Unusual paranormal characters in Romance
by
Juli D. Revezzo
http://julidrevezzo.com
Modern
paranormal romance caters to women who want to dream a little more than
the average reader. They crave the weird and just looking at the
romance pages in Amazon or at the shelves in a bookstore, you’ll see
publishers are catering to that wish list.
These days the main
star of the genre, though, seems to have gelled down to two factions:
Vampires and werewolves. As a reader of the genre, and as a lover of
mythology, I’ve often wondered why that is. After all, the world’s
mythologies offer so many different types of monsters (yes, I said the M
word ) to choose from.
For instance, in Medieval mythology you’ll find Spring-heeled Jack.
In Scottish mythology you’ll find the pooka and the selkie.
In
Greek and Roman mythology you have the shade (which is akin to the
ghost), sirens, and the harpies, not to mention gods, dryads, and
fauns—the list is endless right in that one mythology. And can’t you
just see the *ahem* Erotic antics to be had with a faun?!
(C.S. Lewis missed a great opportunity to write a romance *eg*)
For
me I chose focus on the Celts of ancient Ireland and Gaul who battled
the Romans in order to preserve their homeland. (Alas, we won’t have
time to cover here how that worked out) Warriors, druids, sorcerers,
maidens with mystic powers and secrets. Though the mythological records
can seem spotty, they carry within them the very seed of romance itself.
(and, wow! Imagine being taken away by an elf king… and a faun? Wait, I think I have a new idea for a book.)
If
you’d like to see what I made of my take on the Celtic mythological
beings, my new paranormal romance, PASSION’S SACRED DANCE.
Battling
mounting debt, Stacy Macken is determined not to lose her historic art
gallery. When Aaron Fielding appears and offers to help, she fights to
keep the attraction sizzling between them from clouding her judgment. He
may be her savior in disguise--but can she trust him?
Aaron
intrigues her with tales of the Tuatha dé Danann, sworn warriors who
protect humanity from the monsters seeking their destruction. If Aaron
can prove what he claims, she would give up anything to help--even the
gallery he claims is sacred ground. But with her property set to stage
the next epic battle, she needs answers. An old family diary will
confirm the ancient legend is true, if only they can find it in time.
If
the battle is lost, the enemy will take control of Earth for the next
five hundred years. Stacy and Aaron's budding love might only complicate
things.
If you’d like to read more, PASSION’S SACRED DANCE is
available on
Amazon - http://amzn.com/B00E4WOBWI
and the Wild Rose Press
http://www.wildrosepublishing.com/maincatalog_v151/index.php?main_page=index&manufacturers_id=1064
I hope you’ll check it out and enjoy the magic!
So, tell me, what unusual character might you want to read (or write) a love story about?
I have to admit I'm a bit over the vampire faction. I haven't read any werewolf paranormal romances yet although I do read Carrie Vaughn's Kitty series.
ReplyDeleteI've never heard of Spring-heeled Jack so that'd be something I'd be interested in reading about.
Great post!
I love CV's Kitty and Ilona Andrews Kate Daniels series. :) I like shifter stories for some reason, personally. The other werewolves I'd recommend would be Susan Krinard's Historical Werewolf series. I've also read Lydia Dare's Westfield Wolves. There are many good ones to choose from! :)
ReplyDeleteSpring-heeled Jack is an English legend from the 19th century supposedly. A kind of boogie man that jumps out at people from the shadows (or is that a mischievous kid? ;)) Here's an article about him. http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/column.php?id=258259