In Victorian England, Evangeline’s gift to speak with animals draws her into a dark family mystery where souls are trapped and salvation lies in faith and courage.
My Kick-Ass Back Cover Description:
Secrets whisper in the woods… and dreams can become prisons.
In this spellbinding Victorian-era Christian fantasy, seventeen-year-old Evangeline is sent to live with her mysterious and beautiful Aunt Henoria, a woman with a shadowed past and dangerous ties to a powerful man named Julian, who can trap people inside their dreams. Far from home and haunted by a creeping, invisible creature that stalks her every step, Evangeline discovers she possesses a rare and wondrous gift: the ability to speak with animals, commune with nature, and protect the sacred northern wood from the darkness pressing in upon it.
But Dragonspire, her aunt’s ancient, living house with shifting rooms and secrets in every hallway, is no sanctuary. As Evangeline unravels her family’s legacy with the help of her brave cousin Rafe, the quiet and kind orphaned Lena, and Henoria’s protector, the brooding Alistair, she is drawn deeper into a web of magic, mystery, and long-buried lies. And Julian is watching… waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
Perfect for fans of gothic romance, supernatural suspense, and alternate history fantasy, this richly woven tale blends Christian allegory, magical realism, and Victorian intrigue. Thornewicke is a haunting coming-of-age story about finding your purpose, guarding the boundaries of light and darkness, and learning that sometimes the greatest battles are fought within.
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The Story Behind the Story
Looking back on this tale makes me smile, because it was one of my first published books and I felt so proud of it. I would do a lot of things differently if I wrote it now (mostly add a lot more description!), but it’s a solid story about a young woman thrust into the middle of a mystery. Who is this aunt nobody ever told her about? What is that Gollum-esque creature that keeps following her home after school and lurking in the shadows? Why is it nobody but her can understand what animals are thinking?
Then, she reaches the northern woods and unravels a few of these mysteries, but also comes up with a lot more questions… why has her aunt never married Alistair, because he is amazing? (Seriously, I adore Alistair. He could save your soul with one hand while kicking demon butt with the other. And he broods.) What is the connection Henoria has to the man full of menace, Julian? (I also love Julian, you know, in the way only an author can love a man who traps you inside your dreams for evil reasons.)
With two of her friends and eventually, the inventor Nikola Tesla, Evangeline embarks on a slightly Steampunk adventure, along with her cat, Sebastian. Cats always favor heavily in my books where I can include them, inspired by my deep and abiding love for them. Sebastian is largely inspired by C. S. Lewis’ Aslan, a wise voice of reason and a creature that may be more than he first appears. Or maybe he just echoes the deepest desire of my soul, to be connected to and able to understand and communicate with all living things.
