Blog Tour Review & Giveaway: Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield

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Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield 
Series: Chantress, Book #1
Published: May 7th 2013
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
336 pages (e-ARC)
Genre: Young adult historic fantasy
Acquired this book: From the publisher via Edelweiss for the tour
Warning: May contain spoilers
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Lucy’s Chantress magic will make her the most powerful — and most hunted — girl in England. 

“Sing, and the darkness will find you.” This warning has haunted fifteen-year-old Lucy ever since she was eight and shipwrecked on a lonely island. Lucy’s guardian, Norrie, has lots of rules, but the most important is that Lucy must never sing. Not ever. Now it is 1667, Lucy is fifteen, and on All Hallows’ Eve, Lucy hears a tantalizing melody on the wind. She can’t help but sing—and she is swept into darkness.

When she awakes in England, Lucy hears powerful men discussing Chantresses—women who can sing magic into the world. They are hunting her, but she escapes and finds sanctuary with the Invisible College, an organization plotting to overthrow the nefarious Lord Protector. The only person powerful enough to bring about his downfall is a Chantress. And Lucy is the last one in England.

Lucy struggles to master the song-spells and harness her power, but the Lord Protector is moving quickly. And her feelings for Nat, an Invisible College apprentice and scientist who deeply distrusts her magic, only add to her confusion…

Time is running out, and the fate of England hangs in the balance in this entrancing novel that is atmospheric and lyrical, dangerous and romantic.

Chantress is a story about secrets, good versus evil, and family - the one you’re born into, and the one you make along the way that has nothing to do with blood ties. It has a great setting and an interesting concept, and while I thought it didn’t fully live up to its potential, it was quite enjoyable.

The story was very well written. I was able to picture myself in England in the 1600s, see the clothes and the houses and the people. I felt the seductive pull of the songs, and Lucy’s inner war between Proven Magic and Wild Magic. The action scenes, while too few and far between, were done really well, and I was able to feel the sense of danger. I found myself getting nervous for Lucy and wondering how she would get out of some of the scrapes she found herself in.

Lucy was sometimes impetuous, but she was also strong and brave. She was faced with some really tough challenges for a girl her age, and she dealt with them well, and managed to hold onto her integrity. Out of all the characters, I probably liked Nat best - his motivations were clearest, and his personality was the strongest. Even though he was surly and kind of rough, there was a reason behind it, and I felt sympathetic toward him.

My main issue with the book was the lack of action. The middle of the book really lagged and the plot seemed to stagnate. There was a lot of sitting around and talking about plans, and then a lot of scenes with in depth details about Lucy’s lessons. There also wasn’t a whole lot of character development. Even though I liked Lucy well enough, I found it hard to connect with her. I also didn’t really understand why she liked Nat - at first he was a complete jerk to her, but then she said they spent time together, even though it didn’t really show much of their interactions, so it was hard to comprehend how the romance developed since we didn’t really see it. I will say that I was sad whenever Nat went away, and looked forward to him returning because I hoped we’d get to see more of how his and Lucy’s relationship developed.

Overall, Chantress was a story with a strong beginning and end, but the middle failed to keep me captivated. I was curious to discover how things would play out, and as I said, the scenes with action were done well, there just weren’t enough of them. The sense of urgency and danger came and went, along with the romance. All that being said, I plan to read the next book (I was hoping it would be a standalone but found out after reading it that it's the first in a trilogy), and I would recommend Chantress to fans of historic fantasy. With such an interesting, unique concept, I’m sure there will be many people who will love this book.  

 

*I received this book from the published via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review. No money or compensation of any sort exchanged hands.*

“With part of my mind, I listened out for the singing. The rest of me wished desperately for a life bigger than carrots and harvests and Norrie’s superstitions.” ~ page 5

“I longed for new sights and adventures, for a life not bounded by the island’s shore.” ~ page 6

“Our eyes met, and I felt a spark like the kick of magic or the start of a song.” ~ page 87

“I again felt a strong current pass between us, as if we were something more than reluctant allies - as if we somehow knew each other through and through.” ~ page 196

“Behind every image, I felt an astonishing blend of emotions: desperation, frustration, admiration, respect, tenderness, desire. And weaving through them all, something more - a faith in me that went beyond anything I’d ever dreamed.” ~ page 291

“I’d trust you anywhere, with or without magic.” ~ page 322 

*All quotes taken from the ARC of Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield*

Amy Butler Greenfield was a grad student in history when she gave into temptation and became a writer. Since then, she has become an award-winning author.

Born in Philadelphia, Amy grew up in the Adirondack Mountains and later studied history at Williams College, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Oxford. She now lives with her family in England, where she writes, bakes double-dark-chocolate cake, and plots mischief. Find Amy online: {Website || Twitter} 

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Have you read Chantress? What did you think?

 

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Blue Sky Days Anniversary Celebration Day 1

This week is the one-year publication anniversary of my debut novel, Blue Sky Days. It’s been a crazy, amazing, whirlwind year, and to celebrate and thank all of you for your support, I’m doing 4 days of giveaways, plus lowering the price of Blue Sky Days to 99 cents until Friday!

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Don't have a Kindle but want to take advantage of the sale? You still can! Simply go to Smashwords and check out with the coupon code JZ94A and you can download the book for 99 cents in the format of your choice.  

A year after graduating from high school, nineteen-year-old Emma Ward feels lost. She has spent most of her life trying to please her frigid, miserable mother - studying hard, getting good grades, avoiding the whole teenage rebellion thing - and now she feels she has no identity beyond that. Because she spent so many years working hard and planning every moment of her life, she doesn't have any friends, has never had a boyfriend, and basically doesn't know who she is or what she really wants from life.
Working two part-time jobs to save money for college hasn't helped her make decisions about her future, so she decides it's time for a change. She leaves home to live with her free-spirited, slightly eccentric Aunt Daisy in a small town that makes Emma feel like she's stepped back in time.
When Emma meets Nicholas Shaw, everything changes - he's unlike anyone she's ever met before, the kind of guy she didn't even know existed in the 21st century. Carefree and spirited like Daisy, Nicholas teaches Emma to appreciate life, the beauty around her, and to just let go and live. Between Daisy and Nicholas, Emma feels like she belongs somewhere for the first time in her life, and realizes that you don't always need a plan - sometimes life steers you where you're meant to be.
Life is wonderful, an endless string of blue sky days, until Nicholas is diagnosed with cancer, and life changes once again for Emma in ways she never thought possible. Now it's time for her to help Nicholas the way he's helped her. Emma will have to use her newfound strength, and discover along the way if love really is enough to get you through.

Today's giveaway is for a book of the winner's choice up to $12 CAD from The Book Depository. I decided to let the winner choose rather than choose a bunch for you to pick from, but if you're looking for suggestions, I have a ton! ;-)

This giveaway is open internationally as long as The Book Depository ships to your location. The only mandatory entry for the giveaway is to follow Ramblings of a Daydreamer - the rest are just extra chances for you to win and you don't have to do any of them if you don't want to.  

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Thank you to everyone who has helped make this last year the incredible journey it's been. I appreciate your support and encouragement so much!

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2012 A to Z Blogging Challenge: Trailers

Check out the A to Z Challenge!

 

I discovered book trailers shortly after I started book blogging last year. I can’t remember the very first one I saw, but I remember that among the first was the trailer for A Soul Less Broken by Helen Laibach. I thought it was absolutely beautiful, and I knew I wanted a trailer for my book, Blue Sky Days, when it came out. I thought about it (read: stressed about it) for months. I always knew that ideally I would create my own, but I had no idea how. I talked to several people and soon discovered that professional trailers could cost hundreds, sometimes even thousands of dollars. Um, no. My budget for my book was next to nothing - there was no way I could afford hundreds of dollars for a trailer that a lot of people wouldn’t even care about. 

I read a lot of opinions from fellow book bloggers about trailers, and they were torn - some loved trailers and thought they really enhanced a book, some were indifferent, and some hated them (usually for specific reasons). I knew what I wanted, and what I didn’t want, and that basically seemed to coincide with other’s opinions. I wanted to do it right - some trailers are really cheesy, and some don’t even give you any idea what the book is about. To me, a trailer should be almost like a movie teaser - you get the main idea of what it’s about, and it leaves you wanting more.

I finally figured out that I could make a trailer myself using Windows Movie Maker, but I had a lot of trouble figuring it out. Finally, I fell back on my knowledge of graphic design, and created the entire thing using Paint Shop and Animation Shop, and then working it into Movie Maker and adding music.

This was the final product:

 

 

What do you think of book trailers? Do you watch them? Do you have one? If you do, feel free to leave a link, I'd love to see it!

 

Book Trailer for Blue Sky Days

Today is finally the day I'm releasing the book trailer for Blue Sky Days. I did the cover reveal last week, and I think I might be even more excited about the trailer. This was my first time ever making a video, and let me tell you, it was a labour of love. I stressed over this thing for months, put it off, worried about it some more, and then it finally came together. It's not the greatest thing ever, but I'm proud of it, and I think it's a good representation of the book and the characters.

So, without any further ado, here it is:

If you'd rather watch it on YouTube - Book Trailer: Blue Sky Days by Marie Landry

I'm almost afraid to ask, but: what do you think?

Thank you so much to all the people who have supported and encouraged me so far, it means so much to me. Being a published author is my lifelong dream, and (omg I just realized the date!) 4 months from today, that dream is going to come true!! *happy dance*

If you'd be willing to share the trailer anywhere (Twitter, Facebook, your blog), I'd be so grateful. Also, I'm on GoodReads, so if you are too, I'd love to be friends over there. I always say you can never have too many book-loving friends! You can check out the book, and if it sounds like something you're interested in, be sure to mark it as to-read. Thanks again, guys! :-)

Book covers and trailers and swag - oh my!

I feel like I'm on a merry-go-round - but I don't want to get off!

Ever since I finished the 2nd revision of my novel last week and sent it off to my 4 (amazingly talented, wonderful, gifted, couldn't-do-it-without-them) beta readers, my mind has been going a million miles a minute.  There's so much to do and so much to think about.  I've got a break from reading, editing and rewriting, but now it's time to think book covers, trailers, publicity, etc. 

I've been searching for pictures to use as the book cover and have found a few good candidates.  Ideally, I would take the picture myself, but without models, it makes it a wee bit difficult.  I've also found some pretty good pictures for the trailer, have started checking out music for it, and discovered that I have Movie Maker on my computer and won't have to pay someone thousands of dollars for a minute-long trailer.  Since my budget for this book is next to nothing, that's a good thing!

I've come up with a huge list of ideas for publicity, and have had the help of my very own 'publicist', Jaime-Kristal, who is as full of ideas and enthusiasm as I am, as well as lots of help and info from self-published author Helen Laibach.  I've even started making a list of people who are interested in reviewing the book once it's done, and there's a blog tour in the works.  And to think, the book isn't even 100% complete yet!  It's all very exciting to me - I'm finally living my dream.

I'd like some input from all the lovely people in the blogosphere who review books, participate in giveaways and contests, etc.  What do you look for in a good book trailer?  What makes them really stand out, and what kinds of things do you think should be avoided?  Do you have a favorite book trailer?  Also, when you're participating in a giveaway, what kind of swag really draws your attention?  I have a few simple ideas like bookmarks, and one great, unique idea that I'm pretty excited about (and that will remain a secret for now), but I want to know what you guys think.  If you won something in a giveaway other than a book, what kinds of things would you like to receive that are related to that book?  

I would greatly appreciate any input and suggestions, and feel free to leave links to your favorite book trailers if you'd like.  Also, in case you missed the banner at the top of this blog, if you're interested in receiving a copy of my book when it's ready to go (most likely in PDF) in exchange for an honest review, please let me know.  Also, if you're interested in joining the blog tour, hosting an interview, guest post, giveaway, or anything else, let me know that, too.  You can read a synopsis of my novel, Blue Sky Days, here.