Bookfever: Blog Tour: Realm by Alexandrea Weis — Guest Post + Giveaway (INTL)

Realm
Alexandrea Weis
Published by: Vesuvian Books
Publication date: May 14th 2019
Genres: Historical, Young Adult

Based on a true story.
When her homeland is conquered by the mighty Alexander the Great, Roxana—the daughter of a mere chieftain—is torn from her simple life and thrown into a world of war and intrigue.
Terrified, the sixteen-year-old girl of renowned beauty is brought before the greatest ruler the world has ever known. Her life is in his hands; her future his to decide.
Without formal education or noble blood, Roxana is chosen by the Greek conqueror to be his bride. Soon she comes to know profound happiness and unyielding desire in her warrior’s arms.
However, being the king’s consort comes at a heavy price. To survive her husband’s treacherous kingdom, she must endure continuous warfare, deadly plots, jealous rivals, victory-hungry generals, and the stigma of being a barbarian. Persian blood will keep her from claiming the grandest title of all—queen—but her reign will seal the fate of an empire.
History tells his story. This is hers.

Goodreads / Amazon / Barnes & Noble / Apple Books / Kobo

Guest post:

Where did the inspiration to write about Roxana and Alexander the Great came from?

I’ve been fascinated with Alexander the Great since the age of six when I first heard his name in the classroom. Since that time, I read everything I could, but it wasn’t until I got to high school, and had access to the classical books in the library (this was years before the Internet and computers), when I learned about Roxana. She was one sentence in an entire book about him. I was floored. Who was this woman that a man of twenty-eight, King of all Persia and Greece had married? I believed there should be a novel devoted to her, and promised one day I would write it. Thus, I began my quest to learn everything I could about Roxana. I spent years combing through books about Alexander, and the first thing I would do is check the index to see how much was dedicated to her. It became an obsession. History, up until a few years ago, had been recorded by men. These men never believed she was significant. But she was a sixteen-year-old daughter of a governor with no title and no royal blood, yet he married her before all others. In addition, he never sent her off to live in the royal palace for wives at Susa, as would have been the custom. Instead, he took her with him to India and the ends of the world at that time. She was with him when he died in Babylon, and bore his only legitimate heir. Now, being a woman, I could read between the lines of what male historians had reported—he loved her. Many Renaissance paintings depict their marriage and romance. Stories were devoted to them but were forgotten in the modern era. I wanted to resurrect the love story I felt lost to time. A general and king such as Alexander would never have bothered with a woman of Roxana’s low birth unless she had been exceptional. I always wondered what she had that attracted him. I wanted to recreate that woman, and their life together, to give her a voice. In a time when women are working to build a strong future, I felt her story was important. We can never understand where we are going unless we first appreciate how far we have come.

Author Bio:
Alexandrea Weis, RN-CS, PhD, is a multi-award-winning author of over twenty-seven novels, a screenwriter, ICU Nurse, and historian who was born and raised in the French Quarter of New Orleans. Having grown up in the motion picture industry as the daughter of a director, she learned to tell stories from a different perspective and began writing at the age of eight. Infusing the rich tapestry of her hometown into her novels, she believes that creating vivid characters makes a story moving and memorable. A member of the Horror Writers Association and International Thriller Writers Association, Weis writes mystery, suspense, thrillers, horror, crime fiction, and romance. She lives with her husband and pets in New Orleans where she is a permitted/certified wildlife rehabber with the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries and rescues orphaned and injured animals.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter