Destined for Doon

I received a copy of DESTINED FOR DOON by Carey Corp and Lorie Langdon from Blink via BookSneeze.  It is the second installment in the young adult fantasy Doon series, which began with DOON.   It is, by the way, a bit of a retelling of Brigadoon.  I’m not familiar with Brigadoon, so I can’t speak anymore on that topic.

I loved the fantasy world of Doon.  It is imaginative, but also realistic.  I never shook my head in disgust.  That’s a huge perk for me.  In this sequel, there is, of course, romance.  The romance is sweet and will make you feel giddy.  That’s wonderful for young adult novels, where teenagers are struggling to come to grips with their place in the world. 

Makenna and Veronica are back, which is great for people like me who enjoyed them in the first book.  Some parts of the book were, I admit, a bit dragging.  It happened during the middle.  The beginning and end really whizzed by.  I was captivated.  I recommend this to fans of young adult fantasy and romance.

As a side note, I was thrilled to see that when I posted my review on GoodReads, my favorite author (Maria V. Snyder) had also reviewed this book!  

Another Awesome Blog Hop

Samantha asked if anyone would be interested in a character blog hop and I jumped right in.  I just did my first blog hop and loved it, so I wanted to try something new.  That left me with the question of which character to choose and I knew it had to be Amethyst Treasure.  She is my current obsession.

Amethyst is fun to write.  She’s arrogant, petty, and to say she loves fashion is a bit of an understatement.  You can meet her in the Treasure Chronicles series, in particular book 1, TREASURE DARKLY, and book 2, BORN OF TREASURE.  There is also a short story about her in GEARS OF BRASS.

1) What is the name of your character?  Is he/she fictional or a historic person?

Amethyst Treasure is completely fictional.  She visited my imagination one day and lodged herself right in there. 

2) When and where is the story set?

The Treasure Chronicles take place in a steampunk Wild West world.  I based it a bit off of America, so readers may recognize similarities between Amethyst’s land and America’s history. 

3) What should we know about him/her?

Amethyst Treasure knows what she wants, and that’s attention.  At the start of the series, the most important thing in her life is seeing how many newspaper headings she can make in one month.  All she really needs is a purpose in life and that purpose comes when she visits her family’s ranch out west one dangerous summer.

4) What is the main conflict? What messes up his/her life?

Amethyst Treasure comes meets Clark at her family’s ranch.  Clark claims to be her long-lost brother, a secret love child of her father’s.  Of course, that’s pretty exciting in itself, but then Amethyst finds out that he can bring back the dead and the army is after him for that ability. 

5) What is the personal goal of the character?

Amethyst switches from being in love with clothes to being in love with her family, a family she never got to know because she attended school in the east.  She strives to help Clark in any way she can.

6) Is there a working title for this novel, and can we read more about it?

TREASURE DARKLY is the first book in the series.  You can keep up to date with the Treasure adventures by visiting my website, JordanElizabethMierek.com.  I also have a Pinterest board for the series and I have an author page on Facebook.

7) When can we expect the book to be published?

TREASURE DARKLY comes out February 16, 2015 and BORN OF TREASURE’s release date is still to-be-decided.  You can meet Amethyst in GEARS OF BRASS, a steampunk anthology, that comes out November 10, 2014.

I was tagged by :

Samantha Bryant believes in love, magic, and unexplainable connections between people. Her favorite things are lonely beaches, untamed cliff tops, sunlight through the leaves of trees, summer rains, and children's laughter. She has lived in many places, including rural Alaska, Kansas, Kentucky, Vermont, England and Spain. She is fierce at heart, though she doesn't look it.

Now I’m tagging…

Matthew Cox - http://www.matthewcoxbooks.com/wordpress/

ESCAPE FROM WITCHWOOD HOLLOW - Cover Reveal

How far into the hollow would you go? 

“After losing her parents in a terrorist attack on the Twin Towers, fifteen-year-old Honoria escapes New York City to Arnn—a farming town with more legends than residents, and a history of witchcraft and secrets best left buried.

Everyone in Arnn knows the story of Witchwood Hollow: if you venture into the whispering forest, the witch will trap your soul among the shadowed trees. In the lure of that perpetual darkness, Honoria finds hope when she should be afraid, and a past of missing children and broken promises.  To save the citizens of Arnn from becoming the witch’s next victims, she must find the truth behind the woman’s madness. How deep into Witchwood Hollow does Honoria dare venture?”

ESCAPE FROM WITCHWOOD HOLLOW is Jordan Elizabeth’s first novel.  This young adult fantasy will be published through Curiosity Quills Press on October 29, 2014. 

Jordan Elizabeth, formally Jordan Elizabeth Mierek, can’t get enough of the woods, be it splashing through a stream, sitting beneath an ancient oak, or following a path up a hill.  Some of those adventures have led to abandoned foundations.  Exploring the rocks and crumbling bricks sparked Jordan to imagine who might have lived there before, and that train of thought carried her to a wicked legend and an enchanted hollow.  You can contact Jordan via her website, JordanElizabethMierek.com.

You don’t have to wait for October 29^th to explore Witchwood Hollow.  Jordan Elizabeth is offering up a free eArc.  To enter for your chance to win a copy of ESCAPE FROM WITCHWOOD HOLLOW, you will need to share the cover.  This can be on your blog, Facebook, Twitter… Each time you share the cover image, log it into Rafflecoper to record it.  It will give you more chances to win.  The drawing for the winner will be held on October 20^th. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal

Tomorrow is the day I've been waiting for...well, since I first dove into the world of publishing.  I saw cover reveals and even hosted a few here.  I couldn't wait for it to be my turn and now that turn has arrived.

Tomorrow, September 18th, is the cover reveal for ESCAPE FROM WITCHWOOD HOLLOW!

CANDLE PRAYERS FOR KIDS

I received a copy of CANDLE PRAYERS FOR KIDS by Claire Freedman from Candle Books via Kregel.  It is a hardcover book illustrated by Jo Parry and intended for children.

I found this book delightful and perfect for kids of all ages.  For a young child, it can be used by a parent or teacher to read aloud.  My mother read aloud to me as soon as I was born.  My fondest memories are of curling up with her on the bed listening to a story and watching the pictures. 

I enjoy every “Candle” book I receive.  They bring the Bible to life for kids in colorful ways a young mind can understand.  CANDLE PRAYERS FOR KIDS includes 128 pages of simple prayers intended for children to say.  There are 20 different categories, such as “Thank you, God” and “Prayers for Others.”  This book will help introduce prayers to children, and once they begin to say these, they will be able to say their own straight from their hearts. 

I highly recommend this for children, teachers, and parents.  I will be passing on my copy to my cousin for her little daughter’s birthday.  I hope that my cousin shares this with both of her daughters, and that it brings enlightenment and comfort to their lives.

Get to Know: KING DAVID

I received a copy of GET TO KNOW KING DAVID by Nancy I. Sanders from Zonderkids via BookSneeze.  It is part of the “Full-Color Biography for Kids” series.  I read MARY in the past and loved the installment, so I was excited to receive this one.  I was doubly excited because I just watched a movie on King David so I wanted to compare fact to fiction.

Surprisingly, the movie was quite spot-on.  It was from the 1970’s, but the quality was still good.  My parents and I both watched the movie, so we read this autobiography together.  We would often say, “That’s just like in the movie!”  For example, the characters referred to God as Yahweh.

The autobiography starts off by referencing historical research done to prove King David’s existence.  I found that interesting, as I had never doubted him to be a real person, nor have I ever heard anyone express doubts in that regard.

The series uses timelines, photographs, and paragraphs to explain history and the Bible.  Terms children might not know are included at the bottoms of the pages.  I will be passing this on to a younger cousin of mine.  I highly recommend this for families, children, and classroom settings.

Blog Hop

I’ve never done a blog hop before – although I do write reviews and participate in cover reveals.  It sounded exciting and fresh, so here I am! I was invited to participate in the blog hop by Stephanie Flint, book cover designer and author of YA/NA. Her most recent release was Ashes, a short-story prequel to her 1000 Words: A Collection of Short Stories project. Her blog can be found at http://sbibb.wordpress.com/

For the blog-hop, each person is asked a series of questions. Below are the questions and my answers.

Q: What am I working on?
A: I have a steampunk series, the Treasure Chronicles, coming out next year from Curiosity Quills Press.  The first two books are TREASURE DARKLY and BORN OF TREASURE.  I also have a short story about one of the main characters in the Curiosity Quills steampunk anthology GEARS OF BRASS.  I finished writing a third installment in the series and am waiting for a critique partner to get back to me with details before I submit it to the publisher.

Q: How does my work differ from others in its genre?
A: I’ve been told that my works have twists and imagery that is easy to picture.  Sometimes I tend to get very dark.  If it gets too dark, I step back and wonder if I should take anything out.  I usually don’t take out the darkness, but I will tone it down before it leaves young adult for adult. 

Q:Why do I write what I do?
A: A day doesn’t go by when I don’t look at something and think, “That would be great for a story!”  Maybe something someone does stands out to me…or a name…or a street sign.  I also write as an emotional release.  If I’m having a bad day, bad things don’t necessarily have to happen to my characters, but I feel so much better after I get to pound out 1,000 or so words.  My poor keyboard! 

Q:How does my writing process work?
A: I write.  I sit down and the words just flow.  I usually have a semblance of an idea, but by the time the book is done, it is almost completely different.  There are so many new characters, new scenes…a world I never imagined when I started the manuscript months before.

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I passed on the blog hop to a few other writers.  Check them out next Tuesday!

J. P. Sloan, writer of urban fantasy and speculative fiction, at jp-sloan.com

Ann Anderson Noser, author of NA and Urban Fantasy, at www.annmnoser.com.  

Making Marion

I received a copy of MAKING MARION: WHERE’S ROBIN HOOD WHEN YOU NEED HIM? by Beth Moran from Lion Fiction via Kregel.  Marion goes to Sherwood Forest hoping to find her father, where he used to play Robin Hood.

I must warn you that Robin Hood isn’t the main focus of the story, but it does play a role.  I am a huge Robin Hood enthusiast, so I was thrilled to see that it was a theme.

Overall, I enjoyed the book.  It was fun, full of frolic and mayhem, some love and laughter.  There were also some moments that sent my stomach clenching.  She isn’t just living on a campground.  She’s also learning about herself and her family.  Of course, there is also some romance, and those moments were incredibly sweet.

The writing was a bit awkward at times.  Fragments would pull me out of the story.  They were few and far between, though, so I can’t base a solid complaint on them.  On the topic of the writing, the author does a great job of giving Marion a distinctive voice.

This was a secular book, but it wasn’t overly religious, so even those who don’t normally read Christian Fiction should enjoy it.  I definitely recommend it to fans of fun, fast literature.