Within The Realm - Interview with Jillian Neal + #Review

Disclaimer - I was provided a review copy from the Promotional Book Tours to facilitate my reviews. All opinions are my own. This post may contain affiliate links.

Within The Realm

The Gifted walk among us. They are unseen, but in plain sight. The Earth’s energies are as visible to them as the tangible world is to us and they can harness and bend these forces to their will. Atop the Pentagon resides the government of the Gifted Realm.

 Rainer Lawson is set to join the ranks of Elite Officers in the Gifted Police force. With his fellow officers, they will work together, using their abilities, to try and end the most sinister criminal organization in existence. His parents fought and died to re-establish the Realm, and he won’t allow them to have sacrificed in vain. The will to protect those he loves has always driven Rainer, but his desperation to protect Emily, the love of his life, consumes him. While passions ignite and vengeance is sought, Rainer may discover that all of his money, fame, and power, could cost him the only thing that has ever truly mattered. -

See more at: jillianneal.com

Buy: Hardback | Paperback | Kindle | B&N

My Review:
This was a delightful book and I am looking forward to reading more from the creative and gifted Jillian Neal. There is so much going on in the story line... gifted vs. non-gifted people, young teenage love, and a good mystery keep the action going. Within the Realm really sets the stage for what I hope is a long series to come.

In the beginning I felt myself having a vested interest in the characters. Well written and likable, I was along for the ride with Rainer and Emily. From their special powers as gifted people to their smoldering romance, I couldn't wait to see how Rainer's tragic past would catch up with the two of them.

I recommend grabbing a copy and diving right into Within the Realm. Believe me, you will thank me for the recommendation.


Interview with Jillian Neal:

1. From Gifted to non-Gifted, Receivers, Shields, and more you created an amazing new world for the readers in Within the Realm. What inspired you to write it?

Truthfully, I’m not certain exactly what inspired me. I would say that I have been making up stories in my head since I was very young. Eventually one day I woke up with Rainer and Emily in the forefront of my mind. I remember when I finally confessed to my husband that I’d begun writing I looked at him from across the table of one of our favorite restaurants and after wiping the tears from eyes over my guilt that I’d begun writing and was two hundred pages in without telling him, I said: “So there are these people and they can summon the energy from the earth into a ball in their hand.” I so wish I had a picture of the look on his face!! 

2. Do you have a favorite character in the book? Who did you have the most fun writing?

That is like asking me to pick my favorite child! I love each and every one of my characters, and they all have a very special place in my heart. I would say that my favorite female character in the series you have only met very, very briefly, but she will become a major player in a few more books. As for my favorite guy, I suppose that would have to be Dan Vindico. He’s so intense and precise I always have to dig very deep to write him. Sam would also be another favorite. I always tell my husband (Sam is his very favorite!) that Sam is so hard to write because he’s so much smarter than I am!!

3. From the ending, I assume we will be seeing our favorite characters back for another book? Any plans for how many books about the Gifted Realm you plan to write?

The first series is actually already completed and is eight books long. I am currently working on my twelfth and the last three are a sibling series so they still involve some of characters, but not all, and we’ve changed setting quite a bit.

4. Which authors have influenced your writing along the way?

That’s a great question! Definitely Collette, her descriptions are beyond anything I could ever imagine possessing the ability to write. Austen is another favorite. Moving forward in time, I would say Fitzgerald and Steinbeck and then most definitely Rowling, oh and I love Rick Bragg, along with a myriad of current romance authors whose work I deeply admire.

5. I would love to know a little more about your journey creating Within the Realm. How long did it take you to write this book? Did the story develop as your wrote it, or did you have a clear idea of where Rainer and Emily were going to go from the start?  

I started writing three years ago and am currently on my twelfth book. When I started writing I had no intention of publishing, so the eight books in the original series were one huge document on my computer that had to be broken up into book after book after book. I did know where Rainer and Emily would ultimately end up, big picture wise, but all of the twists and turns developed as I wrote. I tell people that so often I sit down to write and I don’t know what’s going to happen. I have to write it to see where we’re heading next.

6. Can you explain, "hypnagogic"?

This made me laugh! Hypnagogic is a synonym for surreal or a dreamlike state. I used it to describe the way I felt on my publication day when I discussed it on my blog. Sometimes it’s just fun to see what Thesaurus.com might provide us. I love words, all of them, and when I get to learn a new one it just sort of makes me smile. I have a notepad in my purse that I carry around and when someone says a word I love, or I read something in a magazine and I stumble upon a word that excites me, I write it on my notebook and then will use it in my own writing.

7. Anything else you would love to share with my readers?

I would love for your readers to join us on the adventure! There is so much to come, and I always hope people will fall just in love with my characters as I am! Don’t miss out- go get a copy!

Author Bio

Jillian Neal is the author of “The Gifted Realm” series of novels. She has a passion for telling strong, character driven stories that stretch the imagination.

Her debut novel “Within the Realm” was released in 2013, with the next installments of the series soon to follow. She lives near Atlanta with her husband and children.

For more information:
visit her website at http://www.jillianneal.com  
Follow: http://facebook.com/jilliannealauthor
Twitter -@ jilliannealauth
Website - http://jillianneal.com