Emerald Earth
The Witch Brothers Saga Book 1
by Adam J. Ridley
Genre: LGBTQ M/M Romantic Urban Fantasy
Cursed
to never find love, Crea is shocked when he finds the perfect man.
Choosing to fight the curse could cost him everything, including his
life.
After
his father cursed him, Crea has faced decades of dead end
relationships. Just as he’s almost given up hope he finds a
handsome stranger broken on the side of a desolate road. Once he
drops the stranger off at the hospital, he figures all is done.
Nothing could be further from the truth. The stranger becomes so much
more as he pursues Crea, threatening the curse. Crea learns quickly
falling in love is easy, but surviving a nasty cantation that’s
determined to destroy you, isn’t as much.
Eli isn’t what
you’d call a social person. His love for isolation in his beloved
forest fully defines him. After breaking his leg in a mishap, Eli’s
life is turned upside down as his life is filled with things he
didn’t even dream of having before.
Unfortunately, those
dreams turn to nightmares as he and Crea, the man he’s become
bonded to, battle a curse that should’ve never been cast.
Crea
and Eli’s bonding must be strong enough to overcome the curse, or
they could both be lost, forever.
Diamond Air
The Witch Brothers Saga Book 2
Could this man be his first real chance at love, or will his curse stop it from happening? More important, could pursuing this man put both of their lives at risk?
Lance loved his grandmother, but, even though he knew it was real, he tried hard not to buy into all her witch stuff. Real enough that his homophobic father cursed him and his brothers to never find love.
Regardless of what he believed or wanted to believe, his late grandmother’s young friend and former roommate was causing him to feel things he didn’t want and didn’t trust. After all, love had only ever left him in pain.
Drew is a pragmatist. His skills with magic only heighted under the mentorship of his late friend Gwen. When Gwen’s much too sexy and arrogant grandson shows up to collect his grandmother’s things, Drew is immediately dragged into a decades long drama filled with curses and malicious hatred embodied in Lance’s father’s cantation.
The curse Lance’s father cast on him and his brothers continues to plague him. Because of their attraction, their love/hate relationship embolden’s the curse and puts both men’s lives at risk.
Will the two men learn to trust one another, or will their animosity be what the curse needs to destroy them both once and for all?
**New Release – Aug 5th 2022!!**
Adam J. Ridley is the pen name used by Blake Allwood for his urban fantasy and fantasy novels. I travel full time with my husband and two dogs in a forty-foot motor home, constantly looking for inspiration in the towns we find ourselves in.
I’ve loved fantasy all my life, and after several years of writing romance, finally took the time to try my hand at a romantic urban fantasy.
The Witch Brothers Saga is my debut series. Next year, I’ll release a Selkie series and possible my first science fiction, superhero novel as well.
Thanks for joining me on this journey and I look forward to reading your reviews on the Witch Brothers Saga.
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GUEST POST
What inspired you to write this series?
A couple things. One, I have always loved fantasy. There’s something deep inside me that just forced me
to try writing it. So, the Witch Brothers is my first go at writing urban fantasy.
Second, I have had several older men ask if I could write something more their age, and as I pondered it, I
kept coming back to three brothers who’d been cursed by a homophobic dad and had spent their lives
searching for love as a result. Learning to overcome that curse seemed to be the perfect way to
incorporate older gay men, learning to love another man for the first time.
What can we expect from you in the future?
There are several books in the works. Next year, I plan to release a Selkie series based on a long lost
relative of the Witch Brother.
I’m also working on a young adult fantasy series about a sorcerer’s son, and playing with the idea of a
urban fantasy horror with all sorts of delightful yet rather nasty monsters.
Do you have any “side stories” about the characters?
I guess there are always side stories for me and my writing. In the first book, Emerald Earth, for example,
I may have a bit of a crush on Eli, the lumberjack. LOL
I love contrasting characters, so I really enjoyed writing all three books since there’s a bit of an opposites
attract in each of the stories, and those are always fun to play with.
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in Emerald Earth?
Sure, Eli is everything you’d think an independent, introverted, lumberjack male witch would be. Tall,
dark, handsome, intimidating, with a soft underbelly. Crea is much more of an open book emotionally,
and although he’s desperate for love, he’s quick to let outside influences keep him from looking Eli’s way.
There are a lot of side characters in this story as well, and I let those side characters do most of the world
building for me. You’ll meet Gwen, who frankly, even though she’s dead, and a ghost, she’s a nutty,
wonderful, character.
You’ll also get to know Jenny, Crea’s niece, Donna, a nosy hippie who is definitely one of my favorite
character in the story, and some powerful forest dwellers who help both MCs overcome the dark that
stalks them.
You also meet the side characters again in the other two books, along with additional characters who live
in the unique little town governed by modern day witches.
What did you enjoy most about writing this book?
Urban fantasy and fantasy in general seemed to let my imagination go wild. Unintentionally, I wrote book
one with much more of a romantic twist to it, than the other two books. I think that’s because I was used
to writing romance. However, as books two then three came to be, I felt myself letting go more and more.
By the time you get to book three you’ll see it’s much more of an urban fiction book, and the romantic
elements slip further and further to the side.
Again, I love reading fantasy and urban fantasy, so it was a lot of fun to write stories, so different from
what I’ve written in the past.
Who designed your book covers?
A couple of years ago, a young writer by the name of Samrat contacted me via Facebook asking if I
would be willing to read his writing. Of course, always a sucker for a young person learning to write, I
quickly agreed.
Since then, Samrat has become my personal assistant and an exceptionally good one at that. About a year
ago, Samrat disclosed that he is both an artist and graphic designer. So, after seeing some of his amazing
artwork, I challenged him to attempt a cover. The end result is that I fell in love with his work.
The Witch Brothers Saga is the series I’ve let him take full creative license with and I couldn’t be happier
with the results. I truly love these covers.
If you had to do it all over again, would you change anything in your latest book(s)?
I mean yes and no. This is my first attempt at an urban fantasy series. I’ve learned so much by my
experience writing them. I believe any author would tell you their writing improves with every book they
put out. I’m certainly the first to admit, I grow as a writer each time I take on a new project.
So, would I do anything different? Sure, if I were to start this series all over again, it’d probably be an
entirely different series, but I’m extremely proud of the witch boys, exactly as they are...
If your book was made into a film, who would you like to play the lead?
Oh honey, I have an intense crush on Ewan McGregor. How does he get better looking with age? I need
his secrets! Anyway, I digress... Ewan McGregor for Crea, and maybe Chris Hemsworth, Henry Cavill,
or Jason Momoa for Eli... you didn’t say we couldn’t reach for the stars... (pun intended.)
Anything specific you want to tell your readers?
Ride the wave. I did intentionally make the book slower in the beginning and built the suspense, so it has
a pretty climatic ending. All three books follow that some formula. Just remember, these three guys have
been living under a curse that’s kept love just out of reach. There are several hurtles to cross before they
can let themselves trust again.
What is your favorite part of these books and why?
I think I love that these books are about letting go of the past. I mean, there are a lot of us who’ve had
some level of trauma about coming out of the closet? I’d say, even though this is fantasy, many of us have
dealt with our own curses from family, friends, and society in general.
I believe, the game is won by overcoming that crap. I don’t mean to say this book is some deep
philosophical attempt at making a point because it really isn’t. Mostly I wrote it just for fun, but there are
elements I think play true to a lot of LGBTQ+ folks experiences. Especially those who’ve had to fight to
be who they are.
Helping show that there is life after trauma is kinda my thing, so of course, that’s my favorite part about
writing these books.
If you could spend time with a character from your book who would it be? And what would you do
during that day?
Eli, and it’s um, probably not appropriate to say why in this interview. LOL
Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?
Nope, they are all imaginary. Although I’ve known people who remind me of the characters, not one
person influenced them more than anyone else.
Do your characters seem to hijack the story or do you feel like you have the reigns of the story?
My characters hijack the story every single time, then take it where they want it to go. LOL
For the most part, I’m what they call a pantser, or someone who writes by the seat of their pants. That’s
virtually impossible to do when you are writing a series where each book builds upon the next, but, I will
say, I wrote an outline for Emerald Earth and the characters destroyed it. Then I rewrote an outline for the
Diamond Air, which those characters destroyed... well you’re getting my point.
Have you written any other books that are not published?
Yep, I have over a dozen books working their way through the pipeline. There’s a superhero novel which
will probably show up next year, there’s a young adult fiction series about a deceased sorcerer’s son, and
many others that are still being drafted.
If your book had a candle, what scent would it be?
Is there a writer which brain you would love to pick for advice? Who would that be and why?
Terry Brooks is one of my favorite fantasy novelists. I would LOVE to pick his brain... more than that I’d
love to cowrite a book/series with him.
Fun Facts/Behind the Scenes/Did You Know?'-type tidbits about the author, the book or the writing
process of the book.
1. I’m prefer pansting over outlining... but writing fantasy requires me to be organized, Ugh!
2. I write romance under Blake Allwood.
3. I live full time in a 40 foot RV with my dogs and husband. We’ve been full time for 5 years. Time
really flies when you’re having fun.
4. I have a Jack (jerk) Russell Terrier (terrorist) named Buddy who just turned 17 years old. During
our last vet visit the vet was shocked and she called him a miracle dog. I say he’s alive cause he
loves to torment me. We also have a lug of a Siberian Husky mix named Denver who truly
believes he’s a lap dog. Both of these nutty creatures keep me well entertained and my heart full.
5. My husband and I have been married for over 27 years. Our anniversary is on Valentine’s Day.
6. I grew up in Tennessee, went to college in Iowa, but lived most of my life in Kansas City.
7. I taught kindergarten for five years, became a foster parent and did that for 12 years before we
sold everything and ran away from home. My favorite saying is if the kids can’t find you, they
can’t move back in. I joke, we adore all our youngons.
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Thank you for sharing the author's interview and books' details, The Witch Brothers Saga is a must read for me
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