For the schnitzels and giggles, I thought I'd plug my series landing page into AI and ask it to "grill" me.
Best-case scenario, it answers some questions readers have.
Worst-case scenario, it makes for a fun and easy email to read.
[WARNING: If you've not yet read Books 1-5, the following includes spoilers. You can grab the books individually or save with the bundle here.]
Let's get our hands dirty, shall we?
Who is the ideal reader for this series?
Easy.
Anyone who loves classic epic fantasy with world-ending stakes and fast-paced narratives without modern-day tropes like romantasy.
I thought this was supposed to be a grilling, Mr AI?
Darius spent ten years in the "gutters" of a foreign land. How does a man who has lived as an outlaw for a decade suddenly pivot to the bureaucracy and politics of being a King without the nobles immediately assassinating him?
I think you've forgotten the journey between Darius being a lowly bandit and returning as King of Vlencia.
He had prisons to escape…
Executions to dodge…
An ancient forest that almost claimed his life…
A brother hellbent on killing him…
And a whole bunch more obstacles that warrant their own email.
Darius didn't just "suddenly pivot" — it took four books before his return to Vlencia's capital. Oh, and who said nobles don't want him dead? 😉
Next…
If Darius's primary goal was to "flee Estos and leave his haunted past behind," why does he care enough about it to stay? Is it heroism, or is it a lack of a better exit plan?
It's a mixture of patriotism, a little Stockholm syndrome, and heaps of dread that would follow him around like a shadow for the rest of his life should hundreds of thousands of innocents die on his watch.
The blurb mentions he turns to a "reclusive seer." Why would a cynical, street-hardened outlaw trust a prophecy enough to change his entire life trajectory?
Well, if you'd have actually, you know, read the landing page, you'd have seen it mention that the seer's foresight has scarcely been wrong.
Anyway, Darius never visited the seer for a prophecy…
He wanted foresight on the guild's most daring raid, and given how accurate the soothsayer has been in the past, it makes the prophecy even more damning.
The page mentions "wizards" and "mages." Is this a "magic has no limits" system, or are there costs and rules that prevent it from being a deus ex machina?
Oh by the gods, no!
I openly flaunt my magic systems being super simple to grasp (unlike a lot of epic fantasy out there that seems hellbent on dishing out homework to readers, as opposed to giving them an enjoyable experience — but I digress).
In fact, I can explain the "system" in 20 words:
The more a mage/wizard uses their powers, the more they age and edge closer to a mortal's death.
Nothing less, nothing more.
That said, there are only three types of magic a sorcerer can possess in this world. On very rare occasions, someone can wield more.
If you'd like to discover what they are, then all is revealed in Chapter 10 of The Great Betrayal, which — oh, well, if you look at that! — you can grab here:
Digitally-Signed E-Book: https://djjwatsonstore.com/products/The-Great-Betrayal
Standard Retailer Edition: https://books2read.com/u/mdeQl5
What can I say? I'm a tease.
DJJW