Friday 30 September 2016

PROMOTION & REVIEW - THE ANGEL KNIGHTS BY MARY TING


The Angel Knights
Prequel Novella
by
Mary Ting

Title: The Angel Knights
Author: Mary Ting
Series: The Chosen Knights Series
Release Date: 8th March 2016

BLURB from Goodreads
Michael and Claudia’s decision to move back to Crossroads was to keep their children safe, but they can’t escape who they are. Their children, Zachary and Lucia, were destined to be demon hunters—Venators. From the age they were able to hold a sword, they were trained to become the best and to ensure they would become leaders one day. 

All is peaceful throughout the land until the Fallen and demons’ presences were felt in the between and on Earth. As the Venators investigate these locations, they will quickly learn how dangerous their lives are. Hearts will be broken. Teammates will lose their lives. And they will face obstacles which will test their faith. 

As danger grows, the fear of fallen angels and demons regrouping has the Divine Elders on pins and needles. Now, Zachary and Lucia, along with Uncle Davin, must prepare themselves—mentally and physically—to live on Earth to investigate where the focal point of evil resides before it’s too late.


PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon US
Amazon UK

INITIAL THOUGHTS
I readily admit that I adored the Crossroads Saga and totally fell in love with Mary Ting's version of heaven and the afterlife too. As you do when you love a series I became attached to the characters of Michael and Claudia, as well as Davin. . . .then came Michael & Claudia's twin's Zachary and Lucia. After reading Eternity the fourth and final book in the Saga I was a little lost wondering where I would be able to get my "Angel Fix" read. To be totally truthful  the "Angel" genre is not one I would say I am a great fan of. . . .but I find these books written by Mary Ting irresistible, you really develop a kind of affection for the characters. 

MY REVIEW
So, how did I come about this prequel? I do follow Mary Ting on Facebook etc and saw her new updated "heavenly" (ok pardon the pun!) Crossroad's Saga book covers and commented how much I loved them. Then Mary messaged me and told me there was Crossroads Saga spin off series called The Chosen Knights, and that there was a prequel novella ready to be reviewed straight away. Mary asked if I'd like to read it and I, of course said yes please! thinking the prequel and new spin off series a great idea's and exited to catch up with all the characters, I thought were gone forever.
When I read this novella there was no cover for the prequel. . . . .  .so as yet I cannot pass opinion on the cover.
The prequel is told from the point of view of Lucia for the majority of the book though there are a couple of chapters from the point of view of Claudia and then Michael.
So some time has passed since we last visited the characters of Michael & Claudia, naturally they seem to have hardly aged in any way at all. Their twins are now 17 years old and have been training to be Venators since they can remember. Their mentor is the fun loving, "everything human" expert Davin, who is still as full as mischief as ever!
So to the plot. . . there's a "disturbance" in Insula, the place which is between HEaven and Earth. It is the first sign of any trouble reported since the birth of Michael & Claudia's twins.
We learn the twins have been on many scouting missions and have been training for a possibly inevitable battle if/when evil rises again. It seems the fallen and the demons are being even more sly than before using the fragrance of flowers to hide their distinct pungent smell. Both veteran Venators Michael, and Davin agree they can sense that something bad is coming their way. Zach & LUcia are just two of many newbie trained Venator's that will have to search out the evil that is gathering and lurking amongst the humans etc. 
To say this is a prequel there is plenty of action, fighting with swords, wings, crossbows and more. I enjoyed the description of "mission" that Davin came up with to set the twins against their parents. . . .which I think is brilliantly written and show both the parents and the twins learn from. The parents now know how skilled their angelic children have become and the twins learn they still have many defense and offense techniques to perfect. 
It is clear in this prequel that life has adapted since the arrival of the twins. Michael and Claudia are parents, where as Davin acts as what I would describe as a combination of an older brother/uncle!
We learn in this part of the story that Davin, Zach and Lucia are to be sent on a special mission to integrate themselves in a small place in Hawaii. The twins are excited they get to observe humans so closely and will have to adopt a facade of being human, which means going to school, learning to drive and wearing jeans! Naturally Michael and Claudia have mixed feelings about their twins going out into the big wide world and being exposed to humans, the fallen and demons!
Katherine hints at something really interesting within this novella, she is talking to the twins prior to them setting off with Davin on their big mission and she makes a comment that she wouldn't be surprised if one of the twins had inherited Claudia's special gift.
I think Mary has really developed the twins into complex characters in their own right, as well as them being the offspring of Michael and Claudia. Zachary, named after Michael's father, is the eldest sibling by minutes and he doesn't let Lucia forget it. Zach take's after his father Michael in that he is strong, protective yet caring of those around him especially his sister. Lucia is the more emotional of the twins, she struggles more with her human side, but is still a fiercely brave fighter when the need arises, perhaps Crossroad Saga fan's would say Lucia favour's her mother's likeness and temperament. It will be interesting to read what other Crossroad Saga Fan's think.
There is an incident in the prequel that strongly hints at what is to come later in this spin off series... Davin, Michael, Zach, Lucia, along with the rest of their team Jude, Victoria and Isaac are on an investigative mission when they are set upon by demons and the fallen, sadly a member of their party is killed by a demon called Mortem. During the attack and ensuing fight Mortem also grabs Lucia and admires how she is brave, and feisty. Mortem also says he senses something "other" about her. Thankfully the Lucia ends up being safe and sound but things could have gone very differently if the experienced Michael and Davin had not been on hand.
Caleb and Victoria are also already on a mission in this prequel returning with more grim news and an ominous feelings of foreboding doom ahead.
I could seriously go on forever and ever about this prequel. . . . .what on earth will I be like when I am reading and reviewing The Chosen Knights. This prequel promises so much more to come next! This prequel leaves you with so many questions as well as thoughts and idea's of what may happen next!
So did I enjoy the prequel? I loved it! Would I recommend the prequel? Yes it is a MUST read for all Crossroads fans, though you could read this series first if you wanted, and then read the Crossroads Saga later. I certainly recommend reading both series.
Would I want to read more of this Series? Yes please. I was addicted to the Crossroads Saga, and Mary has done it again, I am hooked into this new spin off series already after just the prequel!
Would I want to read other titles by Mary Ting? Oh I have read some of Mary's other titles, I really enjoyed reading From God's, which is the first in her Descendant Prophecies Series. I do want to read more of this series too, I just really need more hours in a day to dedicate to reading all the books I wish to.

FINAL THOUGHTS
Oh Wow! Oh No! Great prequel, certainly made me want to read more of this series. Loved catching up with Claudia, Michael, Davin, Caleb and Victoria as well as meeting their children Zachary and Lucia and their "team" of Venator's.
Looking forward to this new series but dreading the fact there is a new war on the horizon between the Fallen & the Demons and the Venator's! That sort of implies there will be losses on both sides, so we may be saying a sad farewell to some favourite characters . . .. but then there's all the action of the forthcoming war, as well as following Davin, Zach & Lucia's mission too. . . and learning more about Caleb & Victoria's mission too.
So many possibilities for both new, newer and older characters.


Thursday 29 September 2016

BLOG TOUR - CHASING EMBERS - BEN GARSTON BY JAMES BENNETT

Title: Chasing Embers
Series: Ben Garston
Author: James Bennett
Genre: Urban Fantasy, Dragons, Witches
Publisher: Orbit
Release Date: 6th October 2016

BLURB from Goodreads
Behind every myth, there's a spark of truth...

There's nothing special about Ben Garston. He's just a guy with an attitude in a beat-up leather jacket, drowning his sorrows in a downtown bar. Or so he'd have you believe.

What Ben Garston can't let you know is that he was once known as Red Ben. That the world of myth and legend isn't just a fantasy, as we've been led to believe. And he certainly can't let you know the secret of what's hiding just beneath his skin...

But not even Ben knows what kind of hell is about to break loose. A centuries-old rivalry has just resurfaced, and the delicate balance between his world and ours is about to be shattered.


PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon UK


AUTHOR INTERVIEW
Could you tell us a little about your Ben Garston Series, and your plans for the Series? ie. How many books will there be in the series?
The Ben Garston series envision a world in which the myths and legends of the medieval era actually existed, with a few survivors – Remnants – living among us in modern times, most of them hidden in human form. These creatures, including Red Ben, all live under the Lore, abiding by an ancient and magical Pact that means they’re forbidden to meddle in human affairs. When a centuries’ old rivalry comes bubbling to the surface, Ben is thrown headlong into a race to save the world from a terrible war.
As things stand, there are 3 contracted books in the series, with the follow up out in August 2017. I’m on a journey with Ben Garston too, so we’ll see where he goes. I can certainly see beyond Book 3. Watch this space.

Are Cover Designs & Titles for the rest of the series already chosen? (& Who has/is designing the covers for you?)
We have a title for Book 2. It’s called RAISING FIRE (you heard it here first). I believe I’m about to see an early draft of the cover, also rendered by the wonderful Tracey Winwood. I couldn’t be happier with the CHASING EMBERS cover. It’s as close to my vision as anyone could get and captures the theme and the mood perfectly. I love it.

Do you already know what happens, right up to the last word of the last book in the series?
I’m honestly not sure where the series is headed. I have Book 3 sketched out, but plans can change in the writing and the characters in this series often surprise me! Book 4, if there is one, is a swirl of vague and colourful ideas. Beyond that? It’s as mysterious as any future.

How long did it take you to write Chasing Embers, from the original idea to finishing writing it?
About a year and a half, with another 6 months of editing. Book 2 took about a year. I was up against it.

Is there anything in Chasing Embers you would change now if you could and what would it be?
I wouldn’t change anything plot-wise. I told the story I wanted to tell. I think we all grow and learn as writers and we always should be. That doesn’t stop with publication. You learn from your mistakes and listen to readers, but I don’t tend to look back at any of my work too long because it’s impossible to do so without an overly critical eye. All I can change is what I do in the future, which I hope will be even better!


AUTHOR LINKS
Twitter

Checkout the rest of the Blog Tour






Wednesday 28 September 2016

PROMOTION - LADYBIRD BOOKS FOR ADULTS BY JASON HAZELEY & JOEL MORRIS

The international publishing phenomenon and ridiculously funny new parody series that helps grown-ups learn about the world around them using large clear type, simple and easy-to-grasp words, frequent repetition, and thoughtful matching of text with pictures.

Title: The Mom
Series: The Fireside Guide To ..... (Ladybird Books For Adults)
Authors: Jason Hazeley & Joel Morris
Genre: Hunour
Publisher: Touchstone
Release Date: 11th October 2016

BLURB from Netgalley
Have you been having trouble with the How, Why, and Wheres? Well fear no more. The Fireside Grown-Up Guide series understands that the world is just as confusing to a forty-year-old as it is to a four-year-old. We’re here to help and break down the most pressing and complex issues of our day into easy-to-digest pieces of information paired with vivid illustrations even a child could understand.

A mom has two very important jobs: to look after her children and to do everything else well. In this 
Fireside Grown-Up Guide to Mom, we learn about what moms like (making toys out of corks from her many, many wine bottles), what she hates (the sound of her own voice, which now sounds just like her mom’s), what she’s really thinking about when she leaves her children with a babysitter (whether or not the babysitter can handle these little monsters), and many other enlightening facts.


PURCHASE LINKS

Title: The Husband
Series: The Fireside Guide To ..... (Ladybird Books For Adults)
Authors: Jason Hazeley & Joel Morris
Genre: Hunour
Publisher: Touchstone
Release Date: 11th October 2016

BLURB from Netgalley
Have you been having trouble with the How, Why, and Wheres? Well fear no more. The Fireside Grown-Up Guide series understands that the world is just as confusing to a forty-year-old as it is to a four-year-old. We’re here to help and break down the most pressing and complex issues of our day into easy-to-digest pieces of information paired with vivid illustrations even a child could understand.

The husband knows many things. For example, he knows how many stairs there are in his house—in case he arrives home too drunk to see them properly. In this Fireside Grown-Up Guide to the Husband, you can learn about what husbands like (making simple repairs and then droning on about what a struggle they were), what he hates (being wrong), how often he is really listening (only thirty percent of the time), and many other enlightening facts.

Goodreads Link

PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon US
Amazon UK


Title: Mindfulness
Series: The Fireside Guide To ..... (Ladybird Books For Adults)
Authors: Jason Hazeley & Joel Morris
Genre: Hunour
Publisher: Touchstone
Release Date: 11th October 2016

BLURB from Netgalley
Have you been having trouble with the How, Why, and Wheres? Well fear no more. The Fireside Grown-Up Guide series understands that the world is just as confusing to a forty-year-old as it is to a four-year-old. We’re here to help and break down the most pressing and complex issues of our day into easy-to-digest pieces of information paired with vivid illustrations even a child could understand.

Mindfulness: the skill of thinking you are doing something, when in fact you are doing nothing. In this 
Fireside Grown-Up Guide to Mindfulness
, we’ll meet a blissful cast of characters who’ve learned to free themselves from unnecessary worries like work, friends, and family. When they are fired from their jobs and abandoned by their friends and family, they learn to combat their stress by practicing mindfulness, and teach us a few lessons along the way.

Goodreads Link

PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon US
Amazon UK

Title: The Hangover
Series: The Fireside Guide To ..... (Ladybird Books For Adults)
Authors: Jason Hazeley & Joel Morris
Genre: Humour
Publisher: Touchstone
Release Date: 11th October 2016

BLURB from Netgalley
Have you been having trouble with the How, Why, and Wheres? Well fear no more. The Fireside Grown-Up Guide series understands that the world is just as confusing to a forty-year-old as it is to a four-year-old. We’re here to help and break down the most pressing and complex issues of our day into easy-to-digest pieces of information paired with vivid illustrations even a child could understand.

A good hangover is a complete mystery. How did this happen? Why do I feed so horrible? In this 
Fireside Grown-Up Guide to the Hangover, we’ll investigate exactly how much debauchery you caused last night and what you can do for that pounding headache today. Filled with practical advice and fun facts—like how your consumption of bacon is totally justified for this morning—this guide might
 even persuade you to drink less next time, but we all know that’s not going to happen.

Goodreads Link

PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon US
Amazon UK


I have read all the books above and found them really funny and quite interesting. My Reviews will be coming soon. Nearer release day in October but pre-order these as Christmas Gifts they would make brilliant stocking filler/fun gifts.


Tuesday 27 September 2016

BLOG TOUR - WHEN THE MOON WAS OURS BY ANNA-MARIE MCLEMORE

When The Moon Was Ours is described as a love story tinged with magical realism and filled with gorgeous prose, and has already garnered three starred trade reviews praising the novel as “lovely, necessary, and true” (Booklist). McLemore’s newest novel grapples with tough questions of identity and cultural differences in a small town. Within the pages lies a story of a girl hiding the truth, a boy with secrets from his past, and the four sisters who could ruin them both.

To everyone who knows them, best friends Miel and Sam are as strange as they are inseparable. Roses grow out of Miel’s wrist, and rumors say that she spilled out of a water tower when she was five. Sam is known for the moons he paints and hangs in the trees and for how little anyone knows about his life before he and his mother moved to town.

But as odd as everyone considers Miel and Sam, even they stay away from the Bonner girls, four beautiful sisters rumored to be witches. Now they want the roses that grow from Miel’s skin, convinced that their scent can make anyone fall in love. And they’re willing to use every secret Miel has fought to protect to make sure she gives them up.

Embedded in the love story, Sam faces how to claim his identity as a transgender boy, and Miel and Sam struggle with how to define their love, both to themselves and their community. McLemore tackles this relevant issue thoughtfully, coming from her own experience in her relationship with her husband, who is transgender.

McLemore’s recently told Publisher’s Weekly, “at the heart of this book is my belief that transgender characters, queer characters, characters of color, deserve fairy tales”, and WHEN THE MOON WAS OURS conquers timely topics like race and gender while delivering an unforgettable, timeless love story.

Filled with roses, glass pumpkins, and magical moons, WHEN THE MOON WAS OURS will sweep you away with its fairy tale feel. Following her fantastic debut novel, WHEN THE MOON WAS OURS will thrill readers of McLemore’s debut novel , as well as establish a whole new group of admirers for this immensely talented young writer.
Anna-Marie McLemore’s debut novel The Weight of Feathers was heavily praised by critics, received a YALSA Morris Award nomination, and was a book club pick for Las Comadres Friends National Latino Book Club. WHEN THE MOON IS OURS is Anna-Marie McLemore's second book which I am personally really eager to read and I hope that I enjoy this one as much as I did her debut book, which was The Weight Of Feathers. I totally admit that I devoured it! In my opinion it was stunning, amazing, beautifully written, had fantastic characters that you really came to care about as well as an astounding plot  . . need I go on? So yep I recommend you read that one too!  
Still unsure? 
Drop by my earlier post to read my review of THE WEIGHT OF FEATHERS here

Title: When The Moon Was Ours
Author: Anna-Marie McLemore
Genre: YA, Fantasy, Magical, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Thomas Dunne,St Martin's Press
Release Date: 4th October 2016

BLURB from Goodreads
When the Moon Was Ours follows two characters through a story that has multicultural elements and magical realism, but also has central LGBT themes—a transgender boy, the best friend he’s falling in love with, and both of them deciding how they want to define themselves.

To everyone who knows them, best friends Miel and Sam are as strange as they are inseparable. Roses grow out of Miel’s wrist, and rumors say that she spilled out of a water tower when she was five. Sam is known for the moons he paints and hangs in the trees, and for how little anyone knows about his life before he and his mother moved to town. 

But as odd as everyone considers Miel and Sam, even they stay away from the Bonner girls, four beautiful sisters rumored to be witches. Now they want the roses that grow from Miel’s skin, convinced that their scent can make anyone fall in love. And they’re willing to use every secret Miel has fought to protect to make sure she gives them up.


PURCHASE LINKS

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
ANNA-MARIE MCLEMORE was born in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains and grew up in a Mexican-American family. She attended University of Southern California on a Trustee Scholarship. A Lambda Literary Fellow, she has had work featured by the Huntington-USC Institute on California and the West, CRATE Literary Magazine’s cratelit, Camera Obscura’s Bridge the Gap Series, and The Portland Review.


EARLY PRAISE FOR THE BOOK
*Longlisted for 2016 National Book Award’s Literature for Young People*

“With luminous prose infused with Latino folklore and magical realism, this mixes fairytale ingredients with the elegance of a love story, with all of it rooted in a deeply real sense of humanity. Lovely, necessary, and true.” Booklist, STARRED Review

“Luxurious language infused with Spanish phrases, Latin lunar geography, and Pakistani traditions is so rich it lingers on the tongue, and the presence of magic is effortlessly woven into a web of prose that languidly unfolds to reveal the complexities of gender, culture, family, and self. Readers will be ensnared in this ethereal narrative long before they even realize the net has been cast.” Kirkus Reviews, STARRED Review

A love story that is as endearingly old-fashioned as it is modern and as fantastical as it is real.” School Library Journal, STARRED Review

“This is a beautiful exploration of claiming your gender and identity, your body, and your name, and how best to support a loved one going through that process.”
B&N Teen Blog, “One of the Most Anticipated LGBTQ YA Books of the Second Half of 2016”

"McLemore dances deftly across genres, uniquely weaving glistening strands of culture, myth, dream, mystery, love, and gender identity to create a tale that resonated to my core.  It’s that rare kind of book that you want to read slowly, deliciously, savoring every exquisite sentence. I adored this book."
—Laura Resau, Américas Award Winning Author of Red Glass and The Queen of Water

"Lushly written and surprisingly suspenseful, this magical tale is not just a love story, but a story of the secrets we keep and the lies we tell, and the courage it takes to reveal our authentic selves to each other and to the world."
—Laura Ruby, Printz Award Winning-Author of Bone Gap

Saturday 24 September 2016

SERIES PROMOTION - THE SONG OF THE SHATTERED SAND BY BRADLEY P. BEAULIEU

Title: Of Sand And Malice Made
Series: The Song Of The Shattered Sand 
Author: Bradley P. Beaulieu
Genre: Fantasy
Release Date: 1st September 2015

BLURB from Goodreads
Çeda, the heroine of the widely anticipated, just-released novel Twelve Kings in Sharakhai, is the youngest pit fighter in the history of the great desert city of Sharakhai. In this prequel, she has already made her name in the arena as the fearsome, undefeated White Wolf; none but her closest friends and allies know her true identity.

But this all changes when she crosses the path of Rümayesh, an ehrekh, a sadistic creature forged long ago by the god of chaos. The ehrekh are usually desert dwellers, but this one lurks in the dark corners of Sharakhai, toying with and preying on humans. As Rümayesh works to unmask the White Wolf and claim Çeda for her own, Çeda’s struggle becomes a battle for her very soul.


PURCHASE LINKS

Title: Twelve Kings In Sharakhai
Series: The OF The Shattered Sand
Author: Bradley P. Beaulieu
Genre: Fantasy
Release Date: 1st September 2015

BLURB from Goodreads
Sharakhai, the great city of the desert, center of commerce and culture, has been ruled from time immemorial by twelve kings—cruel, ruthless, powerful, and immortal. With their army of Silver Spears, their elite company of Blade Maidens, and their holy defenders, the terrifying asirim, the Kings uphold their positions as undisputed, invincible lords of the desert. There is no hope of freedom for any under their rule.

Or so it seems, until Çeda, a brave young woman from the west end slums, defies the Kings’ laws by going outside on the holy night of Beht Zha’ir. What she learns that night sets her on a path that winds through both the terrible truths of the Kings’ mysterious history and the hidden riddles of her own heritage. Together, these secrets could finally break the iron grip of the Kings’ power...if the nigh-omnipotent Kings don’t find her first.


Goodreads Link

PURCHASE LINKS
Amazon US
Amazon UK

INTERVIEW
Could you tell us a little about The Song Of Shattered Sands Series, and your plans for it? ie. How many books will there be in the series?
The Song of the Shattered Sands series is an “Arabian Nights meets Game of Thrones” sort of tale. The twist is that, while it does have multiple points of view, it primarily follows a young woman named Çeda throughout the story, and shows how she stands up to the twelve immortal kings who rule the city state of Sharakhai with an iron fist. The first book, Twelve Kings, shows how Çeda first gets wrapped up in a storm that’s been brewing for four hundred centuries, ever since the Kings of the city made their dark bargain with the gods of the desert to ensure their rule over the city. Çeda becomes a prime mover in the new order as she fights to avenge her mother’s death at the hands of the Kings. But as the book goes on, we start to see a greater purpose for her, and she begins to fight for more than just herself.
The series as a whole will begin to reveal more about Çeda’s past, including what her mother was really up to on the night she died. And the scope itself will broaden slightly as more influence is brought to bear on a city that may be more vulnerable than it appears at first. It’s planned as a six-book series. The second book is written and turned in, and I’ve just started tackling the third book now.
Of Sand and Malice Made is a prequel novel that shows more of Çeda’s adventures in Sharakhai before we meet her in the opening pages of Twelve Kings. In it, we meet Rümayesh, an ehrekh, a sadistic creature forged long ago by the god of chaos. The djinni-like ehrekh are usually desert dwellers, but this one lurks in the dark corners of Sharakhai, toying with and preying on humans. As Rümayesh works to unmask the White Wolf and claim Çeda for her own, Çeda's struggle becomes a battle for her very soul.

Are the Cover Designs & Titles for the rest of the series already chosen? (& Who has/is designing the covers for you?)
The covers are being designed by the wonderful team over at Gollancz, though they’ve been kind enough to let me have a bit of input along the way. One of the things I’m glad we worked into the design itself is the “arch” theme we have going for the covers, a motif we’ll continue throughout the series. At this point, the first three books in the world (Twelve Kings, Of Sand and Malice Made, and the second book in the series, Blood Upon the Sand) have been developed. The others will wait until we have the story written.
 As for the designers, I believe it was Andrew Unangst for Twelve Kings and Laura Brett designed the cover for Sand and Malice.

Did you plan out the whole Series or are you planning and writing as you go alone wherever the plot & characters take you in each individual book?
A few years ago I was sitting on a panel with Scott Lynch, and he was talking about how a few different series, from Lois McMaster Bujold and Steven Brust, if I’m remembering correctly, looked at different aspects of a world in each of the books in a series. In other words, the books in the series were not simply one long arc broken up artificially by the book covers, but rather, different prisms through which the world was viewed. Scott said he’d adopted that same approach for his Gentlemen Bastards series (a series I highly recommend, by the way). In the first book, he had a major heist, a la Oceans Eleven, in the second book it was piracy on the high seas, the third book is about cheating in politics, the fourth book is about war, and so on.
That approach really spoke to me, so I’ve been using it as the series has progressed. The second book has yet to come out, so I’ll try not to be too spoilery, but suffice it to say that in the first book, Twelve Kings, I’m trying to show the heart of the city of Sharakhai, what it’s like now and why someone like Çeda would want to bring the Kings down. In the second book, we’ll see more about the Kings and the Blade Maidens who protect them. In the third book, we’ll head deep into the desert and learn more about the desert tribes who gave birth to Sharakhai. And so on.

Do you already know what happens, right up to the last word of the last book in the series?
I know what happens in broad strokes, yes, but I don’t know all the details. I know who ends up where, I know the outcome, but the specific incarnation of the grand finale and the path everyone took to get there, that’s where it gets more fuzzy. I’m firmly in the gardener camp (using George R.R. Martin’s architect vs. gardener spectrum). I’ve never been able to plot too heavily. I have to get moving into the book before I can really flesh things out and figure out where the book is going. That’s half the fun of writing, isn’t it?

What made you decide to have a “Prequel” in your series?
This is more luck and happenstance than anything else. I’d planned on writing a short story or two between Books 1 and 2 just to try to keep my name out there, boost the profile of the series, etc. The first of those stories, “Irindai”, sold to the Blackguards anthology from Ragnarok Publications  I then decided I wanted to continue that arc and wrote two more interconnected novellas. Together, they told a pretty cool story, I thought, and I was ready to self-publish the three of them together. I had the Kickstarter ready and was prepared to push the button to get it going, but about a week before, my US publisher, Betsy Wollheim, pinged me and asked what I was planning to do with it. I told her my plans but said it wasn’t written in stone, and we ended up working out a deal for DAW Books to publish it. 
I’m glad I tackled this project from the perspective of providing an easy entree into the series. It’s also acted as fodder for the series as a whole. The characters we meet in Sand and Malice are going to appear in the series and come into play over the course of the series. Just how, exactly, I’m not sure. But two of the characters have already made cameos in Book 2 and I’m planning on giving them larger roles in Book 3.
  
How long did it take you to write Of Sand And Malice Made, from the original idea to finishing writing it? Did it take longer to write than the full length books?
As it’s an arc of three tales, I wrote them over the course of a year, but intermingled with the drafting of Book 2, With Blood Upon the Sand, and other projects. Total writing and editing time was probably around four months, where the full-length books have taken me more like a year to write.

Is there anything in the series so far that you would change now if you could and what would it be?
No, not really. I’ve become better at letting a thing be what it will be. Once a book is written and out in the world, it doesn’t really pay to play the “what if” game, because in a sense, it’s no longer mine. Or at least isn’t mine alone. It belongs to the fantasy community as well. So I’ll let the books be and build upon them and see where the series goes as a whole.