A RUSH OF WINGS: Initial Impressions

Raven is providing her as-she-reads-it impressions of A RUSH OF WINGS.

I'm really enjoying A RUSH OF WINGS so far. I'm about 70 pages in (the book is approximately 400 pages long), and I'm hooked.

I'm loving Heather Wallace. She's not one of those heroines who suddenly starts acting like a wimpy twelve-year-old anytime the hero shows up or is mentioned. I can't stand heroines like that. Supposedly they're sharp, mature professionals, but you'd never know it once Mr. Right comes on the scene. But not Heather. She really is sharp, mature, and professional, at least so far. In one amazing scene where she gives the hero, Dante, his comeuppance, I was grinning in delight and cheering her on.

Although the back cover gives the impression that this is going to be a mystery, the mystery is really more about why than who. That's okay. I have a feeling those whys are going to be pretty riveting.

So far I have only two minor quibbles. The first is that there are so many viewpoint characters. In just 70 pages Adrian Phoenix has already plunged us into the minds of at least seven different people. It's a few too many for me, especially since I don't find the villains as compelling as I find Heather and Dante and their associates. Phoenix does it well, though, and I haven't had any problems keeping everyone straight.

The other quibble (presumably not Phoenix's fault) is that the glossary is located at the back of the book. Phoenix has adapted or invented non-English terminology to use for some of the non-human types of characters in her story, and I have no problem with that, but the terms are presented in the text without definitions, and with the glossary being at the back of the book, readers might not find it until they're done reading. I only discovered it by accident.

But I'm impressed so far, and I can't wait to read more.

New Featured Debut - A RUSH OF WINGS

Although I'm still reading and enjoying Across the Face of the World (see the post below), I may not finish it before Wednesday or so. In the meantime, since Raven is enjoying A Rush of Wings by Adrian Phoenix so much, I am making that novel the Featured Debut, and I'll post her initial impressions later today. Over the next week or so, I'll intrude from time to time with a few debut shout-outs (I still have two from ClassOf2K8 to post) and miscellaneous announcements. Next weekend, I'll post my final impressions of Across the Face of the World, plus hopefully an interview with the author, Russell Kirkpatrick.

Across the Face of the World - Midway Point

Well, I'm almost halfway through ACROSS THE FACE OF THE WORLD, and so far, I'm liking it very much. It is very different from a novel by an American writer. The plot is leisurely, with lots of description. Yet, the plot does not stop moving; if it had, I would not have kept reading. As it is, I keep staying up later than I intended, trying to get through just another long chapter.

The little Company -- as the author calls them -- has grown from five to eight. I have not gone over all the characters, so I will now.

Leith and Hal. Brothers whose parents were taken by the Bhrudwan warriors. Hal is the older, and is crippled by what is thought to be a birth defect. Since his parents took him in as a toddler, no one really knows. Leith is is normal younger brother, about sixteen or seventeen years old.

The Haufuth. The leader of the village of Loulea, the home of most of the characters and the locale where the story begins. He is smart and cool-headed, and it is his idea to try to rescue Hal and Leith's parents. He starts out fat, but I cannot imagine that he will remain that way, due to all the hardships they are going through. He leaves his wife at home in order to lead this quest.

Kurr. A hot-tempered older man, who is incredibly tough. He has a mysterious past and belongs to an ancient sect called the Watchers. He is a source of lore and knows much of the land they pass through. He is a likable old cranky bastard.

Stella. A fifteen or sixteen year old girl, who they bring along because she happened upon their plans and they could not afford to leave her behind. She does not mind going because she is trying to avoid getting engaged against her will. She seems like a hindrance at first, but soon proves her worth.

Further on, they pick up two more men Farr and Wira. They are older than Hal and Leith, perhaps in their early 20s. Farr is hot tempered and Wira steady. One of them has a drinking problem, and the reader cannot be sure who it is. I have my suspicions; the author did not make it difficult to guess. There is a little love triangle developing involving Wira, Stella and Leith

And finally, they pick up an eighth character, who I will not reveal much about at this time.

And of course, I must mention Hal and Leith's parents, Mahnum and Indrett. I have to give the author credit for a twist on a familiar plot structure. No, the farm boy's parents do not conveniently die, thus motivating the main character for revenge. At least, not yet. Their captivity is what is driving the plot, right now. Every once in a while, we get a cliffhanger of a scene letting us know that they are still alive. And they both have backgrounds that are tantalizing enough for us to want to learn more.

The only real complaint I have so far is that the challenges they have faced seemed to have been rather easily overcome. They were attacked at a certain point, but all of them were able to fight off their attackers, even those who had never held a sword before. At another point, I was certain that they had a major challenge -- almost insurmountable -- but then, it was solved for them. It fit in the story and I would not call it a deux ex machina, but the author could have let the reader sweat about it for a few pages.

Speaking of pages, if you read this, expect pages and pages to go by, filled with description. It did not bother me, because as I said, the story kept moving. Besides, I got through the description of the city of Paris in The Hunchback of Notre Dame -- about 35 pages worth (and worth it in the end) -- so I can get through this, I think.

I'm finding the maps rather difficult to read. They look computer-generated. I have to peer at them up close in order to be able to read them. I'm hoping they got an artist to do some more attractive maps for the actual printed copy (I have an ARC -- thanks, Orbit!). In fact, I'm thinking about meandering to a bookstore to see if there is much difference between my copy and the one on the shelves.

If I do, I'll bring my camera.

Author Catch-Up

Here are some author activities that I have taken note of recently.

Melissa Marr reports that Wicked, Lovely is in it's ninth printing!

Nathalie Mallet reports that the sequel to The Princes of the Golden Cage, The King's Daughters, is now available for pre-order.

According to Locus, Christopher Barzak's One For Sorrow has won the Crawford Fantasy Award. This award is for "the best first book by a new fantasy author."

Laura Benedict announces that Isabella Moon's cover is a finalist for the Left Coast Crime's ARTY Award. Also, a hardcover version of her novel comes out on February 7th to numerous countries overseas.

Several authors who I have announced (Lisa Shearin, Jennifer Estep, Janet Lorimer and Lisa Nevin) have given away premiums, such as bookmarks or postcards. I recently placed all of mine on my bulletin board. Now I can add Rosemary Jones to my collection. She is giving away signed bookplates. Here's the scoop straight from her:

Tia and other readers: if you are worried about the little white dog in the Crypt of the Moaning Diamond, I now have a specially designed bookplate for this novel. Just e-mail me at rosemarynovels@aol.com and I'll send it out. This sticker fastens nicely to inside front cover and has an original illustration done by an artist friend that is very appropriate to the book. Each bookplate is signed.

I decided on a bookplate, rather than a postcard or bookmark, because my favorite author collectible is my Dinotopia bookplate. Designed and signed by James Gurney, this bookplate announces to the world that I have a "visitor permit" to roam Dinotopia, although return passage is not guaranteed. It always makes me smile when I open this book. Although my bookplate is not quite as fancy, I hope it gives my readers the same type of smile.

I know I have some other author stuff to catch up on, but I thought I'd go ahead and put up this post, and catch up with the rest in another post this weekend.

New Debut - A RUSH OF WINGS by Adrian Phoenix

A RUSH OF WINGS (Amazon USA, UK, Canada)
Adrian Phoenix (website, MySpace)
Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Trade Paperback
Excerpt (begins with a bang!)

Blurb:

HIS NAME IS DANTE.

Dark. Talented. Beautiful. Star of the rock band Inferno. Rumored owner of the hot New Orleans nightspot Club Hell. Born of the Blood, then broken by an evil beyond imagination.

HIS PAST IS A MYSTERY.

F.B.I. Special Agent Heather Wallace has been tracking a sadistic serial murderer known as the Cross Country Killer, and the trail has led her to New Orleans, Club Hell, and Dante. But the dangerously attractive musician not only resists her investigation, he claims to be "nightkind": in other words, a vampire. Digging into his past for answers reveals little. A juvenile record a mile long. No social security number. No known birth date. In and out of foster homes for most of his life before being taken in by a man named Lucien DeNoir, who appears to guard mysteries of his own.

HIS FUTURE IS CHAOS.

What Heather does know about Dante is that something links him to the killer -- and she's pretty sure that link makes him the CCK's next target. Heather must unravel the truth about this sensual, complicated, vulnerable young man -- who, she begins to believe, may indeed be a vampire -- in order to finally bring a killer to justice. But Dante's past holds a shocking, dangerous secret, and once it is revealed not even Heather will be able to protect him from his destiny....

I'm not sure, but I think the movie and novel Interview With the Vampire gave me a permanent aversion to vampire stories. I realize that I'm in the minority here, so it's a good thing that I now have Raven to review novels like this one. We've made arrangements for her to get a copy, so expect her to cover it in the upcoming weeks as well. Raven is going to be busy!

In the meantime, here's a review. (Yeah, I said I wouldn't link to reviews anymore, but this is DarqueReviews and I'm free to break my own rules. :)

New Debut - DEBATABLE SPACE by Philip Palmer

DEBATABLE SPACE (USA, UK, Canada)
Philip Palmer (Website -- doubles as a blog)
Orbit
Trade Paperback
Excerpt, Later Excerpt (scroll down)

Blurb:
Flanagan (who, for want of a better word, is a pirate) has a plan. The plan, at first, seems simple. Kidnap the Cheo's daughter, demand a vast ransom for her safe return, sit back and wait.

"The Cheo is ruler of the universe known to mankind.Only, Lena isn't the Cheo's daughter and the plan is far from simple. Fortunately, Flanagan has had a lifetime to work it out. Unfortunately, he has far less time to execute it.

Debatable Space is a space opera of extraordinary imagination, and a brilliantly plotted novel of revenge.

Raven has agreed to review this novel, and Orbit has agreed to send it, so expect to see it in the upcoming weeks.

New Announcement Format

In order to be able to continue doing the debut announcements, I had to make some changes. They were taking about an hour to put together, and I kept getting further and further behind. This new format will also permit me to announce debuts on the day of their release, because I no longer will be searching for and vetting possible links. I've discovered many good blogs while trolling for reviews to link to, but I will hopefully will continue to do so through other methods. Plus, I'm constantly putting links in the Other Debut Coverage box. It changes every day.

What I will continue doing

• Link to various Amazon releases (this may change to B&N -- they seem to have a better shipping policy)
• Link to author websites and blogs
• Include official blurb
  
• Comment with my initial reaction
• Provide ongoing links in Other Debut Coverage box
  

What I stopped doing

• Search for and link to reviews/interviews/articles
  

What I started doing:

• Include image of book
• Include publisher info and links
  
• Include book format
• Include excerpt link
• Announce on day of release (or close to it, in the case of multiple releases on the same day)
  

What do you think?

GOD'S DEMON by Wayne Barlowe

Today's post is by Raven, a prolific commenter here at Fantasy Debut. When I read on her blog that she was reading this novel, I asked her to write a review when she finished, and she graciously agreed. Here it is.

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I love the premise of God's Demon, by Wayne Barlowe. I'm not someone who usually cares for books about angels and demons and wars in heaven and hell, but give me an intriguing premise and I'm yours. The premise is that a demon decides to repent and try to go back to heaven. I heard it and was hooked.

I wish I could say I loved the book. It was competently written, although I did come across a few passages I found difficult to visualize (odd considering the writer is a professional illustrator and did his own cover art; check out his websites at www.waynebarlowe.com and www.godsdemon.com for some amazingly dark and haunting illustrations). The book included some memorable images, my favorite being the description of souls being transformed into bricks. Since I've never read Paradise Lost or Dante's Inferno, I have no idea whether Barlowe borrowed this or came up with it on his own, but in either case I really liked it. It gave a sense of the dehumanization the souls had undergone, and it was a concrete symbol of the enmity the souls felt for the demons (and why they felt it).

The characterization was good, although many of the more impressive characters weren't viewpoint characters. Beelzebub, the Lord of the Flies, grossed me out completely, and so did the depiction of his throne room ankle-deep in blood and floating meat. Barlowe did a great job with that. I felt Lilith didn't come to life as well as she could have, but I really liked Hani (I won't say the long form of his name because it could be a spoiler), and I liked the fact that in hell he got the chance to confront one of his old "gods" from his human life.

Now we get to the quibbles I had with the book. The biggest was that although it's all about one demon's struggle to go back to heaven, we never get to see the action through his eyes. The point of view hops around among various characters, but the repentant Demon Major, Sargatanas, is never a viewpoint character. I felt this cut down on the book's emotional power. After all, if we're not in his head, we can't feel his struggle as directly. We're always going to be slightly removed, and that's how it feels.

I also would have liked to see Sargatanas be more of an evil character when the book opened. The bigger the redemption, the more powerful it is. I felt he was a fascinating character anyway, but he could have been even more so. Finally, the struggle to return to heaven seemed too external. I had expected more exploration of the internal aspect, the reasons why Sargatanas joined Lucifer's rebellion against God to begin with and why he changed his mind, and I think the book would have been the better for it. Battles are all very well and good, but the real story is the emotional story.

Overall, it's not a bad book, but I felt it missed its chance to be a great book.

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Raven has a personal blog at ravesblog.wordpress.com a blog on Korean culture in LA blog at kbloginla.wordpress.com. Look for more of her reviews here at Fantasy Debut in the near future!

For another viewpoint, see Robert's review at Fantasy Book Critic.

The Week Ahead

Today was CRAZY! (However, one of the funnest aspects of the day was a meeting with Sandra McDonald -- more on that in another post.) I'm going to force myself to slow down next week for a week or so; I think I've been taking too much on.

Also, I'm SERIOUSLY OVERDUE for a walk in the woods. I drive my husband crazy, because every few months I need a walk in the woods. Even when we lived in Arizona we'd take occasional drives up from Phoenix to either the saddle on Four Peaks, Bushnell Tanks or the top of the Mogollon Rim. My favorite place in the world was Tonto Natural Bridge. Around North Florida, I can go just about anywhere, but I'm hankering to go back to the Devil's Milhopper in Gainesville. Sounds cool, huh? It is. North Florida has lots of hidden treasures.

Over the next week I'll have a few shout-outs to do, a progress report on Across the Face of the World and a few miscellaneous posts. Since it's going to take a while to finish Across the Face of the World (even though I'm still enjoying it), I'll probably start featuring another book in the meantime.

An Interview With Jeffrey Overstreet

Jeffrey Overstreet had a respite in his writing schedule and agreed to answer a few questions. While preparing this post, I made the shocking discovery that I never did a proper announcement on AURALIA'S COLORS! Therefore, I'll include a few links at the end of this post. First, the interview!

* * *

FD: Please tell us about your inspiration for AURALIA'S COLORS.

JO: Beauty can be dangerous. I was on a hike at Flathead Lake in Montana, exploring that glorious scenery with a woman named Anne. We were talking about fairy tales and imagination, and she said, "Isn't it strange how most people reach a certain age where they fold up their imaginations and put them in a closet?"

That question landed like a fish hook in my head. A story took hold and started reeling me in. I began to imagine a society in which people were burying all of their creative expression, all of the mysteries that inspired them to imagine, all of the colorful parts of their experience. Naturally, they became a culture starved for beauty. And while I imagined this, walking through that beautiful Montana landscape, I realized that I was looking over the shoulder of a character who was an artist. This character's heart was broken because of what she saw happening in that society (which is called House Abascar). So she gathered up all of the colors in the world, and even more than that, and carried them into that society to remind the people of all they were losing.

That was the beginning of ten years of work. I blame Anne, who I eventually married. I blame Montana. And I blame God, who created both Anne and Montana.

FD: Can you give us a teaser about the next novel in The Auralia Thread, Cyndere's Midnight?

JO: Well, the series is called The Auralia Thread, and in the second, third, and fourth book we will get glimpses of life within the other cultures of the Expanse. And we'll see how Auralia's imaginative art continues to influence those who discover it.

The second book, Cyndere's Midnight, is about a creature called a "beastman" who discovers Auralia's colors. When he finds himself "stuck," so to speak, in the company of a grieving widow named Cyndere, a very unstable friendship develops. Meanwhile, the people of House Abascar are in trouble once again, and their survival depends on what happens between Cyndere and the beastman.

Oh, and in case anybody asks, "Cyndere" is pronounced like the word "cinder." And "Auralia" is pronounced "o-RAY-lee-uh."

FD: As I read AURALIA'S COLORS, I could not help but notice that all color is vividly described and emphasized. Are you an artist as well as a writer?

JO:I wish! No, alas, I am not a visual artist. But there are few things I enjoy more than great visual art. I'm a huge fan of Georgia O'Keeffe, and my wife and I spend a lot of each year visiting Santa Fe, New Mexico, and soaking up the natural beauty of the places where O'Keeffe worked. I love filmmakers who create poetic imagery, like Terrence Malick and Krzysztof Kieslowski. I try to paint "word pictures" that are vivid, and that put readers' imaginations to work. But God is the greatest visual artist. All artists are trying to capture some measure of the beauty and design he's made, whether they know it or not.

FD: Did you have any historical sources for AURALIA'S COLORS, or did you invent it all?

JO: Oh, I'm sure there are chapters of history that influenced me. But I didn't do any historical research to give detail to House Abascar.

But the questions explored in Auralia's Colors come from my own personal history. They come from my own struggles in various cultural conflicts. In all kinds of contexts, imagination and beauty are fractured by fear, oppression, ignorance, and greed. I see it happening in the context of world events, in relationships between governments and their people, the relationship between artists and their audiences, in the way schools and churches and families respond to beauty and truth.

Those are the conflicts that gave me a passion to explore them through storytelling.

FD: What is your favorite scene in AURALIA'S COLORS?

JO: That's almost impossible to answer. If I didn't love a scene, it didn't make it into the final draft of Auralia's Colors. There is a scene in the chapter called "Promontory" in which Auralia has to make a crucial decision. She climbs out onto a rocky outcropping and looks out at House Abascar. It's the moment that I first imagined, and it's the moment that the artist, Kristopher Orr, chose for the cover of the book (much to my surprise and delight). I'm rather fond of that moment.

But I loved sharing the experience of the two old thieves who found Auralia lying in a monster's footprint. I loved the experience of floating across Deep Lake on a raft with the ale boy, knowing something mysterious was swimming beneath the surface of the water. And I especially love what Auralia does when she is imprisoned, while that grotesque jailer called Maugam is punishing another prisoner. I become passionate about a scene when I see a glimmer of light in the darkness.

FD: What scene gave you the most trouble?

JO: Finding the right place to end the book -- that was a challenge. After the climactic moments, there's much more to tell people about Prince Cal-raven and the people of Abascar, and about Auralia's unfinished work. What was a very long epilogue was trimmed down quite a bit, and some of that material will appear in the sequel, Cyndere's Midnight.

It's always hard to lose a character too... even the villains. And people die in this story. Maybe not who you'd expect.

FD: Please share the story of how AURALIA'S COLORS came to be published.

JO: Well that's a long story, and it's more bizarre than any story I could invent.

Here's the short version: I'd written Auralia's Colors, and I was discouraged by everything I'd read about the process of finding an agent and getting published. Anne and I prayed together one day, and I remember saying, "Lord, if you want this story to be published, you may have to drop somebody out of the sky with a golden ticket."

A few days later, I received an email from a flight attendant in Atlanta. She had liked one of my movie reviews, and noticed that my bio mentioned some novels-in-progress. She was coming to Seattle for, of all things, a dentist's appointment, and wondered if we could meet for lunch, because she was curious about my novels. I thought this was highly unusual, but I was curious. We met for lunch, and she read a few pages of Auralia's Colors and another novel, one I've written for younger readers. She made a couple of phone calls to people she knew, and then told me that I would receive an important phone call the next day. I wasn't sure what to believe.

The next morning, I got a phone call from the head of Random House's WaterBrook Press. We had a great conversation. One thing led --or rather, leapt -- to another, and Auralia's Colors was published by WaterBrook.

In short: Somebody dropped out of the sky and gave me a golden ticket. And I live in a state of gratitude and near-disbelief. Now, ask me... do I believe in prayer?

FD: Have you finished any other novels previous to AURALIA'S COLORS? If so, can we expect to see them in print?

JO: I have a complete novel for young readers, a story I can't wait to share. I suppose if I were pitching it, I'd say, "It's Finding Nemo meets The Rescuers meets Raiders of the Lost Ark ." But it's also something new, I think. I wrote it because I hadn't read a story quite like it. I wrote it with a wild hope that it might someday become a Pixar animated film. Friends in my writers' group thought it was more likely to be published than Auralia's Colors, so we've been surprised by what's happened. Now I'm so busy with The Auralia Thread that I haven't had any time to pass it around. The main character, Max, is my favorite of all of my characters, so I'll find him a home someday. Or a nest. He's a bird, you see.

FD: It's rather daunting to be interviewing a movie reviewer who has interviewed movie producers, directors and stars such as Liv Tyler and Orlando Bloom. Do you have any interviewing tips for my fellow bloggers out there (and me)?

JO: I'm still learning about how to host a good interview. But I've learned a few things. I've learned to figure out what your subject wants to talk about, rather than what I want to talk about. Get them talking about something they're passionate about. I loved interviewing actor Michael Caine and director Danny Boyle because they're so passionate. I always have great conversations with the singers and songwriters from Over the Rhine -- Linford Detweiler and Karin Bergquist -- because they're such passionate and thoughtful artists. Also, be informed. Study up on the person before you ask questions. Read other interviews and learn what questions they've already answered a hundred times, and find the thing that will make your interview something that nobody can find anyplace else.

FD: I was surprised to find that you have a day job as an editor. After all, you write novels and movie reviews, and you keep several very active blogs. Have you mastered the secrets of time travel? Please tell us about your typical working day.

JO: For years, I wrote on the bus ride to work, and then again on the bus ride home. Now, I have to drive because the bus routes are too long. So I write on my lunch break. I write on 15-minute coffee breaks. When I get home from work at 7pm, I eat dinner, and then my wife and I go to a coffee shop that's open late. And we write. On the weekends, we write. I get some of my best ideas while I'm listening to my pastor, Michael Kelly at Seattle's Crosspoint Presbyterian Church, preach. He's very inspiring. And then, when I go on vacation... I write some more! When Anne and I were dating, our typical outing was a trip on one of Seattle's ferry boats, and we would write, read each other's work, and offer critiques. Not your typical love story, really. But we're grateful. Most of the stories I share about my life begin with, "You're not going to believe this, but...."

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Thank you so much, Jeff! Jeff is all over the place online. He has a blog plus his movie review site, LookingCloser.org. He also does movie reviews for Christianity Today. My posts on Auralia's colors are here, plus you can check out reviews by Fantasy Book Critic and Front Street Reviews. The Amazon links are USA, UK, Canada.