Three
books in one, this saga follows the adventures of Ian Wilson through
the portal and into a magical land called the Realm. From slave boy
to warrior, Ian encounters the dragon worshiping village, Menek,
their enemies the Kaemperns, and the all powerful fire-breathing
dragon Old Stenhjaert.
Part
1. Deception Peak
Ian's
Realm Saga, is a young adult adventure fantasy about a teenager, Ian
Wilson, who follows his father, Alex, through a portal that magically
appears on their computer screen while they are creating a game
engine. They travel into a deceptively beautiful Realm, where horses
run wild, the wind sings prophetic melodies, and their computer
avatar (Xylon) comes to life. But when the two are separated, Ian is
abducted by a tribe of dragon worshipers. In his struggle to be
released, he causes chaos in the village and is banished into the
wilderness with two other residents. They come upon a group of people
who live for the sole purpose to destroy the dragon. They agree to
help Ian find his father deep in the caves of the dragon's lair.
Alex
is found, but not without sacrifice, causing a deepened relationship
between Ian and the Kaempern leader, Amleth.
Alex
and Ian ride for the portal home with the dragon at their heels.
Alex, his father stops in his tracks and goes back with the intent to
slay the dragon, sending his son to the portal to wait for him with
the instructions that if he doesn't return by morning, go home
without him. Alex never returns.
Part
2 Dragon Shield
Integrity
isn't something you do, it's who you are," Aren tells the
confused Ian in The Dragon Shield.
Now
a young man, Ian returns to the magical Realm to fight against the
tyranny that has befallen his friends. But the Realm is a different
place, the forest is dying, the Kaemperns have lost the shield that
protected them from the dragon, and Ian has a hard time proving his
allegiance when trouble follows him through the portal. His struggle
to do right buries him in confusion when he's confronted with a young
boy who wields a powerful magical dagger which summons the
dragon.
Part
3 Rubies and Robbers
"I
will not let fear weaken us, not now" -says Ian as he dives into
the cold waters of Moor Cove to find the escapees.
Ian
has proven his abilities as a warrior and now the most dangerous
battle begins, the battle against the power of evil. Ian must unravel
the secrets of the mountain and discern whom his real enemy is, the
enemy both without and within. He tackles with the twelve-year-old
boy who seems to hold the fate of the entire Realm in his hands, and
yet the pressing Songs of Wisdom call for compassion in his dealings.
Ian leads his men in the fight against the powers of darkness. But he
must also be willing to sacrifice everything he ever hoped to have in
order to save those he loves.
When
Ian returns to the Realm in search of Abbi and Elisa he not only
encounters the fiery dragon, but falls prey to a lovely temptress and
a wicked queen.
When
Elisa's friend becomes a victim of a drive-by shooting, Abbi and
Elisa seek a magical cure in Ian's shield, but are accidentally
transported into the Realm with no way back. Ian suspects their
whereabouts and opens the portal to find them. His entry compromises
the integrity of the seal which prevents the dragon from returning to
the Realm. In his search for the girls, he stumbles upon a beautiful
enchantress who offers to help him.
After
the death of her precious soldier, Queen Hacatine, in a fit of rage,
commands her ambassadors to kill the Magic Thief and capture Layla's
murderer.
Ian
is a wanted man.
A
Taikan slave boy, Rolando, voyages with the assassins. The ship
encounters a squall and is soon battered to pieces. The Taikans
escape leaving Rolando on the sinking ship. He saves the Sage's chest
of incantations and barely survives himself. His intent is to find
Hacatine's ambassadors and return the clandestine strongbox—but
meets Silvio the Wizard instead.
Rolando's
world is turned upside down.
Brad
and Elisa Huntington return to Seattle from the Realm only to be
crudely interrogated by Drew, Abbi's father. After Brad passes a
polygraph test, his dad and Drew have no recourse but to believe his
story. Soon scientists are forging through the portal in search of
the Realm.
When
the old wizard Silvio eyes a woman dragging an unconscious young man
ashore on his beach, he suspects the worst. A sorceress warrior from
the island of Taikus could mean nothing but ill will. But who is the
boy? With a burst of magic, he freezes the warrior into a bronze
statue, and nurtures the boy back to health. The teenager, Ivar,
explains that he is on a quest to discover his past, but a violent
storm cast him into the sea.
Silvio's
suspicions grow, and he wonders why a Taikan would rescue an archer
from Kaempern since they are known enemies.
When
Silvio joins Ivar on his journey, his answers come all too quickly.
He, too, becomes the evil queen's prey, and there's a reason she's
keeping him alive.
A
unique YA Fantasy page-turner that spans the void between
vastly different worlds, Gardner captures the most endearing
qualities of the genre in a story that's both refreshing and
original. -Book Viral Review
Readers
who love excitement, peril and sweet romance will enjoy this
time-travel adventure.
Eighteen
years after her father visited the Realm, Cassie discovers a portal
to the same world when she takes a selfie with her cell phone.
Against the wishes of her friends, she goes in and finds herself
captured by a grumpy old wizard. Its through him she learns of the
unrest happening in the kingdom called Alisubbo. When a handsome
cavalry officer, Valerio, appears with his troops in all his pompous
attire, Cassie is taken breathless.
The
cunning Valerio immediately recognizes the opportunity of befriending
this lovely, young and naive stranger and sweet-talks her into
helping his cause. Her mission, deliver an Appeal for Peace to the
king. Cassie willingly takes the job, thrilled that she finally has
the adventure she's wanted all her young life.
Tragically
for her, the letter is not what Valerio says it is. Cassie discovers
she's been a pawn in a coup to overthrow the king. She discovers the
lies and false accusations too late. Before she can stop the
violence, her hands are stained in blood. She must somehow turn the
tide, save the life of the heir, and persuade him to return and
rescue Alisubbo from Valerio's tyranny.
Other
books in this series include Ian's Realm Saga and Diary of a Conjurer
and the Tale of the Four Wizards which are published on my website.
When
the young wizard Abbott is abducted as a little boy, he is taken to
the castle of the wicked queen Hacatine and condemned to wait his
young life as a prisoner until he comes of age and his sentence is
executed.
But
even as a child, Abbott has other plans. When he meets the beautiful
albino slave girl who spins silk from a butterfly's spittle he is
more determined to not only escape, but bring the entire queen's
court with him.
There are several things. One and most importantly is I
watched my grandsons grow up without a dad and realized how important fathers
are in their sons’ lives. My main character Ian spends much of the story
without his father, who for many of his own reasons, ends up not being the dad
that Ian needed. The story’s message to young men is that even if your father
has failed you, you can still grow up to be the man you wish your father had
been.
Another inspiration is I always wanted to paint a dragon and
could never think of a good excuse (as if one needs an excuse to paint a
dragon). So, when I started writing Ian’s Realm, I started painting Stenhjaert
the dragon (you can see him on my website). The dragon expanded to 3 panels 4
ft X 3 ft eventually so I could get his wingspan in. Then each panel became a
book cover for the first three books (out of print now and rewritten and
combined into the trilogy).
Another inspiration was my many walks in the forest. The
trees talked to me. Seriously!
What can we expect from you in the future?
More romance in my stories.
I finished an adult high fantasy romance which will be out in
2021. I’m also just finishing a paranormal (sweet) romance that I think you’ll
enjoy.
Do you have any “side stories” about the characters?
I do and I need to publish them. I have a lot of side stories
about the characters in Ian’s Realm and Cassandra’s Castle. I should work on
those and get them to you.
Tell us about your main characters- what makes them tick?
Ian starts off the series as a 15-year-old boy and ends up as
a young man. In Cassandra’s Castle, he’s about middle age, being Cassandra’s
father. As a boy he’s insecure. He lost his mom who died so he relies heavily
on his father, who knows that Ian depends too much on him and that’s part of
the conflict that arises between the two. Alex also is devastated by his wife’s
death. Ian’s is co-dependent, and his dad Alex knows he’s not the god that
Ian’s makes him out to be. Dad wants Ian to see he can’t live up to his
expectations. He doesn’t forsake his son on purpose, fate plays a part in that.
But when Ian realizes he’s alone in the world, he carries the weight of being
abandoned with him for an exceptionally long time. As the stories progress he
finds love in Abbi, but, like his dad did to him, Ian keeps her at arm’s
distance. As he grows into a young man his first experience with passion is in
Layla and he begins to see the difference between a real relationship (Abbi) and
a seductive relationship (Layla). He comes to a rude awakening and has to make
some hard life choices both Layla and Fallen Morning.
Who designed your book covers?
Her name is Les and I love her to pieces. She’s designed
almost all my book covers. I found her on Fivrr believe it or not. She goes as
Germancreative on there.
If you had to do it all over again, would you change
anything in your latest book?
I’m actually doing that right now. 😊
Did you learn anything during the writing of your recent book?
I learned to slow down. I’m editing now and taking each
paragraph at a time and turning it into literature.
Anything specific you want to tell your readers?
Thank you!
D.L.Gardner is an
award winning author and screenwriter, taking home the Book
Excellence Award for her Amazon's best selling Ian's Realm Saga as
well as various other prestigious awards for her audio books and
screenplays. Her young adult adventure fantasy and historical fantasy
novels are loved by youth and adults all over the world.
"Dianne's
wonderfully descriptive writing style will have you so involved in
the story that in a sense you will have forgotten that it was just a
story."
Dianne is a
columnist for Amazing Stories Magazine, one of the most popular
science fiction and fantasy magazines of all time. She's taught
workshops and participated on panels at conferences and film
festivals. Her concept film for Ian's Realm has won numerous fantasy
short awards in L.A., New York and New Zealand.
Dianne was born in
Ohio and raised in southern CA. She attended Northern AZ University
and later continued her education in the Pacific Northwest. She's an
oil painter, book illustrator, screenwriter and filmmaker.
I try to get comments published as quickly as possible. I don't always reply to comments on my blog, but I do try to visit as many people as possible when I participate in blog hops and I share links where possible to Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and such so others can discover your work. I do read and appreciate your comments.
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I try to get comments published as quickly as possible. I don't always reply to comments on my blog, but I do try to visit as many people as possible when I participate in blog hops and I share links where possible to Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and such so others can discover your work. I do read and appreciate your comments.