Movies, Shows, & Books: BLOG TOUR: Sealer's Game by Kathy Coleman

Welcome to the Official Blog Tour for Sealer's Game, the first title in the Sealer Saga, by Kathy Coleman! So... Let's kick off this blog tour with a guest post featuring the Top 10 Reasons To Read Sealer’s Game (and the rest of the Sealer Saga) AND a cool author-hosted, tour-wide giveaway to share! Be sure to check it out and grab your copy now! Don't forget to follow the tour, HERE!!!

Genre:

Adult
Fantasy Romance
Series:
Sealer Saga, #1

Publish Date:

October 22, 2019

Synopsis:

As Champion, Carita of Bel Auryn thought she would spend her days fighting demons. Instead, she is drawn into the latest scheme of the Moon Goddess, Ruby: a contest to choose a man who will have the "honour" of fathering her child. When Ruby encourages Carita to choose a man for herself, she picks the man she is most drawn to--and immediately regrets it.

Lucian Veradayne is the Lord of Death. He knows he must win Ruby's game at any cost. It doesn't matter that he has avoided her for two thousand years. Nor that she tried to kill their first child. And it really doesn't matter that he would much rather woo Carita. The Soul Well has given Lucian a prophecy: he and Ruby must have another child. A child who will save the world.

Dealing with their mutual attraction will be the least of Lucian and Carita’s problems. They are not the only ones who have been drawn into Ruby's game. Someone else wants to win. Someone who wants Ruby dead. Will Carita and Lucian be able to protect her long enough for a victor to be named? And if they succeed, will they be able to walk away from each other to ensure the prophecy is fulfilled?

Sealer's Game is a 55,000 word fantasy romance novella about the King of the Underworld, a kick-butt warrior priestess, and a ruthless goddess who will stop at nothing to get her own way. It contains language, descriptions of violence, and sexual themes that may not be appropriate for all readers. Recommended for ages 18+.

*Top 10 Reasons To Read Sealer’s Game (and the rest of the Sealer Saga)*

1. Fate or free will?

This is the big struggle that caused a rift between the Sky Sealers and Shadow Sealers long ago, and it continues to be a constant theme throughout the series. It’s the Sealers’ job to make sure the balance of the realms they watch over doesn’t go completely haywire, but there are ways to do that which leave those they serve with freedom, and ways that turn them into the Sealers’ servants. We start in the realm of Zynedia, where the citizens, known as Kindred, view them as Gods. But I did my best to make sure readers would know that’s not the only place the story will be happening as clearly as possible.

2. Heroes with unusual powers.

Mythological heroes usually exemplify the most desirable traits in people or nature: love, the sun or moon, wealth, travel, healing. My leading men for the Sealer Saga deal with much darker responsibilities. What does it mean to be the Lord of Death, or Famine, or Plagues, or Justice, or Judgement, Fear, and Pain (how’s that for a rotten luck cocktail)? What would being responsible for one of those things do to a person? What would the person responsible for any of those things actually be doing? What would they be like? What would happen if they tried to rebel against the power (they are referred to as Purposes in the story) they had connected with and been accepted by?

3. A fresh take on the idea of immortals / Gods with human qualities.

I’ve always loved the idea that the Greek Gods had deeply human emotions and that they were capable of great good or evil. But I didn’t want to write another Hades and Persephone story, or figure out if Apollo would still be a jerk if his love interest competed against him in a reality talent show in modern day. It often drives me up the wall when people do certain things in Greek Myth retellings, so I decided to sidestep that whole mess by creating my own deities and rules from scratch.

4. Sometimes villains can be vulnerable.

Another thing I wanted to tackle, especially since my heroes often have the darker powers and my villains hold a lot of the talents or traits people tend to value, is the idea that villains aren’t just the ‘bad guys’. I’m not about that, and I’m not here to crap on stuff like love, light, nature, etc. Often, a good villain is only the ‘villain’ because of the angle a tale is being told from. Most people think they are striving toward something good; that they are the heroes of their own story. They try to justify things, even when those things might be hard for someone else to grasp. I’ve tried to remember that when I work on some of the more morally questionable characters in my series.

5. Sometimes heroes can make mistakes.

This is the opposite side of the coin we were just discussing. If a villain is capable of rescuing a kitten, then it stands to reason that a hero or heroine can misjudge someone, make a bad decision, or have a goal opposed to another character that puts them into conflict. The bonds and connections between all the major characters in the series are the backbone that holds it together, and these people do not always agree with each other.

6. Characters relationships develop and change over multiple books.

This is not your normal one book = one couple who gets their happily ever after type of series. Each book tends to have a main couple who are being featured and whose relationship is being advanced, but each pairing has different scenes that happen throughout the series which shows their growth over an extended period of time. This allows me to focus in on a set amount of time where something exciting is happening to them, without falling into the pitfall that they fell in love in two weeks and lived happily ever after. Even with Carita and Lucian, who do have a strong bond in a short period of time, caring about each other is only half of the battle. It’s not just do they Want to be together—it’s will they be Able to be?

7. Friendships are just as important as romance.

I’ve been talking a lot about connections between characters, and that continues here. My characters interact with each other both about their relationships with love interests, but also because various characters have their own separate bonds as well. I find it frustrating when characters only show up to effect the main characters of a story rather than by having their own lives and have striven not to make that error in my own stories.

8. Sometimes truly bad things happen.

People are injured. Terrible choices are made. Feelings are hurt. Trust or hearts are broken. Characters die (sometimes temporarily, sometimes for real). Sometimes two characters might get together temporarily and it won’t work out because the person they are with is not their Happily Ever After. (I try to give hints when this is the case; I don’t want to mess with my readers. There is generally a good reason I’m showing that pairing.)

9. But hold on and keep turning the pages. If I’ve promised a Happily Ever After, the characters will get it. Really. (I take this very seriously!)

There are six key couples in my series. Five of them get direct POV happy endings over the course of having various books host their adventure, whereas the last couple’s HEA spans the entire series and unfolds gradually. I have a “Who’s story is this?” section where I introduce the couples for anyone who wants to know who to cheer for. Or the reader can skip that page and just go along with the story. As someone who has wanted to wall toss books over annoying love triangles, I wanted to ensure my readers would have a choice in how they experience things.

10. Miniature three headed hell hounds.

They’re cute. They’re fluffy. They’re noisy. But they’re about the same size as a mini schnauzer—unless they scent that you’ve committed a crime. Then they shift into the terrifying beasts from classic mythology that strike fear into the hearts of all who see them. Since they are a specialty breed specific to the Underworld, most people don’t get to see them in their cute, cuddly state. So I’m here to set the record straight. Not all Hell Hounds are terrifying monsters. Though some are prone to giving people ‘kisses’. If you’re not a fan of puppy kisses, approach with caution! :)

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**About the Author**

Kathy Coleman lives in a little town in Ontario with her parents, one younger brother and two mischievous little dogs named D'Argo and Coco. She attended Trent University, majoring in English and Cultural Studies.

When she is not being kept awake at 3 a.m. by characters who refuse to quit talking, she can be found performing karaoke at charity events, updating her book blog I Write, I Read, I Review, shopping, or playing video games.

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