A-musing the World. It's all about the music! Multiple winners. Comment for a chance to win!

Welcome to my A-musing the World Blog Event. Each week I’ll be inviting one of the nine muses of inspiration from The Song of the Muses Anthology to this blog. This week it’s my pleasure to welcome Eutrepe, Muse of Music. Eutrepe’s tale is told in R.G. Porter’s (formerly Robyn Wren’s) Destiny’s Light. As always, there’s a contest being held. Two winners will be drawn. One will win a $5 gift certificate to Digi Books Café. The other a download of Destiny’s Light. How do you enter for a chance to win? Simple. Click HERE and find out what Eutrepe’s general interests are (found on the left hand side.) Pop back to this blog and leave the answer in a comment. All right, let’s learn a little more about this fabulous muse and the talented author who wrote her story

Destiny's Light

A wish to go back would unlock more than she expected…

For as long as she could remember the Muses had always been sent to help inspire mankind. How she longed to go back again but man had lost his faith. Sure she will never return to earth Euterpe is surprised the night Zeus summons her for a final task in the mortal world. It was a quest she was ready for, until the interference of a God and her memory is lost.

Loner and musician, Ceris is stuck at an impasse with a song he needs to complete but cannot. Sure he will never move on he ventures out into the night in hopes of some kind of inspiration. Never did he expect it would come in the form of a woman who was about to be run down by a car in the dead of night.

In order to unlock the song that fills his soul they must unlock Euterpe’s past before it’s too late….

But first they must beat back the darkness and unleash their love.

SKY: Thanks so much for joining me this week!

R.G.: Always! It's been much too long since we hung out.

SKY: Agreed! Tell us a little bit about yourself. How long have you been writing? Do you have a genre preference? What have you published thus far?

R.G.: Ah, where to start. Well I've lived in a few different states but I am now currently living in Texas. (This place is WAY too hot.) I love all things supernatural, spooky, and unusual which tends to come out in my writing... often! I've been writing off and on most of my life, but decided back in 2005 to really try and put together a story worthy of being published. It was a long road and I've learned so much since I began but I wouldn't change a thing. I tend to lean towards fantasy and paranormal although there is a nice little horror plot line working its way through my muse now and again, so we shall see.

Currently I have six books published in e-book format with most going to print at some point. I have another one that will be released later this year and a new series I just finished first draft on. (whew) Many other ideas are still brewing but I've told them to take a number and wait their turn.

SKY: Sounds like you’re keeping busy. That’s super! When you first knew you were going to be part of The Song of the Muses Anthology, what was your first thought?

R.G.: Holy crap can I write that short of a book. :) After the initial shock I was beyond excited to be able to join a great group of ladies and awesome writers.

SKY: Did you find yourself researching Greek Mythology quite a bit while writing your story or were you already a guru in this genre?

R.G.: I've always been fascinated by many different myths and legends but the Greek history has always been one of my favorites. I studied as much as I could find and tweeked some here and there.

SKY: Let’s chat about your muse. What drew you to her? As she was literally your inspiration, share a little about how you formed an entire story around her?

R.G.: I love music, always have. I cannot write without listening to something to fit the mood, so picking her was natural. She sung in my head and wove the storyline with each note so delicately that the plot grew on its own. She wanted to be seen again but she had no idea what would really happen till it did.

SKY: Time to crawl inside your muse’s head romance style. I’d love to read an excerpt from your story that revolves around her interacting with your hero. Pull us in─lead out with three words you feel could be a mini title for this glimpse inside your tale!

R.G.: She could feel his eyes stare at her. There was no malice in his voice; if anything, she felt soothed to hear him speak. Her eyelids began to flutter open, the warm glow of light harsh against the darkness she'd been confined in. She squinted to allow her eyes to adjust to the light, her head still pounding. "Where ... where am I?" Her throat felt rough as she spoke, parched, as if she'd not had something to drink in days.

Her vision slowly focused to find a man watching her with concern. "You are at my home. Do you recall what happened last night?" Last night? Kaylena searched her memory once more. All she could remember were lights coming toward her and the same voice calling out to her. Then pain and darkness had replaced them both.

Kaylena attempted to sit up but found her body didn't want to cooperate. "I don't remember much. There were lights coming toward me and I called out, but they didn't answer. I heard your voice but that is all." Pain rushed through her leg when she attempted to move it. "What is wrong with me?" Fear pulsed through her veins.

The man's hand reached out and brushed back the hair from her face. His touch sent instant warmth through her body. "You were hit by a car last night. That is why your leg hurts." His arm moved behind her neck. "Here, try and sit up. I'll help you." Kaylena closed her eyes to both shield against the sting in her leg and revel in the feel of his touch.

Sharp pain raced through her body as she sat up. "It hurts." She hated to sound weak but it was almost too much. "I'm sorry. I'll be fine."

SKY: Great excerpt! Hero time! Introduce us. What does he look like? Where’s he from? Why was he lucky enough to hook up with one of the nine muses of inspiration?

R.G. Ah Ceris. He's a musician through and through. He is a handsome man but with a very mysterious way about him. He's quiet yet kind, his soul an old one.

“I’ll be okay. Now we must stay quiet. I don’t want to grab that thing’s attention or any Harpies that may still be in the area.” His head bowed to lean on the top of hers. “Be still, Kaylena, and rest. I have no idea how much further we will need to travel. We will need all our energy.”

“Fine, I’ll rest if I can. Don’t leave me, Ceris.” The soft plea humbled his soul. She was so innocent in her actions. How could Zeus allow such a travesty to happen to his daughter? If he thought he could get away with it, he would tell the god off himself.

“I’ll not leave your side, Kaylena. Now rest and I’ll wake you when we can move.” Ceris watched as the man’s body shook a few more times before his screams faded into gurgles. The Furies had ripped the man’s soul apart after forcing him to watch and feel all the fear and pain he’d inflicted on the innocents. He couldn’t even imagine what the man had gone through but better him than them.

Ceris had turned his body a fraction to accommodate Kaylena’s sleeping form, when the cloak that covered them lifted. The moment he turned his head, his gaze came face to face with the locked stare of the same creature he’d just watched tear the stranger’s soul apart. “Mortal…you do not belong here. How have you come to be in Hades?” The creature had known of their presence the entire time but hadn’t bothered to acknowledge them till now. Its bloody gaze moved along his body and to that of Kaylena’s sleeping form. “What’s this? A muse in the realm of the undead?”

“Shh, please do not wake her. If you must harm someone, harm me, but let her be.”

“Silly mortal, for what purpose would I harm a muse? My purpose is to punish souls who harm those who cannot defend themselves. I have no reason to harm you or her.”

Ceris sighed with relief.

The Furies’s gaze shifted back to him. “I ask again. What purpose do you have here? You are not dead, not a soul searching for eternal rest, so what brought you to this realm?”

“That’s a bit tricky. I’m here to help her regain her memory. Hades stripped it from her and I have but a day to help her regain it or she will be lost forever.”

“And?”

“Well, the one major hitch is that I can’t tell her of her past and who she is. She must remember on her own.”

The Furies leaned back its head; an eerie laughter erupted from its lips. “This must be either Zeus’s or Hades’ game. They are more sadistic than any Furies could hope to be.” For the first time, Ceris found a creature he couldn’t help but agree with. The Furies may be brutal when it enacted its vengeance but it was not stupid. “Listen to me, Mortal. Continue West till you come to a large mountain. Head up it till you see an opening. It will not be easy to see but you will not miss it. Enter the cave and it will bring you to where you need to be.”

SKY: Another excellent excerpt! Just to mix it up, make you think─if you could’ve chosen one other muse to write about in this anthology, which one would it have been? Why?

R.G.: Wow, hmm, I would guess I might have chosen Thalia. I could just envision a comedy being done by her by her own actions by being clumsy or something of the sort.

Please provide up to three short reviews with link to full review (if avail) about your muse story:

“The relationship between Ceris and Euterpe blossoms as they spend more time together. Ceris is a kind and gentle man who gladly steps in to protect and care for the mysterious woman who appeared out of nowhere. As we spend more time with them and get to know our couple, we know they will find happiness at the same time we wonder what will happen once Euterpe’s mission is complete.

I enjoyed this latest adventure of the Song of the Muses, Destiny’s Light, and look forward to visiting with Euterpe’s sisters and their family of powerful gods and goddesses.”

By : The D2K Paranormal Junkies

“Finding the self’ is a theme here, in both an obvious way, but also in a rather subtle way. The parallels give this story a depth that at first is quite unexpected. Wren has an incredible ability to bring characters, set in what seems a very alien landscape, (not only in a historic time, but in some ways divine) but to absolutely successfully bring those characters to life. The setting is important, and even at times, rather evocative, but it never intrudes on the important human interactions. The loves here could be the loves of any time.”

By Long and Short reviews

This story sound too fabulous to wait? Want to purchase now? Click here.

While I have R.G. Porter here I thought it’d be super if she talked a little about another one of her titles. So here goes…

Shades of Night

Her siren’s song leads to a deadly conspiracy.

A vampire trained to hunt those who have rejected vampiric law, Krystoff finds he is knee deep in a conspiracy to not only overthrow the Council of Elders but humankind itself. As the answers to his burning questions go unanswered, he wanders into a smoke filled club where he hears the purest voice ever and meets a piercing gaze that tugs at his soul.

Half human, half Fae, fearful of vampires, Alexandra knows how to dodge those who walk the shadows. That is until she is drawn to the stage and fulfills her need to sing out a song of loneliness that levels Krystoff’s attention on her. He is a vampire she should run from but cannot escape.

Fate has brought them together for a purpose—save the world from being plunged into an endless darkness…

Short Excerpt:

It was feeding time and humans were the only thing on the menu. Krystoff's acute vision took in the deep crimson that covered the gray cracked sidewalk, the smell of blood thick on the air. He stopped to inhale. "You can't hide," he said mockingly, his words echoing off the cold concrete. He knew he was close - the signs of their victims’ struggles were still fresh. “I know you’re here,” he said as he felt his body tense in response to the coming battle. His enemy was becoming reckless, leaving bodies littered in the wake of their feeding frenzies. Either that or they no longer cared, he thought coldly to himself, though he hoped it wasn’t the latter of the two.

He moved through the darkness of the alleyway while rain swept across the ground in waves, as if Mother Nature herself cried out in anguish at the scene below. Soaked from the downpour he moved through the shadows, the sounds of broken glass echoing from the distance as he followed the trail through the darkness, his only light coming from the arced flashes of lightning from above.

Rounding the corner with caution, his eyes coming to rest on the prone body of their last victim, the pooling blood mixing with the rain water created a faint steam that rose from his body like a soul grasping for the light.

“Uhhh…”

A guttural moan reached his ears, his acute senses picking up every sound. He moved in silence around the corner. The decay of an old building, its bricks of mortar crumbling in the wake of the storm, reminded him that the mortal world was not infinite. The shadows began to grow around him, his eyes darting into the shadows. The man’s eyes were vacant as his lifeblood pulsed out. The gash on his neck fresh, it was a clear indication something had been interrupted.

His deep voice carried on the stormy night’s air. “Come out, come out wherever you are.” He didn’t have time to play games. He’d lived too many years and fought more battles to want to waste time when the end result was the same. All too often he’d been sent to track down the others - their blatant disregard for the Council’s rules was an instant death sentence.

A growl from behind was his only warning as the whiz of knife flew past his head. Thank God for fast reflexes, he mused as he arched his body to the left. “You are growing reckless in your old age, friend. Leaving your meal half alive and missing your target as well.” One thing he’d learned over the years, taunting always worked. Tonight was no exception.

“A stirring story, driven by machinations by both the fae and the vampire worlds. With werewolves and darker dimensions drawn in for added texture, Shades of Night wraps the reader in glittering darkness from the first word. The relationship between Krystoff and Alexandra was, at times, underdeveloped. However, their passion and comedy keep this story moving to a sizzling ending.”

By Virginia

Reviewer for Coffee Time Romance

Purchase Shades of Night. Click here.

Visit R.G. Porter at her Website.

Follow R.G. on Facebook, Myspace or @AuthorRGPorter (Twitter).

Thanks again for joining us this week. Remember, two winners will be drawn. One will win a $5 gift certificate to Digi Books Cafe. The other, an Ecopy of Destiny's Light. How to win? Click HERE and find out what Eutrepe's general interests are (found on the left hand side). Pop back to this blog and leave the answer in a comment.

Let's take one last look at Destiny's Light in this video...