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Showing posts with label Fairy Tales. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fairy Tales. Show all posts

Wednesday, 17 December 2014

#NewRelease and #Giveaway Faery Marked by Mary Waibel @mewtweety14 #YA #Fantasy

Please welcome back my good friend Mary Waibel with her latest release, Faery Marked, the first book in the Faery Series. I had the privilege of reading an advanced copy of Faery Marked. You can see my 5 Star review @Goodreads.




Thanks so much for hosting me today, HK, and for helping to spread the word about Faery Marked.


I can write with or without music playing, but I prefer to have music playing. Usually I turn the speakers down just enough so I can hear the song, but not enough to distract me from what I'm writing.


While working on Faery Marked, I set up a play list on Spotify that I put on random and repeat while I worked. (You can find it here) As I worked on revisions, I noticed that several of the songs I chose for this playlist really said a lot about the characters I was writing about.


So, here are the songs that I think define my characters: [All lyrics taken from azlyrics.com]


Callie: Chasing Cars, Snow Patrol



I love this song.

We'll do it all
Everything
On our own


We don't need
Anything
Or anyone



This section sums up Callie so perfectly. She knows that with Reece by her side, she can do anything, even save the world.

Reece: Nothing Else Matters, Metallica
Ah, Reece. He'd give his life for Callie if he had to, but he's never told her how he feels. But, I know he thinks the words of this song when he looks at Callie.


So close no matter how far
Couldn't be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
And nothing else matters


Never opened myself this way
Life is ours, we live it our way
All these words I don't just say
And nothing else matters


Trust I seek and I find in you
Every day for us something new
Open mind for a different view
And nothing else matters


Ryan: Dance with the Devil, Breaking Benjamin
I'm not sure anything from this list could be more fitting for Ryan than this song. He's a wildcard. Not to be trusted. Yet he believes in Callie, no matter what.


Here I stand, helpless and left for dead.
Close your eyes, so many days go by.
Easy to find what's wrong, harder to find what's right.


I believe in you, I can show you that I can see right through all your empty lies.



Gwen: Everybody’s Fool, Evanescence The Fae love double entendres, and to me that's what these lyrics are for Gwen.


Perfect by nature.
Icons of self-indulgence.
Just what we all need,
More lies about a world that...
...never was and never will be.
Have you no shame? Don't you see me?
You know you've got everybody fooled.


Look, here she comes now.
Bow down and stare in wonder.
Oh, how we love you.
No flaws when you're pretending.



She's supposed to be the perfect Fae, and to humans her world doesn't exist, so she really has everyone fooled.

What do you think? Do these songs fit the characters from Faery Marked? If not, what song do you think would be better?






Book Blurb:


When Callie Rycroft wakes to find purple flames flickering on the ceiling, she believes she’s still dreaming. But soon she’s forced to accept that she has magic―a special magic that grants her entrance into the Faery Realm.


For centuries humans have been banned from Faery, but dangerous times call for dangerous measures. Declared Champion by the Faery Queen, Callie is assigned a Guardian, and tasked with finding the Cordial―a magical elixir needed to keep the portal to the Faery realm a secret from humans.


The upside? Reece Michaels, the boy she's been crushing on for years, is her Guardian. Callie hopes that, by spending time with Reece, he'll start to see her as more than just his best friend's sister.

The downside? She's in a race not only against time, but against another Champion, and a rogue Guardian―a Guardian who stands to threaten her developing relationship with Reece.

Magic, mistaken identities, and hidden agendas are the least of Callie's worries when she learns that the Cordial requires a sacrifice. Will Callie be willing to risk everything―even Reece―to complete her task as Champion? Or will she let the portal open, and doom both realms?



Available at AMAZON


Win a signed copy of Faery Marked and other swag. Details HERE. Don’t miss out on this
 LIMITED TIME OFFER!!!


About the Author:
YA author Mary Waibel’s love for fairytales and happy-ever fill the pages of her works. Whether penning stories in a medieval setting or a modern day school, magic and romance weave their way inside every tale.

Strong female characters use both brain and brawn to save the day and win the heart of their men. Mary enjoys connecting with her readers through her website: marywaibel.blogspot.com

Wednesday, 11 June 2014

New Release THE MYSTERY PRINCE by YA Author Mary Waibel

Please welcome back my friend, the lovely Mary Waibel.  A YA author notorious for her romantic spin on fairy tales, has taken the self-publishing plunge with her newest release The Mystery Prince, which is delightfully climbing the Amazon charts!

HK, thank you so much for letting me come and visit with you on your blog. As one of Gard's biggest fans (next to you of course!) I'm thrilled to be here today talking about romance.


When you think of romance what comes to mind? Hearts and flowers, chocolates, romantic evenings under the stars?

Now, think about the fairy tales you grew up with. For me this means thing like Sleeping Beauty where the prince woke her with a kiss and they lived happily-ever-after. That doesn't sound very romantic. How about Cinderella? Two strangers dance at a ball and fall in love. There doesn't seem to be any romance here either.




Now, I'll give you that in the Disney movies we learn a lot about their feelings through songs (rather than watching it play out), but still, the guy doesn't really seem to have to work to win the girl. Okay, Prince Phillip had to fight the dragon to save Aurora, and Prince Charming had to search for Cinderella, but we really don't see the growth of their love. In fact, only two fairy tales come to mind where (at least in the cartoon versions) we see the relationship between the hero and heroine grow: Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid.


So, why do we feel all hearts and flowers with these other fairy tales? Is it because in our minds we play out the scenes where they get to know each other? Do we imagine those little things-the touch of a hand, an endearment, a heated look-that make our hearts flutter with anticipation?


Those are just some of the things I try to bring into my retellings, hoping the reader can fall in love with my prince-or princess-as they fall in love.



                                                            Cover by CK Volnek 
The Mystery Prince, a novella


Book Blurb:

Tristan enjoys being in the shadows as Prince Rand's bodyguard. Similar in looks, the two often exchanged places in their youth, but he never expected the king to order him to impersonate the heir to the throne in order to win the hand of a princess.


Princess Zoe needs to find a husband. After a year of searching with no success, her father insists on hosting a masquerade ball for the eligible princes of the nine kingdoms. Not one prince piques her interest, until she meets the mysterious stranger who won't tell her his name.

When Tristan meets Zoe he finds the girl of his dreams. The only problem? She's a princess and he's impersonating a prince―a crime punishable by imprisonment and floggings. Unable to tell Zoe his real name, he gives her a special navigation device. One that leads to the owner's true love. Will this magic device lead Zoe to Tristan, or will her true love forever remain a mystery prince?

Author Bio:

Mary lives with her husband, son and two cats. When she isn't twisting fairytales, she enjoys reading, playing games, watching hockey, and camping. Her Princess of Valendria series (Quest of the Hart, Charmed Memories, Different Kind of Knight) are available from MuseItUp Publishing and other major retailers.  Her novella, The Mystery Prince, is available at Amazon. Her Faery Marked (book 1 in the Faery Series) will be available from BookFishBooks this summer.

Thursday, 6 February 2014

Welcome Back Author Mary Waibel @mewtweety14

Once again, it's time to throw a blanket over some of the naughty bits on this site and then please welcome back YA Fantasy author and my very good MuseItUp Publishing gal-pal, Mary Waibel...



Welcome to Valendria!

Picture Europe in the middle ages, and you'll be pretty close to what Valendria is like. Made up of five kingdoms―Breneira, Palindore, Faldaera, Delphine, and Lowenguilde―Valendria is a land filled with beautiful scenery and unique creatures.


Our first introduction to Valendria came in QUEST OF THE HART. Here, the neighboring kingdoms of Breneira and Palindore came to life as Princess Kaylee of Palindore went on a quest to rescue her betrothed, Prince Devlin of Breneira, from a sleep spell. Little was seen of Palindore, as most of our time was spent traveling the swamps and mountains of Breneira with our brave heroine. Magic is a force to be reckoned with in this world, as are its unusual creatures, such as the Golden Dragon, Aureal.



In CHARMED MEMORIES, we see a bit more of Palindore, as well as Faldaera. But most of our time is spent in the island kingdom of Delphine, as Lady Bri, the kingdom's best tracker, helps Prince Trevor search for his missing princess. Merfolk, magic, treachery, and betrayal are at the heart of this tale.



While in Delphine, we meet Prince Broderick, more commonly known as Brody. When his world falls apart, he leaves his island kingdom and winds up leading a rag-tag group of men against a variety of mythological creatures. When his path crosses with Princess Gabrielle, or Rielle as she prefers, he learns that more than dangerous creatures plague the kingdom of Faldaera. 

Come on a tour of the countrysides of Faldaera and Lowenguilde in DIFFERENT KIND OF KNIGHT and meet some exotic creatures such as griffons, wyverns, arrowhawks, and griffonvuls.


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