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Reposted by Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED!

Tom Mock @tommock.bsky.social · 13/08/2026

For fans of Tolkien, I can’t recommend Raina Nightingale’s Kindred Of The Sea enough. The story is a wonderfully unique experience, cozy, thoughtful, & continuing in a tradition of so much of what I loved about the world of The Lord of the Rings @areaernovels.bsky.social

From the novel:

"Oh," said Corostomir, trying to understand what was strange, out of place almost, about this elf. It might be nothing. After all, he was an elf. He had never had a chance to get to know an elf before, a creature who was definitely not an animal, and also definitely not human. The King and Queen were somewhat relateable, to varying degrees, but they were both half-elves. This rider was pure elf.

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Reposted by Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED!

Efaru ✧ comms open @efaru.bsky.social · 29/07/2026

Thank you once again for 7k folks!! To celebrate, I'm hosting an ✨🌟ART-RAFFLE🌟✨ RULES: 🔸be a follower 🔸like + repost this post 🔸share your character in the comments (optional; any species!) PRIZE: quick lineart portrait Ends on August 15th! Good luck all 💛

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 05/07/2026

First draft, still full of typos, this is a snippet from Dragon-Mage #4, Embrace of Fire. Hoping to finish it soon, so I can get to work on the cover & final publication steps for #3 AT LONG LAST. Sorry to make you wait so long - & my life is still crazy, so no promises yet.

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Mitchi💫🌌 | 🔜 MSQSG A31 | CF23 M44 @starlightchi.bsky.social · 14/06/2026

it is finally here.. ⭐ 2.5k ART RAFFLE!! ⭐ Rules : - Like + Repost 👍 - no giveaway accounts - a follow is not a must but if you like my art and follow then it'd be very appreciated 🫶 📅 1 Winner, and I will roll it on July 1st! Best of luck and thank you for liking my art! 🥰

A close up shot art of Mitchi for an art raffle banner to celebrate 2.5k followers

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Reposted by Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED!

Sogol @sogolzmr.bsky.social · 16/06/2026

✨ART RAFFLE✨ ⭐️Win a portrait of your favorite character ✨@ sogolzmr (links in cms) 🎉The winner will be announced on 30th of June🎉 ✨only characters with female featured To enter: Follow me Like and repost you will get a⭐️ if you show me your character in the comments🤭

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

From X by @midnightrose838.bsky.social : As much as I'm NOT a fan of villains portrayed as all evil, I think [not all villains need trauma background]. My own POV villain is broken from early childhood, but some people seek power over compassion without having suffered more than most everyone.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

Also, I am going to have to almost completely remove myself from the internet again ... I might check occasionally, but very little. The temptation sometimes, to respond to certain aspects of current affairs, can be almost overwhelming, but I do NOT want to get into a discussion here.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 15/04/2026

Skies, this new announcement of a maintanence fee by D2D is a blow to some of us, who've really had life get in our way & haven't been able to continue marketing & writing for a while ... I know $12 dollars doesn't seem like a lot, but it is a nuisance to some of us.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

Also, NO IDEA WHY, but apparently right now, in the U.S. market Amazon looks to be selling Kindred of the Sea in paperback for only $2.50! #fantasy #indiesale www.amazon.com/gp/product/B...

amazon.com

Kindred of the Sea

Amazon.com: Kindred of the Sea eBook : Nightingale, Raina: Kindle Store

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 13/04/2026

This book is in the #NarraTessIndie #IndieApril sale Also features illustrations for every chapter drawn by the author (me). (Thanks again for your thoughtful review & your support @tommock.bsky.social indiebook.sale

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Reposted by Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED!

K Lykkebo 🖤 Fantasy author @karenlykkebo.com · 12/04/2026

Happy Huge-Indie-Book-Sale to all who celebrate! Now's your time to stock up that already overflowing TBR! Hundreds of books from fantastic indie authors either FREE, 0.99 or 1.99! --> indiebook.sale #NarratessSale

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 12/04/2026

#FantasyWorldbuilders The dolphinesque people have echolocation - like dolphins. Don't look a lot about the other species yet. Haven't met any of them. In all honesty, don't know A LOT about the dolphinesque ones either (there's only the one wanderer in Kindred of the Sea).

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 11/04/2026

I am honored to announce that my novel, Kindred of the Sea, is in the NarraTess #IndieApril book sale - alongside a lot of other indie books, I'm sure many of them are awesome, but I'm so busy this year I don't know which they are. indiebook.sale

Narratess Fantasy sci-fi april book sale - Kindred of the Sea by Raina Nightingale and other books.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

#AprilWordbuilders In Kindred of the Sea, on the ocean world Alaer, there are two aquatic species. One is dolphinesque - they can breathe air, but they can spend A LONG TIME underwater. The other one breathes in water.

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Reposted by Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED!

Observing Introvert 🖤⚪ @observingintrovert.bsky.social · 04/04/2026

✍️ Writing time! #QOTD: Which chapter of your life was interesting? Reading Kindred of the Sea by @areaernovels.bsky.social after I write today 🤗 I'll be going live at around 5:45 - 6:15pm BST Link to #Twitch in my bio 👆 See you there! 🖖 #WritingCommunity #books #vtuber #streamer

media.tenor.com

a rooster is standing next to a man in a sweater .

ALT: a rooster is standing next to a man in a sweater .

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Reposted by Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED!

Observing Introvert 🖤⚪ @observingintrovert.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

Hoping that Raina and her novel will be the first of many I can support in the writing community 🙏 If you're an author who'd like to hear part of your story read aloud on Twitch, I'm more than happy for you to DM me about it 🤗 #WritingCommunity #books #vtuber #streamer

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 03/04/2026

The lovely Sakinah @observingintrovert.bsky.social will be reading the first chapter of Kindred of the Sea on her twitch stream 5:45 to 6:15 BST tomorrow (April 4), if anyone is interesting in joining! www.twitch.tv/observingint... #fiction #fantasy #reading

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Reposted by Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED!

Headless🎃Horsewoman🪉💎🏹🐴⚔️ @acturek.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

#AwesomeCharacters This DEMANDS the actual snip of the dumbest thing Rush has ever said to Lara in a lifetime of dumbness around her. And it has #fool so I’ll offer it to #WIPSnips too even though I’m technically off there awhile for sanity’s sake.

“Why can demons escape?" He spread his arms. "Why do we all face the danger that when we die, we might fall short of the Crossing and into it?"

Lara laughed. "Demons escaping ... falling
into the Nethernight... those are night tales, told to scare children. How many people know you believe them?"

Rushak flushed with embarrassment his mind
told him he should not be feeling. "They are all
related questions. Only a fool would pick one at random and discount it as a night tale." He grimaced. “I live in a Forest filled with fools."

Lara raised an eyebrow.

"Oh, not you!" he cried, but the blunder had
been made; he was flat on his face.

She smirked, her mouth puckered adorably.
"One could argue that you are the—“

Brother's Keeper
A.C. Turek

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 01/04/2026

#AprilWorldbuilders Frelin is an elf city in Kindred of the Sea. It's situated on the beach, at the bottom of a cliff, & its architecture involves buildings made of tarps strung between trees, stonework, & things in-between. It's a quiet, idyllic place - when the Valor Alliance isn't attacking it!

A stone building next to a huge tree with a hollow interior on one side, smaller trees on the other side. Carved so it looks like it is growing roots into the soil. Also has decoration of leaves where the roof narrows before the second story.

Night sky strewn with stars. Buildings with glowing globes above them. Tree branches in the foreground obscure the view.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 31/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders It is for my novels, and it largely occurs in the process of writing them, even if some of it isn't made explicit in the novel itself. First I write one story, get to know one thing, then I feel the urge to write another story about someone else, & see another side of things.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders Kindred of the Sea - in the Valor Alliance, morality comes from the gods & requires obedience to those who speak for them. In Elethri - well, how you see these things is a private matter. From your own heart? From God? Still private to you as long as you respect other's rights.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders - Kindred of the Sea In the Valor Alliance, marriage & sexual relations are ONLY between a man & a woman, & marriage must be contracted before a priest of a recognized order. The elves of Elethri do NOT CARE what you do with your private life & mutually consenting adults. 1/4

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 19/03/2026

#FebruaryWorldBuilders Kindred of the Sea - in the Valor Alliance, the State & Religion are completely interwoven. In the elven nation of Elethri, there is no public or official religion - elves tend to be very private about such personal matters - so I would say ... complete separation hehe

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 18/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders In the Valor Alliance (Kindred of the Sea) - no, for all its flaws, the Valor Alliance is surprisingly unbound by social classes. Valor Knights can & DO occasionally come from the very lowest of classes & the poor, though most are nobles' or merchants' sons. 1/2

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

#WritingCommunity Even when there's a lot of violence, I almost *never* go into any detail that isn't strictly necessary (for example, Epoch of the Promise: Dawn Unseen features a huge amount of violence, war, massacre, etc, but almost NO detail AT ALL). Other novels are very tame.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders This question is too vast to be answered in an essay! Maybe even a book. Short answer: different people & religions have different gods. Some of them exist. Some of them are very unlike what their religions say (others may be). Some don't care about the religions. Others do.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 15/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders In DragonBirth, Kriela wants to start a cult for a historical "ascended goddess." In the Valor Alliance, there are lots of prayers & ritual worship. IF I publish A Bond With No Vows, you won't see any directly but you'll learn about some of the things Valor Knights do.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders If a ritual manhood hunt counts then - definitely yes, I have several hunter-gatherer peoples who have such or similar rituals: for some, it's just 'adulthood' regardless of gender. The presentation of a Valor Knight to a gryphon hatchling might also be considered a ritual.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders In RotD / DragonBirth - dragons are considered demons & hunted (or were, until they become all but extinct) but I don't know if that counts. Gryphons, drake-lizards (& dragons) are all telepathic animals that will hunt for / with their friends. And in Alaer - the dolphins!

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders Different cultures & peoples have different approaches. Some may worship certain animals as gods. For example, there's the Gryphon People in the mountains south of the Valor Alliance worship the gryphons. There are also many creatures or spirits that are not human.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 09/03/2026

@midnightrose838.bsky.social wrote this on Twitter (conversation about whether "villains" are an inherent part of stories): With nature it's less conflict & more accepting hardships & struggling to survive. After all, it's nature that feeds us. The gifts nature gives are as great as its hardships.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 08/03/2026

#MarchWorldBuilders The MC in Children of the Dryads is Tara-lin - dryads are not really plants, but they have a *very* close relationship & identification with their trees. And Tara-lin has a lot of significant interactions with the dryads. Her magic is a human-influenced variation on theirs.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders There are no mentions of unique fungi in Kindred of the Sea - though there are slightly unique fungi in Alaer - just a little different, like the trees & animals, as they are adapted to a cooler, ocean world. There might be a unique & dangerous fungi somewhere ... unconfirmed.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 01/03/2026

#MarchWorldbuilders Areaer is home to a handful of varieties of "special" trees. Some of them are quite unique, some less so. The only one featured in Kindred of the Sea - well, it doesn't *look* all that unique, but it's important to the relationship between the dryads & the elves for some reason.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

#Febchantment #writingcommunity #writesky Sometimes, I call my idea "the mundance" (originally a typo). There is overt & semi-hard(er) magic. But the fundamental, profoundest, ultimately more powerful magic is the magic that comes from the personality present in the natural world & day-to-day life.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 25/02/2026

#Febchantment #writingcommunity #writesky The history of magic in Areaer is far too vast for any mortal (or even most immortals!) to be "experts". In Kindred of the Sea, the MCs don't know very much. The Valor Alliance - like many empires - lies a lot & suppresses the truth at least as much.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 24/02/2026

#Febchantment #writingcommunity #writesky Tara-lin was taught by the dryads themselves. Keller mostly studied from books & self-learned. The mages of the Tears of Eseliana usually learn from another mage or mentor, but they can also be somewhat self-taught, guided mostly by traditions & instinct.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

#Febchantment #writingcommunity #writesky 'Wielding' is only descriptive of a very narrow approach, but many people can have a relationship to magic - & it runs through every gradient from overt & obvious, to subtle & barely recognized. Does it shape them into who they are - or the other way?

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 22/02/2026

#Febchantment #writingcommunity #writesky In Kindred of the Sea, magic is essential to the plot from the beginning - an intended battle goes VERY differently from expected, due to a surprising use of magic by the invaded nation - and that raises some questions about what's really going on here.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 21/02/2026

#Febchantment #writingcommunity #writesky A snippet from Kindred of the Sea books2read.com/kindred-of-t... A new world can be terrifying, strange, & hard to adjust to. Fleeing from war might make it necessary - but that doesn't mean it's easier. Can the magical dolphins be trusted with your child?

Corostomir approached a woman timidly clutching the hand of
her eager ten-year old. He did not remember her name, but he vaguely
remembered the child, and even more vaguely remembered the mother.
They must have been on the other ship, because otherwise he would
probably remember them a little better. They remembered him well
enough, for the child turned to him and said, “Please! Alkais wants to
meet me! She tells me her magic will make me able to swim longer and
better, but she won't ever let me drown, but Mama is scared. You know I
can swim all right.”
The mother just clutched her daughter towards her. “It's a strange
ocean, and the creatures … I think it's better to wait,” she said.
“It's okay,” said Corostomir. “It is very strange, but I am right
here to watch and take care of her, and I've called Aglarath, too. She will
be here very soon. Would it make you feel more comfortable if you saw
me with Arlas?”
“If you stay right with Risarlan and make sure she's safe, I think
that would be all right,” said the mother. She turned and called out,
“What do you think, Eldurmin?”

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 20/02/2026

#Febchantment #writingcommunity #writesky In Kindred of the Sea, we eventually reach Alaer, ocean world of dolphins. Humans who bond to dolphins are much more tolerant of cold water, especially when close to their dolphins.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

#Febenchantment #writingcommunity #writesky This Q is hard for Kindred of the Sea - magic in Areaer is *usually* relatively subtle. You could live in the Valor Alliance & disbelieve in magic. Less so in the elf forest, Elethri - perhaps the biggest single feature is the orbs that light their cities.

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 19/02/2026

All my novels will be included as part of the @Smashwords Read an Ebook Week March sale. Including this one. (Thanks again for the beautiful encouraging mini-review)

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

Thanks SO MUCH for this. In a time when life is very hard for me, it is wonderful to see this encouraging, thoughtful, amazing opening-review. 💗💗💗 If you want a link to all/most retailers: books2read.com/kindred-of-t...

books2read.com

Available now at your favorite digital store!

Kindred of the Sea by Raina Nightingale

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Reposted by Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED!

Tom Mock @tommock.bsky.social · 15/01/2026

Day 67 of my #SPFBOX opening reads (Captured In Words) I wanted to see more of 2 books: a lovecraft university story & an about two forlorn soldiers forced to march on an elven wood, reminding me more than a little of The Lord of the Rings, but in a very different light. @areaernovels.bsky.social

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Raina Nightingale - Return of the Dragonriders is ILLUSTRATED! @areaernovels.bsky.social · 13/12/2025

Many of the cultures in Areaer don't have surnames in the modern usage. The Valor Alliance is an example of an empire? confederation? where surnames (among city-folk, nobility and other wealthy /s emi-wealthy) classes is fairly common. Some families also have crests (though I have not designed any).

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