Greetings and well-met to author Karin Rita Gastreich on her Magic Appreciation Tour for the audio release of her novel
Eolyn, the prequel to her latest book release
High Maga. Karin writes fantasy fiction with strong female characters, but I was most intrigued with her concept of Dragon as it fits into the magical world she has created. Karin is a lovely, intelligent lady and a talented author, and I am so pleased to have her on my blog. After you read the fascinating article on Dragon below, make sure you check out the YouTube audio preview. What an enjoyable, melodious excerpt! And don't forget to enter the Giveaway!
Dragon
By Karin Rita Gastreich
When Lori Fitzgerald invited me to visit her blog during this tour, I
knew at once that I wanted to write a post about Dragon. What could be a better fit, given the recent
release of Lori’s romantic adventure, The
Dragon’s Message?
Dragons are extraordinarily versatile, given the fact that the basic
blue print of “fire-breathing flying serpent” rarely changes. We have Smaug of
Tolkien fame, the epitome of the greedy, destructive beast ready to wreak havoc
on the world. We find Smaug’s polar opposite in Draco from “Dragon’s Heart”,
who represents all that is honorable and true in humankind. The wonderful Falcor, that fuzzy dragon from The Never Ending Story, is one of my
personal favorites. Certainly, he’s the most huggable dragon on record.
The variations on the dragon theme are endless, and I hope some of you
will share your favorite dragon examples in the comments. Today I want to tell
you a little bit about the role Dragon plays in Eolyn’s world.
In the novel ‘Eolyn’, Dragon is not a biological or physical creature,
but rather a spiritual entity.
At the beginning of time, Dragon taught the legendary figures Aithne
and Caradoc the ways of High Magic. Also called “Messenger”, Dragon was sent by
the gods who supported Aithne and Caradoc’s search for cures and spells that
could contribute to the welfare of their people.
Many generations after appearing to Aithne and Caradoc, Dragon returned
in its true form to teach the first mage warrior Caedmon how to use magic during
the brutal struggle against the People of Thunder. This was a crucial turning
point in the history of Eolyn’s people. Until Dragon appeared to Caedmon, it
was forbidden to use magic to cause physical harm to another. But through Dragon’s intervention, Caedmon
brought magic to the battlefield, turning the tide of a war that would
otherwise have ended in the annihilation of all practitioners.
In his campaign against the People of Thunder, Caedmon formed an
alliance with the warrior chief Vortingen.
Following their victory in that long and terrible war, Dragon appeared
once more and granted Vortingen the crown of the Kingdom of Moisehén. Vortingen and all his descendants were
charged with protecting the mages and magas, and through them the traditions of
Aithne and Caradoc.
Although Dragon has appeared in its true form only a handful of times,
as a spiritual entity it can take on the shape of any living creature. As a result, Dragon has walked the earth on
countless occasions. When Eolyn makes her pilgrimage into the forest to
petition for a staff of High Magic, her tutor Ghemena advises her to be
prepared for all possibilities when receiving a visit from Dragon. Dragon can
appear as something as innocuous as an ant, or as fearsome a bear.
No matter what form it chooses, Dragon reveals to the initiate what
elements are to be incorporated in his or her staff. Under the traditions of the Old Orders, it
was widely taught that Dragon appeared as a male to mage initiates and as a
female to maga initiates, although there were of course exceptions to this
rule. If Dragon does not appear during
the pilgrimage of the initiate, it is understood that the Gods for whatever
reason have judged High Magic to be an inappropriate burden for the petitioner.
Dragon is often referred to in Eolyn’s world as the Silver
Serpent. In its true form, Dragon’s
scales are iridescent and highly reflective; they can take on a variety of
colors. Nonetheless, artwork in Moisehén
portrays Dragon only in silver. The
sigil of the ruling House of Vortingen, for example, is a silver dragon against
a purple night. Eolyn’s ally Corey of
East Selen wears a clasp on his cloak in the form of a silver Dragon. At a key
moment in their relationship, Prince Akmael gives Eolyn a silver bracelet with
images of the many forms in which Dragon has been known to appear: winged
serpent, snake, lion, butterfly, river otter, fish and many others. Each figure
on the bracelet blends into the next, creating a single creature as fantastic
as imagination itself.
One of the most beloved and feared entities of Eolyn’s world, Dragon is
the guardian of her people and the patron of all mages and magas. It is not a
wild creature that razes villages, nor is it a companion that can be flown into
battle. Rarely does Dragon appear in its true form, yet it constantly intervenes
in the lives of Eolyn’s people, in intimate and complex ways. Every time a
spell is invoked and the power of the gods is made manifest in Eolyn’s world,
Dragon is at work.
EOLYN [audio edition]
Karin Rita Gastreich
(author)
Darla Middlebrook
(narrator)
Sole heiress to a forbidden craft, Eolyn lives in a world
where women of her kind are tortured and burned. When she meets Akmael,
destined to assume the throne of this violent realm, she embarks upon a path of
adventure, friendship, betrayal and war. Bound by magic, driven apart by
destiny, Eolyn and the Mage King confront each other in an epic struggle that will
determine the fate of a millennial tradition of magic.
"Vigorously told deceptions and battle scenes will
satisfy fans of traditional epic fantasy, with a romantic thread." – Publishers Weekly
“Magnificently written.” –Kindle Book Review
Purchase Link:
About the Author
KARIN RITA GASTREICH lives in Kansas City and Costa Rica. An
ecologist by trade, her past times include camping, hiking, music, and flamenco
dance.
Karin's first fantasy novel,
EOLYN, was released by Hadley Rille Books in 2011. The companion novel, HIGH
MAGA, is also available from Hadley Rille Books. Karin’s short stories have
appeared in
Zahir,
Adventures for the Average Woman, 69 Flavors
of Paranoia, and A Visitor to Sandahl.
She is a recipient of the Spring 2011 Andrews Forest Writer’s Residency.
Follow Karin’s adventures into fantastic worlds, both real and imagined, at
http://eolynchronicles.blogspot.com
and at
http://heroinesoffantasy.blogspot.com.
Author Web Links:
Twitter: @EolynChronicles
About the Narrator
With experience of 34+ years as a Speech-Language
Pathologist, more than 20 years as a stage & film actor and over 20 years
as a trained singer with knowledge and insight into the mechanics of the voice
and speech, Darla Middlebrook brings a wealth of experience to bear to develop
character voices (male, female, mature, extremely elderly, creepy, bright
exotic, etc) with an impressive emotional range.
Currently, Darla is one of many voice actors who narrates
podcasts for AIRS-LA (an audio internet service for individuals with visual
challenges) in addition to narrating audio books. She is able to produce retail quality audio
books from her home studio in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan - Canada.
Narrator Web Links:
Twitter: @GypsyCatVoice
Rafflecopter Giveaway:
Lori, thanks for hosting me! I love the dragon pics you found. :)
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