Hey'a, everyone! So, I recognize that it's a touch early to do a seasonal reads post (winter doesn't officially begin for another week and a half), but I want to do Christmas stuff on the blogs next week if possible, so . . . here we are!

Winter 2021–22 Reads

1. Of Fire and Ash by Gillian Bronte Adams (December 7). This one just came out this past week, but it wasn't in my fall reads list, so I'm including it. From the sneak peaks Gillian's shared both publically and with her street team, this looks like it's going to be so good: magical horses, epic conflicts, tragic heroes, the works. Early reviews are also suggesting that it's light on romance, so — hallelujah.

2. Wrought of Serpent and Snow by E. J. Kitchens (December 9). Another book that just came out this week! I confess that I do not love the cover . . . but I did love Wrought of Silver and Ravens, the previous book in the series, which was one of my favorite of the Tattered Slippers releases, and I'm excited to see what happens next!

3. The Untold Story by Genevieve Cogman (December 28). I confess that I'm not entirely caught up on the Invisible Library series — The Dark Archive slipped out without my noticing, and while I do have it out from the library, I haven't gotten around to reading it. But with the release of The Untold Story at the end of the month, I think The Dark Archive will have to move up the list. Both stories sound like they'll have a greater focus on Alberich and the fae, which is exciting. (We all know how much I love the Invisible Library fae, after all.)

4. Between Kings by W.R. Gingell (December 31). I am simultaneously SO HYPED and UTTERLY TERRIFIED for this. It's the end of the City Between series (though the author has promised spinoffs), and I'm so sad that I'll be saying goodbye to Pet, Tuata, JinYeong, Zero, North, Athelas, Morgana, and the rest. But also, the last book ended on such a cliffhanger, and I desperately need to know what's become of everyone. Out of everything on this list, this is definitely what I'm looking forward to the most!

5. A Conspiracy of Prophets by Suzannah Rowntree (January 6). So, yes. I had very mixed feelings about the first book in the series. But, I was told that I might like other books in the series better (especially since they focused on other protagonists), and I've loved Suzannah's other books, so I'm not taking this off my TBR list yet. And even if I'm not a fan of Lukas Bessarion, this installment sounds pretty epic.

And that about covers it! A little sparser than some of my seasonal release roundups, most of my favorite authors released something in summer or autumn, so this is a more quiet season. Still, what is there looks pretty good. What book releases are you excited for this winter? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!

 

Summer 2018 Reads

Hey'a, everyone! This post is going up a bit later than it normally would, due to the Song of Leira and Lightporter blog tours. But that's ok, since those served the same purpose this post would've: to let you know about all the awesome books I'm excited for in this season of reading!

Summer 2018 Reads!

1. Song of Leira by Gillian Bronte Adams (June 5). I've already talked about this one, obviously, and I've also already read it . . . but I'm still super excited that it's out! It's definitely the high point of the trilogy, and I'm impressed by Gillian's ability to convey powerful themes without being preachy. If you haven't read it yet, go do so.

2. Bring Me Their Hearts by Sara Wolf (June 5). Maybe a little darker than I normally read, but it sounds like it could be fun. We all know how it's going to end (you'd think that people would stop sending female assassins after handsome, single male princes; they always end up falling in love instead) but finding out how it ends up there will hopefully be enjoyable.

3. The Bird and the Blade by Megan Bannen (June 5). Mongolian historical fantasy— yes, please! And I think it might be a retelling of a myth as well, but I'm not 100% certain. I need to brush up on my Asian mythology. Either way, it sounds magnificent.

4. A Thousand Perfect Notes by C.G. Drews (June 7). I don't usually read contemporary, but I'll make an exception for this book! It's by Cait Grace of Paper Fury, and she's awesome, so I expect A Thousand Perfect Notes will be as well. Unfortunately, it sounds like it's only releasing in the UK and Australia, but I still intend to get my hands on it somehow.

5. Lightporter by C.B. Cook (June 16). Again, I've already talked about this one a fair bit, so I don't have a lot more to say. Basically, there's more Blaze and Anvil (my faves!), Albany has grown up a little (yay!), and the plot's exciting and fun. Out of everything on this list, I think this is the most summer-y, so that's another reason to read it sooner rather than later.

6. The Janus Elixir by Kyle Robert Shultz (July 1). Assuming you read my Mid-Year Book Freakout, you know how much I love the Beaumont and Beasley books. The Janus Elixir, unfortunately, doesn't sound like it'll involve Nick, Cordelia, and Crispin much . . . but I'm not complaining, because Malcolm Blackfire is storming awesome. Also, Kyle currently has this free for newsletter subscribers, so go sign up for that. His newsletters are funny and infrequent, so you're not going to be instantly spammed.

7. Fawkes by Nadine Brandes (July 10). This one sounds like so much fun! It's historical fantasy about the son of Guy Fawkes (aka the guy who tried to blow up Parliament and got a holiday named after him for it), and I imagine it'll be delightfully exciting. Also, just saying, the cover is pretty awesome.

8. Kill the Farm Boy by Delilah S. Dawson (July 24). This is either going to succeed spectactularly or fail miserably. No in-between. I hope that it will be the former, because it has the potential to be a hilarious adventure in the same vein as Discworld and the Hero's Guide series . . . as long as it doesn't make the fatal mistake of only making fun of fantasy instead of celebrating the good in it as well.

9. Fairest Son by H.S.J. Williams (August ??). I've been following Hannah for ages and waiting for her to be ready to publish something. Fairest Son isn't what I was waiting for exactly (that would be Moonscript), but I am definitely not going to complain about a gender-swapped Snow White retelling, especially not one involving a fae Snow White. (My life has been growing steadily more and more full of fae-related books— and, more to the point, good fae-related books— and I love it SO MUCH.)

10. These Rebel Waves by Sara Raasch (August 7). This is either going to be piratey, political, mysterious magnificence or it's going to make me sad about the fact that the author wasted such an excellent premise on a subpar book. Either way, it should be interesting.

11. Worth of a King by Kendra E. Ardnek (August 27). I alpha-read Worth and ahhhhhhhh!!!!!! I love it almost as much as I love Lady Dragon, Tela Du. It's got pre-scale Amberite (they're adorable) and lots of Laura (one of my favorite of Kendra's characters) and Deladia (which joins Amberite and Reutra as one of my top three favorite ships in Kendra's books) and dragons and secret plots and counterplots and assassins and just a lot of awesome. Y'all should go preorder it, if you like ebooks, or else keep an eye on the Amazon page if you're more of a paper-and-ink person.

What books are you excited for this summer? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Mid-Year Book Freakout 2018

Original picture via

Hey'a, everyone! Half of another year has come and gone, which means it's time for my my annual Mid-Year Book Freakout, in which I recap all the best (and occasionally worst) reads I've discovered so far this year. In case anyone was wondering, by the way, I've read 57 books this year. Most of those have been good (my average rating on Goodreads is 4.1 stars). A few haven't been so great, but you know. It is what it is.

1. Best book you've read so far in 2018:

An Enchantment of Ravens, hands down! This book is storming amazing. It critiques a lot of elements of modern fantasy, especially the common portrayals of Fae and romances involving Fae. But it doesn't sacrifice story or characters in order to do so; the plotline is amazing and twisty, and the characters are just delightful. So, yeah. I love it, and you all need to read it. 

A few runners-up:

The City Beyond the Glass is a dark and powerful allegorical retelling of my favorite fairy tale, "The Twelve Dancing Princesses." Plus, it's set in Renaissance Venice, which is super cool.

Illuminae is just plain amazing, and I don't know why I waited so long to read this book. I was a little concerned that it would be confusing, since it's not written in standard narrative format, but instead it ended up being super exciting and twisty and I seriously could not put it down. Also, the main characters are so salty, and they remind me of some of my friends. Except most of my really friends aren't awesome hackers . . . probably not, anyway. The sequel is almost as awesome— plot-wise, it was actually better; my only problem was that I didn't buy the romance quite as much.

2. Best sequel you've read so far in 2018:

We've got a tie in this one. First up is . . .

The Lost Plot! Which, honestly, should surprise exactly no one. The day an Invisible Library book comes out and doesn't make one of my best-of lists for the year in some fashion is the day I . . . I don't know. I probably won't die, but I might be in mourning over how one of my favorite series has failed me. Anyway, The Lost Plot is high on dragons, low on fae (which is fine; I can live with that), and takes place mostly in magical 1930s Chicago which is officially my new favorite location for historical fantasy.

And the second book in the tie . . .

Song of Leira! You know, because I haven't talked about it enough on this blog already. I reviewed it earlier this month, if you want to know my full thoughts, but basically it's lovely and heartbreaking and heart-healing and amazing, and it's kind of bite-sized Tolkien but also kind of not. So. Yeah. Read it.

Again, some runners-up:

An Earthly King is the second in the Modern Tales of Na Fianna, and I loved it far more than the first book. I'm not sure if that's because I knew what to expect going in (with Blood Ties I didn't, or, rather, my expectations were wrong), or because I liked the characters better (I did!) or because it was a mystery rather than a straight-up quest, or because it felt much more like the urban fantasy it is, or all of those combined. But there you have it.

I actually read the whole Spellsmith and Carver series this year, but book two, Magician's Trial is my favorite. It's like . . . we've got politics, we've got magic, we've got assassins, we've got an engineer-inventor who's basically my new favorite character, we've got all the things you want in one book. (And what you don't have is the emotional heart-rending-ness of book three or the frustrations that come from not knowing the characters well in book one.) So, yeah. Others disagree, but I think this is the best.

(On a side note, I've given myself a new rule: never give up on a self-published series— or a series in general, but especially a self-published one— until you've read at least two of the books in it, because I almost always like the second or third book far more than the first. Not that the first isn't generally good, but often it doesn't click with me like the others do. I think it's either because the first book is hyped so much that I have unrealistic expectations or else because by books two and three, both the author and I have figured out what s/he is doing here. Not sure which.)

3. New release you haven't read yet but want to: 

Isle of Blood and Stone came out in April; it's on my shelf, but I haven't quite gotten to it yet. That said, seafaring adventure in a quest to rescue a character's brothers? Sounds fun to me.

4. Most anticipated release for the second half of the year:

New Sanderson new Sanderson new Sanderson NEW SANDERSON! Sci-fi Sanderson! With a sentient ship! I want it yesterday. Actually, no, I don't, I have too many books and too little time. But also yes. It's going to be awesome.

5. Biggest disappointment:

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness. It had some good points, but for the most part, it was just angsty and unsatisfying and populated by frustrating people. I suppose that's a fairly accurate representation of life sometimes, but still. Doesn't mean I want to read about that.

 

6. Biggest surprise:

Ok, so I picked up The Wrath and the Dawn on a whim, thinking "Oh, yeah, my blogger friends like this; I'll probably enjoy it," but I didn't expect to love it that much. And then the sequel, The Rose and the Dagger, is arguably even better. They've both got gorgeous ancient-Persian culture and characters who somehow manage to be reasonably non-infuriating and lovely bits of magic and a romance that worked out suprisingly well AND DOESN'T TURN INTO THAT ONE LOVE TRIANGLE. This is actually a significant accomplishment, as you can tell, and it just made me love the books more.

7. Favorite new-to-you author:

Margaret Rogerson is amazing, and she writes books that are intelligent and exciting and easily readaable in one sitting, and apparently she's working on a second book (unreleated to An Enchantment of Ravens), and YES. Well, not so much YES on the unrelated-to-Enchantment bit, but still. 

 

8. Newest fictional crush/ship:

Newest favorite ship is obviously Rook and Isobelle from Enchantment because they are perfection. Isobelle is generally sensible, sensible enough that she recognizes her foolishness in her initial crush on Rook, but then they end up falling in love properly through shared adventure (definitely one of the better ways to fall in love, since it has a way of bringing out the best and worst in a person). And Rook is thoroughly dramatic but also so protective and they're just fun together, ok?

A few other lovely ships that I discovered this year:

• Auric and Lotte from Spellsmith and Carver.
• Shazi and Khalid from The Wrath and the Dawn.
• Nick and Cordelia from Beaumont and Beasley.
• Kady and Ezra from Illuminae. (These two are seriously adorable, just FYI. And Ezra is a hopeless romantic, and Kady's just like "you're ridiculous but I love you anyway.")
• Wilhelmina and Etzel from the Bright Empires series. (I don't know if these are an official ship, but if they aren't and they don't end up together by the end, I will be SO MAD.)

In terms of fictional crushes, Marcus Altair is still awesome, available, and alive. I'm pretty sure this is a small miracle. I intend to enjoy it while it lasts.

9. Newest favorite character:
Favorite-favorite character? Rook again. He's excellent (but I'm not about to say so to his face, because he's vain enough as it is). Isobelle, Nick, Kady, Lotte, Shazi, and Wilhelmina are all on that list as well, just not as high.
  

10. A book that made you cry:
Eh, I got nothing. I did get major feels over some bits of Illuminae, though, so we'll go with that.

11. A book that made you happy:

Not a book but a whole series: the Beaumont and Beasley books! Much like the first book, they're also delightfully hilarious twisted fairy tales, though there's a bit of some other not-quite-fairy tales mixed in there too. Book one is officially on my shortlist of reads for when I'm upset and need to be not-upset in a hurry, and the rest probably would also qualify. (Ok, book three is a little depressing at points, but it's fine.)

Runner up: The Penderwicks at Last, even though it's the last book in the series and I procrastinated on it so hard. It was a delightful ending, and it brought the series full-circle in a way that I thoroughly appreciated.

12. Favorite book to film adaptation you've seen this year:
Oooh! I've actually got something for once! My sister and I watched and rewatched The Lord of the Rings extended editions back in January— her first time, my third or fourth. We were going to rewatch the Hobbit extended editions too, but we didn't get around to it. Maybe if we have time this summer we can do that . . . haha. I'm hilarious.
 

13. Favorite post you've done so far this year:
A few of my favorites:

• "I'll Take the Lashes": pirate-y flash fiction set in the world of the Berstru Tales.
• Beautiful Persons: Valentines Day 2018: in which I interview the main couple from Blood in the Snow.
• Have I Read You Yet: in which I look back on an old Top Ten Tuesdays list to see how my reading diet has expanded (or not expanded) in the last four years.
• Lightporter Release Tour & Hero's Perspective: Blaze!: a super fun interview featuring my favorite character from the IDIA books. Fun fact: C.B. and I actually did this interview through a roleplay instead of the usual method, which was super fun (even though it did involve staying up super late).
  

14. Most beautiful book you've bought so far this year:
It's a tie between these two:

An Enchantment of Ravens (yep, again).

The Burning Page.

I got both of these at a book fair for pretty cheap, and I hope that I'll get to go back sometime in the next few weeks. We'll see how that works out.
 

15. What books do you need to read by the end of the year?

Still haven't gotten to Lord of Chaos; oops.

I need to read Dread Nation by the end of the summer; I meant to finish it months ago but had to return the library book.

Of course I'm super excited for Skyward! (New Sanderson!!!!)

How's your reading been so far this year? What are your favorite books of this year? Any new ships or favorite characters? What's a book that really surprised you? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!
 -Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Song of Leira Blog Tour: Interview with Gillian Bronte Adams!

Hey'a, everyone! The Lightporter tour is over, so we now return to Song of Leira! For today's post, I got to interview Gillian, which was super fun. But before we get to that, let's recap some info about the book and author.

About the Book:  

 The Song bids her rise to battle.
Reeling from her disastrous foray into the Pit, Birdie, the young Songkeeper, retreats into the mountains. But in the war-torn north, kneeling on bloodstained battlefields to sing the souls of the dying to rest, her resolve to accept her calling is strengthened. Such evil cannot go unchallenged.
Torn between oaths to protect the Underground runners and to rescue his friend from the slave camps, Ky Huntyr enlists Birdie's aid. Their mission to free the captives unravels the horrifying thread connecting the legendary spring, Artair's sword, and the slave camps. But the Takhran's schemes are already in motion. Powerful singers have arisen to lead his army - singers who can shake the earth and master the sea - and monsters rampage across the land.
As Leira falters on the verge of defeat, the Song bids her rise to battle, and the Songkeeper must answer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

About the Author:

Gillian Bronte Adams is a sword-wielding, horse-riding, wander-loving fantasy author, rarely found without a coffee in hand and rumored to pack books before clothes when she hits the road. Working in youth ministry left her with a passion for journeying alongside children and teens. (It also enhanced her love of coffee.) Now, she writes novels that follow outcast characters down broken roads, through epic battles, and onward to adventure. And at the end of a long day of typing, she can be found saddling her wild thing and riding off into the sunset, seeking adventures of her own (and more coffee).

She loves to connect with fellow readers and wanderers online through her blog, Facebook page, newsletter, and Instagram.

 

 

 

 

Interview with Gillian:

Hello, Gillian! To start out, can you tell us a little bit about yourself? Who you are, your favorite books (besides your own), hobbies, anything else you want to share?

Sure thing! I am a writer, wanderer, and wordsmith. I would love to live out of a backpack, provided it was a magical backpack that could fit my bookcase, power my laptop, and run my coffee maker. (That’s not asking too much, is it?)

Some of my favorite books are The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson, the Red Rising Trilogy by Pierce Brown, and The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater.

In addition to reading, I love riding my wild thing (a high-spirited quarter horse named Ariat), hiking, kayaking, and road trips.

Anyone reading the Songkeeper Chronicles can probably tell that you were influenced by Tolkien's works, but what are some of the other books and authors that have shaped either the trilogy or Song of Leira specifically? 

Yes, I would say that I have definitely been influenced by Tolkien the most. His books were the first novels I ever read, and I read them over and over again over a span of several years, falling ever more deeply in love with the characters and storylines. Of course, Tolkien’s mythology also included a creation song and one of my favorite moments in the Silmarillion was when Sauron and Felagund strove with songs of power against one another. That idea of powerful music seeped into my head and eventually appeared in The Songkeeper Chronicles.

I don’t know if there are any other books or authors that shaped this trilogy specifically, but there are definitely books and authors whose works I have loved and that I have learned from over the years. I love Brandon Sanderson’s worlds and his characters. I love the way C.S. Lewis weaves truth into his tales in such deep and yet simple ways and the feeling of wonder and hope that his stories evoke.

So, I hope to continue learning from other excellent authors as I continue to write. That’s the beauty of being a writer. You never stop learning and growing and being shaped by the books you read!

One of the things I love about your books is the way you weave in deep, inspiring themes without making them seem preachy or unnatural. Generally speaking, do you set out in the beginning to write a story with a particular theme? Or do the themes appear as you write?

Oh, thank you! Themes usually appear as I write. I approach my writing through prayer and it is often deeply influenced by the Scriptures I am reading and studying at the moment. As I figure out my characters and the issues they are struggling with, as well as the events they will face and the choices they will make throughout the book, the themes tend to grow organically out of and around that.
Once the theme has made itself clear, I often give the story another passthrough to see if there are ways that I can strengthen and foreshadow that theme in the story. It’s kind of a working backward and then forward process.

What was the hardest part of writing Song of Leira? The best part?

Because Song of Leira is the last book in The Songkeeper Chronicles, weaving together all of the threads (some of which had been set in place all the way back in Orphan’s Song) was one of the most fun and most challenging parts of the process. There were so many characters to deal with as well as world-changing events to set in motion and wrap up, so the writing process took me a long time.

And it definitely had some moments where I wasn’t sure if I would be able to finish or if the story would ever seem cohesive. But seeing how all of the threads finally came together at the end was the best and most satisfying part of writing the book.

Song of Leira is the third book in the Songkeeper Chronicles and your fourth book total. What are some of the things you've learned in your publishing journey so far?

Fear is the enemy of creativity. For a fair portion of my writing career, I have allowed fear to hold me back and to limit my dreams. Fear of what readers will say. Fear of not achieving what other writers achieve. Fear of somehow not measuring up.

But fear completely stymies creativity and can stop you from writing before you’ve even gotten started! Learning to write from an attitude of freedom instead of an attitude of fear has had one of the biggest impacts on my writing and publishing journey. And I know that is just “one thing” and it might even seem obvious to others, but it can have far-reaching effects!

Finally, do you have any plans for new books now that you've finished with the Songkeeper Chronicles?

Yes, I have been working on a new “top secret” project for the past several months. It’s another epic fantasy series, and this one is bigger and broader than anything I’ve ever attempted before, so nailing it down has been challenging. But I am loving every minute of the writing process, and I am very excited about this story and can’t wait until I can share it with people.

Meanwhile, there are a couple other story ideas percolating at the back of my mind, but they’ll need some additional simmering before I’m ready to actually start writing them. All in all, I hope to keep sharing stories with y’all for years to come!

Thanks, Gillian, for allowing me to interview you, and thanks to all of you for reading! Please tell me in the comments: have you read Song of Leira yet? Are you curious about Gillian's top-secret project? Also, don't forget to submit your photos of your adventures with the book to the Take Your Book on an Adventure contest! Winners will be announced during the Facebook  party on June 22.
Have a great day!
 -Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Song of Leira Review

Hey'a, everyone, and welcome to the Song of Leira blog tour! I'm super excited to announce that Song of Leira, the final installment in the Songkeeper Chronicles, finally released this past week. The festivities for this release, including a Facebook party and a photo contest, will continue all month, so that'll be fun too— you've got a whole month of reviews, interviews, character spotlights, guest posts, and more, besides the already-mentioned "big things", to enjoy! Today, I'll be sharing my review of the book— but before that, a little about Song of Leira and its author!

About the Book:  

 The Song bids her rise to battle.

Reeling from her disastrous foray into the Pit, Birdie, the young Songkeeper, retreats into the mountains. But in the war-torn north, kneeling on bloodstained battlefields to sing the souls of the dying to rest, her resolve to accept her calling is strengthened. Such evil cannot go unchallenged.

Torn between oaths to protect the Underground runners and to rescue his friend from the slave camps, Ky Huntyr enlists Birdie's aid. Their mission to free the captives unravels the horrifying thread connecting the legendary spring, Artair's sword, and the slave camps. But the Takhran's schemes are already in motion. Powerful singers have arisen to lead his army - singers who can shake the earth and master the sea - and monsters rampage across the land.

As Leira falters on the verge of defeat, the Song bids her rise to battle, and the Songkeeper must answer.

 

 

 

 

 

About the Author:

Gillian Bronte Adams is a sword-wielding, horse-riding, wander-loving fantasy author, rarely found without a coffee in hand and rumored to pack books before clothes when she hits the road. Working in youth ministry left her with a passion for journeying alongside children and teens. (It also enhanced her love of coffee.) Now, she writes novels that follow outcast characters down broken roads, through epic battles, and onward to adventure. And at the end of a long day of typing, she can be found saddling her wild thing and riding off into the sunset, seeking adventures of her own (and more coffee).

She loves to connect with fellow readers and wanderers online through her blog, Facebook page, newsletter, and Instagram.

 

 

 

 

My Review:

This, my friends, is a book well worth waiting for.

Ok, so, two years isn't that long of a wait— not compared to how long some authors have taken to release new books. But with our favorite characters in dire straits, fans of the Songkeeper Chronicles have been anxiously waiting for this final installment to reassure us that, yes, the Takhran will be defeated, Amos, Birdie, Ky, and the rest will live, and the Song will be restored. And now that that book is here and those questions can be answered, I just have to say: Song of Leira is the best of Gillian's books yet. And trust me, you won't see the ending coming.

One of the things Gillian does best— always has done best— is theme, and Song of Leira is no exception. Powerful without being preachy, cheering without being cheesy, Gillian speaks her message clearly through the decisions of her characters and the results of those actions. Even in the midst of darkness, even when our characters are at their most beaten-down, they find hope, for the Master Singer is still in control. Even when it doesn't make sense, characters choose to follow His lead— and in that, they find triumph, though there is much heartbreak along the way. And even when evil is overwhelming, they seek to do the good set before them, for such is where the fight begins and ends. The road is hard and the path is long; Gillian doesn't try to pretend otherwise. But there is light at the end of it.

Besides the themes, one of my favorite things about the Songkeeper Chronicles is the characters themselves. It's amazing to see how they've grown and changed since Orphan's Song. Birdie, once pushed here and there by the decisions of those around her, steps forward to seek the Song and follow its lead for herself. Ky, once constantly at odds with the ways of the Underground, now finds his way as their leader. Even Cade has mellowed out some. And Amos . . . oh, poor Amos. The brokenness he once hid behind a bold mask has been compounded until he can hide it no more. They're all broken, these characters. At times it seems as if they're just fumbling and feeling their way along in the dark; they're lost in the storm of sorrow and trouble they face. Yet they stay strong and hold true to what they know, and even the most broken find healing in the end.

Yet it's not just the characters who've grown. It's the author as well. Orphan's Song, Gillian's first book, felt . . . safe. There was danger, there was fear, there was a cliffhanger ending, but very rarely did I doubt that the characters would make it through somehow. And there were parts in Orphan's Song, even in Songkeeper, where I read it and I thought, that, that could've been handled better. This seems off. 

But Song of Leira is anything but safe. The pain, the darkness, the sorrow, they're as real as the joy and the hope and the peace. Beloved characters fall and fail and are lost and— not going to lie— some die. (One death in particular, midway through the book, just about tore my heart in two.) Gillian has clearly taken lessons from the masters in how to put readers' emotions through the wringer along with her characters. But none of the book, from the darkest sorrow to the brightest joy, is overdone or underwhelming. It's right. The prose, in many places, is beautiful— not something I say about many books. And the ending— oh, the ending! I don't think I can say much about it without giving spoilers, but it's magnificent. Just trust me and read it.

In conclusion: Song of Leira is an excellent ending to the Songkeeper Chronicles. The deep themes and beautifully broken characters will speak to readers' hearts, and the storyline itself will keep them constantly turning pages. If you're a fan of the Songkeeper Chronicles, you won't be disappointed— and if you haven't read the series yet, what are you waiting for?

Are you excited for Song of Leira? What about the book are you most looking forward to? If you haven't read the series yet, are you interested? Please tell me in the comments!
Thanks for reading!
 -Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

Songkeeper Book 3 Cover Reveal!

We interrupt your finals week/end of semester panic/Christmas planning (whichever applies to you) to bring you some exciting news: Songkeeper book 3 has a title and a cover! Finally! For those of you who don't know, the Songkeeper Chronicles is a wonderful fantasy trilogy by Gillian Bronte Adams featuring griffins, mysterious songs, evil empires, magic, friendship, betrayal, and Amos McElhenny. If you haven't read it, you should, and if you have read it, you're no doubt eagerly awaiting news of book 3. And because I'm in the same straits you are (or, y'know, would be; I've had the details for almost a week now), I won't make you wait anymore. Without further ado, Songkeeper book 3!

  Releases June 5, 2018 // Preorder on Amazon

THE SONG BIDS HER RISE TO BATTLE

Reeling from her disastrous foray into the Pit, Birdie, the young Songkeeper, retreats into the mountains. But in the war-torn north, kneeling on bloodstained battlefields to sing the souls of the dying to rest, her resolve to accept her calling is strengthened. Such evil cannot go unchallenged.

Torn between oaths to protect the Underground runners and to rescue his friend from the slave camps, Ky Huntyr enlists Birdie’s aid. Their mission to free the captives unravels the horrifying thread connecting the legendary spring, Artair’s sword, and the slave camps. But the Takhran’s schemes are already in motion. Powerful singers have arisen to lead his army—singers who can shake the earth and master the sea—and monsters rampage across the land. 

As Leira falters on the verge of defeat, the Song bids her rise to battle, and the Songkeeper must answer. 

I don't even know where to start with all this. I mean, the cover is seriously awesome, but also kind of terrifying. I mean, I assume that's Birdie? And she's apparently controlling a storming tidal wave, or something to that effect? Can you say power-up? And apparently we don't just have griffins and lions now, but we also have . . . unicorns? Can we call that a unicorn even though the horn has multiple points? (Also, I'd like to point out that I don't think I've ever seen a more warlike unicorn. Just saying.)

Moving on to the cover blurb: ok, so we knew everything was terrible at the end of the last book. No surprise there. Also no hints as to the fate of a certain character, but that's also not a surprise; Gillian's too smart to give up her secrets that easily. I think I need to reread the series so I can remember what the "legendary spring" is, because I'm not sure what's up with that. But in general, this should be pretty epic.

What do you think of the cover and blurb? Are you excited for Song of Liera? Please tell me in the comments!
-Sarah (Leilani Sunblade)

P.S. So, yes, my hiatus went a bit longer than intended due to final project craziness. If all goes well, we should return to the usual schedule this weekend. Thanks for your patience!