Waiting on Wednesday (1)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

Days of Blood and Starlight by Laini Taylor

Publication date: November 6th, 2012

Publisher: Little, Brown Books

Series: Daughter of Smoke and Bone #2

Goodreads

In this stunning sequel to the highly acclaimed Daughter of Smoke and Bone, Karou must come to terms with who and what she is, and how far she’ll go to avenge her people. Filled with heartbreak and beauty, mysteries and secrets, new characters and old favorites, Days of Blood and Starlight brings the richness, color and intensity of the first book to a brand new canvas.

I have had the first book (Daughter of Smoke and Bone) standing on my shelf for a while now. I've heard so many good things about it, that I was a little reluctant beginning it. Why, you ask? Because then I would have to wait until the second book came out, and it would be AGONY. I don't like waiting, not at all. Especially not when waiting on a good book. 

But next week, it's finally here! 

And seriously, look at that cover. How beautiful can a cover be? I love it!

Release Monday - October (2)

OCTOBER 23, 2012

Beautiful Redemption - Kamie Garcia, Margaret Stohl
Caster Chronicles, #4

Is death the end . . . or only the beginning?

Ethan Wate always dreamed of leaving the stifling Southern town of Gatlin.

But he never dreamt that finding love with Lena Duchannes would drive him away. Lena is a Caster girl whose supernatural powers unveiled a secretive and cursed side of Gatlin, so powerful it forced him to make a terrible sacrifice.

Now Ethan must find a way to return to Lena - and Gatlin - as she vows to do whatever it takes to get him back. Even if it means trusting old enemies or risking their loved ones' lives.

Can Ethan and Lena rewrite their fate and their spellbinding love story in this stunning finale to the Beautiful Creatures series?

The Maelstrom - Henry H. Neff

The Tapestry, #4

The world is at the brink of ruin . . . or is it salvation? Astaroth has been weakened, and the demon Prusias is taking full advantage of the situation to create an empire of his own. His formidable armies are on the move, and Rowan is in their sights.

Rowan must rely on Max McDaniels and David Menlo and hope that their combined powers can stop Prusias's war machine before it's too late.

But even as perils loom, danger stalks their every move. Someone has marked Max for death and no one is above suspicion. Should the assassins succeed, Rowan's fate may depend on little Mina whose abilities are prodigious but largely untested. 

And where is Astaroth? Has he fled this world or is he biding his time, awaiting his next opportunity?

In the Tapestry's fourth book, author-illustrator Henry H. Neff boldly raises the stakes in an epic tale of mankind's struggle to survive in a world now populated by demons and demigods and everything in between!

Flutter - Gina Linko

All Emery Land wants is to be like any other 17-year-old—to go to school, hang out with her friends, and just be normal. But for as long as she can remember, she’s suffered from seizures. And in recent years they’ve consumed her life. To Emery they’re much more than seizures, she calls them loops—moments when she travels through wormholes back and forth in time and to a mysterious town. The loops are taking their toll on her physically. So she practically lives in the hospital where her scientist father and an ever-growing team of doctors monitor her every move. They’re extremely interested in the data they collect when Emery seizes. It appears that she’s tapping into parts of the brain typically left untouched by normal human beings.

Escaping from the hospital, Emery travels to Esperanza, the town from her loops on the upper peninsula of Michigan, where she meets Asher Clarke. Ash’s life is governed by his single-minded pursuit of performing good Samaritan acts to atone for the death of a loved one. His journey is very much entwined with Emery’s loops. 

Drawn together they must unravel their complicated connection before it’s too late.

John Howe - Cover Artist

John Howe

On the living room wall there was a pencil rendering of the Castle of Chillon, near Lake Geneva, done by my grandmother at age 19, before she embraced the more acceptable career of schoolmistress and never did another picture in her life…
I can’t remember ever not drawing. My mother would do her best to help with the more ambitious renderings, but around primary school age, her draughtsmanship was no longer up to my expectations. I remember bursting into tears of frustration when we both failed to draw a cow the way I wanted.
School itself was a mixed blessing; it seemed we always moved house at just the wrong time of the year, and l ended up in power mechanics, hating every minute, because naturally, all the non-academics too dull even for metal shop were already parked in art class… It was a handy skill in biology, though, where a friend and I would do rapid and rather creative rendering of microscopic water organisms for richer but less artistic classmates… at 50 cents a shot.
I collected paperbacks for the covers, and even read what was inside. Frank Frazetta assumed demigod status, and was the object of dozens of copies in oil pastel. This was before the Ballantine editions, so his paintings were only available on book covers. No musty second-hand paperback pile went unturned. Around the same time, Barry Smith’s Conan and Bemi Wrightson’s Swamp Thingmeant going into drugstores where I wouldn’t run into anyone I knew, buying kid’s comics too far into adolescence.
Around that time I read The Lord of the Rings, first The Two Towers, and then The Return of the King. It seemed that everyone who started the first volume never got any further, as it was by far the most borrowed of the three. I had to wait months to get it. The real spark came from the calendars, which showed me that it could be illustrated. I went through the Hildebrandt calendar, doing my own versions of the same scenes. Mercifully, none of these have survived, although there is a very dusty box under a bed somewhere…
A year after graduating from high school, I was in a college in Strasbourg, France, and the following year in the Ecole des Arts Decoratifs.
The first year was spent not understanding much, the second at odds with what I did manage to understand, and the third eager to get out, although in retrospect I certainly owe whatever clarity of thought I possess to the patience of the professor of Illustration.
Otherwise, my first years in Europe were a constant overdose on all forms of art and architecture, everything being simultaneously ancient and novel. All that catching up to do. Nothing I did from those years has survived, thank goodness, as scrupulously put it all in the trash at term end before heading back home to the summer job that would pay next year’s fees. The only exception must be “The Lieutenant of the Black Tower of Barad-dûr”, which, if not my first published piece, must certainly be the earliest.
It seems to me that a lot of my early commissions were nightmares – political cartoons, magazine illustrations, comics, animated films, advertising – starting one cover seven times, redoing sketches so many times there was nothing of mine left in them, wondering just how the devil I’d ended up in this profession. In the attic there is a huge box taped very tightly shut and marked DO NOT OPEN (EVER!!!) in wide-tip felt pen. I honestly feel no real urge to do so.
The other day we took a friend to visit the Castle of Chillon. It’s easy enough to find the spot to stand in my grandmother’s drawing. I wonder if we ever really make any choices of our own – so many years and miles to end up in a picture that was always there on the wall.

Examples:
(All these images are property of John Howe)

OFFICIAL WEBSITE

Some changes and new things!

Hi everyone!

I wanted to let you know that from now on we'll have a (semi) set schedule on the blog. I can't promise to post reviews on a set day, so those will just come up when I'm done reading and writing the review.
As for the rest, you'll see I have some new features prepared!

Ever Monday will be called "Release Monday" from now on. You'll find 12 new releases that are upcoming or recently released in that particular month. I've been doing this already, but more at random, so I thought it was time to pinpoint it to a certain day.

Every last Tuesday of the month is dedicated to a "Cover Artist". I've really enjoyed doing these posts so far and I think the Cover Artists are a really important part of a book, so they deserve to be put in the spotlight!






Every Wednesday I'll be participating in "Waiting on Wednesday" from now on, a weekly event hosted by "Breaking the Spine". I think this will be a great opportunity for me and for you to discover new books.








Every first Sunday of the month I'm participating in "In My Mailbox", hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren. I've been doing these for a while now, so this isn't that new.
Why only one every month? Well, I don't buy/receive enough books to give you guys an interesting post every week.








On all the free days there will be reviews and many different events.
I'm participating in a few Book Blasts and Blog Tours! This is very exciting for me, because although my blog is almost 1 year old, this will be my first experience with Blog Tours and the like.

Also, every month there will be 2 "Authors of the Month". This will put the spotlight on two particular author for a whole month. What does that mean? You'll find (a) review(s) for books these authors wrote, a release day party when a new book of them is released during that month (which I'm aiming for), an interview and a giveaway (if possible).

To end: I'm also participating in the "2013 Debut Author Challenge". I'll put up my list of books for next year somewhere in the next month.

Thanks everyone for visiting my blog and taking the time to read all this! I love you all!

Cindy

F.A.C.T.S 2012

On October 20th I visited the F.A.C.T.S Convention in Ghent, Belgium. It's the biggest SciFi/Comic/Anime Convention in the Benelux (Belgium, Netherlands, Luxemburg)! I brought along my fellow geeky soulmate as a partner in crime and photographer and we had a blast! Let me walk you through our day.

Seven Realms Week - Release Day Party!

RELEASE DAY!

Today is D-Day! "The Crimson Crown" hits the shelfs today!!
I hope most of you got their copy already or that you are getting it very soon. Mine should be on its way right about now! I'm super excited to find out what will happen to my favourite characters. I will miss the Seven Realms immensely after this book, but I'll reread the 4 books whenever I feel that Seven Realms pull!
But for now, let's all enjoy this amazing (which I know it will be) book!

Buy it now!
Amazon
The Book Depository

A thousand years ago, two young lovers were betrayed—Alger Waterlow to his death, and Hanalea, Queen of the Fells, to a life without love. 

Now, once again, the Queendom of the Fells seems likely to shatter apart. For young queen Raisa ana’Marianna, maintaining peace even within her own castle walls is nearly impossible; tension between wizards and Clan has reached a fevered pitch. With surrounding kingdoms seeking to prey on the Fells’ inner turmoil, Raisa’s best hope is to unite her people against a common enemy. But that enemy might be the person with whom she's falling in love.

Through a complicated web of lies and unholy alliances, former streetlord Han Alister has become a member of the Wizard Council of the Fells. Navigating the cut-throat world of blue blood politics has never been more dangerous, and Han seems to inspire hostility among Clan and wizards alike. His only ally is the queen, and despite the perils involved, Han finds it impossible to ignore his feelings for Raisa. Before long, Han finds himself in possession of a secret believed to be lost to history, a discovery powerful enough to unite the people of the Fells. But will the secret die with him before he can use it? 

A simple, devastating truth concealed by a thousand-year-old lie at last comes to light in this stunning conclusion to the Seven Realms series.


I thought some balloons were appropriate!

Seven Realms Week - Giveaway!

GIVEAWAY!

I have a little treat for you guys! I'm giving away bookmarks (some signed, some not) and signed bookplates!

Oh, and let it be clear, guys, I WILL check if you've actually completed all the rafflecopter "assignments". If you earned entries by cheating (as in: not doing what you were suppose to do to earn those entries), you will be disqualified!

Terms and conditions:

• If you want to enter, follow the instructions in the rafflecopter form below.
• Entrants must be 13 years of age or have parental permission.
• This giveaway is international!
• The winner(s) will be announced on this page in the rafflecopter form shortly after the conclusion of the giveaway.
• The winner(s) will be notified by email and will have 72 hours to reply or a new winner will be chosen.
• As to protect your privacy and prevent spam mail, please don't leave your email address in the comments section.
• I am not responsible for items lost in the mail.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Seven Realms Week - Characters and History

History of the Seven Realms 
(by Cinda Williams Chima)

The Seven Realms Series is set in a traditional fantasy world of medieval technology, swordplay, castles and keeps.

The action takes place in and around The Seven Realms—seven loosely-related realms once ruled by the Gray Wolf Queens and their wizard consorts or kings. The Seven Realms include the mountainous queendom of the Fells, the kingdom of Tamron, the kingdom of Arden, the southern kingdoms of Bruinswallow and We’enhaven, the Southern Islands, and the Northern Islands.

The Shivering Fens, a marshy country west of the Fells, have never been totally independent, having been claimed by Tamron and the Fells at different points in history. The Waterwalker people of the Fens consider themselves independent, and relations with the other Realms have been rocky.

At one time, all of the Seven Realms were ruled by the Gray Wolf queens, whose seat of power was located in Fellsmarch, capital city of the Fells. Fellsmarch is located in a high mountain valley or park known as the Vale. The Vale is situated high in the Spirit Mountains, home of the upland clans. Flatlanders to the south claim that both the Vale and the Spirits are infested with sorcery and dangerous magic. The mountain landscape is studded with hot springs and geysers, which moderate the harsh northern winters.


The Gray Wolf queens ruled in a loose alliance with the upland clans. The clans are practitioners of earth magic and masters of materials: they are masters of healing, medicines, and the makers of the amulets and other magical tools and weapons that allow wizards to use their power.

Wizards have native magical ability that must be collected and channeled through amulets in order to do sophisticated charmcasting. Targeted charmcasting also requires spoken spells.

Wizards are able to recognize the aura of magic in others with the gift, especially when it is unfocused and unchanneled by an amulet. A skilled wizard with an amulet continually stores accumulating power in his/her amulet, and is able to conceal his aura if he takes hold of his amulet. Non-wizards don’t see these auras.

The Line of Queens in the Vale have some magical powers—a kind of intuition and the ability to lead and motivate people. They may also have other powers inherited from a mixture of blood. There is a connection between the Gray Wolf queens and their totem, the Gray Wolf. Often the appearance of a Gray Wolf portends great risk and great opportunity—a turning point in the Line.

Eventually, the wizards rebelled and invaded the Fells, conquering its capital and enslaving the Gray Wolf queens through the use of powerful sorcery. The wizard conquerors subjugated the rest of the Seven Realms, but maintained the Gray Wolf line. They established a Wizard Council who chose a High Wizard who married the reigning Gray Wolf queen. That way no one wizard family became too powerful. Meanwhile, the clans maintained control of the Spirit Mountains, carrying out a constant guerrilla war against the wizard conquerors.

After years of rule by wizards through the king and the Wizard Council, a dispute arose among wizards regarding who would marry Hanalea ana’Maria, the princess heir to the Gray Wolf Throne and reign as the next king. The Wizard Council chose Kinley Bayar, a Council member, as High Wizard and king.

Alger Waterlow, a powerful young wizard trained in the dark arts, coveted Hanalea and the crown for himself. He ignored the Council’s choice and carried Hanalea off to his stronghold on Gray Lady. There he married her and proclaimed himself king. The Wizard Council assembled an army of wizards and marched on Waterlow. Realizing that his cause was lost, Waterlow used dark magic to damage the world beyond saving. This was called The Breaking of the World.

The world dissolved into chaos—earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions—and the Wizard Council realized they needed help or they would all die. They turned to the clans, who were masters of green magic. Hanalea served as go-between, forging the compromise between the Wizard Council and the clans known as the Nǽming. The Nǽming imposed severe restrictions on wizards and restored the Gray Wolf Line to power as stand-alone queens and established the system by which a wizard was chosen as High Wizard and counselor to the queen. These wizards were magically constrained to use their magic for the benefit of the queen and the queendom.

Wizards were required to give up their amulets and magical tools in exchange for tools which conferred temporary power, renewable by the amulet masters among the clans. This provided the clans with controls over wizards in future.

The queendom of the Fells thus consists of three major peoples: the Wizards from the Northern Isles, the Valefolk in the fertile Vale, and the clans, who are traders, craftspeople, and hunters in the mountainous regions.

Most residents of the Fells have continued to adhere to the Old Faith. They are monotheists, worshipping the Maker and avoiding the evil counterpart, the Breaker. In the Fells, the former Queens are treated almost as saints. It is said when a queen dies, her spirit occupies one of the peaks of the Spirit Mountains, which ever after is named after her. The ancient Queens help protect the Fells from its enemies.

After the disaster of the Breaking, the ancient alliance of the Seven Realms fractured. The kingdoms to the south fell into protracted strife and civil war.

In the Fells, the Old Faith continued, anchored by the temples where speakers taught about the duality of the Maker and the Breaker and the Spirit Mountains, where dwelt the dead and sainted Queens. An uneasy truce had been declared among wizards, the clans, and the Gray Wolf Queens, who were bound to the land and drew their strength from it.

In Arden after the Breaking there arose an influential speaker who aggressively pruned and shaped the ancient Faith in a new direction. Saint Malthus, as he was known, attributed the Breaking to the Maker’s displeasure with the charmcasters that had caused it. Magic, he taught, was not a gift, but the tool of the Breaker, and wizards were demons in his employ. The queens of the Fells had foolishly embraced this wickedness. Seduced by wizards, they were equally to blame for the Breaking. Queen Hanalea in particular was seen as a kind of beautiful witch—a seductress totally without scruples. Wizardry was forbidden under the teachings of the Church of Malthus, often punishable by death in the southern realms.

Characters of the Seven Realms

Hanson Alister

The former streetlord of the Raggers and one of the main protaganists of the series. Though a highly succesful thief, widely respected and feared, Hanson left the gang to protect his younger sister, Mari, from having to enter the same life. He supported his mother and sister through odd jobs afterwards, including playing delivery for Lucius Frowsley.

In truth, Han hails from the ancient Wizard House of the Waterlows and is a direct descendant of Alger Waterlow, also known as the Demon King. The last of his gifted descendants, Han has also inherited magical capabilities far surpassing those of his fellow wizards. He is also the hundreth cousin ofRaisa ana'Marianna.

Raisa ana'Marianna

Raisa ana'Marianna is Queen of the Fells and the daughter of Marianna ana'L'issa and Averill Lightfoot Demonai. Her younger sister is Mellony ana'Marianna, Hanalea ana'Maria is her distant ancestor and Hanson Alister is her hundredth cousin as well as one of her romantic interests. Raisa was always headstrong and fundamentally different from her mother, causing the High Wizard Gavan Bayar to see her as a threat early on.

Hayden Fire Dancer

Hayden Fire Dancer is one of the many supporting characters in the series and is Han Alister's best friend. He is of mixed blood - clan and wizard - a union that was not thought possible since wizards were forbidden by the Naeming to enter the camps. His mother is Willo Watersong, and his father is Gavan Bayer, which makes him the older half-brother to the Bayer twins, Micah and Fiona, as well as cousin to the Mander brothers. Han finds out about this whenCrow recognizes Dancer as a Bayar.
Fire Dancer is a male with an angular bone structure and heavy dark brows, with jarring blue eyes set into a bronzed face. He has commented that the resemblance to his father is very striking if one knows where to look for it.

Micah Bayar

Micah Bayar is the son of Gavan Bayar and twin brother of Fiona Bayar. He is a member of the Aerie House. Raisathoroughly hates him for plotting with his father and trying to steal her away from Oden's Ford. Even so, it is evident that she still has feelings for him, and that Micah has her interests in mind.

He possesed the Waterlow amulet before Han got it. He took it while going on a hunting trip with his cousins, father, the queen and the princesses, and was responsible for setting fire to the mountain Hanelea using the amulet. In a conflict with Han and Fire Dancer, Micah was forced to give the amulet up when threatened at arrow point. Upon meeting them again at Oden's Ford, he was shocked that Han and Dancer became wizards, choosing to believe that they cheated in order to get their powers.

Want a full list of characters? Click here!

Also, take a look at this Wiki, where I got the info for the characters!

Seven Realms Week - Crimson Crown Sneak Peeks

SNEAK PEEKS

Can't wait anymore? Are you dying to know SOME small clue about what's going to happen in the Seven Realms in this last book? I know I want to!

Read the first chapter HERE!

Whoesh, tension seems to be THE word describing  this first chapter. Poor Han and poor Raisa. I hope they can get out of this situation between the clans and the wizards. 

And take a look at the amazing trailer for "The Crimson Crown" below!

Want to know more about the person behind the "Crimson Crown" song? 
Check out his facebookpage here.

And here are some other little sneak peeks:

(You'll have to click on this on to read it properly, it's a bit to long to fit in the blogpost and still be readable)

Please, let it be tuesday already!!

Seven Realms Week - Author Day

Due to some delays with the mail, the giveaway has been rescheduled to monday! Check the schedule post for the changes (click on the SRW button on the right for all the SRW posts). 

Today's Author Day!

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Cinda Williams Chima grew up with talking animals and kick-butt Barbies. She began writing poetry and stories in third grade, and novels in junior high school. Her Heir Chronicles young adult contemporary fantasy series includes The Warrior Heir (2006), The Wizard Heir (2007), and The Dragon Heir (2008), all from Hyperion, with two more books forthcoming.
Chima's best-selling YA high fantasy Seven Realms series launched with The Demon King (2009), followed by The Exiled Queen (September, 2010) and The Gray Wolf Throne (August, 2011). The Crimson Crown is scheduled for fall, 2012.
Chima's books have received starred reviews in Kirkus and VOYA, among others. They have been named Booksense and Indie Next picks, an International Reading Association Young Adult Choice, a New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age, to the Kirkus Best YA list, and the VOYA Editors' Choice, Best Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror, and Perfect Tens lists. Her books also appear on numerous state awards lists. Both series are New York Times bestsellers.
Chima is a recipient of the 2008 Lit Award for Fiction from the Cleveland Lit and was named a Cleveland Magazine Interesting Person 2009. She lives in Ohio with her family, and is always working on her next novel.
Find Chima online at www.cindachima.com or http://cindachima.blogspot.com

Read my reviews for her Heir Chronicles books here:
The Warrior Heir
The Wizard Heir
The Dragon Heir
These books are amazing! If you loved the Seven Realms you should definitely read them too!


Interview

Do you have a favourite character from the Seven Realms series?  And a favourite book from the series?

That's like choosing my favorite son--and the answer to that depends on what they've been doing lately! Han Alister is a favorite--I have always loved handsome rogues, and he would qualify. For some reason I always find male characters easier to write--maybe because I've been surrounded by men for years (not random men, my family.) Cat Tyburn is another favorite--she is someone who doesn't suffer fools, and goes after what she wants. I knew Raisa ana'Marianna very well as an adult character in some of my unpublished work, and so it was fun to go back and imagine what she would have been like at 16. And it's been fun to follow her character arc over the four books as she transitions from naive princess to savvy queen. 

Is this the last book or do you want to revisit the Seven Realms again in the future?

This is the last book in this cycle, but I can easily see myself revisiting the Seven Realms. I love living in that world. 

What can we expect from this last book? Lots of emotions, action, love?

All of the above. Why stick to only one or two elements of conflict when you can have many? 

I read somewhere that you started writing an adult series, but then switched to a YA story. Will you complete this adult series some time? 

The adult series I began writing in this world is called the Star-Marked Warder. I had been reading George R.R. Martin's Song of ice and Fire back in the 90's and I was amazed at what he did with character. None of his characters were all good or all bad--they were all heroes of their own stories. And, yes, I would like to return to it and see what exactly I have, LOL

Why did you use Wolves as the reincarnations for the queens? Do you have a special bond with these animals?

Yes! I love wolves--predators at the top of the food chain. The Gray Wolf Queens' relationship with the wolves gives them an element of magic that would otherwise be lacking. 

Do you base your characters on actual people you know, or do you use some traits from friends or yourself to create a character?

When people ask me if I base my characters on real people, I say, of course--I have nothing else to work with! But I lift elements from several people to create one character. I think it's a mistake to closely model a character in fiction after a person you know--I don't think you can ever know as much about another person as you need to know about your characters. 

Thank you for this interview, Cinda! And thank you for introducing us to the Seven Realms!

Seven Realms Week - Cover Artists

We all know the covers of the Seven Realms books are always stunning. But who made those beautiful covers? And what about all the different editions?
Well, let's start with the US covers. These are all the work of a highly talented Cover Artist I have already made a blogpost about several months ago. Yes, my dears, I'm talking about Larry Rostant! He's one of my favourites actually, he makes the most beautiful covers for two of my favourite genres: Historical Fiction and, of course, Fantasy. If you want to read the post about Larry Rostant: click here.

As I have all the UK versions of the books, I'd like to talk a little bit more about the artist who made those covers. This illustration (you can find it below) isn't based on anything in the books, there is no such object in them. But nonetheless, it is beautiful! The person behind this drawing is Paolo Barbieri. He is an italien illustrator who has made some awesome cover drawings for a whole variety of authors and books. Want to know more about him? Visit his site here!




Here are a few examples of his art:

Let's take a look at all the different covers for the Seven Realms books.

The Demon King



From the left to the right, we have:

• The US cover by Larry Rostant
• The French Adult cover 
• The French YA cover 
• The UK cover by Paolo Barbieri (same as the Dutch and Polish cover)

These are the German covers (hardback left and paperback right) 

The Exiled Queen

From the left to the right, we have:

• The US cover by Larry Rostant
• The UK cover by Paolo Barbieri (same as the German and Spanish cover)
• The French Adult cover
• The French YA cover

The Gray Wolf Throne

From the left to the right, we have:

• The US cover by Larry Rostant
• The Dutch cover by Paolo Barbieri 
• The UK cover by Paolo Barbieri (same as the Polish cover)
• The French Adult cover
• The French YA cover

The Crimson Crown

From the left to the right, we have:

• The US cover by Larry Rostant
• The Dutch cover by Paolo Barbieri

I couldn't find any more covers for "The Crimson Crown", but I'm sure we will get to see them very soon! 

Seven Realms Week - The Seven Realms

So what's it all about? 

The Seven Realms series is high fantasy, set in the queendom of the Fells. Han Alister, a thief-turned-wizard joins forces with Princess Raisa ana'Marianna to defend her right to the Gray Wolf Throne. There will be four books in the Seven Realms series. The titles, in order, are The Demon King, The Exiled Queen, The Gray Wolf Throne, and The Crimson Crown.

There are many, many reasons why I adore the Seven Realms series so much. First of all: high fantasy is my favourite kind of fantasy. I love to discover entirely new, imaginative, strong worlds. I also have a thing for kick ass queens, courts, castles, magic and (how do I describe them correctly?) clan people (?). 

The Seven Realms has it all! 

And not only that, the writing is so captivating that you can't put any one of these books down. The story sticks with you, even long after you've finished it. Yes, it's one of those sticky ones (in a good way!). 

So why hesitate? This is one of the best Fantasy series I have read lately and I'm not that easily pleased. Go buy them! Read them! Join the Seven Realms!

If you haven't read the books, the blurbs for the second and third book will contain spoilers! So don't read them if you still have to read "The Demon King" (which you should). If you have read them all, refresh your memory here!

The Demon King

Publication date: October 6th, 2009

Goodreads

Amazon

My review

Times are hard in the mountain city of Fellsmarch. Reformed thief Han Alister will do almost anything to make out a living for his family. The only thing of value he has is something he can't sell - the thick silver cuffs he's worn since birth. They're clearly magicked - as he grows, they grow, and he's never been able to get them off.

One day Han and his clan friend, Dancer, confront three young wizards setting fire to the sacred mountain of Hanalea. Han takes an amulet from Micah Bayar, son of the High Wizard, to keep him from using it against them. Soon Han learns that the amulet has an evil history - it once belonged to the Demon King, the wizard who nearly destroyed the world a millennium ago. With a magical piece that powerful at stake, Han knows that the Bayars will stop at nothing to get it back.

Meanwhile, Raisa ana’Marianna, princess heir of the Fells, has her own battles to fight. She’s just returning to court after three years of freedom in the mountains - riding, hunting, and working the famous clan markets. Raisa wants to be more than an ornament in a glittering cage. She aspires to be like Hanalea - the legendary warrior queen who killed the Demon King and saved the world. But her mother has other plans for her - including marriage to a suitor who goes against everything the queendom stands for.

The Seven Realms tremble when the lives of Han and Raisa collide, fanning the flames of the smoldering war between clans and wizards.

The Exiled Queen

Publication date: September 24th, 2010

Goodreads

Amazon

My review

Haunted by the loss of his mother and sister, hunted by the powerful Bayar family, Han Alister makes a devil’s bargain with the clans. If they sponsor his schooling at Mystwerk Academy at Oden’s Ford, he will become their magical sell-sword against the power-hungry Wizard Council.

Han and his clan friend Fire Dancer undertake the dangerous journey south through war-torn Arden. Once in Oden’s Ford, it doesn’t take long for the smoldering feud between Han and Micah Bayar to kindle into flame. After several attempts on his life, Han knows he has to find a way to defend himself.

In the magical dream world of Aediion, Han meets the mysterious Crow, a wizard with a long-standing grudge against the Bayars. Crow offers to tutor Han in wizardry in exchange for his help. Han agrees, once again forced into a bargain he hopes he won’t regret.

Meanwhile, Han’s friends Fire Dancer and Cat Tyburn struggle with their own demons. Dancer is determined to become a clan flashcrafter, despite his charmcaster status. Cat carries a load of guilt, as the only survivor of the slaughter of the gangs in Ragmarket and Southbridge.

Resuming her disguise as gently-born Rebecca Morley, Princess Raisa ana’Marianna travels with her friend Amon Byrne and his triple of cadets to Wien House, the military academy at Oden’s Ford. There she hopes she will find both temporary sanctuary from a forced marriage and the education she needs to succeed as the next Gray Wolf queen.

Much of Raisa’s education takes place outside of the classroom. As she mingles with students of all classes from throughout the Seven Realms, she forges the kind of friendships that don’t happen amid the cut-throat politics of the Gray Wolf Court. She also struggles to deal with her attraction to Amon—an attraction he seems determined to discourage.

When Han Alister asks the girl he knows as Rebecca to tutor him, she agrees. The streetlord turned wizard with the complicated past fascinates her, and he makes it clear the interest is mutual. But Han blames Queen Marianna and the Bayars for the loss of his family. As their relationship deepens, Raisa suspects that if Han knew her true identity, he wouldn’t want anything to do with her.

The Gray Wolf Throne

Publication date: August 30th, 2011

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My review

Han Alister thought he had already lost everyone he loved. But when he finds his friend Rebecca Morley near death in the Spirit Mountains, Han knows that nothing matters more than saving her. The costs of his efforts are steep, but nothing can prepare him for what he soon discovers: the beautiful, mysterious girl he knew as Rebecca is none other than Raisaana’Marianna, heir to the Queendom of the Fells. Han is hurt and betrayed. He knows he has no future with a blueblood. And, as far as he’s concerned, the princess’s family killed his own mother and sister. But if Han is to fulfill his end of an old bargain, he must do everything in his power to see Raisa crowned queen. 

Meanwhile, some people will stop at nothing to prevent Raisa from ascending. With each attempt on her life, she wonders how long it will be before her enemies succeed. Her heart tells her that the thief-turned-wizard Han Alister can be trusted. She wants to believe it—he’s saved her life more than once. But with danger coming at her from every direction, Raisa can only rely on her wits and her iron-hard will to survive—and even that might not be enough.

The Gray Wolf Throne is an epic tale of fierce loyalty, unbearable sacrifice, and the heartless hand of fate.