Showing posts with label #magicalRealism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label #magicalRealism. Show all posts

Saturday, November 2, 2024

A Through and Through Villain

 Mora, the villainess from The Ancestors' Secrets Series



Mora is a classic through-and-through villainess. Yet as we know more and more about her backstory, we're almost starting to understand what drives her and empathize with her, until her next cruel act... when we're passionately hating her again. 

The Royals and Elders were furious when they found out many centuries ago that Joland had shared the gift of eternal life with Mora and gave her the power to keep her body young. The Elders separated them, but they couldn’t make them mortal again. She has lived so many lifetimes, alone, because Joland was exiled to a timeline in the distant past. As his punishment, he couldn’t move forward in time with her. The Elders succeeded in taking away the ability to rejuvenate her body, which became bones with wasted muscles and shriveled skin. Although her withered body was useless, the power of her mind allowed her to reach the remotest part of the world and beyond. 

She wants power, she wants to rule, and most of all, she wants revenge. There is nothing she wouldn't do to achieve her goal. Will she succeed?

A short excerpt from the book

The soft humming of Mora's rotating, air-filled mattress relaxed her and protected her withered body from developing bed sores. Her castle was well hidden from prying eyes, deep in the woods on the mountainside. Nobody knew about its existence, only Zelda, her trusted servant throughout the centuries.
Mora didn’t allow anyone to see her in her miserable state, old and wrinkled. Her mind control ability helped her to make even Zelda see her in her youthful glory as she had known her so long ago, but she couldn’t completely conceal her body’s present state of old and wrinkled. The image of her old body is shown in Zelda’s mind through the youthful picture Mora projected.
​Mora closed her eyes and began searching the complicated network of the Collective Memory, in her mind. She murmured under her breath, “The Elders took everything I valued in life from me, but they never found out I could read every word that is written by every gifted Hunor after they reach maturity. When they use the ancient letters given to them by the Ancestors and they mention the meaning of the flowers, their lives are open books for me.”
Mora’s prune-like face lit up, “Good girl, Adel. You are the servant of the Leaders and can’t talk to anyone about this, but you just wrote in your diary that the Elders are planning a meeting. Oh, I see. One of them is about to take her last breath, and they need to choose her successor. Hmm… could I use it to my advantage? We’ll see. There is another interesting sentence here; you are worried about your mistress, Csenge. She seems distant and unhappy. Let’s see what our Leader has been writing…” she scoured Csenge’s desk in her mind.
“What?!” Mora shouted angrily when she read Csenge’s note in her calendar, “The Chosen One, Ilona, is coming of age today.” Mora was furious, “I can get into the minds of those who are related to me, but I can’t get into the Elders’ meeting or see the Chosen One. I curse you Ancestors for taking away my powers, and I curse you for tearing me away from the arms of my beloved, Joland. We’ll be together again one day, my love. I’ll find a way, somehow…”
In her fury, Mora clawed a hole in her soft comforter, but then, she started seeing an unfamiliar handwriting in her mind. Someone, unknown to her was writing a diary with the ancient Hunor letters. Mora’s rage calmed instantly as she rejoiced, “Ilona’s diary! She must be the Chosen One that Csenge wrote about.”
In her mind’s eye, the ancient Hunor letters appeared as Ilona wrote them in her diary. Dear diary, I’m supposed to keep a detailed journal from now on…
Mora grinned, “Write my little princess, and keep writing. I want to know everything about you.”
Mora continued her monologue in a subdued voice, “They will pay! But, for now, I have to gather every bit of information I could use for my revenge. Let me see what they’re writing about. Oh, so that’s where the Seer is hiding. She has written about every boring detail, but she never mentioned whose housekeeper she was. Damn, this crippled body and the constrictions they installed in my mind. Hah! The Chosen is in love with Bela, the mutt, now that’s ironic. His mother was excommunicated from the tribe for breaking the law. He’s useless to me but let me see what Zoltan is doing. At first, he refused to write in his diary, but his mother made sure that he does now. This is interesting! He decided to move to the town where the Chosen One works, which means that I can use him. Finally, my chance to change the future arrived. They must meet, and he has to get close enough to her, and then I will make him kill her, whenever I see fit.”

The Ancestors' Secrets




Epic fantasy-magical realism novels


Ilona resigns to live the simple life of a small-town doctor, but her life goes into a tailspin on her birthday. She finds out she was born into a secretive, ancient clan still hidden among us. She starts to develop unusual powers which she finds exciting as well as frightening. She can slow time and heal with her touch, but how and why?
She struggles to find answers, but those who try to reveal the clan secrets are severely punished.
A menacing man is following her and wants to kill her. Who is he?
More life struggles continue to plague her. After being thrust into a world of clan mysteries, obscure traditions, and beliefs, her life is drastically changing.
She must seek out and stop Mora’s evil plan. Punished by the ancestors long ago, Mora has waited centuries for the chance to reunite with her beloved Joland and to gain power over the Hunor clan. Revenge has kept her alive for over 1600 years.
Ilona must search for the mysterious Destiny Box that holds a message from her Ancestors while she attempts to sort out her feelings for the men in her life.
The spirits of the clan come to Ilona’s aid with answers to the clan’s secrets and the key to helping her maintain her sanity amidst the fear of danger lurking everywhere as she tries to succeed.
She must activate her Chameleon ability and obtain unimaginable powers. The clan Leaders and Elders are worried knowing that she can use her growing powers for absolute good or absolute evil. But they have no choice, they’re powerless against Mora and must place their trust in Ilona.
With the help of the clan’s Time Bender, her journey will take her back in time to when her people lived as nomads, to the castles of the 14th century as they struggle to overcome the obstacles in their path due to the evils of Mora.
Ilona finds her Destiny Box where the ancestors reveal what she must do—but it does not come without cost.
She must ensure the birth of the Chosen Child in the 4th century to save the future of the Hunor Clan. Will Ilona succeed in saving the child? Will she accept her destiny?

A review from Reader's Favorite


"I was keen to read The Ancestors' Secrets Series by Erika M Szabo for a couple of reasons. The first is that I was impressed by the premise and the promise of two strong female leads, and Mora and Ilona are worthy in this regard. Neither are perfect and even though we are not meant to like Mora, we do sort of understand her motive. It's deeper than the power and the revenge she seeks; we get that. She is not a cookie-cutter antagonist, and because Ilona is far from perfect herself, we are able to read through the eyes of women who are authentic. This is refreshing. The second part that piqued my interest is a modern female thrust back into the 1300s. This is something of an origin story, not just for Ilona but the entirety of the Hunor Clan. The magic is fun, but the tension and the settings are Szabo's best work."



Erika M Szabo

https://authorerikamszabo.com

Erika loves to dance to her own tunes and follow her dreams, introducing her story-writing skills and her books that are based on creative imagination with themes such as magical realism, alternate history, urban fantasy, cozy mystery, sweet romance, and supernatural stories. Her children’s stories are informative, and educational, and deliver moral values in a non-preachy way.

Tuesday, August 28, 2018

How Do You Say I Love You? #OurAuthorGang

When a man confesses his love


I love blending the past and present into a fantasy tale with intriguing tribal secrets, magical heritage, love triangle, and an exciting and dangerous life in a secret society. The inspiration to write Ilona’s story came from reading about my ancestors, the ancient Huns, and from my experience working in the medical field all my life. My grandma told me stories about the ancient flower language they used when she was a young girl and I incorporated the meaning of flowers into the story. In this excerpt, the red tulip is the symbol of everlasting love.

Excerpt from Turmoil, book 2 of the Ancestors' Secrets, a magical realism, alternate reality epic fantasy trilogy
Chapter 15
Confessions

Ilona and Bela took their coffee out to the porch, and they sat down on the comfortable wicker chairs to enjoy the afternoon sun. They watched Gypsy trailing behind Elza. Gypsy was born without a left hind leg, and his custom-made artificial foot was making clicking sounds on the gravel. Tui, of course, was right beside him. It was so comical watching them go. While Gypsy took one step, Tui had to take twenty running steps on her tiny feet. The calf-sized Saint Bernard and the two-pound Chihuahua were best friends for life.

They don’t care about size, breed or pedigree; they just like each other, Ilona thought. The sun tickled the skin on Ilona’s bare arms. Bela was deep in thought, fidgeting in the chair as if he wanted to say something, but didn’t know how to begin.

Ilona asked lazily, “Are you all right?”

“Yeah, no trouble, I just wanted to talk to you about something,” he answered, looking away.
Ilona sipped her coffee, “Okay. Don’t hold back.” She was anticipating a gazillion questions about being a Hunor and her abilities.

“It’s not that easy. I’ve wanted to talk to you about this for years, but always thought there was enough time,” he whispered, eyes dropping to his lap.

“What is it, Bela? You are scaring me. You know you can talk to me about anything,” Ilona said feeling alarmed and sat up straight.

He shifted in his chair, “Well, yes, but this is something that’s not so easy to talk about. Anyway, here goes.” Turning towards Ilona, he began, “You know that I love you, right?”

“Yes, I know,” Ilona replied while the worst possible things that could happen were running through her mind.

Bela reached behind him and then extended his arm toward Ilona. In his hand was a red tulip, the symbol of true love, a representation of adoration and devotion. Ilona’s heart thumped loudly in her chest as he started talking very fast, “I love you, but not only as a friend. I know you don’t want to be more than that, but I have to tell you. I’m in love with you Ilona. I’ve been in love with you since fifth grade. At first, I thought it was puppy love, and I didn’t want to say anything as I didn’t want to risk losing our friendship, but when I saw the way you looked at Zoltan, I couldn’t take it anymore. It nearly broke my heart. It was easier before because you only played with the idea of a relationship with guys. You had nothing serious going on, but he is different. You are different. You have to know how I really feel.”


“What are you saying? Are you in love with me? Really in love with me?” Ilona asked, confused.
“I have always been in love with you, but because you wanted only to be my friend, I never told you. I pretended just to love you as a friend. I’ve tried to let you know, but I couldn’t. I felt as if you had built a wall that I wasn’t allowed to climb over.”

Now he tells me! Ilona was dumbfounded. It was as if lightning had struck her right in the middle of her chest.

Although Bela noticed her distress, unknowingly, he continued turning the knife in her heart. “Didn’t you ever notice how I truly felt about you?”

“No, I thought you wanted only to be friends. You made it very clear so many times that I lost hope a long time ago, and now I think I’m falling in love with Zoltan,” Ilona whispered.

“What? Do you mean that? What a stupid idiot. I didn’t know. I thought that...” Bela mumbled. 

“Ilona, I love you! You’re the love of my life! If only I knew… If I knew I had a chance, I would have told you a long, long time ago.”

“Why didn’t you?” Ilona whispered.

“It’s not too late! Please tell me it’s not too late,” he begged, still holding the red tulip in his trembling fingers.

He tried to hand it to Ilona; only she couldn’t take it from him. She loved him still, but it wasn’t the same as before. If he’d told her before she’d met Zoltan, Ilona would have been the happiest woman on earth to accept his tulip, but not anymore. In the past, Ilona had resigned herself to being rejected and ignored. Meeting Zoltan had opened the possibility of being loved in return.

Ilona’s heart was aching so much, she felt like she couldn’t take it. He didn’t release her face but stroked her cheeks gently with his thumbs, and then leaned closer and closer. Their lips touched softly. It felt wonderful. Ilona had been waiting for that real kiss for almost a decade and a half. It had to come when she’d found love in her heart for another man. Life’s irony, she thought, fate is probably rubbing its hands in glee that it could fool and confuse the living heck out of me, once again.


Book 1 eBook is free on various sites



Read an excerpt from Book 3, Destiny
Wedding in 406 in the Carpathian Basin

COMMENTS

29 comments
Add a comment

Stream

Shakyra

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
<3 Makes me envious. I love subjects of love.
 
 · 
Reply

Eva Pasco

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
A beautiful excerpt!
+
1
2
1
 
 · 
Reply

Tricia Drammeh

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Wonderful post and excerpt from Erika Szabo, who is one of our very talented authors on #OurAuthorGang
 
 · 
Reply

Ruth de Jauregui via Google+

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Erika M. Szabo​ shares the language of flowers -- the tulip -- and a wonderful excerpt from book 2 of her magical realism/romantic trilogy on #OurAuthorGan.
 
 · 
Reply

Ruth de Jauregui

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
What a lovely excerpt, Erika! Love is complicated and you expressed that so beautifully. Thank you!
 
 · 
Reply

Joanne Jaytanie via Google+

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Enjoy an excerpt from Erika Szabo's book, Turmoil, book 2 of the Ancestors' Secrets Trilogy. #OurAuthorGroup
+
1
2
1
 
 · 
Reply

Joanne Jaytanie

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Great post. Sounds like a good read.
 
 · 
Reply

Joe Bonadonna via Google+

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Today on #OurAuthorGang, author Erika M. Szabo​ begs the question, "How do you say I love you?" and gives us a nice excerpt from her "Turmoil -- book 2 of the Ancestors' Secrets, a magical realism, alternate reality epic fantasy trilogy.
+
2
3
2
 

Joe Bonadonna

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Very good, Erika. You made this very unromantic guy wonder and think, "Mmmmm...." Great excerpt, too!
+
2
3
2
 
 
We all need a little romance in our lives :)
 
+Erika M Szabo -- I must be looking in all the wrong places. :)

Chris Weigand

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Great post. Loved the excerpt, can't wait to read the book. I like the symbolism you incorporate in your stories.
+
2
3
2
 
 · 
Reply
View all 3 replies
 
+Erika M Szabo I already read the first book and I have the second and the third books on my Kindle and hope to read them soon.
 
+Chris Weigand Enjoy the story Chris :)

Chris Weigand via Google+

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Read an exciting excerpt and learn a little more about what inspires Erika
+
3
4
3
 
 · 
Reply

Erika M Szabo via Google+

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
How do you say "I love You"?
+
3
4
3
 
 · 
Reply

Toi Thomas

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
A lovely excerpt. I knew there was a reason the tulip was my favorite flower.
+
2
3
2
 
 · 
Reply
 
My grandma told me about the flower language from the times when she was a young woman. She got her red tulip from grandpa, he was a romantic :) My hubby is too "macho" for gestures like that, he was raised differently
 
+Erika M Szabo My husband rarely buys me flowers because I have such bad allergies, but he knows that I'll endure it from time to time to have a bouquet of Tulips.

Nikki McDonagh

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Great post. Nice use of symbolism to get the message across.
+
2
3
2
 
 · 
Reply
 
Thanks Nikki :)

Toi Thomas via Google+

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Today, Erika M. Szabo shares an excerpt that inspires love and romance and offers a fresh look at the red tulip. #OurAuthorGang
+
2
3
2
 
 · 
Reply

Lorraine Carey via Google+

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
This post on TRUE LOVE will pull at your heartstrings. #love #flowers #symbolism #authors #writers #blog
+
2
3
2
 
 · 
Reply

Lorraine Carey

5 months ago  -  Shared publicly
 
Love can be painful sometimes. What a beautiful post, Erika. I didn't know the tulip represented everlasting love. I just love how you blend symbolism and signs into your stories. This was the first thing I read this morning and now I have the urge to go get some tulips.
+
3
4
3
 
 · 
Reply
View all 4 replies
 
+Lorraine Carey That's an idea! You love yourself, so give yourself a flower :)
 
+Erika M Szabo Iam. Headed to the store soon!

Advertise with us