Consistency is Key

Alisse Lee Goldenberg Author Interview

The City of Arches follows a princess who discovers a letter containing the key to her mother’s hidden past and her connection to a powerful wizard. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

I love the idea of family secrets being uncovered. For me, I loved going through boxes of old pictures that my grandparents kept and hearing about all the old stories. The real treasure for a family is always hidden in old documents and old photographs. From the beginning, I have had Learsi’s story mapped out in my mind, and to have her daughter discover it in her own words was a temptation too big to ignore. 

How did you balance magic and its use throughout the story to keep it believable?

I think of it almost as a muscle. Like any talent or ability, it needs to be used, trained, and practised. And just like a physical ability, it can be strained, and it can be draining. Like anything, magic needs its limitations to be believable, and once I figured out how it worked in my world, consistency is key. 

Which character in the novel do you feel you relate to more and why?

That’s a hard question. I wish I could say that I relate to the hero, but in reality, I’m probably more like Aud. She’s just this normal person who cares about her family. She’s thrust into this world of magic and mess and has to make the best of it. She’s at heart just a mom, and I guess that’s what I relate to. 

Can you give us a glimpse inside Book 4 of The Sitnalta Series? Where will it take readers?

Book 4 is called The Hedgewitch’s Charm. It shows us a Colonodona that’s put at risk by a plague. A young hedgewitch named Gwendolyn thinks there’s more to it and fights to save the people alongside Ipsinki. I loved writing her, and her and Ipsinki’s dynamic, and I hope readers love it too.
 
 
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website | Amazon

After the events of The Kingdom Thief, Sitnalta explores her reclaimed home, looking for adventure, and discovering a mystery that spans generations. Upon discovering a letter in which her mother writes to the Wizard Kralc, Sitnalta unearths long buried secrets, and a connection to the magical coin she couldn’t have possibly anticipated. Sitnalta continues to read, taking the readers on a journey into the past to learn the true history of Queen Learsi: a lost princess in hiding, and her strong connection to the enigmatic wizard.

In the buried past, Kralc finds a ragged Learsi living on the streets after her home kingdom’s destruction and presents an offer: help him set things right with the mysterious City of Arches and he will give her back her family and birthright. With her parents murdered and her kingdom in ruins, she doesn’t know how he can achieve such a thing. All she knows is that she has nothing to lose.

Posted on January 10, 2026, in Interviews and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink. Leave a comment.

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