Category: Books

Release day for Encircled!

A year ago, a few of my writer friends and I were thinking of submitting fairy tale retellings to an anthology. Before we knew it, there were half a dozen of us, all with a cool idea. One of us said, “Hey, why don’t we put our own anthology together?” (Good question!) After much hard work, I’m thrilled to share Encircled with you! It’s our anthology of fairy tale retellings, each with its own special twist. And while the ebook has been available for a couple of weeks, today the paperback releases! (*cartwheel and confetti*)

Included is my story, “The Songbird’s Citadel,” a retelling of “The Nightingale” by Hans Christian Andersen.  Here’s a link to Wikipedia that shares some interesting facts about the story. I mean, Jenny Lind! Who knew, right?

We hope you pick up this book and fall in love. 🙂

Fractured Ever After + Encircled Giveaway!

The Ever Afters have teamed up with the Just-Us League to host an epic giveaway  celebrating their upcoming fairy tale anthologies! Enter for a chance to win one of FOUR sets of prizes!
Grand Prize (U.S. residents only)
– Two paperbacks (Fractured Ever After and Encircled)
– Book cozy
– Slipper ornament
– 3D-printed bookmark (pick one design)
– Set of four signed illustration prints
First Prize (U.S. residents only)
– Two paperbacks (Fractured Ever After and Encircled)
– “Fairy tales do come true” charm bracelet
– 3D-printed bookmark (pick one design)
– Set of four signed illustration prints
Second Prize (international)
– Two ebooks (Fractured Ever After and Encircled)
– 3D-printed bookmark (pick one design)
– Set of four signed illustration prints
Third Prize (international)
– Two ebooks (Fractured Ever After and Encircled)
– Choice of 3D-printed bookmark (pick one design) *or* set of four signed illustration
prints
Link to Rafflecopter: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/e43732f74/

Here’s a little more about the books

Encircled: From crowns to curses to space capsules, a collection of fairy tale retellings.

Experience six of the world’s most beloved stories in a whole new light! From historical to futuristic, these retellings will take you to an enchanted forest, a cursed castle, and far beyond.

Uncover secrets of a forbidden basement, a hypnotic gift, and a mysterious doll. Fall in love with a lifelong friend or a brand-new crush.

Venture to unknown lands on a quest to save a prince, a kingdom, or maybe even a planet.

With moments of humor, suspense, romance, and adventure, Encircled has something to offer every fan of fairy tales, both classic and reimagined.

This anthology features stories from S.E. Clancy, Jebraun Clifford, J.M. Hackman, E.J. Kitchens, Laurie Lucking, and Tori V. Rainn.

Here are the links for preorder as well as a link for preorder goodies!
Pre-order at
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07PV4PJCP/
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/books/1130963276
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/encircled
Apple Books: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1456811281
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44540764-encircled
Sign up form for pre-order goodies: https://forms.gle/PRK6HSRgUbbzQAYN7

Fractured Ever After
Old classics are fractured into exciting new tales in this international collection of magic, mystery, and adventure.
Some heroes go searching for their happily ever after: a dragon cocoon hunter explores the dangerous woods for his sleeping beauty; a prince forces a perfect romance on an unsuspecting maiden; and when a girl leaves town, she must quickly decide to trust—or be wary of—a new stranger.
Destiny is thrust upon others: a disconnected emperor struggles to retain his title; a frog prince leaves his pond in search of answers; and after Rapunzel is rescued, a new quest is awarded to her savior.
Whether it is destiny or choice, all actions have consequences: sibling rivalry pushes one little piggy to extremes and a princess must choose to follow her heart or step up as future queen.
Prepare for an adventure as these eight fantastic fairy tales transport you to places beyond your imagination.
Fractured Ever After is the Just-Us League’s seventh anthology, an illustrated collection of fractured fairy tales. It can be preordered here: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Q5H39GH.

What’s the Story Behind Brenna’s ADHD?

9 Comments

The second book of The Firebrand Chronicles, Flare, releases today! Yay! I’m so excited to share the crazy (mis?)adventures of the heroine Brenna James. She’s loyal, snarky, and has ADHD. But she wasn’t originally written that way.

When I first began writing Spark (which was initially called The Sacred Veil), my youngest daughter entered kindergarten. She was diagnosed with ADHD inattentive in second grade. I was thrilled to have answers to why she did the things she did, and our family began learning about the world of neurodiversity. (Neurodiversity includes autism, dyslexia, dyspraxia, ADHD, as well as other neurological conditions.) I became an expert, if not in ADHD, then at least in my child and her needs. But where were the fantasy books with an ADHD main character? (I don’t count Percy Jackson—his ADHD and dyslexia is explained away when he discovers he’s a demi-god. A missed opportunity, in my opinion!) There were too few neurodiverse characters, and the idea of a main character with ADHD was born.

As Spark and then Flare were written, Brenna and I addressed some of the markers of ADHD—impulsivity, time blindness, distractibility. Although she can hyperfocus and solve puzzles creatively, the reader sees her challenges and her struggle to be “good enough” in a world that labels her as different.

Readers have asked me, Will Brenna ever stop making impulsive choices? Will she stop and think before acting? Will she stay focused? Probably not, because that’s not who she is. ADHD governs that part of her brain. But she’ll never give up, she’ll keep trying, and she’ll believe in second chances. Because that’s something offered to absolutely everyone.

Exciting News: I’ve got a cover!

4 Comments

It’s been awhile since I’ve had any news to share about Book Two (aka Flare) of the Firebrand Chronicles. It was submitted to the publisher, then I had to wait because other books were in the pipeline for release, then we had the holidays. Absolutely everything stops at that point, which is just as well, because it gets crazy-busy at the Hackman household in December.

Anyway, when a book is prepared for print, my publisher is thorough — I have to do three rounds of editing. I received  and completed the first round of edits, then I (recently) finished the second round. And that’s when I received the approval to share the cover with you. From the beginning, I was in love! I’ve always been impressed with Sara Helwe’s work (check her out at https://sara-helwe.com/), and she outdid herself — again! (And although Sara doesn’t know, purple is my favorite color, so I was very excited about this beautiful cover. 🙂 )

So I won’t torture you. Find a comfy chair and feast your eyes. I’ll even share the blurb with you.

 

Heartbreak. Kidnapping. Political rebellion. Best summer vacation ever.

Brenna travels to Linneah via portal to visit her boyfriend Baldwin, only to find heartbreak. Betrayal. A serious case of never, ever wanting to see him again.
Worst summer vacation ever.
So when her best friend Tiny invites her on a road trip to meet Tiny’s fiancé, Brenna jumps at the chance. Even if her mother disapproves. Even if it’s through a dangerous travel portal. Even if Tiny has never met this fiancé handpicked by her dad. Anything’s better than staying in Linneah.
But the trip disintegrates into disaster. The two friends are separated, Brenna is kidnapped, and not only are Brenna’s Firebrand skills tested to the limit, she must participate in the dangerous event, Starfall . . . or go home. Broke. Alone. With a shattered heart. So not fun.
And then as if that’s not bad enough? Brenna discovers a plot that could spell disaster for everyone she holds dear. And no one believes her.
Can she prevent a bloody government takeover? And what will become of Brenna’s broken heart?
There you go! I’m so excited (*cartwheels and confetti*) This is scheduled for a February 26 release so you have to wait a bit longer. Thanks for reading this post — enjoy your weekend!

Days of Fantasy Tour and a Giveaway!

Hi! I had plans to have this post ready first thing this morning, but I woke up feeling like I’d been flattened by a truck (a semi, not a pick-up.) My headache from yesterday followed me into today.  Then, my dreams from last night involved me running around New York City in my bathrobe with friend Sarah Delana White. (???) That must be why I’m so tired! 🙂

But despite the less-than-stellar beginning to my morning, it’s still a day to celebrate. I’m participating in the Days of Fantasy Tour with a group of exciting authors and bloggers. It kicks off today! All the juicy information on the tour can be found here.  And in case that doesn’t excite you (although I can’t imagine why not), there’s a giveaway, too, with two winners!  The winner will either win a Kindle Fire HD 8 loaded with some great e-books or a stack of print books. Go here to sign up!

Spark will be featured on December 6th. Keep your eyes peeled on social media for #FantasyforChristmas, and I’ll be sure to share the links, too.

Merry Christmas!

 

 

 

 

The Theme of Rothana: Sarah Delana White

7 Comments

I’m so excited to introduce Sarah Delana White to my blog today. Her new book Rothana is the sequel to Halayda (which I read and enjoyed!) I can’t wait to get my hands on my own copy of Rothana! *grabby hands*

Did you ever wonder how authors manage to weave such fantastic themes into their stories? I’ll let Sarah address that question.

____________________________________________________________________

I never plan the themes of my books in advance. They emerge as I write, as the characters grow and make hard choices. One of the unexpected themes in Rothana was regret. I didn’t expect this to emerge so strongly, but as I delved into each character’s backstory and hidden issues, I realized most of the major characters were dealing with past failures they wished they could undo.

Sylvie feels like a failure of a queen. When events spiral out of control and she loses her throne, she feels she has let everyone down. She regrets she couldn’t help Faerie in all the ways she wanted to, but instead left the realm vulnerable to new threats. She also still carries hurts from her past in Sabellyn. She wishes she could have saved more of the changelings she adopted, and she still partly blames herself for not confronting Casimir years ago when she first realized he was scheming against Faerie.

Taylan regrets many, many things. He killed countless people and used harsh means to rule Faerie for centuries, and he is constantly haunted by this. When he is forced to deal with the darker side of his shadow-magic—the power that connects him with the fae underworld—it is all too easy for him to believe he is destined to be a monster. Taylan’s scenes in Rothana were some of the most painful I’ve ever written because he is so deeply entrenched in his terrible past and in the lies he tells himself. (All I can say is… thank goodness he has Sylvie and Diza around to keep him from wallowing TOO much!)

The one that really surprised me was Casimir. Before I wrote Rothana, I thought he was just a cold-hearted madman who delighted in trying to bend the world to his will. Guess what: he was holding out on me. A lot. In this book, we see the true motivations that lurk beneath his pompous speeches, as well as the pain that drove him to make some desperate decisions. Does he regret the choices he made in Halayda? Well, maybe… in a very Casimir way. In other words, he’s still a special bundle of special. But even villains can have regrets.

Each of these characters deals with regret in different ways, but it seeps into each of their motivations and reflects in the choices they make. The events of Rothana force them to confront their past choices and failures and choose whether to be defined by them.

So, why does Rothana deal so much with regret? Again, I don’t consciously choose the themes of my books, but I’m not really surprised this one emerged. It has always been a struggle for me to let go of past mistakes. The Star-Fae Trilogy was born during a time in my life when I felt like I’d failed in major ways, including destroying the career I’d intended to pursue lifelong (long story). It was cathartic to watch my characters wrestle with those same emotions, and I rejoiced as they began to shake off the lies that weighed them down. I hope their journeys connect with readers in the same way.

____________________________________________________________________

Thanks, Sarah! I loved hearing about this theme in Rothana.

Would you like to know more about this fantastic book? Read on….

A new queen falls. A death lord rises. An ancient foe looms in the shadows.

Sylvie Imanthiya is desperate to lead Faerie well and deepen the bond with her  husband, former king Taylan Ashkalabek. But all hope of that vanishes when the winter solstice ceremony ends in disaster, stranding her and Taylan in the Deathrealm, and stripping the kingdom from her.

With Faerie in chaos, Zad and Diza are separated once again: Zad to reconcile with an old mentor to stabilize the kingdom, and Diza to confront the nefarious Casimir in the mortal realm. But Casimir claims that a greater evil seeks to destroy both realms, an evil that Diza’s unique death magic can hold at bay—if she could only remember how.

In the Deathrealm, Taylan is succumbing to the lure of specters from his past, and pushing away Sylvie’s love. Overwhelmed by decay and darkness, Sylvie must  summon unexpected magic from the soul of Kyure to fight for her convictions and her husband’s heart.

Shadows divide them. Their friends are in peril. If Sylvie fails, her marriage and her world will fall.

Purchase Links
Amazon – Barnes & Noble – Signed Paperback
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42637351-rothana

And don’t forget to join us for the Rothana Facebook party! There’ll be prizes, guest authors, and fun bookish information! Don’t miss it! *throws confetti*

 

 

Sarah Delena White was raised by wolves in an alternate dimension. She writes eclectic speculative fiction that reworks mythology with a fine balance of poetry and snark. She’s an experienced world traveler who loves to weave world folklore and ancient concepts into vibrant, original story worlds. She is the administrative manager for Uncommon Universes
Press. When she’s not writing, she can be found making elegant designer bead jewelry, traveling to festivals as a professional ballad singer, drinking tea, and seeking to create the perfect latte. She can be bribed with dark chocolate.

Fairyeater Blog Tour

12 Comments

Today on Jilligan’s Island, I have special guest Pam Halter, author of the new release Fairyeater. (I say “special” because she’s a personal friend of mine — and after reading Fairyeater, I’d say she’s a darn good author, too! 🙂 )

Anyway, to celebrate her new book, she agreed to write a guest blog post about the creation of one of her key characters.  I’ll get out of the way and let her continue. Welcome, Pam!

____________________________________________________________________

The Creation of Tzmet, the Fairyeater

Where did the idea for a fairy-eating witch come from? I get that question a lot.

In 2006, the Scholastic Book Club paper came home with Anna. Not sure why the school thought our developmentally delayed kids needed books appropriate to their age and not their developmental level, but nonetheless the paper came. None of the books were appropriate for Anna, but as a book lover, I looked through the paper anyway.

I saw the book Lady Cottington’s Pressed Fairy Book. It was expensive, so I looked on Amazon. Found it and bought it. Ended up sending it back because it was actually pornographic! Always read the reviews. Just sayin’.

But here’s what happened. I got to thinking about the concept of pressed fairies. Does anyone remember pressing flowers? We’d take flowers that were special (I still have the flowers from the first high school prom I attended) and place them between waxed paper and put them in the pages of a really heavy book. It preserved them, even keeping some of the color.

So, I thought, why would someone catch and press a fairy? Or would they catch and pin a fairy in a shadow box, like a butterfly collection? Or maybe hang and dry them like herbs?

What would happen to the fairies? They are living things, right?

I imagined they would become leather-like. Dried out and kind of supple. Why would someone do that? And what would they do with the dried-out fairies?

Then I thought, well, when you dry fruit, it becomes fruit leather. What do you do with fruit leather? You eat it. So, why would someone dry and eat fairies? What would happen if they did? And, most importantly, WHO would do such a heinous thing?

And boom, Fairyeater was born.

That led me into figuring out what would happen if lots of fairies started dying. I had to decide what kind of magic they might have and how it would affect the world around them. That led me to the dark lord, who clearly needed the power to do something evil, but the fairies prevented it.

How did the fairies prevent the rising of the dark lord? And how could the hero/heroine stop it?

Those are questions for another blog post. Heh, heh, heh …

____________________________________________________________________

Fairyeater: Book One of the Fairy Guardian Chronicles
All fifteen-year-old Akeela has ever wanted is an ordinary family who will love her. But theonly mother she has ever known is the old hag, Krezma, who berates her night and day. Why did the old woman even take her in?
But Krezma knows her charge is no ordinary child. She can see the auras surrounding living things and can communicate  with fairies. And the birthmark on her palm reveals a secret Krezma must hold close for the child’s safety.
A secret that the witch, Tzmet, hunts for night and day, drying and eating fairies for the
power they contain. When Akeela discovers her fate lies in being the next Fairy  Guardian, all hope for an ordinary life dissipates like the dreams they were. She must protect the fairies from the witch—and an even darker power that threatens them all.
Akeela is unwillingly thrust into an adventure that will not end until she decides to accept her fate and give up on her dream.
Maybe even her life.
____________________________________________________________________
Don’t forget to check out the last two blog stops on her tour:
  • Thursday, Nov. 1st, Review, Michele Israel Harper, www.MicheleIsraelHarper.com
  • Friday, Nov. 2nd, Review, Laura A. Grace, www.unicornquester.com
Pam Halter has been a children’s book author since 1995. The first book in her Willoughby and Friends series,  Willoughby and the Terribly Itchy Itch, won the 2018 Realm Award in the children’s category, and she also received a Reader’s Choice Award in 2015 for her short story, “Tick Tock,” in Realmscapes. Fairyeater is her first fantasy novel. She lives in South Jersey, deep in farmland, and enjoys long walks
on country roads where she discovers fairy homes, emerging dragons, and trees
eating wood gnomes. Visit Pam at www.PamHalter.com.
Social Media Links

The French Inspiration Behind Kill The Beast

9 Comments

Today, I’m excited to be participating in Michele Harper’s blog tour for her new book, Kill The Beast. It’s a Beauty and the Beast retelling, full of fascinating characters (Ro, the main character, is no shrinking violet!), magic, and action.  Did you know there’s a French connection to Kill The Beast? I can’t wait to hear more. Welcome, Michele!

————————————————-

Thank you so much for having me on your blog today, Jill!

Mark’s Twain’s book, Personal Recollections of Joan of Arc, opens with this chapter title: “When Wolves Ran Free in Paris” and continues with the following heartbreaking description.

“In Paris, mobs roared through the streets nightly, sacking, burning, killing, unmolested, uninterrupted. The sun rose upon wrecked and smoking buildings, and upon mutilated corpses lying here, there, and yonder about the streets, just as they fell, and stripped naked by thieves, the unholy gleaners after the mob. None had the courage to gather these dead for burial; they were left there to rot and create plagues.

“And plagues they did create. Epidemics swept away the people like flies, and the burials were conducted secretly and by night, for public funerals were not allowed, lest the revelation of the magnitude of the plague’s work unman the people and plunge them into despair. Then came, finally, the bitterest winter which had visited France in five hundred years. Famine, pestilence, slaughter, ice, snow—Paris had all these at once. The dead lay in heaps about the streets, and wolves entered the city in daylight and devoured them.”

And it simultaneously broke my heart and captured my imagination. I had to write about it.

(This, of course, was a description of France in the 1400s, well before the original La Belle et la BĂŞte was written by Madame Villeneuve in 1740.)

What if the beast’s curse affected more than him and his château? What if the curse held all of France in its grip and filled its people with despair? What would it look like? What would it take to make wolves so bold they no longer feared man and came into the cities and villages in the middle of the day? What if the curse turned the land to rot and created a never-ending winter?

But I also deviated from Mark Twain’s description in that instead of plagues and numerous deaths, I made my Kill the Beast story world one in which the curse did not allow the people of France to die from starvation. And in a way, starving without death, without an end to the pain, may be the more horrific.

Kill the Beast is set fifteen years after the curse fell, when the people of France have gone through the cycles of riot, of trying to fix what happened, and have fallen into despair and hopelessness, trudging through an existence they cannot escape.

Yet there are plenty of wolves hunting the weakened and starving people, and Gautier, the king’s steward, hires huntsmen to protect the people and to provide a way for the people to barter for food from the Mesdemoiselles of the Mountain, three women who somehow grow the only food in all of France. (I have written about them in my prequel novella, Beast Hunter.)

So my huntress, Ro, who is hired to hunt and kill the beast who is said to have brought the curse down on France, is determined to end the starvation, to protect her family, and to return France to the way it should be.

To the beautiful country I fell in love with when I traveled there in February of 2018.

If you want to see how she does it, well then, I recommend that you visit the other blog stops on my blog tour, or read both Beast Hunter and Kill the Beast, and let me know what you think. I love to hear from my readers!

And thank you again, Jill, for having me on your blog today. You are so sweet!

In Him,

Michele

——————————————–

Thanks so much, Michele! Don’t forget to stop by the Facebook party on Thursday, September 27th from 8-10PM EST.

Kill The Beast is a fantastic read! Here’s the blurb:

Ro remembers the castle before. Before the gates closed. Before silence overtook the kingdom. Before the castle disappeared. Now it shimmers to life one night a year, seen by her alone.
Once a lady, now a huntress, Ro does what it takes to survive—just like the rest of the kingdom plunged into despair never before known. But a beast has overtaken the castle. A beast that killed the prince and holds the castle and kingdom captive in his cruel power. A beast Ro has been hired to kill. Thankful the mystery of the prince ’s disappearance has been solved, furious the magical creature has killed her hero, Ro eagerly accepts the job to end him. But things are not as they seem.
Trapped in the castle, a prisoner alongside the beast, Ro wonders what she should fear most: the beast, the magic that holds them both captive, or the one who hired her to kill the beast.
A Beauty and the Beast retelling.
You can contact Michele at the following social media sites:

Inspiration for “The Greatest Adventure” (and a GIVEAWAY!)

The Fellowship of Fantasy has released their fourth anthology, Tales of Ever After! I was thrilled to discover my short story, “The Greatest Adventure,” was accepted for this book, especially since it takes place in the same world as my debut novel Spark, just at a much, much earlier time.

“The Greatest Adventure” features the famous Firebrand Aideen Siriol. If you’ve read Spark, maybe the name sounds familiar. Two-thirds of the way through Spark, Brenna James receives Aideen’s sword when she needs it the most. Its hilt is set with beautiful Fire Diamonds, gathered during Aideen’s greatest adventure. After writing that little piece of information, I nodded in satisfaction and forgot about it.

But as time went on, I realized the reader might want to know more. So what happened during Aideen’s greatest adventure? Good question. I had no idea, but I began writing anyway. I assumed this would be a short filler piece. Surprisingly, it grew longer and longer. Hmm, this wasn’t a simple flash fiction story.

While I wrote, I also grappled with another question: what would the greatest adventure look like for Aideen? While others like to jump out of perfectly good airplanes or swim with sharks, I’m a homebody. I’m content to go on hikes in the mountains and watch sunsets. Not exactly high-octane adventure. But the most exciting adventures of my life have been emotional ones—falling in love.

Adventures of the heart are exciting no matter the gender, and I wanted Aideen and the slave Rivka to experience it. I added some enchanted stones, as well as a few dragons, and came up with a new fairy tale that was a lot of fun to write. I enjoyed spending more time in my created world of The Jasper Territory — and I hope the reader enjoys it, as well.

More about Tales of Ever After:

Rescue a princess, meet a mermaid, win your reward.

The authors of the Fellowship of Fantasy tackle fairy tales from once upon a time to happily ever after. Explore twists on old tales and brand new magical stories. Meet feisty mermaids, friendly lampposts, and heroes who just might be monsters themselves.

This fourth anthology from the Fellowship of Fantasy will lead you on a quest for entertainment and storm the castle of your imagination. So make a wish and enter the deep dark woods to find stories that will make you laugh, shiver, and maybe even fall in love.

Amazon Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/Tales-Ever-After-Fellowship-Anthology-ebook/dp/B07FFMHM8M/

Books2Read Universal Link: https://www.books2read.com/u/bwYKry

Goodreads Listing: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40788623-tales-of-ever-after

Would you like to learn more about these fantastic stories? Follow this link to find the blog tour schedule.

And finally would you like the chance to win a prize or two?

For our US readers, follow this link to win a paperback book (possibly signed by the author!)

and for our International fans, follow this link to win an ebook in your format choice.

The person who leaves the most comments across the blog tour will receive the chance to read special sneak peaks from several of the authors’ upcoming works!

 

 

 

 

Aerisian Refrain: Inside Peak!

Let’s welcome fantasy author Sarah Ashwood to Jilligan’s Island. Her newest book Aerisian Refrain just released — the Facebook party is on Thursday! Stop by to play fun games and win bookish prizes! Welcome, Sarah!

Hi,

When Jill kindly offered me a spot on her blog to chat about my new book, Aerisian Refrain, I struggled with what to say. Of course, I could try to tell you the plot without giving away spoilers. (Unless you happen to be like me and actually like spoilers.) A friend suggested I highlight what’s unique about this book, so let me go there.

To begin with, my MC, Annie Richards, is from Oklahoma and is part Cherokee. I’m a lifelong Okie myself, and grew up in the part of the state where the Cherokee nation has its capital. When I realized Annie was going to be from Oklahoma and was part Cherokee, I knew I had to delve into Cherokee culture and heritage and weave elements of that into my story. It was hard to narrow down all the figures I came across, but I finally settled on three that absolutely fascinated me. The first was a Kâ’lanĂ» Ahkyeli’skĂŻ: a Raven Mocker. This creature is scary. I read up on stories about Raven Mockers that had me looking over my shoulder at night. (I get spooked easily.) Check out this moment from Aerisian Refrain when Annie first encounters the Kâ’lanĂ» Ahkyeli’skĂŻ :

The raven-like cry of a Kâ’lanĂ» Ahkyeli’skĂŻ, which is where the Raven Mocker earns its name, means someone is going to die—much like banshees in Irish folklore. Often, they appear when a person is dying to steal and consume the liver or the heart. Sometimes they torture and kill their victim by cutting open the head, then eating the heart. A year is added to their life for every year their victim would have lived, making a Raven Mocker almost immortal, and accounting for their appearance as an old, wizened man or woman when in human form. They can fly through the air in fiery bird shape, trailing sparks while in the sky. They are usually invisible, except to the most powerful of magic workers. Only a medicine man or woman of much training and strength can stand against them, which meant I was in serious danger.

The other two characters I chose to feature are a little more benevolent. One group was the Thunderers, who the Cherokee believe are storm spirits that live in the sky. The other was a Stoneclad, or rock giant. I loved the Stoneclad. He almost made me think of a Marvel character. There weren’t tons of descriptions of Stoneclads, but most of my research indicated they’re giants that wear a suit of armor fashioned from stone. Like the Thunderers, they aren’t feared—certainly not like the Raven Mockers. In fact, there are stories of them coming to the aid of the Cherokee. As Annie explains in Aerisian Refrain when she’s discussing her people’s folklore,

“I remember Grandma telling me about the Stoneclads: rock giants, and the Aniyvdaqualosgi or Ani-Yuntikwalaski. Those are the Thunderers, or powerful storm spirits. If they took a shape, it was usually human, and they were okay with people. I guess it’s no wonder we’d have legends about great storm spirits, living in Tornado Alley.”

At this point in the book, Annie has no idea she’s going to actually encounter rock giants or storm spirits, and she’s in a for a big surprise when she does!

So there you go—a little peek into what I feel makes my book baby unique. I hope you’ll check out Aerisian Refrain. If you do, I hope you enjoy it! I had so much fun researching the stories of the Cherokee and weaving just a few elements from their rich traditions into this novel. If you’d like to research any of this further, some of my favorite sources were http://www.native-languages.org/ , www.cherokeeregistry.com , www.firstpeople.us , and http://www.sacred-texts.com/nam/index.htm.

Thanks for reading this post and giving me a little of your time. Have a great day!

____________________________________________________________________

Thanks, Sarah! Here’s a little more about the book and the author.

On Earth, Annie’s voice brought her fame and fortune. In Aerisia, her voice brings her magic, but the cost of that power might mean the destruction of Aerisia itself.

Following the prophesied Artan’s victory over the Dark Powers, the land of Aerisia is finally at rest, until ancient beings, long imprisoned, begin to stir…

Eight years after Annie Richards’ stellar voice and musical talents skyrocketed her from rural Oklahoma to international fame, haunting visions have begun threatening her sanity. While she’s returning to her childhood home to convalesce, creatures straight from her nightmares bring down her plane. Annie wakens in a parallel world, Aerisia. Here, she discovers her musical gifts translate into magical powers—the legacy of a banished race who have been invading her dreams.

Mistrusted by Aerisia’s most powerful factions because of her heritage, Annie finds allies are hard to come by. Supporting her are one Simathe warrior, Cole, who refuses to label her as evil, and one woman willing to stand against anything and anyone to help a friend: the Artan herself. Seizing control of her destiny will mean defying both her ancestors and the Aerisian leaders. Mastering her magic may mean making the greatest sacrifice of all…or risk becoming the reason Aerisia itself is torn apart.

Find Aerisian Refrain on Amazon and Goodreads.

Don’t believe all the hype. Sarah Ashwood isn’t really a gladiator, a Highlander, a fencer, a skilled horsewoman, an archer, a magic wielder, or a martial arts expert. That’s only in her mind. In real life, she’s a genuine Okie from Muskogee who grew up in the wooded hills outside the oldest town in Oklahoma and holds a B.A. in English from American Military University. She now lives (mostly) quietly at home with her husband and three sons, where she tries to sneak in a daily run or workout to save her sanity and keep her mind fresh for her next story.

Sarah’s works include the Sunset Lands Beyond trilogy and the fantasy novella Amana. To keep up to date with Sarah’s work and new releases, sign up for her newsletter. You can also visit her website, or find her on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter.

 

All That We See or Seem with Kristina Mahr

1 Comment

Thanks for stopping by Jilligan’s Island! Today, I’ve got author Kristina Mahr with me so we can talk about her amazing book All That We See or Seem. Here’s the back cover blurb:

Every night, seventeen-year-old Reeve Lennox finds herself under a noose.
By day she is a lady of Acarsaid’s royal house, daydreaming of adventure and love. But every night in sleep she wanders through a nightmarish city, an invisible witness to the screeches of monsters and the screams of their victims. Her only consolation is Bran, a battle-torn young man with a selfless heart and eyes that reflect the stars. Yet while Reeve falls deeper into her dreams, in truth she is engaged to Arden, a mercurial nobleman who has long been cured of his belief in love and breathes fire and flattery like other people breathe air.
Torn between two lives, Reeve struggles to remember what’s real. Until night and day collide, with a revelation that threatens all of Acarsaid.

People, I’ve read it, and I cannot wait until the sequel comes out! Eeep — so good! Anyway, Kristina agreed to stop by and answer some questions about herself and the book. So let’s delve right into it!

JM: Hi, Kristina! I have to say, I loved All That We See or Seem.  Where did you get the idea for this book?

KM: My sister has very vivid dreams, and I remember one day in February 2014, standing in her kitchen with her while she told me about a dream she had about a girl who falls in love with a boy she meets in her dreams. Super meta. Something about it really embedded itself in my brain, and I spent a lot of time thinking about it. Wondering who the girl was, who the boy was. Why she dreamt this place. What her real life was like. What hope there was for the two of them. Eventually, the pieces all came together to form a story. This story!

JM: That’s fantastic! My dreams are always so boring (like shopping at Walmart!) What do you feel is the theme for this book?

KM: I believe the theme for this book is hope. Reeve is so filled to the brim with it, this unrelenting feeling that things will work out. Somehow. Some way. She is determined to have the life she envisions for herself.

JM: What made you choose the theme of hope?

KM: Honestly, I chose it because it’s how I operate, too. That’s the way in which I’d say Reeve and I are most similar. I love the idea of changing my stars. Of not being trapped. Of having some say in my own future. No matter how things may be at any given moment, I think having hope is the key.

JM: Speaking of Reeve, give us some insight into her. Is she your favorite character? Why or why not?

KM: I love Reeve. Reeve’s my girl. She’s so kind-hearted and emotion-driven, and she rarely has anything but the best intentions. That doesn’t mean she doesn’t make mistakes, but she truly does mean well. She is so optimistic and hopeful, even when the circumstances should not lend her to feeling that way. Sometimes she’s a little dramatic and a little too idealistic, but it’s hard to blame her, given her age, her life, and her circumstances.

JM: Yes, she does lead a very privileged life. So, what made you choose this setting?

KM: When my sister first told me about her dream, we turned over story ideas that involved a contemporary setting, but it didn’t quite click. When I envisioned Reeve in her nightmare world, I always saw her in a nightgown. And when I thought about what it would be like for her to be abruptly visible there, the impropriety of wearing a nightgown out and about instantly popped into my mind. So those two facts told me this story needed to be set in the past a ways, in a time where this really would be pretty scandalous. I built Acarsaid as a fictional island nation because I wanted it to be isolated, small and independent, to reflect Reeve’s isolation, how small her world really is. Her nightmare world is the only other place she gets to go, so even though it’s awful there, there’s a certain freedom to it.

JM: You did a fantastic job building the nightmare world, even though I was often holding my breath while reading those scenes. 🙂 What was your favorite scene (either to write or for another reason)?

KM: Chapter 32 is my favorite chapter of the book, hands down. I don’t want to spoil anything, but… it’s a big one! I heard a song called “Kaleidoscope” by A Great Big World, and the scene just came to me, fully formed. It spilled from my fingertips in that convenient way that I wish would happen more often! I hope readers feel the magic in it, because to me, it is a purely magical scene.

JM: Kaleidoscope is perfect for that scene (and it’s a great song, too!) What about the title? Did you ever consider any other titles for this manuscript or was this your first choice?

KM: This was my working title while I wrote the book and far and away my first choice. I am so glad the publisher agreed to it! The poem “A Dream Within a Dream” by Edgar Allan Poe was a big inspiration for this story, and having that iconic line for my title is a dream come true. (Pun intended.)

JM: Let’s shift gears and find out a little bit about you. Are you a full-time author or do you balance writing with another job?

KM: I am a full-time accountant, so my day job is pretty much all numbers, all the time. Which is why it’s really nice to get to come home and focus on words, instead. I love numbers for their certainty and rigidity, and I love writing for the very opposite reason: the fluidity, the freedom. It’s nice to get to balance the two sides of my brain.

JM: Most people are either left or right-brained. It sounds like you have a healthy balance of both! You mentioned coming home to write. What does your writing space look like?

KM: I have a lovely loft in my house with great lighting, a massive bookcase, and my desk, but… I don’t write there. Well, I’ve written there once or twice. But for the most part, I write camped out on my couch, surrounded by my pets. I have a lap desk for my laptop, and I just kind of lounge on my couch and type away. In my happiest place, I have a soccer game muted on the TV while I work. Something I can glance up at that won’t pull me out of the story.

JM: That sounds relaxing? Does writing energize you or exhaust you?

KM: Honestly, both! It depends on the scene. Writing banter and lighthearted scenes is typically energizing, while writing heavier stuff really weighs on me. Still, the simple act of having written, of looking upon progress made, is so energizing. I’m obsessed with word count and hitting word count goals, and doing so fires me up.

JM: I totally agree with setting word count goals! What’s your favorite part of writing?

KM: I love words. Excessively. I love finding the precise phrasing or metaphor or lyrical tone to a sentence. I write short-form prose (I’m so reluctant to call it poetry, because I so don’t consider myself a poet!) as writing exercises to explore words and metaphors to my heart’s content. I just love how words can be arranged and rearranged in so many different ways, to pull so many different meanings and emotions. The very best moment is when I write a sentence that evokes the exact right feeling.

JM: What about your reading list? What are you reading now?

KM: I am currently beta reading my writing partner Jenna’s manuscript! I met Jenna two years ago at a writing retreat, and I’ve been dying to read this book ever since. Jenna was one of my beta readers for All That We See or Seem, so it’s an honor to get to beta read for her, as well.

JM: Before you leave, one last question. Aside from “keep writing,” what’s your best advice for aspiring writers?

KM: I cannot recommend writing workshops enough. I went to the Aspiring Writers Workshop hosted by Madcap Retreats in 2016, and it had a massive impact on me as a writer and my determination to someday be published. I learned so much from so many inspiring authors (including Maggie Stiefvater, Victoria Schwab, Dhonielle Clayton, Tessa Gratton, and so many more.) I also met so many fellow writers, who have formed a wonderful writing support system.

JM: That’s great advice! Thanks so much, Kristina!

Don’t forget to connect with Kristina on her social media links (listed below).

Biography:

Kristina Mahr devotes her days to numbers and her nights to words. She works full-time as an accountant in the suburbs of Chicago, where she lives with her two dogs and two cats, but her true passion is writing. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, reading, and waking up at the crack of dawn every weekend to watch the Premier League.

Website: https://kristinamahr.com/

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17847708.Kristina_Mahr

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorKristinaMahr

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Kristina_Mahr

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kristina.mahr/

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/kristinamahr07/

If you have to have ALL THAT WE SEE OR SEEM now (And why wouldn’t you?), here are the buy links:

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/That-Seem-Dreamworld-Duology-Book-ebook/dp/B07BJH8L7J/

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/all-that-we-see-or-seem-kristina-mahr/1128233212

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/all-that-we-see-or-seem-2

Apple: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/id1360731363

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/39341536-all-that-we-see-or-seem