#to the ravens

[the-lunar-library]

TO THE RAVENS

All of the character portraits together -- all of the major-ish characters. I'm really pleased with how this series came out, and it's so nice seeing them all collected like this.

Akantha / Alexandros / Genesius

Kokkonas / Tanais / Buca

Brixia / Karyai / Pas

Lykedon / Galana

[rayless-reblogs]

"Get to Know You Better Meme"

I got this from @runicmagitek, thank you for that.

Last song. "I Need Nothing Else" by Sophie B Hawkins. I used to listen to her Whaler album back in the 2000s, then forgot about it for years. She has a fun, headlong, early 90s style that's extremely catchy.

Favorite color. I really like deep jewel tones, teals and wine-reds, also burnt orange. There's this really great magenta-touched purple that I use in some of my art that never scans correctly. We'll go with burnt orange today.

Currently watching. The Nanny, just started season 3. I've never seen it before, but I was lured in by the clothes.

Sweet/savory/spicy. Yes to sweet and savory, no to any but the most mild spices. I have wimpy taste buds, but I'm trying to build them up some. When I crave something, it's usually sweet, though often with savory undertones -- like a banana bread or Tollhouse pie with lots of walnuts in it.

Relationship status.

Current obsession. I'm focusing hard on the Next Book right now. I'm between edits, which has me antsy because I feel like I'm being "lazy". But the truth is, I have to take these breaks or I lose perspective on what I'm doing. But this month I'm going to be working on things like the cover and blurb and just going over how I want to talk about the book and present it to people. The process has its stressful moments, but I also really love the book, so it has its own kind of pleasure, thinking about it, preparing for it.

Last thing you googled. "greek epiousion". I just saw a post talking about how the Greek word epiousion only appears in the Lord's Prayer and its definition is a bit mysterious. It's the word we translate as "daily", as in "daily bread", but it's not the word the Greeks typically used for "daily", and the definition may actually be closer to "superessential". I think it's fascinating, and a little eerie, that things can feel so omnipresent and taken for granted, even when we have these gaps in our knowledge. What prayer, at least Christian prayer, is more omnipresent than the Lord's Prayer? And yet here it is, this strange, only semi-known thing right in the middle of it.

Also, all these centuries, we could have been bandying around a word like superessential like it's nothing, why can't we have that?

No tagging, but please do this if you're so inclined!

[gorjee-art]

a raven father (i call him "pants") I've been feeding sometimes likes to sit outside my window and either wait for more food or just listen to the stuff I'm watching while I draw. Today's a colder day so he likes to fluff up a bit, and I kid you not :

this is an accurate representation of my view

[raven-anime]

I love him a normal amount, Goodnight

[kateammann]

Happy Ace Week!!! 🖤🤍💜

[hometoursandotherstuff]

[spicymochi]

it’s for you!

[kierancaz]

I like in Teen Titans that Robin’s mask is just as expressive as like cartoon spidey masks. Especially when they do this thing:

OR WHEN HE DOES THIS:

he’s so silly I love him lmao

[wickedshoesboutique]

Gift from a faithful friends

[ur-daily-inspiration]

[the-lunar-library]

TO THE RAVENS

A stranger – an outcast – a secret plot... Could you fool them without making the whole city want to kill you?

Rejected by her clan, Akantha has few options. In the Roman lunar colonies, where people are winged and there are rumors of barbarians beyond the city walls, she knows to keep her head down and not hope for a great destiny – or anything beyond what the gods, the Romans, or her city allow a mere woman.

But then, a stranger enters her life, Alexandros the Peregrine, a mysterious golden prophet. He claims he can make the city his – and hers – with just their wits. He speaks as if the Romans can't hurt them. And as for the gods? He's about to make a god of his very own.

With humor, romance, and biting emotion, Akantha's story unfolds. Alexandros will change her life forever. Is he a savior who will bring her freedom, or is he a force far too dangerous for her to fall in love with?

Briefly:

historical fantasy

standalone (155K words), not part of a series

an adult novel, though older teens could also read it

Imperial Rome (160s CE), but set on the Moon

a young twentysomething heroine who's very much an outcast

a handsome, reckless stranger

a cult!

Warnings: Violence; non-explicit sex; issues surrounding forced, arranged, abusive, and underage marriage/sexual contact; child and infant abuse, including death; pervasive cultural misogyny; the strongest warning is that this is a book about a cult, and while sometimes I play up the humor and absurdity of their practices, there are times when I go into the various forms of abuse inherent to such a situation.

All of these warnings make the book sound very gritty and grimdark, but I don't believe it to be. None of the sexual or violent stuff is explicit, and overall I feel the message is hopeful. I consider the ending a happy one.

Is it similar to your earlier books, The Price and Prey of Magic and The Escape of Lady Aigle?

Yes: We have a female protagonist and a lot of female support characters. There's some romance, but it's not strictly a romance novel. There's a lot of questioning of characters' motives, how trustworthy they are, and how the heroine's decisions affect those around her. The characters are sometimes taken to dark and dangerous places, but emerge with hope. There are fantasy elements, but it's not a novel about quests or wizards.

No: It's set in the real world – sort of. The action is all on the Moon, but a lot of the world-building is based on historical research. It's saucier than Papom or Eola, discussing sex more overtly. I would say the tone is also funnier, though there are some heavy, more emotional moments. There's a focus on religion, both positive and negative elements.

I see bat wings, is the main character a demon?

No, not at all. She's a human with wings.

Do you have to be an expert in Greek and Roman culture to read this?

Definitely not. Anything that's vital for the reader to understand is explained within the story. Other things, like some brief references to Greek mythology, are thrown in to make it feel more immersive, but they aren't necessary to understand what's going on. There's also a glossary in the back, but you should be able to read through without needing it.

Do you agree with everything your characters say?

Absolutely not, and that includes the characters I like very much, like Akantha. The book is set in second-century Rome, so I did my best to reflect the attitudes of the times, even ugly ones. I don't want the reader to feel like they're in the twenty-first century with some Roman window-dressing. This isn't to suggest all my characters are awful people, but they're coming at some subjects from a very different cultural context than we do. Their perspectives are different and, sometimes, wrong.

Is this book pro- or anti-religion?

Because it's about a cult, and because it's set in the Roman empire, religion is examined quite a lot. In the cast, we have Greco-Roman pagans, Christians, and Jews. Characters voice a variety of opinions, but I didn't write the book to proclaim you should or shouldn't belong to any of these religions. The only religion the book says you shouldn't be part of is, well, the cult.

How much is this based on real events?

It was inspired by a real cult that existed in the second century CE as documented by the writer Lucian of Samosata. I took direct inspiration from that account as well as a number of Lucian's other essays. However, in my telling, things are much more fiction than fact; this is not a faithful attempt at historical fiction. Anyone doing a school report on this cult should not cite me as a source, as hilarious as that would be.

Is there a snake in this?

Yeah, it always seems like there's a snake somewhere in my books.

[life-on-our-planet]

❄️🪶Goofy Ravens Playing in the Snow🪶❄️

[dcvina-claires]

i am a tragedy enjoyer before i am human

[raven-anime]

The first date was something

[dapper-lil-arts]

What if Celestia had Whatsapp 🤣🤣🤣

[chaos-has-theories]

A young woman is walking outside ████████. It just so happens that today, the 3rd of March 2006, is this young woman's birthday. Though it was seventeen years ago she was given life, it is only today she will be given a name!

What will the name of this gothic young woman be?

> Enter Name.