Kaaren Sutcliffe
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I was born with a vivid imagination, spending hours by myself as a child in imaginary places with made-up characters. A High School teacher introduced me to The Hobbit and I was hooked: I wanted to be a fantasy writer. I love visualising new worlds, and devising mysterious plots to challenge my characters. Somehow, a tangled romance always weaves its way in.
The Mage and the Bird Caller is my third fantasy with romance series, featuring my favourite undercover spy mage and an alluring, sassy dragon boat captain as the romance interest. For a fantasy writer with a love of Oriental mythology, what could be more fun than a disgruntled river dragon and an unseen enemy threatening a dragon boat festival? Add in a Mages’ Guild with a secret past and founded on deception … When I’m not immersed in my stories, I’m enjoying the lakes and rivers in a kayak or dragon boat or strolling along beaches where I live on the stunning south coast of NSW, Australia. As a breast cancer survivor, I’m also a ‘pink’ paddler and in 2023 paddled for Dragons Abreast Australia team ‘Hope’ in an international regatta in New Zealand. For a living, I’m a freelance editor of fiction fiction, helping other authors to achieve their vision for their stories. Paddles up! Kaaren Sutcliffe is a finalist in the Romance Writers Australia Sweet Treats Anthology 2023 with her story Lollipops Up! Which may also feature a dragon boat ...
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Undercover Mage, Book One of The Mage and the Bird Caller Trilogy
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Fantasy/Romance
A simple mission … with twists and meanders that capture his heart and divert his destiny. A grumpy river dragon withholds rain. Their crops wilting in unrelenting sunlight, the provinces plan a festival of dragon boat races to appease the dragon. But someone doesn’t agree, and as the incidents of sabotage mount, Riverfall sends a desperate messenger to the aloof Mages’ Guild, hidden behind its deadly warded wall. Mage Everand, a spy, is adrift and heart-broken after the conclusion of his previous mission. He volunteers to go to Riverfall to find out what’s going on and is astounded when his master agrees. The catch? ‘Under no circumstances, none whatsoever, reveal your identity.’ The undercover mission unfolds with layers of intrigue, until Everand questions everything he believes. The alluring boatwoman, Lamiya, insists on helping him, soon unravelling his true identity. She’s mystical, gorgeous and smart … but mages must only partner mages. Everand faces an irate dragon, a rogue half-mage and a legacy of deception underpinning the foundation of his beloved Guild. Now he must save the races, outwit the half-mage, deceive his own master — and choose between Lamiya and the Guild. Finalist, Speculative Fiction, RuBY Awards SAMPLE PDF Literary Titan Review Literary Titan Author Interview Reader's Favorite Reviews Amazon Review #1 Amazon Review #2 Amazon Review #3 Goodreads Review #1 Goodreads Review #2 Goodreads Review #3 Barnes and Noble Reviews
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Fugitive Mage, Book Two of The Mage and the Bird Caller Trilogy
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Fantasy/Romance
A simple mission … with twists and meanders that capture his heart and divert his destiny. His heart captured, Everand foregoes his mage status to stay with Lamiya in Riverplain. When she is kidnapped by the rogue half-mage, Malach, a complex set of lies is revealed. The half-mage is the illicit son of Everand’s former mentor, who was a traitor to the Guild. If the Guild finds out about Malach, they will obliterate him. Harbouring guilt about the death of his mentor, Everand is torn. Before he can decide what to do, the Mages’ Guild forcibly recalls him. To find his way back to Lamiya he must deceive his master, the Head of the Guild. In Riverplain, Lamiya’s abilities grow and she awakens Akachi, the superior red dragon, who sees her and Everand as the means to settle a generations-old score with the Guild. Bring your mate with power to me. Lamiya’s visions reveal her role in the future is far greater than she imagined. Everand devises a trap for his Guild, one that he hopes will save Malach and allow him to return to Lamiya. But he hadn’t factored in two ambitious young mages seeing the opportunity to discredit him and, by association, the Head of the Guild. How can he abandon his master now? Conflicted, Everand deploys his trap — and the whole of Ossilis is drawn into the aftermath, the four provinces, the Guild and the river dragons. The price for him and Lamiya to be together could be too high. Here are the links to the reviews of Fugitive Mage, my Book Two. These are also all 5 stars, but the reviewers comments are highly positive, with some great quotes. SAMPLE PDF Literary Titan Review Literary Titan Author Interview Reader's Favorite Reviews Amazon Review #1 Amazon Review #2 Amazon Review #3 Goodreads Review #1 Goodreads Review #2 Goodreads Review #3 Barnes and Noble Reviews
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Eminent Mage, Book Three of The Mage and the Bird Caller Trilogy
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Fantasy/Romance
A simple mission … with twists and meanders that capture his heart and divert his destiny. The stunning conclusion to Mage Everand’s mission — the fast-paced twists will have readers gasping at every turn. All Everand wants to do is finish the mission so he can be left in peace with the delectable Lamiya. How hard can it be? But Everand and Lamiya face the rampant half-mage Malach, the might of the Mages’ Guild, a ruthless Mage Pelamis seeking power and, the biggest threat of all, the ancient and furious red dragon Akachi. Bound to an epic and fraught new task, Everand must recover the magnificent stone of power, the Staropal, from his Mages’ Guild and return it to the fearsome red dragon. A past wrong would be righted, but to do so he must betray the Guild and his beloved master, the ailing Mage Mantiss. With her province and people threatened, Lamiya’s determination and mystical abilities magnify until she is a force even mages should not reckon with. With the feisty, sassy Lamiya beside him every step of the way, Everand tackles the impossible. Supported by a team of loyal paddlers, they set out to make paddling history and lay the foundation for a new Ossilis. Paddles up for some choppy water! Literary Titan Editorial Review Literary Titan Author Interview
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Lollipops Up!
(Featured in Sweet Treats - Lollipops: 2023 Romance Writers of Australia Short Story Anthology)
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Romance
Love, much like lollipops, can be sweet, sour and place us in some sticky situations. Some lollipops last but a short while and fill your mind with what might have been. Others can last all day long and leave you with candy-coated lips that beg for kisses. You know, the kind that last a lifetime. Sweet Treats 2023 features stories from some of Romance Writers of Australia's top sweet romance authors ready to sweeten your day with delicious kisses, second chances, and wrap you up in sugary delight. Grab your favourite beverage, a sweet treat or two, and enjoy our latest edition of story goodness. 
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