Bandit Book Bloggers Tour- Darkspire Reaches
As part of the Bandit Book Bloggers Tour Group, every month I'll have an awesome book to promote. First for July is Darkspire Reaches, published by Kristell Ink.
Darkspire Reaches
by
C N Lesley
Abandoned as a sacrifice to the wyvern, a young girl is raised to fear the beast her adoptive clan believes meant to kill her. When the Emperor outlaws all magic, Raven is forced to flee from her home with her foster mother, for both are judged as witches. Now an outcast, she lives at the mercy of others, forever pursued by the wyvern. Soon her life will change forever.
A unique and unsettling romantic adventure about rejection and belonging.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elizabeth Hull, writing under the by line of
C.N.Lesley, lives in Alberta with her husband and cats. Her three daughters
live close by. When she isn’t writing, Elizabeth likes to read and to paint
watercolors. She is also a keen gardener (despite the very short summers) and
now has a mature shade garden. Once a worker in the communications sector,
mostly concentrating on local news and events, she now writes full time, and
fusses over her cats. She was senior managing editor of FlashMe Magazine and
now is assistant flash fiction editor for Abyss and Apex.
LINKS
REVIEW BY JEANNE HASKIN
Author of ‘Love, War and Magic’, Artema Press
Raised in the world of Darkspire Reaches to heal the sick
and fear the wyvern, Raven is an immediately accessible and lovable character,
for whom the road from servitude to motherhood is paved with persecution,
betrayal, and ultimately a showdown for who will command the loyalty of her
mate. At times, the book is heartrendingly brutal, and, at others, filled
with a tenderness that inspires happy tears. Comic relief, in the form of
Raven and Connor’s wit, not to mention the antics of Kryling, a much smaller
cousin of the wyvern, raises the book another notch from excellent to
brilliant. With layers of complexity that attain additional depth each
time I return to the story, this is a book to be read again and again.
I cannot recommend it highly enough.
I cannot recommend it highly enough.
REVIEW BY LIT AMRI, READERS FAVORITE – 5 STARS
In C.N. Lesley’s “Darkspire Reaches”, when Emperor
Chactar order the death of witches by burning, Raven and her foster mother,
Margie, leave their village and seek shelter from the very man who is
responsible for their misery. In exchange for a secret that Margie threatens
to expose, they are granted shelter by the wicked emperor. From that moment
onward, Raven’s life continues to change, and she will learn so much more
about herself, about Samara Maidens, a Drakken male and the beast Wyvern that
has plagued her mind like a nightmare.
I love the cover art by Alex Boca which grabs my
interest right away. The dialogue was confusing at first until I figured out
the difference of a ‘peasant talk’ and the normal speech that Margie and
Raven use. The author’s beautiful writing style easily sparked off interest
and my imagination about the story. I rooted for Raven from the beginning as
I felt her pain and sympathized with the harsh life that she had to endure.
Honestly, I didn't like the things that happened to a protagonist that
deserves so much more. I couldn't find it in me to like Connor, the Drakken
male, at all. Only when Raven accepted him that I followed suit. A tumultuous
but otherwise entertaining read, this is an adult fantasy novel with
solidly-built worlds, characters and creatures. If you love dragon-themed
tales like me, the Wyverns are definitely on par with the dragons as a large,
mythical winged creature.
|
PURCHASE
LINKS
Available
in paperback and digital form from the following.
Stealing your attention since 1895