Catching Up

I didn’t go away after finishing the Virtual Book Tour, but my mind and my promotion get-up-and-go did. I managed to find the next free copy winner and send it off before I took wing in other directions. The two winners are ---

V. R. Leavitt, who left a Facebook address I could contact her on.

Teresa K, who I tracked down through one of the Yahoo sites.

I also had the first of the reviews for Rast during the VBT and post it next---

Book Review: Rast by Christopher Hoare
It is a dangerous time in the world of Rast. Rebelling magic forces are slowly killing the reigning Drogar. His son, Prince Egon, is set to take over as the new sorcerer-king, admitting the deadly magic to himself in such a way as to control it.

Jady, Guardian of the Silent Forest, is the last of her line. Her father and brothers have already been killed by the Deepning Pools. Though in love with Egon, she is sent away on his orders. No matter their feelings, she cannot bear him an heir that will become the next Drogar. Ignoring his orders, an angry Jady goes off to meet the Princess, whose marriage to Prince Egon has been arranged.

As if this trying time of the interregnum isn't enough, Offrangs arrive seeking to conquer Rast. Conflict is inevitable. But who will win?

I'm not a huge lover of fantasy novels, but I've read one of the books in Hoare's speculative fiction Iskander series and enjoyed his strong, female heroine. When he asked me to review Rast, what some have claimed is his best work, I decided to give it a shot.

Part of my issue with fantasy novels is I rarely see one that is less than the size of my Bible. Because you are dealing with made up worlds and beings, this requires the author to be especially clear when describing the setting and the book's characters. I have to hand it to Hoare because he managed to do that in only 269 pages. Not once did I feel lost or unable to figure out the setting or the characters; though a Rast Guidebook is available for free with each download of the e-Book.

An interesting aspect of this novel is that the magic is like a character in and of itself. I've seen this done with an island in Evenings on Dark Island by Rhett DeVane and Larry Rock. It's quite fascinating when an object, or in this case, a supernatural power is so much a part of the story that it takes on character-like qualities.

Rast contains many characters that will elicit emotions in the reader. She will feel sorry for Egon and Jady who are forced to deny their love because of their duties. She will be inspired by the devotion the dying Drogar has to his son and the kingdom of Rast. It's quite likely she will feel the need to throttle the Princess multiple times during the story.

A masterfully told high fantasy novel that will wow you with its explosive conclusion is what you'll find in Rast by Christopher Hoare.

Title: Rast
Author: Christopher Hoare
Publisher: MuseItUp Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-926931-43-2
SRP: $5.95

Available in a Kindle edition
http://booktoursandmore.blogspot.com/2011/04/book-review-rast-by-christopher-hoare.html
The review was from Cheryl Malandrinos http://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com

VBT is ended

April is mostly over and my VBT for Rast finished on Friday. I have yet to check through the posts for comments to pick the winner of the second free e-book copy of Rast. Will do that tomorrow and post about the VBT some more.

Sale! Sale! Sale!

$4.76 Only
From now until April 20th Rast is on sale at MuseItUp Publishing at 20% off.

http://museituppublishing.com/bookstore2/index.php?option=com_virtuemart&page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=55&Itemid=1

The VBT has two more weeks to go. You can get a copy of Rast at an even better deal if you tickle my sensibilities with a smart comment on the tour visits yet to come. I’m giving two copies free to commenters on the tour.

Go here and scroll to the bottom of the page to see the hour schedule –

http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/2011/03/02/rast-virtual-book-tour-april-2011/

Book Tour starts Monday

My Virtual Book Tour for “Rast”, my latest fantasy novel begins on April 4th. Here is the schedule for the first week –

Monday, April 4th
Guest blogging and giveaway at The Book Connection http://thebookconnectionccm.blogspot.com/

Tuesday, April 5th
Book spotlighted at Broowaha http://www.broowaha.com/

Wednesday, April 6th
Interviewed at Pump Up Your Book http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/

Thursday, April 7th
Interviewed at The Hot Author Report http://www.thehotauthorreport.com/

The entire schedule can be found at http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/2011/03/02/rast-virtual-book-tour-april-2011/

In addition to the book giveaway at The Book Connection I’ll have gift coupons for two more copies of Rast to give away during the VBT. The rules are mine – I will be reading the comments left at each blog visited and will be looking for pertinent comments and the e-mail addresses of the commenters who wish to participate. I’d like to give away two copies before the end of the tour – pdf copies unless the commenters have another format mentioned – and do it right away, no waiting, no skill testing questions. What am I looking for? I dunno – surprise me.

I must also mention another free e-book. At my website http://www.christopherhoare.ca/ you can find a free download of “Gisel Matah and the Slave Ship” a teaser for my Iskander series novels. I have recently added a copy in .prc format to the list of download files. Don’t you remember how everyone was saying, just a few years ago, that e-books would never take off until they all used the same format to avoid confusion? Well, it never happened and the confusion increases daily. I bet the monkeys could create a more efficient marketplace than humans.

Virtual Book Tour -- April

My Virtual Book Tour for my fantasy novel "Rast" begins on April 4th. The tour schedule is here -- http://www.pumpupyourbook.com/2011/03/02/rast-virtual-book-tour-april-2011/ and I will be posting reminders and changes here as the month progresses.

Please mark your April calendars and follow along for the tour. Guest blogs, interviews, excerpts, reviews and spotlights. For some lucky followers who identify themselves by commenting on the most tour sites there will be free copies of "Rast".