INTERVIEW, BLOG TOUR AND GIVEAWAY: The Sleeping Serpent by Luna Saint Claire

A Thrilling Psychological Exploration! Vampires are real. Not the kind with blood and fangs, but rather emotional vampires—the ones who use manipulation and compulsion to seduce. Charming and magnetic, they appear to be perfect—the answer to your prayers. Truth is, they have targeted you. As arousing as 50 Shades, twisted as Gone Girl, and tortured as Wuthering Heights. Luna Saint Claire has a loving husband and an enviable career as a Hollywood costume designer. Still, something is gnawing at her. Bored with her conventional and circumscribed existence, she feels herself becoming invisible. When she meets Nico Romero, a charismatic yoga guru, his attentions awaken her passions and desires. Dangerous, but not in a way that scares her, he makes her feel as if anything is possible. Infatuated, she becomes entangled in Nico’s life as he uses his mesmerizing sexuality to manipulate everyone around him in his pursuit of women, wealth, and celebrity. Immensely erotic and psychologically captivating, The Sleeping Serpent is the compelling story of a woman's obsession with a spellbinding guru and the struggle to reclaim her life. At its heart, it is a painfully beautiful exposition of unconditional love that makes us question what we truly want. Compelling…a gripping masterful account of the seductive manipulations of a sociopath. “She realized in an instant that being around him awakened her, stirring the sediment that had long ago settled at the bottom of her well. He made her feel a part of him—of something larger, and somehow more alive.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Luna Saint Claire is a costume designer and author residing in Los Angeles with her husband, a philosophy professor. She loves blues rock and Indie music, often setting her Pandora station to Damien Rice. Her personal style can best be described as eclectic bohemian. Though she now enjoys running and yoga, she spent years of her youth in the ballet studio. Her part Native American heritage informs her work as a designer and influences her storytelling.

INTERVIEW WITH LUNA SAINT CLAIRE

I was lucky enough to have Luna agree to do an interview, this book is different from your usual romance novel and I wanted to find out why.

So....in The Saucy Owl's FIRST ever author interview, let's find out more about the making of The Sleeping Serpent.

This book is very different from typical romance novels, what was your inspiration for this story?

The story is a fictionalized account of what I experienced with a spellbinding yoga guru. Many people don't know that there are seductive, manipulative people that target others and use them for their purposes. When we point to them in the news, or as characters on television shows, we recognize them as sociopaths. But we don't think it can happen to us.

I spent years under the influence of a magnetic sociopath. Nico, the protagonist of this story is a gifted healer, but he has an inner wound, an emptiness inside him that left him without empathy. We expect healers to be spiritual good souls. But, when they don't complete their training they can easily go to the dark side, using their gifts for power, wealth and celebrity.

I make an analogy to how Anakin Skywalker became Darth Vader because he never healed his wound. Luna wants to heal Nico because he has awakened something inside her she thought was lost. He has made her feel that anything is possible. She believes in his goodness. What she ultimately learns is she has always possessed what she was seeking. Like Dorothy in the Wizard of OZ, the man behind the curtain was an imposter. What was it that gave you that push to write down your story?

Many people told me to tell my story. I received a phone call from a dear friend of mine who was dying and she convinced me to do it. Was it hard to go through all of it again?

I thought it would be, but as I wrote it freed me. What was the writing process like, did you plan it all out or just go with the flow?

I wrote every day, all day long and in one year it had become three volumes. I thought about leaving it as a trilogy, but my editor suggested it be a stand-alone.

What was it about the characters that made you want to write about them and delve deeper into it?

As I researched narcissistic personality disorder I learned a lot about seduction, manipulation, and control by narcissists. They are able to find the hook into their victims in five minutes. They quickly identify the gap in the victim, which often mirrors their own, and hook into it. They are metaphorical vampires. Luna felt herself becoming invisible—her age, her career, her marriage was all circumscribed. Akin to Anna Karenina who had wealth, a solid marriage, family and a place in society, Luna desired more, something that made her feel more alive. Whether by free will or fate, Luna’s encounter with Nico provoked a storm that shattered her perceptions of identity, duty, morality, and self-worth. The storm didn’t blow in from the outside. She was the storm. It’s turbulence within her, forcing her to confront the darkness, uncovering her secrets and her pain. Suffering a violent, metaphysical personal storm is the precursor to transformation. Once the storm clears, the air is sweeter, the light brighter, and life is richer. Each storm makes us stronger and wiser, and causes us to question who we are and what we truly want. It's a dark story, did you find it hard to try and get in that mindset to write from the different perspectives?

It was the most exhilarating creative expression that I have ever experienced. I have been a painter, a dancer, and a successful Hollywood costume designer -- this was the most creative process I have had. I suspect because it was something I needed to do. Were you nervous about readers finding out about the origins of the story?

I am still nervous about it. But you suggested an interview, so here I am....

What were your reasons for keeping the character name and your author name the same?

That is an excellent question. It is not a memoir because by definition it would have to be written in the first person POV. I wanted to write the experiences of the other women to illustrate characteristics and behavior of a sociopath and codependency, therefore, third person limited was necessary. Having the author and character the same created a bridge between memoir and third person pov. Are you planning on writing anymore books?

Psychologists and mental health experts say there is no cure for narcissistic personality disorder and that sociopaths, like Nico, cannot be redeemed because they have no empathy, and that hole in their soul cannot be mended. But I believe in the power of spirit to heal. I am currently writing a sequel. Was writing a book how you thought it would be, are you happy you did it?

This is the happiest I have ever been in my life. We all rush though life with our obligations to our family, and the goals we think we need to achieve. We never become whole, and we continue to seek outside ourselves for joy and spiritual fulfillment. It is always within us—we just need to look.

Thank you so much Luna for answering my questions, it was great to get more of an insight into this story!