What is your book all about?

A Journey Unveiled is the first book in my epic fantasy trilogy, Daughter of Venus. Following a catastrophic plane crash, eighteen-year-old Lexi Guinel stumbles through a portal into the world of Ayandoh where she becomes trapped for eight years. There, she learns that she is a witch in a land where magic is forbidden. Her fate soon becomes entangled with that of Crown Prince Aeric of Gower, who obeys his father’s every cruel command. Can Lexi master her powers in time to save the country from tyranny, prejudice, and evil? And will Aeric join the fight against his own family?

There are elves (light and dark) and other fantasy races, quests, underground cities, magical artifacts, animal companions, found family, and so much more!

What inspired you to write the book?

As cliché as it sounds, the idea came to me in a dream. Well, two dreams, actually. After I wrote them down, it occurred to me that I could combine them into something interesting.

What is your target audience for the book?

My target audience is anybody who enjoys escaping into a world of magical adventure. Although it’s not specifically Young Adult, I wrote it to be accessible to readers in their teens. While there is violence, I tried not to make it overly graphic, and there are no graphic sex scenes.

Representation is one of my goals with the series, and it’s my hope that marginalized audiences will find characters to identify with. This includes a biracial protagonist in Lexi and a gay Black elf named Yendar who is Potions Master for the light elves (called the Loinnai). As the world expands in book two, An Enemy Defined, representation and diversity increase to include disabled characters and other members of the LGBTQIA+ community.

What do you hope readers could get out from your book?

Aside from finding characters to identify with, I hope that readers will be able to lose themselves in the story and escape their everyday, real world problems. I live in constant pain, so I know the value of being able to find that distraction.

One of the major themes in the series is respecting nature, including the environment and all living creatures, and I hope that it will make readers think about these issues without feeling preached to or lectured. I also included a Holocaust allegory because I find it reprehensible that awareness has decreased to such an extent, especially in younger generations, and that history is repeating itself to this day.

What are your future goals/plans for the book?

I’m currently writing book three of the trilogy, A Destiny Confronted. Once it’s published, I plan to publish an omnibus and look into adapting the series for the screen and pitching it to Netflix. I also plan to release the books as hardcovers.

And something more about yourself.

I was born and raised in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, a small city eight hours northwest of Toronto. I’m a graduate of the Universities of Guelph and Toronto, and I had a short career as a pharmacist before being forced onto permanent disability by a rare spinal cord disorder (syringomyelia). I live with a fur family of three small dogs and three cats.

I spend my time cuddling my pets, watching too much TV and too many movies (including Star Wars, Marvel, and Supernatural marathons), reading, and collecting Funko Pops and other pop culture memorabilia. I’m a regular participant in GISH, the Greatest International Scavenger Hunt. Established by actor/poet Misha Collins, GISH raises money for charities through acts of kindness, creativity, and fun.

I’m passionate about animal rights and the environment. My ultimate dream is to open an animal sanctuary that I would name Boomerang Farm in honour of my golden retriever, Boomer, who died from cancer in 2015.

A Journey Unveiled is my second novel. My first, a standalone equestrian novel Ride Every Stride, reached #1 on Amazon charts in four countries.

And, finally, I’d like to thank Authors’ Lounge for this generous opportunity!

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