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September 12, 2016

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44 Signs You’re Obsessed with The Out of Time Series

If you’ve followed Penprints for any length of time, you’ve probably heard me mention The Out of Time Series by Nadine Brandes. If you haven’t, I’m not sure what Penprints you’ve been reading, but it’s not this one. Well, I have compiled a list of signs that you might be obsessed with The Out of Time Series (please, of course none of this was drawn from personal experience; I am not obsessed with the Out of Time series. I’m not.).

If you have not read The Out of Time Series, you just won’t understand this post because you haven’t been baptized into the fandom, and therefore you must read the books immediately.

Note: For the purposes of this post, The Out of Time Series shall be referred to simply as “The Series”.

Let’s dive in.

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1. You own hardcopies of all three books (true, A Time to Rise doesn’t release for another 31 days, but you broke into Nadine Brandes house, hacked her computer, and printed yourself a copy, so there you go).

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That moment when you decided you needed to read A Time to Rise NOW

2. Your copies of The Series are all autographed by the one and only Nadine Brandes (even the copy you printed at her house).

3. You have joined the Readers of Nadine Brandes Facebook group and share your fan theories hourly.

4. Your family says that you’re obsessed, but they just don’t understand… yet.

5. You’ve made it your mission to force all of your family members to read and love The Series as much as you do.

6. You spend hours making memes based on The Series.

me-when-i-think-about-the-hawk-bros

^^^ a meme made by an obsessed fan ^^^

7. You are the founder of the Radical Hotline for new readers of The Series who aren’t coping well with the end of A Time to Speak.

8. You say that your footy pajamas are one of Wilbur Sherrod’s suits.

9. You plan to name your firstborn Parvin.

10. You plan to make your siblings name their firstborns after other characters from The Series.

11. You refer to your enemies as “Empty Numbers”.

12. You experience all the stages of grief whenever you flash back to the end of A Time to Die.

13. You experience visceral hate whenever you smell lemons.

14. You own all of the Happy Hello bookmarks based off the characters in The Series.

15. You are currently writing the companion guide for The Series.

16. You designed and launched The Series’ clothing and accessory line.

17. You philosophically quote The Series to people whether they like it or not (e.g. – Person: I’m just so sick and tired of your attitude! You: Well, impulse is my oxygen. OR Person: Do you want some coffee? You: *wistful sigh* Tomorrow was never promised to us. OR Person: I’m hungry. You: They will be angry. You must be calm. They will have questions. You must be honest. They will watch you. You must be confident. OR Person: Have you seen the remote? You: *thoughtful expression* God doesn’t make empty numbers.)

18. Your go-to gift is A Time to Die (e.g. – Oh, Sally is graduating! I’ll get her A Time to Die! OR Wow, Grandma’s turning 95 this year; I’ll get her A Time to Die! OR Judy’s having a baby shower. I’ll get her A Time to Die. OR I can’t believe Hunter is turning 3 already! He’ll love A Time to Die!) whether it fits the occasion or not.

19. You take pictures of A Time to Die and A Time to Speak, eagerly awaiting the day when you may add A Time to Rise to your #bookstagram.

out-of-time-collage

Yes, that is a puppy.

20. You mention The Series at least once a blog post.

21. You’ve read The Series four times and are starting on your fifth.

22. You go to extreme lengths to make sure that your local library has at least one copy of A Time to Die.

23. You threaten to make people who don’t like Parvin atone (wait, what?).

24. You have a five year plan to single-handedly get The Series on the NYT Bestselling list where it belongs.

25. You carry A Time to Die in your purse.

26. You’re still shell-shocked about the ending of A Time to Speak.

27. You have your dream cast picked out for when The Series is made into movies.

28. You both dread and eagerly anticipate the movie adaptions of The Series because there’s no way they’ll do it justice….

29. … So you’re currently writing the 16.15 hour screenplay yourself.

30. You send Nadine Brandes fanmail weekly.

31. You follow Nadine Brandes on all of her social media accounts. All of them. (All. Of. Them.)

32. You are one of Nadine’s Ninjas.

nadine's ninjas button

33. You complete every ninja mission from the Ninja Leader (aka: Nadine Brandes) with way too much enthusiasm.

34. You spend hours gazing at the beautiful covers and admiring Kirk DouPonce’s incredible skill.

all three covers

35. Your friends will probably fall over dead if they have to hear you talk about The Series anymore.

i-just-want-it-to-stop

Your friends every time you start in on The Series.

36. In case of a fire, you keep a few copies of The Series in an indestructible, heat-proof vault.

37. You believe that the government is trying to clock-match you.

38. You don’t call them weddings; you call them graftings.

39. You have pre-ordered A Time to Rise because you really really really want that awesome swag that Nadine Brandes has promised all those who pre-order A Time to Rise.

40. Your Twitter followers can’t escape your weekly (sometimes daily, sometimes hourly) tweets about The Series.

twitter-thread-out-of-time-series

^^^ actual tweets from fans ^^^

41. When talking about The Series, you typically use phrases such as: “changed my life”, “was a spiritual frying pan to my head in the best way”, “I believe in this series”.

42. You judge other readers who aren’t as committed to The Series as you so obviously are.

43. You boycott bookstores that don’t carry The Series.

44. It’s hard for you to think about how A Time to Rise is the last book in The Series.

And there you have it.

Are you obsessed with The Out of Time Series? Obviously, I am not.

Have you read The Out of Time Series yet? No? Give me your name and address and I’ll add you to my five-year plan.

Are you going to name your firstborn Parvin? No? You’re going to name him Solomon?! Perfect! Then our children can marry!

I hope you enjoyed this goofy post.

If you haven’t read The Out of Time Series, I highly recommend it (in case you couldn’t guess by this post).

If you’ve read The Series, are there any signs I missed?

What are some of your favorite books? Why do you like them?

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July 25, 2016

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To Be Read: Summer|Fall|Winter 2016

There are approximately 90 books on my to-be-read (TBR) shelves (yes, shelves, plural, meaning there are more than one), not to mention the running mental list of 100+ TBR books. It’s really quite overwhelming; so many books, so little time. Sometimes it makes me a very downcast bookworm.

I have looked at these shelves and decided to selected a chunk that will be in my immediate TBR stack (yeah, different levels of TBR = #hardcorebookworm). I have no idea how long it will take me to wade through these 20-something books because I’m a slow reader, but wade through them I shall!!

And I decided I would share this list with you lovely peeps.

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Okay, let’s start with the classics.

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Emma by Jane Austen.

I cannot believe that I call myself a book lover and have not read this book. I know the story because there are some many movie adaptions, but I’ve never sat down and read the book myself (I know, we’re all appalled). I already love Emma, and so I cannot wait to finally check this baby off my list. (And, ladies, Mr. Knightley over Mr. Darcy any day of the week.)

The Scarlet Pimpernel by Emmuska Orczy.

This is another one that I’ve known about forever and have seen the movie (great movie, btw) but have just never read! Again, I’m already in love with the story and the characters, and so I think this will be fabulous read.

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien.

Yep. Another one classic I haven’t read (we’re barely scratching the surface of my classic illiteracy, just so you know). I’m ashamed of myself. I have no idea why I haven’t read this up until now. I read The Lord of the Rings and The Simarillion when I was ten, and then I took a seven year break from books in Middle Earth. Don’t ask my why. I don’t know. I adore Middle Earth. I don’t know what my problem is.

The Giver by Lois Lowry.

Now, I guess this doesn’t really go with the classics, but I think that it is almost a classic in that it is an early dystopian novel (don’t speak to me of 1984–I despise that book). I’ve seen the movie for this one also, and I was so pleasantly and delightfully surprised (unfortunately, it’s a severely underappreciated movie)! The ending didn’t do a ton for me, but I appreciate this story and the idea so much. It shall be grand.

More classics (aka: swanky-looking old books).

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Five Great Dialogues by Plato.

Full disclosure: I don’t know if I can even handle this one. I will not be all that surprised if my brain can’t process it and shuts down. This is here mostly because I want to be able to say I read it (yep, being one of those and not ashamed of it).

The Odyssey by Homer.

Unlike Plato’s work, I have no qualms about this bad boy. Oh. *rubs hands together* This is gonna be good. I’ve already read The Iliad (lots of drama in that one), and clever Odysseus was one of my favorite characters (he actually acted like an adult unlike the majority of the people in that epic). While I’m not jazzed about him being separated from his family for so long, I am excited about his journey. Let’s do this!

Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott.

My brother (this’d be Bro #2) read this several years ago and enjoyed it, and so it’s been on my mind ever since. Finally, I’ve found myself a pretty fantastic copy, and now it’s my turn to experience it.

Moving on. The Circle Trilogy by Ted Dekker.

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First of all, yes, indeed. That is a little Lego Loki chilling in the pic of The Circle Trilogy.

This will be my first time reading Ted Dekker’s work, and so I’m pretty excited. I’ve heard this series is one of his best, and so I have great expectations (no, not the book–I don’t really care for Dickens *gasp*).

A touch of Orson Scott Card.

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Typically, I’m not a huge science fiction reader (guys, I can’t help that fantasy is my go-to), but I’ve heard excellent things about Ender’s Game (it’s another movie that was severely underappreciated). Plus, I want to broaden my horizons beyond fantasy… as painful as it sometimes is… anyway, from what I’ve heard, Ender‘s Game is suitable first sci-fi read.

A miscellaneous stack (I don’t really know why I put these books in a stack).

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Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand.

My brother (this’d be Bro #1) read this this past winter, and he was raving (raving). And he doesn’t typically rave. I’ve heard the Laura Hillenbrand is an incredible writer (which is a high compliment from Bro #1), and I know some of the story of Louie Zamperinni. This one will be intense, I know, but I am raring to go.

Safely Home by Randy Alcorn.

Family members cried when they read this one. It’s the story of a Christian in China and the persecution he goes through. I wouldn’t necessarily say that I’m excited about this one. I want to read it, but I’m not sure how I’ll feel about it. From what I’ve heard, I’ll learn a lot, but I think it’s one that wrings out your emotions.

Havah by Tosca Lee.

Havah is the story of Eve, and so I’m immediately drawn to this book because guys, Eve. It starts right after her creation, and from what I’ve heard of Tosca Lee, it’s exquisite. This will also be my first exposure to Tosca Lee.

The Help by Katherine Stockett.

I love the idea and strength behind this story. It’s about a young white woman  in the 1960’s who wanted to draw attention to how black women who were “the help” were treated in many families. I’ve heard that it’s well-written and powerful.

A selection of C.S. Lewis.

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A Grief Observed.

I know next to nothing about this book, and I want keep it that way until the very instant I open it for reading. Basically, I’m reading it because it’s C.S. Lewis (C.S. Lewis, peeps), and I’ve heard people say that it’s a very good book. I honestly don’t even know if it’s fiction or nonfiction (shhhh! Don’t tell me! I want to be totally surprised by this book when I pick it up!)

That Hideous Strength.

This is the third in C.S. Lewis’s Space Trilogy (I read the first two books a few years ago), and I’m very jazzed. I’ve heard that it’s scary (from Bro #1) but so so good. So I’m gonna pick this one up pretty soon.

Till We Have Faces.

Oh my goodness. I think that I’m most excited about this one–maybe the most in this entire list–because it’s a retelling of the Greek myth of Cupid and Psyche. It is probably one of my favorite myths, and I’ve heard people say that this book might be Lewis’s greatest work. I started it when I was fourteen, but then I didn’t have the discipline to finish it (don’t judge me, peasants; I was fourteen). So. This. Book.

The Screwtape Letters.

When I first heard the premise of The Screwtape Letters (a demon sending advice to another demon), I couldn’t get over the ingenuity of it. Ever since, I’ve wanted to read it, but it’s been coming on and falling off my radar for years. The time is now (or will be in the near future).

For spiritual growth.

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A Journey to Victorious Praying by Bill Thrasher.

A friend who serves in full time ministry recommended this book to every member of my family, and he said it richened his prayer life. So, now I’m going to read it.

The White Umbrella by Mary Frances Bowley.

This book is about human trafficking. It was written to shed light on human trafficking when we typically try to not think about/ignore it and it’s bondage and horror. I don’t think there’s really anyway to prepare for this book, and I don’t even really want to read it. But I do I believe that it’s important, and that’s why I’m going to read it.

Crazy Love by Francis Chan.

Ah, Francis Chan. I read Forgotten God (also by Francis Chan), earlier this year, and it was incredible. I have heard so much good about Crazy Love for years, and so at last, I’m finally going to read it.

Embracing Obscurity by Anonymous.

Just the fact that the author takes this so seriously that he/she won’t have his/her name printed on the book made me pick it up and buy it. I’ve looked, and I can’t find any hints as to who wrote this book. This is about “becoming nothing in light of God’s everything”, and it is something I sorely need to learn. 

The Purpose of Man by A.W. Tozer.

A.W. Tozer was constantly coming back to worship–what it is, why we are to do it, etc.–and this book is the culmination of his passion. If worship is the purpose of man, then I need to be doing it better. Hopefully, this book will help me.

Follow Me by David Platt.

I read Radical (also by David Platt) last fall, and God used it powerfully in my life. I cannot wait to see what He does with Follow Me.

The Battle Plan for Prayer by the Kendrick brothers.

This book on prayer was also given to me by another family friend. I’ve looked through the table of contents, and I am more than impressed with the intentional, systematic way that this book approaches prayer–it’s importance, different kinds of prayer, different ways to address God, etc.. I am very excited to get into this book.

So that’s a bookend (I said bookend and not wrap because everyone says wrap and this post is about books so…)!

Those are the next 28 books that I will be reading for however long it takes me. 

What’s on your reading list? Do you have a TBR? What are you most excited about?

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July 6, 2016

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A Time to Rise Cover Reveal

Today I have the privilege of helping reveal the cover for the stunning conclusion to the Out of Time Series by Nadine Brandes: A Time to Rise.

cover reveal feature image

If you’ve followed Penprints for a little while, you know by now that I am obsessed with think that this series is pretty amazing.

If you need a refresher, you can check out this review or this one (definitely this one) or this post or this one also because this series is incredible.

There are few (very few) books–fiction and non-fiction–that have had such a massive impact on me spiritually.

I gush over this series so much that it disturbs my family (they are disturbed only because they do not understand).

The first two books.

first two covers

A Time to Die

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A Time to Speak

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The Cover.

A Time to Rise Cover

Isn’t it beautiful!?!?!?

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A Time to Rise releases October 14, 2016.

The Blurb.

What more can you sacrifice than your life?

Parvin Blackwater is dead.

At least…that’s what the Council—and the world—thinks. But her sacrifice tore down part of the Wall long enough to stir up hope and rebellion in the people. Now she will rise again. Strong, free, and fearless.

Parvin and Solomon must uncover the mysterious clues that Jude left behind in order to destroy the projected Wall once and for all. Meanwhile, the Council schemes to new levels of technology in its attempts to keep the people contained. Can a one-handed Radical and a scarred ex-Enforcer really bring shalom to the world?

 The Author.

Nadine-1024x713Carol Award-Winning Author & 2-time Christy-Award Finalist, Nadine Brandes, is committed to fusing authentic faith and bold imagination. She id a dorky writer who gets way too goofy-excited about books. Her debut novel — A Time to Die — released through Enclave Publishing in 2014.

 

You can find her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and her website.

Giveaway!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Enter to win a set of magnetic bookmarks fashioned after characters from the Out of Time series! Guys, these bookmarks are so fun!! I have Parvin herself, and she sits in my books all the time!

Happy Hello bookmarks

And now all three covers together because they’re so pretty.

all three covers

So!

Are you excited about A Time to Rise? Have you read the other books? What do you think of this cover???

 

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June 20, 2016

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Darkened Hope Review

“Victory—warmth blossomed in her chest, and she smiled. I did it…I killed a dragon.”

– Darkened Hope by J.L. Mbewe

darkened hope review feature image EDITED

~

The Blurb:

The Secret Keeper is on the run, but does she know the secret she keeps? Ayianna is a cursed half-elf betrothed to Desmond, but her heart belongs Kael. After discovering the cure for the Sorceress’s curse, she and her companions embark on a dangerous quest to retrieve the ingredients. When dragons descend upon their party, Ayianna realizes the Sorceress is searching not just for the corrupted dagger, but a human sacrifice that will open a portal to the underworld. Battling deadly creatures and natural disasters, Ayianna is forced to confront her insecurities and conflicted heart. She must decide whether to be true to her family or true to herself. As the nations rally for war, betrayal threatens to destroy them all, and it’s a race against time to return before the curse destroys the plains people.

~

My Thoughts:

Man, it’s tough to say all that I want to without giving away too much, but I’ll do my best.

Darkened Hope is the sequel to Secrets Kept by J.L. Mbewe (you can read a few of my thoughts on Secrets Kept in this post), and these are the first two books in the Hidden Dagger trilogy. This trilogy is an epic fantasy following the journey of Ayianna, a young half-elf.

I thoroughly enjoyed Secrets Kept, and so I jumped at the chance to read and review Darkened Hope. Despite my enthusiasm, I was a little unsure; sequels can be let downs. All manner of bad things can happen in sequels–the plot says bye-bye, forced character drama, character inconsistencies, no character growth, etc.–in a word: disappointing.

However, Darkened Hope did not hit any of those classic pitfalls.

Darkened Hope was even more engaging and nail-biting than Secrets Kept. I lost sleep over it (I think it was 12:55 am when I called it quits and went to bed on night/morning). The journey the characters are on is difficult and perilous, and since there’s a traitor on the quest, things get thorny (and also characters get killed because of this traitor and it’s stressful).

The description is sublime. J.L. Mbewe is absolutely masterful when it comes to detail and painting vivid pictures with words. The opening scene was perfect; I was instantly transported back to the world of Nälu through the exquisite prose.

Also, the worldbuilding is phenomenal. There are so many different nuances and prejudices in each culture. The landscape goes from mountains to deserts to cities to waterfalls to coasts as the group on their journey. (I love J.L. Mbewe’s worldbuilding so much that I asked her to do this guest post on Penprints.)

And there was romance between certain characters who I’ve been rooting for since the beginning of Secrets Kept, and things started to smooth out for them in Darkened Hope (my fellow shippers and I are so happy). *contented sigh*

And don’t get me started on the prince in this story (he’s my soulmate, peeps). This isn’t a cheery tale (it’s called Darkened Hope for a reason), but this prince (my soulmate) provides much needed levity. I lost count of how many times I laughed out loud at the one-liners that he popped into the story.

Now my words run dry (I know, I know–mark it on the calendar), and so I found visuals to help convey my feelings about this story (visuals are the best, peeps).

Darkened Hope made me feel like this:

pippin 2

Awwww, they’re finally getting their heads on straight and becoming a couple!!!

And also like this:

pippin 1

Oh my gosh!! My soulmate’s so wonderfully hilarious!!

And this too:

pippin 3

WHAT??? WHAT??? That character’s DEAD???!?!?

And somehow also this:

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There’s no coming back from that cliff-hanger ending.

Yep. That’s about the size of it, peeps.

In conclusion, I highly recommend Secrets Kept and Darkened Hope to all fantasy lovers. The pacing is good, the characters are relatable and enjoyable, the world is stunning, the plot twists and turns, and the ending will make you feel like a dragon’s stomped on your chest (in a good way, guys).

Therefore, I give Darkened Hope four and a half out of five throwing, sleepless, and vivid stars as well as a PG-13 rating for violence.

Go buy it on Amazon.

P.S. – I received a free copy of Darkened Hope from the fantastic J.L. Mbewe in exchange for my honest review.

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May 21, 2016

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Nälu Worldbuilding: Behind the Scenes with J.L. Mbewe

Happy Saturday, dear followers! :)

Today  I have the privilege of J.L. Mbewe guest posting here on The Fox Hole!
She is the author of Secrets Kept, the first in her Hidden Dagger trilogy, and the second book in the series–Darkened Hope–just released earlier this month! Her worldbuilding has always floored me, and so I invited her over to talk about how she built Nälu.

The Post:

JL Mbewe guest post

The journey to Nälu has been over ten years in the making, and it’s getting harder to remember how the world of Nälu came to be. But I do remember that I had the characters and rough idea of the story. Ayianna, Kael, Desmond, etc. were just cardboard cut-outs at the time, although their names have changed considerably from the initial concept. As I was building the characters and the story, questions arose which pushed me to explore their backgrounds, their cultures, and customs. So it was kind of like a dance. A lot of two steps forward, one step back, and sometimes, I had to take five steps back before I could move forward one. Thus the world of Nälu grew up around them as the story grew from a thirty page rough draft into three novels that expanded into nine books.

In the early stages of writing the first draft, I sketched maps to get an idea of where everything was located. I LOVE maps, so I might have spent longer on it than I needed. But I had to get everything just right. I studied climates and world geography to create a believable terrain and weather interaction. The initial map went through several drafts until I finally solidified the final markings, but even then the names kept changing right up until Secrets Kept went to print back in 2013.

The nations and cultures that rose up were influenced by where they lived and my studies. I love the various cultures and ethnicities our world has and I wanted Nälu to reflect that. In Nälu, we have humans, elves, dwarves, feline-shapeshifters, merfolk, giants, fairies, and pygmies. As my story grew, my characters faced questions of their own histories and how that influenced their interactions with each other, their motivations, purpose, etc. The information kept growing and getting harder to manage. It was a beast! So I ended up creating an Excel document with all the nations and their influential events and people from the beginning of their recorded time until their end.

The second most important thing I had to nail down was the languages. I couldn’t have all these nations running around with only one language. Sure, I have the common tongue and Táchil, the language of Zohar and power. Then each race has their own language: Zjótharyn (elves), Tarôc (dwarves), Nihi (merfolk), Hazrul (feline-shapeshifters), Pyamor (giants), and even the jungle natives have one (Raklho). I love languages. I can hold my own speaking Spanish and know a few good phrases in Nyanja (hubby’s language). But I am no J. R. R. Tolkien. Now, I am going to tell you what I’ve only told a few people. The base of each language is a code. Yes. I know. I’m a hack. But it works. From the code, I used my knowledge of Spanish and Nyanja and tweaked it. But I had to stop by myself before I started creating a whole list of verbs to conjugate. Ack! There is a fine line between keeping it real in fantasy worlds and going too far. I don’t know if I will ever do that again for future worlds.

Once the foundation of each race was built (where they lived, what they look like, major history events, languages, textiles, agriculture, military, etc.), I started layering social customs. I created another Excel document with a worksheet for each race and started filling it out like a character sheet. How did they greet each other? Express sorrow? How did they treat/punish criminals? I wrote out their social expectations, educational system, laws, and such.

Building Nälu took years. I hope to take what I’ve learned through this and apply it to the future worlds I’m building. I do hope you all enjoy it.

The Blurb:

BSB Darkened Hope smallerThe Secret Keeper is on the run, but does she know the secret she keeps?

Ayianna is a cursed half-elf betrothed to Desmond, but her heart belongs to another. After discovering the cure for the Sorceress’s curse, she and her companions embark on a dangerous quest to retrieve the ingredients. 

 When dragons descend upon their party, Ayianna realizes the Sorceress is searching not just for the corrupted dagger, but a human sacrifice that will open a portal to the underworld. Battling deadly creatures and natural disasters, Ayianna is forced more and more to confront her insecurities and conflicted heart.

 Now she must decide whether to be true to her family or true to herself. As the nations rally for war, betrayal threatens to destroy them all, and it’s a race against time to return before the curse devastates the plains people.

The Author:

Writing as J. L. Mbewe, Jennette is an author, artist, mother, wife, but not always in that order. Born and raised in Minnesota, she now braves the heat of Texas, but pines for the Northern Lights and the lakes of home every autumn. She loves trying to capture the abstract and make it concrete. She is currently living her second childhood with a wonderful husband and two precious children who don’t seem to mind her eclectic collections of rocks, shells, and swords, among other things. Here, between reality and dreams, you will find her busily creating worlds inhabited by all sorts of fantasy creatures and characters, all questing about and discovering true love amid lots of peril. She has two short stories published in The Clockwork Dragon anthology, and four short stories set in the world of Nälu. Her debut novel, Secrets Kept, was nominated for the 2014 Clive Staples Award, and its sequel, Darkened Hope is coming May 2016.

Stay up-to-date with all things Nälu and her journey as a writer mama at JLMbewe.com. Connect with her on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and/or Pinterest.

A Chance to win the books:

The Darkened Hope Facebook Launch Party which is TONIGHT!!!! *throws confetti*

FB party DH launch 2

There will be so many things that you can win at this party.

party prizes 1

The Grand Prize.

party prizes 2

Awesome playing cards.

party prizes 3

Groovy journal.

party prizes 4

Elegant mug and gift card.

Buy the books:

Here are links to buy Secrets Kept and Darkened Hope! (Oh, and btw–the Kindle edition of Secrets Kept is on sale for only $0.99 for this month only! Go buy it!)

The other stops on the tour!

The Fashion of Nälu.

An Interview with Prince Vian. (Guys, Prince Vian is one of my one true loves from fiction. You should go check out this interview with him.)

An Interview with J.L. Mbewe.

The Powers of Nälu.

The journey of The Hidden Dagger Trilogy and what it means to J.L. Mbewe.

P.S. – review of Darkened Hope forthcoming.