Interview+Giveaway: The Starfolk Trilogy by Martha Dunlop

Interview with Martha Dunlop, author of The Starfolk urban fantasy trilogy

Destiny calls. Soulmates draw closer. One woman stands in the way.

Beth trusts her psychic senses. So when her birthday visit to a daytime TV talk show takes a weird turn, she knows something is wrong. Amelia, the celebrity on stage, is oddly fixated on Beth and the man with the microphone is hauntingly familiar. Things become even stranger when she buys a tarot deck, and they are all pictured in the cards.  

Jonan has waited an eternity to be with the woman who haunts his dreams. When he finally sees her at the TV studio, he hopes life with his soulmate is within reach. But as Amelia refuses to let go of their past together, his hopes fade.

Amelia stands between Beth and Jonan. Spinning tales of supernatural threats to her adoring fan base, she builds a personality cult through fear of the paranormal. As her power grows, she does her best to scare Beth away from Jonan and plans to reclaim him for herself.

United by a destiny that spans lifetimes, Beth and Jonan are determined to stop Amelia’s fear-mongering. But Amelia has more than one card to play. Even though they are fated to be together, Amelia’s destructive nature may once again tear them apart.

Excerpt from The Starfolk Trilogy

Beth sighed and slouched down in her front row seat at the TV studio. If she’d known she was going to be subjected to this drivel, she wouldn’t have come. She’d been here for two hours already, and not one of the stories had been genuine. Her so-called friend and flatmate had a lot to answer for. She was pleased Laura loved her new job, and it had been obvious her friend’s enthusiasm about the chat show was overblown, but this was worse than she’d expected.

She caught a movement out of the corner of her eye and turned. Laura was standing off to the side of the set, waving her clipboard at Beth. She shifted on her mile-high spikes. Her feet must have been so uncomfortable, but Laura had been determined to make an impression today. Her eyes were bright as she scanned the set, drinking in her world. This job was her triumph. Beth couldn’t fault her enthusiasm, she just wished Laura had left her out of today’s charade.

Seated on the dais, Katherine Haversham waited for a moment, eyebrows raised, bright red lips pursed.

‘Thank you for staying with us over the break. I know this is the moment you’ve been waiting for. Model and It girl Amelia Faustus is here, live, on Deep and Dark to break her silence over the horrific out-of-body attack that took her from the media spotlight. After weeks of fear and soul-searching, she has decided to step back into the public eye. Amelia, welcome. Tell us what happened.’ Katherine leaned forward. ‘Start from the beginning.’

She caught a movement out of the corner of her eye and turned. Laura was standing off to the side of the set, waving her clipboard at Beth. She shifted on her mile-high spikes. Her feet must have been so uncomfortable, but Laura had been determined to make an impression today. Her eyes were bright as she scanned the set, drinking in her world. This job was her triumph. Beth couldn’t fault her enthusiasm, she just wished Laura had left her out of today’s charade.

Seated on the dais, Katherine Haversham waited for a moment, eyebrows raised, bright red lips pursed.

An Interview with Martha Dunlop

-What inspired you to become a writer?

I’ve spent a lifetime telling myself stories. As a child I always had long running narratives going on in my head, and I would disappear off into my own worlds on a regular basis. I studied English and Related Literature at York University and learned a lot about what I did and didn’t like in a book. After University I got into PR because I wanted to write, but it wasn’t enough writing for me and I eventually started playing around with different ideas for books. I used to write on my laptop on the train on the way to work, and go to cafes to write in my lunch hour. I”ve always just loved exploring the worlds and characters in my head!

-If you could visit your book’s world for a day, what one thing would you do?

My book is set where I live. So in many ways I am always in my book world! But I would love to go to the crystal shop run by Jonan and his aunt Doriel in the centre of historic St Albans. I’d hang out with them in the old, Tudor building, have coffee, chat, read some tarot and buy a lot of crystals. The shop is right at the centre of the Starfolk books. It’s a haven that helps my characters become their true selves.

-It’s two in the morning. What does your protagonist reveal in confidence? (Don’t worry, we won’t tell.)

Beth has always kept her psychic abilities tightly under wraps. She’s done her best to pass as normal in a world that would have labeled her as weird and treated her with suspician, but she’s always longed for community and connection. When she meets Jonan, she finally begins to find that. I’d like to think that at two in the morning she would relax enough to tell me about the experiences she’s had, to chat about the strange things that made her feel she needed to hide, and about the tug of emotion and fate that pulls her towards Jonan. She would also admit that she’s not sure why she can’t get Amelia out of her head, but that she knows that woman is up to no good and can’t be trusted. Beth’s life is about to take her on a wild ride, and she can feel it coming as her old life begins to unravel and a new world opens up in front of her.  She’s definitely ripe for a late night chat!

-Which of your characters would you go out for drinks with?

Wow, which of them wouldn’t I go for a drink with? Obviously, Jonan, who I adore. I’d love to chat with him about his memories from previous lives and from before birth. But I’d also love to go out for a drink with his Aunt Doriel. She is an Oracle, an old-style wise woman who loves to play to her audience, dressing up in long skirts with bells on the hem and a long henneaed plait with crystals.  She is secure enough to hide her differentness in plain sight, allowing people to assume she is less than she is if they choose, or to see her in all her awesomeness. 

-You’re in a tavern, and a dwarf challenges you to a duel. What do you do?

I would ask if Amelia (my antagonist) has got to him and explain that she’s trying to scare people with her fake stories of paranormal attack and infected people. She’s misleading everyone and I’m no threat. I would offer to help him get rid of Amelia’s interference, and buy him a drink while he takes a minute to gather himself. 

-Is there a genre you could never write? Which and why?

I don’t think I could write Science Fiction, because I’m not a sciency person.  I like to read a wide range of genres though, and particularly love to genre-hop, switching between different genres according to my mood. 

Thank you so much for having me on Kit ‘N Kabookle!

[You’re very welcome!]

About Martha Dunlop

Martha is a dreamer and lover of stories who likes nothing better than spending her days getting to know the characters in her head.

She is a tarot card reader and reiki master, and loves to chat reading, writing and all things mystical on social media, as well as posting pictures of her fellow pack-member, Bertie the Cavalier.

A fiddle player, Martha fell in love with traditional music, particularly Irish, and is also teaching herself to play the Irish Bouzouki. She played her way through her English degree at York and remembers that time as much for the music as the books.

Martha is the author of three books: The Starfolk Arcana, Starfolk Falling, and standalone Wild Shadow.  She is currently working on Book 3 of The Starfolk Trilogy, Starfolk Rising.

You can keep up with Martha’s news, book releases and extra content at www.marthadunlop.com, or on her Amazon page.

You can also find her on social media at:

• Twitter
• Facebook
• Instagram

Head shot by Gene Genie Photography, www.genegenie.photography

Giveaway

Martha Dunlop will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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