Cover Reveal for Restless Earth and Blessing Sky by Emily Mah #Giveaway

Welcome to my stop on the cover reveal tour for Restless Earth and Blessing Sky by Emily Mah. These are the first two books in a YA/NA fantasy series.  They release July 20th. 

Preorder from Amazon

About the books:

For over a thousand years, the Tanoa have relied on their line of Earth Shamen to bring rich harvests, temper stone tools and weapons, and imbue pottery with strength like metal. Now, though, the bloodline has dwindled to one Shaman, Tuwa, who is trapped high in the mountains, holding bedrock together to prevent a volcanic eruption while the rest of her people flee to safety. The only way to save the village is for her to sacrifice herself and buy them the time they need to evacuate.

But her grandson, Ahote, refuses to abandon her to die. Rather than do as she asks—marry and bear daughters who might inherit her gift—he sets out to find the one person who might be able to save Tuwa’s life.

Kasha is a Tanoa girl in who lives in Solace, a city of the pale-skinned Andalanos. If the Engineers Guild ever discovers her gender or race, they could order her execution—for in violation of the King’s law, Master Engineer Seamus trained Kasha as his apprentice. She is a genius in all things mechanical and earned her master certification when only fourteen years old. Since Seamus’s death, she has been discreetly working his job as the City Engineer.

No engineer in history could save Tuwa; it requires an invention unlike anything the world has ever seen. Kasha believes she can do it, but when Ahote breaks the Andalanos’ most sacred law, she is caught between worlds. Kasha must choose between her Tanoa heritage and her Andalano friends who have risked their lives to give her the only career she has ever wanted. Choosing one means betraying the other, and in this world, betrayal means death.

Preorder from Amazon

About the Author:

I write as both Emily Mah (for science fiction and fantasy) and E.M. Tippetts (for chick lit). My short stories have appeared in Analog Science Fiction and Fact, The Black Gate, and anthologies like The Dragon and the Stars, Shanghai Steam, and The Change: Tales of Downfall and Rebirth. My E.M. Tippetts novels have been on the Amazon Top 100 numerous times, and my novel, Someone Else's Fairytale was semi-finalist for the Best Indie Book of the Year - Kindle Book Review, and a runner up in Romance for the Best of the Independent Book Awards - eFestival of Words.

I'm a graduate of the Clarion West Writer's Workshop for Science Fiction and Fantasy and Viable Paradise Writers Workshop, and I often teach the unit on self-publishing at the Taos Toolbox Writers Workshop.

When I'm not writing or chasing small children, I manage E.M. Tippetts Book Designs, my company which offers formatting, cover design, and editing services to authors and publishers.

Other links:

My interviews for Black Gate (I'm an audio and sometimes video blogger for BlackGate.com)
YouTube Channel
Twitter
Facebook
Mailing List

Giveaway:

The author is giving away an ebook of the first book in the series, Restless Earth, to everyone who signs up for her mailing list: http://eepurl.com/bitx49

This event was organized by CBB Book Promotions.

EPIC (Fourteen Books Of Fantasy): $50 Book Blast

Welcome to my stop on the book blast tour for Epic, a fourteen-book fantasy collection. It's a limited edition bundle that is available for only $0.99!

 

Epic: Fourteen Books Of Fantasy For a limited time only!

The freshest voices in fantasy bring you fifteen New York Times, USA Today, and Amazon bestselling authors. With fourteen stories and over one million words of captivating fiction, this epic fantasy set will keep you entranced. Delve into worlds where adventurers discover forgotten lands of wonder and fight ancient evil. Worlds where dragons soar, where heroes and heroines wield sword and magic to answer adventure's call. Get one of the largest bundles of page-turning epic fantasy today…before it’s gone!

Pre-order your copy NOW!

Amazon

Terah Edun - Blades Of Magic
As an unstoppable war breaks out, a young girl enlists to find out the secrets that everyone is trying to hide.

Daniel Arenson - A Legacy of Light
War rages in Requiem, an ancient kingdom whose people can grow wings, breathe fire, and rise as dragons.

Megg Jensen - Anathema
A young slave girl discovers a world of magic she never knew existed and must face her enemies as prophecy unravels.

Jeff Gunzel - Land Of Shadows
A young blacksmith, born into a simple life, watches helplessly as the world he knew crumbles before his eyes.

C. Greenwood - Mistress of Masks
When an ancient evil stirs in Earth Realm, a group of unlikely heroes must find a way to stop the wave of darkness that is devouring their land.

Dima Zales & Anna Zaires - The Sorcery Code
Blaise's magical creation is not an object of sorcery, but rather a beautiful woman who's unlike anything their world has ever seen.

Annie Bellet - Witch Hunt
A cursed elven archer and her ragtag group of adventuring friends battle witches to stop a deadly plague and save a small village.

David Adams - Ren Of Atikala
Humanity is found in the inhuman when a "monster" is forced out of her home and into the world of elves, humans, and dragons.

Joseph Lallo - Jade
A little girl, selected as a sacrifice to end a mighty dragon's reign of terror, instead finds both the protection and the family she so badly needs.

K.J. Colt - Concealed Power
Adenine has been quarantined for being the last carrier of a plague that killed thousands, but when trouble strikes, she is forced to leave her sanctuary and enter a world full of secrets, enemies, and plots.

Lindsay Buroker - Encrypted
After being kidnapped, linguist and code-cracker Tikaya Komitopis must work with her people's greatest enemy to stop an ancient evil that threatens the entire world.

Mande Matthews - Bonded
Two children--one a born leader and the other a born servant--are bonded across worlds as Soul Warriors, but they must discover the secrets of their past if they hope to overcome the darkness that threatens their future.

Brian Anderson - Starfinder
Lee Starfinder embarks on his first adventure with a sword at his side and confidence in his heart, but he will soon discover that the perils of the world are far stranger than he had ever imagined.

Ed Robertson - White Tree
A young man is obsessed with mastering death magic, but his studies make him the key to resisting a powerful god--as well as the intended prey of the god's dark acolytes.

   

Book Blast Giveaway 

$50 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash

Ends 12/22/14

Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader and sponsored by the author. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Book Review and Giveaway: Tower of Obsidian by L.T. Getty

Welcome to my stop on the tour for Tower of Obsidian by L.T. Getty, an epic fantasy of 354 pages available now from Burst Books.

This post is part of a virtual review book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. L.T. Getty will be awarding a $25 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Click the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour. Remember, the more stops you visit, the more chances you earn to win.

BLURB

Journey back through time – to a kingdom where loyalties change hands and a duke plans to secure his kingdom through any means necessary, where oaths are broken and dismissed to forge new alliances, resulting in treachery.

Journey to save the one who was stolen from you – from the forests of the Emerald Isle to the icy waters of the Nordic New World. Journey by horse, ship, and wing.

Journey to the Tower – the Witch’s Tower that curses the people forced to serve it. Journey and kill the witch that plagues you and be free – face her dragons without becoming one yourself.

For the journey to the tower is only the beginning. Climb the tower and kill her; climb the tower and save her. The story has been told a thousand times, the only thing that is guaranteed to change is you.

EXCERPT

At first, he thought they were Vikings. Their attackers were large men with broad faces and full beards. He did not recognize their dark leather and metal dress or their pale, grayish skin painted white. It was late in the battle so their true color was easily seen underneath the smeared segments which weren’t spattered with blood. Braided into their hair and beards were the teeth and bones of both men and beasts.

Despite the chaos, he could see their ship, and then he heard a reptilian chortle from above. Not a sea serpent, but a great silver dragon, smaller than the ship he was on.

It rained down fire toward the sails. Several warriors from both sides were caught in the flames; some of who leapt into the waves. Kale took cover but was instantly dry; his back burned, for the corsair’s ship was already on fire, forcing him toward the ship’s stern. He had talked with Vikings before, their merchant allies, and even some captured enemies. He had tried not to listen to their pagan stories but became interested when they spoke of their ghosts.

One large, pale warrior was struck by a corsair’s blade, and he bled as dark as any man. Ghost or mortal, Kale had no idea, but the word draugr burned into his mind as he fought. He tried to remember the stories, but with what seemed like death battling him, his mind was of survival, not folklore.

The dragon then dove beneath the waves. He barely had time to parry the attack from a one–armed draugr. Parrying, Kale caught his scent. The warrior was no ghost. He’d received a cut to his head. He knocked Kale backwards, only for a corsair to shoot him from behind.

“Show them no mercy,” shouted the corsair. “I thought you were a great swordsman. Fight!”

MY REVIEW

Let me begin by giving the same advice that I gave people about The Girl with Dragon Tattoo: It starts slowly. Be patient. It's worth it. Trust me.

The novel opens with a truly magnificent prologue. One of the best that I've read in ages.

Kicking off in Killiath, Ireland (in 994), the story of the Tower of Obsidian starts off a little slow. It takes a while for the author to set up the theme and characters. That's not unusual for an epic fantasy. [There are many secondary characters and sub-plots in this story]

That said, once the quest gets going - it really gets going. Or should I say quests? There are actually two quests happening within the book. One quest is the adventure of a great hero (Kale) who is compelled to choose duty over love, only to be betrayed during his mission. The other is an adventure about a rebuffed maiden (Aoife) and a best friend (Aaron) trying to save someone who was stolen from them (the aforementioned Kale). 

Yup. The maiden attempts to rescue her lost love. She is not the rescuee.

Have you heard the phrase, "Go big or go home?" Getty goes big. I am talking love, dragons, magic, witches, misfortune and an ancient tower. Did I mention dragons? The twists and turns that bring the two adventures together are fast-moving and engaging.

What starts off slowly, turns into an epic tale that weaves a story of historical fiction, romance and mythology into legend. I especially liked the author's description of sailing across the the uncharted waters towards the Nordic colonies.

All in all, the novel is a promising debut. I would like to read more about Fianait's story (Aoife’s sister). Perhaps we'll get to see more of Fianait in another book.  

If I had to describe the book using books that I've read, I'd say Tower of Obsidian is Life Descending meets Lord of the Rings.  


Recommended for:

• Fans of Epic Fantasy
• Fans of Historical Fantasy

NOTE: I received a free copy of the book in exchange for an honest review. This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. See the tour schedule for additional stops.

AUTHOR INFO

L.T. Getty started writing in Junior High, having devoured far too many novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs as a wee one, then just about any other science-fiction and fantasy novels she could find. Her debut novel, Tower of Obsidian, is inspired by Norse and Celtic mythology.

Blog: http://ltgetty.wordpress.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/leia.getty

Buy Links:

Burst: http://burstbooks.ca/product.php?id_product=90 (This is the Ebook; print is also available)

Amazon: http://www.amazon.ca/Tower-Obsidian-L-T-Getty-ebook/dp/B00BAH9XSW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1394632445&sr=8-1&keywords=tower+of+obsidian

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tower-of-obsidian-l-t-getty/1114919470?ean=9781927454770

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/300308

GIVEAWAY

Don't forget! L.T. Getty will be awarding a $25 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. Leave a comment below and you'll be entered to win. You could:

• Ask L.T. Getty a question about Tower of Obsidian or writing.
• Tell us what are the most important elements in good epic fantasy storytelling, in your opinion? 
• Share your favorite epic fantasy story.