Paranormal Week Day 4: Spotlight on Heather Lyons and the Fate Series - Vilma Iris | Lifestyle Blogger

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Paranormal Week Day 4: Spotlight on Heather Lyons and the Fate Series

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Paranormal Week In Review:

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Day 4 of Paranormal Week spotlights the Fate series by Heather Lyons. Some of my friends kept insisting I give these a try and one day, I decided to ignore my reading schedule and I squeezed in book 1, A Matter of Fate.  I fell in love! I was so pulled in my the story, the heartbreak and dare I say it… the love triangle! This series technically is a paranormal/fantasy book, but the supernatural element is almost secondary to the story, which at its heart is about finding love and the strength within.

My Reviews: A Matter of Fate | A Matter of Heart | Beyond Fate

About The Series

This is the synopsis of book 1, A Matter of Fate.

Chloe Lilywhite struggles with all the normal problems of a typical seventeen-year-old high school student. Only, Chloe isn’t a normal teenage girl. She’s a Magical, part of a secret race of beings who influence the universe. More importantly, she’s a Creator, which means Fate mapped out her destiny long ago, from her college choice, to where she will live, to even her job. While her friends and relatives relish their future roles, Chloe resents the lack of say in her life, especially when she learns she’s to be guarded against a vengeful group of beings bent on wiping out her kind. Their number one target? Chloe, of course.

That’s nothing compared to the boy trouble she’s gotten herself into. Because a guy she’s literally dreamed of and loved her entire life, one she never knew truly existed, shows up in her math class, and with him comes a twin brother she finds herself inexplicably drawn to.

Chloe’s once unyielding path now has a lot more choices than she ever thought possible.

Why I Love These Books

One of the reasons I love these books so much is that they are so heartfelt. The story is sort of inherently heartbreaking and you really feel the impact of those emotions as the characters move through the story. Chloe’s journey is one of heartbreak and sadness–of being emotionally torn. Throughout the series, she also does a lot of growing up, learning who she really is and finding her own inner strength. The cast of supporting characters is also comprised of really interesting people and together, along with the Whitecomb twins and the gripping nature of the story, you can’t help but fall in love with this story and its characters. This is an emotional, imaginative, well-written series that will hook you from the very beginning with its beautiful, complex characters and their heartrending story. Absolutely love this series!

Reading Order

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  1. A Matter of Fate (#1)
  2. A Matter of Heart (#2)
  3. Beyond Fate (#1.5 – Jonah’s novella)
  4. A Matter of Truth (#3) – November 5th
  5. Unnamed (#2.5 – Kellan’s novella) – TBD 2014
  6. Unnamed (#4) – TBD 2014
  7. Unnamed (#5) – TBD 2014

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Interview with Heather Lyons

Contemporary Romances have been quite popular for
a while now and have been very successful for many authors.
It’s also been said that perhaps the time for paranormal has passed. What are your thoughts on this and why do you enjoy
writing about the supernatural?

First off, I want to admit I really love Contemporary Romances and read a lot of them. But the thing is—when it comes to fiction (at least for me), I value variety. So for anyone to claim that paranormal books are passé is really surprising to me, as I’d be bored to tears reading only one genre over and over again.

Personally, I love writing Paranormal/Fantasy stories. I love the whole idea of the fantastical, and of how it stretches my imagination to places I never dared to conceptualize before. One of the reasons I, along with others, immerse ourselves in these kinds of stories is because it allows us experiences we can only ever dream of as they lie outside our realities. Recognizing yourself in a contemporary story is great—visualizing yourself in the fantastical is magical and a gift.

Tell us about the Fate series!

Remember all those Greek and Roman legends you learned as a kid, where there were gods and goddesses who controlled most aspects of life, from the weather to food production to knowledge? Now, imagine they were real—and not with gods and goddesses, but a secret race of beings who influence the course of events on seven different planes of existences. In my series, these entities are called Magicals; one of the most powerful ones of these god-like people, a Creator, happens to be a confused seventeen-year-old girl named Chloe Lilywhite. To add to the chaos and responsibilities in her life, she becomes entangled in a pretty complex and messy love triangle with twin brothers—one of whom she’s dreamed about since early childhood.

A Matter of Truth, the next book in the series,
will be released on November 5th! What can you tell us about it? Anything you can share???

I think the title of this book is a really good indicator of what this installment in the series is—it’s all about Chloe discovering her truths. Who is she? Who does she want to be? What does she want out of life? What does she need? What is she willing to sacrifice to achieve these things? It’s all about her deciding whether or not she goes along with the plans that Fate and Magical-kind have in store for her or finding her own way in the worlds. Honestly, I have to admit I love the journey Chloe goes on to get to where she is. Plus, it introduces readers to one of my very favorite characters in the series!

What’s next for you after A Matter of Truth?

I’m currently working on a romantic comedy that has nothing to do with the Fate universe—one whose characters just won’t leave me alone. Hopefully I can share some details on it soon, because I’m really excited about this one. After that, I’ll be working on both the fourth book in the Fate series (due out in March) and Kellan’s POV of A Matter of Heart.

When writing a paranormal story, you have to develop the foundational elements for that supernatural world and keep them consistent with each book. How difficult is this process for you? How do you approach that part of the writing process?

I think it requires a lot of thought ahead of time—and an agreement you make with yourself, as the author, to stay true to your world building and not go nuts and change things just to suit yourself and try to get out of corners you may have found yourself in. I try to remain consistent and will fact check the previous books often to make sure I’m keeping events in line with others that have occurred before. It’s pretty frustrating for me, as a reader, when I read books that are constantly shifting—so I want readers to feel like they know the Fate universe and trust that it’s going to be a familiar place for them when they enter each book.

I think release timing can be especially important (and tricky) in paranormal reads as these types of books typically have pretty involved plot lines with clues and specifics a reader must recall when reading the next book in the series. What is your philosophy on release timing? Do you recommend people re-read the previous books before jumping into the next book in the series?

My release schedule is based a lot on my writing schedule—I’m a stay-at-home mom with three kids 7 and under, so while I’m in utter awe of other authors who are able to crank out their series books so quickly, I’ve usually got a good five months in between my releases simply because I don’t have the time to write them any faster. I keep telling myself that those five months are still a heck of a lot faster than the typical year in the traditional publishing world. As for readers needing to reread . . . hmm. I’m the sort of book lover who does that sort of thing myself, because when I immerse myself into a series, I like to make sure there’s a smooth transition from one installment to the other. That said, I’ve tried to make the books easy to pick up and jump right back into Chloe’s journey.

What are some of your favorite paranormal books?

A paranormal series that I just adore to pieces is The Demon’s Lexicon trilogy by Sarah Rees Brennan. These books, utterly witty, gritty, and heartbreaking all at the same time, have gorgeous, lyrical prose that sends me into writer-envy fits. I also really enjoyed Lament and Ballad by Maggie Stiefvater, because I’m such a sucker for faeries, and these are dark and unapologetic about how they portray such beings. Rachel Hawkins Hex Hall trilogy was hilarious, and Cynthia Hand’s Unearthly series beautiful. As for my very favorite . . . although they are heavily fantasy-based (much like my series), I am in utter love and awe with Kristin Cashore’s Graceling Realm books. In my opinion, the second book in the series, Fire, is a thing of exquisite beauty. Cashore’s writing always inspires me to step up my game tenfold. I adore her consummate world building, but also beautiful sentences and characters that make me want to hold them inside and never let go.

Thank you so much for stopping by on my blog, Heather! Awesome as always 🙂

Thanks for having me, Vilma! I love your blog so very much!

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About Heather Lyons

HeatherBW2Heather Lyons has always had a thing for words. She’s been writing stories since she was a kid. In addition to writing, she’s also been an archaeologist and a teacher.

Heather is a rabid music fan, as evidenced by her (mostly) music-centric blog, and she’s married to an even larger music snob. They’re happily raising three kids who are mini music fiends who love to read and be read to.

Connect with Heather
Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

 

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