Summer Book Recs!

Summer is winding down where I’m at—the fields of corn and beans are yellowing, the garden is slowing, and a few leaves have fallen. But we’re clinging on to the last bits of hot sun this week with our topic: Summer Promo! 

I don’t have anything new to share with you, but I have read some great books recently! In the beginning of August I shared a couple of sci-fi recs, which you can find here, Recoil and The Blighted Stars. And I can’t not put another science fiction book on the list, and this one has a heavy dose of romance to compliment the exemplary tech! Book three in the Starlight’s Shadow series:

Capture the Sun

by Jessie Mihalik

Acclaimed author Jessie Mihalik returns with the thrilling conclusion to her Starlight’s Shadow trilogy. An intergalactic thief must join forces with the charming teleporter who stole her last job—and may now be her only hope for saving her former crew. As a recovery specialist, Lexi Bowen’s jobs typically require more trickery and thievery than honest work. Her former captain might not approve of her flexible morals, but stealing artifacts for rich assholes pays the bills, and Lexi’s had enough of war and death. The FHP left her to die once; she doesn’t plan to give them a chance to finish the job. Unfortunately, her latest contract takes her to Valovia itself—and right back into the orbit of Nilo Shoren, a Valovian teleporter who already cost her one payday and nearly stole her heart. Armored against his clever charm, Lexi plans to get in, get the job done, and get out. But when her former crew goes missing in Valovian space, Lexi will have to work with Nilo to figure out what happened—and stop it—before the galaxy’s two superpowers can use the disappearance as an excuse to return to war.

If you’re in the mood for some fantasy on the high seas I highly suggest:

Dark Water Daughter

by H.M. Long

A stormsinger and pirate hunter join forces against a deathless pirate lord in this swashbuckling Jacobean adventure on the high-seas.

Mary Firth is a Stormsinger: a woman whose voice can still hurricanes and shatter armadas. Faced with servitude to pirate lord Silvanus Lirr, Mary offers her skills to his arch-rival in exchange for protection - and, more importantly, his help sending Lirr to a watery grave. But her new ally has a vendetta of his own, and Mary's dreams are dark and full of ghistings, spectral creatures who inhabit the ancient forests of her homeland and the figureheads of ships.

Samuel Rosser is a disgraced naval officer serving aboard The Hart, an infamous privateer commissioned to bring Lirr to justice. He will stop at nothing to capture Lirr, restore his good name and reclaim the only thing that stands between himself and madness: a talisman stolen by Mary.

Finally, driven into the eternal ice at the limits of their world, Mary and Samuel must choose their loyalties and battle forces older and more powerful than the pirates who would make them slaves.

And one last, fantastic read. The magic system and all their rules is so good and the relationships will suck you in, proving you can run but you can’t hide—book two in the Renegades of Magic series!

Rogue Familiar

by Jeffe Kennedy

He left to save her from herself… But who will save him from her?

When Lady Seliah Phel wakes from a drugged sleep to find herself abandoned by her newly bonded wizard, she vows revenge—and to hunt him down. Tracking him through the familiar wilds of the marshlands of her home is the easy part; learning to use her nascent magical skills is something else entirely. So is facing the vast, uncaring society of the Convocation in a time of brewing war.

Jadren El-Adrel is not known for doing the right thing, but getting as far away from Seliah as possible before he drains her dry will be his one noble gesture. So what if she weeps a few tears. Better than her dying in his service—or enabling him to become the ravenous beast that crawls beneath his skin. Unfortunately, in his self-imposed exile, and without the power of his familiar, Jadren quickly runs afoul of the enemy.

As her vengeful quest for recapture becomes a rescue mission, Selly faces all she still doesn’t know about the greater world of wizards and familiars. And Jadren, once determined to walk his own path and stay far, far away from the idealistic fools of House Phel, finds himself aligning with them against the house of his birth. War is coming to the Convocation, which means a clever wizard should pick the side most likely to win.

Sadly, Jadren has never been all that clever…

I’ve shared some of mine, do you have any book recs for me?

Heroes, Villains—Villains, Heroes

Heroes are memorable. Heroes save the day. Heroes are who we want to be. But what about those villains we love to hate? They're heroes in their own eyes which is why this week we’re asking: 

Which fictional villain would you write a redemption arc for if copyright and trademarks weren’t a thing?

If you love epic fantasy that’s norse inspired, you need to pick up Hall of Smoke by H.M. Long. It speaks of loss, found strength, and honor. Also, there’s axes and gods, and friendships that surprise you—so many good things! 

But what I really loved about this book was Eang, the Goddess of War. Eang is the god that the MC, Hessa, is devoted to. Throughout Hessa’s story, Eang, either in her owl form, formless voice, or goddess shaped, lead and direct Hessa to battle the Old Gods that are waking and wreaking havoc on mankind. 

Old Gods, bad! Eang, good! But wait…the veil is torn from Hessa’s eyes and she sees the souls of her fellow vestiges within her goddess, providing Eang power and prolonged life! Hessa wakes up and [spoiler]. Yeah, that’s right. You’ve gotta read the book to find out what happens between Hessa and Eang. 

I love what H.M. Long did with Hall of Smoke. She took a goddess and her acolyte, pitted them against some seriously powerful beings, and then turned the tables. So, I’m choosing Eang as the villain I’d write a redemption arc for because she’s so incredible, and complex, and she has reasons. We all want villains that have reasons, a purpose, behind their decisions that make them steal/lie/cheat/do evil things. Eang has all of that and more. 

One of the ‘and more’ things is her son, Ogam. Because if I were to write Eang’s story from her point of view, Ogam would have to be part of it and he is a handsome trickster who lands in the grey zone—a little more black and a little more white depending on the situation. Seriously, if I haven’t mentioned that you need to read this book, do so if only to read about Ogam alone! 

Back to the villain. The soul stealer. The vengeful, unrighteous god. Eang would be so much fun to write, to look through her eyes and see the world of small men and the strength she wields to hold it. 

Hannah, I love your writing and your characters! If you ever want to share Eang, I’ll be over here dreaming! If not, I’ll keep scanning the trees for the owl! 

Book Cover Blurbs

As a reader, what do you first do when you pick up a book? Droll over the cover art….soooo. Readers, when you pick up a book what do you do second? Read the blurbs!

I said blurbs plural for a reason. Jeffe did an excellent job describing blurb differences, and there are differences, even though most readers wouldn’t differentiate them. 

The back cover copy, BCC, blurb is one of the groan inducing aspects of being an author. This consists of the few paragraphs on the back of the book, or the inside front-flap of a hardcover, that tease the reader with the drama contained within. Yes, that means you must condense your entire novel into a few paragraphs. Ah-ha, there’s the groans! 

But hey, it’s more verbiage than your elevator pitch!

Then there are the fellow author blurbs on the cover. These glowing, one sentences are there to entice the reader to pick up the book and read the back. How do these come about? 

If you’re a traditionally published writer your agent or publishing house will help get an ARC, advanced readers copy, of your book into the hands of some (hopefully) well-known authors. Then you cross your fingers that they actually have the time to read it, and as writers we all know how precious reading time is, and give a blurb. 

Talk about pressure! How do you write a sentence to sum up a book you loved that’s more articulate than: I-loved-this-so-much-you’ve-gotta-read-it-right-now!! You basically do what you need to do when you’re writing your own BCC. Pinpoint the heart of the story and add in how it made you feel or an aspect that gripped you so hard you couldn’t stop reading. 

As with everything, it takes some practice. A great way to do that is to write book reviews. If you are staring a blurb request down, have written some, or are dreaming of the day you’re asked to provide one, reading will help you build this skill. 

With that, happy weekend and may your reads be great!