Blog Tour--T. J. Young and the Orishas: The Gatekeeper's Staff (Book 1)

T. J. Young and the Orishas: The Gatekeeper's Staff  is book one of a series by Antoine Bandele.  I was delighted to be chosen for the blog tour by Shealea of Caffeine Book Tours.  As I've said elsewhere on this blog,  I consider myself a student of all religions including the Orisha religions.  The Orishas are worshiped in a number of Caribbean spiritual paths as well as in Brazil. 

 I do have to say that the last time I mentioned the Orishas on this blog was in 2018 when I reviewed The Black God's Drums by P. Djèlí Clark here.

                                       

The figure on the cover looks like he could be a teen-age image of the Orisha known as Olokun who is supposed to have been chained under the sea.  There are chains surrounding this underwater figure. Yet the novel is called The Gatekeeper's Staff.  The Orisha of doors and gates is Eshu who is as prominent in this novel as Olokun.  

There are a number of other Orishas who are mentioned in this book including a few who I needed to look up on Wikipedia because I wasn't familiar with them.

One of the Orishas that I needed to look up was Olosa, the Orisha of lagoons.  Some say that Olosa's messenger is an alligator and others that it's a crocodile. There are differences between alligators and crocodiles that aren't particularly relevant to this review.

I took author Antoine Bandele's quiz about which Orisha I'm aligned with.  The quiz can be found on Bandele's website here . My quiz result was that I'm aligned with Orunmila, the Orisha of wisdom according to Bandele.  Others believe that the Orisha of wisdom is Obatala.  See this You Tube video here. 

I went along with Bandele's idea that his adolescent protagonist, T.J., was himself a new Orisha.  Some readers might find this view problematic or incomprehensible.  The concept that there are new Orishas, or that a human being could be an Orisha would be unthinkable in certain spiritual approaches.

I enjoyed  reading The Gatekeeper's Staff.  It is my hope that T. J. Young and the Orishas will be a long and successful series.

                              

 

 

 

 

 

 

Unicorn Hunting: Blog Tour and Review #UnicornHuntingTour @CaffeineTours

 

 Synopsis

Caught between her family’s expectations and her own conscience, reluctant unicorn hunter Caoilinn “Cal” Valderan questions the morals of slaying these mystical creatures, and finds herself in a position where she must choose between them and humanity… In this coming of age story, Cal must not only defend her principles and values, but also figure out her crush on the girl next door, as she finds herself caught in a battle between light and darkness, but she must find answers to what others dare not even to question.

 

                                       

GENRE:  Young Adult, Fantasy

PUBLICATION DATA: March 19, 2016

PUBLISHER:  Self-Published

Add this book on Goodreads

Purchase on Amazon 

 

FAVORITE QUOTE

 "I'm proud to be seen with someone who fought bravely"

This quote represents my feeling that veterans of all combat, just or unjust, deserve respect. 

                                                                 

                                                               REVIEW

I love Caffeine Book Tours.  The last one I did was the most viewed post in the entire history of this blog.  That post can be found here.  I was hoping to be approved for another Caffeine Book Tour, and was delighted when it turned out to be Unicorn Hunting by A. R. Hellbender.  I've been hankering for a new approach to legendary unicorns.  So I was glad to receive an advance reader's copy from the author and Caffeine Book Tours.

Stories of unicorns are clothed in the symbolism of the sacred.  There is the whiteness of unicorns signifying purity and the association of unicorns with virgins which reminds those religiously inclined of the Virgin Mary.   

A.R. Hellbender strips away this spiritual facade and imagines what it would be like if unicorns were a real species in a world where magic exists.  What is the origin of unicorns? How do they reproduce? What significance would unicorns have for humans?  How would humans treat them? Is hunting a unicorn any different from hunting any other animal species?  Unicorn Hunting seeks to answer these questions from the perspective of a young unicorn hunter.

In my world the name "Cal" is short for Calvin.  So I began this book struggling with cognitive dissonance because the protagonist Cal is female.  Since I was reading a novel that  overthrows stereotypes about unicorns, cognitive dissonance was good for me.  It made me feel off balance so that I would be more receptive to the unusual. 

The thoughtful world building, character growth and development of relationships made Unicorn Hunting a singular epic fantasy for me.  

                                       A. R. Hellbender

A.R. Hellbender is the author of Unicorn Hunting and Unicorn Revenge. She lives in Washington with two cats, three dogs and a gecko.

                                                    

                                  

  For additional information:

 https://caffeinebooktours.wordpress.com/2020/10/06/unicorn-hunting-tour

 

                                                 

 

War of Mist: Blog Tour, Review and Excerpt From Last Book in YA Fantasy Trilogy

Welcome to my second Caffeine Book Tour post.  My first was the tour for Dreamer by Ja-Mel Vinson which can be found here.  It's so far been my most viewed 2019 post on this blog.  Here's hoping that this post for War of Mist by Helen Scheuerer is also successful.

I was generously provided with free copies of the entire Oremere trilogy by Helen Scheuerer so that I could get caught up on the previous books before reviewing War of Mist.  I reviewed Heart of Mist here and Reign of Mist here.

For this blog tour post, I am providing an excerpt as well as a review.  Below is an excerpt from the prologue of War of Mist.

                                  

Title: War of Mist
Author: Helen Scheuerer
Publisher: Talem Press
Publication Date: July 15, 2019
Genres: Young Adult, Fantasy

Synopsis:
War is here.

Toxic mist drives all life to the brink of destruction and the conquerer queen, Ines, has her talons in the kings of the realm.

Bleak, having discovered her true heritage, must now scour the lands for the one thing that might save them all.

But the search is a treacherous one, one that will push her to the very limits of endurance.

Amidst secrets, lies and the intricacies of battle, Bleak and her companions learn just how far they'll go for the ones they love.  But will it be enough.

As deadly forces grapple for power across continents; families, friends and allies unite to take one final stand.

Explosive revelations, heart wrenching betrayals and breathtaking magic soar in the epic conclusion to Helen Scheuerer's bestselling trilogy, The Oremere Chronicles.

Goodreads — https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/44780383-war-of-mist

                                                                      EXCERPT

 Now, a pair of great doors greeted her. Valian oak, carved by a talented sculptor, the elaborate scrollwork and open books signposting the castle's original library.  She ran her fingers across the design, tracing the detailed lines of the work. Ashai folk before her had done the same; she could feel a lingering trace of their magic in the grain of the wood.  Their power tickled her fingertips, but there was not enough to collect.  Not enough to sate that roaring hunger for more within her.

Beyond the doors, a different power thrummed.  The power of Casimir's damned amulet.  She opened the doors and entered the library.  It was somewhere in here.  She could feel it.  Its magic, and a kernel of her own within it, taunted her.

With a furious flick of her hand, dozens of books shot from the shelves and scattered across the stone floor.  With another sharp gesture, an entire shelf collapsed into rubble.  The strange magic pulsed just out of reach, as though some sort of barrier stood right before her face.

She let out a strangled cry of rage.  The amulet was here.  And she would find it, long before they could use it against her. 

Copyright 2019 Helen Scheuerer

                                                                 REVIEW

I found War of Mist faster paced with more emphasis on action than the earlier books in the trilogy. Sometimes it seemed as if the characters were racing toward their separate destinies.  The faster pace is dictated by the story that's being told in this novel.  It's a war for the souls of the peoples in Scheuerer's world.  It would be difficult for the stakes to be any higher.  My choice to read the previous novels in the trilogy allowed me to fully understand the price of defeat.  I definitely wouldn't recommend skipping those books and starting with War of Mist.

Another good reason not to start with War of Mist is that lack of background on these well-drawn characters will mean that you won't appreciate some intensely moving scenes that had tremendous impact on them.  I said in my review of Reign of Mist that I thought that characterization is Scheuerer's greatest talent.  So you won't want to miss two novels worth of character development.

After successfully completing her first trilogy, this author has a choice of future directions.   I hope she chooses to explore new territory in some form--a different sort of character, a theme that she hasn't previously addressed, a new aspect of her world, or even an entirely new context.  Authors can expand their audience when they take a fresh approach.  So I would recommend that she should take full advantage of this opportunity to do that.
                                


                                                    Helen Scheuerer

 Author Information

Bio:

After writing literary fiction for a number of years, Helen Scheuerer was inspired to return to her childhood love of fantasy thanks to novels like Throne of Glass, The Queen's Poisoner and The Queen of the Tearling.

Helen is also the Founding Editor of Writer's Edit, an online learning platform for emerging writers.  Writer's Edit reached thousands of new authors, and soon became its own small press with Helen overseeing the production and publication of three creative writing anthologies.  It's now one of the largest writing websites in the world.

Helen now lives by the mountains of New Zealand and writes full time.  She has many more books planned for the future.

Author links:

Author website and newsletter-- http://helenscheuerer.com
Goodreads--https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9898249.Helen_Scheuerer
Instagram--http://www.instagram.com/helenscheuerer/
Facebook--https://www.facebook.com/helenscheuererauthor
Twitter--https://twitter.com/HelenScheuerer 

                                                       
Here is the link to the blog tour launch post:
https://shutupshealea.com/2019/07/15/war-of-mist-tour/



                                         Invitation to Twitter Chat

The twitter chat on War of Mist is hosted by Caffeine Book Tours @CaffeineTours on Twitter. It's spoiler free, so participants don't need to have read any of the Oremere books.

The twitter chat #CBTTC has been unavoidably postponed and will now take place on August 3, 2019 at 9 am EST.

                                            

The Eldritch Heart--Blog Tour and Giveaway

The Eldritch Heart
Matthew S. Cox
Published by: Curiosity Quills Press
Publication date: August 1st 2017
Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult

Princess Oona Talomir enjoys the little things that come with her station: a handmaiden, her lavish bedchamber, and scores of fancy dresses―the duty to win a decades’ long war, not so much.
Oh, did I mention assassins?
Seers foretold the conflict would end by her hand. From the moment she drew her first breath, the neighboring kingdom has been trying to kill her so she could not grow powerful enough to destroy them. The king, fearing for his daughter’s life, has kept her confined to the castle grounds for most of her sixteen years. With the tide of war turning against them, the burden of her crown becomes too much to bear, yet one thing lifts her spirits amid the gloom.
Her servant girl, Kitlyn.
Alas, in a kingdom obsessed with the god of purity, she is terrified to confess her forbidden love. When her father makes a demand she cannot abide―marry a prince to forge a military alliance―Oona panics. He is handsome and honorable, but he’s not Kitlyn. Unable to admit why she cannot obey, Oona does the only thing she can think of, and runs away.
Alone and unprepared in the wilderness, she prays the gods will let Kitlyn find her—before the assassins do.

Goodreads / Amazon

Author Bio:
Born in a little town known as South Amboy NJ in 1973, Matthew has been creating science fiction and fantasy worlds for most of his reasoning life. Somewhere between fifteen to eighteen of them spent developing the world in which Division Zero, Virtual Immortality, and The Awakened Series take place. He has several other projects in the works as well as a collaborative science fiction endeavor with author Tony Healey.
Hobbies and Interests:
Matthew is an avid gamer, a recovered WoW addict, Gamemaster for two custom systems (Chronicles of Eldrinaath [Fantasy] and Divergent Fates [Sci Fi], and a fan of anime, British humour,and intellectual science fiction that questions the nature of reality, life and what happens after it.  He is also found of cats.

Website / Goodreads / Facebook / Twitter

Scroll down below my review for the blog tour wide giveaway of a $25 Amazon gift card.

Review

The first thing I need to say about this book is that it's entertaining with engaging central characters and intriguing plot twists.  I want novels that are page turners like this one, but I also want them to be more than that.   I want originality and important ideas too.

I once observed in another epic fantasy review that originality is synthesis.  It's the process of combining elements from a variety of sources so that they coalesce into a new fusion of themes, plot motifs and characters.  This is what I think Matthew Cox has done in The Eldritch Heart.  I recognized savory bits from the work of such authors as J.R.R. Tolkien, Marion Zimmer Bradley and Stephen Donaldson melded into a distinct recipe.

I requested a review copy of this novel and a slot in the blog tour because a lesbian protagonist is still relatively unusual in epic fantasy.  So I thought The Eldritch Heart  might need my help to reach its audience.  Oona could be an inspiration to those who need her in their lives. 

Once I read the book, I realized that it also deserved my support for another important reason.   Fantasy and science fiction author Jane Lindskold had complained at a reading which I attended a number of years ago that epic fantasy has a strong anti-democratic tendency.   She thought that American fantasy authors shouldn't be uncritical cheerleaders for monarchy and aristocracy.  So I noticed when Matthew Cox seemed to be questioning some of the values of traditional epic fantasy without completely overturning them. The plot actually resembles a Mark Twain classic in some ways.  I won't say which one.  That would be a spoiler.

I feel that I need to mention the use that The Eldritch Heart makes of the name of  Ogun , a spirit who is worshiped widely in a number of African diasporic traditions.  Some might think that this is disrespectful. Yet it's also possible that others might see some similarities to attributes of the African Ogun in Cox's character, and have no problem with it.  Readers will need to decide for themselves on this issue.  If you are an adherent of an African diasporic religion, you have the option of consulting Ogun yourself.

I enjoyed reading The Eldritch Heart for its plot and character relationships.  I also thought that it explores some important themes.  I considered it a good read.

  

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