to her Kitty Norville books, and gives us a closer look at one of her most fascinating characters.”

—Stephen Blackmoore, author of the Eric Carter Necromancer series

“What I love about Vaughn’s writing is that she takes you on a fun adventure and secretly sneaks in layers of complexity to her characters where you find yourself thinking about them for days on end. I can’t wait to see where this series is heading!”

—Infinite Text