The Book Plank

The Last Sacrifice by James A. Moore, The Tides of War #1 Since time began, the Grakhul – immortal servants of the gods – have taken human sacrifices to keep the world in balance and the gods appeased. When they choose the family of warrior Brogan McTyre, everything changes.  Brogan begins the toughest battle of his life to free his family from their terrible fate. But when you challenge the gods, you challenge the very fabric of society. Declared an outcast, Brogan and his kin are hunted like criminals – but nothing will stand in his way. James A. Moore has come a long way. A few years ago he singed a deal with AR for two books I believe in his new Dark Epic Fantasy series Seven Forges. Just have a look on the internet how many positive reviews this series has gotten. Growing the series from two to four books and several short stories, most of them are featured here on this blog. I didn't know that James A. Moore was working on a new book and new series, so when I got an email...

The Flux by Ferret Steinmetz, Mancer #2 Love something enough, and your obsession will punch holes through the laws of physics. That devotion creates unique magics: videogamemancers. Origamimancers. Culinomancers. But when ‘mancers battle, cities tremble… ALIYAH TSABO-DAWSON : The world’s most dangerous eight-year-old girl. Burned by a terrorist’s magic, gifted strange powers beyond measure. She’s furious that she has to hide her abilities from her friends, her teachers, even her mother – and her temper tantrums can kill. PAUL TSABO : Bureaucromancer. Magical drug-dealer. Desperate father. He’s gone toe-to-toe with the government’s conscription squads of brain-burned Unimancers, and he’ll lie to anyone to keep Aliyah out of their hands – whether Aliyah likes it or not. THE KING OF NEW YORK : The mysterious power player hell-bent on capturing the two of them. A man packing a private army of illegal ‘mancers. Paul’s family is the key to keep the King’s crumbling empire afloat. But of...

Flash Author Query with James A Moore If you have followed this blog you know that I am a big fan of the Seven Forges series of James A. Moore, having read the first two books and the featured the short stories in my Short Fiction Friday feature. The City of Wonders was released earlier this month and therefore it was time to catch up with James.  Hi James, welcome back to The Book Plank for another interview! BP: first off can you give us a short introduction as to who James A. Moore is? What are you hobbies likes and dislikes? JM:  Thanks  for having me back! Well, to start off, I’m a voracious reader. That is to say I love reading and if I had the time in the day I would read a book a day. As it stands it’s more like a book a week because I have two jobs. Aside from that I occasionally like to sculpt, I like watching TV and I have a full time day job, partially to stop me from becoming a hermit. BP: Your Seven Forges series is doing mightily...

Cover Reveal: Mythmaker by Marianne de Pierres Last year Marianne de Pierres' Peacemaker was released by Angry Robot. Which proved to be a very interesting crossover story, it had the science fiction promises of megacities and flying cars, contrasting to that there was a "bush" and western feel to the story. This all gave a very unique sense to the story. Better even was how well these elements worked and the story that Marianne de Pierres told in Peacemaker.  For more detail on Peacemaker you can read my review here Below I have some very cool new for you! The cover to the sequel of Peacemaker which is called Mythmaker . Feast your eyes on what Joey HiFi once again did! You can find out more information on the amazing Joey HiFi and all the amazing covers he did on this website:  http://www. alexandersband.com/joey-hifi Quote:  Marianne -  “Joey HiFi has captured the essence of the MYTHMAKER story in his cover. The fox is a surprise spiritual...

On Creating the Weir by Jay Posey If you’ve read any of the Legends of the Duskwalker trilogy, you’ve bumped into the Weir; the glowy-blue-eyed fiends that wander the Open wastes of the Duskwalker world at night, harvesting anyone unlucky enough to be caught outside when the sun goes down. If you haven’t read the books, thinking of the Weir as (fast) cybernetic zombies is a pretty good starting point. But it would be a mistake to think that’s all there is to them. I wouldn’t blame you, of course, because that’s pretty much what I thought about them at first too. I met them about the same time readers did, which was in the Prologue of Three , the first novel in the trilogy. When I started writing that scene, I knew it was a bad idea in the Duskwalker world to be outside when the sun went down, but I didn’t know exactly why. I just knew there was Something Out There. When the Weir showed up, they were a terrifying mystery. There was no doubt they were the Something Out There,...

Guest Blog: Strong female characters by Susan Murray The problem with a phrase like ‘strong female characters’ is it implies a default state where female characters are inherently ‘unstrong’. By its very existence it risks reinforcing stereotypical images as the norm: the silent movie heroine, tied to the tracks, in floods of tears as she awaits rescue by the hero; or the housekeeper in Tom and Jerry jumping on the table and screaming because she’s seen a mouse. These examples are laughably old and outdated, as is – or should be – the notion that ‘strong’ women are somehow unusual. Female characters should every bit as able to get out there and make life happen as male characters: the fictional world they inhabit may set constraints upon them, in which case the author needs to decide if – and how – they accept these constraints or resist them. Strength isn’t just about bench pressing your own body weight at the gym, either. Nor is it just about kickass assassins protecting the...

Author interview with Ishbelle Bee Author bio: Ishbelle   Bee writes horror and loves fairy-tales, the Victorian period (especially top hats!) and cake tents at village fêtes (she believes serial killers usually opt for the Victoria Sponge). She currently lives in Edinburgh. She doesn’t own a rescue cat, but if she did his name would be Mr Pickles. ------------------------------------------------------------- Hi Ishbelle, welcome over at The Book Plank and for taking your time to answer these few questions for us. BP: First off could you give us a short introduction as to who Ishbelle Bee is? What are you hobbies, likes and dislikes ? IB:   I live in Edinburgh, Scotland and I am half Scottish and half English ( I was born in London). I write adult fairytales infused with horror elements and inspired by folklore and mythology. My hobbies are reading and illustrating. I like cheesecake and  I dislike thoughtless, rude people and tripe. BP: Mi...