Different Worlds by Kay Freeman
A dangerous journey of want and future in a novel that weaves modern gothic themes with fantasy.
Run with wolves or fly with immortals?
Different Worlds by Kay Freeman has been described as “a love story written in blood.”
The protagonist, Luna, goes on a dangerous journey of want and future in a novel that weaves modern gothic themes with fantasy. Suppose “Enemies to Lovers,” “Magnificence and the Beast,” and “Love Triangle” tropes.
On this BookTrib interview, the writer offers additional insights into her e book and its world.
Q: Different Worlds weaves collectively basic gothic tropes with trendy fantasy. What impressed you to set this supernatural love triangle in Assisi, Italy, a city steeped in spiritual and creative historical past?
A: Assisi made a long-lasting impression on me after I visited as a university professor main a gaggle of scholars throughout an artwork historical past course. The city’s distinctive geography, carved into the hillside, and its deep non secular vitality captivated me, particularly the story of Saint Francis. The profound sense of historical past and sweetness by no means left me, and after I started creating Luna’s character, I knew that Assisi can be the right backdrop for Luna’s journey of self-discovery.
Since Luna has the flexibility to talk to animals, I additionally felt a deep connection between her and Saint Francis, who is understood for his particular bond with nature and animals. This added a significant layer to the supernatural love triangle on the coronary heart of Different Worlds, tying Luna’s skills to the city’s non secular legacy.
Q: Luna’s images is a robust thread all through the novel. How did her ardour for capturing the world by a lens affect her emotional journey and decisions between immortality and a primal, earth-bound existence?
A: Drawn to Aldo’s decaying villa, a logo of once-eternal magnificence now in wreck, she’s tempted each by the particular energy of the villa and the attract of immortality. In distinction, the werewolf, residing within the untamed forest she likes to {photograph}, provides her freedom and a life rooted in nature.
Finally, Luna’s images helps her see that whereas immortality guarantees everlasting magnificence, it comes with stagnation and decay. Her ardour for capturing the fleeting moments of nature influences her determination to decide on a mortal life with the werewolves, embracing the impermanence and freedom that comes with it, simply as she embraces the transient magnificence she pictures.
Q: Each the vampire and the werewolf signify totally different types of escape and belonging for Luna. What’s it about these supernatural beings that makes them compelling love pursuits?
A: Initially, she is drawn to Aldo’s attract — his immortality, the facility to fly and the seductive thriller of his life. His crumbling villa, with its personal magical pull, represents security and permanence, one thing that intrigues her.
In distinction, Victor King frightens her at first. He hunts her within the forest, embodying the uncooked, untamed facet of existence. But, whereas Aldo provides everlasting life and the consolation of a house, Victor represents a extra primal connection — freedom, nature, and belonging to a pack. Over time, Luna finds that what she really craves isn’t the safety of Aldo’s immortality, however the love and sense of belonging Victor provides, though it’s extra unpredictable and wilder.
A: Loss and grief play a big position in Luna’s life, significantly her dialogue about dropping her baby. How did you method writing about this deeply emotional topic?
A: After talking with somebody who misplaced a toddler, I gained a deeper understanding of how grief can overwhelm an individual. In a world the place social media makes every thing public, it doesn’t contact the personal, inside areas the place grief resides. Loss — whether or not of a kid, partner, or father or mother—is a common expertise, so writing about it felt vital.
There’s no set timetable for therapeutic, and having a personality who hasn’t come to phrases with their grief highlights this. I’ve included a content material warning on the gross sales web page and contained in the e book to assist readers resolve in the event that they’re prepared to have interaction with these themes, particularly in the event that they’ve skilled comparable loss.
Q: Luna’s soon-to-be ex-husband performs a pivotal position in her previous life. How does her unresolved previous affect her current entanglements with the supernatural?
A: They met once they had been younger, struggling artists, however she put aside her personal passions, together with images, to assist his profession.
Her determination to go to Italy is symbolic of her seek for self-discovery, however it additionally displays the lingering maintain Jax has on her, because it’s a spot he beloved. On this new setting, she turns into entangled with supernatural forces — Aldo, who provides immortality, and Victor, who provides freedom and belonging.
Her previous with Jax fuels her willpower to not repeat previous patterns of sacrificing herself for others. This unresolved historical past drives her towards decisions that problem her to reclaim her id and pursue what she really desires, fairly than residing within the shadow of another person’s ambitions.
Q: With sturdy themes like “enemies to lovers” and “Magnificence and the Beast,” how did you make sure that Luna’s journey stays about self-discovery and empowerment, fairly than being solely outlined by her relationships with the 2 supernatural beings?
A: My characters information the narrative, and Luna’s journey is not any exception. Whereas she had relationships with Jax, Victor King, Aldo, and images, it was images that reconnected her with herself. Her marriage to Jax was imbalanced, resulting in dissatisfaction, however Luna’s development is about greater than romance. As she mirrored on the prepare to Assisi, “…what I want is to fall in love with myself.
An excellent romance pushes past tropes, specializing in transformation. On this story, each heroes expertise vital development too. Although Aldo didn’t win the heroine, he discovered new objective by significant friendships.
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Kay Freeman holds an MFA in visible artwork and served as an artwork professor in South Jersey for over 23 years, receiving a mid-career fellowship for her instructing and service-learning initiatives in underserved communities. Transitioning to the world of romance writing, her manuscript was chosen by the Romance Writers of America mentorship program, RAMP. Her novels have gained a number of awards, together with third place within the Mid-Atlantic Creator Society’s Romance Contest for Hitman’s Honey. She additionally writes a free publication on substack referred to as What Do Romance Writers Suppose About to present again to her neighborhood of writers who’ve given a lot to her.
Kay believes a well-crafted romance takes you on a journey, providing therapeutic to each the writer and the reader. She now resides in Wilmington, DE, and loves writing about broken characters remodeled by love. With over 300 hours of yoga trainer coaching and having accomplished a ten-day Vipassana Meditation Retreat, Kay attracts inspiration from these experiences. Her novels, every a labor of affection, characteristic hard-won fortunately ever-afters involving non secular journeys and transformations for her predominant characters. Different Worlds marks her seventh novel, with 5 extra books revealed within the gothic and suspense romance genres.
Publish Date: 9/1/2024
Style: Fantasy, Romance
Creator: Kay Freeman
Web page Depend: 274 pages
ISBN: 9798227446862
