I never imagined I would write about dragons. I had watched the Hobbit and parts of Game of Thrones and I found I loved these medieval style fantasies. Medieval times were brutal and devoid of the luxuries and technologies we accept as a normal way of life. People had to use all their natural skills and intelligence to survive. This way of life enthralls many fans.
The idea for my medieval style book, The Last of the Silver Wings, came to mind from my daughter’s relationship with her cat. She had a way of dealing with animals that I had never seen before. It reminded me of horse whisperers. One morning, her kitten got stuck in a tree and the idea of a young woman involved in some sort of rescue adventure type of novel sprung to mind. This first rescue was to find a stolen Silver Wing hatchling.
It shocked me when I started getting resistance from one of my Christian friends about why a Christian author would write about dragons. At first I felt hurt and defensive, but then I realised that this formed part of a greater relational problem. We often resist what we don’t understand. My retired minister put it to me this way. A fire can cook your dinner, but it can also burn down your house. You get to choose how you will use it. I wrote about my dragons in the same way. They helped humankind, but along the way, some of these fire breathing beasts could burn down a village.
Authors like C. S. Lewis and J. R. R. Tolkien both combined elements of faith and fiction. The purpose of many Christian fantasy authors is to bring a type of parable-like wisdom to their stories in a way that engages the reader’s attention. One of the greatest storytellers in the Christian faith was of course Jesus, who taught many of his lessons as parables that the Hebrews of that time could relate to. I write stories that fans of dragons can relate to and one day, when my children are young adults themselves, they can learn from the battles and wisdom of the characters in them.
Why am I telling you this? Because in your heart lies a dream that you want to bring to the world. There are some critics that will help refine your dream. Much like my editor uses critique to help me improve my stories. Then there are some critics that will crush your dreams. When people criticise my children. I ask them to think about this. Is it true? Ignore it if it is not. The ask yourself, “How can I apply myself to be better if it is true?” If it is true, but said with malice, then ignore the tone of the messenger and focus on the message.
This year, I hope you will refine your dream and bring it to the world using people’s perceptions to help refine you, but never stop you.
Extract from Book 4
Scars littered King Radolf’s palms from his nails biting into his flesh. Yet he could not help clenching his fists even tighter. The King watched the flicker of the flames in the fireplace of his chambers to try and calm his thoughts. He had to contain his rage. If he gave in to his fantasies of destroying Lord Logan now, he would sabotage his treasury.
Lord Teebald had warned him not to let his obsession rage out of control. The monarch took out his frustrations on the lesser members of his court, but it did little to appease his desire to claim what he thought was his. He had even driven his dagger into the throat of his latest training partner. The tutor had not even raised an eyebrow at the death. His general had chosen them from the Ofardoes’ slaves. The Ofardoes used men the way the Romans used gladiators for training and entertainment.
King Radolf turned the heavy oak table over in another fit of rage, spewing parchments over the stone floor. The room looked as if a careless spy had been on a rampage to claim a treasure. Nothing appeased him now. The monarch sank into the carved chair softened by the richly embroidered green cushion, but it did little to comfort him. He stared into the dancing flames once again. King Radolf still remembered Christine’s face as she saw that worthless spy that he and his spymaster had sent racing to protect the child they had given him to bait Christine.
King Radolf bellowed to a servant to clean up the mess he had created. The guard let the trembling girl into the room. Perhaps she expected something that he was not in the mood to give, but as she bent over to pick up the parchments, he recognised one.
“Woman, bring me that parchment from the top there.”
Her hand quivered as she reached forward with the manuscript. As his hand closed over her wrist to pull her closer, he felt a tremor run through her and sensed her fear. Her bottom lip was a signal, shouting out her anxiety, and he looked at her with disgust.
Debbie Harris2021-12-15 The Call of the Ancients: An Epic Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 3): Intriguing I love that all the characters are back and taking on another adventure. Very adventurous and and the world that this takes place in is amazing. They know the dragon eggs were hidden and knowing that King Radolf is looking for them make it very intense. Great book to read in the series. Debbie Harris2021-12-15 The Fire Within The Storm: A Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 2): Outstanding Another great book in the series. A lot of great characters. If you enjoy books like the Game of Thrones you will enjoy this book. With dragons and a medieval adventure was very intense. Book is greatly written and looking forward tot he next one. PAR2021-10-28 The Fire Within The Storm: A Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 2): Compelling! The Fire Within the Storm is the second book of the Chronicles of Nadine series This is my first read by Kim Vermaak and I found him to be a talented and gifted author And this to be an action packed, drama-filled epic of medieval fantasy that calls the reader to look into their own fears as the protagonist also considers the price of freedom, honesty and truth. Vermaak has created a novel of delightfully fleshed out protagonists, enticing and interactive concepts with engaging plot follow-through, and delightful arrays of inclusive side characters and visionary worldbuilding. This was a brilliant read! It pulled me in from beginning to end and held my attention. The world building is detailed and imaginative. This novel has strong, well developed characters and an interesting story line that keeps you turning the pages. I recommend this novel and would read more novels by this author. I gave this honest, voluntary review after being given a free copy of the novel. Susan2021-09-09 The Fire Within The Storm: A Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 2): Loved it Another great new author for me. Such a great story that will keep you turning the pages. A story full of dragons, deceipt, danger & despair. Nadine learned she was going to become a dragon whisperer & she decided not to get married or have children because she would have to watch her family age and die while she did not age. It was a hard decision & after helping Mary after she came back from the wall of bones it became even more heart wrenching. Nadine suitor was not happy about her decision. Meanwhile little Yuckell is becoming a handful. His mother sent him off to hunt squirrels and he got his arm stuck in a tree then a falling tree caused him to tear his wing. Also through the whole story the evil King talks of raising a hoard of dragons so he can be undefeated. If you want a story that is addicting & will keep you turning pages then here it is. The narrator did a great job bringing these characters to life. I can't wait for book 3 to become available on audible. Loved this story. Tonya2021-09-05 The Call of the Ancients: An Epic Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 3): Like dragons? This is your series, Nadine, Nathan, Elizabeth, the Copper Fire Dragon Whisperer and others are woven together in a compelling story in a very well developed world. They hear of the dragon eggs that were hidden after the last Dragon War. They also hear that King Radolf is seeking the eggs as well. This is the story of the hunt and its results.Battles, magic and intrigue figure highly in this tale. A truly great read.Since I didn't and was confused about relationships in this book, I would recommend reading the first two books in the series first. Kim did a good job of telling some of the back story, but I will be going back to clear up some things. P Barnes2021-08-24 The Call of the Ancients: An Epic Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 3): Great fantasy read for lovers of tales of dragons I enjoy Kim's writing - she has enthralled me with her imaginative writing about dragons thru the 3 series as well as the novella, A Mother's Warning.This series is a must for those loving a good escape. Angelofmusic2021-08-22 The Call of the Ancients: An Epic Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 3): Amazing!! I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.I was given this free review copy at my request and have voluntarily left this review.Oh soo good!!! You get some history and backstory to some of the characters. All while moving the story forward. So captivating and heart wrenching. I absolutely loved it. I cannot wait for the next book!! Highly recommend to dragon lovers!! Maureen H2021-08-17 The Call of the Ancients: An Epic Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 3): Fantastic read! I was really excited to get back into this world with Nadine. I love these characters and the beautiful world Kim has built. The ending was a bit disappointing. Although not a true cliffhanger (by my own definition, that's only if the main quest or storyline is not completed), it definitely leaves you wanting more! I can't wait to see where this epic tale goes next.I received a free ARC of this book. CuteAsADaisy2021-07-13 The Fire Within The Storm: A Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 2): YA Medieval Christian Fantasy With Dragons Book 2 The adventure continues in book two, these need to be read in order. It's pretty clean (*** parents read below) with a fun mix of fantasy, dragons, Christian/Catholic themes, and medieval adventures. I felt like book two had a better flow to it. There still a lot going on between all the different characters and you definitely be one invested in the story and need to see where it goes. This one was also a bit darker with some of the topics and scenes intensified. I do like the Christian element to it, the author does a fairly good job incorporating it without making too preachy, although there were a couple times it did go pretty preachy in this book. I am really looking forward to see where book three goes with the story.***Parents: PG13- probably 15+ This book has some potentially triggering scenes related sexual assault and abortion. It is free of bad language or overly graphic violence, and there is romance (mainly kissing). There are some scenes revolving around prostitutes, abortion and the bones of many of the aborted babies. I would place it as being geared for high school to adult readers.The narrator does a good job with the voices - 3⭐. I found the pace a bit slow but turning the speed up to 1.25x helped.—I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review. Angelofmusic2021-05-21 The Fire Within The Storm: A Medieval Fantasy (The Chronicles of Nadine Book 2): Cant wait for book 3 I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and have voluntarily left this review.Its very rare that you get to hear your books come alive. I loved reading the book and now its even more amazing to hear the characters!This book helps to set up for the hopeful next book and also helps you understand the length that King Radolf is willing to go to to basically be king of all the lands. King radolf is a feared man as he uses deception and secrecy to take over places and to try and influence men of the church.Nadine of course now needs to accept her life but is still struggling with parts of it. I do believe that the only way she will be able to accept all parts of her dragon whisperer life is if she sees her trainer do so as well.Great dragon book, lots of action and planning. I recommend to all fantasy and all medieval era lovers.