OHB’s intrepid reporter caught up with Cora Lyte at a coffee shop just off the campus of St. Augustine College — “the most haunted university in America,” if you believe the freshman tour guides. Cora, for the record, does not. She arrived in black jeans and a burgundy shirt, a silver-set lapis lazuli ring hanging from a chain at her throat. She ordered the largest coffee on the menu, and when we asked if she’d slept well, she laughed. It was not a happy laugh.

Cora! Thanks for sitting down with us. Let’s start easy: tell us about yourself.

“Easy. Sure. I’m a freshman at St. Augustine. I have some issues, but who doesn’t? Thankfully, I have the world’s best roommate, a practicing Wiccan named Tia who owns more crystals than I own socks. And I picked a college famous for its ghost stories, which, in hindsight…” She trails off and takes a long sip of coffee. “Let’s just say the universe has a sense of humor.”

You don’t believe in ghosts?

“I don’t believe in ghosts. The Woman in White drifting through the dorms during finals week? Please. But nightmares?” Her fingers find the ring at her throat. “Nightmares I believe in. Mine have a recurring cast. The same monsters, the same landscapes, night after night. Scorpion sand monsters. Lava. And lately they’ve been getting worse. More vivid. Like they’re building to something.”

That sounds terrifying.

“It would be, except I also have — okay, this is going to sound unhinged. There’s a man in my dreams. A hunter. He always seems to show up when the monsters get close. Every time. Like it’s his job to keep me alive.” She shrugs, but her cheeks have gone pink. “A girl could get used to it.”

Tell us about him.

“Golden eyes. Infuriatingly good at showing up at the last possible second. Even more infuriatingly good-looking.” She holds up a hand. “And before you ask — there’s a guy here on campus who reminds me of my dream-guy. Chase. And I know what you’re thinking, but no. That would be insane. A man from my dreams walking around the real world? Except…” Long pause. “Except when Chase touches my hand, I feel this totally delicious heat, and I can’t help but wonder…

She shakes her head and scoffs. “So, whatever.  Make of that what you will.”

We hear there’s another man in your dreams, too.

She goes very still. “Who told you that?”

A little bird. Silver eyes?

Her cheeks go pink. “Right. Him.” She looks down into her coffee. “There’s a king. In the dreams. He has a castle and a voice like — never mind what his voice is like. The hunter says he’s dangerous. The king says the hunter is lying to me. And the deeply annoying thing is that they can’t both be right, but they might both be telling the truth. Does that make sense?”

Not really.

“Welcome to my life.”

Two devastating men, one of whom might be a villain. How are you holding up?

“You say ‘villain’ like it’s simple.” She leans forward. “Here’s what I’ve learned—everyone has secrets. The hunter is hiding something that will wreck me. The king is hiding something that will wreck the world. And apparently I’m supposed to be the one who figures out which is worse. Me. A freshman who came here to study and drink coffee and maybe, someday, sleep through an entire night.”

Speaking of which — we’ve heard whispers of a prophecy. Something about a bride?

She looks over her shoulder, then back at us. “Yeah, I’m not touching that one. J. Kenner is sitting three tables away with a red pen, and I know for a fact she’s not above killing people off. Let’s just say that I found out my family history has some… gaps. The kind of gaps my mother knew about and never got the chance to explain.” She touches the ring again. “I’m still kinda pissed about the secret-keeping”

Your mother — I’m sorry. You lost her young?

“When I was a kid. The story I tell people is that she died in her sleep.” A beat. “The story I don’t tell people is that I think something killed her. And that whatever it was might be coming for me.”

And yet you don’t seem scared.

“Oh, I’m freaking terrified. But I’ve got Tia, who will absolutely fight a nightmare creature armed with nothing but crystals and audacity. I’ve got a hunter who’s made keeping me alive his personal mission. I’ve got a king who wants — well, I’m still not sure what the king wants. And I’ve got questions. A lot of questions. I’ve spent my whole life running from my dreams. I’m done running. If destiny wants me, it can come say it to my face.”

Last question. If readers take one thing away from your story, what should it be?

Her smile is thin, her expression determined. “That the girl who doesn’t believe in anything is the most dangerous one in the room when she finally does. Also—” she drains her coffee “—that if a gorgeous man ever says ‘you’re safe with me’ in a dream? Ask follow-up questions.”

Fall into the Nightmare Realm with Cora when Realm of Dreams and Shadows, Book 1 of the Dreambound trilogy, releases this coming Tuesday (7/28)! Warning: contains haunted college campuses, monsters that follow you home, two hot men you will absolutely not be able to choose between, prophecies with terrible fine print, and a heroine who kisses back.

Want to know more about Realm of Dreams and Shadows?

Some nightmares follow you out of the dark.

Cora Lyte knows how she’s going to die. The same way her mother did. Her grandmother. Every woman in her bloodline who closed her eyes and never woke up.

But she’s not dead yet.

Now she’s caught between two men who haunt her in very different ways—Chase, the golden-eyed Hunter sworn to protect her, and Adric, the silver-eyed king of the Nightmare Realm who claims Cora as his bride. One speaks of salvation. One whispers of power. Both ignite something dangerous in her blood.

The veil between realms is thinning, and a prophecy has painted a target on Cora’s back. Her wrong move could unmake reality itself. Chase has sworn to keep her safe. Adric has sworn to make her his. And Cora is falling for them both—even knowing the wrong choice won’t just break her heart. It could shatter the world.

The only thing more dangerous than falling asleep… is falling in love.

Dark, seductive, and impossible to put down—Realm of Dreams and Shadows is a paranormal romance for readers who love cursed heroines, dangerous love triangles, and stakes that could end everything.

Preorder here: https://books2read.com/u/3LWN9J

Meet J. Kenner:

J. Kenner (aka Julie Kenner) is the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, Wall Street Journal and #1 International bestselling author of over seventy novels, novellas and short stories in a variety of genres.

Though known primarily for her award-winning and internationally bestselling romances (including the Stark and Most Wanted series) that have reached as high as #2 on the New York Times bestseller list and #1 internationally, JK has been writing full time for over a decade in a variety of genres including paranormal and contemporary romance, “chicklit” suspense, urban fantasy, and paranormal mommy lit.

JK has been praised by Publishers Weekly as an author with a “flair for dialogue and eccentric characterizations” and by RT Bookclub for having “cornered the market on sinfully attractive, dominant antiheroes and the women who swoon for them.” A four time finalist for Romance Writers of America’s prestigious RITA award, JK took home the first RITA trophy in 2014 for her novel, Claim Me (book 2 of her Stark Trilogy).

In her previous career as an attorney, JK worked as a clerk on the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, and practiced primarily civil, entertainment and First Amendment litigation in Los Angeles and Irvine, California, as well as in Austin, Texas. She currently lives in Central Texas, with her husband, two daughters, and two rather spastic cats.

You can find her on her website, as well as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, BookBub, and X.