The Master Race
What comes to mind when you hear those
words?
Hitler? Germany? Concentration camps? A
superior race? Experimentation? Extermination? A dark time back in the early
decades of the 20th century?
Like me, you might have studied the rise
and fall of Hitler's Regime at high school or university. The images, recounts
and documentaries aren't exactly warm or fuzzy, and they certainly leave an
impression on you. But, as a writer, some of the events and concepts of
Hitler's grand plans make the mind tick over, imagining what if...
What if Hitler's idea of establishing a
Master Race had succeeded? How would it have shaped our world history? What
sort of place would be the world today? Would there be a caste system? Slavery?
Ideologies developed around the superiority of certain genetic traits? Laws
forbidding the mixing of races?
The mind boggles, doesn't it?
One of the questions I get asked a LOT is
where do you come up with ideas for your stories. Well, history tends to be a
good starting point, and to be honest, much of the time I don't realise where
the inspiration comes from until after I've written the book. The subconscious
is a wonderful thing. It can absorb a photo, an event, a fact, or even a phrase
or lyric can and mull it over for days or even years.
I'm now up to book #3 in my Light Blade
fantasy romance series, and I'm only now beginning to recognise and
understanding that some of my plot lines reflect events from human history,
specifically the time of Hitler.
The idea of a master race starts in
VENGEANCE BORN and arcs through into ALLIANCE FORGED and ALLEGIANCE SWORN. A
lot of my world building links to this concept - there are humans, a race of
demons known as the Na'Reish, and a hybrid race of half-human,
half-demons called the Na'Chi. Both human and demon histories regale
their own race as being superior to the other, and both are at war to prove the
point. They also can't stand the thought of a hybrid race, of their bloodlines
being tainted, so laws and actions have been instituted to ensure any such
offspring are terminated, then over the decades the possibility of their
existence relegated to the shadowy realm of mythology.
But, as with any society, what happens
when ideologies break down or beliefs are challenged? Or better yet, proven
wrong?
In VENGEANCE BORN (Bk#1), secrets about
the origins of human and demon history were uncovered, and the fallout of
hundreds of years of corruption, lies and misinformation alters that history
and defies perceptions. ALLIANCE FORGED (Bk#2) propels the characters into a
time of conflict and instability where everyone - humans, Na'Reish
demons and the Na'Chi - struggle to come to terms with the need to
change and what it means for their survival.
Varian and Kymora, the Na'Chi hero
and human heroine, spearhead this life altering change as they try to navigate
the dangerous path of melding two races together, to forge an alliance against
the much stronger Na'Reish - the demons who would see the humans enslaved
and the Na'Chi exterminated. But their efforts are hampered by those who
rebel against the change.
This is the backdrop behind the story and
woven into it are Varian and Kymora's personal trials and their romance. Our
hero seeks a haven for the Na'Chi but fears the humans will never be
able to put aside their mixed blood prejudice, a belief reinforced as he
struggles to control his darker half-demon personality. In her role as high
priestess, and armed with the truth, Kymora fights to unite their two races
while helping Varian to accept his dual nature.
So, will a master race triumph in
ALLIANCE FORGED? Well, I can't tell you, not without spoiling the whole
storyline - sorry! :-) Until you can get your hands on a copy of the book and
find out, here's the back cover blurb of ALLIANCE FORGED, just to whet your
appetite:
ALLIANCE
FORGED
(Book
#2 of the Light Blade series)
There
is no mercy in the demon realm. No escape. In this place of desperation and
conflict, anyone who is not purebred is virtually powerless. Until a blind
priestess lays claim to a half-breed warrior, body and soul…
Hunted
and marked for death by Na’Reish demons for their half-blood heritage,
the Na’Chi are searching for a new home—something an alliance offered by
the human leader could provide. With both races divided by prejudice, when
Light Blade rebels brutally attack the Na’Chi, the alliance seems doomed
to fail.
Varian,
leader of the Na’Chi, a hybrid race of gifted warriors, is cursed with
the darker impulses of his demon heritage. Controlling the part of himself that
craves the high of the battle is a struggle he’s afraid he’ll lose—until he
meets Kymora Tayn, a priestess driven to serve her deity. While he’s unwilling
to trust anyone outside his people, he finds himself drawn to Kymora’s strength
and passionate nature, and discovers she has the power to calm the darkness
inside him.
When
the Na’Reish raid human territory for blood-slaves and kickstart a war,
the key to the survival of both races—Na’Chi and human— is an alliance.
However, when Kymora is kidnapped, pitting human against human, Varian realizes
he must embrace his darker half, not only to save the alliance…but also the
woman he loves.
Kylie Griffin’s obsession with all things paranormal/fantasy started at an early age, when she used to imagine the jacaranda tree in her front yard was a spaceship used to defend the world from invading enemies. Writing stories seemed a natural extension to her childhood adventures.
Today, she’s a primary school teacher sharing her love for the written word with young children. In her spare time, she writes and reads all things paranormal.
Kylie lives in a small rural village in outback New South Wales, Australia, where she volunteers in a number of emergency service organizations in her local community. Visit her website at
www.kyliegriffin.com
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