The idea of ROARING was very simple at first. I wanted to write a book in the 1920s and I had it in my head that I wanted the main character to be a singer in a speakeasy. But what gave it that special twist? What made it fantastical and not just historical? Then came the idea of using one of my favorite things ever--mythology. What if she was a siren? That monster in greek myths that lured sailors to their deaths. That’s when I realized I had a book... . . a siren in a speakeasy! Her siren song could lure patrons to her bar and keep them coming back, which is, of course, good for business.
From there, I knew I wanted to weave in more monsters and create a historical world rife with the paranormal. I had ideas to use monsters like dragons, werewolves, minotaurs, krakens, gorgons, and the like. But they weren’t all from Greek mythology and I knew I needed something that tied this paranormal world together. I had to answer questions like...why were all these monsters running around in the world? What was their purpose?
The more research I put into learning about these monsters the more I began to realize that each monster had a defining physical trait. Gorgons had hair that were living serpents. Vampires had fangs. Werewolves had claws and minotaurs had horns. Below is just a short list of all the monster parts I could begin to use within the story:
Minotaur - horns
Gorgon - serpent hair
Werewolf - claws
Vampire - fangs
Manticore - stinger
Harpie - feathers
Golem - clay
Kraken - tentacles
Dragon - wings
Cyclops - eye
Thus came the idea of fusing humans with these monster parts. These parts would naturally give them the powers of their monster, creating all kinds of paranormal problems. Then the question became well, how did they get these monster parts in the first place? Because it was the Prohibition Era and rumrunning was considered practically a profession, I thought...how easy would it be to smuggle monster parts along with booze? And so the idea of “the monster trade” took hold. Mobsters and bootleggers smuggling monster parts from Europe and fusing them with their henchmen, creating monster armies to run their criminal netherworld.
And how can there be monsters without monster hunters? Any Supernatural fan out there knows there has to be hunters--especially if they’re super attractive men. So that’s how my siren’s love interest came to be. A monster hunter set out to find the last siren. He’s been trained to resist the magic of her voice and take her in to the specialized government division that investigates the paranormal. But once he meets her...shes not the monster she was made out to be. Honestly, what could be more romantic than that?
Pick up a copy of ROARING today and see how all these monsters are woven into the world of speakeasies and mobsters. Maybe you’ll find that my paranormal take on the ROARING 20s isn’t all that wild to believe.
Colt Clemmons is an agent in a specialized division within the Bureau of Investigation--one that hunts down not just mobsters, but also monsters.
For reasons that are kept top secret, Colt is the only person who can resist a siren's voice. But he's never had a chance to test this ability. The last siren left in the world mysteriously disappeared years ago.
Then one night, with a single word, she reveals herself. It seems too good to be true.
And it is. Because nothing about this siren--her past, her powers, or her purpose--is what it seems. . .
Young Adult Fantasy | Young Adult Adventure [Entangled Teen, On Sale: August 3, 2020, e-Book, ISBN: 9781649370488 / eISBN: 9781649370488]
Lindsey Duga is a middle grade and young adult writer with a passion for fantasy, science fiction, and basically any genre that takes you away from the real world. She wrote her first novel in college while she was getting her bachelor’s in Mass Communication from Louisiana State University.
Other than writing and cuddling with her morkie puppy, Delphi, Lindsey loves catching up on the latest superhero TV show and practicing yoga.
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