Meet a pirate and a lady knight in

Serena Chase’s

pirate/fairy tale/ fantasy

The Seahorse Legacy

********

The Story

a Pirate

bound by a centuries-old oath

a Knight

determined to prove her calling

a Legacy

demanding surrender

As Keeper of the Seahorse Legacy, Cazien de Pollis is a King among pirates, divinely appointed to dispense justice on the seas. Bound by the sacred oath of a long-dead ancestor, he must fulfill a contract to wed the green-eyed Oracle’s Daughter named therein—or risk losing everything he and his people hold dear. But at nineteen, with the identity of his betrothed only recently revealed, Cazien resents the contract—and the urgency within him to see it satisfied.

Erielle de Gladiel returned from the quest for the Remedy, changed. Not only are her formerly-blue eyes now a brilliant shade of green, but she must don gloves to hide inky evidence that her prophetically-bestowed title, the Oracle’s Daughter, demands more from her than the task already completed. Erielle’s dearest-held dream is realized when she is knighted by her King, but unbeknownst to her, that very honor jeopardizes the prophesied purpose to which she and Cazien have been called.

Just as Cazien summons the courage to collect his bride, dark rumors and darker deeds crawl up the coasts, calling its guardians, the Seahorse Pirates, into action—and Cazien away from Erielle. But even though the Oracle’s Daughter knows nothing of the contract to which she has been consigned, Cazien’s enemies have somehow learned of his interest in Erielle. And if they reach her before his ancestor’s weighty oath is executed, the Seahorse Legacy will be forfeited . . . and darkness will be given reign.

Introducing Cazien & Erielle

Brief physical description

Credit: IFC Films

Cazien de Pollis is 19 years old with ice-blue eyes (light blue, flecked with white) and black hair (longish, but he usually ties it back) and a small “soul patch” bit of facial hair beneath his lower lip. He is not terribly tall, about 5’9”, and is lithe in a muscular sort of way (great shoulders and arms, well developed leg muscles. You get the idea.)

Erielle de Gladiel is 16 years old (but nearing her 17^th birthday when the story begins) with bright green eyes. Her thick golden-blond hair has a touch of wave, almost unnoticeable, but becomes wavier when she takes out the braid she usual wears and lets it hang free. She is quite petite, standing at about 5’2” and is slender, but her arm and leg muscles are fairly well developed, as she has trained with knights her whole life.

Resembles… 

If there was an age-appropriate version of French actor Gaspard Ulliel, Cazien would be his twin. Other appropriate “casting choices” might be Brant Daugherty (although he’s also too old, doggone it!) or Shane Harper.

If Indiana Evans was a bit shorter of stature and had bright green eyes, (and if she was still 17, of course!) she would be the perfect Erielle.

Here’s a link to my Pinterest board for the book http://www.pinterest.com/serenachase/the-seahorse-legacy-eyes-of-everia-book-3/

Strengths and weaknesses

Cazien is skilled with weapons, thievery, and crafting clever insults, as befits a pirate of the Seahorse Legacy. He is very touchy about his upbringing (his parents never married each other; his mother, now deceased, was a famous pirate, and his father was an E’verian duke, now disgraced and deposed) He tends to brood about things that upset him (like not being allowed to pick his own wife) and has a hard time getting beyond his own mistakes and accepting forgiveness—he emotionally beats himself up a lot.  Among his extrasensory abilities is an affinity with water, including the sea and its currents. Cazien also possesses a gift that allows him to draw water vapour from the air to envelope himself (or his ship) and to reflect his surroundings, providing invisibility—which is handy when you’re sneaking around on pirate business.

Credit: IMDB.com

Erielle is smart, independent, and very skilled with weaponry, but she has a quicksilver temper, is easily offended, and a bit reactionary. Also, she tends to focus so deeply on her goal-of-the-moment that she sometimes misses crucial details, which can leave her—or others—vulnerable to enemies.

Quirk (if any)

Cazien flicks that little patch of hair beneath his lower lip when he’s considering something important or when he is perplexed or thoughtful. He also has a habit of mentally cataloguing a person’s accessories of value (such as jewels, etc.) when in social situations. He also has a rather telling eye twitch, but it usually only presents when visiting one certain place.

Erielle writes in her sleep (which is the reason she is seldom seen without gloves—to hide the ink stains on her fingers) and she sometimes lets loose with the phrase, “Cobeld’s beard!” which is considered profanity by the E’verian nobility. She is quite talented at disguising herself and also has a bit of an obsession with unusual weaponry.

Your inspiration for the character

Both of these characters were “born” in The Ryn (Eyes of E’veria, book1), although in the early drafts, Cazien was entirely a villain and Rynnaia despised him (she was intrigued by his dark and handsome charm, of course. I mean, who wouldn’t be?) But as the story developed, Cazien simply refused to fit into that perfect “villain” mould and Rynnaia grew fond of him. Caz not only became a Robin Hood-type hero and a bit of plucky comic relief, but royalty of a sort and a rather delicious foil for noble Julien. This pirate just would not be ignored, to the point that he insisted on his own tale . . . and here we are!

Erielle is Julien de Gladiel’s little sister and served as Rynnaia’s helper on two different journeys. She’s a tomboy who has the sort of mad skills (and then some) that, in E’veria, are usually reserved for men planning to enter knighthood. In the first two books, she served as Rynnaia’s witty young friend. As that original two-book tale developed, it quickly became clear that Erielle, too, needed more adventure in her life after the Remedy was found.

Background to the story

The Eyes of E’veria series is a bit like a series within a series. Each two book set retells a different fairy tale and features different lead characters. The first two books, The Ryn and The Remedy were an extended retelling of Snow White and Rose Red and featured Rynnaia and Julien as leads (Cazien and Erielle were minor characters.) In books 3 & 4, Cazien and Erielle take the lead in an epic-reimagining of The Twelve Dancing Princesses. Whereas the bulk of the “fairy tale” portion of the first set’s story (Snow White & Rose Red) was relayed in Book 1, in this second set of books, the bulk of the “inspiration tale” will come in Book 4: The Sunken Realm. But don’t be surprised if you happen to notice subtle references to The Twelve Dancing Princess—and several other fairy tales!—within Book 3.  

Serena’s bio: Serena Chase lives in Iowa with her husband, two teen daughters, and one very spoiled (but really adorable) dog, Albus. A frequent contributor to USA Today’s Happy Ever After blog, she also writes for Edgy Inspirational Romance. Serena has served as a youth leader for high school students at her church, coaches her local high school’s Color Guard, and drinks entirely too much coffee between these and her daughters’ activities. You can find Serena on Facebook, Twitter @Serena_Chase, and Pinterest.  Visit her website www.serenachase.com

Thanks Serena ~ fantastic spotlight!

Relz Reviewz Extras
Character spotlight on Julien & Rynnaia
Reviews of The Ryn and The Remedy
Serena’s Author Alert
Visit Serena’s website and blog
Like Serena’s FB page Check out The Seahorse Legacy at Goodreads Buy at Amazon: The Seahorse Legacy (Eyes of E’veria)

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