Date Published: January 5, 2021
Publisher: Blackrose Press
Astoreth, the Devi Goddess of Love, demands complete devotion from her morevs because hearts divided cannot serve.
Moreva Tehi’s hearts aren’t divided. They belong to Laerd Teger.
And the price of her love could be her life.
Book Reviews
"Bland may very well be the Alice Walker of science fiction." The reviewer is Vincent Dublado, Readers' Favorite.
"This is perhaps the most entertaining science fiction novel I have ever read." Rabia Tanveer, Readers' Favorite.
Interview with Roxanne Bland
For those interested in exploring the subject or theme of your book, where should they start?
My “smart-mouth” answer is to just look at today’s news. Bigotry and hate abound. Storming the U.S. Capitol and verbally abusing the Black Capitol policemen, attacking BLM protestors, Brown children separated from their families and all put into cages, and so much more. Those interested might undertake an examination of American history—real American history, not the whitewashed version. And of course, there are more books about bigotry on the retail shelves than you can shake a stick at.
How did you become involved with the subject or theme of your book?
Well, as a Black author, I can honestly say I’ve been involved in bigotry from the day I was born. Speaking for myself, rather than being involved in it, I think it’s more accurate to say I’ve lived it.
What were your goals and intentions in this book, and how well do you feel you achieved them?
As with all my books, my primary goal and intention is to entertain. Judging by what people have had to say about it, I think I’ve achieved that. A secondary goal was to show readers how bigotry and hate, in keeping the mind and heart closed, robs us of the true joy that’s all around us, a joy that can be ours if we would only open our minds and hearts. Mind you, The Moreva of Astoreth isn’t preachy. What we’re watching is how an unexpected and unwanted set circumstances that a woman brought upon herself forces her to re-evaluate who she is and what she stands for. It’s an intensely personal story. Third, there are events that occur in the story, events connected to Tehi’s religion that are central to her personal growth that some readers have found upsetting. Those events ask a reader to go beyond the knee-jerk reaction and really think about what occurred, why they occurred, and what psychological fragmentation might occur if she refuses to carry out her religious duty.
Anything you would like to say to your readers and fans?
I’d love it if you signed up for my newsletter. I spam you only once a month, and it’s full of information about what I’m doing now and what’s coming up next. And, if you do sign up, there’s a free novella in it for you—The Final Victim. Just go to my website, www.roxannebland.rocks and join the fun!
What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
What didn’t I enjoy? If I had to narrow it down, I’d say writing Tehi, watching her grow from a small-minded, unhappy child-woman into a loving adult who sees the whole beauty of life and what it means to be alive.
Can you tell us a little bit about your next books or what you have planned for the future?
Right now, I’m working on the third book in my series, The Underground. Those stories completely different from The Moreva of Astoreth. More adventurous in every way. I remember one reviewer said of the second installment, “this book will break every stereotype you have about paranormals.” They’re also far more graphic, especially the sex.
How long have you been writing?
I’ve been writing, on and off but mostly off, since childhood. I got serious about writing in 2001 because I was bored. I love science fiction and fantasy, been reading it since I was a child. But the stories, though great, had started to blur. Different characters, different events, but the story arcs were the same. I wanted to read something that upset the status quo. So, I wrote the first book in The Underground series. It mixes the different paranormal races—vampires, shifters, elves—with a generous helping of magical realism. The icing on the cake is a kick-ass alien warrior from another galaxy, and she and the werewolf fall for each other. While I was writing it, I was told by the powers that be—publishers, agents, established writers—that science fiction and fantasy do not, cannot, and will never mix. I did it anyway and must have done it pretty well because most readers seem to like it.
It's like that with The Moreva of Astoreth, too. It’s a science fiction romance, where the romance is integral to the story. When uploading it to certain platforms, like advertising platforms, I can characterize it as science fiction or romance, but not both. The problem, of course, is that science fiction readers generally aren’t interested in romance, and vice versa. Some readers have classified it as fantasy. Books like mine (and other writers I know), a reader has to be willing to step out of their fantasy/science fiction/romance comfort zones.
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in The Moreva of Astoreth?
Well, we’ve already talked about Tehi, who and what she is. There’s Tehi’s love interest, Laerd Teger, who’s the chief of his village. He’s a man who’s not afraid to love, not afraid to cry, and not afraid to die. The kind of man you’d bring home to meet your parents, but first you have to get his promise to behave himself. Helps that he’s pretty, too. Then there’s Hyme, the village healer who befriends Tehi not long after she arrives. He’s a kind old man and has been the village healer for decades upon decades. His friendship with Tehi is integral to helping her find her truth.
If you could spend the day with one of the characters from The Moreva of Astoreth who would it be? Please tell us why you chose this particular character, where you would go and what you would do.
Laerd Teger, definitely. As a child, he was a very bad boy and though he’s now a fine and upstanding citizen, he’s still a juvenile delinquent at heart. He has no qualms about breaking the rules, but only when the chances of getting caught are low. So, whatever we do, the chances of us getting into mischief are high. Teger has spent his entire life in the mountains, so we’d go to the beach, see the ocean. Take a day trip on a boat. If we could go on longer, maybe a cruise. Not on one of those behemoths, but on a sailing ship, where the guests are also the crew. I think he’d like that.
About the Author
Award-winning author Roxanne Bland was born in the shadows of the rubber factory smokestacks in Akron, Ohio but grew up in Washington, D.C. As a child, she spent an inordinate amount of time prowling the museums of the Smithsonian Institution and also spent an inordinate amount of time reading whatever books she could get her hands on, including the dictionary. A self-described “fugitive from reality,” she has always colored outside the lines and in her early years of writing, saw no reason why a story couldn’t be written combining the genres she loved and did so despite being told it wasn’t possible. Today, she writes stories that are mashups of paranormal urban fantasy, romance, and science fiction, as well as other speculative fiction genres.
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