K.M. Shea's Blog, page 28

Magic Unleashed: Now Available!

Magic Unleashed is now available to purchase and read or borrow and read if you have Kindle Unlimited! Yaaaaaaaaaaaay!

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This is the final book in the Hall of Blood & Mercy trilogy, and I’m really hoping you guys find it as enjoyable as the first two!

Since the book just launched I don’t want to drop any spoilers, so we can’t actually discuss the book. But I wanted to assure you Champions that I’ve got some fun stuff planned to wrap the series up! We’ll do some more in depth looks at characters, talk a little more about donkeyskin–the fairy tale this trilogy is very loosely based on–and sometime in the next few weeks I’m planning to hold another Facebook live event!

In the meantime, I hope Hazel, Killian, and the crew make you laugh at this final book in their story, and thank you for giving the series a try!

The post Magic Unleashed: Now Available! appeared first on K. M. Shea.

Magic Unleashed: Available for Pre-Order

Hi-ho, Champions!

It’s launch week for Magic Unleashed, the final book in the Hall of Blood & Mercy Trilogy!

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It will be out this Friday, April 17th, and, like the rest of the series, it will be available to borrow through Kindle Unlimited!

We have just a few days until it’s available, woohoo! As I have with Book 1 and book 2 in this series, I’ve got a short story I’ll release when Magic Unleashed gets approximately 90 reviews–this counts for both Goodreads, and all the Amazon stores–to celebrate the book’s launch! (This one is from House Medeis’ point of view, and it reveals some behind-the-scene stuff you Champions will love!)

I really appreciate how awesome you Champions are in leaving honest reviews–these really help other potential readers decide if the series will be their cup of tea, which helps me big time! Reviews actually affect marketing, too! There are some sites I can’t advertise on until I get a certain number of reviews. And they’re also a good gauge for the series in general, and when I get 90+ reviews it makes it a heck of a lot easier on my team to compare and contrast the reviews and look for distinctive patterns.

But! I have a some-what final description. I’m still working some of the kinks out of it–nothing like waiting for the last minute, huh? Here’s what I have so far!

Ever had ex-housemates you can’t get rid of?

When Killian and the rest of the Drake vampires kicked me out of their mansion without any explanation, I felt beyond betrayed…

I was livid!

But I refused to waste my energy thinking about them. Thanks to all the free training I got while living with vampires, I had the skills I needed to finally free my family. I even got my house back! Best yet, I can pass on the magic techniques and fighting skills I’ve learned to all the wizards in our group.

As long as I ignore the rotating vampires standing watch on the corner across the street, life is normal again…until the fae risk injuring hundreds of supernaturals just to stage a surprise attack on Killian.

There’s no way I’m going to let the fae get away with this. I may be furious with Killian, but I hate bullies even more.

But, big surprise, my good deed won’t go unpunished. I knew I’d face a fallout for saving the most feared and lethal vampire in the Midwest—I just never imaged the lengths Killian would go through to protect me and win me back…

Magic Unleashed is the final book in the Hall of Blood and Mercy trilogy, which features vampires, wizards, fae, and werewolves. It’s packed with humor, adventure, and a sweet, slow burn romance between a vertically challenged wizard and the deadliest vampire in town.

HoB&M Universe: Characters II

Today we’re going to once again explore some of the secondary characters from the Hall of Blood and Mercy Trilogy!

If it isn’t obvious from all of my backlist books, I’ve got a thing for old buildings with character. I am unapologetically obsessed with libraries–I think they’re the greatest places ever–and in general I just like fascinating architecture, and places that seem to have their own…moods.

House Medeis was built out of my interest in old buildings, and was partially inspired by the dollhouses I played with as a kid in that I wanted things to happen to the people living inside the house that weren’t necessarily their choice.

While the building itself is basically a magical fun-house, when you swirl in a personality that is a mixture of a loving but slightly overbearing grandparent, that’s when things get crazy!

House Medeis will throw your own shoes at your head if you leave them out for other people to trip on. If you make it mad it will only give you cold water for showers. It’s the kind of building that will purposely lower door frames so tall people ram their foreheads into it, and it will raise light switches out of reach of shorter wizards just to get its point across.

Similarly, if it works with an Adept it likes, it is crazy powerful.

House Medeis will adjust itself to the wizards that live within its walls, and the desires of the Adept that leads them. When House Medeis bonds with Hazel, together they create a fortress that seems suspiciously and unnecessarily large…

The Paragon could honestly have his own post. I had so much fun with him!

Given how all the other leaders/monarchs/head honchos of the various supernatural races act stately, poised, and polite–from the individual House/Family/Court/Pack levels all the way up to the Regional levels–I wanted to make the Paragon the opposite of what most people say would make a good leader.

He hates drama and tries to avoid his people as much as possible, but is also super nosy and doesn’t like to be left out. He wears fancy clothes but stores the entrance to his pocket realm in a unicorn coin purse. While he looks like he’s as old as dirt, he speaks using modern slang, has magical artifacts that are older than the country of America, and also proficiently uses his cellphone. Perhaps most importantly, he has the necessary pet that most sassy, mentor-type characters usually possess…except she’s a hairless cat named after a Greek Goddess because it harkens back to the Renaissance’s obsession of painting her without a stitch of clothing.

Josh accidentally subverts most vampire tropes. The Paragon purposely shatters them.

He’s also a good balance for Killian.

Although the Paragon technically has more power than Killian, as he emphatically likes to point out he’s the top fae representative, and isn’t truly their overlord no matter how others view it. Unlike Killian, he avoids throwing his political weight around, and he wants people to overlook him/think of him as an eccentric old man and not the quick-silver, cunning fae that he really is. (Most times, other characters appear to even forget that he’s a fae!)

He’s strong enough to call out Killian on his actions, wily enough to see what’s happening between Hazel and Killian, and yet soft enough that he’s willing to do Killian a favor and shows up to support Hazel when she’s about to enter a show down with Mason.

So, which character do you like more? You’ll get to see more of House Medeis in Magic Unleashed, but I think you’ve got a pretty accurate depiction of the Paragon.

HoB&M Universe: Vampires

It’s time for the long awaited supernatural that is today’s topic…vampires!

Vampires are among the upper crust of supernatural society. Because of their immortality they have had plenty of time to amass land, wealth, and power. Matched with their superior senses–advanced hearing, sight, and smelling capabilities–and their supernatural speed, healing abilities, and increased strength, they are frighteningly lethal.

Vampires do, however, possess weaknesses as well. They are especially weak to magic–both wizard and fae magic–and although they can out-pace most shifters, werewolves and the like are physically stronger. Although sunlight will not kill them it does significantly weaken them and makes them easier to kill. Finally, besides their innate abilities–healing, speed, etc–they are incapable of sensing or using magic.

Vampires live in units called Families. The Family gets its name from the founding vampire–in example, the feared Drake Family of the Midwest region was founded by Killian Drake. The founding vampire–or if the founding vampire has died, the strongest vampire in the family–is called the Family Elder, and he/she rules the Family.

Each Family has at least two vampires who serve under the Elder, although the title of those vampires frequently changes depending on the country of origin of the Elder vampire. The Drake Family uses the term First Knight and Second Knight to denote the two next strongest vampires because Killian Drake was originally from Britain. Families with Slavic origins most frequently use the term “bogatyr” while Families with French origins call their top vampires “chevalier.”

The most powerful vampire in a Region is called the Eminence. The Eminence serves on the Regional Committee of Magic, and–to a certain extent–reports to the Ancient—the top vampire in the country.

A tiny minority of vampires don’t belong to a Family, they are called Unclaimed. Few Unclaimed are exiles, but the majority of them are vampires who find vampire society distasteful. Unclaimed who wish to survive long have to be crafty and powerful as they are otherwise easy prey for other supernaturals.

Vampires survive by drinking human blood. They are able to consume human food as well, but it lacks the necessary nutrients they need to survive, and too much of it can make a vampire ill, so it is not uncommon for vampires to partake in human food only once per week, or less.

Instead, vampires receive shipments of blood in prepacked, plastic packs they they can drink like a juice box. Entire companies are built around fulfilling this need–some recruit and pay humans for donating their blood, others specialize in packaging the blood, and every region has a local delivery company that delivers weekly shipments of blood packages to a Family’s house.

Some powerful Families keep individual Blood Donors on retainer. Blood Donors are humans who are paid by the vampires–and often given room and board–in exchange for letting vampires from the Family drink their blood. Vampires receive more nutrients from fresh blood, but given all the laws and requirements for keeping Blood Donors, they are considered a luxury.

While magic is considered the biggest threat to a vampire, in reality if a vampire manages to live through its first century, his/her nature has enough time to settle and they get a distinct increase of power and abilities that make it easier to survive. Unfortunately, once a vampire passes several centuries, their powerful abilities make it harder to survive.

Vampires used to be the biggest powers in the supernatural community, but as time has passed their powers have waned–not from a lack of respect or wealth, but by the choice of the Elder vampires. Weighted down by memories, general weariness of the world, and the sadness they’ve carried by living through centuries of watching their loved ones die again and again, the majority of old, powerful vampires slowly slump into apathy. They lose all interest in politics, sometimes they even lose interest in caring for their own Families. This has repercussions on their Families, who are forced to get by with poor leadership or–in extreme cases–pick a new leader if their Elder falls asleep and won’t wake up/becomes wholly unresponsive.

If the apathy of the Elders wasn’t enough, vampires have been facing a crisis of numbers as they’ve been unable to turn many vampires in the past 50 or so years. As a result, they are unable to replace their dwindling numbers.

Vampires are currently in a precarious position. They still have an abundance of power and wealth, but lack the numbers to use it. Additionally, as they are generally feared it makes other supernaturals less likely to align with him. All of this changes when the Eminence of the Midwest Region, Killian Drake, extends his Family’s protection to Adept Hazel Medeis of House Medeis…

The post HoB&M Universe: Vampires appeared first on K. M. Shea.

Donkeyskin: The Similarities, Part II

Magic Redeemed has been out for a while now, but I still need to warn you all this is a huge, massive, spoil-filled post! So if you haven’t read Magic Redeemed, yet, don’t read this! Now, with that warning out of the way, let’s begin!

There were a couple of smaller pieces of Donkeyskin that I threaded into Magic Redeemed–several of you have already called out the sparkly, silver dress, which, yes, I designed after the second dress Gross King orders for his daughter–but the two biggest things I focused in on were Hazel’s signet ring/Princess Donkeyskin’s ring, and the parents, version 2.0.

Let’s start with the ring!

In the original story, the princess brings her dresses, and some of her royal jewelry with her when she’s on the run. Because she’s pretty conniving, when the Prince declares himself heartbroken and says he’ll only eat if it’s a cake made by her, donkeyskin drops her ring in the batter and cooks it into the cake. The pervy prince almost swallows it, but for him it’s the confirmation he needed. Donkeyskin is indeed the beautiful girl he peeped on.

Frankly, to me that sounded dead boring, and a waste of a good twist.

I like magic battles and fights in my books, so I decided to take ring in a different direction, and make it something Hazel needed to find, and instead of plunking it a cake, she goes through a lot of pain–and even breaks into a magical vault/bank–to get it. However, l kept it as the end all ‘proof of being who she says she is’ in order to pay homage to the original fairy tale. If Hazel has the ring, she has proof she’s the Adept–just as Donkeyskin slipping the prince the ring was the signal of who she was.

But instead of making the whole ring thing super obvious where everyone knows about it, I hid the ring in plain sight in Book 1 because–unlike the original story–I wanted it to be a real surprise to Hazel and you Champions when she found the real ring!

If you squint you can also see the similarities in the ring’s role–Prince Pervert says he’ll only marry the girl who can wear the ring, and in the end the House will only accept the Adept who has the ring. Killian doesn’t really play a role in the part of the story, except in that Rupert is right and he kicks Hazel out because he knows she can get her House back.

Next, Magic Redeemed gave Hazel’s parents their opportunity for a redemption arc.

OOOOHHHH, pulled that one over on you, didn’t I?? (Right?? Please say right!)

Actually, I’m aware this is possibly the twist you guys saw coming. I’m not overly fond of fairytales that constantly turn the parents into the bad guys. I’ve done some that way, but whenever possible I like to avoid it–and Donkeyskin is, weirdly enough, the perfect book to have the parents’ restored in, because Gross King in the original story actually gets a redemption moment when, at the end of the story, he attends Donkeyskin’s wedding and apologizes for everything he did.

Since both of Hazel’s parents were dead, Hazel couldn’t get a moment of physical closure, but I still wanted to give her that emotional closure that would assure her that her parents really were the kind, good people she thought they were. I also wanted this to be a defining moment for Hazel, because her parents essentially back up her decisions, which has a big impact on her actions in the future.

The thread of their redemption arc actually begins before Hazel even gets a hint of what they’d done to her. I designed this trilogy knowing that when Hazel’s parents called her in the very first scene of Book 1, they were asking her to meet them at the Curia Cloisters so they could tell her everything, and reveal to her the truth of her stunted magic. But I wanted to use Book 1 & Book 2 to draw out growth in Hazel–she learns a lot about making her own decisions–and to fulfill the icky parents’ end of the bargain, so I needed to hide the truth of their actions from you readers as well.

So, what do you think, Champions?

A Jaded Vampire

This is a little belated because I got behind while working on some other side projects–like bookkeeping, ewwww–but a huge thank you to everyone who took the time to leave honest reviews on Magic Redeemed!

The book launch has been fantastic, and that’s only possible because of you awesome and amazing Champions. Thank you so much for your support in this new series!

Now I’ll cut to the chase because I’ve been making you guys wait for it, but ta-da! I have the short story to celebrate the launch of Magic Redeemed! This one is called “A Jaded Vampire” and is about our very dear and most favorite red-headed vampire, Rupert.

HoB&M Universe: Fae

Attention, Class! Today’s supernatural topic is…the Fae!

 

Faes are the tricksters of magical society. While they are unable to lie, they have become masters at obscuring the truth and twisting words, making them difficult to trust and uneasy allies. They are not immortal, but they are long lived, frequently living to age 100 and beyond, and they are very slow to age.

At the top of the Fae food chain, we have the Paragon. The Paragon is the fae representative for the entire country, and is universally acknowledged to be the strongest fae in his/her boundary. However, the Paragon has strictly a representative role. He serves on the American Committee of Magic, and acts as a go-between for the various fae courts and nobles, but he is not the top fae ruler.

Beneath him, the fae rulers have the most input inside their regions. There is not a single, powerful member for the Regional Committees of magic, but rather a fae monarch who—like the Paragon—is a stand in and votes according to the will of the other fae courts. The monarch representative switches frequently as per the region’s rules.

The Fae monarchs have absolute control over their own domains, but they are often forced to work together with the other rulers if they want anything passed in the Regional Committee of magic. Alliances are frequently made and broken between Courts, thought there are some friendships and enmities that stretch on for centuries.

Most monarchs who rule over Courts, and some nobles have land in the fae realm, which is toxic and can only be lived in through the extensive use of wards and magic. All Courts and nobles, however, have human lands as well.

They have strictly defined territories, although the rulers often try to expand their reach. Most, however, are unable to enlarge their territory in the fae realm due to its toxic nature. The fae realm wasn’t always so deadly, but the lands were poisoned when the elves died.

The Fae used to fall under the control of the Elves, who cared for the lands and stifled any/all theatrics and rebellions the fae would normally pull. The death of the elves created a power vacuum among the Fae that they haven’t ever quite managed to fill. As a result, the various Courts tend to feud a lot, and there are always a bounty of court politics and drama.

The number of courts in a region varies a lot, as does the type of courts. For example, there are several winter courts—each is individually ruled by a single monarch, and all the monarchs are siblings. On the other hand, there is only one Night Court and Day Court in all of America. The Seelie, Unseelie, Spring, and Summer courts are most numerous–there is at least one seelie and unseelie Court in every region, sometimes there are even individual seelie/unseelie courts in large cities like Chicago and LA–and their territories shift the most as they war among themselves.

Court inheritance is dealt with on an individual, Court basis. The Seelie and Unseelie courts are frequently ruled by whomever is deemed strongest, until they willingly give up their positions or are killed by a challenger, where as the American Winter monarch siblings are among the most long-lived of fae and have been in power for over two centuries with no plan for inheritance. Some Courts are inherited, and others–like the Night Court–have monarchs specially chosen from its citizens.

Fae can have different physically appearances. Most commonly fae nobles appear humanoid, but their fashion, skin, hair, and eye colors vary greatly based on their Court. Similarly, Fae nobles do have wings, but the appearance and size vary from fae to fae. Wings aren’t often seen as they are signs of power and Fae often wish to conceal their true natures and powers.

Less powerful fae appear less humanoid—like hobgoblins and brownies—and there are lines of fae creatures that are animals, but are still known to be incredibly intelligent. (ie: Sun Stallions of the Day Court, Night Mares of the Night Court, etc.)

Lower fae always serve monarchs and nobles. Without the protection of a monarch they cannot survive the deadly ins and outs of Court life, unless they renounce their citizenship and live in the human world as a normal human.

Fae creatures are often seen as belonging to a court, but most of them run wild and free, and are usually quite vicious given that they survive in the fae realm, although there are some notable exceptions that live in protected woods.

Fae are more easily able to blend in than any other supernatural besides wizards, but they don’t often give up court life given their need to visit the fae realm, which always refreshes them and the magic they can use. If they do not live in/frequently visit the realm, their lifespan significantly drops, and they are unable to use magic.

Fae have several innate abilities—like the ability to create a glamour, which conceals their real appearance—but in order to use true magic, they must use magical artifacts.

The greatest magical artifacts were forged by elves, though wizards and fae together have managed to make some as well.

Magical artifacts come in two varieties—kinds that are forged for a specific purpose and hold a specific spell, and artifacts of power, which will allow its wielder to form magic on command, although for the most part they are very limited in their ability to harness the magic of elements, unlike Wizards. Artifacts, however, are still useful for creating wards, protective spells, healing magic, a form of basic hypnosis, explosions, and advanced forms of magic like spells that can seek out and destroy higher forms of magic.

As a supernatural race, the power balance of the fae Courts is in great need of balancing, unfortunately, there currently is no leader that is willing to work together with the other Courts…

The post HoB&M Universe: Fae appeared first on K. M. Shea.

HoB&M Universe: Characters

I’m a long time reader of the urban fantasy genre. I love the idea of the supernatural colliding with the mundane in our world. However, when I decided to write the Hall of Blood and Mercy trilogy, I knew I wanted my various supernaturals to come in slightly different flavors than the usual kinds you read about. Twisting long-held genre tropes/beliefs usually provides the best humorous content, so I decided to really focus my efforts on the secondary characters in this trilogy.

So let’s talk about a few of those people!

Celestina Drake is a vampire—and not just any vampire, but the First Knight of the Drake Family. She’s deadly, gorgeous, and powerful. But when I was designing her role, I puzzled out what would it be like to be the second-in-command of someone like Killian. I concluded she would be overworked, have no free time, and lack opportunities to make deep friendships. These are all problems Killian has, so it’s pretty natural that they’d be reflected in his top vampire.

After pinning down those problems, I asked myself, ‘How would this affect Celestina?’ And it was then that I realized she would be starved not only for friendship, but for anything at all relaxing.

And thus, her desire to experience spa-style pampering for the first time in her very long life was born! I had so much fun playing up this aspect of her personality—it makes a great foil for her raw power that she hides 99% of the time, and it’s a very unlikely hobby for a vampire, which gives me plenty of chances to play up the humor in her, as well.

This also played into a trope that I generally don’t like–the idea that two women obviously have to be at odds just because the boss guy is interested in one of them. My disdain for that common plot device made it so I wanted Celestina to go out of her way to welcome Hazel. (What did she have to lose? Because of Hazel Celestina was experiencing free time for the first time in her life!) Even beyond that, I wanted Celestina to become Hazel’s friend.

As humans, we need friendships. Friends support and encourage us. They make us laugh, and won’t hesitate to tell us like it is. I wanted to create a set of urban fantasy characters where this kind of friendship could bloom–because even kickbutt heroines need friends to help dust them off and get back up for the next fight.

Which brings me to the next point! It was also really important to me to express the warmth of Celestina’s personality, as well. The traditional vampire is classically very cold/unemotional. And while Celestina is serious when the occasion calls for it, she’s also welcoming and very charismatic, which is crucial for her role as First Knight. Think about it, if the Drakes only had Killian and Josh at the top, things would be reaaaallllyyy different. Even from a leadership aspect her warmth is important to balance out the Family.

And if I also deeply enjoyed undermining the classic vampire with her sparkling disposition, weeeeeelllll maybe that wasn’t entirely accidental. 

HoB&M universe: Werewolves

Today’s topic of discussion is: werewolves! Let’s get ready to pet some pooches!

Werewolves are not the only shifters in the Hall of Blood And Mercy universe, but they are the most numerous, and among the strongest.

They live in packs, which operate more like families, although there is an Alpha leader and a Beta, who serves as their second-in-command. Usually they prefer country life or quieter cities, but the more powerful and prominent Packs frequently have a house in the city for pack use as well as the pack land.

Pack members typically live close together, most often in the outskirts of a small town. (Only a handful of cities have more than one pack among its citizens.)

Werewolves are typically turned, similar to the way vampires are turned. However, it is possible for a werewolf to be born, but it is an incredibly rare occurrence. As a result, werewolf pups are heavily doted upon, and though not spoiled an entire pack will operate for the good of the child.

The Dominant is the highest ranked werewolf in the country, and he/she serve as the end-all leader of the werewolves. Regions are run by Pre-Dominants—high ranking alphas who take care of werewolf business on a regional level and serve on the Regional Committees of Magic. Pre-Dominants are usually chosen for their power and their ability to operate in the human world and co-operate with other shifters.

Most werewolves prefer a diet heavy in proteins, but it is usually up to personal taste. They do, however, have to digest a lot of calories to keep up with their high metabolisms and the calories that are consumed during transformations.

Werewolves often have a high drive to exercise, and it is considered normal for the Pack to do some training together—though the type varies from pack to pack. (Some might prefer weight lifting, while others focus on sparing.) The training not only allows a bonding experience, but serves as a way for the werewolves to expel excess energy.

Lone Wolves are wolves that are not official members of a Pack. They are few and far between given the social nature of wolves, and often times the wolf is not made a Loner out of their own desire, but because they were exiled or kicked out.

Werewolves transform into wolf-like creatures that are often times larger than regular wolves, but smaller than bears. The colors and patterns resemble what is found in nature, but there are often unusual fur shades and markings that make it easy to tell them apart.

Werewolves are easy to pick out in their human form. They often tend to be more muscled, but the easiest giveaway is their eyes—which range from piercing gold, which is most common, to some greens, amber-ish browns, and stark blues. Their eyes tend to contain extra strong colors, making them easy to tell apart from wizards or regular humans.

Werewolves are usually disciplined by the Pack, but if a werewolf goes mad, or breaks a law and the pack alpha does nothing, a Hunter may be called.

Hunters are families of humans who are raised to track, fight, and kill unruly werewolves. Most of these ancient families have died out, but there are still a few in every region of America. Although they lack the elemental magic of wizards, Hunters have an unnatural amount of stamina, speed, and strength when compared to a regular human.

It is said that all Hunters have werewolf blood somewhere in their families, although this has never been confirmed for certain.

The post HoB&M universe: Werewolves appeared first on K. M. Shea.

Magic Redeemed Available Now!

Release day has arrived!

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Magic Redeemed is now available to purchase or borrow from KU! I hope you enjoy it, ahahahahahahaaaaaaa…. This is probably a good time to also remind you all that the final book in this trilogy, Magic Unleashed, comes out in four weeks, so it’s not that long away! And I am saying that for totally innocent reasons, not because I suspect some of you might shriek at where I stop this book, certainly not!!