Guest Post: ZODIAC

At the dawn of time, there were 13 Houses in the Zodiac Galaxy. Now only 12 remain….

Rhoma Grace is a 16-year-old student from House Cancer with an unusual way of reading the stars. While her classmates use measurements to make accurate astrological predictions, Rho can’t solve for ‘x’ to save her life—so instead, she looks up at the night sky and makes up stories.

When a violent blast strikes the moons of Cancer, sending its ocean planet off-kilter and killing thousands of citizens—including its beloved Guardian—Rho is more surprised than anyone when she is named the House’s new leader. But, a true Cancerian who loves her home fiercely and will protect her people no matter what, Rho accepts.

Then, when more Houses fall victim to freak weather catastrophes, Rho starts seeing a pattern in the stars. She suspects Ophiuchus—the exiled 13th Guardian of Zodiac legend—has returned to exact his revenge across the Galaxy. Now Rho—along with Hysan Dax, a young envoy from House Libra, and Mathias, her guide and a member of her Royal Guard—must travel through the Zodiac to warn the other Guardians.

But who will believe anything this young novice says? Whom can Rho trust in a universe defined by differences? And how can she convince twelve worlds to unite as one Zodiac?

Embark on a dazzling journey with ZODIAC, the first novel in an epic sci-fi-meets-high-fantasy series set in a galaxy inspired by the astrological signs.

Hello everyone and welcome! Today I have an awesome guest post from the author Romania Russell. Her new book, ZODIAC is out December 9th. Be sure to check it out.

A few years ago NBC ran a story about an astronomer named Parke Kunkle who claimed that due to changes in the Earth’s alignment, our Zodiac signs were wrong because a Thirteenth sign, called Ophiuchus, was missing. The story launched a series of articles and debates and discussions about astrology and whether or not the constellation Ophiuchus should be invited into our Zodiac. The general consensus was NO.

But what if Ophiuchus decided he wasn’t going to accept the general consensus? What if he was determined to return to the Zodiac, no matter the price? This question is at the heart of my novel, ZODIAC, the first installment in a series set in a galaxy inspired by the astrological signs.

In the book’s mythology, House Ophiuchus was a real constellation that was ousted from the Zodiac universe millennia ago, and over the centuries has faded away into darkness. According to legend, the Serpent Bearer constellation had two planets—one was uninhabitable, covered in fiery molten lava, and the other was a swamp world. Ophiuchans were healers—they built their short-lived civilization on the marshy land, where they slept in huts and spent most of their time exploring the wilderness and developing remedies for ailments, which they exported to all the Houses.

Only when the constellation died, its Guardian didn’t. He’s been alive all this time, waiting for the opportunity to return to the ZODIAC to make good on his vow of retribution.

And now, at long last, his stars have aligned.