BRT: ARC The Surrogate Sea by Danielle E. Shipley

Title: The Surrogate Sea

Author: Danielle E. Shipley

Number of Pages: e-book

Rating: 4/5

Release Date: MARCH 24, 2015 - NEXT TUESDAY!

Add it on Goodreads!

(An ARC was provided by the author for an honest review. I was not compensated in any other way.)

My Goodreads review states that this novella, for me, can be described in one word: "unexpected." This still holds true. It isn't unexpected in a bad way. Another phrase I used was "benefit of the doubt."

Being completely honest, I didn't like this novella's conclusion. For all of the tales of true love that we've read in The Wilderhark Tales up until now, how this book ends does not feel like true love. That's why I'm sincerely hoping this turns out to be a Part-One-of-Two ordeal.

Everything else remains just as amazing as has come to be expected though. Each character has their own motivations, feelings, and methods of addressing conflict. Reading The Wilderhark Tales can be like reading a pop-up book: the characters are still leaping off the pages! 

The progression of the plot was steady and never felt too rushed or too slow. Especially considering Shipley's transitions from Liliavaine to Muirigan to Ionquin to Vesparya (and more at times), she did a beautiful job of keeping their stories separated and at the same time joined together, all the while keeping the perception of time well in place.

As for the plot's twists and turns, there are no shortage of twists throughout this novella! Unexpected, indeed. "Whoa," "Huh?," and "What!" were all uttered at least once during my reading. The Surrogate Sea's got it all - sibling rivalry and love, scorned love, playful banter, conflict and resolution. Not to mention we get to see all of the awesome cast introduced in The Sun's Rival! (*Gasp!* More Lumónd and Laraspur!)

Though, as I said before, the resolution didn't satisfy me. It might satisfy others, but it didn't work for me. The final pairing that much of the book focused on (not Muirigan's) doesn't settle well with me, and I'm sincerely hoping that I'm right that the tale of The Surrogate Sea isn't quite over.

Yet, even if it is, that doesn't change the fact that this was a deeply enjoyable read and inspired a myriad of feelings. This book is especially a good novella for moral debates. This is indeed one of the most investing books of the series.

In conclusion, Danielle Shipley's fantastic writing has struck again! 

Read The Surrogate Sea next Tuesday, and prepare for the blog tour starting on its release! Stop by Jodi L. Milner's blog (click!) for the beginning of the tour on the 24th. My own blog tour stop will be the following Saturday, so check back here then too!

By the way, have the link to Danielle's blog as well. She's got all of the other details! 

Lastly, The Sun's Rival is on sale for 99 cents for a limited time! Hurry! 

BRT: The Sun's Rival by Danielle E. Shipley

Title: The Sun's Rival

Author: Danielle E. Shipley

Number of Pages: e-book

Rating: Can I give this a 10/5?

Released: December 2, 2014

Summary

Next to the uncommon beauty of her sisters, Princess Laraspur feels invisible, until she learns the two most powerful kings in the world have their eyes fixed upon her. But the ensuing double-courtship goes horribly awry, requiring Laraspur to brave the secret perils of earth, sea, and sky, on a quest that will try the very essence of her being.

Review

"AHHH!!"

Right, then. That would be my author (Flame Writer) running around talking in tongues about this book. So, this is Ashley Vaandere talking, gonna try to scramble up a review from some of the notes she's got, while she continues to do her thing over there.

Character exploration: Phenomenal. Not a page goes by without a hint toward some development.

Plot progression: Wondrous. It never moves too fast or too slow and keeps the reader hanging on for more.

Plot twists: Scream-worthy. There aren't very many twists, but the ones that exist are scream-worthy.

Flame Writer says, "One of the early seeming 'plot twists' isn't much of a twist, but I don't think it was meant to be. Given the title of the book, the choice Laraspur makes seemed rather obvious. However, that happens near the beginning, so that choice isn't meant to be so much of a twist rather than the framework for an oncoming twist."

With that, this book focuses on Laraspur, one of the daughters of Edgwyn and Rosalba, and plants her in the middle of a story that Edgwyn told her when she was a little girl. With the help of her brother Ionquin she'll have to, as the blurb says, brave many perils on a time-defying quest.

"He was such a jerk!"

Yes, he was. She's referring to Laraspur's antagonist, not Ionquin. And yet, according to her notes, he is an interesting one. He's not an "Oh, I'm so evil!" kind of antagonist - he just seems kind of selfish and not used to being defied. So when that happens, he doesn't react in the best of ways.

Conflict and resolution are top notch, the quality of writing as entrancing as readers have come to expect, and Shipley shows once again how much of a wordsmith she is when it comes to Laraspur and Ionquin puzzling out the map for their quest. In addition to that, the sibling friendship between Laraspur and Ionquin is fantastic. 

"Shipley made a deal with an anarchwitch, I swear, to make these riddles so well," Flame Writer calms down enough to add.

The tension in this novella surpasses almost all of the others, perhaps with only the exception of The Seventh Spell. The Sun's Rival successfully tugs at the heartstrings (Flame Writer cried near the end), has absolutely AMAZING descriptions, builds up character and plot nicely, and concludes perhaps a little too quickly, but in the perfect way regardless. 

There's also at least one point in this novella when you'll glare very darkly at the page. Like so:

With that, Flame Writer will conclude.

Taking a deep breath, the author of Flame Writer and Ashley Vaandere's story lets out a screech: "READ ITTTTTT!!!!!!!"

She swears it's the best one of the series so far.

Only twelve days to the release of The Surrogate Sea, the sixth book of The Wilderhark Tales! Get ready! ARC review on next Thursday.

BRT: The Song Caster by Danielle E. Shipley

Title: The Song Caster

Author: Danielle E. Shipley

Number of Pages: e-book

Rating: 5/5

Released: June 24, 2014

Summary

The dull doom of impending marriage at his back and a reticent royal at his side, remarkable minstrel Gant-o’-the-Lute is off in search of adventure, and you can be sure he finds it – complete with much music, magicked maidens, and a dangerous power so great, Lute might for once find himself outmatched.

Review

Remember my little complaints regarding The Seventh Spell? They don't apply any longer. I doubted that I would have to worry for long! I admit upon starting this book I had my insecurities: I didn't know much about Gant-o'-the-Lute just yet, and I was not a fan of Benedeck in The Stone Kingdom.

As usual, however, my interests were captured and happily enslaved to the book's plot. Throughout this novella we learn a little more about the culture that is the world of the Wilderhark Tales, including some of the "myths" that pervade their culture and we get to witness another kingdom or two.

There are also cats. Lots and lots of cats. (The cat lady inside me squeals.)

The character exploration in this addition surpasses that of the previous books. In the first, Sula and Villem found themselves,  but when it came to their innermost traits, they didn't get into that as much. The same for Rosalba in The Stone Kingdom. The Seventh Spell spent much more time focusing on the major problem at hand (understandably). 

So to have a book that's perfectly paced while digging into the depths of the two protagonists is refreshing and fun to read! It ties up a loose end left behind from The Stone Kingdom and shows us so much more about Lute's conflicting desires - and, once again, love prevails over all in a wonderful twist.

Perhaps the one thing I'm unsure of in this addition is how a certain spell was cast in the first place. To prevent spoilers, all I'll say is that it's a spell Benedeck is sent to solve. Did Lute accidentally cast it?  I don't think it was ever confirmed. 

The only other thing I wondered about was Viralei's characterization - everyone else got plentiful development, but I didn't see as much from her, only a few tidbits about the culture of her kingdom. (I personally would love a book about her kingdom.)

Otherwise, I have no complaints about The Song Caster. Delicious plot twists, amazing characters, perfect pacing, a nice blend of conflict and resolution, in general a fantastic and worthy addition to The Wilderhark Tales.

***There is going to be another post today for The Sun's Rival! Stay tuned!!***

BRT: The Seventh Spell by Danielle E. Shipley

Title: The Seventh Spell

Author: Danielle E. Shipley

Number of Pages: e-book

Rating: 4.5/5

Released: January 28, 2014

Summary

A witch’s attempt to cast one spell too many casts everyone touched by her previous spells into chaos. Scattered throughout each other’s pasts, Sula and Edgwyn, Villem and Rosalba, and the rest of the magic’s affected have a single chance to break this last enchantment before their “happily-ever-after”-s cease to have ever been. 

Review

It's no secret that I love Danielle Shipley's work at this point - or, I hope it isn't. The Seventh Spell is no exception to that flow - I'm still in love with the work and the characters .

And characters come forth in abundance in the third installment of the Wilderharks. Each has their own predicament, tale to tell, and skill that assists all of our beloved protagonists out of the situation they've found themselves in.

*Cough* Sula.

From the first page, the reader is unfailingly hooked - again. Shipley's skill to carry a story from project to project and keep the precise characterization, tone, and pacing consistent is still extraordinary. 

A few of my favorite things from this book include the fact she has still continued to offer nods of acknowledgement to fairytales of old, that each and every new character gets just enough time in the spotlight to become someone we care about immensely, and the idea utilized for the plot of this project in general. 

I really have no idea how she keeps making these riddles and songs. I'm starting to think she's striking deals with anarchwitches to have this kind of talent. I couldn't make a song or riddle like the ones in The Seventh Spell to save my life.

The settings and characters, again, are just fantastic. The plot is beautiful and well-executed.

And now, for the cons. This might be one of the first times I've ever had small complaints about her books, but they're minor indeed:

1. Pace. I stated earlier her pace is still consistent - and where it concerns how it spans across the books, it is. Yet I encountered a few issues when, especially near the end, it seems that there are still events waiting to occur, yet they're skipped in favor of going straight to the end. Since it's a novella, I understand there were constraints, but it still felt rushed

2. Lack of resolution in some aspects. At the very end it seems a few plotlines that had been utilized throughout the work were sort of abandoned (for example, Sula having a minor conflict with [spoiler - highlight to read] Sigmund and Edgwyn). Some of the characters also vanish - which is addressed in the next book, but was so open-ended in The Seventh Spell.

3. Lack of conflict. This kind of ties into the lack of resolution. Don't get me wrong. Conflict was abundant and wonderful in this book! Yet there are a few times when it seemed some characters should have argued/hashed things out, and they never did. Example: Sigmund and Sula didn't have enough conflict/resolution, nor did Aurabella or Cellodran.

Again, all of these points can be traced back to the constraints Shipley faced since this is a novella. The fact there were a few flaws doesn't detract from the work enough to come even close to saying, "Don't read it!" On the contrary, this book set so much into motion that I'm going to beg for people to read it.

Small flaws or not, it's fantastic. This book weaves together the plots of the previous books - something a lot of authors fail to do - and incorporate a half dozen new plot points in such a way that readers won't get lost or wonder who or what they're dealing with. Her writing flows as always. In the end, very great book, and worthy as the third installment of the Wilderharks. 

Formatting issues wouldn't permit italicization of "The Seventh Spell/Wilderharks" throughout the review. 

BRT: A Look Back at The Swan Prince and The Stone Kingdom

The Swan Prince review (click me!)

The Stone Kingdom review (click me!)

These wonderful novellas were reviewed by me in 2013. I wanted to bring these to the attention of readers since Danielle Shipley (over at Ever On Word) is gearing up for the release of The Surrogate Sea, the sixth book of The Wilderhark Tales. 

Since I'm about to do reviews for them all, I figured I'd include Sula's, Villem's, Rosalba's, and Edgwyn's introductory works!
The Swan Prince and The Stone Kingdom are available on Amazon, Createspace, and Barnes and Noble! [I only linked to The Swan Prince.]

I strongly encourage anyone who hasn't looked at these books yet to at least give them a look. "I don't want to read a fairytale," one might say. Well, these aren't fairytales. These are Wilderharks. (: 

If you're in the mood for amazing writing, prose, characters, plot, pace, and every other element involved in writing, this is a good place to start. I've said it before - the characters leap off of the pages, they grab you and pull you in, and they do not let go.

This next month is going to pretty much be Wilderhark Month here on Flame Writer! I'm starting it with this glance back at these two novellas, and the next few weeks up until March 28th, when I'm on the Blog Tour for The Surrogate Sea, each Thursday (and that Saturday) is going to feature a post about The Wilderhark Tales.

Check in next Thursday for my review of The Seventh Spell! I'm reading it right now, and OH MY GOD IT'S SO AMAZING!! 

Have a good Thursday, everyone! Let me know your thoughts in the comments - drop in on Danielle's blog if you have the chance too! 

Please excuse any typos. It was 12 AM when I typed this after cramming homework. If I spy any errors in the morning I shall correct them. 
Also, any comments on the new font are welcome. Too big? Just right? 

Thanks, everyone! See you next time!

BRT: The Stone Kingdom by Danielle E. Shipley [ARC]

 

Title: The Stone Kingdom

Author: Danielle E. Shipley

Number of Pages: 179

Rating: 5/5!

Date to-be Published: September 20, 2013

 

SUMMARY

“Love and prince,
Both true, wed rose of white in realm of stone;
For blood begins,
But naught can be put right by blood alone.”

One thoughtless act is all it takes to bring the curse threatened on Rosalba’s christening day to pass. Now the princess must combine her desperate determination with the service of benevolent tailor Edgwyn Wyle to find the second half of the key to her kingdom’s restoration.

<> ~ <> ~ <>

An enchantress’s curse turns a spoiled royal into a beast; a princess’s pricked finger places her under a hundred-year spell; bales of straw are spun as golden as the singing harp whisked down a giant beanstalk – all within sight of Wilderhark, the forest that’s seen it all.

You’ve heard the stories – of young men scaling rope-like braids to assist the tower-bound damsel; of gorgeous gowns appearing just in time for a midnight ball; of frog princes, and swan princes,and princes saved from drowning by maidens of the sea. Tales of magic. Tales of adventure. Most of all, tales of true love.

Once upon a time, you knew them as fairytales. Know them now as Wilderhark’s.

 

REVIEW

Ah, Danielle has done it again. *Slow claps* I swear, she must take classes on how to twist all of these words into clever incantations and riddles! Either that, or she is the teacher. Well-rounded characters, ingenious pace and plot, and twists at all the right turns are my favorite. The author excels in all of these areas, and her descriptions are beautifully vivid.

 

Something else I want to take into account is the cover. It's so much brighter than the cover of The Swan Prince, and for good reason. The debut book of this series had a dark, mysterious tone to it while this one was an adventure of soul-searching for open-minded, heart-on-her-wrist Princess Rosalba. Danielle has an incredible artist, to say the least.

 

Let's talk about Edgwyn for a second. A lot of research was put into this, I'm certain, regarding Edgwyn Wyle's love for fabric. His character is so lovable! He has a great love for animals and a heart of gold is the best thing Rosalba could have, given her standpoint for a majority of the book. He's completely selfless, clever, and kind. I definitely hope to see more of him in later books.

 

Another skill Danielle has is voice. She wrote from several different perspectives in this installment, and each one sang of its own independent feelings and thoughts. That's something all writers struggle with, and she makes it seem effortless.

 

She also takes real life experiences and morphs them into a fairytale, something I can see many readers learning from. At the same time, she weaves true, already-existing fairytale scenarios into the writing, and I LOVE IT. Every time I would spy such a happening, I had to stop for a minute just to absorb it.

 

The Wilderhark Tales are all about learning morals. How to be honest, to respect oneself, to be brave enough to face any threat for the ones you care about. It's beautiful, really. It makes you wish the Wilderhark Forest was a real pace, despite the anarchwitches!

 

Honestly, I can't find anything to rag on here. Perhaps a little bit more explanation was needed for a few minor details of the book, but it wasn't enough to detract from the story whatsoever. Being that I don't want to spoil anything, I'll leave the review off here. Please, get your hands on The Swan Prince as well as this when it's released.

 

Another thank you to Danielle for giving lucky-ol'-me an ARC for this amazing installment!