KATHY KOZAKEWICH of Books, books, books… and, from time to time, a little RL wrote:

What a fantastic story! There are definitely boundaries never before crossed in a Harlequin based romance, but Stephanie Draven’s myth-creation demands it. Very well done and a story that thrilled at the same time broke my heart.
I love the way that Stephanie combines ancient mythology with contemporary elements and creates an entire new universe. Her characters are strong, but hurting. In fact Nick Leandros hurts so much he’s no longer whole.
I was fortunate enough to win her contest and receive a free copy of this story; of course having liked it so much I’ve already purchased another of her Nocturne Bites ~ Midnight Medusa.
This story rated 4.5 hearts.

I like to think that this is going to be a good year for Greek Myth inspired fiction. In addition to my two Nocturne Bites, MIDNIGHT MEDUSA (a retelling of the gorgon myth) and WILD, TETHERED, BOUND (a new way to look at ancient dryads and chimeras), I have two forthcoming Myth-inspired novels and to top it off, they’re re-making Clash of the Titans!

Perseus was never really my favorite Greek hero. He seemed to get a lot more divine help than he really deserved and I always had a soft-spot for Medusa. But how can I pass up rooting for an update of this classic? According to an early script review, the creatures that appear in the film include “Sylphs, Lotophagi, Strix, Minotaurs, Centaurs, Nephilim, Giant Scorpions, Anubite Jackals, Hyena Men, and Pegassi.”

I know what you’re thinking. This has the potential to be a giant box-office disaster. But apparently Liam Neeson has signed onto the project and despite the Star Wars debacle that was Episode One, he rarely picks a bad script. I, for one, am totally looking forward to seeing what kind of travesty they make of ancient legend.

Here are some excerpts from my latest reviews!

CataRomance

A bright future is forecast for talented author Stephanie Draven. Her narrative is poetic, as she is able to express every aspect of her story in an insightful way to let readers know exactly how each character feels and the motives behind any reactions. Nick and Dessa are two very complex characters, he for his troubled mental state and she for her mission in life. The emotional impact of how the lives of these two interconnect is frequently thought-provoking, as the reality of how war can affect a soldier is exceedingly convincing. Ms. Draven also shows how the compassion of someone who cares about these brave individuals can have life-changing consequences.

This couple captures your heart as the reasons for their current behavior is revealed, making this story deeply emotive. The storyline as a whole is innovative while also being repeatedly poignant and even sometimes optimistically encouraging. Nick is a tortured hero for a number of reasons, as he has several inner demons to face because of past distressing traumas. When the mystical character of Dessa interacts with Nick and his all too real problems in today’s world, the scenes are emotionally charged. The love scenes between this couple are blazingly heated, as their connection linking them together is potently passionate. WILD, TETHERED, BOUND is expressively detailed with plausible scenarios and a stirringly magical romance.

Book Wenches

Stephanie Draven gives us an intriguing and emotional tale of pain, guilt, and the healing powers of love. This story mixes the brutal realism of war with creatures of mythos, giving us a reading experience that is both pleasurable and absolutely unique. This is no simple throw-away romance. While this novella is quite short, Ms. Draven packs a lot into its pages, and I found myself dwelling on it well after I had read the final page.

Ms. Draven gives us strong and complicated characters in Dessa and Nick. Neither is what you would typically expect to find residing within the pages of a romance novel. Not only is Dessa a magical being surrounded with the mystique of an immortal, but she is strong and determined and hell-bent on obtaining that which she desires the most. She is also vulnerable enough to catch our sympathy, especially when she sees how her actions affect Nick.

Nick is fascinating. He is a chimera, equal parts dragon, lion, and goat, but he is human as well and a very damaged and fragmented soul. This presents something of a puzzle to the reader. Is he really a chimera of myth? Is the split within him physical or simply psychological? I found myself repeatedly posing this question to myself as I read this story. Ms. Draven does an excellent job presenting Nick as three separate beings who are in actuality one person, and when this spills over into the story’s love scene, the results are surprisingly sensual.

In all, I found Wild, Tethered, Bound to be readable, entertaining, and quite thought-provoking. The blend of fantasy and reality that this story offers us is exceptional, and the conflict and characters ensnared me. Ms. Draven is a writer to watch, I believe, and I am extremely interested to see what she comes out with next.

Eye on Romance

There are many feelings the reader will have as they read this story. There is despair as Nick surveys the death and destruction around him as he fights an enemy. The loss of self as he realizes he has three parts that make him whole, and the lack of control he has of these three parts of his personality. Nick’s self destructive tendencies as he tries to deal with it all. The glimmer of hope he feels with Dessa. In turn Dessa, leaves and places herself in a place where she feels the most at peace and awaits her mate.

This is story is a Nocturne Bite and gives the reader a wonderful glimpse of two characters who are lost and alone and manage to find each other and themselves. Their connection is one that will remain forever and that hope, love and caring amidst destruction can exist for those who are willing to be open to all around them.

Night Time Romance Reviews

Wild, Tethered, Bound has plenty of action and some sarcastic scenes between the main characters. Dessa isn’t a human and doesn’t think like one. She has her own way doing things, which just plain annoys Nick and causes readers to laugh out loud.

Mad Ramblings

As with Draven’s first Bites, MIDNIGHT MEDUSA, this is an intelligent and well-written story. It is refreshing to read Bites that stray from the norm of weres or vamps, and this one links current affairs that people are (or should be!) aware about with a challenging love story. I just love Draven’s application of mythical creatures to things that are happenign in our time.

The conflicts and emotions were real and believable, the premise was clever and well-thought out. I enjoyed the characters, particularly the hero, Nick, although the heroine (Dessa) was also very appealing, earthy and deep.

Hey, I’ve been featured on Harlequin’s Paranormal Romance Blog. Here’s what I said:

Ancient myths are often dismissed as simplistic stories our ancestors created to explain things they didn’t understand. I take a different view. I love mankind’s oldest stories because I believe they tell us about things we no longer understand–things about ourselves that we’ve forgotten, or buried under the polite veneer of modern society.

The chimera of ancient myth was a monstrous creature–an amalgamation of a goat, a lion and a dragon. I see the story of the chimera as a metaphor for detachment. A cautionary tale, if you will, about the way people com I see the story of the chimera as a metaphor for detachment. A cautionary tale, if you will, about the way people compartmentalize their lives.

There’s a lot of horror in the world–sometimes so much that we want to shut it out and bury the part of ourself that cares. A lot of soldiers do that especially. They see so many bad things that they give themselves different personas to deal with it. If you have friends or family in law enforcement or the military, you probably already know that they sometimes make some part of themselves numb, just to survive. And when they come home from a war zone, it might even seem like they’ve become two, or even three people in the same body.

My novella, WILD, TETHERED, BOUND is an ode to those heroes and to the families that love them.

Lt. Nick Leandros is the hero of my story and he has experienced the kind of trauma that shatters a soldier. He transforms into a chimera, detaching himself into three different men just so that he can cope. But there’s a danger in detachment. It alienates your loved ones and it keeps you from making a difference in the world, which is why Nick needs our heroine to help put him back together.

But she’s no ordinary woman. Dessa is a dryad–a tree nymph who is the very embodiment of attachment. It’s her magic that holds together the last forests of Afghanistan. It’s her unique strength that allows her to love a fractured soldier like Nick.

I chose Dessa for the heroine of my story because, for the Greeks, nymphs were a primal symbol of feminine power. Dryads didn’t need men–though they did fall in love with them. They were strong and independent in their own right, and their deep attachment to the natural world stood in stark contrast to the lives of soldiers.

It seemed to me that today’s warriors–male or female–need that kind of grounding from their loved ones. And that’s what inspired me to tell this tale.

Check out my book trailer and enter the contest I’m running, and you could win an advanced review copy of WILD, TETHERED, BOUND and a $15 gift certificate to Amazon.

Meanwhile, I’d love to hear from soldiers or military families on how they have helped integrate back into normal life. Even if you’re not involved in the military or don’t know anyone who has served, have there been times in your life that you felt like you had to have a split personality to deal with the cards life dealt you? I know as a writer, just having a pen name can sometimes feel like a dissociative disorder, so I’d love to hear from authors too!