Book Banter!

Hey, all of you! I want to invite you to a special event coming up this Friday. I am going to be the guest author on Bethany House's Book Banter event on facebook. This means, if you have a facebook account, you can come join in on Bethany House's facebook page, and we'll have a chat! You can post questions, make comments, or just simply enjoy the fun things going on that day.

Here is the link. It will taking place between 11:00 and 1:00 CST, so hopefully that will be a good time for you!

You'll be eligible to win free copies of Starflower simply by participating with comments and questions. Winners will be announced here on my blog a day or so after the event.

Hope to see you there!

Read-along: Chapter 4

Welcome back to the Heartless read-along! If you are just joining us, be sure to go back and answer at least one question from the last several chapters. If you do that, you'll be entered in a name-drawing at the end of the week and could possibly win one of my three other novels, Veiled Rose, Moonblood, and Starflower! You don't want to miss out.

Things are just really getting interesting for my poor little heroine . . .  let's get back into the story!

CHAPTER FOUR

Practical Nurse: Once more, Una and Nurse butt heads. This time, I have to say, I'm more on Una's side, however. I wouldn't want to agree to marry someone I had only met earlier that very day! But Nurse, ever the voice of practicality, thinks that princesses should marry princes and can't understand what more Una wants. But Una gets even more angry with Nurse's prodding and ends up more frustrated than she might have been had she processed her thoughts and feelings on her own.

The wood thrush: In this first scene of chapter 4, we get our second reference to the wood thrush. It must have overheard Una's declarations that she would never marry Prince Aethelbald. And when she goes back inside, it sings sadly to the moon . . .

Una's canopy: In a complicated fairy tale story with its own world, history, and traditions, one of the more difficult tricks is figuring out how to slip information about the world in without sounding heavy-handed.

Lumé and Hymlumé are important features of the series. While they don't have a big role in Heartless, I knew I needed to introduce them in this first book so that they would be established for all the stories to come. Una's canopy, embroidered for her by her mother, served as a fun way to introduce the Lord Sun and the Lady Moon, singers of Melody and Harmony. This way, we also learn for the first time about the Sphere Songs.

Obviously, Parumvir is steeped in mythology and traditions, though Una doesn't believe in them anymore.

It would be fun to see the image on Una's canopy . . . Any of you talented fan artists out there want to tackle it? J

Monster: Una and Monster's little battle over the pillow makes me smile! Can you tell I have cats? I've had this pillow-battle myself . . .and it is impossible to convince them to do anything they don't want to do!

The dream: Now we meet the Dragon and his dark sister for the first time! They both wear human-like shapes, but they are monsters even so. Una sees them in the realm of dreams, before the Lady's throne. And they play dice for Una's life, a game which the Dragon wins. Then he takes flight . . . And we must expect that he is now on the hunt for Una, the Beloved of his enemy!

Una's burning hands: Following the dream, Una sees the burn on her fingers once more. It is searing and painful! Yet more evidence to us of the dangerous reality that is the Dragon . . . but Una still doesn't believe.

A secret revealed! Monster can talk! We knew already that he couldn't be an ordinary cat, coming out of Goldstone Wood as he did. But  now we know that he can talk, and he is very sentient! Aethelbald calls him Sir Eanrin . . . and so we first meet the most famous immortal bard in all history (not to mention the fan-favorite character of the series).

More than that, we also learn that Monster is a servant of Prince Aethelbald sent to guard Una. Aethelbald is very aware of the Dragon and his search for the little princess. But he is also aware that Una is going to have to experience some awful pain and danger before all can be made right.

My Personal Favorite Lines:

"It's romantic."
"It's ridiculous."
"Look who's talking." (p. 50)

Suddenly [the cat's] head popped up and he started grooming his paws. The movement annoyed her. She shoved him off the bed, counted to ten, and felt him hop back up again. He returned to the pillow, plopped down, and flicked his tail over her nose. She pinched the end of it. He tucked it around his body, and that battle ended for the night. (p. 52)

The air shivered with vapors. She saw them moving in the moonlight, and even the moonlight boiled. (p. 52)

Questions for the text:

1. What did you think when you learned the Monster was Prince Aethelbald's servant? Did it take you by surprise when the blind cat started talking?

2.  What did you think of the scene between the Dragon and the Lady? Do you think they work together or against each other? Why or why not?

3. What were your favorite lines?

Reader Questions:

"Where did the idea for the dragon and his sister first originate? So excited to hear your thoughts on "the game" in chapter 4! Really chilling." -- Meredith

The Dragon and his sister first originated when I was seventeen and encountered Samuel Taylor Coleridge's "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" for the first time. It's an epic poem about a cursed mariner, and there is one amazing sequence where the mariner encounters a ghastly apparition:

Are those her ribs through which the sun
Did peer, as through a grate?
And is that Woman all her crew?
Is that a Death? and are there two?
Is Death that Woman’s mate?

Her lips were red, her looks were free,
Her locks were yellow as gold:
Her skin was as white as leprosy,
The Nightmare Life-in-Death was she,
Who thicks man’s blood with cold.

The naked hulk alongside came,
And the twain were casting dice;
`The game is done! I’ve won! I’ve won!’
Quoth she, and whistles thrice.

I was so thrilled when reading that sequence--and the whole of the poem, actually--that I began at once incorporating Life-in-Death into the mythology of the world I was then creating . . . the world that went on to become Goldstone Wood.

Read-along: Chapter 3

Welcome to chapter three of our chapter-by-chapter read-along of Heartless, the first in the Tales of Goldstone Wood. If you haven't read this book yet, it is available for FREE e-book download until the end of the month, so get it while you can!

If you would like to have your name entered in a name-drawing for the end of the week giveaway, leave an answer to at least one of the questions for each day of the week.

And remember, if you have any questions yourself, feel free to ask, and I'll try to answer them over the next few days!

CHAPTER THREE

Abundiantus V: Once more, we see Abundiantus V mentioned . . . that's at least the second or third time within these first three chapters! Abundiantus doesn't feature in this novel (he was alive a good five hundred years ago), but, based off of all these references, you can bet he's an important character in the series. Be watching for Abundiantuses in later books!

The King's Hall: I was also tickled to notice the description of King Fidel's hall, which was built "in the old style with enormous doors opening to the east and the west." This is another important detail . . . not in this book, but in later books! There was a reason the old halls were built this way. You will see the first of them come Dragonwitch.

Felix's clothes: I was cracking up as a read the description of Felix's princely garments, that big collar sticking out behind his head. I've always envisioned it looking a bit Elizabethan, I suppose. Not something Felix would enjoy at all! But it's only fair since Una's stuck in her monstrosity of a dress . . . 

Una's mother: We learn in this chapter that Una's mother, the queen, is dead. She's been dead for many years, in fact. But she remains an important influence in Una's life via the opal ring she gave her . . . the "gift of the heart." I can't help but wonder how different Una's story might have been if she'd had a mother through all of this to offer her council and perspective.

Una's hands: In this chapter, for the first time, we see Aethelbald inquire after Una's burnt hands . . .  but she's forgotten already that she burned them! This ongoing little mystery of the burns on Una's hands was a thread I wove into the story in a later draft, and it created some fun and interesting moments between her and Aethelbald. And still more fun foreshadowing of the Dragon!

The proposal: Iubdan's beard! How embarrassing.

This scene with Aethelbald's startling proposal used to be the ending of chapter one . . . and it was at least as embarrassing for poor Una there as it is here! But Aethelbald certainly doesn't beat around the bush now, does he? A bit unexpected from such a quiet, self-possessed sort of man as he.

This was quite a short chapter. But I bet we can still get some fun discussion going!

My Personal Favorite Lines:

Of all the remarkable sights she had seen that day, Prince Aethelbald had surpassed them all simply by virtue of being so remarkably unremarkable. The notion of that soft-spoken gentleman casting spells on anybody was a stretch even Una's limber imagination could not make. (p. 43)

Was Nurse right and he'd already fallen in love with her? Despite the feathers? (p. 45)

Aethelbald smiled again, and Una wished she could take both the plumes from her hair, flap them hard, and fly away. (p. 46)

Questions on the text:

1. (This one is for my girl readers.) How would you react to such a proposal? Would you be horrified? Amused? How do you think you would react to Prince Aethelbald upon first meeting him?

2. Can you find how many times King Abundiantus V (or his father, Abundiantus IV) is mentioned in Heartless? Can you remember another reference to him from Moonblood? See if you can find that reference!

3. Any ideas what kind of food might have been served at a banquet like this? I read the chapter hoping for culinary details, but the me-of-several-years-ago left them out! So what do you think they should have eaten? Feel free to share links to pictures!

4. What were some of your favorite lines?

Reader Questions

"How do you pronounce Aethelbald's name? I could never exactly figure that out :D"  -- Jenna C.

I think it's SUPPOSED to be pronounced Aay-thelbald, like "Day." I've always pronounced with a hard "A" more like "Apple." (Thus the apple jokes.) But I'm actually probably wrong! LOL.

"One thing I'm curious about, but I'm thinking we might not get the answer to yet...but how did Monster get his eyes scratched out?" -- Jennette

Can't tell you! You'll get a HINT about that in Moonblood, but the actual story won't be told for a little while yet. Hopefully I'll be able to share it with you soon, though!

Why did you write Heartless? -- AC

That's a very . . . BIG question. It started out as a short story that I put upon the blog I was keeping at the time. I wrote the short story in order to process some things I had been considering at the time: For instance, the fact that gentlemen these days aren't as bold when it comes to being the hero and fighting evil and valuing the ladies in their lives, particularly in the context of romantic relationships. And then I started thinking that perhaps that's because we girls aren't the "ladies" we should be. Perhaps we are expecting men to fight the dragons, but then we become the dragons ourselves.

All of this, coupled with some recent disappointment in my personal life, when a guy didn't follow through on his promises and half-promises--leaving me a bit bitter--led to me writing the short story version of Heartless, which can be read here.

And I am VERY thankful for those disappointing circumstances now. If I hadn't experienced them, I wouldn't have written Heartless!

Reader Sharing

I asked in the comments of the Chapter One read-along if anyone had ideas for a song the sea unicorns might sing. And Clara took that question and, inspired, created a beautiful piece of music! I know you would all love to hear it, so I'm posting a link to it HERE.

BOOK TOUR LAUNCH!!!

And Prism Book Tours launches Starflower!!! You do NOT want to miss out on this. So head on over to the beautiful Colorimetry blog for the official launch and get a preview of all the fun things to come.

Also, how does this look to you . . .

 

Or even this?

 

 

 

These are the first and second prizes for the Grand Giveaway being offered with this tour! So be certain you enter your name!

 

 

http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/18d8bf112/





Read-along: Chapter 2

Welcome back to the Christmas Read-along! We are just about to meet the hero in Chapter 2, so things are getting exciting.

If you would like to eligible for the giveaway at the end of the week, here's what you have to do: Answer at least one question for each day's reading (you can go back to answer from previous days if you're just joining us now). All those who leave an answer each day will be entered in a drawing. The THREE winners will be selected on Sunday. I will be giving away copies of my other three novels, Veiled Rose, Moonblood, and Starflower.

Back to the chapter . . .


CHAPTER TWO

The Hero:  Here, at the beginning of chapter 2, we meet our hero! A stranger to Una, he pulls her out of her the dangerous vision of the Dragon, making her drop the dragon scale. Then he turns furious on Torkom and puts him in his place. Hoorah for heroic introductions! The first name--or title--we hear for this character is, "Eshkhan" as spoken by Torkom. Torkom is the only person in this novel to call our hero by that name . . . but later on, in Veiled Rose and Moonblood, we hear it again.

Torkom's price: What a different story this might have been had Torkom received the price he demanded from Una! Can you imagine--those of you who've already read the story and know how it plays out--what could have taken place if Torkom had gotten hold of Una's ring? Interesting to speculate . . . But, thank Lumé above, our Hero prevented this from happening, and Torkom gave Una the vision for free.

Una's embarrassment: Una is pretty harsh to our hero at first, partly because she knows he's right, I think. She should never have foolishly entered Torkom's den. But a girl like her really does hate to be corrected! So she puts on her Proud Princess act . . . and totally makes a fool of herself! Complete with red blotches, of course.

And I really love when she returns to father and says, "Take us home. I am done with the market. It's a silly place full of silly people." Really, the only silly person is Una herself. And she knows it. Oh, poor embarrassed girl!

Aethelbald: And here we learn Our Hero's name: Aethelbald . . . possibly the most oddly horrendous name a hero could boast.

When I first began drafting Heartless, I wanted some very silly reason for Una (a very silly girl) to set her heart against the prince. So I decided to give him a singularly un-heroic name, a name a girl really can't take seriously. Ethelred came to mind at first, but I ended up preferring Aethelbald because it means "noble and bold." Behind the strange sound, it's actually a very heroic name that suits Our Hero rather well. He is noble and he is bold, far more noble and bold than anyone else in this book. But it will take Una a good chunk of novel before she begins to appreciate this truth!

Paying respects: Prince Aethelbald announces his intention of "paying his respects" to Fidel and, most particularly, to Princess Una. Everyone knows exactly what that means! And Princess Una, overcome with how badly she's behaved (and totally unwilling to admit it), not to mention learning Aethelbald's unromantic name, is horrified. The idea of romantic suitors is so much more appealing than this sudden reality!

Nurse: This next scene with Nurse and Una discussing Prince Aethelbald was one of the first scenes I ever wrote for this novel, way back in the first draft. It didn't change a great deal from that draft to this. I always enjoyed the dynamic between Nurse and Una. Nurse's pragmatism serves well to highlight Una's over-the-top dreaminess. And I do enjoy watching poor Una being put together for the feast, with the fake curls and that awful dress.

My Personal Favorite Lines:

In truth, he was the most unnoticeable man Una could recall ever seeing. Though, a reasonable side of her added, she might have seen one without noticing. (p. 33)

Of all the curses in Una's young life, the very worst, she believed, was her tendency to break out in red blotches across her face when flustered or embarrassed. Especially on her nose. This was enough in itself to make her believe in Faeries, bad ones, who were neglected on dinner party lists and showed up at christenings full of vengeance and cackling, "She shall burst forth in blotches, brilliant glowing ones, at the least provocation." (p. 33)

Una closed her eyes and wished that the ground would open and swallow her up. The nature of the universe seemed to be against her, however, and no sudden chasms rifted the turf beneath her feet. (p. 34)

Prince Felix muttered, "Aethelbald? I don't think we can forgive that." (p. 35)

Una could not remember ever seeing her father, whom she imagined had been born a king complete with a beard and a gold crown on his head, at a loss for words. (p. 35)

Another pause followed--one of those pauses in which everyone feels the need to insert something profound, but no one can think of anything more profound than "So, yes. Anyway." (p. 35)

"I'm Felix, crown prince and all that, heir to the throne, though Una's older. Don't elt her fool you. She'll pretend she's all right with the royal succession being what it is, but you get her in the right mood and--"
"Felix!" Fidel and Una said, though in rather different tones. (p. 35-36) Iubdan's beard! I had forgotten what a stinker that Felix is!!!

Una's mind had reached a mental wall several sentences back, and was only just now getting up the speed to vault it. But instead of making a graceful leap, her mind crashed headfirst into the wall, scattering bricks and uttering one long, silent Nooooooo! (p. 36)

A buzz of activity percolated through Oriana Palace as hasty preparations were made to feast the Prince of Farthestshore and his entourage, due to arrive at sundown. The best silver was polished, the chandelier was refitted with new candles, and even the great tapestry in the King's Hall was taken out into the courtyard and beaten until the guardsmen standing at their posts were coughing and filmed over with dust. (p. 37)

"This Prince Aethel-whatsit. He's stodgy, is he?"
"Prince Aethelbald is nothing if not stodgy."
"Is he heavy?"
"Well . . . no."
"Flat-footed?"
"Not exactly."
"Hard to digest?"
"Stodginess is as much a state of mind as anything, Nurse." (p. 37-38)

Nurse was a practical woman to whom a romantic gesture equated picking up one's own dirty socks and washing one's hands before dinner. And while there was perhaps a certain romance in these, Una failed to appreciate it. (p. 38)


Questions for the Text:

1. So if the guy was perfectly lovely in every other respect, but his name was Aethelbald . . . how would you react?

2. In the scene between Una and her nurse, there is a reference to a famous character . . . a character who doesn't feature in this book save as a name. Did you catch it? Who was it, and why is he/she important? (And what do you think Monster's reaction to that reference meant?)

3. What were some of your favorite lines?

Reader Question:

1. How did you come up with the idea for the Wood? -- AC

The idea for the Wood sprang from my desire to have a classic Faerie Wood such as you see in traditional fairy tales. What fairy tale is complete without some mysterious forest for Snow White to flee into and discover seven dwarves? For the handsome prince to ride into and find the sleeping beauty? It seemed an absolute narrative necessity.

Goldstone Wood developed a life of its own as I continued to write about it, however. And it has a rich and interesting history only hinted at in Heartless. Though how it came by its name is mentioned in Heartless. It's such a brief mention, you might miss it! But it's there. And someday, I hope to tell the story of how Goldstone Wood came to be called Goldstone Wood. For most of the Faerie folk, it is simply the Wood.

Read-along: Chapter 1

Continuing the Heartless read-along! Remember, if you haven't read it already, you can get it for free e-book download until the end of the month. Snatch it up while you can!

There will be questions at the end of each segment, and there will be giveaways at the end of each week. If you would like to be eligible for a giveaway here's what you have to do: Answer at least one question each day of the week. Everyone who does that will have their name entered in a drawing, and the THREE winners will be selected each Sunday. I'll be giving out copies of my three other novels, Veiled Rose, Moonblood, and Starflower.


CHAPTER ONE

Dialogue: This chapter opens with an amusing dialogue between Una and her nurse, in which Una bewails the lack of romance in her rather boring life, and Nurse ventures her opinions on romance. I really loved using this scene to establish Una's character. She is a sweet, romantic, dreamy girl with quite a streak of immaturity in her outlook. Which makes sense given her status as a sheltered princess!

Nurse acts as a great foil to Una, being in many ways her polar opposite. Her pragmatism serves to highlight Una's dreamy silliness to comedic effect.

Desires: Fiction is all about establishing your protagonists desires . . . and then throwing absolutely everything you can in the way of achieving those desires! Una's desire for romance in her life--which becomes her primary goal for the first half of this novel--is clearly set in place within this first scene. Now that her desire is prepped, we get the fun of watching it thwarted!

Descriptions: I have never liked the tendency of writers to define their characters by what they look like. I wanted Una to be such a distinct personality that my readers would form a clear picture in their minds of what they believed her to look like without any help on my part! I gave little quirks--she breaks out in red blotches when embarrassed, and her hair never stays in place. To me, that was more than enough to form a solid picture in my head!

But, by about the seventh draft of this novel (and at my editor's request), I finally caved and blessed Una with honey-colored hair. I don't think I ever gave her an eye-color though . . .

Lifestyle: Although Una is a princess, and Oriana Palace is quite sumptuous, she doesn't live as opulent a lifestyle as one might imagine. She doesn't have a host of ladies-in-waiting, just her one nurse, and she attends classes with her brother. She's spoiled for sure, but nowhere near as spoiled as she might be!

Monster: Five years since the prologue, we find Monster firmly established within Oriana Palace as the princess's pet. His ongoing war with Prince Felix provides some comic moments as well. I suspect Felix gave the cat his name, too! I doubt Una would have named him "Monster." I like how she talks to him, though she doesn’t really believe he understands her. I talk to my pets all the time!

The history lesson: Una and Felix's history lesson is a fun little tidbit, hinting at things to come later in the series. They are studying the rise of Corrilond in the year of the Sleeper's Awakening during the reign of Abundiantus IV. Corrilond, we learn later, was destroyed  five hundred years ago by a dragon the Bane of Corrilond . . . destroyed so completely that some people even wonder if it ever existed! But it's still in their history books at least.

The Twelve-Year Market: And here the magic begins to happen! The Twelve-Year Market was actually a bit of a late-comer in the drafting process as well. Originally, the story opened with Prince Aethelbald simply arriving at Oriana Palace to "pay his respects," and the first chapter ended with his surprising proposal. But I decided I wanted to bring in a little more magic and mystery surrounding him.

Magic has not been a prominent force in Parumvir for many generations by the time this book takes place. But when the Prince of Farthestshore makes it his business to step out of the Wood Between into the mortal world, other Faeries get excited and decide to bring the market back as well! It was tremendously fun to explore the various folks and their magical wares through the eyes of Una and her brother. Some things were unique to this world, while others--like the seven-league boots--are familiar to fairy tales.

The unicorn fry: Considering we meet much a older, more frightening unicorn later on in the series, the unicorn fry here in the first chapter of Heartless seem a bit out of place. But years ago, I read a theory (not one I believe, but an interesting theory) that the unicorn legend developed out of narwhale sightings, which would mean that the first unicorns were sea creatures. It took only a few leaps and an imaginative jump before sea unicorns (which I pictures looking much more like sea horses than narwhales) emerged in my mind. And I was just tickled by the idea of people having bowls of sea unicorns like we would have bowls of goldfish! I mean, wouldn't that be fantastic?

Time: In this chapter we are first introduced to the Faerie folk's notion of time. For mortals, year follows year, hour follows hour in a natural progression. For Faeries, this isn't so. The old man with the alabaster jars everyone, "Unicorn fry, fresh from the sea, caught just this morning--or last century, depending on your view." King Fidel tells Sir Oeric that it has been at least two hundred years since a Twelve-Year Market was recorded in Parumvir . . . to which Oeric replies, "But only twelve years as my folk count it."

Later on, Time and its manipulation beyond the mortal world is going to be a very important theme! So keep your eyes open.

Characters: We meet several more important folks in this chapter, including King Fidel, Una's father, and Sir Oeric, one of the knights of Farthestshore. Oeric plays a major role in Moonblood, but he only has a small part in this book. I liked bringing him into the tale, though, because he's character I've written about since long before I ever dreamed up Heartless! He has a long and interesting history, which I hope to someday be able to share with all of you. I will drop little hints now: His story connects with Abundiantus V, the Sleeper's Awakening, and the naming of Goldstone Wood.

Curious yet?

Malgril and Julnril: The two dwarf brothers who made the silver-wrought figurines that move . . . do you know, I'd forgotten all about putting them into this novel? They and their workmanship were characters who featured in short-story ideas I played around with back in high school, and I have some faint ideas of playing with them in later Goldstone Wood tales. But I had forgotten that they had found their way into Heartless! That made me smile.

The Seven-League Boots: Poor Felix. He ends up the butt of quite a number of jokes in this story! One of the biggest--and most popular--being this funny little scene where he stops by a cobbler's stall and tries on a pair of seven-league boots. Stamping his feet to see how they fit, he inadvertently takes a step . . . and ends up seven-leagues away! Good thing Sir Oeric was around to fetch him back again.

Torkom the Fortune Teller: With Torkom, we have our first real glimpse of goblins in the universe of Goldstone Wood. And an unusual glimpse it is, hinting at things to come in later books. Una sees him as small, huddled and fanged one moment, then beautiful and elegant the next. Those of you who have read later in the series can guess that Torkom is wearing, at least partially, the enchanting veils of Arpiar. But he is outside of Arpiar, so they don't work very well, leaving his ugly goblin self exposed.

And it's interesting to note that Sir Oeric, who is also a goblin, doesn't wear any disguises at all, but is simply ugly. Yet he is far more trustworthy than Torkom!

Una's ring: Another important feature of this novel is glimpsed in this scene. Una wears a ring of clustered opals given to her by her mother, which Torkom immediately recognizes as "A gift of the heart." Foreshadowing!!!!

Una's Fortune: The scene where Una glimpses "her fortune" in the dragon scale was a later edition to the story. In early versions, I merely had her grab the scale and burn her hands, but she did not see the image of the Dragon. In one of the later drafts, I decided to give us our first glimpse of the Dragon much earlier--here in chapter one--and go on to have him appear in her dreams from  time to time. Created a stronger sense of building tension, I thought.

My Personal Favorite Lines:

Nurse, who had long since ceased to function as a real nurse and these days played the part of maid and busybody to her princess, wielded a brush with the tenderness of a gardener raking last year's dead leaves, making every effort to tame Una's honey-colored hair into an acceptable braid. (p. 15)

To pay their respects, according to the definition given the phrase by the courtiers of Oriana Palace, was a tactful way to say, investigate marriage possibilities with the resident princess. (p. 16)

With that, she turned on her heel and marched down the corridor, the blind cat trotting behind, unlike a dog in every way because, of course, he wasn't truly following her. He merely happened to be going her way. (p. 17)

"Nothing ever changes, Monster."
"Meeeaa."
Una looked down her nose at him. "You're not just saying that, are you? Trying to make me feel better?"
"Meeaa."
"I knew it." (p. 17)

Monster took a moment to rub a cheek against the young prince's knee before dodging Felix's backhand and arranging himself on the windowsill to catch the sunlight. (p. 17)

Out of the Wood they streamed in parade--carrying with them the scent of dusk, the sound of dawn--and they arranged themselves upon the lawn outside the walls of the city of Sondhold, in the shadow of Goldstone Hill. (p. 19)

The hubbub bubbled all the way to the crest of Goldstone Hill and flowed on into the palace, where Princess Una sat with her nose in her history text, wallowing in academic misery. Dates and battles and dead king's names swam before her eyes while spring fever, cruel and demanding, picked at the back of her brain. (p. 22)

Questions for the Text:

1. Una is asked to make a bargain at the twelve year market, a bargain which, come Moonblood, Lionheart will actually make. What was this bargain?

2. If you could purchase anything from this Twelve-Year Market, which of the Faerie wares described would you choose?

3. What were some of your favorite lines in this chapter?

HEARTLESS Read-Along: Prologue

Today marks the beginning of the chapter-a-day read-along of Heartless! I thought  this might be a fun way to celebrate the Christmas season with all of you. If you haven't read Heartless yet, be sure to grab a copy and join along. It's available for free e-book download until the end of the month, so get it while you can!

I am really looking forward to this. It has been several years now since I actually sat down and read the book. I'm excited to revisit Una and all her various adventures.

There will be questions at the end of each segment, and there will be giveaways at the end of each week. If you would like to be eligible for a giveaway here's what you have to do: Answer at least one question each day of the week. Everyone who does that will have their name entered in a drawing, and the THREE winners will be selected each Sunday. I'll be giving out copies of my three other novels, Veiled Rose, Moonblood, and Starflower.

Also, if you have any questions yourself, feel free to ask in the comments. I will try to answer them over the next couple of days.

And now, time for the story . . .

PROLOGUE

Two Children: Those of you who have been following my series will know that I always love to explore into my characters when they were children. Children are so much more honest than adults. They are who they are, good, bad, or mischievous. I really enjoyed the opportunity in this prologue to glimpse Una and Felix in an unguarded moment of play. No one is watching them . . . at least, so they think.

The opening: I wrote many, many drafts of this novel before it finally went to print. This prologue was actually added rather late in the process, only a few months before printing. I wanted a chance to  properly introduce the Wood itself, not to mention Monster.

Monster: One of the most popular characters in the series makes his first appearance here in the prologue! The blind cat emerging suddenly from the Wood, distracting the two children from their purpose of crossing the Old Bridge. Was it chance? Or was it protection against things neither Una nor Felix could guess?

The mood: This opening segment is full of dreamy, fairy-tale writing. My hope was to create a mood of childhood magic . . . that delicious sense that the world is full of mystery and danger, but not a too-present danger.

The siblings: Una and Felix have quite the teasing dynamic here! Una's a bit bossy, sending her little brother on various errands. (This may or may not have been based on my own life . . . just don't ask my little brothers!) And Felix is such a stinker, startling her and trying to steal her journal . . . and making fun of her poetry! What a pill. Though, one can't help but think her poetry might deserve it . . . 

The wood thrush: One of the most important recurring themes in this story makes a quiet entrance here in the prologue. Who would have guessed how important the wood thrush would become from this first little mention!

Time Period: Despite the fairy tale setting--and some of the marketing for this book which has presented it as a medieval fantasy--there are plenty of little details throughout the book that imply this story is not set in a medieval time period. In this prologue, for instance, Una uses a pencil when writing in her journal. She also wears buckled shoes with heels.

My Personal Favorite Lines:

"Faithful gremlin . . . you must seek the fabled Flowing Gold of Rudiobus, lost somewhere in this raging river." She indicated the stream that trickled down the side of Goldstone Hill. Raging river it was not, but facts never stopped the course of Una's imagination. (p. 8)

He flopped down at her side, grinning, and held a glob of mud under her nose.
"Eeeew, Felix!" She pushed his hands away. "Stop it!"
"It's all that was left," he said.
"All that was left of what?"
"The Flowing Gold," he said. "I think it got melted by a dragon." (p. 10)


"I'll brush her fur and give her a good meal--"
"He doesn't need a good meal. He's heavy!"
"She's blind and lost," Una snapped. "She needs a good meal. Isn't she lovely?"
"He's ugly." (p. 13)
(I still giggle at Una's assumption that Monster is a girl!)


Questions for the Text:

1. This section served the purpose of introducing the personalities of Una and her brother. What did we learn about Una's personality in this prologue? How do you think this revelation (or these revelations) set up for Una's later adventures?

2. This one is for those who have read further into the series. There are two major references to items that will be important in later books. Can you name those two items and the books they feature in?

3. What were some of your favorite lines from this scene?