Welcome to my Book Review Blog. My goal is to connect readers with the wonderful and amazing books I am blessed to reveiw. And to introduce you to the talented and wonderful authors responsible for writing these books. May my love for books show through my reviews on this site.
After Emery Duncan is abducted and dumped in a lake, private investigator Roman Wolfe and his bloodhound partner rescue her from an icy death. Someone doesn’t want Emery to find out what really happened the night her father confessed to attempted murder. To keep Emery and her baby nephew safe, they must uncover the connection between her father’s confession and the attack…or they’ll be silenced for good.
About the Author
Dana Mentink is a two time American Christian Fiction Writers Carol Award winner, a Romantic Times Reviewer’s Choice Award and a Holt Medallion winner. She is a national and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author of over forty titles in the suspense and lighthearted romance genres. She is pleased to write for Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense, Harlequin Heartwarming and Poisoned Pen Press.
More from Dana
Bloodhounds everywhere! I was thrilled to be offered a contract to write a WHOLE SIX BOOK SERIES with these amazing creatures and their private eye humans! Bloodhounds have been described as “noses with dog’s attached.” Isn’t that quaint? I hope you will enjoy reading about Wally. He’s a young dog who did not receive the proper training and he’s a tad…well…naughty. Good thing he’s got a handler who’s equally as stubborn. It’s a battle of wills between Wally and Roman and there’s plenty of room for fun along with the suspense. Bloodhounds, take it away!
When a massive earthquake levels the region, secrets and unknown dangers are exposed…
The ground in still-icy Yosemite National Park isn’t stable, and K-9 handler Von Sharpe fears the worst. But his worries are pushed aside when he sees an SUV viciously forced off the road…with his ex-fiancée at the wheel. It’s only when Stella Rivers steps out of the vehicle that the very ground under their feet cracks and breaks with the onslaught of a terrifying earthquake.
When her meeting with a mysterious client is ambushed, Stella witnesses the man being gunned down by a sniper and becomes a target herself. With the threat of aftershocks triggering landslides and floods, the new mom has no choice but to run to save her baby girl—even if it means teaming up with the man who has no idea he fathered her child.
Trapped in a dangerously unstable wilderness with a killer closing in, Von and Stella are running out of time to get to safety. And every fissure reveals a new secret that will shake them to their foundation.
MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK
Secrets! They will resurface at sometime. In Trapped in Yosemite, readers get to follow another K-9 team. K-9 handler Vonn Sharpe is uneasy when he witnesses an SUV driven by his ex-wife pushed off the road.
A special thanks to the author/publisher for a copy of this book. I am not required to write a positive review, the opinions here are mine alone. I am disclosing this with my review in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
Vonn Sharpe, a K-9 handler
Dana Mentink is a USA Today and Publisher’s Weekly bestselling author as well as a two-time American Christian Fiction Writers Carol Award winner, and the recipient of a Holt Medallion. She’s written over fifty titles in the suspense, lighthearted romance and mystery genres. She is pleased to write for Harlequin’s Love Inspired Suspense and Poisoned Pen Press.
More from Dana
I won’t ever forget October 17th, 1989. I was finished with my student teaching duties, chatting with my mother while we watched the World Series. It was an epic matchup of two Bay Area teams. As we watched, the floor lurched and the entire house began to rattle and pitch. We ran outside and watched the street undulate like ocean waves. We’d later come to learn it was a 6.9 earthquake on the Loma Prieta fault. The shaking only lasted 20 seconds but 63 people were killed, 3,757 were reported injured and 12,053 displaced. The damage estimates reached as high as $10 billion, with 18,306 houses leveled. Approximately 2,575 businesses were impacted and 147 were destroyed. The part I will remember most was the collapse of a section of the freeway in Oakland which trapped people in the pancaked structure. I remember watching the close space rescue teams work night and day to find survivors.
Little did I know that memorable event would someday lead to a book! This novel combines the iconic California setting of Yosemite and the big fear buried deep in every California’s mind…the big one, the massive earthquake we know will be coming someday. Of course you know there will be a happy ending in the novel, but I hope you will feel the edge of your seat suspense that keeps you turning pages. God bless you, dear readers!
Landry Hutton has spent three years rebuilding her life behind the secure gates of The Haven, an exclusive resort on the outskirts of Gossamer Falls, North Carolina. As the artist-in-residence, and with her pottery prized by The Haven’s guests, Landry is finally ready to settle in permanently. She wants to give her daughter, Eliza, a safe home to grow up in and hires former Marine Callum Shaw to handle the construction.Cal grew up in Gossamer Falls and always knew he would someday join his family’s business. He longs for a family of his own but has almost given up on that ever happening. Landry is funny, gifted, and everything Cal could ever want in a partner, but he vows to keep his distance. Landry has a daughter and a past. Cal has been down that road before and barely survived when the woman he loved left, taking her two sons with her. He can’t bear to lose like that again.Before construction on the house can begin, Landry’s pottery is destroyed in a suspicious fire. It soon becomes clear that Landry and Eliza are in grave danger–but because of whom? But, after losing one relationship, he is hesitant to try again.
Praise for Never Fall Again:”What a fabulous story with characters who will live in your head–and heart–long after the last word.” ~ Lynette Eason, award-winning, bestselling author of the Lake City Heroes series”Lynn Blackburn’s voice is unrivaled! A must-read.”
~ Elizabeth Goddard, bestselling author of Cold Light of Day“This book had it all–a delicious romance, obsession, found family, redemption and reconciliation, edge-of-your-seat suspense, and the kind of ending we all root for!”
~ Susan May Warren, USA Today bestselling and RITA Award-winning author
Never Fall Againby Lynn H Blackburn
March 4-29, 2024 Virtual Book Tour
Book Details:Genre: Romantic Suspense Published by: Revell Publication Date: March 12, 2024 Number of Pages: 352 ISBN: 9780800745363 (ISBN10: 0800745361) Series: Gossamer Falls, Book 1 Book Links:Amazon | Barnes & Noble | BookShop.org | Goodreads | Baker Book House
Gossamer Falls is the little town where the setting of Never Fall Again is set. It is a beautiful place for anyone to live. The members of the community are just the kind of people like I grew up with. Landry was busy with her pottery business, that is until a fire happened as well as vandalism that totally ripped Landry apart. Now, who would do this to her? Cal Shaw comes out to see what is happening and to make sure Landry is OK. With Cal, Landry soon finds out the entire family come to make sure everyone is ok from the fire. And as you read the book, you will throughly enjoy the funny things of this family. They know how to have fun, and they wanted Landry to feel the comfort. But this is enough of the family.
Cal and Landry were sweet but sometimes a little complicated when a twist or turn was thrown into the mix. With the things happening at the resort, could they really be directed at Landry and her daughter Eliza? This was a bit scary, especially if you are reading the book in the middle of the night and hear a car door slam!
I love this family, and this community and resort. Their attitude and personality help make this book the story it is. I’m trying not to say so much about the book and spoil it for you. I don’t like when that happens. If you love thrillers, mysteries, suspenseful acts throughout the book you will love this one. A special thanks to the author/publisher for a copy of this book. I am not required to write a positive review, the opinions here are mine alone. I am disclosing this with my review in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
Lynn H. Blackburn is the award-winning author of Unknown Threat, Malicious Intent, and Under Fire, as well as the Dive Team Investigations series. She loves writing swoon-worthy Southern suspense because her childhood fantasy was to become a spy, but her grown-up reality is that she’s a huge chicken and would have been caught on her first mission. She prefers to live vicariously through her characters by putting them into terrifying situations while she sits at home in her pajamas. She lives in Simpsonville, South Carolina, with her true love, Brian, and their three children.
This is a giveaway hosted by Partners in Crime Tours for Revell & Lynn H Blackburn. See the widget for entry terms and conditions. Void where prohibited.
The giveaway is for: a print edition of Never Fall Again by Lynn H Blackburn, a BookShop.org Gift Card AND a DIY Pressed Flower Clay Ring Dish Craft Kit.
The Recorder’s fate has been sealed, but the Consortium is not the only enemy.
Labeled an aberration by the Consortium, the Recorder is not yet free. Time is running out as an engineered bioweapon wreaks havoc on friend and foe alike.
Stopping both the biological agent and the people who created it is no easy task, especially since the Recorder and her friends are trapped on a research station infested with behemoth insects. Without Consortium technology, the probability of neutralizing the threat falls to nothing. In order to save her allies, the Recorder must activate a drone, but her success might destroy any hope for freedom, a future, and a name.
Now enjoy an interview with author Cathy McCrumb
1. Has writing fiction always been in your blood? Yes, I believe it has. Some of my first memories involve telling stories about my imaginary friend, Sally from Clap Hands Land, who “threw the man’s hat in the air,” a story that was much funnier before I was in kindergarten. Recently, I found mimeographed evidence that I was inquiring about submitting books to publishers back in college. After having kids, I stopped pursuing writing except in telling bedtime stories and social media posts. A friend pushed me to write a story about a dream I had, and since then, characters, plots, and themes have tumbled out.
2. Do you like music or silence when you write? I have five kids, with four still living at home, so silence is a rare commodity. (Teens, incidentally, seem to be nocturnal.) If it’s noisy, I need headphones and music. I create soundtracks of instrumental music for writing and playlists songs for thinking about character and plot.
3. Do your characters seem to hijack the story or do you feel like you have the reins? My characters hijack the story whenever they can. In Guardian, for example, there was a point in which the Recorder gives a command that was not in my mind when I planned out the scene. As soon as I typed the words, I cringed. I knew exactly what would happen, and it changed the course of that scene and had ramifications throughout the book. It was, however, exactly what she would have said and was much better than the basic idea I’d had.
4. Which scene was most fun to write? Why? Every time I sink into the scene and the words flow, that’s fun. Frequently, that involved anything with the Recorder and Nate or with the Recorder and Zhen. (Or Lars. I do love Lars.) Zhen DuBois is one of my favorite characters to write. She is prickly, rude, and deeply caring all at once. And Nate? Well, he’s Nate, a protector who has his own internal struggles.
5. Which scene, character or plotline changed the most from first draft to published book? Elliott Ross changed the most from the beginning concept to the end of Guardian. I didn’t like him at all when I wrote Recorder, but after a friend challenged me to examine why, I went back and studied him. Once I saw where he was going, Elliott became a favorite, and I hope that his arc resonates with readers.
About the Author
Cathy McCrumb graduated from Biola University with a degree in English Literature and a love for stories. She and her husband, whom she met while writing letters to soldiers, have five children and currently live within the shadow of the Rocky Mountains. While writing is one of her favorite things to do, she also enjoys reading, long hikes and long naps, gluten-free brownies and raspberries, and crocheting while watching science fiction movies with friends and family.
More from Cathy
Someone asked me recently why I wrote Guardian. My answer was that the whole Children of the Consortium trilogy is my love song to people who feel left out.
In the first novel, the Recorder—a young woman with no name, no family, and no friends—doesn’t see her life as valuable. As she discovers friendship and love, however, she realizes that every person in the system is unique, and this by definition must include her, too.
How often do we doubt our own value and that of the people around us? In a world that prioritizes youth, beauty, health, and success, many people are on the outside, looking in. I suspect that deep down, a lot of us wrestle with who we are and how we fall short of this external measuring tape.
The truth, however, is very, very different from the lie of worthlessness. While we have names (and don’t usually encounter two-meter insects, for which I am extremely thankful), we frequently forget that as humans, even though we are fallen, we are made in God’s image. Furthermore, as Christians, we have been both called and adopted.
Zephaniah 3:17 says that the Lord is with us. He takes “great delight” in us and rejoices over us. What an amazing, beautiful, and comforting image. The One who formed the stars, who breathed life into every human on the planet rejoices over YOU.
My prayer is that you find hope and joy in the midst of darkness, whether or not you find friends in the pages of these novels. Look to the Lord and hold fast to the fact that you are unique and valuable. Because even when you feel like you’re on the outside looking in, you are never alone.
Book Title: Vivienne in Paris by Maria Castellucci Moore Category: Children’s Fiction (ages 5 to 9), 38 pages Genre: Children’s Book Publisher: Mascot Kids Release date: May 2, 2023 Formats Available for Review: print-hardback (USA), e-book (PDF) Tour dates: Jan 8 to Feb 2 Content Rating: G. Suitable for everyone.
Vivienne in Paris follows a young Parisian girl on a journey through Paris to find what makes her tick. Join Vivienne as she discovers the sights, smells, tastes, and sounds of the city that make her feel alive. What better place to explore, observe, and delight in her senses than Paris?
This book tells a story of mindfulness and insight into how the surrounding world can really move you. It unites curiosity, wonder, and marvel to enlighten, surprise, and tickle your deepest spirit. Sometimes it’s the smallest things that bring you the greatest joy.
MY THOUGHTS ON THIS BOOK
Vivienne in Paris by Maria Castellucci Moore is the most precious book about a little girl named Vivienne. I so much enjoyed following Vivienne as she takes us on a tour of Paris, with such details as she describes each place she goes. What fun it would be to have someone like Vivienne as a guide through the beautiful Paris.
As I followed this sweet girl, I could feel the presence of the city, as well as taste the cuisine and hear the sights and sounds the city brings. The beautiful illustrations install even more in the minds of the readers just how fabulous this beautiful city is.
I’ve never been to Paris, but this beautiful book has me wanting to go. I think this would be a fantastic book for any child’s library, whether it be in a school room or library, or anywhere a child might be.
A special thanks to the author/publisher for a copy of this book. I am not required to write a positive review, the opinions here are mine alone. I am disclosing this with my review in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
Entrepreneur, first-generation American, writer, and mother to four children, María strives to bring passion and enthusiasm to all her endeavors. A lover of all things European, María has found great passion through her travels to Paris, Italy, Spain, and South America. Her affection for winemaking, foreign languages, the arts, ballroom dancing, and traveling has given María a unique and grateful perspective on life. Her love for her family and helping others through charitable giving has enabled María to thoughtfully curate purposeful life adventures.
María Castellucci Moore earned her bachelor of arts degree in finance from Dominican University on a tennis scholarship, and later pursued studying at New York University and the London School of Economics with a focus on global affairs. In 2016, with her siblings, María founded Castellucci Napa Family, a luxury wine and real estate brand. María runs her wine label and a family real estate development company in the greater Bay Area. She is a board member of the San Francisco Opera Guild and is enthusiastic about building opportunity and community through the arts.
Franz Maedler, an officer in the Wehrmacht, loses a leg in Stalingrad and is evacuated just before it becomes impossible to do so. He returns to a desk job with the Army General Staff in Berlin but is deeply conflicted. His father is committed to the Nazi cause, as seems to be his brother Friedrich. Yet his girlfriend Katrin is a devout Christian, as was his now-deceased mother, and his conscience is haunted by things he was a part of on the Eastern Front. He wants to marry Katrin, but she will not agree until he decides who he is and who he follows. Then, unexpectedly, a moment of crisis forces Franz to choose. Will he side with the cross or with the swastika? And what will it cost him?
And now Questions and Answers with the authors
• Why fiction instead of non-fiction?
• Stories are powerful. Our pastor’s most powerful sermons generally begin with the line, “The story is told…” Sometimes it’s the intro to a joke, sometimes a serious story to get us thinking. Jesus taught important lessons in parables. The story makes it memorable and has a way of getting into the heart that non-fiction doesn’t have. (Melinda)
• Most of what I write is actually non-fiction for my work (I am a political science professor). When Melinda and I first got married, we concluded together that it would be a lot of fun to work on a story together. We did not have the idea that led to Faces in the Window until 11 years later, and it was another 13 years before we started writing. Life with three kids was very busy, but we finally did it. She is the real fiction writer, and I came along for the ride. (Andrew)
• Do you like music or silence when you write?
• It depends on the situation. When I’m writing something deeply emotional, I’ll often listen to music that matches whatever emotion I’m trying to convey. Sometimes, music will help me get the flavor of the culture I’m writing about onto the page. If I’m writing a story set in, say, Ireland, I’ll put on one of my Irish folk CDs.
• Almost always silence, unless it is the Christmas season, in which case I will listen to my vinyl records of Christmas carols. (Andrew)
• How did you go about developing the setting(s) for this story?
• We had hoped to travel to Germany to research the setting for this book, but that was in 2020 and of course COVID made it impossible. Instead, we researched heavily. I found old maps of Berlin on the internet. We did lots of historical research in various WW2 texts. We also had a German friend read the story and give us her feedback. When she said that it felt like we had taken her back home, we knew we had been successful with our research. Still, I think we could have made it even better if we’d been able to make the trip we’d planned. (Melinda)
• Also, Melinda spent a year as an exchange student in Germany (though not Berlin), and we have visited a couple of times together, so we had a general sense of the country, and she is fluent in the language. (Andrew)
• Do your characters seem to hijack the story or do you feel like you have the reigns of the story?
• My husband never understood what I meant when I told him the characters had hijacked my story until he actually wrote this novel with me and experienced it for himself. Sometimes they refuse to do what I have planned for them. I’ve learned to follow their lead. When that happens, often it turns out better than what I planned! (Melinda)
• True enough. Melinda had always told me about how her characters would talk with her and take the story in their own direction, but I never really understood until we were writing this book together. Now I do. This is something that doesn’t much happen when one is wring non-fiction about, say, presidential elections. It wouldn’t do for me to tell my co-author “Hey, we need to change the narrative. John McCain told me he won the 2008 election after all.” It happened to us. For the most part, our characters followed our direction, but not always! (Andrew)
• Which scene was most fun to write? Why?
• I think the scene where Klaus Maedler invited his sons to dinner was the most fun to write. My husband and I were in Google Docs together, and we each took some characters and started writing the scene. We had a general idea of what we wanted to do, but the characters took over and it didn’t end up exactly as we’d planned. We had a lot of fun writing dialogue this way! Of course, then we had to go through the scene, choose a POV character, and make sure the POV was consistent throughout. (Melinda)
• Without giving away too much, either the dinner party hosted by Franz’s father, which Melinda talks about above, or Franz and Friedrich conspiring together to trick Franz’s superior into giving them a truck that they need. They both required strong, witty dialogue, and were both pivotal to the story.
Thank you Andrew and Melinda. I enjoyed reading more about you both and I know my viewers will as well. I look forward to what you have for your readers in the future.
About the Authors
Andrew and Melinda Busch were both born and raised in Boulder, Colorado, and were introduced in 1994 by their junior high school math teacher. They married in 1995 and have three grown children. They now live in Rialto, California.
Andrew teaches American government at Claremont McKenna College in southern California. He has authored or co-authored about two dozen books on American politics, government, and public policy. He received his Ph.D. in Government from the University of Virginia. Melinda is a freelance author who has published numerous short stories and children’s books. She received her Master’s degree in education from Concordia University-Portland. Faces in the Window is their first co-authored book.
More from Andrew and Melinda
We came up with the idea for our book after a trip to the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. in 2006, but didn’t start writing it until late 2019. The COVID lock-down gave us a lot of time at home to work on it.
Writing together was fun. Sometimes one of us would draft a section and the other one would revise it and then we would go back and forth until we were satisfied with it. Other times, when there was important dialogue, we would each pick a character, go onto Google Docs, and have the conversation in real time. We had to be sharp, since our characters often found themselves in a tight spot. Though we planned out the story, sometimes the conversations took on a life of their own, and things went in a different direction.
One of us is a poet and an author of children’s books, fantasy stories, and fan fiction, while the other is a professor who has written extensively about American government but has never before dipped his toe into the vasty depths of fiction. Together, we had a great time!
Haunted by tragedies and failures, Anargen and Jason each struggle to find their way. Night has fallen in the Lowlands and neither teen has an easy road ahead. In Anargen’s Era, Monarch Ilyron’s powers and influence grow, forcing Anargen and his dwindling list of allies to travel the length of the Lowlands in a desperate attempt to keep the Quest and all they hold dear from falling into ruin.
Jason meanwhile must find Aria and her grandfather to help unite the Knights of Light from across the Lowlands against his brother, Dorian. But agents of darkness and painful vestiges of his past mix with vindictive new enemies to make the hope of seeing the dawn of the longed-for King’s Day ever so faint. If either teen gives in and surrenders, doom will come swiftly on their world.
And now enjoy these interesting questions and answers with Author Brett Armstrong
1.Do you like music or silence when you write?
Answer: I like writing in both. Sometimes I need music to help put me in a creative mood, though most often music doesn’t immediately inspire me as I’m writing the literal words, so much as inspire the tone or evoke a theme for me that I later write into a passage. In particular, any time I hear “Lament for Father”, the theme music for Quest of Fire, I’m transported to the Lowlands and feel ready to traverse more of its moors and mountains.
That being said, quiet is probably the most conducive for me to be productive. When I’m alone and have a day off from work I can write thousands of words without feeling any pain for pressure. Those occasions are few and far between though so over the years I’ve gotten used to writing when I can in whatever circumstances I can. Writing time is a gift so I treasure any of it I get.
2. How did you go about developing the setting(s) for this story?
Answer: For Anargen’s era I knew the group would be nursing its wounds from what happened in Shadows at Nightfall, so I always imagined they would be moving kind of slowly, sticking to smaller towns while they tried to grapple with what they’d all just endured. So, that’s where Resurgence of Dawn opens for that era’s story arc. I also knew the group needed to reach Kirke, the grand capital city of Anargen’s homeland, but they again wouldn’t be strolling in. The dark forces of the world bore down on them all the harder during their weak moments, so I wanted settings that reflected that brokenness and despair.
In a lot of ways, Jason’s story in the Modern Era took on the opposite quality. Whereas Anargen’s was intensely zoomed in to him and those closest to him, Jason’s story has him traversing two thirds of the Lowland’s expanse by the story’s end. Some of the settings were meant to show how the locations in common between the two eras have changed. Others were meant to give a taste of the diverse collection of nations at play in Jason’s story, because the Lowlands in his era is heading towards a war that will shake every nation. Since it’s also Cinaed the Storyteller’s intention to bring the Defenders of all the Realms together to try to stop that war before it ravages the Lowlands, readers really needed to get that first sense of how big and bold that ambition will prove to be.
I’ve hinted for years that the Lowlands are so much bigger than readers have seen to this point and world-building is enormously important to me. This is the book that finally pulls back the curtain and lets readers see just how deep and expansive the story world will be.
3. Which character was most challenging to create? Why?
I think the most challenging character to handle well in this book is one who only appears briefly. I can’t really give too many spoilers about his role and what he does, but I’ve alluded in other books to elves being a “species” of the Lowlands. Like most of the creatures/species/races in Quest of Fire, my take on them isn’t exactly the same as what’s most commonly depicted in current fantasy. Which makes it tricky, because there are reader expectations. And when you start to consider all the myriads of portrayals and expectations people have for elves and what they’re intended to symbolize in Quest of Fire, it took a lot of care. Add to that the very limited space he’s appearing in and it made including him a little bit daunting. But I think, especially for the importance of elves to the final books, it was worthwhile.
4. Your favorite thing about writing?
It’s hard to describe. When I’m writing a story, it’s a lot like how I feel when I’m reading a book and then re-read it multiple times. Seeing the story come together and then with each new scene, understanding how it all blends and links together to fill in all the spaces more and more clearly is so rewarding. Likewise, I’m a huge fan of foreshadowing and depicting an arc or theme through parallelism across the story and its motifs. It’s that sense of pieces fitting into place and making sense and creating something more beautiful and compelling than any one piece on its own that really gets me. Which is one reason I love Scripture and how you can see the expanse of God’s work with mankind weaving together through the Old Testament threads and coming together in a tapestry that ultimately depicts Christ and then the way all those threads from Genesis to Revelation culminate in the most incredible story one could ever read. Any time I reflect that kind of storytelling in my writing, I feel like I’m being a faithful servant and useful instrument for my Creator.
5. Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal with bad or good ones? Do reviews influence your writing?
I know a lot of authors advise against it, but I do read all of the reviews for each book. At least the ones I’ve come across. I understand why some authors don’t read them, but for my part I feel like it’s pretty important to get a sense of how others perceive the story. Some reviews you can just tell it wasn’t someone the book was ever going to appeal to no matter how well written, but others have useful insights. I kind of apply the same rule of thumb to reviews as I do to critiques in writing workshops, source all the comments but then find the consistent points across them and those are things that likely did work well or that could use some fine tuning. Shadows at Nightfall got really positive comments around the creativity of the battle scenes present in the book, but I also got some criticism around how many battle scenes appeared in the book overall. I took that to heart and tried to be extra conscious as the story unfolded in Resurgence of Dawn to not fixate on the battle portions and to use them more sparingly. So, I read them and try to improve however I can, though ultimately every story is a journey and my prayer is always that ultimately it is the Lord Who is leading me. Thank you Brett for answering these questions for us. As for me, I’m not a fantasy or SciFi reader, but many in my family are. Reading the info here about this new book, I can see where it will be a favorite of those who write it. So go out and check on this book. It just might be your next read.
About the Author
Brett Armstrong has been exploring other worlds as a writer since age nine. Years later, he still writes, but now invites others along on his excursions. He’s shown readers haunting, deep historical fiction (Destitutio Quod Remissio), scary-real dystopian sci-fi (Day Moon and Veiled Sun), and dark, sweeping epic fantasy (Quest of Fire). Every story is a journey of discovery and an attempt to be a brush in the Master Artist’s hand. Through dark, despair, light, joy, and everything in between, the end is always meant to leave his fellow literary explorers with wonder and hope. Always busy with a new story, he also enjoys drawing, gardening, and spending time with his wife and son.
More from Brett
Resurgence of Dawn takes the main characters, Anargen and Jason, and those they care deepest about through some intense trials. Everything seems to be falling apart around them and each character has a mountain of guilt weighing down on top of them. They know that their mistakes in Shadows at Nightfall enabled the forces of darkness to advance their evil campaign. The lives of others they cared about were lost or endangered and the Quest is overlooking the precipice of failure and ruin. They have repented of their errors and turned back onto the path of light but these consequences still haunt them. And in that haunting lies a continuingly heinous fear that they will falter again. Things are only complicated further when trusted allies abandon and betray them.
Epic fantasy stories are often filled with darkness, but the best of these stories show that the light is never so far away as we imagine. When I write the entries in this series, I’m acutely aware that in our world too it seems as if darkness is winning the war. It’s my sincere hope that as readers encounter the perseverance and surrender to the High King’s will that Anargen, Jason, and so many other characters choose to pursue, they will be encouraged to do the same in our world. I have watched friends fall away from the faith, been buffeted by the storms of life, and been battered by the continual assault on my faith that come from living in our fallen world. I know others have endured the same and often far worse. So, if these stories of Knights and valor and steadfastness as the world crumbles can encourage one person to pursue the Light and hold fast to the Way, the Truth, and the Life; then every hour spent in dreaming and drafting and agonizing over edits is worth it to me. Stories can and should entertain, but they should also inspire and encourage readers to face the real world when the story ends. All the more, because “the night is far gone; the day is at hand.” *
To celebrate his tour, Brett is giving away the grand prize package of a $50 Amazon gift card, copy of Resurgence of Dawn, and digital extras (exclusive map and music)!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.
splashesofjoy 