Today, I have Jessica Aspen, author of The Prince of Blood & Bone, discussing the difference between fantasy romance and paranormal romance. Be sure to check out her giveaway at the end of this post for a chance to win an ecopy of her new release.
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Recently someone asked me which of my books they would enjoy
most and I found myself trying to explain to how fantasy romance is different
from paranormal romance. You see, my other books are sexy shape-shifter
stories. They have a contemporary setting and the world building, while it’s
there, is not nearly so complex. I knew that. I knew that my Twisted
Tales: Come Into the Woods were easier to write, faster to write, and
quicker to read than the Tales of the Black Court. But until
I had to articulate the difference, I didn’t realize why they were more of a
challenge to write.
I had to stop and think. What makes the short, spicy
novellas different from the longer fantasy romances? And I realized it’s word
choice. Fantasy romance readers require authors to stretch their boundaries. To
use a large vocabulary. To build worlds so complex they exercise our
imaginations. Fantasy authors use big words and big concepts—and their readers
like it. Fantasy readers aren’t afraid of pulling out a dictionary and looking
up something they didn’t know. In fact, they like rising to the dare.
It’s not that my shapeshifter twisted fairy tales are for
stupid people. I wouldn’t have fun writing anything like that and my readers
wouldn’t like reading it either. They’re fun and smart stories—a little
tongue-in-cheek. It’s just that as an author, when you’re building an entire
world from scratch, you need to search your mind for new political situations,
new ways to show magic, and new adventures. That’s not true with a shapeshifter
romance set in a modern day setting. Then you only have to come up with your
basic rules of how your world is different than normal. But for a fantasy
romance with a large scope you need to come up with everything, from creatures
to language to magical rules.
This is particularly difficult for me because I twist fairy
tales. I have a well-known plot to start with. My big challenge is to take a
story we are so familiar with we know it by heart and change it into a new
story, a more complex story. One that isn’t for children but is instead especially
designed for an adult reader who has devoured the world of fantasy books and is
looking for a new story to feed their hunger.
So, when you pick up one of my books you’ll find that I love
language and I use it to take a fairy tale like Beauty and the Beast and
morph it into a tale of romance and intrigue like Prince by Blood and Bone.
You’ll find new elements and old, braided together into a story for an
intelligent reader. Because, like all romance readers, fantasy readers are
smart. And they deserve a story that rises to their level. That’s why we read
fantasy, isn’t it?
Why do you like fantasy romance? What do you look for in a
fantasy romance novel? Pacing? World building? Hot, steamy romance?
*~*~*
Prince
by Blood and Bone
Tales
of the Black Court
Book
Two
Jessica
Aspen
Genre: Fantasy Romance
Publisher: Abracadabra Publishing
Date of Publication: April 2014
ISBN: 978-0-9899558-1-2
ASIN: B00JN858RK
Word Count: 90,000 words
Cover Artist: Kari Ayasha Cover
to Cover Designs
Book Description:
A
rebellious prince, a reluctant witch, and a mysterious prophecy,twisted
together in a tale of Beauty and the Beast
Trapped in an underground palace
Prince Kian must remain a beast, or give in to the queen’s plan to strip him of
his powers. But Kian refuses to submit to his mother's evil plan and is
determined to escape both his prison and his curse—even if it means dabbling in
witch's magic.
On the run for most of her life,
Bryanna MacElvy has never learned to use her healing Gift. When she’s pulled by
Kian’s spell into his prison, the prince sees the golden witch as his
salvation. Refusing to let her, or to accept she is incapable of curing him,
Kian offers her a terrible bargain—heal him, or give up her freedom forever.
Their lives entwined by fate, the
prince must learn to love a human and Bryanna must learn to trust herself—or
risk losing their freedom, his powers, and their passion, to the evil of the
Black Queen.
Dare
to enter Jessica Aspen’s world of steamy, fantasy romance in book two of her
fairy tale trilogy: Tales of the Black Court
Excerpt:
Kian barely got into his chamber
and slammed the door shut before succumbing to his desperate need, frantically
clawing off the confining cloak, scrunching it into a bundle, and viciously
hurling it into a corner. He shook with the effort of controlling himself, his
rage, anger, and frustration, spewing out in a bone-shaking roar.
As the dust settled, he paced the
room, shoving broken furniture out of his way and listening to the tinkling of
the crystal chandelier as it quivered to a stop.
He’d been here too long. So long
he’d forgotten how a single breath of rose-scented skin could tempt a man to
violence.
From the long blond hair and
almond-shaped glass green eyes, all the way down her very long legs in those
ridiculously short shorts, she couldn’t have been any more tempting. And he’d
been tempted. Tempted to rip off her clothes and see what her full breasts
looked like below the low scoop of her tank top. Tempted to lick and taste and
devour her skin all the way down to the soft indent of the belly button that
had flashed him when he’d scared her. Tempted enough to take her, and ravish
her, and jeopardize all chance of her good will.
The wench had no idea how close
she’d come to being violated.
If she hadn’t turned out to be a
witch, would he have been able to resist the lure of her femininity? He’d been
alone with only Beezel and the goblins for too long. He didn’t think any man
would resist a fantasy sex slave dropped into his prison. But she wasn’t a
slave. She was his only hope, and he would need to woo her into helping him
break the curse.
Kian crossed to the full-length
mirror he forced himself to look into once a day, lest he forget how much his
mother hated him. She had twisted his Gift, and it was twisting his soul. His
magic was strong, a legacy of his royal blood, and she’d used it against him
the way only his twisted mother could. She’d taken his Gift, a thing of beauty,
the ability to take on any shape—a mouse, a troll, a wolf, anything at all—and
she’d perverted it before imprisoning him.
He stared and brooded at his
reflection in the mirror, at the worst motley of animals he’d ever seen.
Himself. And wondered what the terribly young, terribly beautiful, terribly
innocent witch would think.
The upright stance of a human,
but the humped-up shoulders of a bear. The razor-sharp talons of an eagle, but
the heavy, earthbound weight of a boar. Long tusks protruded next to his
wolf-like muzzle, and if it weren’t for magic, his too long tongue and sharp
fangs would make speech impossible. His mother had stolen all his shapes from
him and left him a mess, but at least she’d left him the ability to
communicate. Goddess only knew why.
No woman would want to look at a
creature like him. No woman would kiss a man with a wolf’s face and tongue, and
a boar’s tusks. No woman would be running her hands down his coarse, hairy
chest, and when she discovered what lay between his thighs? No.
His fist lashed out and connected
with the mirror. Gleaming shards of glass flew, catching in his short, scrubby
mane and fur.
The girl would help him. And
soon. He didn’t know how long he could restrain himself from burying his face
in her hair, and his cock between those long, long legs.
A hesitant knock sounded on the
door.
“Come in.”
Beezel entered and scrambled into
a low bow.
“Enough of that.” Kian began
pacing again, too restless to stand still. “Does she like her room? Do you
think we should have put her in the one next to the library instead?”
The gnome’s accusing eyes took in
the broken glass and the shattered mirror, but like the good servant he
pretended to be, he kept his opinion to himself. Kian restrained the
overwhelming urge to beat the gnome for the reproach he would never voice.
“I’m sure she’ll be fine, Your
Highness. She doesn’t seem to care.”
“Doesn’t care?” Kian crossed to
the trembling gnome, who edged closer to the open door. “Explain,” he growled.
Beezel hesitated. “She threw
herself on the bed, sobbing, as soon as she entered. She doesn’t want to be
here, none of us do.”
Kian stalked up and down the
large room, pushing chairs and tables out of his way. “She’s staying.”
“Sire, I doubt your mother will
let her.”
“My mother!” Kian crossed the
room and picked up the gnome, shaking him hard until his arms and legs flew as
if on strings. “You will not tell the queen. You will not tell anyone about
this girl. Do you understand?”
“B-b-but, I must.” The gnome’s
knees knocked together.
“Beezel,” Kian lowered his voice
and drew close to the gnome. “If you do, I will kill you.”
“If I d-d-don’t the q-q-queen
will do much worse.”
The reek of the gnome’s fear
overwhelmed his sensitive wolf’s nose.
“Beezel, the queen is not here. I
am. The strength of the spell confining me here has left her blind to whatever
goes on within the confines of my prison. She’ll never know if you don’t tell
her.” He lowered his voice and whispered into the gnome’s bumpy, pointed ear,
“But I’ll know if you tell the queen and the girl is taken away from me. And
I’m sure you will still be here for me to punish.”
He lowered Beezel to the ground
and patted his bald head. “Beezel, what do you desire? Jewels? Gold? An
underground palace such as this one?” Kian swung his arm wide. The warren was
falling apart, but for a cavern gnome such as Beezel, it would be more lavish
than any other home he would have in his lifetime. “Once I am released I can
give you all of that, and more. But only once the witch has freed me from this
curse that binds my form and my powers. If you tell the queen and she takes the
witch, I will still be stuck here, but without a chance of freedom, and
whatever hold she has over you will remain.” He paused, and sighed. “Trust me,
she never lets go. If you do this, I’ll set you free and make sure you’re well
rewarded.”
The little gnome avoided his
gaze. “Well, Beezel? What’s it to be? Do I reward you, or do I have to kill you
now to gain some time?” Kian pushed out a frustrated breath. “Are you in?”
Beezel moved his head in a slow
nod.
Kian’s muscles relaxed in a rush
of relief. He didn’t know what he would have done if the gnome had refused. He
likely would have had to kill him, and who knew what the queen would send next.
“Good,” he said. “Swear to me
you’ll not tell anyone about our visitor, anything about the girl, nor my endeavors.”
The gnome’s voice came out almost
too low to hear, but Kian caught the words. “I swear.”
For the first time in too long
the tell-tale energizing upswing of joy and anticipation tingled along his
nerves. Finally, after too many years in this dusty abandoned place, he would
have his own shape, his powers, and his freedom.
About
the Author:
Jessica Aspen has always wanted
to be spirited away to a world inhabited by elves, were-wolves and sexy men who
walk on the dark side of the knife. Luckily, she’s able to explore her fantasy
side and delve into new worlds by writing paranormal romance. She loves
indulging in dark chocolate, reading eclectic novels, and dreaming of ocean
vacations, but instead spends most of her time, writing, walking the dog, and
hiking in the Colorado Rockies.
Website: http://jessicaaspen.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JessicaAspen
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/jessicaaspen/
Join the Jessica Aspen mailing
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Jessica sends you an email, there’s always something in it for you! http://eepurl.com/zs4Sj
Giveaway: an e-copy of book one, The Dark Huntsman, A Fantasy Romance of the Black Court, to one lucky commenter.
1 comments:
I do find that that love of language does come through to the reader. I'd never thought about the difference in language depending upon the length of the story.
marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
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