So one of my favorite genres is fairy tale retellings. Which is strange because I really value originality in my fiction. (It’s one of the reason’s that fan fiction doesn’t impress me much.) But sometimes having a formulaic plot to adhere to really lets the author shine by putting more of their energy into producing original characters and unique worldbuilding. (Actually I’m currently writing a fairy tale retelling.)
So when my friend RJ was looking for people to share the cover of her new frog prince retelling I jumped on it. RJ Conte is an amazing author who has a talent for writing relatable characters. I can’t wait to see what she brings to this timeless story.
Kiss a frog and get a dreamy prince – every princess’s recipe for happily ever after… right?
Not for Revelle, second daughter of the king of Aileh. This girl’s got no time for marriage. She’s got a secret dream of being queen.
When a mischievous Fairy brings a reluctant Revelle a prince cursed to be a frog, the princess does her duty and kisses him, but then she wants him gone. However, he’s a visiting royal far from home, and he has his eyes on winning her hand. She’s got to admit the handsome blond dude isn’t hard on the eyes, but she’s got other plans in the works – like convincing the council to be open to the idea of a female monarch next year when her father retires. Leon, former frog prince, seems to be turning out to be an eager ally, but his ideas about how their enemies in Fairy Reservation are being treated are messing with Revelle’s head. Seems like being queen AND getting the guy is impossible – or is it?
RJ Conte has kissed only one boy in her entire life – and she married him – inspiring her to write about sweet or powerful love stories ever since. She writes issue-driven fiction that explores human nature and the depths of the soul while pointing readers to their Creator.
This is a bit early, a few weeks back I help with a cover reveal for a book titled Amok. I said in the reveal that the release date was June 24th, but that date was moved up to June 1st. So I decided to move my review up accordingly Good news tough, the pre-order pricing stays in effect until the 24th. So grab it now before the price goes up.
Surprise lockdown launch!
In light of Malaysia’s not-so-surprising Total Lockdown, Teaspoon Publishing has pushed up the release date of Amok for a surprise lockdown launch!
Yes, Amok ebooks drop on 1 June* as Malaysians hunker down at home—and you get to benefit! We’ll still honour our launch prices, so our ebook preorder prices of USD2.99 will remain until the 23rd of June and will rise to USD4.99 on 24 June.
We’re currently in the process of approving paperback editions via Amazon’s POD and IngramSpark, so you’ll be able to get that once the book goes live at totally random times during the month! (You can tell we’re just winging it right now, can’t you?)
And while we’re at it, send a screenshot of your Amok purchase receipt (whether ebook or paperback) to admin@teaspoonpublishing.com.my by 24 June to claim a free ebook copy of The Painted Hall Collection!
All Putera Mikal wants is to gain the Amok Strength, the supernatural power granted by Kudus to the Mahan royal family. No matter how religiously Mikal keeps his vows, Kudus still denies him the Strength—whilst his father, Sultan Simson, flaunts the Strength despite his blatant defiance of the Temple and the priests’ visions of coming doom.
Then the prophecies come true.
Taken captive, Mikal must find a way to liberate his people and restore his throne in Maha—and the key to this is the Amok Strength. But what does it take to gain Kudus’ favour?
Dive-In Review of Amok
Amok by Anna Tan is a fantasy reimagining of the story of Sampson from the Bible. But this isn’t a straight retelling, Sampson is more of a frame work to tell the story of Mikal the son of the Sampson stand-in.
The story has a wonderful message about what it means to have faith. Mikal has none of his fathers amazing strength, leading him to question time and again what Kudos (God) wants from him. Why is his faith not enough? A question that I’m sure many people of faith struggle with. (I know I do.)
I really loved Mikal’s character. He has great motivation and his story, is compelling. He goes from being a prince to a slave, and I just couldn’t help feeling for him. He goes on such an inner journey throughout this story that Mikal really does feel like a different character by the end.
The secondary character of Yoshua was just as compelling. He goes from being Mikal’s servant to his new master. He is not the POV character so his arc feels more static, but even second hand you can still see how the plot shapes who he becomes.
Seeing their relationship flipped on its head gives the story a nice sense of symmetry.
The world building is a stand out feature of this book. Set in an Asian inspired fantasy world, the kingdoms of Maha and Bayangan are really fleshed out and I feel like I could crack open a history book and learn about them.
The part of this book that stands out the most is that it has no romance at all. It was super refreshing to read a story without a will they won’t they subplot. The character’s in this story literally had much bigger problems.
If you’re looking for something different from the typical medieval European fantasy then I highly recommend checking out Amok.
*Many thanks to the author who let me read an advanced copy of this book. This review is my own honest evaluation of the material.*
About the Author:
Anna Tan grew up in Malaysia, the country that is not Singapore. She is interested in Malay/Nusantara and Chinese legends and folklore in exploring the intersection of language, culture, and faith. Anna has an MA in Creative Writing: The Novel under a Chevening scholarship and is the President of the Malaysian Writers Society. She can be found tweeting as @natzers and forgetting to update annatsp.com.
Today I am hosting a cover reveal for The King’s Spell. This book is the first in a new series by E.J. Kitchens. The Realm and Wand series. This book also takes place in her Magic collectors universe, So if you’ve been following her magic collector book then you should like this addition.
I’m sure you’re tired of suspense so lets open right with the cover:
Only a king can banish sorcerers and strip enchanters of their power. Only a king is immune to spells and potions. Only a king knows the truth behind the legends. Until now.
Magic Collector Devryn Ashby may have deserved the curse that saps his magic-manipulating abilities, but it certainly won’t help him with the task King Reginald has assigned him. Instead of allowing him to continue hunting for those who stole the powerful Enchanter’s List, the king makes Devryn trainer-in-magic to the mischievous enchantress Lady Meredith Lofton.
Except for an occasional matchmaking exploit, Lady Meredith has little use for her power of enchantment—until the king asks her to train in magical warfare techniques. This both excites and terrifies her. And irks her, for she refuses to be bossed around by the critical Devryn Ashby, a man she’s not even sure she should trust.
But as dangers increase and the sorcerers’ schemes unfold, Devryn and Meredith must choose whom to follow—their own desires and prejudices or their king. Only a king knows how much the kingdom depends on their choice.
About the Author:
E.J. Kitchens loves tales of romance, adventure, and happily-ever-afters and strives to write such tales herself. When she’s not thinking about dashing heroes or how awesome bacteria are—she is a microbiologist after all—she’s enjoying the beautiful outdoors or talking about classic books and black-and-white movies. She is a member of Realm Makers and lives in Alabama.
A couple weeks ago I hosted a cover reveal for Discernment, the newest book in the Legacy Chronicles by Lauren H. Salisbury. The book is out now and I can’t wait to share my review with you. But first a reminder about the book.
Also this is an official stop on the Discernment blog tour so stay until the end for your secret word to use as entry into the grand prize drawing.
A misfit, a fugitive, and a sacred destiny. Everything changes when all three collide.
In Jiya’s world, the only choice a woman has is who she will marry. When she meets a mysterious off-worlder, she must decide how far she is willing to push the boundaries of Teraburan culture to gain her freedom, and whether that is truly what she wants.
Mahsan has never been accepted for who he is. The sole human raised on an Esarelian cruiser, his attempts to belong led only to disaster and him becoming a fugitive. When he is invited into the home of a Teraburan clan leader, he finds a place where he could finally put down roots. But his past haunts him, and he will need to make peace with it if he wants any kind of future in his new home.
Not everyone approves of Jiya and Mahsan’s friendship, and some will stop at nothing to keep them apart. As the unlikely pair discover their true calling, they will have to confront everything they thought they knew and learn to see themselves as they never have before.
Discernment is the third book in Lauren H. Salisbury’s The Legacy Chronicles. This series is a science fiction reimagining of the life of Moses from the Bible.
Discernment specifically focuses on the period of Moses’s story where he flees Egypt and goes to live with the Midianites. This is his wife’s story; here renamed Jiya.
I really loved this new character. Jiya is a strong independent woman stuck living in a patriarchal society that doesn’t value her as a person. Time and again, people try to put her in a box, and she continually thinks her way out of it. She is the perfect match to Mahsan (the Moses stand in) as she can relate to his feelings of not belonging.
Discernment reads very much like a romance. Very clean, with very interesting sci-fi elements, and a Biblical twist, but still romance. For this reason I feel like this book stands very well on it’s own.
As book three of a four book saga, I was afraid that it would suffer from middle book syndrome. Thankfully, it does not. You should of course start at the beginning with book one, Courage, but if you somehow, found yourself starting here, with book three, then rest assured, there is enough backstory that you won’t be lost. The ending is also pretty nicely tied off, with a gentle, slope rather than a sudden drop off a long cliff.
The aesthetic of this particular instalment is what I would call space western. Think Firefly where old ideas meet high tech. For the most part it takes place on a cattle ranch on the planet Terabu, there is quite a bit of mechanical tech as well as space craft, but for every microchip there are just as many low tech scenes.
An all around solid instalment in an interesting series and a great book in it’s own right. I’m looking forward to this fourth book to see how Salisbury handles the ten plagues.
*I was given an advanced copy of this book to review. The opinions provided here are my own honest evaluation of the provided work.*
Word 12. what
For those of you with screen readers. The above graphic has your word for the blog tour.
Word 12. what.
Follow the blog tour to get all the words in the secret sentence:
Lauren H Salisbury is a lover of all things science fiction/fantasy, creative, and edible, but not always in that order. An English teacher for sixteen years, she now tutors part-time while trying to figure out how to use an MA in Education as an author. She lives in Yorkshire with her husband and a room full of books but likes to winter abroad, following the sunshine. Her favourite stories include faith, hope, and courage.
I’m back with another release. This one also has something I wrote in it. There’s a new short story challenge anthology out now. The challenge was to write a short story poem or essay in only two weeks. The theme was Unconditional love, but there had to be an animal involved.
What does unconditional love mean to you? That’s the question these authors were asked to answer and write about in this Short Story Challenge. Oh, and since this is the Animals Edition, they had to feature an animal!
In this anthology, you’ll find 21 original works from 10 very different authors! Stories, poems and essays that reveal the bravery, joy, grief, humor and hope of unconditional love.
Enjoy these amazing stories by:
Brandy Morrison
C. O. Bonham <– that’s me.
Colleen Cade
Francine Muzykant
Kristi Asher
Linda Hudson Hoagland
Meagan Myhron-Bennet
Michelle Francik
Victoria Fletcher
Virginia M. Barilla
I like doing these challenges because it forces me to work on a story that might not fit in anywhere else. I can really let loose and see where the theme takes me. This time it caused me to explore love, not just in animals but in families. I also got to ask the big question. “Why doesn’t that dog like me?” If you pick up this anthology look for “Through Dog’s eyes”
The paperback is out now or you can pre-order the ebook version until June 16th.
You may remember last week when I did two posts in a row because of a release getting moved up. That release was for the devotional, Finding God in Anime: A devotional for Otakus. You can find that original post here.
The devotional is available on amazon and other retailers as a free ebook. It was hard to come up with a compelling blog post for this tour. How would you even review a multi author devotional anyway? So then I thought about featuring a devotional. But it’s a free ebook. You can just download it for $0.00.
Then it struck me, the perfect way to show you what an anime devotion was like, without spoiling any of the ones in the book.
Write an entirely new devotion that isn’t featured in the book. Scroll down for an exclusive devotion based on the anime Demon slayer.
Otakus have found the God of Wonders within the pages of manga and the twists of anime. These are their reflections on how truth can intersect with animated fiction.
I repeat this is not part of the Finding God in Anime devotional this is just for my readers.
Pray for your Demons
A Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba devotion
By C.O. Bonham
Demon Slayer is a show easiest understood if you replace Demon with Vampire. Demons, in this show, have eternal life, but will die in sunlight. Humans can become demons by being given demon blood, they then must feed on human blood to sustain their new existence. So yeah, basically vampires.
Tanjiro Kamado returns home one day to find his entire family slaughtered by a demon. Save for one, his younger sister Nezuko is not dead but turned. He sets out to both find a way to return his sister’s humanity and to learn how to prevent others from ending up like his family.
Tanjiro is a talented student and learns to become a powerful demon slayer. That the demons used to be human, never quite sits right with him. He will spare those who do not kill humans. But those who take human life, he sees it as his duty to destroy them.
The weird thing is, even after killing a murdering demon, Tanjiro prays for their soul to find peace in the next life. This show uses Japanese Shinto religion, so the next life is reincarnation. He’s not praying that they go to heaven. After telling a demon that he can never forgive his murder of another human, he still wishes him to live a good life on the next go.
It seems counterintuitive to us. Why would you wish peace on a demon? Let me reiterate, these demons are not fallen angels who have no hope. These demons are twisted humans. Tanjiro is just doing what he does best, caring for others.
This is an authentic example of loving your enemy to me. Yes, he kills the demons, but only to preserve the lives of others. He does not hunt the demons out of revenge for his family.
In fact, the demon who killed them, the one who turned his sister Nezuko, Muzan Kibutsuji, Tanjiro hunts him, only hoping to restore his sister’s humanity. Not for revenge.
Take heed of Tanjiro’s lesson, do nothing out of revenge, but only for the good of others. Pray for the demons in your life, even the ones you have to slay.
But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.
My other anime devotion is available inside and it’s based on My Hero Academia. Read it to discover Deku’s True Quirk.
About Finding God in Anime
Being a Christian can be tough. Being an otaku can be tough. But being both at once?
Sometimes it seems easier to become Hokage rather than explaining your faith and passions to others. That is why we otaku have united in this devotional: To encourage otaku like you spiritually and through a medium we all cherish.
In this devotional, you will find God in the animes you know and love. Each devotional presents spiritual lessons found in animes ranging from the world-famous Attack on Titan to fan-favorite Haikyu!! to beloved classics like Cowboy Bebop. Each piece will feature a different theme such as:
Human Will vs. The Holy Spirit in Yona of the Dawn
Choosing to be Free in Free! Swim Club
Not by My Might in My Hero Academia
…and many others! We believe that God can be seen throughout His creation—even in places where people might not intend! So pull out your cosplay and snuggle close with your plushies as you join us in Finding God in Anime.
Laura and Moriah’s life consists of giving each other manga recommendations until they see whose TBR pile will fall on them first. Rest assured they’re both still safe…until another manga releases. In the meantime, they enjoy sharing beautiful pictures of Japan and trying to make each other laugh with anime memes. They both have an appreciation for cute stickers, samurai, and pins. If they’re not chatting about all things otaku, you can find them trying to write their next story or surviving on ramen and pocky after their latest manga order.
Celebrate the release of Finding God in Anime by participating in the manga photo challenge on Instagram! During the month of June, the organizers will be spotlighting a variety of manga that have had an anime adaptation by showcasing them using #MangaFestival in their posts. Each title prompt is an anime that is featured in the devotional. Grab your favorite manga and get ready to celebrate!
If you would like to follow the blog tour you can start by checking out Laura’s kick off post here: https://www.lauraagrace.com/blog
I know I literally just posted something yesterday. But this one is important. This book was originally meant to come out the first of June, but now it’s coming out today!
I couldn’t postpone telling you about it because I wrote a piece for this one.
Being a Christian can be tough. Being an otaku can be tough. But being both at once?
Sometimes it seems easier to become Hokage rather than explaining your faith and passions to others. That is why we otaku have united in this devotional: To encourage otaku like you spiritually and through a medium we all cherish.
In this devotional, you will find God in the animes you know and love. Each devotional presents spiritual lessons found in animes ranging from the world-famous Attack on Titan to fan-favorite Haikyu!! to beloved classics like Cowboy Bebop. Each piece will feature a different theme such as:
Human Will vs. The Holy Spirit in Yona of the Dawn
Choosing to be Free in Free! Swim Club
Not by My Might in My Hero Academia
…and many others! We believe that God can be seen throughout His creation—even in places where people might not intend! So pull out your cosplay and snuggle close with your plushies as you join us in Finding God in Anime.
“What is an otaku,” you ask. The short answer is that it’s Nerd in Japanese. The long answer is that English speakers have adopted it as a way of defining a westerner who is obsessed with Japanese pop culture, products, and trends. Things like: anime, manga, and video games.
So I wrote an anime devotion. Does that make me an otaku? I guess. I mean, maybe, not really. I don’t follow anime because it’s Japanese. Most of it’s just really good writing. In fact, I will only watch it if it’s dubbed in English. I don’t read manga because the right to left formatting drives me nuts. And I’m just not very good at video games. (Still stuck on chapter 3 of Bendy and the Ink Machine.)
But I do love good stories. And Anime’s have some of the most compelling storylines that I’ve ever seen. Honestly, achieving the level of plot twist that I’ve seen on some of these shows, are my writing goals.
That said, there is a very strong opinion that good Christians shouldn’t watch anime, (or any fantasy for that matter). This idea is sad because, anime is only a medium. There are good and bad ones, just like there are good and bad sitcoms. A good Christian should use discernment to decide what entertainment is in keeping with their beliefs.
This devotional was made to help you with that. It isn’t meant to push you to watch anime is you don’t want to. It isn’t made to justify anime to those who still feel that it’s wrong. Instead it’s for the Christian Otaku to read, and grow closer to God through the entertainment they love. And to know that they are not alone in loving that entertainment.
The best part is that this book is free as an E-book. The paperback will cost you about eight bucks.
Thanks to self publishing and the rise of the online marketplace, you can buy books written by authors from all over the world. Today’s book is written by an author who lives in Malaysia. I had the pleasure of beta reading this book and it was amazing. I’ll have a full review closer to the release date for you. But until then, rest assured that this cover is every bit as amazing as the story.
What is faith, except hope in desperation?
All Putera Mikal wants is to gain the Amok Strength, the supernatural power granted by Kudus to the Mahan royal family. No matter how religiously Mikal keeps his vows, Kudus still denies him the Strength—whilst his father, Sultan Simson, flaunts the Strength despite his blatant defiance of the Temple and the priests’ visions of coming doom.
Then the prophecies come true.
Taken captive, Mikal must find a way to liberate his people and restore his throne in Maha—and the key to this is the Amok Strength. But what does it take to gain Kudus’ favour?
Amok releases on June 24th, but until then you can preorder it at the following links:
The E-book is on sale with a special preorder price: USD2.99 / RM12.00 [Full price: USD4.99 / RM20]
(RM is the currency in Malaysia)
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Anna Tan grew up in Malaysia, the country that is not Singapore. She is interested in Malay/Nusantara and Chinese legends and folklore in exploring the intersection of language, culture, and faith.
Anna has an MA in Creative Writing: The Novel under a Chevening scholarship and is the President of the Malaysian Writers Society. She can be found tweeting as @natzers and forgetting to update annatsp.com.
If you are a long time follower of this blog you may remember a couple guest posts from author Tammy Lash. She wrote beautiful inspirational pieces that complimented her novels, White wolf and the Ash Princess, and Letter from a Dragon’s Son.
But I realized that I never actually reviewed either book.
So when Tammy offered me a free reviewer code for the new audiobook edition of White Wolf, I decided that it was good time to correct my error.
Memory loss prohibits Izzy from remembering her life before age seven when she suffered a terrible trauma that left her with physical scars. Crippling panic keeps Izzy from wandering beyond the stables but Tubs, the Gudwyne’s young stable boy, encourages Izzy to go beyond the property’s rock wall into a world that promises possible answers but also great danger.
While running to escape his past, Jonathan Gudwyne rescued Izzy and took her in, but who did she belong to before he became her guardian?
A mysterious cellar filled with secrets sets Izzy on a path to the New World where the Wendigo wanders and Water Panther swims. In the wilds of 17th-century America, Izzy and Jonathan discover the legends of the New World aren’t the fairytales of their library home in England.
My Review: Historical or fantasy? It’s a fine line.
White Wolf and the Ash Princess by Tammy Lash, reads like a historical novel. But some elements are certainly fantastic.
The time of this novel is hard to pin down. It feels like a historical novel but the ambiguity over the time gives it an almost fantasy like feeling. Unique steampunk gadgets and advanced firearms set it firmly in an alternative timeline. So don’t hurt your head trying to pick out the exact year it takes place in.
The novel is in two parts. The main character, Izzy, suffers from childhood amnesia. The first part deals with her attempts to discover her past.
The second part is the price paid for reclaiming her memories. It shows how Izzy will choose to handle her past and if she will embrace her true identity.
Izzy is a wonderful character. A grown woman who still has a very childlike sense of wonder. Then reality catches up to her, and she must go on a journey of self-discovery, to reclaim the memories of her past so she can truly grow up into the woman she needs to be.
Izzy’s journey to return to her father is an obvious metaphor for a Christian’s faith journey from selfish sinner to child of God.
I’m not sure how I feel about Johnathan. He does love Izzy and wants to protect her, but his secrets seriously hurt her. She should have been told the truth instead of tucked away like a china doll. I suppose I do ship them in that I can’t imagine Izzy with anyone else, but he really should have been more open with her. The whole “We’ll deal with it when her memories return,” attitude is exactly what enabled her to suppress her memories for so long.
I really loved the Native American lore that was mixed into the narrative. I am not sure how much is traditional and what the author invented to aid the story. It just adds to the blurry boundary between the story’s fantasy feel and our own world’s troubling history.
Adele Adler brings this beautifully written prose to life with her lovely voice. She has a talent for making each character unique and she reads narrative description engagingly with Izzy’s first person POV.
Seeped in Native American lore, shrouded in mystery, and full of adventure, White Wolf and the Ash Princess is a book that will keep you guessing until the last page. Or ’til the last minute of audio if you choose the audio edition.
Not subscribed to Audible? I recommend purchasing the eBook and adding audio through Amazon’s whisper sync program.
Tammy lives in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula near the shores of Lake Superior with her husband and three teen/adult children. Currently, they are working together on their “new” home just outside the Hiawatha National Forest she writes about in her stories.
Tammy enjoys hiking, kayaking, beach wandering,”hunting” for birch bark, and spotting migizis.
She is the author of White Wolf and the Ash Princess, Letters from the Dragon’s Son, and the short story Eagle Eyes from the Descendants of White Wolf series.
Today I get to show off a shiny new book that just became available for preorder. The preorders go live today for Discernment. This is the third book in the Legacy Chronicles, a science fiction retelling of the story of Moses.
The Legacy Chronicles: Discernment By: Lauren H. Salisbury
A misfit, a fugitive, and a sacred destiny. Everything changes when all three collide.
In Jiya’s world, the only choice a woman has is who she will marry. When she meets a mysterious off-worlder, she must decide how far she is willing to push the boundaries of Teraburan culture to gain her freedom, and whether that is truly what she wants.
Mahsan has never been accepted for who he is. The sole human raised on an Esarelian cruiser, his attempts to belong led only to disaster and him becoming a fugitive. When he is invited into the home of a Teraburan clan leader, he finds a place where he could finally put down roots. But his past haunts him, and he will need to make peace with it if he wants any kind of future in his new home.
Not everyone approves of Jiya and Mahsan’s friendship, and some will stop at nothing to keep them apart. As the unlikely pair discover their true calling, they will have to confront everything they thought they knew and learn to see themselves as they never have before.
Preorder Discernment and receive, Provision, a companion story for free. Find more details about this pre-order offer at the author’s website. https://www.laurenhsalisbury.com
C. O. Bonham 