June 2022 was the month for finally getting together to celebrate last year’s release, The Warder. The event was set to go ahead here in Exeter, and preparations were going swimmingly…
but alas, we were thwarted by Covid. Life can be as unpredictable as the twists and turns of our stories, and so came a last-minute shift onto zoom.
Hosted by my publishers, the lovely folks of Stairwell Books, and joined by local guest readers bringing more fantasy, folklore, poetry and rhyme, it was lovely to spend time in the company of other writers, as well as readers of my series so far. And onto my readings.
With a brief intro. to Book One, Return of the Mantra, I was reminded of intrepid Suni and her search for justice and her own identity. Thrust into some stark environments, she discovers what she’s really made of, in contrast to the mountaintop view where her worldview is forever changed. And of course, when you’re up against tyranny and fighting for the natural world, it takes more than one voice. Onto Book 2, The Warder, where we get to know more of our heroines and heroes.
With three main characters in The Warder, three scenes jumped out at me to share.
Wanda, an eighteen-year-old young man, gifted but also cursed by a shadow bound to him. One of his opening scenes is a favourite, looking out over the grasslands, searching for respite from his curse.
Ten-year-old Luna, troubled by strange visions, experiences her own personal breaking high in the mountains.
And, perhaps holding it all together, Suni returns, working to restore harmony to her hometown, while using her gift to watch out over her young friend.
The dominoes are falling, squeezing characters and revealing timeless bonds. All set in a world with new lands revealed, where old and new, the mundane and the fantastical, coexist. Prepare to be cast away to an archipelago of islands in the far western reaches, with the musty air of the cavernous temple and the sound of footsteps crossing the mosaic-tiled floor; in contrast to the warm desert winds of Shendi, carrying spells and curses that touch all those with the gift to hear…
With themes of wildlife and the environment, social justice and marginalisation, magic, animism, being true to oneself, and dragons… Not to mention a diverse range of character arcs revealing love in all its forms.
Prior to the event, I set myself a project to imagine what my characters might look like. Of course, it’s ultimately for readers to draw their own conclusion, but I’ll leave you with the result of the project: a series of portraits, my own artistic interpretation of my beloved characters that span the series, Blood Gift Chronicles.
Happy Reading!
