Rituals & Runes AUTHOR FEATURE

Posted on | by C.D. Gorri
Tag along with heroes and heroines as they navigate the Rituals and Runes of enchanted worlds, chock-full of adventure & teeming with heart-stopping romances. 
And tag along with us to enjoy an author interview with Patricia D. Eddy to talk about her upcoming book, Rune Bound, which only appears in this hot anthology.
Author: Patricia D. Eddy

Book: Rune Bound 

R&R: Runes have a central theme in your story. Can you give us some hints about their role in the story and the book’s central conflict? 

Patricia: The Runes are everything to Rune Bound. Ysenia, the heroine, has been stolen from her life and transformed into a Runes, one who can read Runes but also one who can wield them in a fashion. Runes–in real life–have power only in their interpretation. They’re a guide. But Ysenia can use them for more than simply helping others find their path in life. For her, they come alive. 

A war is coming to the kingdom, and only Ysenia can help Rolf, the lord she is fated to love, survive. But to do so, she’ll have to give in to a terrible and agonizing power only she can control. 

R&R: What a creative way to use runes in a story. And that’s a doozy of a conflict. Love it!

What is the best thing that ever happened to your main characters? The worst?

Patricia: To be honest, not many good things happen to these characters outside of them falling in love. Of course, they do get their HEA at the end of the story, but before that…it’s a lot of danger and intrigue and bad things happening. 

R&R: Lots of adventure with twists and turns to look forward to.

What would have to happen to make your character speak out, or, defend a stranger, in public?

Patricia: At the beginning of the book, Ysenia is traumatized by the ordeal that “made” her. She’s known only pain and betrayal. But Rolf makes her feel safe and protected. That allows her to speak up for herself and others. She has an amazingly strong protective streak for the weak and oppressed, and she’s not afraid to defend anyone by the second half of the book. 

R&R: Very much a worthy heroine.

What makes your character powerful? 

Patricia: Ysenia’s power comes from the magic forced upon her during her making. The mystical forces that created her didn’t expect her to retain the magic, so they are quite surprised when she figures out how to harness her power. 

But her true strength and power come from her love. Both her love for Rolf and her love for the people she’s come to serve as Runess. 

R&R: She seems like a rounded but conflicted character. Intriguing!

Do you try more to be original or to deliver to readers what they want?

Patricia: I try to do both, honestly. But if the two clash, I choose what’s right for the story. I write broken characters, and my books are all character-driven rather than plot-driven. I let the main characters tell me what they need to do, when, and how. Often, that’s the exact opposite of what I thought they’d do. It can be quite frustrating, but every time I’ve tried to urge them back to the direction I want, they just flat out refuse. 

R&R: Bunch of rebels. Makes them interesting. 

What’s your favorite thing about writing?

Patricia: I love escaping into another world. That’s why I read and why I write. But even more, I love the relationships between the characters. 

R&R: Books truly come alive for authors as we write them, and readers when they read them. It is a beautiful escape. And nothing bears the amazing relationships between characters. Very true.

What books do you have coming out that are not involved in the anthology?

Patricia: I have two books up for preorder right now. The first is Book 4 in my Gone Rogue Series. Rogue Defender is about a washed up CIA agent who finds himself falling for a woman trying to stop extremist forces from overthrowing the Panamanian government. 

The second book, Trusting His Instincts, is Book 11 in my Away From Keyboard series. In this one, Raelynn, a complete badass former Air Force pilot has to save a man who drives her absolutely up a wall. They are opposites in every way, and she has to overcome her vow to never love again after her husband was killed several years prior. She’s an absolute joy to write because she’s just so irreverent and very, very Texas. 

R&R: You write such deep and exciting books!

Would you rather breathe underwater or fly?

Patricia: I have a very strong fear of drowning and I don’t really like heights. So I’d have to go with breathing underwater. 

That is hard choice then, but your answer makes total sense. 

Thanks for the interview. On to finding out more information relating to Rune Bound with a juicy tidbit!

Book blurb:

Ysenia

I was made in darkness. Stolen from a life I can no longer remember and turned into something…other. The runes bind me. They are my greatest power, but will also be my end. 

Only one man sees me as a person. As a woman. He says I am his mate. But loving me comes with a price I will not let him pay. 

Death. 

Rolf

As the leader of my pack, I must do whatever I can to protect them. A war is coming, and there is only one way we will survive. Ysenia was made to save us all. 

But when I see her, I know I must keep her safe. 

The Runess is my mate. 
If she learns what I have done, she will never accept me. 

Will my secrets keep us together or tear us apart?

Excerpt:

Ysenia
I was born in darkness. Forged. Made. Turned into something…other.
I was different once. A long time ago. We all were. Twenty-four of us. Taken from lives we no longer remember. Locked inside our own minds while nameless, faceless, utterly silent captors branded our skin.
Then, they turned their talents elsewhere.
I can spin tales so fantastical, the most talented storyteller in the world would fall at my feet. But that is only one of my skills.
The future is mine to foretell. If given the chance. Those who took us may have released us from the darkness, they will never let us be free.
Nor will the King. When we appeared, his royal mages were waiting.
I shudder as the silver bracelets clamped around each of my wrists catch the light. They drain my power every second of every day. But nothing I do loosens them even a fraction.
Restless, I drift over to the window. A gentle breeze carries the scent of jasmine to my nose. The dark green vines dotted with tiny white flowers climb the sheer walls of the tower. The first day, I thought I could use them to climb down. But one touch dashed that hope on the craggy rocks below. The delicate plants can barely support the weight of the songbirds that come each afternoon.
The sea sparkles in the distance. I wonder what it feels like. What it smells like. I should know these things. But before the darkness, there’s nothing.
And after…
***
I can see. The sensation is so foreign, it takes me several moments to understand what all these shapes are in front of me. Buildings. Stone walls. Wooden doors. Cobblestone streets.
I need air. Space. Sun. I remember sun. Stumbling steps carry me to the end of an alleyway.
“Stop!”
Shadows surround me, and a blast of pure agony hits me in the chest. My knees buckle, then hit the stones.
“Do not move!” an angry, male voice shouts. “Or the next spell will stop your heart.”
 I blink up at a dozen men and women clad in royal blue robes. “Wh-what…?” I croak. I do not remember the last word I uttered. Only silent screams no one could hear.
“Bind her powers,” the man says.
Two of the others grab my arms and pull them taut. The silver is cold against my skin. It feels wrong. My stomach twists and turns. Suddenly, I’m so weak, staying upright is impossible.
With a tiny moan, I collapse, and that’s when I first see the mark. Two lines. One on either side of my breastbone . A third angles down from the right to the left. My sleeves ride up, and more dark symbols cover my arms.
As the men drag me away, I do not fight. Because the marks on my skin burn, and I hear a voice I know is only in my mind. 
“The runes bind you. In this world and the next. You will be power. Might. Destruction for all.”
Author Bio:

Patricia D. Eddy writes romance for the beautifully broken. Fueled by coffee, wine, and Doctor Who episodes on repeat, she brings damaged heroes and heroines together to find their happy ever afters in many different worlds. From military to paranormal to BDSM, her characters are unstoppable forces colliding with such heat, sparks always fly.
Patricia makes her home in Seattle with her husband and very spoiled cats, and when she’s not writing, she loves working on home improvement projects, especially if they involve power tools. 
Her award-winning Away From Keyboard series will always be her first love, because that’s where she realized the characters in her head were telling their own stories—and she was just writing them down.

Where to find her:

Web: https://patriciadeddy.com
Instagram: https://instagram.com/patriciadeddy
Facebook page: https://facebook.com/patriciadeddyauthor
Facebook group: https://facebook.com/groups/UnstoppableForcesTeam 
TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@patriciadeddyauthor 


Get more magical & paranormal-themed stories like this in Rituals & Runes!

Universal: https://books2read.com/rituals

Amazon: https://amzn.to/3oz9aGJ