Fall Into Fantasy Tour #1: The Darkness & Light series by K.L. Schwengel

Welcome to the Fall Into Fantasy Tour, where we are keeping your mind off any end-of-summer blues and welcoming the cooler weather by introducing you to some incredible fantasy reads to curl up with and giving you plenty of chances to win awesome prizes!

Week 1: The Darkness & Light Series
Book One: First of Her Kind
Book Two: Emergence
Book Three: Edge of Darkness (Release date 2015)

It seems everyone wants to dictate what Ciara does with her life: Serve the Goddess, destroy the Goddess, do as you promised your aunt -- all Ciara really wants is to keep the two magics she possesses from ripping her apart.

And that's not going to be easy.

Not only is her earth magic in complete opposition to her other power, blood ties pull her in divergent directions as well. And then there's Bolin, the man sworn to protect her. There's no denying the growing attraction between them, but is it Ciara he wants, or her power?

None of which will matter if Ciara can't overcome her fear and learn how to use her gifts. No one knows the depths of the ancient power she possesses, or what will happen if it manages to escape her control. Will she lose herself entirely? Or be forever caught between Darkness and Light?

Buy the e-book: Kindle Nook

Or the paperback: Amazon  Barnes & Noble

The battle for Ciara's power has drawn the full attention of the Emperor and the Imperial Mages, forcing Bolin to put duty above safety and take her to Nisair. It won't be an easy trip, even with an Imperial escort and a Galysian elder accompanying them. Especially since Donovan has found himself some new allies, one of who wields a dark magic that has literally gotten under Bolin's skin.

For Ciara, coming to terms with the increasingly tangible manifestation of her power could destroy her. Even if they make it to Nisair--something that grows more unlikely by the day--there is no surety of safety for Ciara, or any of them. Not with Donovan willing to gamble everything to achieve his goals, or Bolin's uncharacteristically reckless behavior, the result of which is the attention of something that has everyone worried.

Loyalties will be tested, lives will be lost, and no one will emerge unchanged as they find things are not always so clear on the line dividing Darkness and Light.

Buy the e-book: Kindle  Nook
Or the paperback: Amazon  Barnes & Noble

ABOUT K.L. SCHWENGEL

K. L. Schwengel lives in southeast Wisconsin on a small farm with her husband, a handful of Australian Shepherds, Her Royal Highness Princess Fiona the Cat, and assorted livestock. Growing up as the youngest of nine children, and the daughter of a librarian, Kathi spent many hours between stacks of books, and secluded away in dusty archives, drawn to tales of medieval heroes and conquering knights. With so many characters and ideas spinning in her head, she had to get them onto paper or risk what little sanity she possessed. She has been penning wild tales of magic and mayhem as long as she can remember, but opted to follow her artistic muse first. After earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts and spending many years working as a freelance artist, grocery clerk, art teacher, graphic designer, stable hand, advertising account coordinator, dog trainer, and process technician (among other things) she answered the call of her writing muse. When not writing, Kathi trains and trials working Australian Shepherds, still paints, dabbles in photography, graphic design, and anything else creative her assorted muses send her way.

Connect online at…

Blog  Facebook  Pinterest  Twitter  Amazon Page  Goodreads

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Weekend Wrap-Up: Review of First of Her Kind by K.L. Schwengel & Cover Reveal for Emergence, Book Two!

I. Love. This. Series. 

I'll save all the raving about how awesome First of Her Kind was for the review, and instead I will ooh and aah over how beautiful the cover of the sequel is. Emergence is book two in K.L. Schwengel's Darkness & Light series, and I am betting that it is even better than the first, which is pretty hard to top. The cover looks absolutely amazing, and I love that it features Bolin as well. Not that I am biased or anything...I'll let you see for yourselves and then I will tell you why I love First of Her Kind so much. 

Emergence ~ Book Two of the Darkness & Light Series

The battle for Ciara's power has drawn the full attention of the Emperor and the Imperial Mages, forcing Bolin to put duty above safety and take her to Nisair. It won't be an easy trip, even with an Imperial escort and a Galysian elder accompanying them. Especially since Donovan has found himself some new allies, one of who wields a dark magic that has literally gotten under Bolin's skin.

For Ciara, coming to terms with the increasingly tangible manifestation of her power could destroy her. Even if they make it to Nisair--something that grows more unlikely by the day--there is no surety of safety for Ciara, or any of them. Not with Donovan willing to gamble everything to achieve his goals, or Bolin's uncharacteristically reckless behavior, the result of which is the attention of something that has everyone worried.

Loyalties will be tested, lives will be lost, and no one will emerge unchanged as they find things are not always so clear on the line dividing Darkness and Light.

About the author:

K. L. Schwengel lives in southeast Wisconsin on a small farm with her husband, a handful of Australian Shepherds, Her Royal Highness Princess Fiona the Cat, and assorted livestock. Growing up as the youngest of nine children, and the daughter of a librarian, Kathi spent many hours between stacks of books, and secluded away in dusty archives, drawn to tales of medieval heroes and conquering knights. With so many characters and ideas spinning in her head, she had to get them onto paper or risk what little sanity she possessed. She has been penning wild tales of magic and mayhem as long as she can remember, but opted to follow her artistic muse first. After earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts and spending many years working as a freelance artist, grocery clerk, art teacher, graphic designer, stable hand, advertising account coordinator, dog trainer, and process technician (among other things) she answered the call of her writing muse. When not writing, Kathi trains and trials working Australian Shepherds, still paints, dabbles in photography, graphic design, and anything else creative her assorted muses send her way.

Kathi's work is available on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Smashwords, and other on-line retailers in both paperback and e-book versions. Signed copies are available via her blog.

How to connect:

Blog: http://myrandommuse.wordpress.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KLSchwengelWrites

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/kathils01/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/KLSchwengel

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6871795.K_L_Schwengel

First of Her Kind ~ A Darkness & Light Novel by K.L. Schwengel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

First word that comes to mind when reading the last page?

No. Because there is no way that can be the last page. It's not a cliffhanger, but there is just so much more waiting to be told. Which is what sequels are for, and I am now impatiently awaiting book two of the Darkness & Light series.

K.L. Schwengel knows how to weave a solid story around engaging and flawed characters, and she knows how to tell it beautifully as well. Ciara and Bolin suffer from an inability to really speak to one another and just be honest, and it gets them into heaps of trouble. Trouble would have found them eventually, but they certainly help things along by being incredibly stubborn. The chemistry these two characters have together is palpable on the page and just really starting to be explored as the story continues. Their connection is one they don't seem to fully understand, but by the end I think they are starting to see how much they mean to one another and how they are both puzzle pieces that fit together. They still need some shaping to smooth out their rough edges, but their bond is unquestionable.

This is not a light and fluffy fantasy novel by any stretch of the imagination. There are dark sides to this world, and K.L. Schwengel isn't afraid to explore those parts, which only adds to the complexity and intrigue of this story and these characters. Seeing everything Bolin and Ciara are put through, all the pain they feel, helps to connect with them even more. And I have to say that K.L. Schwengel really knows how to balance the violence as well. It never feels over the top or showy, but always gritty and rough.

The author's use of language is enough to make me want to put my metaphoric pen down. The prose has a poetic nature to it, a cadence, without seeming pretentious at all. The voice is clear and the descriptions are not only solid, but vivid and detailed without weighing down the story.

Summary: The author's use of language and imagery mixed with the engaging characters, enticing plots, believable villains and heroes alike, and tension throughout is the perfect recipe for an amazing book.

Add it to Goodreads
Purchase it on Amazon Paperback and E-book or Barnes & Noble Paperback or E-book

A Teaser! An E-Book Extravaganza! Another Heirs of War (and more!) Giveaway!

I swear, I just can't help myself. I finish one giveaway, and I can't help but think of how I want to do the next one. This time, I've decided to make the giveaway as special as can be in two different ways:

1.) I'm not just giving away my e-book. One of the most amazing things about this whole writerly experience has been the vast amount of support I've received from all around the web. So I am also giving away three purchased e-book copies from three incredible people that have supported Heirs of War (and me) along the way. So you can not only win an e-copy of Heirs of War, but the following titles from authors that continue to inspire me:

• Coldness of Marek by Rachel O'Laughlin
• First of Her Kind by K.L. Schwengel
• Kiya: Hope of the Pharaoh by Katie Hamstead

2.) Heirs of War became a feature on Wattpad September 11th, and I have been overwhelmed by the amount of support and encouraging words people have given me. As I am writing this, I have 789 followers, 524 votes for Heirs of War, and over 46k reads. My jaw hits the floor every day when I look at it. So, as my way of showing how incredibly appreciative I am of all my new followers and readers, I decided to include a way to enter the giveaway with Wattpad. It isn't really intended to gain new followers so much as give the followers I already have a chance to enter their own way. In fact, if you've never used Wattpad before, I would encourage you to use the other ways to enter.

I'm also doing something else a little bit different. I'm not including an option to tweet about the giveaway. I know this is a great way to earn entries, but it is also kinda spammy, so I'm not a fan of it. If you want to continually comment on my blog to earn entries, that's cool. But I don't want to clog people's Twitter feeds. =)

And now, without further blabbering from me, here is the teaser for Heirs of War, and the Rafflecopter giveaway! If you want to enter the giveaway with a comment, here are the questions to answer:
What books are at the top of your TBR list? What is your preferred genre? Do you prefer e-books or physical copies? Why?
(Note, answer whichever ones you choose, let's just keep the conversation going!)

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Interview with First of Her Kind Author K.L. Schwengel

It isn't every day that you get to interview one of your writerly cohorts, but today I was able to interview one of mine! K.L. Schwengel is a member of the Fellowship of Fantasy writers (alongside me and some other wonderful fantasy authors I hope to interview one day!) at There & Draft Again. She just self-published her debut novel, First of Her Kind. You can find the book on Amazon, Smashwords, and Barnes & Noble.

Mara Valderran: You've posted some very insightful thoughts on why you decided to self-publish. Can you give the readers a brief overview of what led to that choice?

K.L. Schwengel: It basically boiled down to belief in my book and a desire to get it out in front of readers. Time-frame and control both played big parts in my decision. First, following the traditional route would have meant, in the best of worlds, at least a year to two years before First of Her Kind ever saw the light of day. Between finding an agent, an agent making a sale, the publishing house scheduling, it takes about that much time. I found I wasn't willing to wait. Second, I'm somewhat of a control freak. (Those of you who know me, pipe down.) To be able to have full say in every aspect of my book was very appealing. Of course, that means I have to accept the consequences of its success or failure as well.

MV: You tried traditional publishing first, which can be a very exhausting and discouraging process. What was your experience like and how did you keep it from discouraging you from moving forward?

KLS: Frustrating. Following the traditional publishing route can be likened to a crap shoot, winning the lottery, or finding the proverbial needle in a haystack. Agents, or mainly their assistants, read hundreds and thousands of query letters every week. You have a few hundred words to catch them in just the right mood to like what you're pitching. What they don't like one day, they might the next, but once they pass, it's done. The main thing that kept me from becoming discouraged is that I have a very thick skin. If you're putting yourself out there, no matter what venue, you need one. Chocolate helps. I also knew that I had written a good book, and it wasn't my manuscript being judged and passed on, but my query letter. Two very different things. And seriously, I had my moments of doubt. I still do. But then I get a note from someone who says they read something I wrote and they loved it. Nothing beats that.

MV: I love the cover! I feel like that is one downfall of self-publishing: It's hard to find a good cover artist you can afford. How did you go about getting your cover designed?

KLS: I designed and created the digital painting for the cover myself. I have an art background, a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree, and I've worked as a designer and freelance artist off and on since -- well, a long time. So I'm fortunate in that regard. I agree that one of the biggest problems I see in self-publishing is lack of a good cover. In some genres you can probably get away with a stock photo cover. Fantasy has a long history of awesome covers, more so than other genres in my opinion. Fantasy buffs demand it. I know as a reader, it's the cover that grabs me first. If I like that, I'll look closer at the book.

I would suggest to authors on a tight budget, contact art colleges in the area, or possibly on-line. See if you can get a student to create your cover as a portfolio piece. It's great experience for them, and gives them a piece they can use in their professional portfolio.

MV: Another downfall to self-publishing can be the urge to publish too soon, which I've talked about in some of my other posts. As an advocate of self-publishing, I feel we need to discourage the idea of publishing as soon as the first draft is done. There's a lot more work that goes into prepping a novel to be published. What can you tell us about your process leading up to self-publishing? How did you know when your novel was ready?

KLS: I was already pitching my novel to agents so I was pretty confident it was ready. *ahem* However, over the course of the year I was pitching, I was still tweaking. Every time I read the ms, I found something else. I could probably go over it again and find things. But that's just nit-picking at this point. I wrote a first draft, had it read just to make sure it wasn't tripe, then started rewriting. I wrote another draft. Edited. Fine-tuned. Added. Subtracted. Had it read again, by different readers. This time they were looking at continuity, character development, plot structure, tension. Another draft, more editing, more editing, another draft. Beta readers. Now we got down to the nitty-gritty, the push to tighten up this section, make that scene more intense, learn how to properly use a comma (which I'm still really bad at, by the way). And then? Yeah. One more time.

Anyone who writes a novel, quickly edits it, has maybe one person read it, and the puts it out there, better be the most amazing writer on the face of the planet. Not that every manuscript needs what mine did. I'm hoping book two won't need quite as much. But if it does, then it does. I don't want to put something out there I'm not sure about. All it takes is one bad book, and are you ever going to trust that author with your investment again?

MV: What is your writing process like? Are you more of a pantser or a plotter? Soundtrack or absolute silence?

KLS: Pantser all the way. Well, okay, pantser who has some idea of direction. I have a rough sketch of where I want the story to go. That is always subject to unruly characters deciding it's going somewhere unintended. I usually know the beginning and the ending. Both are written before I fill in the middle. And definitely soundtrack. Always. Music helps me visualize, feel, immerse myself in that different world. If it's a bright, sunny day and I'm writing a dark scene, the right music will put me there.

MV: What was your inspiration for First of Her Kind?

KLS: Honestly, it all started with the line, "There was nothing for it, in another turn of the glass Meriol would be dead." That line didn't survive editing, but that was the seed to the whole series. I had no idea who Meriol was, why she was dying, or where it was leading. I just went.

MV: What can you tell us about your main character, Ciara?

KLS: She has a lot of growing up to do. But she's in a tough spot. She comes from a line of woman who have always been simple country healers. Unfortunately, she not only has a healer's earth magic, but another wild power as well. A power that she has a hard time controlling. A power that others want. It means she can't live a simple healer's life. It's hard because she loses a lot and she's very niave in the beginning. She's been sheltered her entire life, and is in no way prepared for what's coming her way.

MV: If you could turn your book into a movie or television series, who would you cast?

KLS: I really hate to put images in the reader's minds, but . . . okay. Bolin is, without a doubt, Gerard Butler. *sigh* Donovan has to be Richard Armitage, clean shaven, not scruffy. Ciara . . . wow, I don't really know any 20 something actress's I would cast. We might have to do a casting call for her. She would need to have a quiet beauty, an innocence about her but not necessarily soft.

MV: How do you feel like the process of publishing has changed you as a writer?

KLS: I'm not sure it's changed me as a writer. I think, if anything, it's pushed me to be a faster writer because I can't devote all my free time to penning my latest manuscript. There's marketing, social networking, editing . . .

MV: What is ahead for your writerly future? 

KLS: Well, I'm roughly 21k words into book two in the Darkness & Light Series, I have a short story due out in an anthology coming out in April (I believe). There's another project that's still under wraps that I'm excited about. And, if time permits, I have an urban fantasy that's been languishing for several years, half written, that I'd really like to dust off and put out there.

First of Her Kind Release Date!

Today is a very special day for a near and dear writing friend of mine. Some of you may recognize the name KL Schwengel from the Fellowship of Fantasy Writers over at There and Draft Again (seriously, check us out!) or just from the writing community in general. Today is the release date of her debut novel, First of Her Kind, and I am so excited to share it with you guys!

KL is self-publishing and has made quite a few very informative posts over on her blog about the subject. I can't wait to interview her on the 15th so we can learn more about her and what this process has meant to her. You can find First of Her Kind on Amazon for Kindle and print, Barnes & Noble (print), and Smashwords (ebook). If you need me, I will be trying to master that clone recipe I got so I can find the time to read this book. Or trying to get the flu. Something that gets me a guilt-free vacation because I really don't think I can wait until Spring Break for this one!

Everyone, it seems, wants to dictate what Ciara does with her life: Serve the Goddess, destroy the Goddess, do as you promised your aunt. All Ciara wants is to keep the two magics she possesses from ripping her apart.

And that won't be easy.

Not only are they in complete opposition to each other, blood ties pull her in divergent directions as well. And then there's Bolin, the man sworn to protect her. There's no denying the growing attraction between them, but is it Ciara he wants? Or her power?

None of which will matter if Ciara can't overcome her fear and learn to use her gifts. No one knows the depths of the ancient power she possesses, or what will happen if it manages to escape her control.

Will she lose herself entirely? Or be forever trapped between darkness and light?