Author Interview: Willow Rose

Today I am glad to welcome Willow Rose, author of Savage to my blog!

1.    When did you first know you wanted to be a writer?  I have always told stories. I remember telling stories to my friends as a child in school and making them forget that they had to go out and play for recess. Even my teacher would listen in and he told me to keep it up and to  write them down. I wrote several notebooks filled with stories that he read. He encouraged me a lot. I went on to become a journalist and wrote my first novel when I was 28. It was published by one of the big Danish publishing houses.  2.    What authors have inspired you the most?  Probably Anne Rice and Isabel Allende. 3.    What was your inspiration for Savage?  My daughters. I love the mind of little children. Their world is so magical. Their way of viewing everything inspired me to the world of the family of magical women living next door to where Christian lives when he first arrives in Florida. Women can be so strong and powerful. I simply adore the women in this book. They are so spirit-filled so vibrant and alive. I know everybody will love them. 4.    Are you currently working on any other projects?  I am already writing the sequel to Savage. I am planning on writing three books about my main character Christian. It is sort of a family-saga really. In the first book he is in his twenties and so is the woman he falls in love with. In the second book they have kids of their own and are in their thirties. In the last book they will have young teenagers. I am also planning on doing a book about Aiyana, the spirit-filled Native American girl that he falls hopelessly in love with. About her and when she first discovers who she really is. I might also do a book about her sister who does telekinesis and their grand-mother who predicts natural disasters. I love those characters so much that they each deserve their own book. 5.    How would you describe yourself in ten words or less?  Pretty normal, passionate about writing and reading. Lover of people. 6.    What is your favorite thing about being a writer?  To be able to create worlds and people. To use your imagination and just create things and worlds. To let people have a peek into these worlds and make them love the characters that you create just as much as you do.  7.    What is your least favorite thing?  Promotion. It's just not my thing. That and revising the book. 8.    What advice would you give to aspiring writers?  Write, write and then write some more. Don't let anyone tell you that you can't do it. Just keep dreaming and writing.

Follow Friday

Q: Happy Father's Day! Who is your favorite dad character in a book and why?

A: There are several that I could name, but I think Mr. Weasley is going to get a ton of attention tonight, so I am going to say Hans Hubermann from The Book Thief. Hans is such an amazing person, he takes Liesel under his wing and gives her the patience, steadiness, and love she needs to recover from being abandoned by her mother after her brother dies. Any child would be lucky to have the accordion playing Hans as a father.

(As would any child to have my father, I love you Dad!)

Be sure to check out my Giveaway!

Savage Giveaway!

I am excited to announce that Willow Rose, the author of the soon to be released (June 15) book Savage, has been kind enough to give me both an ecopy and a signed paperback copy of Savage to give away!

What's It About:

The year is 1983. Christian is 22 years old when he leaves his home in Denmark to spend a year in Florida with a very wealthy family and go to med-school. A joyful night out with friends is shattered by an encounter with a savage predator that changes his life forever. Soon he faces challenges he had never expected. A supernatural gift he has no idea how to embrace. A haunting family in the house next door. A spirit-filled girl who seems to carry all the answers. An ancient secret hidden in the swamps of Florida. One life never the same. One love that becomes an obsession. Two destinies that will be forever entangled.

Savage is a young adult title with some language, violence, and sexual situations recommended for ages sixteen and up.

A Bit About The Author:

Willow Rose writes YA Paranormal Romance and fantasy. Originally from Denmark she now lives on Florida’s Space Coast with her husband and two daughters. She is a huge fan of Anne Rice and Isabel Allende. When she is not writing or reading she enjoys to watch the dolphins play in the waves of the Atlantic Ocean.

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Review: Kevin's Point of View

Title: Kevin’s Point of View (Now titled Captain Disaster)

Author: Del Shannon

            Page Count: 402

Rating: 4.5 TURTLES: A really great read, I highly recommend!

Author’s Website 

Description:

Kevin Tobin is a relatively ordinary twelve-year-old dealing with the ­aftermath of his father’s death in a mountain biking accident near their home in Boulder, Colorado. To escape from his emotional turmoil, Kevin has ­developed his imagination into a dangerous foil and a powerful ally. While he antagonizes his mother and sister through his superhero antics on an average Wednesday ­morning, his ability to escape inside a character’s head becomes critical to his ­survival after his life is once-again turned upside down a year after his father’s death.

A mysterious package arrives in the mail, Kevin and his best friend are hunted down by a ruthless villain set upon world domination who is determined to ­retrieve the package, and after enlisting Kevin’s teenage sister and her pizza-­delivery boyfriend in a battle for control over time itself, the secret of Kevin’s whole existence is revealed to him by a source we never expected.

Del Shannon’s imaginative story, appreciation for the powers of ­family ties and the desire of young boys to both escape reality and prove ­themselves within it, and fast-paced, adventure-filled storytelling style make this a book with wide appeal for readers of all ages.

Review:

Can I just say that I adored this book? It was sweet, charming, funny, and chock-full of action! Being a chronic day-dreamer myself, albeit not to Kevin’s extent, I loved seeing inside his head and how he used his imagination to get out of even the toughest situations. Del Shannon’s writing sucks you right then and holds your attention until the end. The style  reminded me a bit of Eoin Colfer’s style (one of my favorite children’s authors by the way).

Not only did I love Kevin, but I fell in love with the whole ensemble as well. His friends are a motley bunch, but are hilarious and awesome at the same time. When Kevin escapes into his imagination, he usually pretends that he is his favorite cartoon, Captain Disaster. The evil villains chasing after Kevin and his friends were reminiscent of nasty cartoon villains as well, and that parallelism was fun to read.

The only difficult thing for me about this book was the cover. I do a lot of my reading in public places – public transit etc. – and I got a few weird looks and ended up putting a sticky note over the bottom part of the cover (no pun intended) just to clear that issue up. It wasn’t a problem for me personally though, and definitely did not detract from my enjoyment of the book.

Kevin’s Point of View is a whirlwind of a read with a very satisfying ending, but with room left for a sequel, which I would without a doubt want to read. It is appropriate and appeals to a wide range of readers and I highly recommend that you check it out.

 Buy Kevin's Point of View on Amazon

Review: The Bridge of Deaths

Title: The Bridge of Deaths

Author: M.C.V. Egan

Page Count (Paperback): 372

Rating: 3 TURTLES: An enjoyable read, but I suggest check out if you like the topic before adding it to your TBR.

Author’s Website 

Description:

Follow Bill and Maggie in London 2010 as they explore the events of August 15th 1939. When at the brink of World War II, an English plane crashed and sunk in Danish waters. Five deaths were reported: two Standard Oil of New Jersey employees, a German Corporate Lawyer, an English member of Parliament, and a crew member for the airline. Bill and Maggie find a conceivable version of the events.

Review:

When I first started The Bridge of Deaths, I was very intrigued by the idea. The story of this sunken plane told from the perspective of people uncovering the facts present day, not just with files but with the aid of psychics and past life regressions as well. I thought the whole set up was a very original mix of mystery/historical fiction with a touch of the supernatural.

The main characters in the story are Bill, who is suffering from nightmares of the plane crash because of an unresolved past life, Maggie,

Bill’s girlfriend, and Catalina, a middle-aged woman whose grandfather was on the plane. I really enjoyed Maggie and Bill’s relationship, they were very sweet and I felt that their relationship was very real. While I enjoyed Catalina’s background story, most of the time she interacts with Bill and Maggie she is talking about the information on the plane crash she has accumulated over years. At times these chapters just felt like excessive info-dumps to me, and it got a little hard to read. That is why I gave this book a 3 instead of a 3.5 or 4, because overall I enjoyed the story, but if you are not interested in history, then you may find the information heavy parts difficult to get through.

I would recommend this book to fans of historical fiction, especially for those interested in the time around WWII. 

Buy The Bridge of Deaths on Amazon

Follow Friday

Today in honor of the 100th FF we are featuring other people's blogs on our own blog. I am featuring Sharon from Obsession with Books because she was a great help to me a few months ago when I was organizing my Hunger Games read-along! So go check out Sharon!

Blog Tour Stop: Destiny Unveiled

Welcome to the Book Blog Tour for Destiny Unveiled, the sequel to Destiny by Laura Deluca!

Description:  
Gabriella and Darron thought their magickal battle was over when they defeated the evil warlock, Richard. When her Aunt Donna seeks Gabriella's help in rescuing her catatonic daughter from the Dark Coven, Gabriella discovers that her cousin holds a power within her that would be catastrophic in the hands of the evil witches. Gabriella's coven sets out on a journey that may be their last. Along the way, they meet new allies, face devastating treachery, and battle not only the Dark Coven, but the darkness within themselves. When Gabriella finally comes face to face with the cousin she never knew existed, her true destiny is unveiled, and the fate of the mortal world is in her hands.


Guest Post by Laura Deluca:

       There are tons of books out there written about witches, but there is something that makes my books a little different than the other paranormal novels out there.  I have been studying witchcraft, in the form of Wicca, for almost ten years. I am, in fact, a witch myself. I practice with a group of women, much like Gabriella’s mother, and I use the knowledge born from experience to add a little realism into the fantasy of my stories. 

     Now, I’m not saying that everything that happens in Destiny is completely realistic. Far from it. The Destiny series is fiction, after all, and meant to be fun and entertaining.  But I do strive to add real elements of Wicca into the mix. The rituals performed often use symbolism that any pagan would recognize. The ritual tools, the way the sacred space is set up, and even the wording of the spells, are all very realistic.  Only some of the results are exaggerated. Unfortunately, I haven’t met any real witches that can touch the ground and make a flower grow out of the snow or make a cut vanish with just the touch of their hand.  But even the healing aspects of the story are based off of real energy healing. I have been practicing Reiki, which is a form of energy healing, for the last four years.  In this practice, we lay our hands on our patrons and allow the energy of the universe to run through us, into the patient.  Results aren’t as spectacular as those in Destiny, but it always leaves people feeling more energized and definitely eases pain. 

     So much of the Destiny books are drawn from my own spiritual experiences with witchcraft, which is indeed a timeless tradition.  One of my fellow pagans, radio personality Raven Moonshadow, summed it up best in her review of Destiny.  “This is her (Laura’s) first young adult novel and I was really impressed with how closely she kept within the actual concepts of the earth-based religions. I think having a book like this written by someone who follows the religion herself is a huge boost to the published work. The fact that she kept most elements as close to reality without delving into "Hollywood" stereotypes is a testament not only to her as a writer, but also to honoring her own religion, showing the respect that any religion would deserve.” 

     Raven’s review made me so happy, because this is exactly what I was trying to achieve. Destiny is a book inspired by Wicca, and written out of my respect and love for this most sacred of paths. But don’t worry. I managed to pull all this off without getting preachy, and I definitely maintain the fun elements that any fantasy novel needs to be a success.  In the Destiny series, you’ll find love, suspense, and shocking revelations you’ll never see coming. So, if you want to read a book about witches, read a book written BY a witch. Get yourself a copy of Destiny and/or Destiny Unveiled.    

Buy Laura Deluca's Books.

          

About Laura:
Laura "Luna" DeLuca lives at the beautiful Jersey shore with her husband and three children. She has been writing stories for as long as she can remember. Old high school friends would tell you she was always scratching in her notebook instead of paying attention in class and the children she used to babysit for always loved to hear her scary stories at bedtime. In addition to writing fiction, Laura is also the sole author of a popular review blog called New Age Mama. She is an active member of her local pagan community, and has been studying Wicca for close to eight years.  She loves writing young adult novels, because it keeps her young at heart. She is the author of three published works including Destiny, Destiny Unveiled, and Phantom, and has several more projects in the works.

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Here is the Book Trailer for the first book in the series, Destiny.