Author Interview: ‘Chasing Sevens’ by Liberty Lane

About the Book:

Good-natured yet naïve Tobi Stone has always been dealt an unfair hand.

Tobi dreams of becoming a successful musician but finds creative spirits are silenced in forgotten “fly-over” towns. When his closest friend goes missing, a streak of luck leads him on a journey to find her. 

Losing love and innocence in the chaos of the music industry, Tobi finds himself. 

A heartfelt coming-of-age tale, Chasing Sevens follows Tobi as he grapples with the harsh realization that not everyone desires to be saved.     

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Excerpt:

The doorbell chimed from across the room and my head perked up. Another customer had arrived at the Inn.

“Well, Tobi, that’s your guy. Go,” my manager, Matt, called from behind the counter.

He rolled up the sleeves of his ill-fitting plaid flannel, grabbing a handful of silver foil coffee bags and tossing them onto the shelving below.

A familiar face greeted me, waiting to be seated. The autumn breeze trailed in, leaving the door open. “Hi, Mr. Burke!” I said with a smile, pulling the door closed behind us. “Ya born in a barn?” I teased.

“Along with the best of people.” He laughed, pointing a shaky finger towards the corner of the room. “My usual seat, Tobi.”

His briefcase started to slip from his grip, but he realized it just in time, catching the handle of the leather bag and following me to a booth by the window.

“Will ya be having an Earl Grey Latte today, sir?”

He was a creature of habit, but I removed the menu tucked under my arm, just in case. For quite a few years now, Mr. Hal Burke had been coming to the Inn each morning for a routine cup of tea. He was a science fiction writer. Well, he wanted to be. He’d always bring in samples of his work and I’d read them, test-driving from a reader’s point of view. He was quite talented, but couldn’t seem to find it in him to submit his creations to any publishers. I don’t understand why. His stuff’s better than half of what’s on the market.

“You know it, kid.” The briefcase dropped with a clang, nearly blowing the menu from the table. “And boy, do I have a story here for ya! I finally finished up my manuscript.”

“Oh, really?”

Morning exhaustion had set in, but his pure excitement hit me like caffeine. You can always tell when someone’s going after their passion. They beam with pride as they tell you of their work. For me, music struck the right chord, but for Hal, writing was his life. He wrote a bit of himself into each and every character, and I admired the openness of it all. I hoped one day I could share mine with the world, too.

“You bet! Ember’s about to trek to the planet Zarnitha today. She’s finally gotten on the spaceship, and you won’t want to miss what she sees when she arrives. You’ll have to read it and find out.”

“Oh, ya can’t just leave me on a cliffhanger like that, Hal.” I gave him a skeptical look as I snatched the rough draft. Customers were a rare sight this time of morning, so I’d have a few minutes to glimpse into the man’s world. As always, his writing impressed me.

“Hal, when are you gonna submit this to a publisher?” I grabbed the man by the shoulder. “You’re insane to keep this to yourself. You’ve got quite the talent.”

“Been tossin’ the idea around for a while now. It’s just that no one seems to be interested in my work besides you. I’ve tried to show it to my daughters as well as several of my business partners and yet everyone seems to just brush it off. The thing that brings me such joy seems to bore them. I just don’t think it’ll be a success. Everyone today only seems interested in TV or movies. Do folks your age even pick up books anymore?” He chuckled before throwing in, “I bet your generation doesn’t even know how to open one.”

Author Interview:

1: Tell us a little about yourself and what got you in to writing?

I’m a singer, songwriter, author, and poet. Chasing Sevens is my debut novel release, and I’m excited to share my story with the world. 

I have always enjoyed storytelling for as long as I can remember, both through writing and lyricism. There’s something about being able to imagine yourself in someone else’s shoes that I think helps you reflect on both the beauty and brokenness in the world, to share the full spectrum of the human experience. 

2: Do you have a favourite time and place where you write?

For me, it varies. I’m caught up in my head daydreaming most times, so I tend to have bits and pieces to write throughout the day. I write when inspiration strikes, no matter if it’s a scribbled down concept on a napkin or a formal addition to my manuscript.

3: Where do your ideas come from?

For my stories, it’s important to me to show slice-of-life realism and explore the depth of human nature. Many of my stories and characters are inspired, to some degree, by those around me or that I have interacted with. For Chasing Sevens specifically, I wanted to weave a bit of my own experiences and those around me into the narrative, coming of age in a small rural Ohio town in the late 2000’s/early 2010’s.

4: Do you have a plan in your head of where the story is going before you start writing or do you let it carry you along as you go?

I utilize a rough plot structure, and list of major events, then add plot points or scenes as needed. Going based on the vague idea, I expand upon that chapter by chapter, and let inspiration flow. 

I am not one to write scenes out of order, typically, unless I am going back and adding an entire new scene.

5: What genre are your books and what drew you to that genre?

I write books in the literary fiction genre. What drew me to write in this genre, was being able to express myself with vivid prose and being able to dive deeper into some of the tough issues that many face in today’s world. 

I tend to write only in first person, single point of view because to me, there’s something really immersive about feeling things with the character and being dropped into their journey with them. In life, we only have our own perspective and often make our own assumptions about the intentions of others. I like to allow my readers to experience that with the character and really dive into their inner conflicts and decision-making. 

6: What dream cast would you like to see playing the characters in your latest book?

Truthfully, I’m a person that has thought more of what dream soundtrack I’d like than which actors. If I were casting, I would cast based on audition, who I felt like conveyed the emotions of the character with the most authenticity. 

7: Do you read much and if so who are your favourite authors?

I read A LOT. I read a lot of books and post my thoughts on my Instagram page. I generally read a lot of manga and poetry, but one of my favorite fiction authors is Bryn Greenwood. S.E. Hinton’s The Outsiders is also one of my favorites. Another of my favorite authors is my dear friend, H.M.S. Brown, whom I enjoy growing together with as authors. 

8: What book/s are you reading at present?

Right now, I have been reading a manga series called Fly Me to the Moon.

9: What is your favourite book and why?

All the Ugly and Wonderful Things by Bryn Greenwood and The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, because they portray human nature realistically and I find them thought-provoking. I enjoy books that think outside the box and offer a unique perspective.  

10: What advice would you give for someone thinking about becoming a writer?

Don’t be afraid to try something different and outside of the box, even if you receive criticism/rejection or it isn’t how something is “supposed” to look. You can use those as points to work on, but don’t let them discourage you. You don’t have to take every piece of advice you receive, if you feel it doesn’t align with your goals or values. The most important thing is being authentic and being true to your own self and experiences.  

11: What are the best Social Media Sites for people to find out about you and your work?

I’m not really active on anything except Goodreads and Instagram at the moment. I’m @libertylanecreative on Instagram and am always posting about all things art, music, poetry, and literature. 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/libertylanecreative

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/34858353.Liberty_Lane

Bookbub: www.bookbub.com/profile/liberty-lane-70a58d02-fc41-4048-a725-725e7f464017

About the Author:

Bringing refreshment and charm to the literary fiction world, Liberty specializes in character development—highlighting strong voices in forgotten worlds. As a singer/songwriter, Liberty’s main goal is to evoke emotion in her readers. She aims to craft characters and worlds that are realistic, tangible, thought-provoking, and sometimes controversial. Taking readers on a journey of love and loss, she explores gray areas of the modern world that typically fly under the radar.

Author Interview: ‘The Dogs of Ellon’ by Peter Lavery

About the Book:

Man’s best friend has become mankind’s greatest enemy. When a feral dog takes a baby’s life, the townspeople of Ellon want blood. A decree against the dogs is made. All are to be killed if seen. But in the forests, a few remaining dogs live in the shadows. Kace, a twelve-year-old boy, discovers and befriends one, and realises that maybe they’re not as evil as he’s been told. Forming a friendship with Adiana – a lone girl who lives in the forest – they are forced through the forest to the King’s town. But the past won’t let go of Kace that easily…Can Kace and his newfound friends forge a life for themselves away from their small, superstitious town? And can he cure his father’s blind hatred for the dogs?  As a thought-provoking coming-of-age fantasy novel that explores deep themes including friendship, secrets, fear of the unknown, and father-son relationships, Dogs of Ellon is a page-turning read that will capture your imagination from the very first page. Scroll up and grab your copy now.

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Purchase Link:

Amazon – UK

Author Interview:

1: Tell us a little about yourself and what got you in to writing?

I have a BA in filmmaking and run a film production company with a few friends. We are lucky enough to have won a bunch of awards and worked with some great people to bring projects to life. I am, by trade, a screenwriter and have always loved storytelling and creating memorable characters. Reading every night before bed is a non-negotiable for my mental health, and I felt the yearning to contribute a story to the rich world of many amazing novels. Writing The Dogs of Ellon was a great experience. And I can’t wait to start the process all over again.

2: Do you have a favourite time and place where you write?

I do my best writing early in the morning. I often find that if I can get to my desk and write before I’ve fully woken up, a sort of trance-like freedom comes from my brain and down onto the page. But as soon as the coffee kicks in, and the day throws its many things at me, I become more rigid and critical. But those first few hours are magical. I’ll write whenever and wherever, though. I know what puts me into the best space to do it, but at the end of it all, it’s sitting down and putting the legwork in that creates a piece to be proud of.

3: Where do your ideas come from?

Simple premises. Both for this novel and the many scripts I’ve written – it’s simply about that elevator pitch line – and I build the story from there. For this novel, I had the idea of a twelve-year-old boy befriending a dog in a town where they are outlawed. From there, the world, story and characters can bloom. It also helps when I inevitably get lost in the weeds of the story and lose motivation. Keeping in mind that one central idea or lightbulb-esque moment can often save a struggling project!

4: Do you have a plan in your head of where the story is going before you start writing or do you let it carry you along as you go?

I have a rough structure that is ingrained in me as a screenwriter, a medium where structure and beats are so important, but I like to allow the story to lead me in the direction it wants to go. Editing will always save an idea that’s gone wrong, so let it take you away and be swept into the story. If I knew every beat and action before writing, it would be an awfully boring job – it basically just leaves one to be a typist. Getting excited and running down a new storyline for the first time is the best thing about writing. Because if it doesn’t entertain me as the writer, how can I ever expect it to entertain anyone else?  

5: What genre are your books and what drew you to that genre?

At its core, the book is a coming-of-age tale. I tend to write such as it gives me the liberty to explore themes through the lens of a young person. There often tends to be a lot of humour in this, too.  Stakes that, for a young person, feel so big are the perfect vehicle to disguise more serious themes. 

6: What dream cast would you like to see playing the characters in your latest book?

For Kace, the protagonist, I’d love to have Roman Griffin Davis – he was great in Jojo Rabbit playing that naïve child coming of age and questioning what the people around him say is wrong – a central theme in The Dogs of Ellon. So, I think he’d do a great job at it.

7: Do you read much and if so who are your favourite authors?

Absolutely. I read every night before bed – if only a couple of pages. I’ll always read in the same way I’ll always brush my teeth. The list of authors I love is endless. David Nicholls, Dan Brown, Matt Haig, Fredrik Backman, and Max Porter, just to name a handful. 

8: What book/s are you reading at present?

I’ve just started The Making of Another Major Motion Picture by Tom Hanks. A novel that looks into the world of making a film – my two favourite things! 

9: What is your favourite book and why?

How can I possibly answer that?! My go-to answer is The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss – an incredible debut fantasy novel. How he writes amazes me. Likewise, Sweet Sorrow by David Nicholls has a special place in my heart.

10: What advice would you give for someone thinking about becoming a writer?

Turning up to do the work is the only thing that separates a writer from an aspiring writer. You don’t get gifted the right to call yourself a writer, nor does anyone hand you a certificate to permit you. Being a writer is simply turning up to write.

11: What are the best Social Media Sites for people to find out about you and your work?

You can find me on Instagram with my handle @pete.lavery or the book’s account on @thedogsofellon_novel

Author Interview: ‘Handlebars’ by Steven Prouse

About the Book:

Handlebars follows Quinn Constance as he charts his course to greatness. Born into rural, white poverty and domestic violence, Constance becomes one of the most powerful men on earth. Was it by divine right or something else that he was propelled to greatness? And what will his success cost a rapidly changing world?

“The warheads have deployed,” I hear from inside. In that moment, the future presents itself to me. The chaos. The retaliation. The world engulfed in war. I can see it as I have seen all things. Humanity will suffer. In the end, the righteous will survive and a new world will be born. With The Rocket’s death, the world will understand how truly dangerous he was.

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Purchase Links:

Amazon – UK / US

Author Interview:

1: Tell us a little about yourself and what got you in to writing?

I have been writing fiction in one way or another for most of my life. As a child, I would draw comic strips. Into my teenage years, I advanced to comic book pages. My favorite part was the plotting, world-building, and character development. By the time high school ended, I put down the art pencils and stuck to storytelling. Through college, I scripted student films and my own audio drama (before podcasts were a thing). After college, I returned to my comic book roots and helped launch an independent comic publishing studio. We published more than 13 titles over four years and toured the US often speaking about our independent publishing process. 

Over the years, I’ve progressed from comics to screenplays, teleplays, podcast scripts, and, now novels and short stories. I absolutely love the process of storytelling and the independent nature of self-publishing. 

2: Do you have a favourite time and place where you write?

I have a home office for my day job. I stay as far from that setting when I write as possible. Over the last couple of years, I invested in a coffee table that lifts into a desk top. I fully recognize this is designed for couch dinners in front of the television, but by god it has done wonders for me unplugging from the daily grind and putting words to the page. I set up my laptop, saddle onto the sofa, and keyboard peck into the night. 

3: Where do your ideas come from?

In the vein of Haroun and the Sea of Stories, I feel like I’m adrift in ideas and wonder. Song lyrics, books I’m reading, current events, random sightings… all of these and more spark story ideas. A short story I recently finished was sparked when I misread a church sign on my drive home one night. In the 10 minutes between misreading the sign and my front door, I had processed the plot of a woman digging deep into an ancient, secret Christian cult holding back the floodgates of apocalypse. 

4: Do you have a plan in your head of where the story is going before you start writing or do you let it carry you along as you go?

I’m a planner. I never know everything before I start writing, but my worlds are as important as my characters. I want to understand the social influences and histories that will affect my characters and I generally want to know where the story is going. I often build the world and a plot outline and let my characters develop themselves in how they react. 

5: What genre are your books and what drew you to that genre?

Most of my work falls within the horror/sci-fi/fantasy realm. Even those stories that seem to take place within a normal world have some sort of ethereal influence to them. The horrific and the holy are separated by a very fine line and how we interact with both strikes at the core, in my opinion, of what a culture/society fears. Science fiction and fantasy allow us to contrast our fears against our hopes for a better world in fun ways. I feel like exploring these stories help us truly explore what it is to be human. 

6: What dream cast would you like to see playing the characters in your latest book?

Handlebars feels like very personal story that explores dueling aspects of my character. I’d never given this question thought before now. But, if I could dream cast this sucker, I could see a younger Cillian Murphy as Quinn Constance and Johnathan Majors as Louis Bryant/The Rocket. 

7: Do you read much and if so who are your favourite authors?

I am constantly consuming stories. For fiction, I like to read: Neil Gaiman. Stephen King. Chuck Palahniuk. Alan Moore. Brian K. Vaughn. Nnedi Okorafor. Octavia Butler. Tomi Adeyemi. Douglas Adams. 

Mostly, I read non-fiction. Jeff Sharlet, Andrew Seidel, Noam Chomsky, Nancy Eisenberg, Ibram Kendi, Christopher Hitchens,

8: What book/s are you reading at present?

I just finished The Devil is Here in These Hills: West Virginia’s Coal Miners and Their Battle for Freedom by James Green.

9: What is your favourite book and why?

Such an unfair question. Haha! 

My current favorite is Bitter Root by Chuck Brown, David Walker, and Sanford Greene. It is a beautifully illustrated story about the Sangerye family and their battle against evil set in the Harlem Renaissance. 

10: What advice would you give for someone thinking about becoming a writer?

Set the ego aside. Of course, the idea is yours and your voice is yours and your message is yours, but there is nothing meant to be read that is exclusively yours. The second you put it into the world, the reader brings something totally new to the table. A writer is collaborating with their audience and the intent of the work may not always be what is taken from the work. This is the way of all art forms. 

11: What are the best Social Media Sites for people to find out about you and your work?

Website: www.stevenprouse.com

I’m old. Facebook. 

I have a personal page, but I’ve recently launched my author’s page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100089911435278

About the Author:

Steven grew up in a small town in central South Carolina and graduated the University of South Carolina with a Bachelors in Arts with a film/tv writing focus. His work has been published in 13 comic books through companies 803 Studios, Arcana Comics, and Image Comics. He has scripted episodes for The Grey Rooms podcast (seasons 4 and 5). His stories LITTLE JAKEY, SAMMY THE SQUIRREL(TLE), and, HANDLEBARS are available through Amazon.

Author Interview: ‘The Hikikomori: The Girl Who Couldn’t Go Outside’ by Mark Vrankovich

About the Book:

Miko Nishimura yearns for friends and love. But what hope is there when you’re so afraid?

Hikikomori are Japanese recluses. Right now in Japan over a million hikikomori are hiding in their bedrooms, hiding from their past and future. Hiding from the disappointment that having dreams can bring.

Miko is a hikikomori. As Miko’s dreams fade her Tokyo bedroom becomes her entire world. The city outside transforming into the realm of nightmares, a place where horrid memories and growing fears wait to pounce.

Playing car racing games on her laptop is all that distracts Miko from her situation. Then one day her parents are away, and her mouse batteries run out.

So Miko stands trembling next to the apartment door. Unable to live without her racing games, she must venture out into the world to buy batteries. But little does Miko know the consequences for herself, and for Japan, if she steps out that door.

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Purchase Links:

Amazon – UK / US

Author Interview:

1: Tell us a little about yourself and what got you in to writing?

I’m a software architect, born and bred in New Zealand. I enjoy well acted movies, reading, classic cars, and good food. I also enjoy long walks on the beach where I contemplate world peace while helping to resuscitate orphaned beached dolphins. 

I’m not sure exactly what got me into writing, perhaps it was the desire to bring to life the imaginations running around inside my head. It seemed a shame to waste them. 

2: Do you have a favourite time and place where you write?

Not really a favourite time, but instead a favourite mode. Once I’m in the groove (the zone) then I can keep going and going no matter morning, afternoon or night.

As for favourite place, I only need somewhere where I won’t be disturbed. I wrote most of The Hikikomori in my Auckland city office. But when traveling hotel rooms, cafes and libraries are good. Once I bought a car with comfy seats and installed an extra battery to power my laptop for a day. New Zealand has a lot of coastline, and so many secluded beaches where I parked and wrote.

3: Where do your ideas come from?

From daydreaming, often triggered by some random information or feeling. They flash into prominence when an interesting connection forms between various ideas. I find that music is often good juice to enable those flashes of inspiration.

For example, there were numerous ideas that came together to form The Hikikomori. I wanted to write something to encourage isolated people. Also I wondered if I could create a protagonist who was very different from myself (most protagonists are just the author in a different skin). Could I write someone of a different gender? And to make it even harder, someone of a different culture? Then, Tokyo seemed like a magical place. Walking around I enjoyed the way people dressed, the neon signs and endless random alleyways filled with interesting shops or bars. Also, I wondered if I could help my readers understand how Japanese culture works. And, of course, I began to imagine the novel’s protagonist Miko, and she grew into someone that just had to be written. I knew I wouldn’t be able to rest until I held Miko’s completed story in my hand. 

4: Do you have a plan in your head of where the story is going before you start writing or do you let it carry you along as you go?

I imagine the entire arc of the story, then I plan out a sequence of scenes, building a rough outline for each. Afterwards, I read through the scenes moving them around and making changes, until the story starts making me want to read more. I figure that if I want to read more, then my readers will want to keep reading too. 

I put a decent amount of time into “running” each scene in my head. I try to eliminate most issues and generate most new ideas in the planning stage. I don’t want to be carried along in the writing stage, rather I want to get as much of that “being carried along” done in the planning stage.

To my mind, seeing where the story goes as you write is outlining — just outlining done in the most inefficient way possible. Of course as you write your first draft new ideas and issues come up, but if you plan carefully then most of those ideas will have been triggered earlier, and so things will go more smoothly.  

5: What genre are your books and what drew you to that genre?

I don’t write with a genre in mind. I write the novel I want and then afterwards hope there are some genres it fits. This might seem counter intuitive from a marketing perspective, but I’m writing the stories that live in my head and they don’t like be put into boxes. I’d rather write a novel that fits no genres and it be the book I wanted to write, instead of a good genre book that my heart wasn’t into.

The Hikikomori, luckily, fits into a number of genres, including: mild urban fantasy, mild romance, coming of age, and since the story centers around Miko, squarely in the woman’s fiction genre. So far readers of those genres have enjoyed the novel, so that’s good/lucky. I’m getting a lot of, “I’ve never read anything like this before, but I like it” messages.

6: What dream cast would you like to see playing the characters in your latest book?

That’s a hard one, because to mention certain characters would give the plot away. So I’d just say Ken Watanabe for Uncle Ken. Ryo Nishikido for the character that can’t be named, and Hiroyuki Sanada as Chairman Ikari.

Miko would be hardest to cast because it is more than her look; it’s her sweet but stubborn personality, captivating smile, and brightness. In casting you’d know the right actress the instant she walked through the door.

7: Do you read much and if so who are your favourite authors?

I read quite a bit. My house is overflowing with overflowing bookshelves.

I don’t know if I have favourite authors, I have favourite books that have authors attached to them. Some of those authors would be J. R. R. Tolkien, George Orwell, Cormac McCarthy, Ernest Hemingway, Ursula K. Le Guin, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Neal Stephenson, Peter F. Hamilton, Robert A. Heinlein, and Enid Blyton. 

8: What book/s are you reading at present?

Consider Phlebas by Ian Banks. A very exciting book called Patterns of Enterprise Application Architecture by F. Martin. And Heir To The Empire by Timothy Zahn. 

9: What is your favourite book and why?

Fiction wise it would have to be The Lord of the Rings. While I have enjoyed many fiction novels, nothing has had the constant re-readability of LOTR. It is so multilayered and well considered that it is a marvel. It’s like returning to a childhood in a cozy country cottage in a bright summer meadow next to a gentle river. I predict that as the years roll past the LOTR will become the prime myth of the English speaking peoples.

10: What advice would you give for someone thinking about becoming a writer?

Ask yourself why you want to be a writer? If it’s to get recognition and make you feel more loved then I suggest you are better off seeing a counselor and figuring out how to build your self-confidence up. Deal with the real problem first, then see if you still want to be a writer.

If you want to be a writer because you find enjoyment in the process or you feel the urge to instantiate the stories jumping around in your head, then I think you’re on to something. Another reason to be a writer is if you are good at it, exercising your talent is a reward in itself.

11: What are the best Social Media Sites for people to find out about you and your work?

Twitter: @MarkVrankovich

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheHikikomoriNovel

About the Author:

Mark Vrankovich was born in Auckland, New Zealand. It is said that on the day he was born there was a cloud in the sky shaped like a Commodore 64.

Disguised as a software architect, he wanders the Earth searching for his lost hair. Legend has it that if enough people read his novels then his hair will return. And so he writes. In a hotel room, or in a cave. Hope furrowed across his brow.

He likes hot tea, cupcakes (chocolate, moist on the inside but with a bake hardened crust exterior, not too much icing), thunderstorms, cats, musty books, shiny things, and the pop sound jam jars make when you open them. 

Some say he knows something, but nobody is sure what it is. He likely does not own that thing you think he owns. He can see in color. His walking speed is about six kilometers per hour, but he can manage twenty kilometers per hour when being chased by something with teeth.

The brief author biographies he writes about himself, often in the third person, have been rated as some of the worst in the world. The World Health Organization classifies them as a mental hazard. Interpol has warned it is ready to issue a global “Red Notice”, requesting his arrest, if he writes another one. A small, but vigorously up and coming galactic empire at the eastern end of the Milky Way has threatened to irradiate the Earth with gamma rays if…

Book Review: ‘Between the Shade and the Shadow’ by Coleman Alexander

Title: Between the Shade and the Shadow

Published: 21st June 2018

Publisher: The Realmless

Author: Coleman Alexander

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/17903186.Coleman_Alexander

Blurb:

EXPERIENCE AN IMMERSIVE HIGH FANTASY BOOK UNLIKE ANY OTHER. TAKE A JOURNEY INTO THE DARKER SIDE OF THE FAE 

In the deep heart of the forest, there are places where no light ever shines, where darkness is folded by pale hands and jewel-bright eyes, where the world is ruled by the wicked and kept by the wraiths. This is where the Sprites of the Sihl live. 

But Sprites are not born, they are made. On the path to Spritehood, spritelings must first become shades. They do so by binding a shadow: a woodland creature, who guides them through their training. Together, they keep from the light and learn to enchant living things, to bind them, and, eventually, to kill them.

Yet, not all spritelings are born with malice—they must earn it or they are condemned. What happens then to the spriteling who finds a shadow where she shouldn’t? What happens if that particular spriteling wasn’t born with malice at all?

Ahraia was that spriteling. She ran too close to the light and bound herself to a wolf, a more powerful shadow than any that came before it. Now a shade, her shadow marks her for greatness. But a test is coming, and the further they wander out of the darkness, the deeper they wander into danger. Ahraia’s time is coming and what awaits her at the end of her test will either make her or kill her . . .

Review:

Well I think it is safe to say that nothing is coming between this Shade and Shadow. The bond formed is greater than any of the other Shades, evidence being that Aharia would never have been able to complete her final task to become a Sprite. (When you read the book you will know what I mean). They are stronger together than ever apart and have a bond that will not break. Something others fear and want them dead for. Shades are creatures that are made not born. Made to serve a purpose and if you don’t do that then it is safe to say you are expendable – the Shad-Mon is coming to darken your days.

All Aharia wants to do is run free with Losna her Shadow wolf. That’s not the way of Shades though. There is a journey they make through life evolving at different stages to become something more. Spritelings, Shades, Sprites, and so on. Each stage has tests they need to overcome, becoming harder the further you go. Now these creatures are bad and drawn to darkness, needing to stay in the dark to survive. They aren’t the good guys but that doesn’t make Aharia bad. She is a change others don’t want her to be. Showing how you can be so much more than the world you are brought into. Danger hunts her at every turn and there is no one she can trust other than herself and Losna. Family and nit means nothing once they get past the Shade stage it seems, with many having their own agendas. They would rather see others dead than wanting change. Can she out run the darkness and evil that follows or will it bind her to a fate worse than death? Perhaps it is time to come into the light to fight what comes. Show no fear and run free.

Now this book took me a little while to really get into. The world created is intriguing but to start with a little hard to follow. It is a long read and some bits could have been thinned a little but most is needed to help create the world and journey that Aharia and her Shadow Losna go on. Have to say that it really picks up at the end though so is worth checking out.

3.5/4 out of 5 stars

I received a copy of this book from the author for my honest review.