The Final Eternity’s Empire Box Set is Available Now!

As I’ve released the various installations of the Eternity’s Empire series, I’ve tried to discuss interesting aspects of the story’s development. In many cases, this involved inspirations for the various characters and events in the story. (Though I also talked about the re-writes and cover development, in case you’re interested in the more mechanical aspects of the series’ development.)

I’ve made no secret of the fact that this story was heavily inspired by mythology (and Sailor Moon – of course). And it was fairly easy for me to compile the short list of characters and events I wanted to draw upon because I’ve spent most of my adult life (and a significant portion of my teenage years) studying various ancient mythologies.

For awhile, I contemplated making this release announcement about mythological figures and stories that didn’t make the cut. But that could easily turn into a long series of geeky posts. And I’m not sure how relevant or interesting they would prove since, as I said, they didn’t make it into Eternity’s Empire’s development.

It will come as no shock to anyone that we have an entire bookshelf in our house that I refer to as ‘the nerd shelf.’ This is where my husband and I store all our history and mythology related books. My husband is, after all, a history major.

While perusing the various mythological offerings to decide which I wanted to read next, it occurred to me that the best approach for this release announcement might be something like an annotated bibliography.

So if I’ve ever whetted your appetite for mythology throughout this series’ development, here are some ways you can continue your studies!

Bulfinch’s Mythology

There are a lot of obvious places you can start with a study of Greek Mythology. The Iliad and the Odyssey, Homer’s epics, are classics. But they are large volumes and can be clunky at times, even if you have a volume with ample footnotes. (I’m a huge fan of footnotes.)

Bulfinch’s Mythology is designed for general readers. It was published in 1867, shortly after Thomas Bulfinch’s death. And for a century after, it was the standard reference for classical mythology in the English language. For many English readers, Bulfinch was their first exposure to Greek mythology and the book from which much of their knowledge was drawn.

Bulfinch’s book is not an in depth examination of classical Greek mythology. It is not meant to be a text book, so it is fairly abridged as well as sprinkled with Bulfinch’s commentary. So if you’re looking for deeper details, it might not interest you. But as a quick reference, a dictionary of Greek myths, it serves well.

I have a fancy leather-bound, gold leaf version of Bulfinch’s mythology on my geek shelf, and it’s one of the books I’m hoping to give a more in depth look in the near future. It is broken into three sections: the Age of Fable, the Age of Chivalry and the Legends of Charlemagne. And if you’re interested in the book but not the fancy frills, there are cheaper, less decorative versions available on Amazon.

The Elder and Prose Edda

The Prose Edda – sometimes simply referred to as Edda – is an old Norse textbook written during the early 13th century by Icelandic historian Snorri Strulson. It is considered the fullest and most detailed source for modern knowledge of Norse mythology and includes several of the poetic versions of the old Norse stories, which are referred to as poetic edda.

The Elder Edda includes other poetic verse and accounts of the various Norse gods, but is not attributed to Snorri Sturlson. The back of the book proudly proclaims that it includes the stories used to inspire Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings.

If you are looking for an authoritative resource on Norse mythology, these two books should be among your collection. (Like Bulfinch’s Mythology, both are available on Amazon.) In fact, if you browse the various articles on Norse mythology on Wikipedia, you will often find sections of the Prose Edda quoted, including which paragraphs and sections they come from. (Kind of like bible verses.)

The Prose Edda consists of four sections: the Prologue (an account of the origin of Norse mythology), Gylfaginning (which deals with the creation and destruction of the world), Skaldskaparmal (which consists largely of dialogue in which the discourse of nature and poetry are discussed), and Hattatal, which discusses the composition of traditional skaldic poetry. Not only was the text meant to collect Norse mythologies, it was designed to help Icelandic poets and readers understand the subtleties of alternative verse and grasp the meanings behind skaldic poetry.

The Egyptian Book of the Dead

Unlike the rest of the mythologies I drew upon for inclusion in Eternity’s Empire, I don’t actually have any books specifically dedicated to Egyptian mythology. I have several mythological encyclopedias which included myths and legends from various ancient cultures that include Egyptian gods and mythologies. But the truth is much of the knowledge I have of Egyptian mythology has come from scouring the internet.

There are a lot of good resources out there that you can access for free. Wikipedia can be a great starting point because it lists references at the base of every page. Some of the websites I have used over the years have vanished into the ether, sadly, so it’s nice to find fresh resources as time goes on.

There is a book I am hoping to add to my collection, and that is The Egyptian Book of the Dead, also known as The Book of Going Forth by Day. As a translation of a primary resource, it’s a great source of original mythological content.

Egyptian mythology has been somewhat muddied over the years by its blending with many of the cultures that came after. Lots of attempts to tell Egyptian stories give up halfway through and switch to the Greek versions of the myths. Because Egyptian mythology is particularly complex, and the Greek versions are often easier to understand. But ancient Egyptian mythology is also rich due to its complexity and well worth the time required to understand it.

Now that I’ve got you excited about the final installment of the Eternity’s Empire series, here are the details!

Part Two of Eternity’s Empire is Available Now!

Their love was forbidden.
But they’ll fight the universe to be together.

Aeternitas would rather die than let harm come to Earth’s queen. When faced with an impossible choice between family or the love of her life, she chose the latter. She intends to uphold her oath to protect the Earth, even if it costs her life.

Now she and her guardians are on the run, hunted by the very empire they served mere hours ago.

Time is short. And with every powerful eye in the galaxy searching for them, there’s nowhere left to hide. Aeternitas needs powerful allies or her crusade against her mother is doomed to fail.

The fate of the galaxy hangs in the balance. Aion won’t hesitate to destroy everything her opponents hold dear – unless Aeternitas and her guardians can once again muster the strength to overcome impossible odds.

This box set features the final 4 books in the Eternity’s Empire series (The Family You Choose, Tales of the Exiles, The War for Freedom, and The Empire of Eternity) previously published separately.

Grab your copy today!