It all started with a Kpop song. I know. Going from a Korean idol’s music to the lush countryside of Ireland is a bit of a stretch, but the first spark for the Moonlight Divine series came from “Orbit” by The 8. The lyrics, “In the night, I spill the light. You cross the line. I want you.”, combined with the song’s haunting melody, stirred something inside me.

Immediately, I pictured a lonely, more-than-human hero, whose power was bound to moonlight. He’d convinced himself he possessed everything he needed until a woman walked into his moonlit grove and shattered that carefully constructed illusion. He couldn’t forget her and no matter how dangerous it might be, he would do whatever it took to draw her closer.

That image eventually became Bren McLoughlin, a three-hundred-year-old demigod who can conjure a silver sword from moonlight. For centuries, Bren has sworn to protect the Veil between the heavens and Earth. His duty gives him purpose, but it also demands sacrifice, including the one thing he secretly longs for the most. Love.

The idea didn’t exactly fit with the paranormal cozy mysteries I’ve been writing for almost a decade, so it lingered in the back of my mind for more than a year. I tried to let it go, but I couldn’t forget the man who wielded so much power while denying himself the one thing he desperately wanted.

In Summer 2025, my writer friends came up with the crazy idea of taking a trip to Ireland. I’d never been abroad and couldn’t say no. The rest of the story came to life when we visited Killarney National Park. Torc Waterfall, with its tumbling water, a magical forest fit for faeries, and a mysterious trail winding up the hillside, became the inspiration for the hidden path to Bren’s moonlit grove where he and Selene first encounter each other and feel the inexplicable pull that neither can resist.

Ross Castle, a fifteenth-century tower house standing at the edge of Lough Leane, inspired my vision of Bren’s childhood home. In my world, the castle once belonged to his father, a god of the realms, and his human mother, a woman who carried dangerous secrets of her own.
Walking through Muckross Abbey with its weathered stone passageways felt like stepping through time. It possessed an eerie beauty and hushed reverence I’ll never forget. It seemed impossible that I walked in the same space as others had hundreds of years ago, but yet it stood right in front of me.

History in the U.S. is nothing like Ireland’s ancient ruins and centuries-old buildings. Places there still feel alive, as if the people who’d once walked the land still somehow exist. That feeling helped me create Selene. Also born in the U.S., Selene arrives in Ireland believing she’s an ordinary restoration specialist. She has no idea something powerful has been sleeping inside her, or that setting foot on Irish soil will awaken it. But to be a match for a hero like Bren, she needed to be more than just the witch I first imagined. Because so much of this series revolves around ancient buildings, sacred boundaries, and secrets preserved across centuries, I made Selene a ward witch, a woman whose magic is tied to places and the unseen forces protecting them. She can sense what others cannot, restore what’s been damaged, and influence barriers in a way even Bren doesn’t understand.

Bren may burn to have Selene in his life, but she’s far more than the answer to his centuries of loneliness. What began with a haunting song became forbidden love and a dangerous legacy neither Bren nor Selene is ready to inherit. This is definitely a story written from the heart and I’m so excited to share the series with you.

Want to know more about Bound by the Divine?

A forgotten legacy. An immortal guardian.A love powerful enough to challenge divine law.

Selene Sullivan knows Bren McLoughlin wants her. She has seen it in the moments when his control slips and felt it every time he comes close enough to touch. Yet the more their connection deepens, the colder he becomes, leaving Selene to wonder whether the man who once drew her into his moonlight now regrets ever letting her close.

Bren has spent three hundred years protecting the Veil that separates the mortal and divine worlds. But the growing number of breaches, political enemies working from the shadows, and Selene’s impossible ability to restore more than crumbling stone threaten everything he thought he understood. Every answer draws her deeper into a conflict that once drove the ward witches into hiding, while every truth he withholds leaves her more vulnerable to the enemies watching them both. Keeping his distance is no longer enough to keep her safe.

As Selene uncovers the forgotten history of the ward witches, she begins to understand the danger Bren has refused to explain and the true reason behind his restraint. But understanding his choices does not mean she must accept them. Selene may not know the true depth of her heritage, but she is brave enough to test the unknown, even if acting on her love for Bren could awaken a bond forbidden by divine law and place them both in greater danger.

Perfect for readers who love:

– Slow-burn paranormal romance

– Forbidden love and divine consequences

– Immortal protectors with dangerous secrets

– Powerful heroines awakening hidden magic

– Atmospheric castles and Irish mythology

Meet Cindy Stark:

Amazon bestselling author, Cindy Stark lives with her family and an adorable Border Collie in a small town shadowed by the Rocky Mountains. She loves to pen fun cozy mysteries, emotional romantic suspense, and sexy contemporary romance.

You can find her on her website, as well as Facebook, Instagram, X, BlueSky, and Bookbub.