Behind the Scenes: Aether Rising

The beautiful second cover. New one coming soon!

The writing of Aether Rising came at an interesting time in my writing career. My publisher, Samhain, had made noises about closing in the spring of 2016, which is when Aether Spirit came out. They had ultimately decided not to close right then, leaving all their authors in limbo. I wasn’t making enough money with them for it to matter all that much – I just wanted my book rights back.

Even though I knew that I may not benefit from Aether Rising right away with backlist sales, most of the money from which would go to the publisher, I wanted to finish out the Aether Psychics series for several reasons:

1. I’d written about three of the four series heroes, but Patrick O’Connell, who turned out to be a fan favorite, still needed his story.

2. I’d left Patrick in a pickle at the end of Aether Spirit.

3. I needed to wrap up the series arc and resolve things with the main villain.

4. The metaphysical shenanigans with the Eros Element weren’t over yet.

5. Henry Davidson, a fascinating recurring character in the series, needed to play out his role in taking down the series villain and get set up to be a star of the spinoff series.

After the ease of writing Aether Spirit, which was based on a story I’d written in the past, Aether Rising presented some challenges. I needed to research Boston in the late nineteenth century. I also needed to figure out who Patrick’s romantic foil would be. That’s when I came up with the character of Louisa Cobb.

As with the other heroines in the Aether Psychics series, Louisa has a special talent. In her case, no one can lie to her. I thought it would be fun to explore what a relationship would look like with those parameters, especially in the early stages when people may not be so forthcoming with each other.

Another interesting character dropped into the mix – Lieutenant Davinia Crow. She belongs to the neo-Pythagorean cult, and she’s also a lieutenant in the Airship Corps. She’ll also appear in spinoff books.

Of course the other core characters in the series make their appearances. All of them have to deal with different amounts of uncertainty, which reflected how I felt about my writing career at the time. Just as I had to push forward and do what I wanted/needed, they each find themselves facing challenges to their core missions and desires. I think it helped the series, and the reviewers agree.

While all my books can be read as standalones, it does help to read the series. Still, if you’d like to pick up Aether Rising and then go back to the rest, I won’t object. Here’s the info:

The only place to hide could be behind the truth.

No one can lie to Louisa Cobb. It’s her gift. Her curse. Magic her stepfather has no compunction about using to gain the upper hand in business. But when Parnaby Cobb presents her with her latest mark, she realizes he’s testing her loyalty.

Her target is Patrick O’Connell, an Irish tinkerer and scoundrel who stole a kiss—and her heart—years ago. Should she betray her stepfather to set Patrick free, she’ll be cut off without a penny to her name.

Patrick knows exactly why he’s been captured, why he’s struggling to lie into Louisa’s sky-blue eyes. He’s invented a device to stabilize and direct the mysterious Eros Element. If he fails to recreate it for Cobb, his closest friends’ happiness will be at risk.

Back in Boston, as Patrick stalls for time and Louisa uncovers secrets of her tragic past, the two of them engage in a treacherous dance on the edge of love and danger. Where one wrong step could condemn them both to everlasting heartache—and unleash an unimaginably powerful force that could destroy their world.

Ready to grab Aether Rising? It’s available from the following retailers:

Original cover: