One of the things I think that sets the Eyes of Odyssium series apart from a lot of other series is just how different each book is. It’s true that in each, Salla Saar is tackling a supernatural threat, but the stories I pick for each one is partially based on how different it is from the others. For instance, HOUSE OF FALLING RAIN tiptoes into the territory of Lovecraftian Horror. ISLE OF THE SLEEPING GODS, when you boil it down, is essentially a zombie apocalypse book. And lastly, THE GIRL WHO STOLE THE SUN is, in its own way, a dark fairytale. These disparate ventures into other genres are all tied together by Salla and the Malisguard—a division of the Majdi Order assembled to combat an invasion of malevolent supernatural forces entering their world one dark spirit at a time.
I see THE GIRL WHO STOLE THE SUN as something counter to its predecessor in one fundamental way. I consider ISLE OF THE SLEEPING GODS an almost purely physical challenge for Salla, a nightmarish gauntlet of sorts for him to survive and prove that he belonged in the Malisguard. This time, I felt it was time to go for the emotional jugular instead. Doing so helped me close out the trilogy, as well as lay the groundwork for the storyline going ahead (once the Tides of Odyssium series wraps up in a few years and Odyssium Collection #3 is out).
For the setting this time around, I wanted that gloomy, secluded hamlet-populated-by-superstitious-folk vibe. It took a lot of thought and planning to figure out a way to achieve that in the middle of a tropical island chain like the Odyssan Archipelago, and I think what I came up with works pretty well.
And lastly (for the sake of brevity), mystery has always been a defining element of the Eyes of Odyssium series. More often than not, there are multiple mysteries to be unraveled in each book, and there are certainly plenty to be had here. Like ISLE OF THE SLEEPING GODS, we open the book not with Salla, but characters that partake in the inciting incident that triggers the events that follow.
And that’s all for today. Release day for THE GIRL WHO STOLE THE SUN is creeping up on us fast, and I hope you’ll check out what all my hubbub and ramblings are about. And if you enjoy these peeks behind the curtain, I devote several pages at the end of each book to Behind the Scenes shenanigans just like this. Just a little extra bang for your buck.
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