Today, we’re celebrating a blog tour for the lovely Genevieve Iseult Eldredge to celebrate the latest novel in her YA fantasy series, Circuit Fae. Nemesis is now available in all formats, and I hope you take the time to read about the book and check out a short interview with the author below.
ABOUT THE BOOK
What would you do if your beloved girlfriend suddenly became your worst enemy?
That dilemma’s all too real for Syl Skye, the last princess of the fair Fae.Even though Syl is all things sun and Summer, she’s drawn to her polar opposite, Rouen Rivoche, the dark Fae princess-assassin of the Winter Court.
They should be mortal enemies, but they’re best friends. Girlfriends. In love.
That is, until Roue falls under a dark spell that makes her forget all about Syl, their lives and their love. Now Roue rules Dark Faerie as a cruel and cold Queen. A Circuit Fae who can harness the killing magic in technology, she wants nothing more than to destroy Syl and her fair Fae people.
But when an old enemy brings both Faerie realms to the brink of destruction, only their queens, Syl and Rouen, can save the day—and only if they can put their differences aside for two seconds and team up.
With the clock’s ticking on Syl and Roue’s relationship—not to mention all of Faerie—will Rouen remember the love she and Syl once shared, or is she destined to be Syl’s nemesis forever?
Congratulations on your new release! What prompted you to write an urban fantasy series as opposed to a stand-alone book?
Thank you! I’m excited for everyone to read the newest installment of Syl and Rouen’s story. I decided to write a series because Syl and Rouen needed more than one book to fully grow and develop. They needed to discover who they were separately before they could come together, pledge their love, and be the queens their people need them to be.
Besides, I LOVED the idea of a super-gay series set in Faerie. 🙂
Do you have an end-game in sight, or are you making it up book to book?
I do plan to end THE CIRCUIT FAE series with the next book, Eidolon. I’m open to writing more books, but they’ll probably be about other characters like Prudence and Lennon or Becca and the Xi, with Syl and Rouen popping in for cameos.
I love Syl and Rouen’s story, but I’d rather leave off with people wanting more than having readers lose interest. Besides! I have a new work-in-progress. All I can say is: WITCHES AND DRAGONS!
What elements about the Fae attracted you to write about them?
The Fae are so versatile and volatile. I loved the idea of all the angsty teen lesbian emotions being ramped up by Faerie powers. I also thought the Fae’s mutability and diversity perfectly suited a queer story.
How do you balance writing realistic teenage characters that are still appealing to adult readers?
I hope I do! My approach is to really dig deep into the character, into all their motivations from big to small, and really dig out the universal feelings: love, hate, jealousy, altruism. This gives me a good feel for the character, then I layer in the snark.
Humor is very important in THE CIRCUIT FAE series, and I realize that a lot of my readers love the funny aspects as much as they like the romance, angst, and adventure.
I also read a lot and keep up on current media my readers are consuming.
If you lived in this book world, would you be part of the Summer or Winter Court? Why?
Summer. Winter is lovely, but I hate being cold. Maybe I should blame New England because the winter before I left, we had 30 feet of snow. 🙂
And finally, leave us with a short excerpt from Nemesis to show readers why they should check it out!
This is Chapter Two, from Rouen’s point of view. The rightful Queen of the Winter Court, Rouen’s under a dark spell and doesn’t remember she and Syl are in love. In fact, she thinks they’re mortal enemies!
I am Rouen Rivoche, the Queen of Dark Faerie, mistress of ice and snow and the Winter Court. Eighteen years old, and the survival of every single dark Fae depends on me. I must rule over the Dark Faerie realm with nothing but ruthlessness in my heart, if my people are to survive.
First, I must take my realm back from the enemy. The fair Faerie queen.
She’s my dearest love, but I can’t afford to love her anymore.
Like a fresh wound, my emotions tear me open, my throat closing painfully. And Dark Faerie responds. Zzzzttt…zzzzt! With a sharp, buzzing rattle, the pressure in the throne room changes; my ears pop.
A Ravaging.
This is the price for avoiding the age-old war between my people and Syl’s. Now, both sides of Faerie have crashed together in an ongoing apocalypse of warring Winter and Summer.
It’s my fault. Mercy, love, fear, these are for the weak. Dark Fae do not show weakness. I did once, for love.
This is my penance.
To steady myself, I grip the throne, a wreckage of fused black adamant and golden summersteel. Zzzzttt…zzzzt! I grit my fangs as the Ravaging hits—a blinding burst of Summer’s sun scorching across the ruined throne room, the fused sides of Dark Faerie and Fair Faerie lit up in stark, searing light. Once, the very hint of sunlight would have driven me back into shadow, but when those deadly-hot rays flash closer, I don’t cower.
I stand, arms open to embrace it, dark cloaks spread wide like wings.
The Ravaging slams into me, pain ripping through my body like I’m being torn apart. Blood bubbles up my throat, choking me. I welcome the pain, the searing burn of Summer power across my skin.
It marks me the way she marked me. Syl Skye, the rightful Queen of the fair Fae.
Faerie shakes and shudders to its bones, the dark Winter castle, the gloomy moors, the frigid wastes of Dark Faerie slamming and shifting against the bright Summer fortress, golden fields, and lush green forests of Fair Faerie. Both realms trying to occupy the same place in space and time, pushing, pulling against each other in a tug-of-war that can only end one way.
In the death of one of the Faerie realms.
I swear it won’t be mine, even as my heart cries out. For Syl. For the bond we share, a part of my soul fused with hers, a part of hers fused with mine. Just like our realms.
But our soul-bond’s been dead for days, weeks. On mute since her dark side took over. It doesn’t bode well, especially since, after thousands of years, Winter and Summer are warring again.
I’m caught in the middle, my heart a ragged mess.
Finally, the sun fades, dying rays releasing me from my torment. The velvety darkness of the throne room closes down over me, and the pain recedes. A coppery taste floods my mouth. I’ve bitten my lip bloody. I whirl, cloaks snapping in a wintry breeze, my soul a wreckage of guilt, anger, confusion.
I ache from the loss of my hearthstone. From the loss of Syl.
I clench my fist, Winter power flashes around it in freezing violet lightning. Don’t feel, Rouen.
“We’re ready for you, Majesty.” Etana’s voice slices through my torment and echoes softly through the fused throne room. There’s no mistaking the urgency in her hypnotic glowing green eyes. As one of my arch-Eld, Etana’s on my council. It’s her job to look out for her people, especially when she thinks their queen is being an idiot.
Guilt swells in my guts.
I’ve shirked my duty for too long, and my realm suffers. The aftershocks shiver and shudder through the bones of my kingdom, the agonized lament of my land and the cries of my people blaring in my head, dizzying me, throwing my emotions into a dark muddled mess.
I have to restore the order. And that means one thing. War.
“I’m coming.”
From Nemesis (Circuit Fae #4) by Genevieve Iseult Eldredge
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Raised by witches and dragons in the northern wilds, GIE writes angsty urban fantasy YA romance–where girls who are mortal enemies kick butt, take names, and fall in love against all odds.
She enjoys long hikes in the woods (where better to find the fair folk?), believing in fairies (in fact, she’s clapping right now), dancing with dark elves (always wear your best shoes), being a self-rescuing princess (hello, black belt!), and writing diverse books about teenage girls finding love, romance, and their own inner power.
She might be planning high tea at the Fae Court right now.
GIE is multi-published, and in her role as an editor has helped hundreds of authors make their dream of being published a reality.
Thanks for being on the tour! 🙂