Hello everyone and welcome to my stop on the Escapist Book Co. virtual book tour for R.M. Schultz’s Epic Fantasy novel Through Blood and Dragons! Today, I am excited to help kickoff the tour by sharing an interview with one of the main characters from the book, Cyran!
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 Through Blood and Dragons 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:
Through Blood and Dragons by R.M. Schultz
Series: The Forged and the Fallen
Genre: Epic Fantasy
Intended Age Group: 16+
Pages: 510
Published: July 31, 2023
Publisher: Sky Sea and Sword Publishing (Self Published)
Blurb
Steeped in blood. Ruled by those with dragons.
Cimeren is a world divided by a mysterious forest and the vast Lake on Fire. Suspicion brews on both sides, and the south has fallen into chaos as battles and quarrels rage between kingdoms.
In the border outpost of Nevergrace, Cyran Orendain is dealing with the loss of his brother and his lord as he strives to face the mounting challenges of a squire of the dragonguard.
But when Cyran’s guard-master is called to face the most powerful of the southern kings and bear witness to a secret stolen from the north, Cyran is dragged into a war that has been bubbling under the surface for centuries.
Dragons are not only weapons—they are engines of war. And even though Cyran is not trained in the ways of the dragonguard, he must adapt and learn to become one of them or his homeland and all of Cimeren will be destroyed.
But he was not born a champion.
He may break, and he will bleed.
See Also:
A Game of Dragons • If the Millenium Falcon was a Dragon • Top Gun: Dragon
Book Links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0C6L1SV2D
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/167700156-through-blood-and-dragons
Character Q&A
Could you please introduce yourself to our readers?
I am Cyran Orendain, newly-appointed dragonsquire of Nevergrace.
What music do you listen to?
I play the lute and sing for others at times, but I enjoy listening to the unequaled bards of Valan, when they find time to travel all the way to the outpost of Nevergrace.
What are 3 items you can’t live without?
A crossbow, a sword, and a lute. If only I could get Jaslin to get rid of that crystal shard she still carries after I was forced to shatter the decanter she found in the old woods.
If you were stranded on a deserted island, what is one thing you’d like to have with you?
A forest dragon, hopefully one more understanding than Eidelmere.
What is your biggest pet peeve?
When squires harness the quarterdeck and turrets to a dragon without matching up the correct cinches.
What do you do in your free time?
Practice in hopes of becoming one of the elite dragonguard or dragonarchers. This includes training with the lance and crossbow while Jaslin reads stories and Tamar takes on some of my duties so I can pursue my dream.
What makes you want to get out of bed in the morning?
The waking dream that I could one day join the legion and fly with the guard.
What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?
Anything Sir Paltere has told me, or possibly this from Eidelmere: “You wish to sail the skies upon a steed of scale and fire. To shatter shields and loose dragonsteel bolts at your enemies. But if you pursue such a path, you will find yourself on a dark road amassing glory only to earn the right for people to tremble at the mention of your name.”
What do you carry in your bag?
Far too few halfpennies and farthings. But it is what you carry in your mind and body that matters most.
What’s your favorite animal?
Seriously? I mean, I love Smoke and the wolves, but I am a dragonsquire.
What do you think about [other MC(s)]?
Jaslin is stubborn but determined, sometimes to my detriment. I worry about her too much. The Dragon Queen is the most heinous of people that have ever walked the lands of Cimeren.
Do you have favorite saying?
I will repeat anything Sir Paltere has told me, but lately ‘When the sky sea rains blood’ often slips past my lips.
What is your favorite holiday?
Summer’s end.
If you could go anywhere in [the book’s world], where would you go and why?
To the Valley of the Smoke Breathers and visit the site of the first taming.
What do you do to relax?
Lounge around Nevergrace with my fellow dragonsquires as we drink and I strum a few chords on the lute.
What is your favorite food?
Whatever I get to eat other than old Ulba’s cooking.
What is your favorite season?
Fall. Summer is hot in southern Cimeren. Winters are mild, but the cool weather brings the breath of the Evenmeres.
How would you define happiness?
Happiness comes by fulfilling your duty and honoring your kingdom as well as King Igare Dragonblade.
What are you passionate about?
Honing my abilities and caring for the dragons of Nevergrace. And what is left of my family and people.
How do you feel about your government?
King Igare Dragonblade rules Belvenguard and is a righteous and mighty king, but his small councilmembers seek to undermine him. I worry one of them hopes to supplant him with a king from Murgare.
If you could change one thing about [the book’s world], what would it be?
That the Evermeres were never planted and cursed by the people of Murgare. That the north and south of Cimeren was not divided by the forest and the vast Lake on Fire, which allows Murgare to perform evil deeds with impunity.
What’s your biggest secret?
That I hid a dragon egg from the king, a potentially hybrid dragon. I hope this dragon turns out to be a cross of Nevergrace’s forest dragons and Murgare’s most powerful shadow dragons. Keeping any type of shadow dragon in Belvenguard is punishable by death.
What do you hate?
The Dragon Queen of Murgare. With all that I am. Plus some of the members of my king’s small council.
What’s your biggest fear?
That my days will pass and I will grow old while still a squire. That I will never sail the skies as a guard and help defend my people.
What do you think your best quality is?
My ability with the crossbow, sword, and lance. If you mean personality, my determination.
How would you describe the world you live in?
Cimeren has its problems with the other southern kingdoms not answering the king when he has to call his banners, but Belvenguard stands for honor and all that is good. Murgare is steeped in darkness and treachery. All who go there or come from there know nothing but evil.
There is also something hiding in the forest, something most people do not believe exists.
About the Author
After reading Tolkien, R.M. Schultz wrote his first 100,000-word fantasy novel as a freshman in high school. When he’s not saving animals, he continues reading and writing fantasy and science fiction, and has done so for over two decades. R.M. founded and heads the North Seattle Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers’ Group and has published over a dozen novels.
And more than anything, he wants to be knighted by George R.R. Martin.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rmschultz.author
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rmschultzauthor/
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