Son of the Siren
by Kristina Elyse Butke
Sometimes love is a curse, a twisted, unnatural obsession.
Such is the dark magic of a siren’s song, the power of which half-siren Lirien witnesses for himself as he watches his mother sing his father, the King of Ardeth, into the sea. In a fruitless attempt to reverse his father’s fate, Lirien sings the siren song himself, not knowing its true power is seduction. Instead, he ensnares his stepmother, the Queen, with its hypnotic melody.
When Lirien refuses her desperate advances, she turns to forbidden magic to force her love on him. But wishing upon a havoc stone is an invitation to chaos. The queen’s own son and daughters, Lirien’s beloved siblings, are whisked away and transformed into animals. They flee the kingdom, and Lirien chases after them, his beautiful voice also gone.
Through elven mountains, fae forests, and siren waters, Lirien will stop at nothing to find and save his family. Threats come at him from all sides, but there are allies, too—Kitra, a shapeshifting fae fox who vows vengeance on the Queen for killing her brother, and Brandegil, an elf who can awaken the sacred sword Alibrandr to help break the spell on the children.
Together, they’ll bring the stars raining down from the heavens if that’s what it takes to save Lirien’s family, but there’s still the matter of breaking the spell on the Queen. And Lirien’s own deadly curse haunts him should he stray too long from the sea.
"A thrilling YA fantasy where dark magic, enchanted realms, and a deadly curse drive half-siren Lirien on a relentless quest to save his family and defy his fate." –NewInBooks.com
About the Author
Kristina Elyse Butke
(Kris-TEE-nuh e-LEES BUT-key)
started writing early, focusing on plays and musical theater, later having her original works produced at the Ohio State University Mansfield. In 2013, she decided to switch from the stage to the page and earned her MFA in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University.
Since then, she has contributed to the webzine Speculative Chic and also did subtitle proofreading for the anime Skip Beat! and published poetry with ExFic, First Class Literary, and Synaeresis Magazine, and is currently a contributor to Comics Beat. She has presented at conventions all over the state of Ohio, including Animate, Ohayocon, Colossalcon, and Matsuricon. She has also appeared at conferences in Japan when she worked as an assistant language teacher of English in Kumamoto prefecture.
She has also lived abroad in Wales in addition to Japan, and her time in both countries has informed her writing, often serving as the inspiration for many fantastical settings in her works. When Kristina isn’t travelling or writing, she nerds out in cosplay and indulges her otaku side by streaming as much anime as humanly possible and diving into manga and comics. ​​
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For everywhere Kristina is on the web, check out her Linktree!
