Wistful Wednesday

Cupid here to tell you that there are many sides to love. The romantic side, the friendly side, the nurturing side. But what's love without a little conflict? Today, I - and the lovely ladies of Moonlight, Lace and Mayhem - would like to invite our guest, Toni V. Sweeney, to share with you a little bit of romantic conflict. Without further ado, here's Toni:

In previous blogs about my new novel Wizard’s Wife, I’ve talked about the hero, I’ve commented on the heroine, I’ve elaborated on the other male fae in the story, and dwelled lovingly on the villain.  Today, let’s concentrate on the villainess of the piece.

Siobhan Dubhtina…

Beautiful…possessor of minor magic when compared to her brother Exeter, but as deadly in her own way and determined to achieve her goals.  Since Siobhan’s objectives are also those of her very ambitious and equally ruthless sibling, and involve his opposite number—wizard Tavis McMuir—there’s a deadly seduction and magical sex involved, also.

As the daughter of a Tiarda d’Doit Tina (wizard of black fire) and a solitary fae, both Siobhan and Exeter inherited two things from their parents—extreme comeliness and a double dose of Bad.  Wizards of Black Fire possess the same knowledge as their White Fire counterparts, but they also have access to arcane black magic.  Unlike the White Wizards, they see nothing wrong in employing black magic, so they ignore the law forbidding use of the black arts.  (Older White Wizards are also privy to this info but only so they can recognize and counteract a maleficent spell.)

Though Siobhan and Exeter aren’t twins, they resemble each other greatly… tall,  pale, black waist-length hair…eyes so dark they appear black, with the pupils dark crimson, and oblique…like a cat’s….oh, and she has wings, too—like a dragonfly’s but iron gray and blood-red.

When their father dies, Exeter has a Plan—during the Harmonic Convergence, he’s going to access one of the magic portals to Earth, invade and take over, and entertain himself when he gets bored by using the puny mortals living there as his own personal chess men.  He expects a fight from the White Fires who’ve taken a shine to those silly mortals, and knows it’ll be a long one so he gives his sister a mission.  All Siobhan has to do is seduce the White Fire champion, have his child, and give it to her brother to raise as a deadly Black Fire wizard.  Exeter knows he’s going to need all the magical back-up he can get and a White Fire babe raised with Black Fire knowledge will be D*E*A*D*L*Y!

Siobhan’s always up for a little romp in the hay, so she sets out with enthusiasm.  She meets the still-virginal teenage wizard, Tavis McMuir, at a fae feile, and within moments, the lad is lost, so captured by her spell he proposes marriage on the spot.  What more could Siobhan want?  Tavy’s bewitched, bedazzled…but not quite randy enough to be careless.  He refuses to abandon the magical gems of faery contraception, and before she can entice him further, his father intervenes.  Having discovered Exeter’s scheme, Prince Padraig breaks his son’s betrothal, banishes Siobhan from Ais Linn Keep, and the war begins.

Having failed her brother, and learning Tavis has gone to Earth to become its Guardian—and also has the audacity to fall in love with a mortal, and not only marry the lucky lass but now they’re expecting the child which should’ve have been Siobhan’s—the Black Fire princess is out for revenge.  She’ll help Exeter in his fight with the White Fires, and Tavis McMuir will pay…for rejecting her…and giving his wife which should have been Siobhan’s…

What she does next makes up only a small portion of the story, but it’s a very important part, for it may determine who wins in the fight between Black and White Fires as the Harmonic Convergence begins.



Wizard’s Wife was released January 15 by Class Act Books. It’s a contemporary blending of unicorns, shape-shifting faery knights, a black-hearted villain and villainess, a feisty heroine, and a hero treading a shaky lie of purity.  For a look at Chapter One, go to:  http://www.classactbooks.com/The-Wizards-Wife-Trade-by-Toni-V-Sweeney_p_269.html