I’d like to welcome author S.J. McMillan to Romancing the Darkside today! She’s promoting her new release City of the Gods: The Descendant via Sizzling PR. S.J.’s got a real treat for us, an interview with one of her characters and an excerpt of this new urban fantasy with an Aztec theme. This one’s definitely going on my books to be read list!
The name of the book is City of the Gods: The Descendant. It’s about this girl, Katalina, who is the lone descendant of an ancient civilization. The Gods appoint her to right the wrongs that were done to her ancestors by an evil man. I, along with two others from the original civilization, are sworn to protect Katalina until she is able to complete her task. Where do you fit into the story?
I am one of the protectors of Katalina. I take my job, given to me by the Gods, very seriously. I am conflicted though, because I am also her love interest. We share this unique attraction for each other, but we both try to deny it. After all, I have a job to do. I am not there to get emotionally attached to anyone.
You’re asking a guy, of course I am going to say the action. The action scenes are always fun to do. The author has me running, jumping, flipping, punching, and using my God given abilities in many scenes. My weapon of choice is the bow and arrow. I am a damn good shot too. The dialog I have works for me. I crack a few jokes here and there, am serious when I need to be, and say romantic things to make Katalina’s heart, and maybe the readers’ hearts, melt. The romance is there, but the author did a good job of making the reader wait for it. She is such a tease.
I never had to convince her of anything. She knew I would be able to deal with any situation she threw at me. There were actually a couple of scenes toward the end of the book where I was like, ‘Are you sure you want to go there?’ or ‘Where the hell do we go from here?’, but she always managed to work it out in some way or another.
Are you happy with the genre the author placed you, your fellow characters, and the story in?
Yes, I think the story works well as an urban fantasy. It is placed in the here and now. We have the same responsibilities that everyone else has. We have the same struggles and deal with many of the same problems. The only difference is we have abilities that were granted to us by our Gods. And for the most part, the abilities don’t really help us out with our regular lives. The abilities are designed for protect Katalina, and nothing more. What is your least favorite characteristic the author has attributed to you?
I’m very focused on my duty to Katalina and the mission assigned to me by the Gods. I don’t want anything to pull me away from either one. It leaves me looking like a jerk at times.
The scariest moments for me are when Katalina is in danger. You would think that girl looks for trouble. I’m constantly trying to save her from one thing or another. Perhaps she likes me saving her and she really is looking for a way for me to save her. Either that or she is secretly plotting my demise and waiting for me to trip up in saving her. Hmmm…maybe I should keep my guard up…
My happiest moment is when I am finally able to express to Katalina how I really feel about her. I really struggle with my feelings, so it is a huge relief to tell her the truth. While it’s a happy moment, it’s also sad moment. Certain things occur that brings me to tell her the truth.
Happy, but uncertain. It’s happy because I’m with people I care about and who care about me. It’s uncertain because while she is out of immediate danger, there are still many threats to Katalina’s life.
The author is currently putting the finishing touches on the second book of the City of the Gods series. She is planning on the series being three books…for now. I’m in the second book, but the focus is shifted to another character.
If this book was made into a movie who would you want to play you?I would like to see Alex Meraz play me. Most probably know him best from the Twilight movies. He played Paul, one of the wolves.
700 A.D. Teotihuacan, Mexico – The High Priest believed himself to be as powerful as the Gods and set a plague on the city as a demonstration of his power. The Gods took pity on the few remaining survivors and granted each immortality and an extraordinary ability. Three of these survivors were given a mission of great importance: train the lone human descendant of their civilization to stop the evil priest from damning the rest of humanity.
2012 A.D. San Diego, California – The time has come to make Katalina Deckard aware of her destiny. Her life has been a constant struggle since the loss of her parents when she was young, but has it prepared her to save the world? Can her friends, who have survived so long, convince her she has what it takes to accept the mantle of Redeemer?
“Who did this?” Tristan asked quietly, almost more to himself than to Kat.
“Probably that bastard Ryan. He is going to pay for every last thing he demolished,” Kat replied, assuming Tristan was speaking about the chaos throughout the rest of the house. She stepped forward and looked around the room once more. It was then that she noticed the black flowers sitting on her dresser. Kat walked over and pulled the small white card from them. She opened the envelope to reveal a card with a beautiful picture of the same flower in white. Tristan came to stand behind her as she opened the card. It was a simple message, but one she would not soon forget.
Tristan plucked the card from her hand and reread it. Kat stood frozen in place. Her mind raced with unanswerable questions. Who was coming for her? What did they want from her? Was this actually some sick joke or was someone really coming to get her?
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Thanks for having me and Tristan on your blog today. I have to say I love the picture of Alex Meraz that was added. Gorgeous!