Welcome to Kristen Taber's blog tour. I asked her why she writes fantasy, and this is what she said.
I’m having a hard time writing this blog post today. There’s
an imp on my shoulder, tapping away at my earlobe with his fingernail. He
snorts and I look over at him in time to catch the wrinkles on his small green
face stretch from a grotesque smile. Then he’s gone. A slight pop shatters the
silence before air fills the space where he sat. As soon as I look away again, I
feel small fingers pulling strands of my hair.
Attention would only continue to encourage him, so I try my best to
ignore him in the same way I might ignore a tantrum-throwing child.
My cat isn’t helping my concentration much either. He
brushes against my arm and tries to lie down on my keyboard. His body warms my
chilled fingers, but I have work to do, so I move him. He pushes back against
me, plops down again, and then hisses when I dump him onto the floor. I nudge
him with my foot and he yowls, but finally leaves me in peace. As he runs from
the room, his eyes glint fire, then he lashes his barbed tail behind him,
scratching my leg.
Yes, barbed. I’m just glad he decided not to nip at me.
Double rows of razor teeth are never pleasant.
And I’m back to my blog, debating on how to explain why I
chose Fantasy as my genre, when in reality, I don’t think any author chooses
the genres they write. The genres choose us. They hijack our lives, flooding
our creativity with images we have no choice but to write down. It’s the only
way we can maintain the illusion we’re controlling the craziness.
The imp snaps the rubber band holding my ponytail in place
and I shoo him away with a negligent wave. Is he really there? I’m pretty sure
he isn’t. Just as I’m equally as sure the tentacles I see reaching out of the
DC storm drains and the red eyes of a Mardróch hidden in the dark alleys are my
imagination. These things appear to me, figments of my overactive mind and I
welcome them, cataloguing every detail for later use in a book or a short story—in
the Fantasy genre, of course. It would have to be.
After all, I’m not sure an ogre would make the best lawyer
in a crime drama, even if he did just walk past my window wearing a suit.
Aerenden Series (The Child Returns, The
Gildonae Alliance and The Zeiihbu Master)
by Kristen
Taber
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Book
One: The Child Returns
Seventeen-year-old
Meaghan has no idea her perfect life has been a lie — until she witnesses her
parents’ brutal murders at the hands of red-eyed creatures.
After
nearly sharing their fate, she escapes with her best friend, Nick, who tells
her the creatures are called Mardróch. They come from another world, and so
does she. Now that the Mardróch have found her, she must return to her homeland
of Ærenden or face death.
Left
with little choice, she follows Nick into a strange world both similar to Earth
and drastically different. Vines have the ability to attack. Monkeys freeze
their victims with a glare. Men create bombs from thin air. Even Meaghan’s
newly discovered empath power turns into a danger she cannot control.
But
control becomes the least of her worries once the Mardróch begin targeting her.
When Nick confesses he knows the reason they want her, she learns the truth
behind the kingdom's fifteen-year civil war — a long-buried secret that could
cost Meaghan her life.
Book
Two: The Gildonae Alliance
Several
months after Meaghan’s return to Ærenden, the kingdom’s war has taken a turn
for the worse. The Mardróch army hunts the new King and Queen, destroying
villages in its wake. And Meaghan and Nick, training for battle in their remote
section of wilderness, are far from safe. Danger hides in shadows and behind
innocent faces. Allies become foes. Each day is a fight to survive. But in the
end, only one threat matters. And it’s a threat they never see coming.
Book
Three: The Zeiihbu Master
Separated
and on opposite sides of the kingdom, Nick and Meaghan face different pursuits
which could change the balance of power in Ærenden forever.
While
Nick trains the villagers to be soldiers, Meaghan and a small rescue party
venture into Zeiihbu to find Faillen's young son, before Garon can use the
boy's power to destroy those still fighting against his rule.
Everyone
knows Meaghan could be on a suicide mission, but when Nick stumbles upon a
secret concealed in one of the southern villages, he realizes that Garon might
not be Meaghan's greatest foe. The enemy most likely to kill her is someone who
has also promised to keep her safe.
Excerpt Book 1: The Child Returns
THE WALLS
fell in first. A flash of light and smoke came next. Or could it have been the
other way around? It happened so fast, she could not remember. The air smelled
funny, like when Papa put out the fire before bed. It filled her mouth and her
nose. It stuffed her lungs and clogged her breathing. Then it turned thick and
black so she could not see. She coughed. She tried to stand, to run, but her
legs sagged beneath her. Tugging on a curtain, she pulled three times before
she grew tired of toppling over, and crawled toward her bedroom. She called for
her mama, but heard only the sound of distant screams through the smoke. None
of them was Mama.
“Mama? Mama?”
she cried again, feeling her way along the floor. Her fingers brushed a rug,
soft and cool compared to the stone floor. A glowing fire consumed part of the
room, heating the stone. It crept toward her. Fires hurt. Papa had told her she
should not touch them. Sometimes she thought about trying to see if he was
right, but she did not want to try with this one. It seemed angry. Its flames
popped and snarled.
The couch began to glow, and then disappeared as the fire swept over it.
It folded in half, crashing to the floor with a loud bang. She yelped. Tears
stung her eyes and wet her cheeks. Her arms shook. Her legs trembled. She
backed away, and found the table that usually stood in the middle of the living
room. It must have toppled over too. It lay on its side next to a body that
looked like Mama.
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Kristen
spent her childhood at the feet of an Irish storytelling grandfather, learning
to blend fact with fiction and imagination with reality. She lived within the
realm of the tales that captivated her, breathing life into characters and
crafting stories even before she could read. Those stories have since turned
into over a hundred poems, several short tales, and five manuscripts in both
the Young Adult and Adult genres. Currently, Kristen is completing the
five-part Ærenden series from her home office in the suburbs of Washington D.C.
Website:
http://www.aerenden.com/
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/kristentaberauthor
Twitter:
www.twitter.com/kristentaber
Google
+: plus.google.com/+KristenTaber
Pinterest:
http://www.pinterest.com/kristentaber/
Buy
Links for Book 1
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0084UZ5GM/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B0084UZ5GM&linkCode=as2&tag=sad06-20
BN:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/aerenden-kristen-taber/1111767014?ean=2940044899988
Buy
Links for Book 2
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BQ5BEFI/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_il_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00BQ5BEFI&linkCode=as2&tag=sad06-20
BN:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/aerenden-kristen-taber/1114843982?ean=2940044371811
Kristen will be awarding a $25 Amazon GC to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour as Grand Prize and an audiobook will be issued to 10 runnerup commenters so follow her tour and comment often. Use the rafflecopter to win the GC. You can find her schedule at http://goddessfishpromotions.blogspot.com/2014/03/virtual-book-tour-aerenden-series-by.html
I love learning about new authors and new books that I haven't seen before. Thank you! I can't wait to learn more!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for checking out my books, Jessica. It's always nice to meet other book enthusiasts :).
ReplyDeleteElaine, thank you for hosting me today!
ReplyDeleteThank you for hosting
ReplyDeleteThanks for the guest post today~ this series sounds like a great adventurous read.
ReplyDeleteilookfamous at yahoo dot com
Thanks, Elise-Maria! It is actually a huge adventure :).
ReplyDeleteThank you, Rita!
ReplyDelete