Cover Reveal and Giveaway: Golden Daughter by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

BEYOND THE REALM OF DREAMS IS A WORLD SHE NEVER IMAGINED

Masayi Sairu was raised to be dainty, delicate, demure . . . and deadly. She is one of the 
emperor’s Golden Daughters, as much a legend as she is a commodity. One day, Sairu will be 
contracted in marriage to a patron, whom she will secretly guard for the rest of her life.
But when she learns that a sacred Dream Walker of the temple seeks the protection of a Golden Daughter, Sairu forgoes marriage in favor of this role. Her skills are stretched to the limit, for assassins hunt in the shadows, and phantoms haunt in dreams. With only a mysterious Faerie cat and a handsome slave—possessed of his own strange abilities—to help her, can Sairu shield her new mistress from evils she can neither see nor touch?
For the Dragon is building an army of fire. And soon the heavens will burn.

Golden Daughter, coming in November 2014, will be the seventh novel in the Tales of Goldstone Woods series by Anne Elisabeth Stengl. I have read and enjoyed the first five works in the series, as well as the novella Goddess Tithe.  Like classic fairy tales, the stories stand on their own, yet create a rich, detailed world, from the harbors of Parumvir to the wilds of Southland and the wonders of the Far Realm.  

I know people say "don't judge a book by it's cover," but this series might be an exception. The images are so vivid and yet fantastical, perfectly conveying the tone of the story.  And dare I hope that our favorite feline rascal is is once again a key player in the story? Well, I wouldn't be a bit surprised. And if I had to guess, I'd say we're visiting a new realm, as the character's robe doesn't seem to fit Parumvir, Southlands, or previous destinations.




And for those of us who can't wait for a preview, here's a sneak peak:

Sairu made her way from Princess Safiya’s chambers out to the walkways of the encircling gardens. The Masayi, abode of the Golden Daughters, was an intricate complex of buildings linked by blossom-shrouded walkways, calm with fountains and clear, lotus-filled pools where herons strutted and spotted fish swam.
Here she had lived all the life she could remember.
The Masayi was but a small part of Manusbau Palace, which comprised the whole of Sairu’s existence. She had never stepped beyond the palace walls. To do so would be to step into a world of corruption, corruption to which a Golden Daughter would not be impervious until she was safely chartered to a master and her life’s work was affixed in her heart and mind. Meanwhile, she must live securely embalmed in this tomb, waiting for life to begin.
Sairu’s mouth curved gently at the corners, and she took small steps as she had been trained—slow, dainty steps that disguised the swiftness with which she could move at need. Even in private she must maintain the illusion, even here within the Masayi.
A cat sat on the doorstep of her own building, grooming itself in the sunlight. She stepped around it and proceeded into the red-hung halls of the Daughter’s quarters and on to her private chambers. There she must gather what few things she would take with her—fewer things even than Jen-ling would take on her journey to Aja. For Jen-ling would be the wife of a prince, and she must give every impression of a bride on her wedding journey.
I wonder who my master will be? Sairu thought as she slid back the rattan door to her chamber and entered the quiet simplicity within. She removed her elaborate costume and exchanged it for a robe of simple red without embellishments. She washed the serving girl cosmetics from her face and painted on the daily mask she and her sisters wore—white with black spots beneath each eye and a red stripe down her chin. It was elegant and simple, and to the common eye it made her indistinguishable from her sisters.
The curtain moved behind her. She did not startle but turned quietly to see the same cat slipping into her room. Cats abounded throughout Manusbau Palace, kept on purpose near the storehouses to manage the vermin. But they did not often enter private chambers.
Sairu, kneeling near her window with her paint pots around her, watched the cat as it moved silkily across the room, stepped onto her sleeping cushions, and began kneading the soft fabric, purring all the while. Its claws pulled at the delicate threads. But it was a cat. As far as it was concerned, it had every right to enjoy or destroy what it willed.
At last it seemed to notice Sairu watching it. It turned sleepy eyes to her and blinked.
Sairu smiled. In a voice as sweet as honey, she asked, “Who are you?”
The cat twitched its tail softly and went on purring.
The next moment, Sairu was across the room, her hand latched onto the cat’s scruff. She pushed it down into the cushions and held it there as it yowled and snarled, trying to catch at her with its claws.
“Who are you?” she demanded, her voice fierce this time. “What are you? Are you an evil spirit sent to haunt me?”
“No, dragons eat it! I mean, rrrraww! Mreeeow! Yeeeowrl!”
The cat twisted and managed to lash out at her with its back feet, its claws catching in the fabric of her sleeve. One claw scratched her wrist, startling her just enough that she loosened her hold. The cat took advantage of the opportunity and, hissing like a fire demon, leapt free. It sprang across the room, knocking over several of her paint pots, and spun about, back-arched and snarling. Every hair stood on end, and its ears lay flat to its skull.
Sairu drew a dagger from her sleeve and crouched, prepared for anything. The smile lingered on her mouth, but her eyes flashed. “Who sent you?” she demanded. “Why have you come to me now? You know of my assignment, don’t you.”
“Meeeeowrl,” the cat said stubbornly and showed its fangs in another hiss.
“I see it in your face,” Sairu said, moving carefully to shift her weight and prepare to spring. “You are no animal. Who is your master, devil?”
The cat dodged her spring easily enough, which surprised her. Sairu was quick and rarely missed a target. Her knife sank into the floor and stuck there, but she released it and whipped another from the opposite sleeve even as she whirled about.
Any self-respecting cat would have made for the window or the door. This one sprang back onto the cushions and crouched there, tail lashing. Its eyes were all too sentient, but it said only “Meeeeow,” as though trying to convince itself.
Sairu chewed the inside of her cheek. Then, in a voice as smooth as butter, she said, “We have ways of dealing with devils in this country. Do you know what they are, demon-cat?”
The cat’s ears came up. “Prreeowl?” it said.
“Allow me to enlighten you.”
And Sairu put her free hand to her mouth and uttered a long, piercing whistle. The household erupted with the voices of a dozen and more lion dogs.
The little beasts, slipping and sliding and crashing into walls, their claws clicking and clattering on the tiles, careened down the corridor and poured into Sairu’s room. Fluffy tails wagging, pushed-in noses twitching, they roared like the lions they believed themselves to be and fell upon the cat with rapacious joy.
The cat uttered one long wail and the next moment vanished out the window. Sairu, dogs milling at her feet, leapt up and hurried to look out after it, expecting to see a tawny tail slipping from sight. But she saw nothing.
The devil was gone. For the moment at least.
Sairu sank down on her cushions, and her lap was soon filled with wriggling, snuffling hunters eager for praise. She petted them absently, but her mind was awhirl. She had heard of devils taking the form of animals and speaking with the tongues of men. But she had never before seen it. She couldn’t honestly say she’d even believed it.
“What danger is my new master in?” she wondered. “From what must I protect him?”

While waiting for the release, why not enter to win a novel from the Tales of Goldstone Wood series? There's a  link to the rafflecopter at the bottom of my page.

Cover Reveal: Goddess Tithe

“And what do you make of him yourself?”

Munny dared glance his captain’s way and was relieved when his eyes met only a stern and rigid back. “I’m not sure, Captain,” he said. “I think he’s afraid. But not of . . .”

“Not of the goddess?” the Captain finished for him. And with these words he turned upon Munny, his eyes so full of secrets it was nearly overwhelming. Munny froze, his fingers just touching but not daring to take up a small teapot of fragile work.

The Captain looked at him, studying his small frame up and down. “No,” he said, “I believe you are right. Leonard the Clown does not fear Risafeth. I believe he is unaware of his near peril at her will, suffering as he does under a peril nearer still.”

 Munny made neither answer nor any move.

“We will bring him safely to Lunthea Maly, won’t we, Munny?” the Captain said. But he did not speak as though he expected an answer, so again Munny offered none. “We will bring him safely to Lunthea Maly and there let him choose his own dark future.”

“I hope—” Munny began.

But he was interrupted by a sudden commotion on deck. First a rising murmur of voices, then many shouts, inarticulate in cacophony. But a pounding at the cabin door accompanied Sur Agung’s voice bellowing, “Captain, you’d best come see this!”

The Captain’s eyes widened a moment and still did not break gaze with Munny’s. “We’ll keep him safe,” he repeated. Then he turned and was gone, leaving the door open.

Munny put down the pot he held and scurried after. The deck was alive with hands, even those who were off watch, crawling up from the hatches and crowding the rails on the port side. They parted way for the Captain to pass through, but when Munny tried to follow, they closed in again, blocking him as solidly as a brick wall.

“Look! Look!” Munny heard voices crying.

“It’s a sign!”

“She’s warning us!”

“It’s a sign, I tell you!”

Fearing he knew not what, Munny ran for the center mast and climbed partway up, using the handholds and footholds with unconscious confidence. Soon he was high enough to see over the heads of the gathered crew, out into the blue waters of the ocean. And he saw them.

 They were water birds. Big white albatrosses, smaller seagulls, heavy cormorants, even deep-throated pelicans and sleek, black-faced terns. These and many more, hundreds of them, none of which should be seen this far out to sea.

They were all dead. Floating in a great mass.

Munny clung to the mast, pressing his cheek against its wood. The shouts of the frightened sailors below faded away, drowned out by the desolation of that sight. Death, reeking death, a sad flotilla upon the waves.

“I’ve never seen anything like that.”

Munny looked down to where Leonard clung to the mast just beneath him, staring wide-eyed out at the waves. “How could this have happened? Were they sick? Caught in a sudden gale? Are they tangled in fishing nets?”

There was no fear in his voice. Not like in the voices of the sailors. He did not understand. He did not realize. It wasn’t his fault, Munny told himself.

But it was.

As a great fan of Anne Elisabeth Stengl's work, I am excited to be part of the Goddess Tithe cover reveal.  This novella, to be released this fall,  returns to some familiar characters and introduces new ones.  

The Vengeful Goddess Demands Her Tithe

 When a stowaway is discovered aboard the merchant ship Kulap Kanya, Munny, a cabin boy on his first voyage, knows what must be done. All stowaways are sacrificed to Risafeth, the evil goddess of the sea. Such is her right, and the Kulap Kanya's only hope to return safely home.

Yet, to the horror of his crew, Captain Sunan vows to protect the stowaway, a foreigner in clown's garb. A curse falls upon the ship and all who sail with her, for Risafeth will stop at nothing to claim her tithe.Will Munny find the courage to trust his captain and to protect the strange clown who has become his friend? 

 I had the fun of designing this cover—finding reference photos, inventing the composition, applying the text, etc.—but the actual artistic work was done by talented cover artist Phatpuppy (www.phatpuppyart.com), whose work I have admired for many years. It was such a thrill for me to contact and commission this artist to create a look for Goddess Tithe that is reminiscent of the original novels but has a style and drama all its own.

 The boy on the front was quite a find. I hunted high and low for an image of a boy the right age, the right look, with the right expression on his face. Phatpuppy and I worked with a different model through most of the cover development stage. But then I happened upon this image, and both she and I were delighted with his blend of youth, stubbornness, and strength of character! It wasn’t difficult to switch the original boy for this young man. He simply is Munny, and this cover is a perfect window into the world of my story.

 You can’t see it here, but the wrap-around back cover for the print copy contains some of the prettiest work . . . including quite a scary sea monster! Possibly my favorite detail is the inclusion of the ghostly white flowers framing the outer edge. These are an important symbol in the story itself, and when Phatpuppy sent me the first mock-up cover with these included, I nearly jumped out of my skin with excitement!

The cover isn't the only exciting part. For the first time, the story will include illustrations; a total of eight full-page images. 

 This is the first one in the book. I decided to share it with all of you since it depicts my young hero, Munny the cabin boy, under the watchful eye of his mentor, the old sailor Tu Pich. Munny is on his first voyage, and he is determined to learn all there is to know about a life at sea as quickly as possible. Thus we see him utterly intent upon the knot he is learning to tie. Tu Pich is old enough to know that no sailor will ever learn all there is to know about the sea. Thus he looks on, grave, caring, and perhaps a little sad. He might be looking upon his own younger self of many years ago, fumbling through the hundreds of difficult knots his fingers must learn to tie with unconscious ease.

I enjoyed creating all the illustrations for Goddess Tithe, but this one was my favorite. I love the contrasts of light and dark, the contrasts of young and old . . . youthful intensity versus the perspective of age.

Read the first chapter here.

Author Bio:

Anne Elisabeth Stengl makes her home in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she lives with her husband, Rohan, a kindle of kitties, and one long-suffering dog. When she’s not writing, she enjoys Shakespeare, opera, and tea, and practices piano, painting, and pastry baking. She studied illustration at Grace College and English literature at Campbell University. She is the author of the Tales of Goldstone Wood, including Heartless, Veiled Rose, Moonblood, Starflower, and Dragonwitch. Heartless and Veiled Rose have each been honored with a Christy Award, and Starflowerwas voted winner of the 2013 Clive Staples Award.

Giveaway:

I am offering two proof copies of Goddess Tithe as prizes! U.S. and Canada only, please. To include the giveaway in your feature, get the Rafflecopter widget here:

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Dragonwitch Blog Tour: Sneak Peak & Giveaway

 As a passionate fan of Anne Elisabeth Stengl's Tales of Goldstone Wood series, I jumped at the chance to be part of the online release tour for her newest book,  Dragonwitch.  The tour, lasting from July 14-16, covers several sites each day, with giveaways, special previews, and interviews at each site. Today's stops include:

Rebecca's Book Blog - Interview

Jennette Mbewe - Sneak Peek

Bluerose's Heart - Top Tens List

The Wonderings of One Person - Guest Post

Seasons of Humility - Interview

Worthy 2 Read - Guest Post

The Endless Road - Interview

Tea and Bree - Interview/Sneak Peek

JoJo's Corner - Interview

Dragonwitch, book five in the series,  further explores the mysterious character mentioned earlier. Firstborn of Death-in-Life, once a Faerie queen,  part of her story has been told in Starflower, where the famed Maid Starflower meets her in the Dragonwitch's ruined desmaine, but there is more to be revealed.  The tale of the Brothers Ashuin, namesakes of the famed Ashuin Lantern, will finally be told, as well as introducing new characters.

A Sneak Peak of Dragonwitch....

A sudden pounding at her door startled Leta to her feet. Did those fool soldiers think she might hide her former teacher in her own chambers? Drawing herself to her full height, she strode to the door and flung it wide, demanding as she did so, "What cause have you to . . . oh."A child, brown and wide-eyed, crouched before her, hands wringing. Leta could almost remember having seen this humble scrubber-boy before, hard at work in various corners of the castle. She had never spoken to him. "Lights above us!" she said, taking in the terror in that face. The boy looked as though he had seen a ghost. "What is the matter?""Allees-tar," the boy said, his eyes pleading to be understood.Leta shook her head. "Say again?"The boy chewed his lip, his eyes darting up and down the corridor. Then he reached out and took Leta's hand in both of his and spoke urgently. "Allees-tar.""Alistair?"The boy nodded.A coldness took hold of Leta at the mention of her betrothed's name. "What about him?"But the boy did not notice her icy voice or stance. He repeated the name and tugged at Leta, motioning and signing for her to follow. There was no understanding the child. Leta shook her head, her teeth grinding. "He must be summoning me. A first time for everything under the sun!"She grabbed her cloak, for it was far too cold to wander the castle corridors without one. Best to get the encounter over with as soon as possible, she decided. She followed the boy to Alistair's room. At the door, she pushed ahead and entered first so as not to seem dragged like a dog. She must retain at least some form of dignity.Then she saw the state in which her betrothed lay."Alistair!" She hastened to his side, leaning over him on the bed. Her mouth gaped, and she grabbed the one candle and held it closer for a better look. She saw the boiling, smelled the poison.One side of her mind said: SCREAM!
It's as well you aren't afraid of blood, her practical side responded.
RUN! roared the panicking Leta.
Someone's got to take care of this. And you want something to distract you. It might as well be you.SCREAM, dragons eat you!But, as usual, practical Leta won the day.She turned to Mouse. There was only a slight tremor in her voice when she spoke. "Fetch fresh water and some bandages." Then she shook her head. "How silly of me. You don't understand, do you? Stay with him, and I'll fetch them myself."

Oh...I'm intrigued already. How many times has the practical side of myself noticed logical points while the rest of me is having an emotional crisis....admittedly, not over a poisoned man, but still...

One of my favorite things about the Tales of Goldstone Wood is the skilled blending of traditional fairy-tale motifs and new approaches. For example, the idea of a beautiful maiden threatened by a fearsome dragon is a common one, but Heartless takes a fresh, deeper approach by  coupling the external threat with a threat to the heroine's mind and soul.  The characters are all well-written, fleshed out in startling detail.  I feel I know them all--to the point of wanting to slap some of them when they're being especially stubborn or foolish!
If you haven't read any of the books before, don't worry--although each novel adds fresh insight to the character,  they can be read in any order without confusion (with the except of Veiled Rose and Moonblood. Read Veiled Rose first).  I have previously posted reviews of Heartless, Veiled Rose, Moonblood and Starflower with only minor spoilers for the curious.
There's also another book on the way: Shadow Hand will release sometime in the spring of 2014. I can't wait!
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Contest runs through the 16th, so stop back by the author's blog on the 17th to see the winner.

Starflower

 "He showed you who you are, didn't he?" Imraldera said. "And he showed you who you could be."

One of my favorite new authors is Anne Elisabeth Stengl. Her Tales of Goldstone Wood combine the wonder of fairy tales with strong, intriguing characters. In Starflower, the fourth book in the series, readers step back in time, thousands of years before Una, Rose Red, and Lionheart were born, to learn the secrets of Earnin and Imraldera.

Previous hints have been dropped at a past between the two, and in Moonblood, Lionheart identifies her with Maid Starflower, a legendary heroine of Southlands and the mysterious "Silent Lady."  In Starflower, readers meet a much younger Earnin, still dashing, who is infatuated with King Iubdan's sister Gleamdren. When she is captured, Earnin sets off to rescue her, but his quest is interrupted by the discovery of a Mortal in the wood.

Eanrin grimaced at the sight and almost put her down again. After all, a princess with dreams like those probably had a tale of woe to match. She would certainly wake with expectations of a handsome hero to aid her. As far as Eanrin was concerned, a dash of heroism was one thing, but commitment to a cause? Never. Rushing off to the rescue of Lady Gleamdren was different, for he had determined that she must be his wife and the sole inspiration to his life’s work. Besides, he loved her.

This creature meant nothing to him.

But blood oozed from the abrasions on her wrists. And her body, mortal and vulnerable, lay in his arms. Eanrin rolled his eyes heavenward as though to seek some holy aid. Then he braced himself and wiped the mud off her lips with the edge of his cloak. She frowned in her sleep and stirred, but did not wake.

“Nothing for it,” he muttered. Closing his eyes and trying not to smell her any more than he must, he leaned in and kissed her . . .

 

Our favorite poet is not inclined to be a romantic hero--at least, not for anyone besides Lady Gleamdren. But his softer side gets the better of him, and he becomes entangled in Starflower's adventures. From pursuit by black Dogs to the mysterious Hound, they are pursued by strange, frightening forces.

I really enjoyed seeing how my favorite characters became who they are in the later books, from Earnin's hidden depths to Imreldera's origins. The writing was rich and captivating, easily pulling me into the world the author created. I also appreciated the spiritual elements, which added depth without becoming preachy or cliche.  In an epilogue, the author acknowledges the influence of the poem "The Hound of Heaven" on this book. I'd highly recommend that poem for a further insight into this work.

Five of Five