Book Review: Star Rider, On the Razor’s Edge January 31, 2015
Posted by heidi skarie in Uncategorized.comments closed
Star Rider on the Razor’s Edge by Heidi Skarie.
5 out of 5 stars. by Pennie Mae Cartawick
Science Fiction at its best. Agent Toemeka Ganti is a woman whom has her own agenda, she lives life on the edge and her dedication and strength to her cause to overthrow the Despot of Jaipar whom is controlled by the sorcerer Samrat is her only solace. Samrat’s space fleet killed her family and destroyed her planet. Now, her spy mission is to defeat him by practicing tactics and to create a shield-destroying oscillator prototype to win the battle.
A bittersweet novel of sorcery, and evil forces mixed with an element of romance. The quest for survival keeps the reader guessing as to what the outcome will bring. With a rugged setting and intimate character detail, ‘Star Rider on the Razor’s Edge’ is compelling that creates a lasting impression.
Overall, a playfully entertaining read that connects a sense of realism while she takes on the ultimate quest for restoring peace to the people of Jaipar.
http://www.amazon.com/Star-Rider-Razors-Heidi-Skarie-ebook/dp/B00R3Z9LUK/ref=cm_cr-mr-img
Interview with Iva Kenaz, author of The Witch Within January 30, 2015
Posted by heidi skarie in Uncategorized.Tags: book interview, fantasy, Iva Kenaz, spirituality
comments closed
I just finished reading The Witch Within and greatly enjoyed the main character’s journey both physically and spiritually. The following is an interview with the author.
Iva Kenaz author.
What inspired you to become a writer?
I’ve been fascinated with storytelling since childhood. I wrote many simple hand-written books and in my teenage years I wrote a three-part novel about past lives. I often had repetitive dreams and visions in which I experienced stories from another person’s point of view and felt compelled to note them down. I keep returning to these dreams for inspiration. Writing is something very magical and sacred to me. I believe that it’s a divine communication between the author and the worlds beyond.
What is The Witch Within about and what is the major theme?
The Witch Within is set in 16th century Bohemia and is about a sixteen-year-old gifted healer, Talitha who has been charged with witchcraft.
Talitha escapes to the abandoned Cursed Lands and seeks the ancient cave of her ancestors where her grandmother lived. In the mystical woods, she starts to remember her ancestral lore of healing and magical symbolism and receives guidance on how to survive from the local spirits. But then she is captured by two men who were sent to bring her back to the local justice. One is a brute, but the other one is fatally attracted to her.
After Talitha manages to escape them, she finds her ancestral cave, but also another one at the highest peak of the forest where a group of refugee women have established a camp. By facing both the dark and bright side of her kin, Talitha learns that what she thought was her curse, may yet become her gift.
The major theme is survival, both in physical, emotional and spiritual sense. It’s about overcoming one’s fears and limitations and becoming empowered using primordial inner wisdom.
The Witch Within
What kind of research did you do for the book? What made you pick the 16th century in South Bohemia?
The story is inspired by repetitive dreams and visions I used to have and partly by a book called The Secret History of Czech Lands (by A.Cesal,O.Dvorak and V.Matl) that focuses on the long-gone mysteries of my home country.
During the 16th century the witch-hunts became more serious all over Europe but I decided on that period mainly symbolically, as the story is made up and thus remains a fantasy.
I was also inspired by the beautiful magnetic countryside of South Bohemia, particularly mountain Kleť, which could translate to Cursed or Mountain of Curses. In the middle ages many landscapes of South Bohemia were feared and some of them even drowned under lakes and ponds. People considered them cursed and haunted, however, those places had rich pagan history and concealed the wisdom of Celtic, Slavic and Germanic tribes.
How does Talitha, the main character, grow and change in your book from her experiences?
Talitha starts off as a gifted healer but she has a very low-self esteem and feels guilty about the death of her brother. She believes that her choice of herbs caused his death. It’s only once she manages to heal one of her captors that she realizes she is truly able to save lives.
Eventually, she also becomes initiated in the magical and healing power of runes and a part of her soul that used to be conscious of such ancestral mysteries begins to re-unite with her present self.
Her spirit is also greatly tested by the shadow side of magic but in the end Talitha learns to understand that the witch within her might not be a curse but an actual virtue.
What writing project are you working on now?
I’ve been working on a stand-alone sequel to The Witch Within that focuses on Talitha’s granddaughter, Berkana, and delves deeper into the mysteries of the natural spirit, runes and sacred geometry.
Iva Kenaz’s Bio.
I’m an indie author and a devoted student and practitioner of Sacred Geometry, Astrology, Tarot, Runes and Channeling. My novels are mainly visionary/metaphysical and are greatly influenced by spirituality, symbolism and philosophy.
In June 2014 I published my first novel The Witch Within and later that year also a personal confession titled My Melancholic Diary. I studied screenwriting at a film university in Prague, FAMU and MA Creative Writing at London South Bank University. Currently, I’ve been working on a stand-alone sequel to The Witch Within as well as doing a research for my non-fiction book about archetypes in storytelling.
Here is Iva Kenzaz’s website.
Author interview with MCV Egan January 22, 2015
Posted by heidi skarie in Book Review.Tags: author interview, Defined by Others, infuenced by others, MCV Egan, novel, The Bridge of Deaths
comments closed
Defined by Others
MCV Egan has recently published a delightful book titled Defined by Others. Here is an interview with her.
-What inspired you to become a writer?
I am the sixth child of eight. As such it is not easy to be heard, by the time I knew what I wanted to say louder older dominant voices interrupted and I resorted to writing, to be prepared to communicate with words.
When I was twelve my entire family moved from Mexico City, Mexico to Washington D.C. , I left behind a really nice group of friends and there the need to stay in touch was a motivator to write.
Now any Astrologer would tell you that as I was born with the moon in Gemini and a few other aspects on my natal chart I had no choice but to write.
-What is Defined by Others about?
Defined by others is about how difficult it is to be true to yourself when influenced by the actions and influence of others.
It is about two women who feel lost because their husbands left them and they need to re- invent themselves; find themselves at the age of 47. They get involved in a cyber-game of manipulation; in a way living up to the old adage that misery loves company, and they play nasty tricks on other women.
It is a book about falling in love and losing love, friendship and enmity, trust and betrayal. The voice is humorous even though the subject has dark sides and there are strong consequences for their actions.
-Did you do any research for this book?
There was not much traditional research per se. I did watch the documentary CATFISH and reports about it (http://abcnews.go.com/2020/catfish-movie-tale-twisted-cyber-romance/story?id=11817470 ) to understand how people create false identities to approach unsuspecting targets in cyberspace.
I did minor research on the different Chinese symbols and totems for their Astrology. I wanted to use snakes and dragons and it worked out great as they are years that are chronologically connected in the Chinese calendar. It was so fortunate that the description of Snake women is that they are beautiful, I needed pretty and mean women!
Looked into a variety of psychic abilities and what was the style in the 80s when these women would have been in high school.
-Who is the main character in your story? How does she grow and change?
Anne Geyer is the main character. She is 47 years old and fascinated by loose words, words that can stand alone to define a moment. She is multilingual, the mother of teenage twins and her husband left her.
He left her and informed her that he had fallen in love with a man. She is broken and undefined. At the same time her dad suffers a major stroke and she has to deal with helping her parents put in order the house she grew up in. The house stirs memories and feelings of betrayals from her past.
The ‘frenemy’ of her youth dies and leaves her a game of manipulation, through pain, fear and perhaps a bit of boredom she gets pulled into this mean game of manipulation.
She grows and changes as the story flows because she has to decide her future, and because her nasty game has harsh consequences.
She is very flawed and as dislikable as she is likable, it was such fun creating her.
-What projects are you working on now?
Defined by Others is book one in a series; Defining Ways. I am writing book two Climbing up the Family Tree; Defined by Pedigree, and I have another volume which I tentatively call Living in Vain; futility Defined, but I have changed the title umpteen times.
I have a huge list with synopsis and I see the “Defined” possibilities as endless, all books will be able to be read in any order and stand on their own.
-Is there anything you’d like to add?
I now also write a history article every other week or so at THE INFLECTIONIST with Wanda Hartzenberg. I am very happy to share that with your visitors as well as my three blogs. Where I interact with and promote a wide variety of, writers, poets and artists.
Author Bio
M.C.V. Egan is the pen name chosen by Maria Catalina Vergara Egan the author of The Bridge of Deaths and Defined by Others. Catalina was born in Mexico City, Mexico in 1959, the sixth of eight children, in a traditional Catholic family.
She only spent her childhood in Mexico. Her father became an employee of The World Bank in Washington D.C. From the early 1970s at the age of 12 she moved with her entire family to the United States.
Catalina was already fluent in Southern English as she had spent one school year in the town of Pineville, Louisiana with her grandparents. There she won the English award; ironically being the only one who had English as a second language in her class. In the D.C. suburbs she attended various private Catholic schools and graduated from Winston Churchill High School in Potomac, Maryland in 1977.
She attended Montgomery Community College, where she changed majors every semester. She also studied in Lyons, France at the Catholic University for two years. In 1981, due to an impulsive young marriage to a Viking (The Swedish kind, not the football player kind) Catalina moved to Sweden where she resided for five years and taught at a language school for Swedish, Danish, and Finnish business people. She returned to the USA in the late 1980s where she has been living ever since. She is fluent in Spanish, English, French and Swedish.
Maria Catalina Vergara Egan is married and has one son, who together with their five pound Chihuahua make her feel like a fulltime mother. Although she would not call herself an Astrologer she has taken many classes and taught a few beginner classes in Astrology. This is one of her many past times when she is not writing or researching.
Here are two Book Trailers
Contact links
Facebook fan page
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Bridge-of-Deaths/130675087014521
blogs
THE BRIDGE OF DEATHS
http://thebridgeofdeaths.tumblr.com/
4covert2overt A Day In The Spotlight
http://4covert2overt.blogspot.com/
Is History The Agreed Upon Lie?
http://ishistorytheagreeduponlie.blogspot.com/
Link to AMAZON AUTHOR PAGE
http://www.amazon.com/M.-C.-V.-EGAN/e/B0069W9NY2/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0
Link to your website
Writing Red Willow’s Quest led to an unexpected revelation January 22, 2015
Posted by heidi skarie in Book Review.Tags: action/adventure, American Indian, love story, Red Willow's Quest, Shoshoni, spirituality, vison quest
comments closed
Every novel has a story behind it—a reason the author felt drawn to write it. When I started writing Red Willow’s Quest I decided to write a fantasy story of a young woman who was on a spiritual quest. I began writing the story as fantasy because it was close to the genre I’d written my other novels in. However, after writing several chapters, I realized I was writing about a culture that was much like the Plains Indians. I debated starting over and writing the book as a Native American story. While I was pondering this, I was sent a manuscript. As soon as I started reading it, it seemed as if the universe was speaking to me, for the story was about a woman who remembered her past life as a Native American woman. I wondered if the story I was writing was based on my own past life as a Plains Indian.
I had to take my daughter to her flute lesson so I put aside the manuscript and went outside. There I found a hawk feather in the yard. It was standing up and in perfect condition. On each of the next two days I found another hawk feather in the yard. For me finding three hawk feathers was a significant spiritual sign that I should start over and write the story of my own past life as a Native American maiden.
Later, I heard a talk by a spiritual leader who said that to some Native Americans the cry of a hawk meant clear spiritual vision and flying above the mundane world. This was further confirmation that I was on the right track.
Once I’d made the decision to write about my own past life, memories of that life started coming through especially as I began doing research on the Plains Indians. It was as if the reading I was doing opened the door to this past life. My memories revealed much about that life, but I didn’t know the time period or place where that life took place, nor did I know what tribe I’d been part of.
I knew that the story took place in the mountains, so I started out by figuring out what mountains range I lived in. Through my readings and looking at photographs, I soon realized that I had lived in the Rocky Mountains. I had always felt a deep affinity and love for the Rockies that I now realized came from that life. As a child my family had made many trips Glacier National Park where we had gone camping and hiking. Later as a young adult I went backpacking in the Rockies. On these trips I always had the feeling of being home.
Draft of map for Red Willow’s Quest
My research also revealed that I was a Shoshoni Indian. Their culture, clothing and food matched what I remembered from that life. One book I read about them was entitled The Shoshonis, Sentinels of the Rockies because of where some of the tribes lived.
The time period where that life took place turned out to be fairly easy to establish because in the story Red Willow and her companion go to a fort on the mouth of the Big Horn River. Research revealed that in 1807 John Colter and Manuel Lisa built a trading post called Fort Raymond in that location. The fort was only in existence for one year. John Colter was one of the men who was a part of Lewis and Clark’s expedition to explore the Louisiana Purchase. He built the fort after the expedition was completed.
More pieces of the puzzle of that lifetime fell into place as I continued my research, such as figuring out which people attacked Red Willow’s village. When I traveled out west, I also found out that a name I thought I’d made up for a tribe was the real name. I’ll talk about these discoveries in the next post.
Here is a review of the book from Amazon posted on Jan. 21,2015
I could not put this book down. The action, suspense and awesome detail of life as a native American of that time period totally absorbed me. From the first page I was enthralled. Red Willow’s courage (as a 16 year old!) to hold to her visions and implement her dreams despite enormous resistance and danger gave me an entirely new insight into the depth of commitment that is possible in this physical life. It’s a story about living truly on the edge and being faithful in every respect to one’s principles and spiritual mission as revealed through visions and the counseling of one’s spiritual guides.
I can say that Ms Skarie’s story deeply inspired me. There was no room for compromise nor weakness, nor even for what might appear to be pragmatic. Always there was the decision made to follow the star of spiritual vision and the goal of accomplishing one’s mission in life. No quarter was given to personal attachment or ease. That kind of vision clarity is so rare. It was a delight to see it so clearly illustrated in this novel.
It would seem to me that this story would be recommended reading for any young person seeking to discover her/his own spiritual purpose in life or to build confidence and courage in living through the challenges of the modern world. Finding one’s core and staying true to it despite all objections of family and tradition is a worthy goal for anyone serious about their life’s purpose.
As I became increasingly captivated by the spiritual strength of the main character, Red Willow, I found myself identifying with her and literally absorbing her strength and centeredness. Something in me shifted to a greater acceptance of and commitment to my own mission. My guess is that if you read this book with a desire to know yourself better and be true to your own visions you will come away a changed person.
If you’re interested in buying the book click here to get a link to Amazon.
Great fantasy novel: interview with Michael Diack January 22, 2015
Posted by heidi skarie in Book Review.Tags: action/adventur, elves, fantasy novel, Shadows in the Sand
comments closed
Shadows in the Sand is a fantastic fantasy story that is reminiscent of Tolkiens. The following is an interview with the author.
What inspired you to become a writer?
Writing has always made me happy and I’m motivated by a personal sense of achievement not a financial one. It’s great to see your hard work pay off by having one of your own books in your hands. I still have a day job that I love and that pays the bills, but it’s great to have a hobby.
How did you come up with the idea for the Shadows in the Sand?
I used to work in Oman in the middle of the desert. I was there for nearly five years on a seismic crew looking for oil and gas. Everything in Shadows is inspired by the Omani landscape: the rolling dunes, the rugged mountains, the lifeless voids of endless flat terrain and, of course, the snakes, scorpions and other creepy-crawlies!
The world you have created is very detailed how did you come up with it?
I am inspired by the environment I live in. I’ve had a lot of good feedback about the descriptions of the landscape and that’s because I essentially lived in the world of Shadows in the Sand. I sweated in the heat, felt the hot, desiccating wind and I know what’s it like to be alone on top of a sand dune with no sound but your own breathing. I consider myself very lucky to have experience an environment like Oman and in this modern world of big cities and hectic noise, it was very other-worldly to be in terrain like that. I think my descriptions are strong but character dialogue is something I need to work on for future novels.
How do you come up with good names for your characters and beasts?
Again, some of the names have an Arabic feel to them while others are normal Western-style names. I actually find it hard to think of strange names for the beasts and I usually just write a list down while a little half-drunk and then see if they make sense when I’m sober!
This is part of series called Empyria. How many books are in the series and how do you plot your books?
There are actually only two books, the final being The Light and The Glass. I found the second book much more fun to write as I had already set up all the plot in book one. So book two is basically one non-stop epic of huge battles and life-changing scenarios. As for plot, I have a general sense of where the storyline is going but I’m never too detailed. I usually find that when I’m in the ‘zone’ and writing thousands of words each day the book just takes on a shape of its own. However, that’s not to say it is perfect as it’s usually editing that is the very hard part and ironing out the plot-holes you find and sticking points.
Do you know the ending to the series?
I must be honest though, the ending to Book Two does leave open the possibility to writing more. I never actually specified how large the world of Empyria is as I only talked about the one continent. Perhaps there could be another land, inhabited by other monsters or another race, on the opposite side of the world. That’s the great thing about writing fantasy, you are unrestricted and there is no limit to the scope of your imagination or world-building. I know I said I’m not motivated by money but the truth is it also costs a lot to self-publish if you’re putting quality work out there. A good thousand dollars for paying an editor to proofread your 75,000 word novel and then the cover design. I’m simply not making the sales from Empyria to justify writing a third and paying to have it edited again. I appreciate that’s negative talk but you have to prioritize everyday life and rent!
What fantasy authors have inspired you?
I’m a huge Tolkien fan. I think my entire bookcase is taken up by almost all his works. It’s incredible how one man created so much detail and even a language. I also find that Tolkien’s books are the only ones I regular re-read and never get bored of. As a child I also enjoyed Brian Jacque’s Redwall series about heroic mice and other animals taking on the evil rats and similar foes!
Author bio:
My name is Michael Diack and I’m from the UK, but currently living and working in Denmark.
I studied geology at the University of Manchester and, after graduating, I was lucky to find a job in the Middle East working for a geophysical company.
My favorite authors are Haruki Murakami, JRR Tolkien, Markus Heitz and an Italian author called Niccolo Ammaniti. I love fantasy books but I’ll read almost any genre that catches my eye, yet it is the world of Middle-earth that fills up my bookcase.
I released my debut novel, The Super Spud Trilogy, back in April 2012 as a paperback and e-book for Kindle. Book 4 of the Super Spuds – Over Land and Sea, was released on Kindle in December 2012. In July 2013 I branched out from writing about magical crisp packets and released Shadows in the Sand, the first part of my fantasy series Empyria – a survival story set in a dystopian world in the desert.
I’ll happily interact with any readers through Twitter, my website or on Facebook.
Be sure to check this book out on Amazon. What are your favorite fantasy and science fiction books ?
Heidi Skarie at Blue Star Visions 