About the Book
Title: Dragon’s Treasure
Author: Maya Starling
Genre: NA Fantasy
"She was the girl who longed for the freedom of the dragon, and he was the dragon who longed to be a man."
A heroine reclaiming her fate. A dragon with a secret. A prince on a quest.
Olivia flees to the forest seeking freedom from her family's demands. She finds refuge in a cave, only to discover it is a dragon’s lair. The dragon, Kaden, is not the monster she first thinks him to be. After overcoming her initial fright – of not being eaten – Olivia discovers that the dragon has a gentle heart.
Kaden is resigned to loneliness after centuries of wandering the lands. Meeting Olivia brings joy to his solitary life, and never has he dreamed that a young woman would be the one to start the change in him.
A storm brews on the horizon.
A prince with a handsome face and a cruel heart is on a quest to slay the dragon, and take the throne. He will do whatever it takes to have what he believes is his to own. And now, he has his eyes set on the pretty little maiden from the forest. He will make her his Queen, whether she wants it or not.
Author Bio
Maya Starling is a writer, a geek, an animal lover and a gamer. She has lived the life of a magus, an oracle, a goth mortician, a star wars rebel. She has led many lives, sitting at a table, and rolling those dice away.
In reality, she lives with her wife and their adorable little boy, and of course two rescue cats, in a small country of Croatia. Reading and writing are her passion, so you will often find her typing away a new novel or a new short story, or eyes glued to the screen of her phone or a page of a book.
Links
Twitter: @MayaStarling
Book Excerpt
Pride swelled within Kaden, lifting away the years of darkness that had consumed him as joy filled him for making her that happy. It was a wonderful feeling, after so long alone in the dark, to indulge someone else’s desires.
Olivia’s eyes had never been wider and she was sure her jaw was going to hurt for days because of how much she was smiling. She also didn’t care how many bugs she was going to swallow along the way. Her heart pounded against her ribcage as fear, exhilarating fear, coursed through her veins mixed with a rush she had never felt before. She couldn’t put it into words; it was so much more exciting and liberating than the first time she went galloping on her own. So liberating. The world far beneath her feet.
Trees rushed by under them in a blur of greens, but as she squinted ahead, she was once again amazed by the view.
Looking at the treetops, Olivia thought that she could just reach down and brush her hands through the leaves, caressing the forest itself. All the green below them and the blue vastness above them made her realize just how big the world was, how tiny her role in it.
So this is what it feels like to fly. Right then, a new addiction bloomed inside her. She had to experience it again. Kaden would surely agree to such request.
Olivia wrapped the little bit of loose rope she had around her hand until it was taut as she sat upright, gazing all around them. She closed her eyes for a few moments and cherished the wind whipping at her face, the chill leaving a trail of gentle nips on her flushed cheeks. But she didn’t mind any of it. She feasted on it; it fed her mind and her soul, refreshing her spirit.
Opening her eyes, Olivia laughed out loud and a happy whoop escaped her lips.
Kaden veered to the left, circling around then flying back to their little clearing. As they glided above forest, the dragon spread his wings wide. He looked back at Olivia when her happy laughter reached his ears.
The healing balm of her being, her joy and innocence spread over his wounded soul.
What is your
character’s name? Does the character have a nickname? Kaden, the dragon.
What is your
characters hair color? Eye color? His scales are a midnight blue, and he
has a golden underside. Amber colored eyes.
What kind of
distinguishing facial features does your character have?
Besides the scales, wings, tail, horns… a scar above his
left eye.
What is one strong
memory that has stuck with your character from childhood? Why is it so powerful
and lasting?
Kaden opens his jaws to speak, but then snaps them shut just
as fast. He inhales, and with the deep exhale, smoke billows around his
nostrils. “I… I don’t remember much of my childhood, and a lot of my memories
have been… suppressed over time. But, one of the older memories still tickling
the back of my mind is when an old woman, nay, a hag! beat me up with her
walking stick because I tried to steal her cow. It really wasn’t on purpose…
the cow stealing. Just an impulse I sometimes get. Also, one time, I saved a
life.” He shrugs.
What is your character's
least favorite season?
“The rainy season.”
What do you consider
the most important event of your life so far?
Kaden lets out a weary sigh. “There are two.” He pauses in
thought. “First one is losing my two best friends, Lucia to death, and Lilith
to grief. That moment turned my life upside down.”
A brightness then enters his eyes. “Second one is more
recent, meeting Olivia,” he stops and frowns, and twitches his tail, like an
annoyed cat would, “and unfortunately Magnus, because events that followed
turned my life back around.”
Who has had the most
influence on you?
With a quirk of his draconic lip, and a faraway look in his
amber eyes, he rumbles a contented, “My Olivia… But I think that also
loneliness and time had their hands in shaping me into who I am today.”
What do you consider
your greatest achievement?
“I do not think I have yet achieved greatness, far from it,
and I may never have. I might have come close by finally shedding myself of the
burden of selfishness, by putting someone else’s life and needs above my own.”
What is your greatest
regret?
“I have too many to count, but hindsight and all that…
because of those actions I regret, I might not be the hu… the dragon I am
today. Everything would have been different and I would have had different
regrets then. Regrets are just a part of who we are, a piece of the puzzle that
shapes us.”
What is the most evil
thing you have ever done?
Kaden quirks his draconic head to the side. “I believe our
views of what is evil and what is good may differ. I do not believe I have ever
been purposefully evil. I have done some misdeeds, mostly minor, but I have
also killed. Would you say, that because I killed someone in defense of my own
life evil? Would you say that killing a murderer or a rapist is evil? If so,
then taking someone else’s life is the most evil thing I have ever done.”
If you died or went
missing, who would miss you?
“If you asked me that question only a sennight ago, I would
have said, no one. But now, I am quite confident that a certain young woman,
with eyes the color of the sky on a bright, sunny day, and fawn colored hair,
would.”
Who is the person you
despise the most, and why?
Kaden snorts, smoke puffs from his
nostrils and fiery gooey slime splatters around, missing the interviewer by
inches. “I apologize for that. The person I despise the most is the prince
himself, Magnus. Because… well, partly he reminds me of what I used to be like.
Mind you, I wasn’t quite as evil and… manic like he is, but the arrogance,
self-importance, and vanity are familiar to me.
Do you tend to take
on leadership roles in social situations?
“Ah, no… well, maybe in social situations, but I do not
consider myself a good leader, charmer yes.”
Do you like
interacting with large groups of people? Why or why not?
“There was a time in my life when I thrived on attention,
but now… not so much anymore. I had enough of dealings with people. I prefer
the quietness, and if I could, I would only surround myself with a few close
friends. It is comfortable, warm… sweet even.”
Do you care what
others think of you?
Kaden laughs, the rumble vibrates through the air, and digs
into the ground. “Ah... Sweetness. When you have lived the life I have, that is
the last thing you care about. Except for those special few people, then I care
a lot.”
If you could change
one thing, what would it be, and why?
“I wouldn’t change a thing, because, I do not know what my
life would be like then. I might be happier, I might be worse of. As I said, I
have many regrets, but, I would not change anything, no matter how difficult it
was to lose some of the people I cared deeply about, and some that I loved.”
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