Mysti Parker ~ Serenya's Song ~ Interview & Giveaway

Hello Mysti ~ so nice of you to sit through one of my interviews *grins* I love your responses and am looking forward to reading Serenya’s Song, a fantasy romance. Before we get started, here’s a bit about Mysti…

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. Mysti reviews books for SQ Magazine, an online specfic publication, and is the proud writer of Unwritten, a blog recently voted #3 for eCollegeFinder’s Top Writing Blogs award. She resides in Buckner, KY with her husband and three children.

Congrats on the Blog award…quite a feat in this day and age of blogs:) Okay…on with the show, Mysti…

Please tell us how the idea came to you for Serenya’s Song. Please include all the fun details.

It’s all Jayden Ravenwing’s fault. He was a prominent male character from A Ranger’s Tale (Book One of the series), and was left so broken-hearted at the end, I had to give him another chance at love. So, I took him from the big city of Leogard to the small town of Summerwind. There, I led him to the woman of his dreams, Serenya Barnaby-Crowe. But, true to my evil-writer nature, I couldn’t let them ride off into the sunset. Too easy. I decided to put them through hell. Literally. Ain’t I a stinker?

Yes…I agree, you are a stinker:)

What drives, motivates, and/or inspires Jayden Ravenwing?

First and foremost, music. Sure, he’s a secret agent for the Leogard Intelligence Organization (LIO), superb with archery, tracking, and a handy concealment spell. He also has quite a history with the ladies. Yet, music is his first love, which is why he’s so drawn to Serenya.

As soon as he steps into The Wasted Witch, where she plays the piano and sings for her stepfather’s customers, he sees immediately how music touches her soul. At that point, he wasn’t looking for love. In fact, he didn’t want anything to do with it again. But, after he meets Serenya, his love for her becomes the driving force for his actions. How do I know this? Because no sane man would do what Jayden does for Serenya if he didn’t love that woman more than life itself!

Give us some insight into Serenya Barnaby-Crowe. What’s a bit of her back story?

Serenya was a half-elf ophan, brought to Summerwind as an infant by her stepfather, Douglas Barnaby. Her mother, a wood-elf named Alina, died during childbirth on a horrific night. Douglas had no choice but to take the baby and run for their lives after some otherworldly creatures tore through a portal outside the clinic and started killing everyone in sight.

 The book opens with a prologue that describes this event. Here’s a little snippet of it:

Valene rubbed the baby vigorously, trying to stimulate the child to breathe. The matron looked desperate. A bloody, limp arm dangled from the fabric.

Douglas stared at the baby’s hand, unsure if the sight before him was some optical illusion. Sharp points a half-inch long tipped each finger. Claws? Was that common for a wood-elf baby? Was it dead?

The baby finally cried. Valene examined the child. Her face contorted in horror when she inspected the baby’s hands. Douglas’s heart sank. No, claws couldn’t be normal. Something was wrong, horribly wrong.

Excellent beginning…I’m all inJ

Tell us what Jayden first means to Serenya?

At first, he’s a temptation that she can’t afford to give into. Serenya’s married to the jealous and manipulative Sebastian Crowe, Earl of Summerwind. Even though she’s instantly drawn to Jayden, she cannot show it, for fear that Sebastian will harm Douglas and everyone she loves.

The great Mae West was quoted in saying: I generally avoid temptation unless I can’t resist it. Through no fault of her own, Serenya’s forced into Jayden’s company on one dark, fateful night. She realizes then that Jayden could be her escape; yet leaving Sebastian isn’t a simple matter.

Who is Serenya to Jayden? Can you give us a bit about the first time they meet each other?

Serenya is the kind of woman he’s always wanted. He even describes her as “..filling holes in my heart I never knew were there.”

They first meet not long after Jayden arrives in Summerwind. He decides to visit the local tavern, The Wasted Witch, and as soon as he steps in the door, he hears Serenya playing the piano and singing. Of course, he admires her beauty, too:

Slightly pointed ears indicated she was half-elven, but she didn’t resemble the proprietor at all. I studied her white skin, pale as the ivory piano keys she commanded so well. Lustrous, black hair fell in waves over her shoulders. Rose red lips wrapped around each word of the song. An irresistible light sparkled in her eyes. Pure joy. I knew that feeling all too well. Very few women had even come close to understanding my passion for music. A familiar longing settled over me like an invisible net.

Absolutely love the name of the local tavern – The Wasted Witch:)

Can you tell us about the abilities of Serenya? How do they help OR hinder?

Along with that unsightly birth defect that forces her to wear gloves, Serenya can interpret dreams. It’s come in handy a few times, like once when she interpreted a teacher’s dream and prevented a fire in the local school.

But, sometimes, the visions she has while interpreting are not very clear, or worse yet, are horrible things that cannot be prevented. Take this snippet of a dream she interprets for her stepfather, Douglas:

No one stirred. I shivered at the atmosphere. Deathly quiet, unnaturally still. My vision brought me closer, farther down. Silhouettes of people came into view. But they were everywhere—on the ground below, on the terraces and porches. And then, I realized, they were bodies. All of them. Cold, dead, dismembered bodies. In the bushes, draped over the wrought iron benches of the park, pieces of the people I’d grown up with all my life were scattered about the walkways and littered the flower beds. Speeding closer to the ground, I flew faster than the mightiest wind, directly over the carnage, so close I could have touched the tattered flesh had I been there in body. I even held my breath, afraid to smell the putrid scent of death.

And suddenly, I stopped—right on the edge of town, at a place so familiar, I knew it by scent. Lilly’s cottage. My vision turned toward her fence, where so many times we had sat by the roses and spoke as freely as two friends can. On two of the finials, like grisly ornaments, perched her head and beside it, the head of Sammy, her fiancé. Maggots pulsated from their hollowed-out eye sockets, dropping on the roses below.

  

Holy craps – what an eerie dream…well, more like a nasty nightmare.  Sounds a bit like a thriller alsoJ

Is Serenya’s Song included in a series? If so, what series and can you give us titles and a tagline for other books in this series?

Yes, it’s Book Two in my Tallenmere fantasy romance series. All books are written to be stand-alone reads, yet each has one character who carries over from a previous story to the next. Jayden, for instance, is a prominent male character in A Ranger’s Tale, Book One of the series. Book Three, Hearts in Exile will feature Sir Robert (Igrorio) Everlyn, who plays a prominent role in Serenya’s Song.

Here are some short blurbs:

A Ranger’s Tale—An elven noblewoman longs to leave her gilded cage. A half-breed former pirate wants nothing more than to escape his guilty past. Easier said than done…

Serenya’s Song—An elven secret agent leaves his failed marriage behind to settle in a small town. He finally meets the woman of his dreams, but she may be the catalyst for an apocalypse. No one ever said love was easy…

Hearts in Exile (coming 2013)—A battle-hardened elven paladin washes up on an island inhabited by dragons and the lover he thought was dead for ten years. Now, the two of them must discover the secrets that kept them apart before the dragons take matters into their own hands.

Can you share anything about the mystery beings in the story? What’s unique about them?

I can’t share much without giving things away, but there are some nasty otherworldly creatures who are looking for a way to invade Tallenmere and reclaim the status they had in ancient times. And they need Serenya in order to do that.

Please share anything else about this story you’d like ~ maybe a difficult scene or character ~ someone or something not cooperating…

It took me a while to figure out Sebastian’s character. At first, he came off as a simple mean brute. Yet, after watching ‘Water for Elephants’, with the cruel, manipulative August as the circus ringleader, I knew exactly what Sebastian was missing. He ended up being quite a complex villain, who readers say they actually can empathize with.

Where can we find you? List all of your links.

My blog is a happening place. It’s called Unwritten: www.mystiparker.blogspot.com

You can also find me via Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mysti-Parker/103786449704221

And Twitter: @Mysti Parker

Goodreads, too: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4625596.Mysti_Parker

“FAVORITES” Quickie Quiz –

Getting to know Mysti Parker…

Mode of travel – My feet work nicely.

Beverage – Coffee!

Place you’ve never been and have always wanted to go – Hawaii

Pets – Cats

A place you love to write – My office

Hobby or past time – Reading

Writing tool – Computer

***giveaway***

Mysti would like to offer a PDF copy or Kindle copy of Serenya’s Song to one lucky commenter. Drawing will take place on Friday – 7/6 – winner announced here and contacted via email (don’t forget to leave your email addy).

Click Cover for more info and Buy Link

Serenya’s Song

Tallenmere Book Two

Blurb:

In the fantasy world of Tallenmere, no one ever said love was easy...

Serenya Crowe may be a half-elf commoner, but she's no ordinary woman. With the ability to interpret dreams, and a birth defect that forces her to wear gloves, she’s endured small-town gossip and the cruelty of her husband, Sebastian, The Earl of Summerwind. All she's ever wanted is to live a quiet life and raise a family. When she meets the new stranger in town, her world and her heart, are turned upside down.

Wood-elf Jayden Ravenwing is an ex-secret agent who wants nothing more than to forget matters of the heart. He left the bustle of Leogard and his failed marriage to make a fresh start in Summerwind. He never planned to fall in love again, especially with the enchanting Serenya Crowe.

When a strange portal opens on the Crowe property at the edge of town, Jayden is thrown into an investigation, knowing that if he fails, Serenya and everyone in Summerwind may die.

Together, he and Serenya must overcome an ancient evil, and their own inner demons, to save Summerwind and find the love they've always dreamed of.

Amazon

Mysti, thank you for sharing so much about your story-stars and world-building, loved it – really like The Wasted Witch *grins* Serenya’s Song, sounds like a yummy fantasy romance. I look forward to reading it. Congratulations on its release and I wish you many more successes :)

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Thank you everyone for stopping in and visiting with Mysti ~ show her some love and leave a comment or a question and be automatically entered into her drawing (if you also leave a way for us to reach you in case you’re the winner! :0)

Until Next Time…Warm Hearts & Hugs,

Kay Dee

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