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Tuesday, January 24, 2012

Of Truths and Legends

I’ve written, or am in the process of writing, three very different paranormal romance series. My Feral Warriors series is about the last nine shape-shifters in the world, each of whom shifts into a different animal, and their battle to keep the Daemons from once more rising. In my Vamp City series, a young woman stumbles upon a dark and deadly vampire utopia—a world whose magic is crumbling. A world she alone can save.


And then there’s my Esri series. In this one, an ancient evil has found its way back into our world and the only ones who can stop it don’t know it exists.

It’s the Esri series I want to talk about because, well, book three, A Warrior’s Desire, comes out today. I thought you might be interested in hearing how I came up with the idea for the series in the first place. Because that ancient evil I mentioned? They’re the Esri, the creatures at the heart of the legends of fairies and elves.

I’ve heard it said that every legend has, at its heart, a kernel of truth. Now the ‘truth’ may be as simple as, yes, there was once a great Saxon warrior by the name of Arthur. Did he live in Camelot, have a magician called Merlin as a friend, and sit at a round table? Hard to say since there were no video cameras or even literate witnesses around at the time to record the details. When it comes to oral history, it’s a near certainty that facts are going to get embellished, misinterpreted, or flat out changed to suit the storyteller. As my beloved grandmother used to say, “Why should I tell it the way it happened when I can make it so much more interesting?” (Guess where I got my storytelling talent from?)

Fairies and elves are a good example of how legends morph and change. In most of the original tales, both were the size of humans, decidedly wingless, and generally dangerous. Over the generations, the stories have changed to the point where modern culture portrays them as benevolent tiny winged creatures or pointy-eared dwarfs.

I’m a daydreamer, I’ve always been a day dreamer, but I’m also an intensely logical person. So, some years ago, when I stumbled upon a book of ancient faerie beliefs and realized that as recently as the 1800’s many very learned people absolutely believed fairies were real, I got to thinking. What if there really was a kernel of truth in these old legends? What if, long, long ago, there really were faeries in this world? My logical mind promptly took over and started firing off questions. What happened to them? Why were they here? Why aren’t they here any more? How, over the centuries, have the original facts been twisted and changed as original facts always are? And, best of all, what would I do if suddenly faced with irrefutable fact that the creatures at the heart of the legends had returned? Not cute little Tinkerbells, but man-sized, malevolent beings bent on the enslavement of the human race?

And so the Esri were born. In Book 1 of the series, The Dark Gate, the first Esri in fifteen centuries finds his way back into the human realm and wreaks havoc on modern day Washington, D.C. The hero and heroine have to accept the impossible in order to stop him, and come to realize there’s truth in the old legends after all. In Book 2, I flip that realization a bit when one of the Esri, a dangerous, dark-haired, part-human known as the Punisher, infiltrates the human realm to destroy the only humans who can stop the Esri invasion, only to realize humans are a far cry from the mindless creatures his own legends have portrayed. One human, in fact, steals his heart and changes his understanding of everything he’s known, including himself.

In book 3, A Warrior’s Desire (the one that comes out today), the back cover says it best:  Former navy SEAL Charlie Rand embarks on the most dangerous mission of his career when he dives through a portal to rescue the only person who knows how to seal the gates between the Esri faery land and the world. But meeting up with his guide and companion through the adventure, the beautiful Tarrys, turns out to be his true revelation. As the pair traverses the dangerous plains, the Forest of Nightmares and the crystal mines of Esria, they’re pursued by beings who seek to kill Charlie and enslave Tarrys. But the greatest danger of all becomes the love that grows between the couple, a love that threatens to doom their mission to save humanity.
And in book 4, Warrior Rising (which will be out March 20th), enemies turn into lovers as Harrison Rand and the Esri princess, Ilaria, fight to keep the evil Esri king from destroying both worlds in this action-packed conclusion to the series.

Have you ever wished one of the old legends was actually true? If so, which one? Or, conversely, what legend or fairy tale would you most hate to discover was real? I’ll give away signed copies of the first two books in the Esri series, The Dark Gate and Dark Deceiver, to three commenters. And don’t forget to check out my website, www.pamelapalmer.net, for more on all my series including excerpts, character bios, and laws of the world.


****Pamela's winners are : Mary, dgaffke and Sue Sattler! Congratulations, ladies!  Please email your full name and address to totebag@authorsoundrelations.com so we can get the prizes in the mail! Thanks!!****

30 comments:

Alison said...

I would love to believe the Arthurian legends were true! The places are so distinctive I feel there must be something to it al...

pgeturner345@gmail.com

Michele L. said...

I love reading paranormal romance stories about vampires. I don't know if I would like to be one or be married to one though. It sure is fun reading about how super powerful they are and dreaming that I live in world with them. Would be nice to have a man that seductive with all those super powers! :-)

Mary Kirkland said...

I am a huge fan..I love the Feral Warriors series. :) I'm really forward to the next book.

I like some of the myths and legends but not sure I would want there to be real Unicorns because people might want to kill them for their horns thinking it would give them magical powers.

miztik_rose@yahoo.com

Chrisbails said...

I would have to say I love paranormal. I would love to know if vamps and werewolves exist. I love wolves. Very sexy, love the alpha males. I think if they were good and did not cause trouble I would love to live with these paranormal beings. Vamps and wolves are just sexy. Atleast in my books they are. LOL.
christinebails@yahoo.com

preacherlady67 said...

I am going to go with one that I hope isn't real... Fairie creatures like Kelpies or Will of the Wisps that lead people to their deaths would be a bad thing to discover is real.
karenestes@yahoo.com

dgaffke said...

I would love for the world of shifters to be real. Just think a man that could shift to a large cat, endless possibilities. The thoughts of the growls and purrs are enough to send shivers of delight down my spine.

I am a huge fan and look forward to this series. Thanks!

dianne.gaffke@yahoo.com

Helen said...

Pamela

I so love your stories and one of the legends that I wish were true is King Arthur and his Knights I love Camelot and all the tales that go with it and even though it is a kids movie which I watched over and over with my kids when they were young is The Sword and The Stone. This is a place that I would love to visit :)

Have Fun
Helen

alainala said...

that is so cool! i love learning how stories came to be... would love the chance to win these!
legends i would love to see come to life are like dragons... there are so many stories of them, from every continent, that i would love to know what they actually saw.. another thing would be a phoenix... that would be amazing to see in real life...

alainala AT hotmail DOT ca

MichelleMB said...

I would hate for vampires to be real. I love vampire stories (evil kind or not)and they've never really scared me, perhaps because I've not believed they were real. If they were, it would probably scare the heck out of me LOL. Animal shifters like your Ferals would be one I would like to be real. That or magic. Would love to be able to do magic.
mmbourassa(at)hotmail(dot)com

C. A. Szarek said...

I love dragons. I have already wished they were real. (Not the kind that snack on humans, I guess) but I would love to have a nice big blue dragon. I love vampire books/stories/movies. I always have. Always kinda wanted to believe that they were real, too.

caszarek@hotmail.com

Quixotic Dreamer said...

I will tell you the truth. I love vampires. Always have, ever since I was a little girl. I think it would be awesome to be able to have those super powers, but wouldn't like the fact I could never watch a sunrise again. Or the old witch stories. I am a witch in real life, but some of their super powers are pretty awesome in the books. I'd love to point a finger at someone and turn them into a frog! (Now, who wouldn't?)

Any evil would have to be a bad thing to have come to life. I think mostly of werewolves. When the moon turns full, you have all this evil running around, eating people/things. Not too keen on that one.

And I do believe that I would love to meet the shape-shifters in the Feral Warriors novels. I love the religion in it and, come on, they are total hotties (especially Wulf). :] But I'm not sure that would count as an old legend.

quixotic.x.dreamer AT gmail DOT com

Emily Tardy said...

I love reading paranormal romance and I think it would really be cool if paranormal creatures were real... The one thing I wouldn't want to be real? Well if the first were real, then I wouldn't want the paranormals' to actually be the freaky things from legends! I'd prefer them to be more like in romance novels =)

emilytardy(AT)yahoo(DOT)com

Bella said...

Love the Feral Warriors!! I think reading Paranormal in general are my favorite books to read. Shape Shifters, Vampires, Werewolves, Demons ect... in a romantic setting with a fantastic story behind them are Wonderful! These type of stories takes me to another place and I get lost in the story it's self each time I read them. Can't wait for your next installment in the Feral Warriors Series!
Feral Warriors Rock!!

lsiraco@maine.rr.com

Evan Blanc said...

I would love love love the Therian World to be real. And of course I would want to be a Therian ;)
It would be simply amazing!

evan32_08@yahoo.com

DaVinciKittie said...

From all the fairy lore I've heard, I think they'd be the ones I'd like LEAST to be real. *shiver*

If we can choose from ANY tales, then I agree with Evan above - bring on the Ferals! It would be really cool to know there are hunky, shape-shifting, dedicated warriors out there fighting for our safety!

davincikittie (at) gravetells (dot) com

Amy Valentini said...

Hi Pamela,
I would love the Therian World to be real! As you know from my review on my blog and on Amazon, I loved A Warrior's Desire and would absolutely adore winning the other two which I'm sure I will promptly inhale in anticipation of the fourth coming in March. Thanks for the giveaway and Beware the Moon! xoxo

amyvalentini@aol.com

Linda Henderson said...

I enjoy reading vampire stories, but I wouldn't want to see any Bram Stoker type Dracula's around. I would however like to see something about the city of Atlantis or ancient mythology such as Zeus, Athena and such.

seriousreader at live dot com

GLORIA said...

Good question! I love dragons. That would be cool to be true but sooo scary as well LOL Greek Myth was always interesting too
gwoman23(AT)gmail(DOT)com

Beautiful Disaster said...

Hi Pamela,
Congrats on your newest book release! I have read your Feral Warrior Series and have really enjoyed it however I haven't read the Esri Series. So I am looking forward to getting the first book.
I don't know if I would want any of the legends of old to be true but nevertheless I enjoy hearing and reading about them. There is nothing better then reading a great book and escaping/imaging a realm where there are endless possibilities :)
Lori

SdyLion said...

I love both the Esri series and the Feral warriors and think you are an amazing author. As far as old legends, I think that it would be interesting to find out that vampires and others were just another type of creature trying to exist on this planet and not compete with us (like on "being Human"). I wouldn't like there to be zombies or ghouls, though.,creepy. sdylion(at)gmail(dot)com

Pamela Palmer said...

Hey everyone! Thanks for weighing in. I'm with a lot of you...I'd love for some of the heroic beings from our novels to be real, but not the villains they fight. No Daemons, thank you!

Sue Sattler said...

I would love for shifters to be real. To cuddle up to a big cat on a cold winter night would be very cool.
proudarmymom32@yahoo.com

Debby said...

I would love for the Black Dagger men to be real. However, I don't think I would like ghouls that much.
debby236 at gmail dot com

Stephanie said...

I LOVE all the old legends (any kind). I would love to have a big bad feral warrior of my own.... The fantasy and magic of it all is such a good escape...

CYP @ A Bookalicious Story said...

I'd LOVE for ALL the males in Nalini Singh's Guild Hunter series to be real! :D haha, they are so awesome! It's hard not to fall for any and all of them. Thanks for the giveaway! I've always wanted to read this series cause just look at those covers!:P

New follower!:)

CYP
cypsays_hi[@]hotmail.com

Pat Cochran said...

I was just reading about some of the earliest versions of our fairy tale favorites, especially those by the Brothers Grimm. Those are the ones
I wouldn't like to know were real. In those some-
one was always eating, or trying to eat, another
of the residents!

BTW, "Congratulations" on the release of "A Warrior's
Desire."

Pat C.

Mary Preston said...

I'd hate to know that CINDERELLA was real. I'd want to shake Cinderella & tell her to stand up for herself. She does not need a man to rescue her.

Barbara said...

I agree living in the Therian world would be cool, I'd LOVE to meet the Feral Warriors, having JR Ward's BDB's and Fallen Angels be real...way cool too. I would also like to live within Lora Leigh's Breeds world too or Laura Adrians ...as a breedmate of course. And then again...there's Sherrilyn Kenyons Dark Hunters/Were Hunters...I'd like to know them too. And Gena's LOTU's and OH...what about Kresley Cole's world...there's some characters to get to know face/face....geez, I could go on and on...

barbbattaglia@yahoo.com

Di said...

I'd love it if King Arthur & Camelot was found to be true - but maybe the Clive Owen movie version where Arthur & Guinevere end up together.
sallans d at yahoo dot com

Mary Kirkland said...

Thanks so much! I relied to the email.