Author: Mysti Parker
Series: Tallenmere (stand-alone)
Genre: Paranormal, Fantasy, Romance
Publisher: Melange Books
Release
Date: June 3, 2013
Somewhere, hidden in the waters of the Southern Sea, lies an island unlike any other. Within the amber glow of its pyrogem-laden cliffs, legend says the very heart of the dragon god Drae keeps the island, and its occupants, alive.
Loralee Munroviel, daughter of Leogard's High Priestess Arianne, had no idea what she would face when she arrived by boat ten years ago and was left alone in exile. All she knew about Draekoria's inhabitants was written in one tattered notebook. Now, her life revolves around keeping Drae's descendants happy. Never in her life did she imagine being a Dragon Keeper.
Captain Igrorio Everlyn, known as Sir Robert to his unit of Holy Paladins, has faced his share of hell, battling the evils of Emperor Sarvonn's tyranny and the dark god Tyr's abominations. But none of that compares to the ten years of hell he's been without Loralee, presumed dead.
One freak storm changes everything. Now the two of them must fight to re-establish the delicate balance of the island before the dragons take things into their own hands. Through it all, they discover the secrets that kept them, and their hearts, exiled for a decade.
Co-Writing:
Yes, Maybe, or Never?
The concept of two or more authors combining their
efforts to write a novel or other piece of literature is not a new one.
Sometimes it’s an equal, yet separate endeavor, as in the case of short story
anthologies. I’ve contributed to a few of these myself:
Sometimes the co-writing is rather unequal, with
someone serving as more of a contributor, while the other person does the bulk
of the writing. You’ll find this in a number of biographies and commentaries.
Other authors have found creative ways to combine
their efforts, as in the case of Zoe Archer and her husband Nico Rosso, who
take turns writing the books in TheEther Chronicles Steampunk Romance Series.
Or there’s the case of Ian Hall and April L. Miller,
who alternate writing the chapters in their VampireHigh School Series.
The possibilities of co-writing are nearly endless,
so the question remains as to whether I would consider teaming up with another
writer(s) for other projects or not.
My answer is: Maybe.
In fact, three authors and I turned over an idea for
a time-travel romance and even started a rough draft. We planned on each of us
writing ~20,000 words for each of our parts, separated by 100 years, but I
suffered from a terrible case of depression and writer’s block and also had a
third book in an already contracted series to write, so we never quite got the
project off the ground.
Will we get back to it? Maybe.
I did love the concept, so I will never shoot down a
co-writing idea. At this juncture of my life, raising three youngsters while
trying to write, challenges my focus and productivity. With patience and
practice, I hope to develop even better time management and focus so that I can
more readily jump at co-writing opportunities or any other projects that come
my way.
Until then, my goal is to keep my three progeny
happy and healthy for the rest of the summer and devote my writing efforts to
the projects on my plate. Everything else is a big ol’ maybe…
After a shipwreck, Sir Robert wakes up in a strange cottage, only to find Loralee, the love of his life, whom he thought had been dead for a decade…
“I don’t understand. What is this place?”
“It’s an island. Very few know of its existence.”
I shook my head, trying to clear the fog of this confusing dream come to life. “But, why would you be here, and why would you be sorry? Unless…” The words wouldn’t come. My racing mind pitched in to help. Unless she didn’t want to marry me after all. Wrenching pain I’d kept tucked inside broke free, and I clambered to my feet. Loralee followed suit, backing herself into the small dining table.
I tried, but could not hide the bitter anger in my words. “How could you do this to me? Do you have any idea what I’ve been through?”
Her eyes widened. She clutched the table with one hand and her robe with the other.
“What you’ve been through? I didn’t want this. I was forced here.” “What do you mean, forced here? Where are your shackles?” My voice roared through the little cottage as I gestured around me with one arm. “Where are the bars? This looks like no prison I’ve ever seen.”
Her voice cracked the air, rivaling with my own. “I was betrayed, forced into exile. Don’t you understand? I never wanted to leave you. I never wanted anything so much as I wanted you.”
Pacing away, I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. I had to calm myself, to let the weight of this discovery, the improbability of her explanation to sink into my water-logged brain.
I couldn’t bring myself to look at her just yet, so I stared at my bare feet instead. “Why didn’t you tell me, write to me?”
“I tried. I begged the supply ship crew to bring my letters to you. They always took them, but never brought one in return. I suspect they destroyed them, but I had no way of knowing.” She sucked in a shaky breath as though trying to hold back her tears. “I never stopped loving you.”
Turning back to face her, I felt like a mindless beast. Here I was, raging against the love of my life when she’d all but been brought back from the dead.
“Loralee.” I eased toward her. She cringed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Without a word, I leaned in and pressed my forehead to hers, allowing myself to breathe in her scent for the first time in a decade. We stood suspended like that for a while, lost in time, and emerging from a purgatory neither of us had imagined ten years ago. I would have been content to stand like that forever, but Loralee burst into tears and wilted to the floor.
I followed her down and opened the quilt to wrap us both inside. I held her tight while she cried.
While I cried.
I finally got enough breath to speak again. “What did you mean by forced here? They told me you were…” I couldn’t say it, not with her warm and so very alive against me.
“I know.”
The weight of it all came crashing down on me. “This is my fault, isn’t it? You’re here because of me.”
She made no attempt to wipe her cheeks, but shook her head and stared at the rafters as though entreating the gods. “No, it’s not your fault. Not at all. There is so much to explain, I don’t know where to start.”
I couldn’t comprehend any of it, so I focused on the here and now. “You found me on the shore?”
She nodded.
“The crew, Francis…did you find anyone else out there?”
“No, I had Xax-, I mean, no, I searched but didn’t find anyone else.”
The familiar weight of grief squeezed my chest, and a few more tears escaped before I could stop them.
She pulled me close and whispered, “I’m so sorry. I know how much you loved him. We all did.”
“We all grieved for you. You’ve been here…all this time?”
“Yes.”
“By the gods, Loralee, I’ve missed you so much.” I put my wet cheek against hers and pressed my lips to her soft skin. “Part of me died the day I thought you… please…just tell me how you ended up here.”
Loralee took a few deep breaths and finally pulled away from me. She caressed my cheek and smiled weakly. “I’ll make us a pot of tea. And then, I think we should start at the beginning, back to the Great Plague and when we first met. Do you remember that?” Smiling past the sadness, I covered her hand with mine and closed my eyes. “How could I ever forget?”
“It’s an island. Very few know of its existence.”
I shook my head, trying to clear the fog of this confusing dream come to life. “But, why would you be here, and why would you be sorry? Unless…” The words wouldn’t come. My racing mind pitched in to help. Unless she didn’t want to marry me after all. Wrenching pain I’d kept tucked inside broke free, and I clambered to my feet. Loralee followed suit, backing herself into the small dining table.
I tried, but could not hide the bitter anger in my words. “How could you do this to me? Do you have any idea what I’ve been through?”
Her eyes widened. She clutched the table with one hand and her robe with the other.
“What you’ve been through? I didn’t want this. I was forced here.” “What do you mean, forced here? Where are your shackles?” My voice roared through the little cottage as I gestured around me with one arm. “Where are the bars? This looks like no prison I’ve ever seen.”
Her voice cracked the air, rivaling with my own. “I was betrayed, forced into exile. Don’t you understand? I never wanted to leave you. I never wanted anything so much as I wanted you.”
Pacing away, I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. I had to calm myself, to let the weight of this discovery, the improbability of her explanation to sink into my water-logged brain.
I couldn’t bring myself to look at her just yet, so I stared at my bare feet instead. “Why didn’t you tell me, write to me?”
“I tried. I begged the supply ship crew to bring my letters to you. They always took them, but never brought one in return. I suspect they destroyed them, but I had no way of knowing.” She sucked in a shaky breath as though trying to hold back her tears. “I never stopped loving you.”
Turning back to face her, I felt like a mindless beast. Here I was, raging against the love of my life when she’d all but been brought back from the dead.
“Loralee.” I eased toward her. She cringed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
Without a word, I leaned in and pressed my forehead to hers, allowing myself to breathe in her scent for the first time in a decade. We stood suspended like that for a while, lost in time, and emerging from a purgatory neither of us had imagined ten years ago. I would have been content to stand like that forever, but Loralee burst into tears and wilted to the floor.
I followed her down and opened the quilt to wrap us both inside. I held her tight while she cried.
While I cried.
I finally got enough breath to speak again. “What did you mean by forced here? They told me you were…” I couldn’t say it, not with her warm and so very alive against me.
“I know.”
The weight of it all came crashing down on me. “This is my fault, isn’t it? You’re here because of me.”
She made no attempt to wipe her cheeks, but shook her head and stared at the rafters as though entreating the gods. “No, it’s not your fault. Not at all. There is so much to explain, I don’t know where to start.”
I couldn’t comprehend any of it, so I focused on the here and now. “You found me on the shore?”
She nodded.
“The crew, Francis…did you find anyone else out there?”
“No, I had Xax-, I mean, no, I searched but didn’t find anyone else.”
The familiar weight of grief squeezed my chest, and a few more tears escaped before I could stop them.
She pulled me close and whispered, “I’m so sorry. I know how much you loved him. We all did.”
“We all grieved for you. You’ve been here…all this time?”
“Yes.”
“By the gods, Loralee, I’ve missed you so much.” I put my wet cheek against hers and pressed my lips to her soft skin. “Part of me died the day I thought you… please…just tell me how you ended up here.”
Loralee took a few deep breaths and finally pulled away from me. She caressed my cheek and smiled weakly. “I’ll make us a pot of tea. And then, I think we should start at the beginning, back to the Great Plague and when we first met. Do you remember that?” Smiling past the sadness, I covered her hand with mine and closed my eyes. “How could I ever forget?”
Mysti Parker (pseudonym) is a full time
wife, mother of three, and a writer. Her first novel, A Ranger's Tale was
published in January, 2011 by Melange Books, and the second in the fantasy
romance series, Serenya's Song, was published in April 2012. The highly
anticipated third book, Hearts in Exile, has already received some great
reviews. The Tallenmere series has been likened
to Terry Goodkind's 'Sword of Truth' series, but is probably closer to a
spicy cross between Tolkien and Mercedes Lackey.
Mysti's other writings have appeared in the
anthologies Hearts of Tomorrow, Christmas Lites, and Christmas Lites II. Her
flash fiction has appeared on the online magazine EveryDayFiction. She has also
served as a class mentor in Writers Village University's six week free course,
F2K.
Mysti reviews books for SQ Magazine, an
online specfic publication, and is the proud owner of Unwritten, a blog voted
#3 for eCollegeFinder's Top Writing Blogs award. She resides in Buckner, KY
with her husband and three children.
Places to find Mysti
Places to find Mysti
Other Books In The
Tallenmere
Series:
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Thanks for hosting me today, Anna!
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I would love to hear your thoughts. :) HAPPY READING !!!!