Book Tour Character Q&A: The Many Shades of Midnight by C. M. Debell

Hello everyone and welcome to my stop on the Escapist Book Co. virtual book tour for C. M. Debell’s fantasy novel The Many Shades of Midnight! Today, I am excited to help kickoff the tour by sharing an interview with the main character from the book, Alyas-Raine Sera!

You can find our Q&A below, along with all of the info about the book, the author, and links to purchase a copy of The Many Shades of Midnight for yourself! Also, be sure to take a look at the schedule here or at the top of the post and follow along to see the stops from our other awesome hosts!

Book Information:

The Many Shades of Midnight by C. M. Debell
Series: N/A, Standalone
Genre: Fantasy
Intended Age Group: Adult
Pages: 352
Published: February 1, 2023
Publisher: Self Published

Blurb

Isyr. Stronger, brighter, more beautiful than other metals. Once the most desirable thing in Ellasia, now it is priceless, the pure Isyrium needed to produce it mined to exhaustion. What’s left is controlled by the powerful mining syndicates, and such is the demand for their Isyrium that even kings do their bidding. Yet just as the beauty of Isyr hides a deadly secret, so too do the syndicates.

A terrifying enemy is spreading a plague across the land, a sickness that kills or transforms everything it touches. Unable to contain the outbreaks, the King of Lankara begs the aid of the disgraced former Duke of Agrathon, Alyas-Raine Sera, a man who has spent years fighting syndicate expansion and whose resentment over his exile makes him an unpredictable, dangerous ally in the power struggle between the rulers of Ellasia and the mining companies.

Attached to the envoy to recall the duke, the apprentice surgeon Brivar finds his skills and loyalty tested as his service to his new patron uncovers secrets about Isyr and the plague that link it to the mining of Isyrium – and threaten the life of the man it is his duty to protect.

In their own separate ways, Alyas and Brivar must take on the might of the syndicates and confront the greed, murder, betrayal and impossible choices of a crisis that has been decades in the making – and the price of their failure could be everyone and everything.

See Also:

Extinction Rebellion • Cursed Blades • Zombie Apocalypse

Book Links:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Many-Shades-Midnight-C-Debell-ebook/dp/B0BQCNLDX8

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68757150-the-many-shades-of-midnight

Character Q&A

Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?

Why?

So they can get to know you. To help promote the book. Please.

Fine. My name is Alyas. It’s my only name, since the king took the others from me along with my lands and title when he exiled me 15 years ago. Now, apparently, he’s changed his mind. Because he wants my help. And he expects me to, what? Forgive him? Forget?

What are items you can’t live without?

Why? What do you want me to say? Did Esar make you ask that?

If you were stranded on a deserted island, what is one thing…. Never mind. What’s your biggest pet peeve?

People asking me pointless questions.

What do you do in your free time?

Field pointless questions, apparently.

What makes you want to get out of bed in the morning?

Nightmares.

What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?

Don’t hold a grudge. How am I doing?

What do you carry in your bag?

None of your business.

What’s your favorite animal?

My horse.

What do you think about Esar?

He’s my brother. Why aren’t you bothering him with these questions?

Do you have favorite saying?

Go away.

What is your favorite holiday?

This is a military company. We don’t have holidays.

If you could go anywhere in Ellasia, where would you go and why?

The only place I can’t go. Home.

What do you do to relax?

Make the syndicates’ lives miserable.

What is your favorite food?

Whatever someone puts in front of me.

What is your favorite season?

Summer. At least we’re busy.

How would you define happiness?

I have no idea.

How do you feel about your government?

My government – my king – threw me out and took everything I owned for refusing to kill people who had done nothing to deserve it. How do you think I feel?

If you could change one thing about Ellasia, what would it be?

Put an end to the mining syndicates’ influence. Put an end to the syndicates, ideally.

What’s your biggest secret?

Why would I tell you?

What do you hate?

We’ve done this one. Questions like these.

What’s your biggest fear?

Again, I fail to see why I should share that with you.

What do you think your best quality is?

Amiability.

How would you describe the world you live in?

Hanging by a thread. Are we done?