BEYOND THE BARRIERS
I am beyond delighted to introduce my debut novel, Beyond the Barriers. I have always enjoyed telling stories or playing them in my head. So it was time I wrote them down. After many rounds of editing and learning how to properly be a storyteller, I could not be more proud of the novel complete at 95,000 words.
An adventure craving socialite, Eloisa (Ellie), lives trapped in Carlyn beyond the immovable barriers made by the last acts of magic shapers as a way to hoard wealth and power. Now it is the impassable wall cutting Ellie off from the unknown. With one year to find a husband before social exile, she struggles to yield her heart to societal expectations. She may have a perfectly witty best friend and tight-knit family, but her heart has never felt at home. Her family manor’s expansive library is her refuge where she often loses herself in books about culture and languages impossible to experience. Her recent fascination: an Eastern monarchical territory—Koseon.
Awakening the magic thought lost, Ellie accidentally portals to Koseon. Upon arrival she meets a Mind Magic wielding Prince. Forced to play his mistress to secure her safety and way home, Ellie must remain veiled, never showing her lineage in the palace. A glimpse of her face would be a death sentence. Ellie’s exposure to a new territory and magic opens her mind and her heart. To have a chance at love, the Prince and Ellie will have to overcome the barriers between them—language, culture, magic, and secrets.
Teaming up with the Prince means navigating palace life, being involved in a countryside magical cover up, and seeing folk tales come to life. After a tragic death in Koseon, the Prince returns to Carlyn with Ellie. Her journey home is equally as jarring as her trip to Koseon. The Prince with his mind still on the corrupt court back home, refuses to be a proper suitor for Ellie, which throws her back into the marriage mart. Ellie must untangle her feelings of grief, love, and sense of belonging to choose between the only home she has ever known and the possibility of love half a world away.
While studying in Seoul for my East Asian Studies minor, I fell in love with my now husband and moved to Korea. My consumption of romance books and media is one reason I believe I was able to risk the unknown and move across the world for love. After six years in Korea, I crave more diverse love stories that mirror my own. Having started a blended family myself, I hope all my books showcase how beautiful life can be when you embrace a new culture and they embrace you in return. BEYOND THE BARRIERS’ Koseon setting shows Korea’s rich culture and history through the lens of a newcomer as I hope to inspire others to venture out into the unknown and let the magic flow.
