Blog Book Tour | “The Underground River” by Martha Conway

Posted Wednesday, 11 July, 2018 by jorielov , , , 2 Comments

 

Book Review badge created by Jorie in Canva using Unsplash.com photography (Creative Commons Zero).

Acquired Book By: I am a regular tour hostess for blog tours via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours whereupon I am thankful to have been able to host such a diverse breadth of stories, authors and wonderful guest features since I became a hostess! I received a complimentary copy of “The Underground River” direct from the publisher Touchstone (an imprint of Simon & Schuster) in exchange for an honest review. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Why I was inspired to read The Underground River:

I’ve read quite a lot of Southern Lit, especially centred around the Underground Railroad, from the emotionally numbing debut by Tara Conklin within the pages of The House Girl to the incredibly layered drama of Redfield Farm by Judith Redline Coopey and the gutting narrative of Balm by Dolen Perkins-Valdez – I suppose, you could say I do not shy away from stirringly dramatic narratives which highlight a particular era in our history which can be difficult to read.

Having said that, I was hopeful this new entry on a narrative I was familiar would shine a newfound light on both the era and the Underground Railroad. Similar to my bookish friend over at The Lit Bitch, there are times where I am striving to seek out new entries of thought into either the era of time I like reading about or a particular part of the historical past, which can lend well to new interpretations and new portals of thought we might not have explored previously. This is why I was tempted by the premise of The Underground River, as I thought by taking the traditional story off land and by placing it on the water, it would endear itself to be given a new opportunity to shine.

Unfortunately for me, I was not able to find the story I was seeking as you will soon find revealled. Still. I am thankful I tried to read a novel which on the offset felt like it was finding new traction in a thread of narrative I know quite a bit about – whether or not, I could personally feel attached to the story, I am presuming other readers might feel it is better suited to their bookish interests. After all, we all cannot love all the books we’re discovering as sometimes a book which doesn’t suit us might be the story someone else has been waiting to read themselves.

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Blog Book Tour | “The Underground River” by Martha ConwayThe Underground River
by Martha Conway
Source: Publisher via Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours

Set aboard a nineteenth century riverboat theater, this is the moving, page-turning story of a charmingly frank and naive seamstress who is blackmailed into saving runaways on the Underground Railroad, jeopardizing her freedom, her livelihood, and a new love.

It’s 1838, and May Bedloe works as a seamstress for her cousin, the famous actress Comfort Vertue—until their steamboat sinks on the Ohio River. Though they both survive, both must find new employment. Comfort is hired to give lectures by noted abolitionist, Flora Howard, and May finds work on a small flatboat, Hugo and Helena’s Floating Theatre, as it cruises the border between the northern states and the southern slave-holding states.

May becomes indispensable to Hugo and his troupe, and all goes well until she sees her cousin again. Comfort and Mrs. Howard are also traveling down the Ohio River, speaking out against slavery at the many riverside towns. May owes Mrs. Howard a debt she cannot repay, and Mrs. Howard uses the opportunity to enlist May in her network of shadowy characters who ferry babies given up by their slave mothers across the river to freedom. Lying has never come easy to May, but now she is compelled to break the law, deceive all her new-found friends, and deflect the rising suspicions of Dr. Early who captures runaways and sells them back to their southern masters.

As May’s secrets become more tangled and harder to keep, the Floating Theatre readies for its biggest performance yet. May’s predicament could mean doom for all her friends on board, including her beloved Hugo, unless she can figure out a way to trap those who know her best.

Genres: Historical Fiction



Places to find the book:

Borrow from a Public Library

Add to LibraryThing

ISBN: 9781501160202

Published by Touchstone

on 20th June, 2017

Format: Hardcover Edition

Pages: 345

 Published By: Touchstone
{imprint of} Simon & Schuster (

Converse via: #TheUndergroundRiver + #HistFic
Available Formats: Hardcover, Audiobook & Ebook

About Martha Conway

Martha Conway

Martha Conway grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, the sixth of seven daughters. Her first novel was nominated for an Edgar Award, and she has won several awards for her historical fiction, including an Independent Book Publishers Award and the North American Book Award for Historical Fiction.

Her short fiction has been published in the Iowa Review, Massachusetts Review, Carolina Quarterly, Folio, Epoch, The Quarterly, and other journals. She has received a California Arts Council Fellowship for Creative Writing, and has reviewed books for the Iowa Review and the San Francisco Chronicle. She now lives in San Francisco, and is an instructor of creative writing for Stanford University’s Continuing Studies Program and UC Berkeley Extension. She is the author of The Underground River.

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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

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Posted Wednesday, 11 July, 2018 by jorielov in 19th Century, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Historical Fiction, Historical Fiction Virtual Book Tours, Inspired by Stories, Simon & Schuster

#SummerReads | Jorie endeavours to read a heap of #INSPY Lit (whilst consuming copious amounts of #AudioReads!) and re-tackles her #20BooksOfSummer challenge of [2017]!

Posted Wednesday, 4 July, 2018 by jorielov , , 0 Comments

#SummerReads 2018 banner created by Jorie in Canva

This Summer, I intend to be bookishly delirious by all the lovely portals of imagination I shall be entering,.. it is also the *Summer!* I reclaim the ability to read & blog during a volcanic heat wave w/o the threat of *lightning!* derailing my bookish endeavours!

Rainbow Digital Clip Art Washi Tape made by The Paper Pegasus. Purchased on Etsy by Jorie and used with permission.

Hallo, Hallo dear hearts – ever wonder what Jorie might be getting up to reading this Summer? After a hard Spring & difficult start to Summer (ie. June) I’ve decided to focus on two reading challenges which will help me re-inspire my reading life after the recent adverse afflictions I’ve soldiered through – one is a re-attempt of the reading challenge I first blogged about during Summer [2017] where lightning storms & unreliable connectivity derailed my best efforts to both read & blog with any kind of regularity whilst this year, I stumbled across a lovely reading challenge which brings with it components of JOY I hadn’t quite expected to find within a reading challenge!

Let me break it down for you with a short Q&A I asked of the hostess which I think you might find equally delightful to know about in case your considering joining the bookish FUN this JULY by devouring INSPY Lit.

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The following convo is regarding

the Christian & Clean Fiction Summer Reading Safari, or as you will find the posts on my blog & Twitter feeds: #amreadingcfsrs18 OR #CFSRS18

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We don’t have to review all the books we’re reading this month, but we can talk about them on Twitter or in a wrap-up post on our blogs or just read them w/o socially sharing them? That’s the option in the bookaway for “Read a book”

A: Yes. If you read a book that is Christian or Clean Fiction, you can enter it in the rafflecopter for points in the giveaways. (6th entry down.)

We can read and review ANY author of our choice –

as long as their Christian / INSPY or Clean – right?

A: Yes.  You can read and review and author of your choice as long as it’s Christian or Clean, but you do get more entries in the Reading Challenge Rafflecopter if you read a book by an author or publisher sponsor.

IF we are not in the Facebook group (as I use Twitter) but we read a book on the Facebook Challenge page (on the challenge blog) OR if we read book by an author listed on that page, we enter that title into that space on the bookaway?

A: Yes.  You can enter this title to for extra points in the Reading Challenge Rafflecotper. :)

Here’s what I was most worried about after finding 15+ audiobooks I want to listen to this month which actually count as INSPY/ChrisFic reads —

I am off-setting my readings with audiobooks, as I am trying to curb a repeat of Spring where I had a high frequency of migraines. When you say ‘read’ a book – you are accepting some of us are reading print books *and* audiobooks?

I wanted to confirm this wasn’t format specific to ONLY print or ebooks?

A: As for “reading” a book, this can be print,

e-book, or audiobook.  What ever works best for you. :)

Rainbow Digital Clip Art Washi Tape made by The Paper Pegasus. Purchased on Etsy by Jorie and used with permission.

First off, for me – more than anything, a reading challenge which INSPIRES me to re-focus on reading INSPY Lit is the best bit whilst finding readers & bloggers who share my passion for these stories is the best part of participating, as I love sharing the stories which enrich my reading hours irregardless if I’m reading INSPY or mainstream stories – however, having said that – sometimes I find it harder to find readers of #INSPY who love the same authors & stories. Thus, I am hoping to find new blogs to follow & new readers to talk to about the stories giving us #booklove throughout JULY whilst extending into convos throughout the year.

I am going to be focusing on the authors on my *70 Authors* List as well as newcomers I’ve found whilst browsing through Audible’s INSPY Romance section as I was gifted a membership to Audible for my 5th Blogoversary by my parents & they added the Rom package this Summer for my birthday!

Secondly, I have INSPY novels I’ve meant to read & review which have been shifted to my ‘backlogue’ which I want to highlight this July as well. The scheduled reviews I have for Clean Fiction & INSPY Lit as well as these backlogued review showcases are NOT going to count towards either the books I’ve read and/or the books I’ve reviewed for the reading challenge directly as I have an ethical conflict of interest in declaring them officially but they will be listed on this post as the stories I’m reading all the same. Some stories I am re-reading in order to continue a series as well such as the Coming Home series by Brenda S. Anderson; those won’t be counted either as technically they’ve been previously read & reviewed.

Rainbow Digital Clip Art Washi Tape made by The Paper Pegasus. Purchased on Etsy by Jorie and used with permission.

Jorie’s INSPY Reads for JULY 2018:

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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

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Posted Wednesday, 4 July, 2018 by jorielov in #20BooksOfSummer, #CFSRS18, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Inspirational Fiction & Non-Fiction, JLAS Update Post, Reading Challenges

Book Review | “Sugar and Spice” by Angela Britnell #ChocLitSaturdays

Posted Saturday, 30 June, 2018 by jorielov , , 2 Comments

#ChocLitSaturdays banner created in Canva by Jorie.

Why I feature #ChocLitSaturdays (book reviews & guest author features)
and I feature Romance & Women’s Fiction authors during @SatBookChat:

I wanted to create a bit of a niche on Jorie Loves A Story to showcase romance fiction steeped in relationships, courtships, and the breadth of enveloped by characters written honestly whose lives not only endear you to them but they nestle into your heart as their story is being read!

I am always seeking relationship-based romance which strikes a chord within my mind’s eye as well as my heart! I’m a romantic optimist, and I love curling into a romance where I can be swept inside the past, as history becomes lit alive in the fullness of the narrative and I can wander amongst the supporting cast observing the principal characters fall in love and sort out if they are a proper match for each other!

I love how an Indie Publisher like ChocLitUK is such a positive alternative for those of us who do not identify ourselves as girls and women who read ‘chick-lit’. I appreciate the stories which alight in my hands from ChocLit as much as I appreciate the inspirational romances I gravitate towards because there is a certain level of depth to both outlets in romance which encourage my spirits and gives me a beautiful story to absorb! Whilst sorting out how to promote my book reviews on behalf of ChocLit, I coined the phrase “ChocLitSaturdays”, which is a nod to the fact my ChocLit reviews & features debut on ‘a Saturday’ but further to the point that on the ‘weekend’ we want to dip into a world wholly ideal and romantic during our hours off from the work week!

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

Acquired Book By: I am a regular reviewer for ChocLitUK, where I hand select which books in either their backlist and/or current releases I would like to read next for my #ChocLitSaturdays blog feature. As of June 2016, I became a member of the ChocLit Stars Team in tandem with being on the Cover Reveal Team which I joined in May 2016. I reference the Stars as this is a lovely new reader contribution team of sending feedback to the publisher ahead of new book releases. As always, even if I’m involved with a publisher in this sort of fashion, each review is never influenced by that participation and will always be my honest impression as I read the story. Whether the author is one I have previously read or never had the pleasure to read until the book greets my shelf.

I received a complimentary copy of “Sugar and Spice” from ChocLit in exchange for an honest review! I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

Why I was excited about reading more stories by Ms Britnell:

The best way to describe my thoughts about wanting to read another story by Ms Britnell is simply to re-share my thoughts on behalf of her novella You’re the One that I Want – as I had such a wicked blast reading it as it was the first #PocketChocLit I read whilst kicking off a mini-series of novella reviews featuring the first batch of ChocLit novellas which went into print a few years ago during Christmastime!

The stories were such a balm to my worried soul back then, as it was only a handful of weeks prior to Christmas that year when my Dad had had his stroke. ChocLit stories were the stories which pulled me through that December and even into the New Year of 2017. Sometimes focusing on stories helps our spirits when life turns especially adverse to where we need an outlet to redirect our thoughts off our worries and fears. One lovely thing though – each month Dad recovered more of himself and each new month thereafter the stroke felt farther away from having happened. Being able to care for my Dad all those months and still watching over him today, is one reason I am thankful I had the chance to remain close to home.

reflecting on my forethought’s

& afterthoughts:

Being in a position to reflect upon a story ahead of reading it has become a newfound joy of mine – where I get to suspend myself in the wonderful vortex of ‘could be or might be’ whilst never really knowing until I get the proper chance to read the story if I were hitting the target on the story’s heart or failing to pick up the threads of it’s narrative core.  In respect to You’re the One that I Want, I had an initial strong motivation to read the text as I simply find myself attracted to these kinds of stories quite often!

Remember when I said this:

The premise reminds me of “Under the Tuscan Sun” but with a built-in boyfriend and potential husband. The bit that reminded me the most is the touring bus & the holiday elsewhere from home, whilst life unexpectedly takes you by a surprise and gives you a new route to entertain experiencing. Love those types of stories!

There is something about being swept away on a holiday, never thinking your going to randomly meet-up with someone who could be your equal, your partner and your match. I love the folly behind the match, too! How they are playing that ‘should they or shouldn’t they’ stay together gambit, whilst sorting through their emotions. The funny thing is that for every Rom-Com (esp in movies on television) that sets up a couple in this fashion – where they are faking a relationship, inevitably they realise their error and remain together.

And, how do I feel now after reading this lovely novella twice (once for the live tweeting & re-reading for this review) about what I expressed within this paragraph:

The best bit for me is seeing how they come to this realisation – what was the impetus of changing their minds!? How did they realise that this ‘random something’ was worth taking a risk of a chance on and turning it into a romantic forevermore? I love seeing how they put it all together – weigh the odds and somehow realise that life affords us a lot choices, but sometimes the hardest thing to influence your choice is the one thing that ‘feels right’ in the moment where your life surprises you with something you hadn’t expected to find. At least not in the timing it’s being presented. There is an allure of that beautiful reverie of romance inching itself forward into your life when your focus is on everything *except!* falling in love! Laughs. Of course, that’s *exactly!* when love walks in through the door you never realised you left open!

I must say, Ms Britnell managed to woo me into her comedic Contemporary, where humour plays a big role in alleviating some rather adverse life moments (or rather side-stepping a few!) whilst honing in on the realities of dating before marriage and after divorce. She found a way to fine tune the realities of a workaholic businessman who hadn’t quite considered himself doing anything more than what he projected himself to accomplish in the business world whilst finding a singleton from England who was a bit jaded more then he was on the whole dating situation!

My initial musings were quite bang-on to what I found inside the novella – it surprised me a bit because I hadn’t realised I had tapped into the heart of the story-line as well as I had until I was reading how it all unfolded. The best part truly though was getting the joy of meeting a #newtomeauthor and reading a small slice out of her ongoing series set in Nashville! I loved the charm of the story but also the unexpected ways in which Ms Britnell surprised you – you might think you understand all the ins/outs of what could happen between Sarah and Matt, but that’s where you get a curveball of something wickedly unexpected!

-quoted from my review of You’re the One that I Want (Pocket ChocLit)

The only thing I’m unsure about though is if Sugar and Spice is the first novel in the Nashville series or simply a one-off non-connected to the series at hand, as Lily is from Nashville. The author’s website infers its not connected and thereby, I didn’t mention a connection on this review. The novella I read during December 2016 truly was the best way to become ‘introduced’ to Ms Britnell’s style as she put a lot of her comedy inside the story but also, showed the heart of what you can find inside Sugar and Spice as well.

Ms Britnell happily commented below this review & announced ‘Sugar and Spice’ does begin the #NashvilleConnections series! Isn’t that rather grand!?

Coffee and Tea Clip Art Set purchased on Etsy; made by rachelwhitetoo.

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Posted Saturday, 30 June, 2018 by jorielov in 21st Century, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Britian, ChocLitSaturdays, ChocLitUK, Contemporary Romance, Divorce & Martial Strife, England, Family Life, Father-Daughter Relationships, Indie Author, Life Shift, Modern Day, Romance Fiction, Romantic Comedy, Second Chance Love, Single Fathers, Small Towne Fiction, Vulgarity in Literature

An Audiobook Review feat. during #Audiobookmonth | “Fame is a Killer” (Book One: Hope Hadley Cosy Mysteries) by Meredith Potts, narrated by Rachel Carr

Posted Wednesday, 27 June, 2018 by jorielov , , , 0 Comments

Audiobook Review Badge made by Jorie in Canva.

Acquired Digital Audiobook by: I am a new blog tour hostess with Audiobookworm Promotions wherein I have the opportunity to receive audiobooks for review or adoption (reviews outside of organised blog tours) and host guest features on behalf of authors and narrators alike. I started hosting for Audiobookworm Promotions at the end of [2016] during “The Cryptic Lines” tour wherein I became quite happily surprised how much I am now keen on listening to books in lieu of reading them in print. My journey into audiobooks was prompted by a return of my chronic migraines wherein I want to offset my readings with listening to the audio versions.

I received a complimentary audiobook copy of “Fame is a Killer” via the publicist at Audiobookworm Promotions in exchange for an honest review. This complimentary copy I received is part of the ‘Adopt an Audiobook’ programme where reviewers are given a 90 day window to listen and review the book. I was given a soft deadline where I could post my ruminative thoughts at an hour which worked for me on the day the review was due which in this instance is the 25th of July or at any point ahead of the 25th if I finished the audiobook sooner. This differs from a blog tour which has a more set schedule of posting. The audiobooks are offered to ‘adopt’ for review consideration and are given to readers to gauge their opinions, impressions and insight into how the audiobook is resonating with listeners. I did not receive compensation for my opinions or thoughts shared herein.

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Why I was in the mood for a light, cheeky & humourous Cosy Mystery:

I’ve been struggling with my migraines throughout Spring this year – to the level, where it was starting to get me down quite a bit. I did openly talk about my health afflictions recently whilst wrapping up #wyrdandwonder for those of my readers who might have missed the post when it originally appeared.  I even felt more confident going into June, where I could focus more on *audiobooks!* rather than print, celebrating #Audiobookmonth – until of course, I found myself with a new after effect of clustered migraines: not only are print books harder to shift back into but I was struggling to focus on my audio listenings as well.

The only solace I had really were the podcasts I was listening to (regularly try to binge on Talking Audiobooks & AudioShelf – whilst attempting to read others I’ve discovered) and knowing I had a cheeky Cosy Mystery (this one!) to listen to which might break me out of my funk and get me back on track! The reason I felt like I was in a bit of a funk as it was unusual to have such a hard transition back into reading – having chronic migraines, you develop your toolbox of how to navigate through them but also, how to ‘resume’ where you left off with what you had to ‘let go of’ during them after your in the ‘clear’ from having them occur.

This month was another hard lesson in recognising despite how well-versed we are with ourselves, sometimes life likes to keep us on our toes and through in a new wrinkle of angst we weren’t expecting! Therefore, I barely read or heard any stories this month, as resting was what I needed and despite my patience on the thinner side for the hours I felt were slipping past me, the stories themselves were ready for me once I could re-attach myself into them. I think the hardest part as a reader is realising sometimes we just need extra ‘breaks’ in our reading lives – we get so wicked excited over everything we desire to read, sometimes we just can’t keep that kind of pace up when it comes time to actually absorbing them!

Thus, having a cheeky light-hearted Cosy Mystery in queue was exactly what I needed – as you are about to find out! I’m quite thrilled I spied this on the list of available audiobooks – as it seriously gave me a heap of lovely joy as I listened to the narrator and coloured in one of my animal colouring books as well as Joyful Inspirations by Robin Mead!

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An Audiobook Review feat. during #Audiobookmonth | “Fame is a Killer” (Book One: Hope Hadley Cosy Mysteries) by Meredith Potts, narrated by Rachel CarrFame is a Killer
by Meredith Potts
Source: Audiobook via Audiobookworm Promotions
Narrator: Rachel Carr

Genres: Amateur Detective, Cosy Mystery, Crime Fiction



Places to find the book:

Add to LibraryThing

ASIN: B078WFWCNW

Published by Self Published

on 9th January, 2018

Format: Audiobook | Digital

Length: 2 hours, 7 minutes (unabridged)

Self-Published Audiobook

Meredith Potts | Site | GoodReads

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Reading this book contributed to these challenges:

  • #AudiobookMonth
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Posted Wednesday, 27 June, 2018 by jorielov in #JorieLovesIndies, 21st Century, Amateur Detective, Audiobook, Audiobookworm Promotions, Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Clever Turns of Phrase, Cosy Mystery, Crime Fiction, Humour & Satire in Fiction / Non Fiction, Indie Author, Lady Detective Fiction, Modern Day, Post-911 (11th September 2001)

Author Interview | Discussing the world within the Voyages of Jake Flynn series with R.J. Wood

Posted Sunday, 24 June, 2018 by jorielov , , , , , 0 Comments

Conversations with the Bookish badge created by Jorie in Canva

Good morning, dear hearts! Today, I have a special treat for you, as I had the chance to interview the author of a new Upper Middle Grade / Young Adult Fantasy series wherein I get to re-visit the concept of Space Pirates and flying ships once more! As you might recall, I happened to love the pirates I found on the Rim, in the audiobook ‘Rimrider’ whilst when it comes to flying ships in space, outside of The Clan Chronicles – there have been quite a few recently which have tempted me into their chapters! I love how we can bend what is plausible in Speculative Lit and take ordinary ships which were meant for the waters of Earth and re-position them into orbit where they find a new way of being useful as transportation in the Cosmos!

Ahead of the conversation, I have with Mr Wood, is an extract from the latest installment of the series ‘Beyond the Moon’, which touches on part of the background of the series wherein the origins of Jake Flynn and his parents but also, the legacy he has within him as he’s given a talent few can claim as their own. This is part of what is extraordinary about the series, as his particular gift is what helps ignite the ships themselves to be able to fly as you will learn more in my interview! For now, enjoy this extract!

Extract from ‘Beyond the Moon’ by R.J. Wood

the second novel in the Voyages of Jake Flynn; used with permission of the author

“Tychus was the last known of his people,” Jayron said. “He disappeared a dozen years ago after the Ithirian fleet perished. The rest of his people were killed or worse by your people on Celestra.” Starla made no visible reaction.

“It seems Tychus and his wife survived, went to Earth, and had a son there,” she said. “Furthermore, I am sure you are aware of the rift amongst my people; the rebellion between those who did not support the actions taken against the humans and those who did. Otto and I are among the first.”

“This is all preposterous,” Daegus said. “How can we believe anything a Celestrian has to say?” With that, the councilors began to argue the possibilities amongst themselves. Their voices rose quickly and in intensity, all except for Kilian. The old one sat there and quietly stared at Jake with an expression of curiosity. Finally, he sat up and spoke something that was drowned out by the others. He tried to repeat himself louder, but still he could not be heard over the discord. At last, he reached over Richard, grabbed a black iron mallet on the table, and slapped it down hard several times until the room grew quiet.

“I said, CAN HE CHANNEL?” The old man finished and began to pant.

Jake stepped forward and held up his hands. A moment later the glow of his aura filled the room. The humans all stared at him and one of them caught their breath. Kilian then spoke in whispered tones as if reciting a poem,

“Born and raised on distant star.
Searcher bound both near and far…”

He trailed off, but Starla picked it up and continued.

“What he seeks he does not know,
until he lets his family grow.

Against the tide he must stride.
A mighty ship he will ride.
Guided true by faithful hands
chasing dreams to far-off lands,

Through the torrents to the core,
where ancient evil stirs once more.
To keep a dark queen at bay,
A gift of love must win the day.

Single light in starless night,
burning hot and shining bright.
Time will come when he must stand.
The fate of all held in his hand.”

When she finished all eyes were upon Jake and there was silence.
“Yes,” Starla said after a pause, “he is the one this prophesy speaks of. Jake is the Justicar and he needs your help.”

I was thankful Mr Wood went into quite a few details surrounding both the light energy and the propulsion of the ships but also, gave a bit of a hinting towards the heart of the series itself as it revolves through Jake Flynn! I almost wish some of this back-story had been included in the first novel ‘Destiny’s Gambit’ as I found how the author describe his world in this conversation would have benefited the story. As you truly get a firm understanding of what he is attempting to achieve in the series (in regards to scope) but also, it gives you a keen insight which I think would have tempered the confusion I had initially trying to sort out the world-building.

This is a very imaginative series and one which I think would interest all readers, irregardless of age, due the cross-components of where elemental magic, old world ships and adventurous Quests intersect to give us something to chew on about personal destiny, chosen families and the will to seek answers for questions which tug at our souls. I look forward to reading your thoughts in the threads below this conversation and I hope you find it as wicked lovely as I did in receiving the author’s responses!

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The voyages of Jake Flynn series:

Destiny's Gambit by R.J. WoodBeyond the Moon by R.J. Wood

Destiny’s Gambit | book one | see also Review

Beyond the Moon | Book Two | synopsis

I do enjoy a wicked good transmorphication – there is a cheeky good one in Destiny’s Gambit, which takes place during a rescue attempt aboard a pirate ship! What impressed me the most is how honest it was to happen – as this was a stirring of the back-story on behalf of Jake and his parents, or rather even, his ‘kind’. There is an old order of magic in this realm which can be channelled and re-directed at will, which makes it wicked awesome! I also liked how most of the magic involves light energy and the transference of this energy in order for things to work.

There is also elemental magic present which makes for interesting scenes but what truly captured me was the teamwork and evolving partnership between Jake, Starla, Otto and Jehn. They were forging a new path together, seeking to get away from their mutual enemies and sorting out the details of their personal discoveries of each other along the way. As most of this story takes place aboard ship, I was awaiting the conflict to begin – where two ships or more would be pitted against each other. When the time finally came, I found the battle was stalled a bit too easily but further what interested me is how there are portals which act as hyperspace jaunts for the ships – where you can literally move yourself through this part of the universe in a faster way than normal space.

I truly loved the symbolism and the analogies threading through Destiny’s Gambit as well as the spirituality which was hugged softly into the background. There are a lot of life affirming lessons being shared through the adventures of Jake Flynn – including how to handle fear, uncertainty, ambiguous loss (of his parents) and to grow out of the courage you never knew you had within you. It’s a story about a boy coming of age after finding out everything he thought he know about himself and his origins was only part of the true story. Once he was in-flight away from Earth, it wasn’t just his origins which were calling him home but it was his truer nature and the destiny which was awaiting for his arrival to become revealled.

-quoted from my review of Destiny’s Gambit

Genres: Sci-Fantasy | Steampunk | Space Pirates

Young Adult | Magic | Adventure

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Posted Sunday, 24 June, 2018 by jorielov in Bits & Bobbles of Jorie, Blog Tour Host, Family Life, Fantasy Fiction, Indie Author, Literature for Boys, Lola's Blog Tours, Nautical Fiction, Science Fantasy, Self-Published Author, Small Towne USA, Urban Fantasy, Washington, West Coast USA, YA Fantasy