Okay, Jeannie Lin is an up and coming star. And she liked my novella. I am tickled! She said:

This short story was a fresh and creative integration of Greek mythology with very current themes. The story doesn’t shy away from the pain of war and its psychological effects, nor does it gloss it over with airy romance. Instead, Stephanie Draven handles the deep issues of healing, fighting fear, and finding love after tragic loss. .. I loved this take on how the Greek gods might have evolved to walk among us today.

Thanks Jeannie!

Of my two Nocturne Bites, MIDNIGHT MEDUSA has received the least critical attention, so I was delighted when reviewer Cathie Morton sent me her thoughts today. She said in part:

Even though I read this book in April when it was released, [the] emotions that this story brought forth were still with me and so wanted to re-read before writing this review. It is just as beautiful to read now as before and so much more.

Just starting with the first  few paragraphs, you will be absorbed into Renata’s haunting past. With the awesome themes within this story, the reader will want to read even more about [Greek Mythology]. After a second read of this, I’m on a cloud nine [with] the emotions I went through reading this and the growth of the characters that the author Stephanie Draven so brilliantly portrayed as realistic with Damon and Renata.

Title: Midnight Medusa
Author: Stephanie Draven
Author’s website: http://stephaniedraven.com/
Publisher: Harlequin Enterprises
Release Date: April 2009
ISBN: 9781426833304
Length: Novella
Format: Electronic
Genre: Contemporary Paranormal
Sensuality Level: 3
Rating: 3.5

Reviewed by: BD Whitney

Renata Rukavina has a lifetime of anger built up inside her. Anger for the parents she lost and the childhood that ended before its time during the Bosnian War. An artist and a sculptor, she uses that anger as fuel for when she sculpts. And if her subjects are war criminals who die as soon as their likeness is finished? So much the better for the world.

When Renata is kidnapped by a man who professes to be a son of Ares and who claims to feed off of fear, she doesn’t believe him at first. But Damon’s insistence that his war-mongering brother and his aunt Athena want to use her talent to encourage war as well as his insistence that she is a monster, a Gorgon, inside eventually break her down. Damon swears he will never allow her to sculpt – and kill – again, and this is akin to denying her air to breathe. How can Renata possibly love a man who would deny her one source of joy? But somehow, she does.

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Stephanie Draven’s novella Midnight Medusa is a story about a woman who must learn to change in order to do good in the world. This story combines mythology and reality in a manner that I found quite interesting. War is the central theme. Of all the gods of various mythologies, it is only the war gods who have any real power in the world of this story, and there is a struggle for power within the ranks of these war gods. On faction of gods thirsts for violence of any kind and another is sickened by modern warfare.

Although some of the phrasing didn’t quite “work” for me, the story is overall strong and quite unique. In addition, Ms. Draven has created a number of interesting characters. The twin war gods Damon/Deimos and Phobos compare and contrast quite effectively. And while Damon is the hero of the story, he is not exactly what one might consider a “good guy.” He feeds off of terror and is unapologetic about that. He is also more than willing to use this as a weapon, and the scene where he uses this against Renata is very striking.

Renata is filled with anger and agony that has built over the years; however, although she feels is righteous in her anger, it is in actuality very destructive. She must deal with her inner monster and must realize that the end result, which is death of those who destroyed her family, doesn’t always justify the means used. The relationship that she has with Damon isn’t your basic formula romance love but mixes love and hate into a unique anger-filled emotion.

Overall, I found Midnight Medusa to be both unusual and intriguing. It is not your usual hearts and flowers type story and is surprisingly dark for a romance. This story is a little something different, and that, in my opinion, makes it worth reading.