Taste of Kiwi: Blog of Author Shelley Munro

Many romances, especially paranormal and urban fantasy ones, are based on the world of mythology. An example is Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Hunter series. Old myths and legends are rich in ideas for authors, so I thought I’d mention a few characters from within mythology for my Thursday Thirteen today.

Thirteen Tricksters & Means from Mythology

To start, mythology is a collection of stories that helped people make sense of the world. They were passed orally from generation to generation. Sometimes people wrote the myths down, and they were often celebrated in dance and art.

1. Chimera – a fire breathing monster made up of a mishmash of body parts of different animals.

2. Bacchus – the Roman god of wine and ecstasy. He gave King Midas the power to change everything he touched into gold.

3. Maui – he’s one of our New Zealand tricksters, and was supposedly responsible for fishing up New Zealand. He was a slippery one, and frankly, I’d run if I saw him. He pushed up the heavens and stole fire for mankind.

4. Cunning Hare – he’s an animal trickster that always outwits the other animals. He’s known in the US as Brer Rabbit.

5. Loki – the Norse trickster god. He caused the death of Odin’s son, Balder and is still being punished for it.

6. Baba Yaga – is a cannibal witch from Russia. She lives in a revolving hut that’s supported by hen’s feet, and she flies through the air in a mortar (grinding pot)

7. Guan Di – the Chinese god of war. Originally, he sold tofu, but he killed a magistrate and had to flee his home. He became a soldier and was promoted to the status of god of war.

8. Eshu – the trickster god of the Yoruba people in west Africa. He likes playing tricks on people – mischievous ones. He disguises himself as a naughty boy, a wise old man and a priest.

9. Kokopelli – another trickster. He’s also responsible for fertility of crops and the village women. I used Kokopelli as the basis for my story Seeking Kokopelli.

10. Tengu – a part man and part bird. They’re Japanese and have magic invisibility cloaks.

11. Sekhmet – a lioness god, sent by Ra to destroy mankind. Ra changed his mind and the only way to stop Sekhmet was to ply her with drink and get her drunk.

12. Centaur – half man and half horse they’re wild and savage. There are centaurs in the Harry Potter series.

13. Yen-lo – the ruler and judge of the dead in China. He weighs the souls first. Those who were virtuous had light souls while sinners possessed heavy souls. The souls must past several tests before they can be reincarnated.

All of these seem unfriendly to me. I’m not sure I’d like to meet them, but they certainly provide inspiration for stories.

Do you have any favorite stories based on mythology? Which of the above would you prefer to face? Write a story about?

Source: Mythology, an Eyewitness Book, by Neil Philip

I’m blogging over at Access Romance today where I’m talking about myths and legends and my story Seeking Kokopelli. Here’s the link to Access Romance.

The theme for this week is music. Despite my love for music, I don’t have many mentions of music in my books. I do have a release called Seeking Kokopelli, coming out on 29 June from Samhain Publishing, that features a band of musicians. Seeking Kokopelli is a m/m romance and there are a few naughty words in the excerpt. You are warned…

SEEKING KOKOPELLI by Shelley Munro

The plaintive notes of a sax throbbed through the gloomy pub. Nate McKenzie watched Adam James’s strong fingers as he played, enthralled by both the performance and the man—a sexy, dark-haired figure illuminated in a golden spotlight. Adam caressed the music from his instrument, his eyes closed while he focused on playing the song.

Despite the other men and women in the crowded room, Nate felt as if Adam played for him. Only for him. Blood pounded through his veins, his cock drawing tight beneath the unforgiving denim of the faded jeans he wore. It was the same every time Adam played his saxophone or sang in that smoky voice of his. Intense arousal surged through Nate’s mind along with confusion.

How could one man make him feel this way?

So lost. So incredibly aroused.

So damn needy.

Nate clenched his fingers around a bottle of beer and forced himself to take a sip. The warm taste of hops made him pull a face. Rosa. Thoughts of his wife should fill his mind, bring the sting of arousal to his cock and pull his body taut with desire, not his employer Adam James.

Sweet Jesus, Rosa hadn’t been gone for that long. It was far too soon to try to fill the empty gap her death had left. His lips pressed tight. Both men and women might have interested him before he’d met his wife, but one look at her dark hair, flashing brown eyes, her curvy body, and he’d been smitten. He hadn’t looked at another man since meeting Rosa.

Until Adam.

A pair of red lace panties sailed through the air and struck Adam’s thigh before plopping to the stage. Adam continued playing smoothly as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened, filling the pub with his sultry, seductive music.

A woman screamed, “I love you, Adam.”

The crowd roared. A few hooted with laughter. A second woman hollered an obscene suggestion of what she’d like to do if she cornered him alone.

Another pair of panties hit the stage. Nate turned away in disgust, telling himself it wasn’t jealousy. He tipped back his head, swallowed the dregs of his beer and ordered another. His last one for the night, because he needed to make sure Adam and the other three members of Stampede made it back to their motel rooms safely. He and Keith helped the band when they were on the road with security and anything else they required. Sometimes the women refused to let the band leave or, worse, tried to sneak into their vehicle or rooms.

Nate didn’t expect problems tonight. This crowd appeared well behaved. They’d get the band back to the motel. What the guys did after they reached the motel was up to them. Nate’s responsibilities for the night usually ended there.

Nate shot a quick look at Adam, took in the way the damp T-shirt clung to his chest and gulped. He saw a cold shower in his near future. And if that didn’t work, he’d go for a run and take another icy shower when he returned. He would not think about Adam. He would not jerk off while thinking about the man again.

And no more spending time with Adam. If he followed these rules, maybe he’d manage to stuff the man into the “friends box” instead of letting him drift into bloody uncharted territory. He was still faithful to Rosa, dammit. It was way too soon to replace the memories he clutched close to his heart. And Adam—Adam had more women than he could possibly want. Why would Adam show interest in him?

The last haunting note of the sax drifted away, and the rest of the band joined in with the melody. Adam started to sing. His gaze drifted across the rapt audience and, although Nate knew Adam wouldn’t be able to make him out in the gloom, the man seemed to stop looking when he glanced in his direction. Nate’s breath caught in his throat. He stared at Adam’s face, the intense eyes, the high cheekbones, the dark golden complexion. And that mouth…

A groan built deep in his throat. The man had him tied in knots and didn’t even know it. Despite his growing fame, Adam was a private man. He handled his fans and the reporters with aplomb, hiding behind easy charm. They thought they knew him, but Nate looked deeper than most.

Adam James had secrets.

Nate didn’t know what they were, didn’t want to. A man deserved some privacy.

The song slid to an end, and the crowd burst into applause and cheers. Somewhere a woman hollered about her underwear, making Nate wince at her crudeness.

“Thanks,” Adam said in a husky voice. “We’re about to play our last song for the night. It’s a new one for us. It’s called ‘Alone’.”

The band started playing, with Adam singing the poignant lyrics about a man being alone, looking for love, a mate. The words tore at Nate’s gut, ripping him open and laying his heart bare. He noticed a woman sitting not far from him with tears pouring unchecked down her cheeks.

Rosa. Damn, he missed her so much. She’d filled the empty loneliness inside him. It was almost one full year since she’d passed, and he missed her every single day, despite the weird yearning that struck him whenever he spent time near Adam.

Adam held the last note of the song, and the music trailed away. There was a long pause of pulsing silence before the cheering started. Nate couldn’t help his pleased grin. Stampede had a new hit on their hands.

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To read other excerpts in the Snippet Saturday trail follow the links below:

Mari Carr
TJ Michaels
Ashley Ladd
HelenKay Dimon
Eliza Gayle
Shelley Munro
Lauren Dane
Jody Wallace

The copy of NZ Woman’s Health I purchased (see yesterday’s blog post) had an interesting article about water and some of the myths people believe about it.

Here are some I found particularly interesting.

1. Bottled water is NOT better than tap water. In most cases tap water is safe to drink and contains minerals such as calcium, magnesium and zinc. It’s actually better if we drink tap water because it means fewer plastic bottles in landfills.

2. We should drink 8 glasses of water per day. No one is sure where this came from. The amount of water we require depends on our size and the type of activities we take part in during the day. Quite a few foods contain water as well so it’s not always necessary to drink glasses and glasses of water.

3. Tea and Coffee cause dehydration. Not true. As long as you don’t drink to excess, tea and coffee actually contain water along with the caffeine. Around five cups or less per day is considered okay.

I try to drink extra glasses of water during the day, but mostly it depends on my day and the availability of restrooms. What goes in invariably comes out!

My hubby often wakes in the small hours of the morning. Whenever he does, he has a glass of water and always brings me one too. I’m always thirsty in the morning so a glass of water is very welcome. Isn’t he well trained?

How much water do you drink each day? Do you like drinking water?