Friday, April 22, 2011

Book Review: Haunts Haven by Joan Sowards



Callie Wilford inherited a century-old inn in southern Arizona. She didn't believe in ghosts although many of the town people told her about the ghost who guards the inn. She is determined to turn her inheritance into a bed and breakfast no matter what she comes up against. Callie meets a handsome cowboy and a charming rancher and now her heart is in trouble. Which man will she choose? 


Haunts Haven is a great story to just curl up on the couch and get away from the world. A ghost story that is not scary but has twists and turns with a few surprises. Joan Sowards is a great story teller and I enjoyed this book tremendously. A mystery, romance I didn't want to put down.


To buy Haunts Haven see:

http://www.amazon.com/Haunts-Haven-Joan-Sowards/dp/1935217313/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1303522668&sr=8-1



Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Curse of the Elfs by Anna del C. Dye

Another wonderful book has come from the presses.  It is called Curse of the Elfs by Anna del C. Dye 
The story goes: When an Immortal race ceases to be immortal woe to the land.

Their only hope lies in a servant of kings who must learn to love the elfs before he will attempt to save them. But no one, elf or mankind, has ever heard of this man. Can the healer be found before their race is gone forever?
 Ancient legend tells of elfs crossing paths with a dying wizard named Zoltan. The Old Sorcerer’s unrepentant deeds had caused the wizarding school to chastise him severely. On his deathbed Zoltan asked the elfs for help.  Losing patience in his delirium, he cursed them. Now, the immortal elfin race is slowly, but surely dying.


Anna del C. Dye was born in Valparaiso, Chile, amongst some of the world’s most famous beaches.  After meeting Rodney, a native of Idaho, in her hometown, Anna traveled to Utah on Christmas Eve and married him two weeks later. Their love story, Why Him? was published by Covenant in the book entitled Tender Mercies. Anna and Rodney reside in Taylorsville, Utah and are the parents of three princes and a princess.

Anna is an accomplished, multi-award winning author. One of her short stories entitled Amerine—Fairy Princess won an award in the Oquirrh Writers contest. The first book in her new YA Romance Series entitled “A Kingdom By The Sea” also won an award. Anna’s works also include The Silent Warrior Trilogy, the beginning saga of her YA Elf Series.

For more information contact Anna at www.annadelc.com.


Here is an interview of Anna and her writing:

Anna long have you been writing and why did you started?
About seven years ago I started because my husband wanted to live to the ripe age of fifty. He thought my imagination would be the end of his days. He actually ordered me to. He is awesome.

What are your books titled?
In the order they were published, they are:
The Silent Warrior Trilogy
Book 1 - The Elf and the Princess
Book 2 - Trouble in the Elf City
Book 3 - Elfs in a conquered Realm
and now:
Curse of the Elfs

Do you write your book from beginning to end, or start with the end or in the middle? Why?
The Trilogy I started in the front. Curse of the Elfs came to me in the middle, then it took form toward the front and the back. I am not sure why… it just happened.

Was there a particular person or event that inspired you to write this story?
The last movie of Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings. I wanted to know more about the character’s lives and couldn’t find enough. My husband said, “Why don’t you write your own.” I answered, “Yah right!” But his answer haunted me and in three days I had the draft of The Elf and the Princess in my mind. When I told him the story he came back with a laptop and told me to write it. The rest is history.

What advice would you give to aspiring authors?
Never give up!!! Join a writer's chapter close to you right now, and learn the craft from them.
Anna, do you write with music playing? If so, is the music likely to be songs with lyrics or only instrumentals?
I do have music on, though I love quietness. I have my favorite tunes in the computer where I write. Lots of them have lyric a few don’t.

What is the coolest thing about being an author?
Meeting great people and other authors.

What would you say is the most challenging part about being an author?
Spending hours promoting my books while I would like to be writing another.
Do you have a particular goal you aim to achieve with your writing?
To take people to a wonderful world where they can forget reality’s cold hand and safely enjoy fantasy. Life is tough and we need something to help us make it more fun and worth living. Fantasy is the way I choose to do it.

You once told me that English was your second language. What sort of challenges did you meet in trying to write your books, if any?
Not many really. I write and my editor has to figure out what I am trying to say. (If I can't figure how a word goes in English, I put it in Spanish...he speaks Spanish very well.) We have a lot of fun when we edit the books; because of my English mess ups. 

If you could give your book to only one person, who would it be and why?
A teenager in trouble...
In the hope that he/she could discover the power they have deep inside to change and become better. I want them to see that nothing is impossible if we put our minds to it.

Can you share with your fans how can you describe so well your battle scenes and the sword's playing action?
We found a medieval sword fighting class at the local high school and my husband and I took it. My husband liked it so much he has taken it for a few years now and has even earned two different belts with the clan.

Where can we purchase a copy of your books?

Thank you for this opportunity to visit with you and your friends.