Michael T. Hare

Today, I have the privilege of posting an interview I had with author Isabel Marie about her upcoming novel, Fifth Fjord!

Welcome, Isabel! Why don’t you give us a quick introduction to yourself?

Hi, I’m Isabel Marie! Fifth Fjord is my debut novel, with dragons, romance, and danger. I’ve loved to read and write as long as I can remember, and plan to do it for as long as I can. Expect my stories to always include magic, romance, and a completely unfair cliffhanger. In addition to writing, I also enjoy listening to music, drawing, photography, and watching epic movies! (Interstellar, LotR, Inception, and Dark Knight are some of my faves)

To start us off, what’s the synopsis and title of your book?

My book is called Fifth Fjord! Here is the synopsis: “The dragons are waiting. Go and get one.”In Norchar, dragon mages are the elite. They are the ones who bond with dragons and hone powers untouchable to any normal man. But to become a mage, one must sacrifice everything. Enter the school where only the strongest survive. At the deadly academy for dragon mages known as the Fifth Fjord, eighteen-year-old Fiora Volar is sent to spy, lie, and die. With her brother’s life hanging in a balance, Fiora enters the place where her enemies are forged- even though she knows the dragons will kill her. Just as they killed her parents. And that won’t be the only danger. One wrong move, and she could be executed, start a war, cost her brother’s life, and doom her soul. And still, the hardest battle may not be for her life, not for her mind– but for her own heart. Fifth Fjord is a searing dark academia fantasy debut full of magic, betrayal, espionage, and a slow-burning enemies romance, perfect for readers craving to hit the spot of a lush, darker fantasy with dragons.

What inspired you to write this book?

I’ve always loved dragons and fantasy. I wrote a story back in 2022 called Legend of the Dragon Prince, which had both a magic school and dragons and really started my writing journey back up again. Since then, I’ve written four random writing projects, and Fifth Fjord- funny enough, my fifth WIP- ended up being the one I felt ready to publish!

What was the toughest part of drafting this book?

Oh, drafting was hard. I can be very critical of my own work, and tend to rewrite and rethink things a lot. I had to take a step back and learn to not hate and accept the words I’ve written, and that they won’t be perfect. This helped a ton.

How do you come up with fantasy names? (e.g., creatures, locations, etc.)

So, cool enough, I used a lot of Norse mythology inspiration in my debut novel! Some of the names aren’t Norse and some things I took my own creative liberties, but at the root of it, a lot of elements and things are derived from Norse names.

Will this be your first published work?

Yes! This is my first published book. I’m beyond excited😆

Will this book be part of a series?

Yes, it’s the first book in the Airborne Trilogy.

Your book appears to deal with some complex situations. What was your experience writing them?

So the main theme of the story centers around character growth and a girl growing past her fear. I deal with a lot of anxiety and fear, and I could never find books where the FMC actually started out afraid. Because of this, I wanted to write someone who was truly afraid. I also deal with sibling bonds in this story, and I have two siblings- so this felt important to portray. Other topics, such as abuse, darkness vs. light, morally gray heroes, trauma, lying, even spying- they took a long time to get just right where I felt they were depicted accurately and respectfully. And yeah, quite a bit is always going on- this isn’t a world for the weak😅

Is the enemies romance your favorite trope? Why did you choose this trope?

I love enemies to lovers. There’s just something cool about people first absolutely hating each other and then learning to love each other. (reminder, my book doesn’t have spice ❤️) I also feel like a lot of books fail to accurately do this and claim they have ‘enemies to lovers’ just to sell copies. Trust me- you’ll watch these characters go from loathing to love.

Do you have any websites or platforms?

You can find me @isabel.m.author on Instagram!

Can we get a final comment from the author?

I’m extremely excited for the release of my debut novel. I’ve been writing for such a long time, and for as long as I’ve known, it’s been my dream to be a published author. It’s surreal to think after so many years, the dreams are coming true. I know little me would be crying to know she’ll be published in October. 😌 Thank you so much for this opportunity and I can’t wait to see where things go.