Tour Stop: THE LETTER by Willowy Whisper

I'm happy to welcome back Willowy Whisper on blog tour with her new book "The Letter" the second book in The Hills of Innocence Trilogy. 

SYNOPSIS

First it was just a letter, maybe a joke, a coincidence. Now it was more than that. Now it was a living nightmare, threatening everyone he loved, pulling his greatest fear into a reality . . .
As the letters keep coming, Brock Sumner watches his world shatter at his feet. Building a wall around his heart seemed like the only answer. Is there any other way to protect the woman he loves?
A drunk, with no incentive to change; a runaway, with a price on his back; a young child, afraid in the dark . . .
Will the letters, perhaps, pull their lives together? Or will the killer find a way to destroy them all? 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Willowy Whisper is a seventeen-year-old author. Living in the quiet hills of West Virginia, Willow writes novels, short stories, and blog posts. She is a born-again believer in Jesus Christ, and an incurable romantic. 

What was your inspiration for writing “The Letter”? 

I can't say that I really had something specific inspire me. It was more of a case of “I'm gonna write a second book to my series”. So I did. 

Do you have any favorite writing music or specific soundtracks for your books? 

Well...no. But if any music would be amazing to go with my book, it would probably be The Last of the Mohicans (soundtrack from the movie). 

What is your writing process like? Are you a “planner” or a “pantster”? 

When I first started writing, I went with more of a think-of-the-next-thing-as-you-write attitude—and it worked. For a while. My second novel, however, never went anywhere (I never published it or let anyone read it besides my editor) because I didn't have a well-planned plot. Since then, before each novel I make myself a fairly detailed outline—and for the most part, I stick with it. I've found that it works the best for me (although with short stories, I usually go spontaneous). 

Which of your characters would you most like to be friends with? 

If you're talking about just “friends”, Lacey would probably get along splendidly with her author. :) But I'd like to marry Brock Sumner. Too bad I made him up. :)

Which character would you not want to know in real life? 

For the sake of spoilers, I won't mention any names—but the sender of the letters would definitely be a person I would not want to know. 

What is a book you would recommend to anyone? 

The Hawk and the Jewel (by Lori Wick) is probably the best, most romantic book I have ever read, and if I were ever to recommend a book to someone, that would probably be it. 

Anything in the works now? 

Yes (always pretty much something in the works)! Book 3 of the Hills of Innocence Trilogy is in the beginning stages...in other words, the “outline” is all that's been established. I am also writing a short story.  

Add it to your shelves on Goodreads!
Buy the Book on Amazon!
Willowy Whisper's Blog: http://willowywhisper.com

Review: "The Wild" by Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon

This is a re-read for me (I usually do a re-read every month) but I wanted to post the review because it's one of my favorite series, and no one seems to know about it, so I hope you will check these books out after reading this review. Please give the authors your support!

Title: The Wild (Secret Journeys of Jack London #1) by Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon (Illustrated by Greg Ruth)
Genre: YA, Historical, Supernatural
Rating: 5/5 stars
Synopsis: The world knows Jack London as a writer who lived his own thrilling, real-life adventures. But there are parts of his life that have remained hidden for many years, things so horrifying even he couldn’t set them down in writing. These are the Secret Journeys of Jack London.

We meet Jack at age seventeen, following thousands of men and women into the Yukon Territory in search of gold. For Jack, the journey holds the promise of another kind of fortune: challenge and adventure. But what he finds in the wild north is something far more sinister than he could ever have imagined: kidnapping and slavery, the murderous nature of desperate men, and, amidst it all, supernatural beasts of the wilderness that prey upon the weakness in men’s hearts.

Acclaimed writers Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon, along with illustrator Greg Ruth, have crafted a masterful tale both classic and contemporary, a gripping original story of the paranormal in the tradition of the great Jack London. 
Review:

Thoughts on the Overall Book: This was one of those books for me that has such a unique premise that I had to read it.. This series is about a young Jack London, before he really became famous, and his supposed 'secret journeys' that are written down, as we see in the preface, by a companion of his who he meets in the book. It was truly nothing like I thought it was going to be when I picked it up, in fact, about a third of the way through, I really had no idea which direction it was going and I liked that. There are so many predictable books out there, but this one really caught me by surprise in every chapter and I could never guess what I would find on the next page. It was very strange, but in a good way, and the kind of way I like. But I'll talk more about that later.

Cover--Yae or Nay: I LOVE the covers for these books and the illustrations inside. I love the weathered look of the picture and how Jack and the wolf are both on it and you can only see a back profile of Jack. Still some of my favorite covers.

Characters: I liked how Jack was portrayed. I don't know too much about the real Jack London, but I really liked how this teenage version of him was portrayed. And from what the authors said in their authors' note, his character is pretty accurate. I liked his two friends, Jim and Merrit and the boy Hal who he rescues from getting taken by slavers up in the Yukon. The slavers were appropriately nasty, and they really were vile. Lesya was appropriately mysterious and exotic, but I won't say more about that for fear of spoilers.

Writing Style: The writing style is partly why I gave the book five stars. This was a very well written book, and the style fit the story perfectly and felt reminiscent of Jack London's writing. It was vivid, and visual and I could totally see all the scenes playing out in front of me which was great because some of the strange scenes could have been very vague. I am a fan of books that portray fantasy and supernatural happenings realistically, if that makes any sense, and this book really did. I liked the setting of the Yukon because it's such a deserted place, that you could actually believe the happenings of this book could happen. I liked how they brought in the story of the Wendigo which came from that area, and the Wendigo was portrayed to be very frightening. There's also some Russain lore in the book too, dealing with the forest spirit, Leshii. That part of the book for me was almost creepier than the Wendigo. This is more of a narrative book, and there's long chunks without dialogue, but it's hardly noticeable if you're not a fan of narrative writing. I go either way depending on who writes it, but this one you will not notice the difference at all.

Problems/What bothered me: I didn't have anything to complain about, truthfully, this book was just so odd that I just kind of went along for the ride and didn't really think about it too much. It kept my attention though, and I cared for the characters, so I must have enjoyed it! Upon re-reading, I actually liked it better than the first time, since I knew what to expect and just sat back and enjoyed the story.

Conclusion: 5 stars. Very unique read, awesome series, one of my favs.

Recommended Audience: Older teens, a guy book. There's a bit of language and lots of gore. This is definitely a realistic book so if you're squeamish of blood, don't read it. Also, it really is kind of creepy. If you want something kind of a cross between Louis L'Amour and Supernatural then this is as close as you are going to get!

Guest Post by C. P. Lesley

I'm happy to invite one of my fellow authors C. P. Lesley onto my blog today! We both published new books recently, so we decided to do a little blog trade, and I asked her to write a guest post in correlation to her new release The Winged Horse. Today she's going to be talking about the process of writing characters!

C.P. also featured my guest post on writing historical paranormal novels on her blog in correlation with the release of my new book, Wolfsblood. Check it out here!

Those Pesky Characters

What’s more appropriate for a guest spot on a blog called Character Purgatory than a post about fictional people? Like any novelist, I wreak havoc on my characters, constantly thinking up ways to complicate their world, get them in trouble, mess up their relationships, force them to grow whether they like it or not—until they reach that magic place where they have achieved what I set out for them to do and I can release my grip and let them enjoy life for a while. We novelists are sadists, ever on the alert for new types of suffering to inflict on our characters. It’s our job.

But not all the pain goes from authors to their creations. Although imaginary people, characters can attain an amazing level of reality. Some of my best ones prove to be stubborn as mules, laden with techniques for getting their own back. They hide in the shadows, refusing to reveal themselves (we call this writers’ block). They take time to develop, just like real people. They go off on their own, surprising me with their insistence on solving a problem in this way, not that. I find myself arguing with them, as if they were teenagers with attitude, patiently explaining that in that time and place they should be more independent or less, should take the privileges of their gender or class for granted, should be gentler or meaner, more religious, better educated, more eager to swing a sword or ply a needle. They laugh in my face and go their own way, and if I want to see where they will end up, I have to trust them to lead me there.

If you’re a writer of fiction, you probably have encountered this phenomenon yourself. If you’re not, you may be searching the local directory for the number of a nice psychotherapist to recommend. But bear with me, please. Of course, I don’t really believe that my characters maintain an existence separate from me. I create them and their world, and they represent facets of myself (yes, even the baddies). But the human subconscious is a strange and marvelous place, and a smart writer takes advantage of its capacity to weave seemingly disconnected elements of personality and life into a rich and coherent story—sometimes in ways that the conscious mind cannot immediately comprehend. A decision that a novelist makes on the fly for practical reasons—to kill off a character’s mother, say—may turn out to hold the key to that character’s whole personality. When one of my fictional people gets balky or an image nags at me or a plot element keeps butting in, I’ve learned to go with the flow, confident that the story will benefit as a result.

The same point applies even to titles and central images for each book, as illustrated by my ongoing series, Legends of the Five Directions. The first two novels are out, the third roughly plotted (with luck, I will finish it in about a year, unless the Magic Book Fairy blesses me with an independent income that allows me more hours to write), while the last two remain vague collections of ideas corralled by titles and cover pictures. The title of The Golden Lynx refers to a creature of the Russian woods but also to a piece of Scythian jewelry given to the heroine to remind her of the past she has reluctantly left behind; more deeply still, it evokes the heroine herself, a small but determined fighter against injustice. The Winged Horse represents the forces of air, the element linked to the east in Chinese and Turkic cosmology, as well as the hero’s main antagonist and the personality changes the hero must make to succeed; the horse flies between this life and the next, both literally and figuratively. The swans of the Russian north are pushing their way into The Swan Princess as I write, urging the heroine toward loyalty, toward commitment, toward the fierce defense of those she loves. I’m not sure yet how she will get there, but based on my past acquaintance with her, I suspect she will fight me all the way, insisting that she knows where she’s going, thank you very much. And I will shut up and listen, hoping with fingers crossed that she’s right, while beating back the phoenixes and shamans demanding my attention for books 4 and 5.

Maybe that’s why we writers torture our characters: because we are equally convinced that they are torturing us. But it’s an honor and a privilege to map out their journey, even if our subconscious, in the end, turns out to control the wheel.

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BIO

C. P. Lesley, a historian, has published three novels: The Not Exactly Scarlet Pimpernel, The Golden Lynx (Legends 1: West), and The Winged Horse (Legends 2: East). She is currently working on The Swan Princess (Legends 3: North). For more information, follow her blog. http://blog.cplesley.com You can find links to her books at her publisher’s website. http://www.fivedirectionspress.com/books

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The Not Exactly Scarlet Pimpernel

A modern-day graduate student enters the virtual-reality world of an eighteenth-century novel. Her life—and the novel—will never be the same.

The Golden Lynx

16th-century Moscow hums with rumors about its newest hero, the Golden Lynx. Everyone knows the Lynx must be a man, but “everyone” may be wrong…

The Winged Horse

Dispatched to collect his almost-forgotten bride, an inexperienced Tatar prince must overcome a deadly rival to obtain his inheritance and secure his future.

Blurb and Excerpt for "Uneasy Lies the Crown" by N. Gemini Sasson

I'm excited to host a Blurb Blitz Tour Stop today to get the word out about historical fiction writer, N. Gemini Sasson's new book, Uneasy Lies the Crown , a historical novel about the Welsh king and freedom fighter, Owain Glyndowr.

For centuries, the bards have sung of King Arthur’s return, but is this reluctant warrior prince the answer to those prophecies?

In the year 1399, Welsh nobleman Owain Glyndwr is living out a peaceful gentleman’s life in the Dee Valley of Wales with his wife Margaret and their eleven children. But when Henry of Bolingbroke, the Duke of Lancaster, usurps the throne of England from his cousin Richard II, that tranquility is forever shattered. What starts as a feud with a neighboring English lord over a strip of land evolves into something greater—a fight for the very independence of Wales.

Leading his crude army of Welshmen against armor-clad columns of English, Owain wins key victories over his enemies. After a harrowing encounter on the misty slopes of Cadair Idris, the English knight Harry Hotspur offers Owain a pact he cannot resist.

Peace, however, comes with a price. As tragedies mount, Owain questions whether he can find the strength within himself not only to challenge the most powerful monarch of his time, but to fulfill the prophecies and lead his people to freedom without destroying those around him.

And now an excerpt from the novel!

Lord Reginald de Grey of Ruthin leered at his discovery. Swarming around him was a full corps of fifteen huntsmen, lesser lords eager to impress. One rushed in and rammed a spear into the deer, although it was a task that need not have been done.

“Aha! My gratitude, good men, for bringing down my prize,” Grey proclaimed.

“Your prize?” Owain started forward. “These are my lands you’re on. And well you know it. You are beyond your bounds. Parliament has upheld my claims on Croesau.”

“Richard’s parliament.” Grey clucked his tongue in admonishment. “’Tis a hard task to wield influence from a dungeon.”

Owain’s arms were locked stiffly at his side, though they had the strength to heave the dripping, dog-shredded carcass at Grey’s head. “Take it. Take the hide and the meat and the bloody set of antlers. But don’t come back. This land is not yours.”

“I’ll come as often as I please. These are my lands now, everything you see. The Welsh sympathizer is not long to wear the crown and Bolingbroke owes me a good turn.” One hand upon his hip, he flexed the gloved fingers of his other hand and nodded with satisfaction. “This hunting ground will do, littered though it is with Welsh beggars. Incidentally, I took liberty to evict some troublesome peasants of yours in the next valley.”

Owain sprang forward. “You have no right!”

“Yes, yes... hmmm. We shall see who has rights. Anyway, they were a little, shall we say, obstinate. A torched roof is very convincing. It has a tendency to make people into believers.”

About the Author

N. Gemini Sasson is the author of six historical novels set in 14th and 15th century Scotland, England and Wales, including The Bruce Trilogy and Isabeau, A Novel of Queen Isabella and Sir Roger Mortimer (2011 IPPY Silver Medalist in Historical Fiction). Her latest release is Uneasy Lies the Crown, A Novel of Owain Glyndwr. Long after writing about Robert the Bruce and Queen Isabella, Sasson learned she is a descendant of both.

Where you can find N. Gemini Sasson and purchase a copy of Uneasy Lies the Crown :

Amazon.com – http://www.amazon.com/Uneasy-Crown-Novel-Glyndwr-ebook/dp/B00A27A1UA

Amazon.co.uk - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Uneasy-Crown-Novel-Glyndwr-ebook/dp/B00A27A1UA

Barnes and Noble – http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/uneasy-lies-the-crown-n-gemini-sasson/1113730727?ean=2940015940381

Smashwords – 

http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/NGeminiSasson

Web site – http://www.ngeminisasson.com

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/NGeminiSasson

Blog – http://ngeminisasson.blogspot.com

N. Gemini will be awarding a $20 Amazon gift certificate to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Comment and leave your email to enter!

Follow the tour or read other posts here: http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2012/11/virtual-blurb-blitz-uneasy-lies-crown.html?zx=c93272db7778af23