Into the Wind

Readers Love Shira Anthony’s

Stealing the Wind

“In this novel, Shira has created a fascinating alternate world, rich in culture, political turmoil, and intrigue. This epic adventure is quite an undertaking. It's very different from the other books I've read by Shira and I applaud her versatility. It's high fantasy at its best….”

—Rainbow Book Reviews

“The underwater imagery was beautiful. I wanted the couple to be together and hated the bad guy. This was a majestic read and I’d recommend it to fantasy lovers.”

—Live your Life, Buy the Book

“Romantic and sexy and really wonderful world building. Anthony gives us a rich and exciting story here and a great set up for the remaining books.”

—Joyfully Jay

“
Stealing the Wind
is a magical epic fantasy tale, and a wonderful start to the Merman of Ea series. The writing is smooth and flows along beautifully, the characters are rich and colorful, the world Shira Anthony creates is mysterious and dark, full of legends and prophecy.”

—Mrs. Condit & Friends Read Books

“I recommend this one for any lover of fantasy stories, mermen, or to those who simply want to enjoy the adventure. I’m looking forward to reading more about these two in book two.”

—Hearts on Fire

 “The originality, the world the author created, the balance between reality and fantasy, the obstacles Taren faced, and characters were described really well…. The sex didn’t take over the book. The plots won this time….”

—World of Diversity Fiction

By
S
HIRA
A
NTHONY

The Dream of a Thousand Nights

BLUE NOTES SERIES

Blue Notes*

Melody Thief*

Aria*

Prelude*

Encore*

Symphony in Blue*

MERMAN OF EA

Stealing the Wind*

Into the Wind*

With
V
ENONA
K
EYES

The Trust*

With
EM L
YNLEY

A DELECTABLE NOVEL

Lighting the Way Home*

*Available in paperback

Published by
D
REAMSPINNER
P
RESS

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com

Copyright

Published by

Dreamspinner Press

5032 Capital Circle SW
Suite 2, PMB# 279
Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886

USA

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Into the Wind

© 2014 Shira Anthony.

Cover Art

© 2014 Anne Cain.

[email protected]

Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and

any person depicted on the cover is a model.

All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/.

ISBN: 978-1-62798-875-9

Digital ISBN: 978-1-62798-876-6

Printed in the United States of America

First Edition

May 2014

F
OR
C
ODY
.
More than you could ever know, your friendship inspires me and gives my words wings to soar.

Foreword

“Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

~Albert Einstein

Reading, at its very best, is an enthralling experience, and a good story draws us into another world and stays with us long after the book is closed. The worlds, characters, and events live inside us, piquing our curiosity and fueling our imaginations for years to come. Einstein’s aphorism reflects the ancient dichotomy between knowledge and imagination and is seen in the contrast between rationalists and mystics, realism and surrealism in the visual arts, and between the brutal rigors of experimental physics and the feathery abstractions of superstring theory. Metaphors are plentiful, but more to the point, imagination is a good in itself.

Hi, I’m Cody Kennedy. I love a great fantasy novel not only for its imagination candy but because I appreciate and value the extraordinary effort required to write a good one. Fantasy authors have a duty to readers that goes above and beyond mere storytelling. They must build worlds, create races, and delve into the impossible and make it believable, something we can relate to. In doing so, they must not only capture a reader’s interest but also infuse the mind’s eye with fantastic visions and implausible ideas, and compel the reader to use his or her imagination. It’s a daunting undertaking, to say the least, and Shira Anthony has accomplished this magnificent feat in her first fantasy series, The Mermen of Ea.

Highly original, richly layered, and incredibly imaginative,
Into the Wind
tells the mystical tale of Taren and Ian, two mermen of Ea, and the suspenseful search for the mysterious Odhrán, a man rumored to hold a fabled rune stone. The very stone needed to save the Ea race. Aboard their ship, the
Phantom
, Ian and Taren are attacked and Taren is separated from the crew. Washed ashore on an island, Taren comes to know Odhrán, and his world forever changes in ways we couldn’t have fathomed.

A masterful wordsmith with an exceptional talent for building not only adventure on the high seas but endearing love beneath it, Shira Anthony weaves a splendid tale of romance and suspense. Artists, geniuses, and rebellious spirits alike have claimed imagination as their territory, and Shira Anthony has certainly staked her claim. To the best of my knowledge, there is no Shira Anthony cult yet, but as a practitioner of the writer’s craft, she is as good as they come.

Enjoy
Into the Wind
.

Cody Kennedy

Los Angeles, California

March 2014

Acknowledgments

S
PECIAL
THANKS to Tali Spencer, Rebecca Cohen, Cody Kennedy, and Matt Portnoy for their time and wonderful ideas. Thanks also to Bob, my husband and captain of my heart, for helping me imagine life on the ocean, and for his help with sailing terminology.

Dramatis Personae

The mermen of Ea have hidden their dual nature for centuries after their race faced extinction at the humans’ hands. Now at a crossroads, the mainland and island merfolk are at war amongst themselves for the future of their people. At the heart of the conflict are two Ea, Ian Dunaidh and Taren Laxley, reincarnated Ea priests who have just rediscovered the truth of their past.

Now safely living on the mainland, Taren and Ian rekindle their centuries-old love. But the civil war looms ever closer, and Vurin, the leader of the mainland Ea, asks them to risk their lives once again in his service. For the good of their people, they must reclaim the legendary rune stone, an Ea weapon of great power, which took the life of Ian’s previous incarnation years before.

Mermen (Ea)

Taren Laxley
: For most of his life, Taren lived as an indentured servant, helping rigger Borstan Laxley work on the ropes and guy lines of ships that put into port in Raice Harbor in Derryth Kingdom. Taren discovered he is not human but an Ea when he was rescued by Captain Ian Dunaidh and the crew of the
Phantom
, Ian’s ship. Taren is the reincarnation of the Ea priest Treande. In his past life, Taren was handfasted to Owyn, the prior incarnation of Ian Dunaidh. Taren becomes Ian’s lover again and is Ian’s soul mate.

Ian Dunaidh
: The son of Ea parents, raised near Raice Harbor, Ian Dunaidh is captain of the Ea ship the
Phantom
. Ian’s parents were executed as traitors by the island Ea during the first war with the mainland Ea. To avenge his parents, Ian became a spy for the mainland Ea, rising through the ranks of the Ea navy. He reveals himself when he saves Taren’s life and rescues him from the island Ea prison. Ian is the reincarnation of the Ea priest Owyn. Owyn was the wielder of the powerful rune stone and died protecting it.