Author Marilla Mulwane loves a good fantasy story filled with beautiful creatures and unique worlds, but she's never happy with the characters. "There is always a hero and a villain in fantasy stories," the author says. "There is always good and evil. The good is always good and the evil is always evil. I wanted to create characters who have legitimate reasons for their goals, and whether that makes them good or evil is incredibly difficult to figure out."
Ilmarinen is the tale of a girl named Altana that can travel to a fantastical world that doesn't allow people to heal each other with medicine. It is ruled over by kings and an immortal god. Altana learns that she is part of a prophecy to save the world from complete destruction. With the help of a ragtag group of misfits, including talking horses and tiny cat people, Altana will travel the world and make a decision to fight or run.
The characters in Ilmarinen all fight or refuse to fight for their own reasons. They cause harm for their own reasons. Those reasons are revealed and will make the reader question if they are truly evil or good, and if there is really much difference between the two. "This is especially important in today's age where we're surrounded by anger and confusion in the never-ending battles between race, religion and sexuality. Teens can read Ilmarinen and start to learn how to see things from all perspectives."
Marilla Mulwane comes from a small town with no stoplights in a large area of land northwest of New York City. Yes, this area actually does exist. While she enjoys the scenic hills, she writes, reads, plays video games, and makes crafts. She just wants folks to read her work. Nothing fancy. Of course, if it leads to fame, fortune and world domination, she won't complain.
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