About

Hinged on the interwoven stories of Tassandria and Velayn Dor'wynn, a mother and daughter who come from a long, matrilineal line of shapeshifters, Wildbound examines not only their relationship to each other, but their family and culture at large. In their own ways, both Tassandria and Velayn struggle with a sliver of otherness from their people, and both battle with how much of their traditions - which are paramount to the Dor'wynn family - should be left by the wayside in favor of what is ‘right’.

A Crown of Thorns

Velayn Dor'wynn comes from a long line of shapeshifters, empowered by ancient, animal gods with aspects and elements of their personas. Born of the Dor'wynn family, a matriarchal line that favors the females of their family to the point of belittling and excluding the males from prominence, power, and family tradition, Velayn stands to inherit all the Murkcrest Isles when her aunt Halya relinquishes the throne; there's only one problem - Velayn is not a shapeshifters.

Despite not yet having taken the coming of age journey known as the Trials of the Maddening Mists, Velayn has found a burgeoning talent as a healer - an art form snubbed and frowned upon as lesser magic, unfit for a member of her line, and certainly not seemly for the Heir Apparent. What's worse, her healing magic is drawn from nature, and her connection with the world around her has made her aware of a great calamity gone unnoticed to her people - their isle is sick, inflicted with a festering illness, but there's no way for her to tell what she knows without outing her abilities and risking scrutiny or exile.

A Crown of Thorns is the introductory chapter to the story of the Dor'wynn family, focused primarily on Velayn Dor'wynn, the youngest member of the family, and the most inclined to break the ancient ties of tradition. The chapter also introduces her mother, Tassandria Dor'wynn, and begins to establish the relationship they have to one another.

A Crown of Antlers

Ever inquisitive, Velayn Dor’wynn’s curiosity has put her in precarious position; she’s just learned that her mother, Tassandria, has something to do with the illness that festers on their island, and worse, her mother knows she knows. Emboldened with her new knowledge, Velayn begins to press her mother for the answers the woman has feigned ignorance to all along, but Tassandria’s own past is thorned and wicked, and she’s unwilling to give up the information Velayn seeks without a fight.

A Crown of Cinders

Questions abound about the Embervoid - where it came from, why it’s ever burning, and why no one seems equipped to handle the task - and as before, Velayn is sure the answers lie with her mother. But, as before, Tassandria’s ever-loose tongue has at last found reason to be reigned in, and she refuses to let her daughter glean a single glimpse of the horrors she has partaken in.