THE WHITE DEER OF KILDARE

By Christy Matheson

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GENRE:  Time-slip Fantasy

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BLURB:

There’s a deer sorting Christmas decorations in Maura’s kitchen…

All Maura wants is a peaceful winter holidays in her dilapidated Irish castle, but her ex is threatening her with family court, and her second grader has invited a strange–completely unclothed–friend, to spend the holidays with them. Oh. And the friend’s dog, which is not actually a dog but probably one of the white deer of Celtic myth.

Maura distracts herself from her husband’s threats by trying to discover why a Fae deer is in her kitchen, when the two women accidentally end up in the Ireland of ancient myth. The White Deer was the human queen of this castle, but it appears she has husband trouble too. Perhaps…the deadly sort of trouble.

Can Maura rescue her new friend — or is Maura herself so tangled in the White Deer’s fate that she won’t make it home to her children alive?

This novella will appeal to readers who enjoy cozy fantasy, ancient history, Irish folklore, and uplifting stories about motherhood and found family.

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EXCERPT

Raindrops slide down the windscreen of the Peugeot, and condensation creeps up the windows as we let the minutes tick by. We got to Cork airport early, but Aiden and Kaylee haven’t changed their minds. No way, no how are they getting on that plane back to America.

Aiden lifts his phone and snaps a picture of the distinctive swoop of the departures building, then turns and gets me in the frame. Ca-tip. Ca-tip. He hunches and his thumbs fly over the screen.

“Okay,” Aiden says. “Done. It’s official now.”

He’s trying to prove that I did my best to drop them off, but I know it won’t be enough. The teens’ biological parents are both going to blame me for violating the custody agreement.

Within seconds, my phone buzzes against my leg. In the back seat, Kaylee’s pings, then dings, then chirps. Aiden, who at 16 always plans ahead, switched his to silent mode before unleashing the storm of recriminations. I should have done the same. I close my eyes and lean my head against the cold window. Buzz, buzz, chirp, ding.

“Are you sure you won’t get out…” My voice can’t turn this into a question.

“Have we missed the plane yet?” Kaylee demands.

“No,” Aiden and I say together.

We sit without talking. More pings.

Amber: Please. 

Please please please please please.

One mother to another. Please.

In my heart of hearts, I sympathize with Amber. I’d want to see my children for Christmas, too.

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Questions for the Author

What minor character insisted on playing a larger role? How do you get the characters in your head to behave?

Normally, I get to know the characters in my head for a long time before I let them out on the page, so we have already worked out the kinks and surprises. I imagine out the whole book, including a lot of scenes that never go on page at all, and I keep re-telling the main ones until they become fascinating. 

So it’s during that stage that I get to understand what my characters will or will not do, and how they react in different situations. My writing process is more about narrowing the focus, so every scene moves this exact story forward.

In this series, since each volume is a retelling of a specific fairy tale, I knew that I would need different narrators—the same person cannot meet their true love over and over, and they can’t be both old and young, the rescuer and the rescued! But it’s important that every narrator is connected, because my readers are here for the emotional connection. They don’t just want an adventure tale, they want to feel like they are back with the people they care about.

So it has been really fun to figure out which side characters have the energy and intrigue to star in their own book. The White Deer of Kildare takes place in two timelines (the present, and third-century Ireland), so it kicks off further storylines in both places. Many readers had questions about Maura’s stepchildren, which are answered in The Knight of the Terrible Valley and Aiden of Florida, but the upcoming Squire and His Magical Library takes place entirely in the Heroic Age. That one features Rian, a character who doesn’t act like all the other men in The White Deer. What happened to him? Well, I’ll give you a secret—in my head, I’m busy telling a whole new story with Rian and Maura! I can’t wait to get to the putting-it-in-writing stage.

So since we have such a good working relationship, my characters usually behave… but I can tell you one story about a minor character getting out of control. 

In the fairy tale behind Aiden of Florida, the hero is betrayed by his two friends. Naturally, I had to figure out why Aiden’s schoolmates were there and why they would betray him. Then, I figured I could tell another fairy tale with one of the boys getting a chance to redeem himself.

That was my plan. 

Meanwhile, I’m writing a novella for my newsletter with this set of characters, and Arthur keeps being more dramatic—and loyal—than I intend. This story is narrated by the second boy’s girlfriend, and when my editor read the novella, she said I needed to adjust it because it seemed like she was supposed to fall in love with Arthur. (She’s not. She really likes her current boyfriend—see the first paragraph and how I let my characters tell me about themselves!) So I’ve written a new scene, but Arthur is being even more dramatic. Now he’s crashed her parents’ garden party and is lighting cocktails on fire. 

My conclusion isn’t that Arthur is misbehaving; it’s that clearly he needs his own book!

I invite you into the busy world at the Castle in Kilkenny! I hope you’ll enjoy meeting everyone in The White Deer of Kildare, and if you join my newsletter you will be the first to read about Arthur’s hijinks—for free.

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Christy Matheson writes award-winning fiction about friends, family, and finding one’s place in an ever-changing world.

She is the author of “The Castle in Kilkenny: Fairy Tales” novella series. Each one sets a traditional Irish fairy tale within a modern blended family, perfect for readers wanting a cozy family adventure.

Christy’s regular historical work (sans fantasy elements) can be found in the award-winning “Feisty Deeds: Historical Fictions of Daring Women,” of which she is also an editor. Her Regency novels are represented by Kristina Sutton-Lennon and have won pre-publication awards for women’s fiction.

Christy is also an embroidery artist, classically trained pianist, and sews all of her own clothes. She lives in Oregon, on a country property that fondly reminds her of a Regency estate (except with a swing set instead of faux Greek ruins), with her husband, five children, three Shelties, one bunny, and an improbable quantity of art supplies.

Website: https://christymatheson.com

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Substack: https://unspokenstoriesofwomanhood.substack.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/49771827.Christy_Matheson

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/222331492-the-white-deer-of-kildare

StoryGraph: https://app.thestorygraph.com/profile/sonatasbooks

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/christy-matheson

https://www.bookbub.com/books/the-white-deer-of-kildare-the-castle-in-kilkenny-fairy-tales-book-2-by-christy-matheson

Universal Buy Link: includes Amazon (different countries), Kobo, Apple Books, Google Play, Barnes & Noble:

https://buy.bookfunnel.com/exmh6b6hgx

Amazon.com Buy link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0DPSGKQ5H

Kobo Buy link—book available on Kobo Plus: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-white-deer-of-kildare

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GIVEAWAY

Christy Matheson will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN gift card to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour and a fine writing notebook with personalized art to a second randomly drawn winner.

a Rafflecopter giveaway