Promise of Mercy blends political upheaval, telepathic warfare, and a frantic intergalactic rescue mission involving the Dreamscape Warriors. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?

The triplets (Deirdre, Aisling, and Bayvin) get their inspiration from their father, who is their hero. In the first book, Price of Vengeance, Liam became an orphan at two when giant insects called “Chitin” destroyed his family’s farm and killed his parents. Taken in by a prominent family on the planet of Etrusci, they raise him alongside their own son, Randolf. Liam joined the city’s military as an adult. When he is cut off from the last city on the planet, he discovers an alien intelligence (named Azurius) controlling the Chitin and that a traitor is responsible for his parents’ deaths. After getting back into the city, he discovers the traitor had his beloved foster parents murdered. While doing what he can to thwart the alien, he gives in to his desire for vengeance and slaughters the traitor. However, his moral upbringing reasserts itself. Left full of remorse, he still needs to defeat Azurius and save his people from destruction.

In the second novel, Legacy of Valor, the triplets are only children, having grown up hearing stories of their father’s exploits. Liam now leads Etursci’s Special Operations Company and is attached to the New Terran Marine Corps’ Third Division to retake the moon of Treespo, orbiting the planet Beta Proximus IV, from Marshal Kergan’s Rebel forces. “No plan survives its first encounter with the enemy,” is an old Marine saying. Minutes after landing on the hostile surface of Treespo, treachery decapitates the division, leaving Liam the senior combat officer. Treachery has stripped the Third Division of its support. As forces scramble to assist both sides, Liam must keep the warriors under his command alive.

For personal inspiration, there are science fiction books that use ESP (Extra Sensory Perception), though I put my unique twist on it. Few military science fiction books explore a person’s consciousness being used outside the body, which is called “Dreamwalking.” While Dreamwalking a person often has to fight enemy Dreamwalkers. I also drew inspiration from video games such as Halo, in particular with weapons and tactics in space combat.

How do you manage character development throughout your series?

I decide what type of character I need. Sometimes it develops organically. Other times, I must do research on the type of training they would require and the equipment they would use. Then I develop their backstory to figure out what motivates them. Things like childhood trauma, safety, and support during formative development, and how this shapes a character in the novel. This was especially true in Price of Vengeance, where the death of Liam’s birth parents helped to shape him.

In Legacy of Valor, I set up a scenario where Liam was forced to take charge of a campaign, fighting against overwhelming odds. I needed characters who were combat veterans on both sides. This included a solid Rebel Commander in the form of General Sorel Maranz. Marshal Kergan, who, like Liam, suffered from childhood trauma but dealt with it by becoming vengeful. The story also required an experienced, no-nonsense non-commissioned officer. Enter Gunnery Sergeant Anthony Russo.

In Promise of Mercy, the triplets, Aisling, Bayvin, and especially Deirdre, needed to be their father’s daughters. The girls returned home after advanced training in the Finnian Shock Forces. They’ve inherited their father’s marksmanship, his leadership skills, and his ESP powers. However, they aren’t clones of each other. Deirdre is their best shot, and leadership comes naturally to her. Aisling is an explosives expert and pilot. Bayvin specializes in electronic warfare and excels in military intelligence. Their brother is still in his teens but is already a skilled pilot. We also meet Marissa, a former Rebel war criminal who must confront her past once her daughter, Gayla, is born. Marissa goes against Kergan to befriend Liam and return him to his family.

What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?

As this is the third book in my series, several themes from the first and second novels carry through: the importance of family ties, the pitfalls of vengeance, and the need for courage when facing overwhelming odds. Liam draws strength from his family, even though he was an orphan. His love for family led him down a path of revenge against a traitor. Upon achieving his vengeance, Liam instantly realized it was a mistake, eventually evolving past the need for revenge.

Kergan lost his family when he was young as well and is still traumatized by it. This makes him obsessed with punishing those responsible. Kergan is an effective leader, and his followers are loyal. Yet, holding on to his pain has made him ruthless to his enemies. Deirdre, in Promise of Mercy, has sworn to kill a Rebel war criminal named Marissa for her crimes. As she continues the search for her father, doubt gnaws at her.

Courage is another central theme. Liam and his family face overwhelming odds throughout the series. Liam has needed to push past physical injury in Price of Vengeance. In Legacy of Valor, he must step into shoes seemingly too big for him and keep the combined human forces alive until help can arrive. Deirdre keeps a larger Rebel force at bay as they search for their father and seek to deny Kergan the use of his new terror weapon.

Can we look forward to a fourth installment of the Dreamscape Warriors series? Where will it take readers?

In the fourth book, Addiction of Power, Liam is older. His daughters are now middle-aged. His son, Aidan, is a veteran fighter pilot. The daughter that Liam and his wife Celinia conceived in Promise of Mercy, Tetia, is in her teens and planning to follow her mother’s path as a priestess and healer. The theme of family carries over. Aidan agrees to deliver information to Finnian Intelligence while on a trip with his Great Aunt Máire and sister Tetia when Kergan attacks their ship. After escaping, Marissa and her daughter Gayla, whom the audience meets in Promise of Mercy befriends Aidan and his family. This starts a journey to end 700 years interstellar civil war. Factions on both sides of the conflict must wrestle with the implications of peace; an end to the bloodshed versus losing power. It also plants the seeds for threats from beyond the Milky Way

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