Judith Sterling is visiting with me today.
She is an award-winning author whose love of history and passion for the paranormal infuse everything she writes. Whether penning medieval romance (The Novels of Ravenwood) or young adult paranormal fantasy (the Guardians of Erin series), her favorite themes include true love, destiny, time travel, healing, redemption, and finding the hidden magic which exists all around us. She loves to share that magic with readers and whisk them far away from their troubles, particularly to locations in the British Isles.
Her nonfiction books, written under Judith Marshall, have been translated into multiple languages. She has an MA in linguistics and a BA in history, with a minor in British Studies. Born in that sauna called Florida, she craved cooler climes, and once the travel bug bit, she lived in England, Scotland, Sweden, Wisconsin, Virginia, and on the island of Nantucket. She currently lives in Salem, Massachusetts with her husband and their identical twin sons.
Since moving to Ireland, Ashling Donoghue has tackled one challenge after another. Now the mystery of her parents' disappearance seems unsolvable. Are they dead or only missing? No one—not even the godlike Breasals—has a clue. Hope and fear war inside her, but she's determined to find answers and stay strong for her siblings. Even as she hones newfound powers, her banshee-in-training sister Deirdre needs her support.
Ashling could use a little help herself. She's struggling to navigate her first romance, and while Aengus Breasal stirs her body, mind, and soul, his nemesis Lorcan does too. Both men harbor secrets about her past life as Caer. One has ties to Aoife, the scheming wind demon whose influence is on the rise.
As the Stone of Destiny awakens, so does the conflict within.
Find The Stone Awakened online: Amazon, BN, iBooks and Kobo
Welcome, Judith. Tell us what you write.
I broke into publishing with two nonfiction books about paranormal topics, written under Judith Marshall. Now I write novels, two different series at the moment: Guardians of Erin (YA paranormal fantasy) and The Novels of Ravenwood (medieval romance).
When did your writing journey begin?
My mom taught me to read and write before kindergarten, so I wrote my first story (albeit short) at age 3. Chapter stories followed in elementary school, and I’ve been writing ever since.
Do you find inspiration in your own life for your writing?
Absolutely! I’ve lived in several places overseas, traveled a lot, and had some amazing experiences, which inevitably find their way into my writing. But there’s a lot of imagination involved, too!
What’s on the horizon?
I just signed the contract for Night of the Owl, the fourth book in my medieval romance series. I’m currently writing The Sword Unsheathed, the third book in my young adult series. The medieval romance series will have 5 books total; the YA series, 4. Once I’ve finished both series, I’ll write a gothic mystery series, the first book of which I’ve already outlined.
Find Judith online: Website ~ Facebook ~ Goodreads ~ BookBub ~ Amazon Author Page
Let’s dig deeper with an excerpt…
A sudden gust whistled along the deserted corridor to my right. I turned as a robed figure disappeared up a winding stairwell.
“Fear not.”
Startled, I whirled back around toward the velvety voice. Lorcan! Clad in black like a character out of a 19th-century romance, he peeked out from behind a stone pillar.
“He’s merely a monk. That is, he was.” His ice blue eyes were intense, even in the soft light.
I swallowed hard. “Why are you here?”
“Why are you?”
“I don’t know.”
“Don’t you?” Leaving the cloister, he sauntered toward me.
My pulse quickened. He was every bit as handsome and alluring as Aengus, and my mutinous body knew it. No. Aengus is the one for me. Only Aengus. I grasped for an explanation, an excuse that would lighten the weight of guilt dragging me down. I’m asleep, and this is all just a dream.
Lorcan stopped an arm’s length away. “You’re here because I was thinking of you. And I’m here because earlier, you stood right in this spot thinking of me.”
I regarded him through narrowed eyes. “You spied on us?”
“Don’t you think I could’ve felt it?”
“That’s not a straight answer. And I don’t know you well enough to guess what you could or couldn’t feel.”
His pupils encroached on the lighter blue. “Your soul knows me.”