If You Liked The Worth of a King, You Should Also Read...

So, yes, I deleted yesterday from existence, and yes, this post is late. I ... didn't get enough sleep last weekend, and my brain keeps crashing.

Anywho, I decided to cut today's topic and do yesterday's instead, 'cause yesterday's was the one that I'd done actual preparation for.

Books that I feel would also be enjoyed by readers of The Worth of a King.

1. Sons of the King by Kimia Wood.

Okay, I just have to start with getting this one off of my chest. I found out about this author less than a year ago when she participated in the Christian Indie Author Black Friday Sale - which happened AS I was writing The Worth of a King - and, honestly, this book kinda freaked me out with the similitude its premise had to my story - but also with some Prince Caspian vibes. When she participated in Indie e-Con, this author was actually the only one I read two books from. See, I needed to read her Zombies, as she was one of my sci-fi reps, but I really wanted to read this one too, so I did so, as the last book I read before Indie e-Con happened.

Anywho, the book exists on the same premise as The Worth of a King - or much of the same premise, as there aren't any twin sisters in the picture (though I could almost argue that Hector is a combination OF Delaney and Obsidia...). It's the tale of a disinherited prince rising up to defeat the man who killed his father and stole his throne. This prince is a bit more dedicated to the task than Adrian is - given that he was a bit older when he lost his father and the king is more obviously evil - and there are no dragons 'cause this is Kingdom Fiction instead of Fantasy, but, still, it was a really good book and it's on my list of books that I need a physical copy for my shelf. 

2. Dare by Tricia Mingerink

This is a book that I took waaaaay too long to read. I mean, I'd started it years ago, but I wandered away and didn't pick it back up until she participated in Indie e-Con last year. Sigh. I really should have read it sooner. Good book, this.

But, basically - like The Worth of a King, there are knife-wielding assassins in this book. However, unlike Worth, they're not "former" assassins - they're still card-carrying, and not just knife-carrying. And they're also working for a king who usurped his throne. Ah, yeah.

3. Dragon's Future by Kandi J. Wyatt

Aaaaaand, yet another author who I read for Indie e-Con this year. Ahem.

The last two books I mentioned were Kingdom Fiction - which is all well and good and amazing, but that means that (1) there are no dragons and (2) no twins with subtly psychic connections. And, I promise you, once you read The Worth of a King, you're going to want more of that. You're especially going to want some nice dragons. And this book provides perfectly. No usurper kings in this one, just dragon-riding goodness. And twins who weren't separated at birth.

4. White Wolf and the Ash Princess by Tammy Lash

I'm sorry, but these Indie e-Con books are just really fresh on my mind.

I acutally surprised myself with this one, as it wasn't one I would have initially considered but ... let's just say, Izzy and Jonothon have a LOT in common with Obsidia and Delaney. If you love best friend romances where the hero's just trying soooooo hard to protect her from his evil father, here you go. Also, both books feature a book-loving heroine who must be separated from her man in order to achieve personal growth before their romance can truly blossom.

5. Lady Dragon, Tela Du by Kendra E. Ardnek.

Yes, my book.

Because you're going to want to know more of Amber and Granite's story.

6. Espionage by Morgan Elizabeth Huneke.

Because of evil fathers and awesome political drama. Poor Kyle.

7. A Retelling of Snow White

Because The Worth of a King kinda turned out to be one, accidentally. I'm also disappointed with myself as it seems that I've read a lot fewer retellings of the tale than I thought I did.

Also, speaking of Snow White retellings...

Now, giveaway (U.S. only, though. Unfortunately.): 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out the rest of the tour for today and yesterday - (Btw, as per usual in my tours, the person who leaves the most comments will receive a special prize. So get commenting.)

Tuesday, August 28th
Reviews:
Reality Reflected
Interviews:
Books, Braids, and Born Again – Nadilynn
Where Fantasy and Reality Meet – Adrian
Excerpt:
Annie Louise Twitchell


Wednesday, August 29th
Reviews:
Dreams and Dragons
Keturah’s Korner
Interviews:
Laterose Doll Clothes and Doll Repair – Kendra E. Ardnek
H.S.J. Williams – Kendra E. Ardnek
Light and Shadows – Amber

The Worth of a Book Release.

Greetings and solutions! I rise from the dead!

And my newest novel The Worth of a King has hit the shelves. Virtual ones, at least. Due to life issues being crazy, I've had to put the paperback on hold - but I do plan to have that done before the end of September.

Anywho. The Kindle edition is out! Purchase it now! I'm told it's awesome!

And I have a giveaway for it. Seeeee:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Check out the rest of the tour for today - (Btw, as per usual in my tours, the person who leaves the most comments will receive a special prize. So get commenting.)

Reviews:

Resting Life

Morgan Elizabeth Huneke

Interviews:

Lit Aflame – Kendra E. Ardnek

Light and Shadows – Kendra E. Ardnek

Jenelle Schmidt – Granite

Elvish Pens, Fantastical Writings – Christa

And Water Princess, Fire Prince is currently free on kindle while Lady Dragon, Tela Du is just 99 cents! So go pick them up while you can! 

The Difference Between Robin and Clara

Also, I reeeeeally want to know why people let me get away with this. Both of these books came out THE SAME YEAR.

  She grabbed the hilt of a sword that was propped up against the wall behind her and tossed it to Arthur, no warning this time, but since he was watching her, he managed to neatly catch it. Despite getting instantly into position, however, the anticipated attack didn’t come. Instead, she sheathed her sword, leaned against the wall, and patted her mouth with a fake yawn.

  “Aren’t you…” he asked, lowering his sword slightly.

  “I’m waiting for you,” she explained. “I thought maybe you’d feel more confident if you lead the attack – since that’s what you’ll supposedly do against your Uncle Mortimer.”

  “It’s Mordreth.”

  Her nose wrinkled. “It’s still an awful name. Anyways, as I’ve said before, we don’t have much time. Every moment of hesitation is a moment wasted.”

  Arthur took a deep breath and, deciding she was serious, gave the sword a halfhearted swing towards her. She didn’t move a muscle, even when he stopped less than an inch away from her arm.

Slowly her eyebrows arched as she met his eye. “You didn’t even try,” she said, simply.

  He lowered the sword. “But I…”

  “Had you been trying, you would not have been able to stop yourself, the sword would have had too much momentum,” she explained. “The moment you started that swing, I knew I was perfectly safe.”

  Her sword sung as she pulled it from its sheath. Before Arthur had time to move, he found its tip at his throat.

  “But that’s just it,” she continued, narrowing her eyes. She took a step forward, forcing him to take a step back. “That’s why you’re going to fail with taking back the throne from your uncle. You’re scared. Let’s get one thing clear, Arthur. If you’re scared of him, he can’t be scared of you. Pretend I’m Uncle Mandrake. Make me scared of you.”

  “It’s Mordreth,” Arthur squeaked.

  “Does it matter?” her sword was suddenly back in its sheath, and she was leaning against the wall again, arms folded as though she had never moved. “Now let’s start over. Attack me.”

  Taking a deep breath and closing his eyes, he swung again, this time with every bit of strength he had, hoping he wasn’t making a big mistake. He doubted Eric would be very happy if his wife was seriously injured.

  Her sword met his with such force, it sent tingles down his arm, and his eyes flew open to find her glaring at him.

  “Never close your eyes when facing an armed opponent!” She took a step back and they both let their sword arms fall to their sides. “Other than that, not bad. I’d also like to establish right now that there is nothing you can do that will catch me off-guard – not with a sword at least. I’m always on guard. Not consciously, of course, but if I’m wearing a sword, I’m more ready than not. And if I’m not wearing a sword, or at least have one nearby … well, let’s just say that I don’t like it when that happens. But the question is, are you ready?”

- My Kingdom for a Quest

~~~~~~~~~~~

“I’ve been practicing [archery],” Andrew informed her.

“I can tell,” Clara agreed, taking the bow away from him. “Now for the sword. As nice as the bow is, I’ve a suspicion that our battles will be hand to hand. Us getting swords, unlike the Leaf Princess and Wind Prince who both received bows, is not such a subtle hint. So, I’m going to focus on that with you. You’re fair enough with the bow so that you can use it in a pinch, like I am, so we need to focus on that sword of yours. I don’t want to lose you the first time we head into battle.”

“I’m glad to hear that you care so much about me,” Andrew noted, drawing his sword.

She rolled her eyes. “It’s not you; it’s the fact that Klarand needs you. You might be worried about facing the dragon herself, but I’m not looking forward to the ruling that comes after that. So, I have vested interest in keeping you alive.”

Andrew took a step back as he processed what she said. She expected him to do the ruling? “Aren’t you going to draw your sword?” he asked, deciding that he would rather not ask questions and get confirmation that she meant what he thought she did.

“No,” she said, a dangerous light in her eyes. “I don’t need it against you. I might as well handicap myself and give you an advantage.”

“But you…”

“Come on, just attack me. I assure you that you aren’t going to hurt me.”

She looked pretty serious, so Andrew went ahead and swung his sword towards her. Not too fast, of course, since he didn’t want to hurt her.

At the last second, she ducked down, and at the same moment, reached up and grabbed his wrist. Then, while he was still processing what was happening, and off-balance from the swing, she knocked his legs out from under him. Next thing he knew, he was on his back, his own sword pressed against his throat, her knee digging into his stomach, and her free hand pressed against his shoulder to hold him down.

“Move faster next time,” she warned him, letting go of his wrist, and pulling herself off of him. He removed his sword from his throat, sat up, and stared at her. She sat with her legs tucked under her and hands on her knees, gazing back at him expressionless.

“How did you…”

“Didn’t I mention that I did martial arts, that I’m a black belt in Tae Kwon Do?” she asked, standing up. “My dad teaches it, and my mom teaches the sword. Naturally, I know how to fight one against the other. I also know how to use martial arts on a bow, though not from a distance.”

“Oh,” said Andrew. He regained his feet and readjusted his grip on his sword. “So, I’m guessing that you’d like me to try again?”

“If you would,” said she, actually drawing her own sword. “That was just a warning by the way, so you know what I’m capable of. I’m going to do my best to improve your skills, but you have to know what you’re working with, too.”

“Eh, no problem,” said Andrew. “Abraham used to knock me down a lot, too.”

“Good for him,” said she, smirking. “You’re shorter when you’re on the ground, and I think I like that better.”

- Water Princess, Fire Prince

Also, for the record, I'll be emailing the winners of the Tales of Ever After giveaway shortly. My last couple of weeks have been insane, and life only just decided to slow down, but I had to get The Worth of a King's ARCs out first. 

Fairest Son Character Spotlight

The Fair and Foul courts of the fey folk have long yearned for one to bring them together in peace, but hopes are dashed when the fairest prince and the prophecy concerning him are laid to ruin. Burdened with shame and sorrow, the prince flees to the cold mountains far above the forests and lochs with nothing but animals and goblins for company. 

When a human huntress stumbles upon him in her search for a legendary predator, their fates are intertwined. But she hides deadly secrets, and if he dares to trust her, he may risk the doom of both courts to an ancient evil...

Greetings and solutions, I'm here today to help spread the word about an exciting new release by H.S.J. Williams - an author I've been wanting a book from for YEARS. And she has one now! A gender-swapped fae Snow White! Eep! I'm so excited. 

So, have a spotlight!

Character Spotlight: Keeva

Art by Phantomrin

Ashamed and afraid of a past hidden in shadow, the mortal Keeva headed to the high mountains of rock and snow to find freedom. Day by day, she hunts game both for survival and profit, taking the best furs to sell down in the lowlands where other humans dwell. Her eye is set on the ultimate prize, a legendary white bear called Dohmnal who terrorizes the wild peaks with a insatiable appetite for blood. His territory lies beyond the borders of mankind, into the wilderness of faerie. Still, Keeva has had dealings with the sídhe folk, both fair and foul, and is undaunted in her hunt. But what she finds in the mountains may test her inner strength like nothing before. 

Appearance: Dark brown hair usually tied back in a braid, dark brown eyes, fair skin toughened by the bite of ice. 

Skills: Especially adept with the bow, but also handy with a knife (both in combat and butchering). She is a master of stealth and moving over rough terrain at quick speeds. 

Quotes: 

"Do I look like a mortal maid to be frightened?" 

"I don't fit in anywhere. Not among mortals, not among the Seelie, not among the Unseelie." 

"Smile because they love you. Smile because you're alive. Smile because you can." 

The Tour of Ever After - Tales to Come

Okay, so life has calmed down now, a little, and I am now no longer living with my parents. Yeah. They moved out of the house and left me behind with my aunt. So, yeah. That's been the stress I've been dealing with lately, but things should be settling down now. Hopefully. I still need to rearrange the downstairs trailer that I'm now living in, and figure out how to feed myself without a proper kitchen (long story), but, I'm here. It's happened. I'm now an independent woman. Ish.

But that's not the point of this post.

Last day of The Tales of Ever After blog tour. Wow. It's been a whirlwind week in more ways than one, and I'm so happy with how well the book seems to have been received. Don't forget to travel through all of the posts and leave as many comments as you can. While the rafflecopter giveaways end today, it's going to be Saturday before I can count all of the comments, so you have an extra day to attempt to win that special package of sneak peeks. For the record: bloggers, replying to your comments on your own reviews and guest posts counts. (Though this does not apply to the participating authors, just the bloggers.)

Now, onto my post!

See, when I sent out the sign-up form for the authors to let them claim their posts for the tour, one of the options I gave them was talking about their upcoming releases. After all, this is a collection to allow people to find their new favorite authors. People want to know what their new favorite author is releasing next.

And it's just a tradition for me to talk about my upcoming releases at the end of a blog tour. And you can't argue with traditions, now can you?

However, none of the other authors decided to take this option - even though I know a couple of them DO have very imminent releases. Ah well. I'm still going to talk about mine, because I have a pretty packed couple of months, and it's pretty much alllll fairy tales.

First off, end of August, I have my first major releases since 2016: The Worth of a King, which is a spin-off of the Rizkaland Legends. It's not an official retelling, but I realized half-way through the writing that it does follow a Snow White arc, so ... I'm running with it. I'm currently looking for bloggers to take part in its blog tour. I still have six more characters who I would really like to have interviewed, and Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday only have two or three posts each. So if you have a blog, I'd love to have you on board. I also have a goal of twenty reviews for the book within the month of September, so if you can manage that, I'd love to send you an ARC. I'm running a wee bit behind thanks to the whole moving hoopla that I mentioned at the top of this post, but I'm planning to have the ARC's sent out on Saturday.

Sign up here, if you're interested.

Now, speaking of Snow White, at the end of October, I have a TON of that fairy tale dropping on the world. And not all of it mine. I'm leading a Magic Mirror's group release. Currently, I have four stories accepted, all of them lovely rich stories that are each highly unique and creative - two of them the most unexpected mash-ups you'll find. I'm currently reading through the last submission, and I will have either one or two of my own stories in the release - Red as Snow, the third Twist of Adventure for certain, and a strong possibility of The Seven Drawers if I can get back into the swing of its rewrite. Was going strong there for a bit, but I've hit a bit of a quicksand again. But, again, do look forward to that. I'll be announcing the 5-7 titles (AND REVEALING COVERS!) just as soon as Worth's blog tour is over.

Now, I would kiiinda like to touch on my plans for next year. My very ambitious plans for next years.

Three Bookania Quests.

Not three Bookania Short Stories. Actual, full-length releases. I've reached the half-way point on the first of them, and will hopefully have it done by the end of October, as I thiiiiink that I've made it through most of the sticky parts. Then, for NaNo, I'll write book 5, and if I finish it fast enough, will plunge into book 6. So, yes, ambitious, and I admit that I've never before managed to write a sequel before its previous book was released, but I'm going to try. I really want to drop the second trilogy of this series all at once, rather than the six years that it took me to pull the first trilogy off. That was just ridiculous.

There will also be a Golden Braids release sometime next year, probably in July/August, which will include the fourth Twist of Adventure, and hopefully the fifth Bookania Quest.

So, yeah. Stay tuned for that. All the fairy tales!

Now, again, don't forget to visit all of the posts and comment on them, and enter all of the rafflecopters before they close. I'll be here on Saturday to announce the winners! There's a Facebook party tonight that you can check out, so hop on over there. Also, there should be one or two more posts up on Monday, one of them being a Scavenger hunt where I try to find books from my shelf  that match the stories in the Tales of Ever After. I'd hoped to have this video up before the release, but, again, moving hoopla.

Rafflecopter Givaways:

U.S. Only:

(All books are paperbacks, and possibly signed.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

International:

(All books are ebooks of the winner’s file format of choice)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

The Tour of Ever After - My Writing Theme

Hello there! Kendra returneth with a post that's actually on time.

No, the tailspin that is my life hasn't died down yet, but it's starting to. Last night was also my first night "on my own." I mean, I have an aunt living just upstairs, but ... I'm now responsible for myself and everything.

Anywho, I'm here today for the Tales of Ever After blog tour again!

Today, I'm here to talk about my writing theme.

So, funny thing that happened after I had assigned this for myself on the blog schedule, but I was actually talking to a good friend of mine, who happened to be one of the submission judges for the Tales of Ever After collection. The submissions had all names removed, so it was a blind judging.

We were talking about the collection, and she'd admitted that she felt that the story was my best yet (she's read ... pretty much all of my books up to this point), which prompted a curiosity in my head. I knew that she'd known that I'd be entering a story, and I think she knew some of its premise, but I wanted to know how long it took her to realize that the story was mine.

"Half a page?" she answered.

And it was my writing she recognized, not the premise I'd previously shared with her. (And she hastily went on to assure me that her comments were based solely on the story's qualities, and not any attempts to sway the game in my favor. Which I had no worries over. The girl's a tough judge.)

This prompted further discussion into my writing style, with the other girls in the group chat who'd also read significant chunks of my writing. Because, apparently, I have a distinct, strong voice. Whimsical, apparently. Lighthearted on the surface but usually hiding something serious and deep. I think it's also the fact that I overuse dashes - they're pretty much my favorite punctuation. But I think they were trying to be nice and thus didn't bring it up. (Seriously, I think someone needs to take away my dashes at some point.)

But I do put in an effort to make sure that my writing and style is distinct. My goal is to write books that makes the reader laugh, and makes the reader think. I write escapist fiction that leaves the reader better equipped to face the real world when the book is over. I search for creative, high-concept plots, but I don't shy away from cliches if I see an angle that gives a unique perspective. And I have a Fairy Tale obsession that shows through in most of my books.

So, if you enjoyed Cinders, I'm fairly certain that you'll enjoy the rest of my writing, too. I mean, they're older works, so therefore not as good, but still fun, I promise!

But don't forget to check out the rest of the other lovely stories in the collection. I must say, I'm halfway through my own read, and I've as yet to find one I didn't like. And the ones I didn't love, I know there's a reader out there for them, somewhere.

What's your writing theme? Would you say that you've achieved your distinct voice yet?

Make sure that you visit and comment on all of the posts in the Tour of Ever After - the person who leaves the most comments will get a bonus collection of sneak-peek snippets from a number of the authors! (I am in the process of fixing the broken links. My blog isn't being nice to me about them)

Amazon Purchase Link: https://www.amazon.com/Tales-Ever-After-Fellowship-Anthology-ebook/dp/B07FFMHM8M/

Books2Read Universal Link: https://www.books2read.com/u/bwYKry

Goodreads Listing: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/40788623-tales-of-ever-after

Rafflecopter Givaways:

U.S. Only:

(All books are paperbacks, and possibly signed.)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

International:

(All books are ebooks of the winner’s file format of choice)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tales of Ever After - Cinders

This post is a ... wee bit late.

My life has been turned upsidedown this last week as my parents finally got a new house and we've been in hyper-move mode to get them into it. Leaving me with practically no time today. Sigh.

But here I am now, with post stuff. Though I am also unfortunately on the wrong computer and don't have many of my graphics for this post. We'll make do, though, shall we?

Basically, and in short, I had a story make its way into the latest Fellowship of Fantasy Anthology! (Not only that, but the organizer put my story at the front of the collection!)

And, in the interest in keeping this post short, here's the rundown of why you should read this lovely story that I christened "Cinders"

1. As the name suggests, it is a Cinderella retelling.
2. But it's a very mixed up retelling of Cinderella.
3. It features a veeeeeery adorable little kitten, who has a pretty important role to play. (They almost moved the story over to the cats collection, in fact!)
4. One of my friends has told me it's my best work to date.
5. The collection it's featured in is free! Or it will be, just as soon as Amazon gets its act together.

And some funfacts about the writing process for this story:

1. It's been the fastest I've ever taken a story from inspiration to publication, as I didn't even have an idea for an entry when the anthology was first announced.
2. The anthology organizer actually gave me my premise, when I confessed to having no inspiration.
3. I proceeded to write the first thousand or so words in one night, in a notebook.
4. The last half of it was written at the Texas Homeschooled Author's Writer's retreat.
5. I got to hug the anthology organizer at Realmmaker's the week before last.

Now, there are some giveaways involved with this thing, but I currently don't have access to the links and such. I'm just going to point you guys to the masterlist/schedule thing, where others DO have the giveaways posted. Click through and comment on all of them, because the person who leaves the most comments across the tour will get a bundle of sneak peeks from the upcoming books of multiple authors!

(Please note that some of the links are broken. I am in the process of fixing them, but every time I think I have, they break again. Bear with me.)