Renee Dugan
Renee Dugan is an Indiana-based YA/NA author who grew up reading fantasy books, chasing stray cats, and writing stories full of dashing heroes and evil masterminds. Now, with over a decade of professional editing, administrative work, and writing every spare second under her belt, she has authored THE CHAOS CIRCUS, a horror-lite fantasy novel and THE STARCHASER SAGA, an epic high fantasy series.
Living with her husband, dog, and three not-so-stray cats in the magical Midwest, she continues to explore new worlds and spends her time in this one encouraging and helping other writers on their journey to
fulfilling their dreams.
THE CHAOS CIRCUS
All Tessa LaRoche wants is to be the most ordinary person on Barrow Island. After a stint in a mental asylum, she's had quite enough of being anything else, thank you very much. But when a commission at her new reporting job forces her into the path of a not-quite-human murder suspect, Tessa finds that the unordinary is not through with her yet.
Spirited away by a devilishly charming Nicolai to the Mirror Lands— a parallel reality manipulated by the immortal Deathless— Tessa loses one of the most precious tethers to her sanity. In order to reclaim it, she must risk entering The Chaos Circus: a citywide fair where mortals trade years for prizes in vicious attractions from which the Deathless draw their power.
But there's a catch: if Tessa can't defeat the Deathless at their own freakish carnival games, she will lose her mind...and Nicolai will lose his life.
Forced to rely on one another despite the secrets that come between them, Tessa and Nicolai embark on a dangerous adventure through the deceptively beautiful life of the Circus, where little is as it seems—even the games, their pasts, and the strange whirlwind of memories that Tessa can no longer recall.
DAWNSTAR
A MISSING FRIEND.
A HUNT FOR ANSWERS.
A PATH TO VENGEANCE.
With her Warden stolen, her hopes of an easy alliance thwarted, and her trust in her
own kingdom shattered, Princess Cistine Novacek faces her greatest challenge yet:
using wit and steel to bring down a wicked Chancellor and prove herself to the cabal's
tentative allies in the Courts. As friendships are tested, bonds broken, and love put to
the test, the Princess must face the growing threats within the Northern Kingdom – and
learn to rise a queen.
Locked away in a desert prison, Asheila Kovar faces the struggle of her life: surviving
the ruthless Blood Hive, returning to her Princess, and avenging a betrayal against the
heart of her kingdom. But there are more secrets and schemes than just hers lurking in
the catacombs…and the struggle between powerful forces above and below the sands
will test Ashe’s loyalty in dangerous ways. Ways that may spell death for people the cabal cannot afford to lose.
DARKWIND
WHEN DANGER THREATENS, A PRINCESS WILL RISE TO THE CHALLENGE.
The Middle Kingdom of Talheim has enjoyed peace for decades. But with the threat of war rising from the ruthless South, the dream of a quiet life is fading. And for the noble but naïve Princess Cistine, that means embarking on a dangerous quest to the Northern Kingdom, where she hopes to forge an alliance against their southern foes and save her people.
But when Cistine is captured by an outlaw and his band of cutthroat warriors, she finds a more deadly adventure than she bargained for - and a greater power within herself than she ever knew.
Swept up in the unpredictable tide of a tenuous and shadowy political climate, a ruthless land governed by the stars, and the unexpected revelations that come from her mysterious new companions, Cistine must learn how to fight, how to lead...and above all, how to trust herself. If the young princess can't be forged into a fighter, her kingdom will fall.