Sunday, February 27, 2011
From rain to heat...
Recently moved countries- New Zealand to South Africa. Amazed by the difference in temperature: left in rain, arrived to HEAT!
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
First review for G0fR...and it's a good one!
Hello, readers! This is the first published review for Gathering of Rain...and it's real good! Author Poppet of Exploits and Seithe fame (see my book reviews if you don't know her *shame on you*) has written a glowing review...and I take this opportunity to thank her with every appreciation:
Ta, Poppet!
Gathering of Rain, book review
Posted by Poppet
Firstly let me apologise for the fact that there was no blog entry yesterday.
Today I have such a well hidden surprise for you I can’t wait to tell you about it. I’d like to introduce you to Elaina Davidson. She is a writer I’ve known for about two years, and she’s just one of those kind lovely people you instantly like. In a book review swap with her I agreed to read her Nookbook, Gathering of Rain.
I’m going to be completely brutal here. I’ve done my time reading fantasy, and it got to the point where each book I bought with the fantasy genre lable became much of a muchness, they became tedious, boring and predictable. After reading four books in a row by different authors that were virtually identical to one another – that was me, done. I never wanted to read another fantasy again – because quite frankly by that point, they were all utter rubbish not worthy of my money or my time.
I think we all started reading fantasy with Tolkien. I read the Lord of the Rings when it was still one book (not three), and that sort of set a precedent for every fantasy book thereafter – everyone was copying Tolkien’s style and ideas – simply everyone. And this is pretty much what you expect when you pick up fantasy – even the Edding’s brothers smack of Tolkien (and I know that’s going to annoy some people).
So imagine my utter delight when I picked up Gathering of Rain, expecting another mindless carbon copy of fantasy, and it was different. I don’t even know how to explain this book to you, or where to begin with the gushing praise.
Rain, is a person (not a weather phenomenon), and the first few chapters of this novel give no indication that it’s going to be an original fantasy completely different to all the others you’ve ever read. If anything, the first few chapters smack of dark fantasy with sinister and evil undertones. And I read it dutifully, while the characters were being introduced.
I’m an author too, I know we have to do this, in the first few chapters we have to a) introduce you to the characters, b) create the environment and location and give you a great feeling for it, and c) introduce a motivation for you to keep reading.
Davidson hits all three perfectly on the mark, and once she’s accomplished her obligatory author duty she shunts you straight into her imagination, her make believe world, she states the stakes (which are high – death to all humans NOW, that’s a reason to motivate anyone), she then gives you a *global* view of the world in the book, and the different clans, and sets about to conquer you along with the evil about to annihilate Valaris.
I think the reason why this book is so brilliant, is because despite being fantasy, this is a thriller. Davidson just knows how to suck you in to care about the main characters, (and there’s a certain side of your psyche who would just love to meet these people face to face because they’re the new fantasy supermodels of the next millennium). The races she’s *invented*, are naturally glorious. They sound beautiful to behold and I envy her imagination and how amazing she made the planet and immortals of Valaris and the surrounds (other dimensions and planets, such as Ardosia) sound.
This book climbs from page one (and you don’t even realise it). The tension mounts from the first chapter and doesn’t stop climbing. I have never ever read such convincing writing that I felt a part of the action in the middle of a death storm on the high seas (while written in the third person – bloody brilliant!) – I was glued to my computer reading this book (and I’m not a fan of fantasy). Davidson makes you feel the desperation, the heat, the loss, the frustration.
Now I must warn you, this book is the first of a series. And you WILL desperately (upon pain and death to the author if necessary) require the sequel the second you finish Book 1. I’m enthralled with this planet, with the sentient beings and the evil evil evil Or Darak who completely annihilate Ardosia in a matter of hours. And I do actually wish we weren’t living in such fickle times (readers are fickle – they shy away from long thick books) because I would have loved this to be presented in its entirety the way Lord of the Rings was in its original form. (Instead of split up into a series of books)
Davidson is a brilliant author who manages to give you familiarity in every *fantasy* setting. The common denominators with our own existence makes this realm immediately familiar and accessible. You relate to to the world and the people. There are still the party animals who like to come out at night and get piss drunk and gamble and flirt the night away. There’s a place which reminds of Ibetha and Mykonos. There’s a place which reminds us of cloudy moist Britain. And there’s desert and everything else in between. This place is familiar – but not.
At the same time Davidson simultaneously taps into profound (and I do truly mean phenomenally profound) concepts and lays bare human potential and motivation. She takes the complicated, strips it down for you, and re-presents it to you as something you a) recognise and b) understand now that it’s been made simple for you. These are amazing truths and observations which she’s woven into the story, and it’s this level of the writing which truly blows me away (and has made me a fan forever).
I don’t particularly want to tell you what it’s about – because I feel like I’ll ruin the journey for you. Instead I’m simply pasting the blurb here for you. But trust me, from an *I don’t really like fantasy* reader, I rate this book 25 out of 10. Yes, it really really is that good. This is more than a story, it’s genius writing, and Davidson gave me a gift I’ll treasure and read again and again, because she uses vocabulary with such ease that I don’t think she repeats a word more than once. Her grasp on the English language is glorious. Yet not once is it stilted or difficult to read. It just flows, faster and faster and faster until you’re swept up, gripped, breathless, and desperate to read on to get to the resolution.
Two worlds on the brink of destruction. Both will burn. Connecting their shared fate is a linked past, a magical thread of light, and a tear in the fabric of space. Rain travels to Farinwood to find the magician Aven. He isn’t prepared for what he actually finds: the Maghdim Medaillon, the magical disc that creates a thread of light between two realms. Rain is gathered to fulfil his destiny…
In a time now passed beyond memory, a man whispered over a golden disc as he set it into a vice. He lifted an engraving tool to mark the first glyph. He murmured the words of an ancient enchantment, a repeated rhythm, until it was perfect, and then whispered some more as he polished. It took time, many months, and he rushed nothing. Spoke of it to no one. Only when the time was right would he reveal his handiwork.
He possessed the tools and skills to achieve his goal, as well as the voice that was impetus and creation. To infuse inanimate gold, to gift atoms sensitivity, to compel unassailable eternity, required tone, repetition and emotion. Imperative was emotion, for it determined the ultimate nature of the infused device. If fashioned in anger, the consequence was an instrument capable of confusion; indifference led to instability, hate to darkness, mockery to deception, egotism to arrogance, and love to illumination and enlightenment. He intended only love.
The Supreme Wisdom- the Maghdim Medaillon- of the Valleur was made tangible and it was beautiful. On the day he laid it in a protective casket, he thought: I am done now. The future is secure.
He was wrong.
Each chapter has an introduction, and this is the one I loved most:
Get it! Read it! You cannot ignore this book (despite its cover which really doesn’t give you a feel for the treasure inside the pages) – this book has a way of making you examine, yourself. It’s a truly superb read.
Ta, Poppet!
Gathering of Rain, book review
Posted by Poppet
Firstly let me apologise for the fact that there was no blog entry yesterday.
Today I have such a well hidden surprise for you I can’t wait to tell you about it. I’d like to introduce you to Elaina Davidson. She is a writer I’ve known for about two years, and she’s just one of those kind lovely people you instantly like. In a book review swap with her I agreed to read her Nookbook, Gathering of Rain.
Book Review, Gathering of Rain
by Elaina Davidson
I’m going to be completely brutal here. I’ve done my time reading fantasy, and it got to the point where each book I bought with the fantasy genre lable became much of a muchness, they became tedious, boring and predictable. After reading four books in a row by different authors that were virtually identical to one another – that was me, done. I never wanted to read another fantasy again – because quite frankly by that point, they were all utter rubbish not worthy of my money or my time.
I think we all started reading fantasy with Tolkien. I read the Lord of the Rings when it was still one book (not three), and that sort of set a precedent for every fantasy book thereafter – everyone was copying Tolkien’s style and ideas – simply everyone. And this is pretty much what you expect when you pick up fantasy – even the Edding’s brothers smack of Tolkien (and I know that’s going to annoy some people).
So imagine my utter delight when I picked up Gathering of Rain, expecting another mindless carbon copy of fantasy, and it was different. I don’t even know how to explain this book to you, or where to begin with the gushing praise.
Rain, is a person (not a weather phenomenon), and the first few chapters of this novel give no indication that it’s going to be an original fantasy completely different to all the others you’ve ever read. If anything, the first few chapters smack of dark fantasy with sinister and evil undertones. And I read it dutifully, while the characters were being introduced.
I’m an author too, I know we have to do this, in the first few chapters we have to a) introduce you to the characters, b) create the environment and location and give you a great feeling for it, and c) introduce a motivation for you to keep reading.
Davidson hits all three perfectly on the mark, and once she’s accomplished her obligatory author duty she shunts you straight into her imagination, her make believe world, she states the stakes (which are high – death to all humans NOW, that’s a reason to motivate anyone), she then gives you a *global* view of the world in the book, and the different clans, and sets about to conquer you along with the evil about to annihilate Valaris.
I think the reason why this book is so brilliant, is because despite being fantasy, this is a thriller. Davidson just knows how to suck you in to care about the main characters, (and there’s a certain side of your psyche who would just love to meet these people face to face because they’re the new fantasy supermodels of the next millennium). The races she’s *invented*, are naturally glorious. They sound beautiful to behold and I envy her imagination and how amazing she made the planet and immortals of Valaris and the surrounds (other dimensions and planets, such as Ardosia) sound.
This book climbs from page one (and you don’t even realise it). The tension mounts from the first chapter and doesn’t stop climbing. I have never ever read such convincing writing that I felt a part of the action in the middle of a death storm on the high seas (while written in the third person – bloody brilliant!) – I was glued to my computer reading this book (and I’m not a fan of fantasy). Davidson makes you feel the desperation, the heat, the loss, the frustration.
Now I must warn you, this book is the first of a series. And you WILL desperately (upon pain and death to the author if necessary) require the sequel the second you finish Book 1. I’m enthralled with this planet, with the sentient beings and the evil evil evil Or Darak who completely annihilate Ardosia in a matter of hours. And I do actually wish we weren’t living in such fickle times (readers are fickle – they shy away from long thick books) because I would have loved this to be presented in its entirety the way Lord of the Rings was in its original form. (Instead of split up into a series of books)
Davidson is a brilliant author who manages to give you familiarity in every *fantasy* setting. The common denominators with our own existence makes this realm immediately familiar and accessible. You relate to to the world and the people. There are still the party animals who like to come out at night and get piss drunk and gamble and flirt the night away. There’s a place which reminds of Ibetha and Mykonos. There’s a place which reminds us of cloudy moist Britain. And there’s desert and everything else in between. This place is familiar – but not.
At the same time Davidson simultaneously taps into profound (and I do truly mean phenomenally profound) concepts and lays bare human potential and motivation. She takes the complicated, strips it down for you, and re-presents it to you as something you a) recognise and b) understand now that it’s been made simple for you. These are amazing truths and observations which she’s woven into the story, and it’s this level of the writing which truly blows me away (and has made me a fan forever).
I don’t particularly want to tell you what it’s about – because I feel like I’ll ruin the journey for you. Instead I’m simply pasting the blurb here for you. But trust me, from an *I don’t really like fantasy* reader, I rate this book 25 out of 10. Yes, it really really is that good. This is more than a story, it’s genius writing, and Davidson gave me a gift I’ll treasure and read again and again, because she uses vocabulary with such ease that I don’t think she repeats a word more than once. Her grasp on the English language is glorious. Yet not once is it stilted or difficult to read. It just flows, faster and faster and faster until you’re swept up, gripped, breathless, and desperate to read on to get to the resolution.
Two worlds on the brink of destruction. Both will burn. Connecting their shared fate is a linked past, a magical thread of light, and a tear in the fabric of space. Rain travels to Farinwood to find the magician Aven. He isn’t prepared for what he actually finds: the Maghdim Medaillon, the magical disc that creates a thread of light between two realms. Rain is gathered to fulfil his destiny…
Prologue
In a time now passed beyond memory, a man whispered over a golden disc as he set it into a vice. He lifted an engraving tool to mark the first glyph. He murmured the words of an ancient enchantment, a repeated rhythm, until it was perfect, and then whispered some more as he polished. It took time, many months, and he rushed nothing. Spoke of it to no one. Only when the time was right would he reveal his handiwork.
He possessed the tools and skills to achieve his goal, as well as the voice that was impetus and creation. To infuse inanimate gold, to gift atoms sensitivity, to compel unassailable eternity, required tone, repetition and emotion. Imperative was emotion, for it determined the ultimate nature of the infused device. If fashioned in anger, the consequence was an instrument capable of confusion; indifference led to instability, hate to darkness, mockery to deception, egotism to arrogance, and love to illumination and enlightenment. He intended only love.
The Supreme Wisdom- the Maghdim Medaillon- of the Valleur was made tangible and it was beautiful. On the day he laid it in a protective casket, he thought: I am done now. The future is secure.
He was wrong.
Each chapter has an introduction, and this is the one I loved most:
There is an obstacle in the mind known as denial. It is able to prevent knowledge entering. But it can also force the mind to move sideways onto a divergent path.
Beware the divergent Path
- The ancient Oracles
Get it! Read it! You cannot ignore this book (despite its cover which really doesn’t give you a feel for the treasure inside the pages) – this book has a way of making you examine, yourself. It’s a truly superb read.
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Between
Hi all
Just a quick note: I am currently between- place, finance, decisions...a host, including internet. Haven't vanished, simply making new decisions...and will be back soon!
You do know where to find my work... *thought I'd throw that in there*
Regards
Elaina
Just a quick note: I am currently between- place, finance, decisions...a host, including internet. Haven't vanished, simply making new decisions...and will be back soon!
You do know where to find my work... *thought I'd throw that in there*
Regards
Elaina
Sunday, January 16, 2011
How to Get There
I came across a volume of poetry the other day, an Australian poet, and was quite taken by his easy flow and subject matter. Some funny, some a little deeper...thought I'd share this one:
How to Get There
Go to the end of the path until you get to the gate.
Go through the gate and head straight out towards the horizon.
Keep going towards the horizon.
Sit down and have a rest every now and again,
But keep going, just keep with it.
Keep on going as far as you can.
That’s how you get there.
by Michael Leunig
How to Get There
Go to the end of the path until you get to the gate.
Go through the gate and head straight out towards the horizon.
Keep going towards the horizon.
Sit down and have a rest every now and again,
But keep going, just keep with it.
Keep on going as far as you can.
That’s how you get there.
by Michael Leunig
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Pagan, yes...
There is a glade in a forest and in its centre there is a tree so ancient it no longer resembles a tree. Where this is, is unimportant, for this isn't about place; it isn't even about time. It’s about worship.
A wolf killed a boy one day, a long, long time ago, and a tree was planted in the place where blood spilled- in memoriam- a hardy sapling that defied conditions and climate (and the uncaring foraging of wild boar) to grow tall and strong. The world burned around it, until all life had fled, and yet it held on in the wastes. Time marched onward and vegetation returned, forest again surrounded it and now it is so ancient it no longer resembles a tree.
All those who lived in the time before the burning are gone, and those that came after cannot know, and thus the tale of the wolf and the boy and the sapling that defied all has no bearing and is forgotten.
And yet they remember. Every soul that enters the glade is told the tale and every offering placed amid gnarled roots is homage to memory.
It’s the tree, if you seek a definitive answer; it doesn’t speak with words and yet it has voice.
All trees do. I feel it every time I am in the presence of a giant, whether of age or size, and wish I could hear also. We should respect these giants and nurture the saplings for tomorrow...for then we won’t be forgotten either.
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
This is why:
Another year draws to a close. I’m not generally given to philosophical discourse (not here, although I’m known to get quite animated at gatherings of friends!), but I thought I’d say a few words.
2010 has been a year of highs and lows. The flow of change has wreaked havoc with my ability to write, while the periods of waiting has stifled my creativity. This has reflected in blog posts also, as well as a lack of attention to my Facebook Page. Without going into detail and boring you with the tale, allow me to briefly explain that my family and I moved down to New Zealand...and the paperwork has been a nightmare! Very hard to give all one’s attention to a manuscript or social interaction when one waits for a permit!
Still, I did manage the technical side of crafting Tales from the Path of Shades for upload on Smashwords. And that deserves a pat on the back, even if only from me, myself and I! Here’s to a fantastical 2011 that allows me not only to market my work, but also to delve the realms of new work. And watch this space for uploads of more Tales (yes, those are done, just need tweaking for ebook format).
I guess I’m saying it’s been a hard year, but despite it this writer hasn’t surrendered. In fact some of my best chapters were written under immense stress (I know every writer can identify with that!) and I certainly haven’t run out of ideas.
I don’t usually talk about myself- I prefer talking about my work in these spaces- and yet I have to admit this year has forced work and personality into a greater symbiosis. Lessons have been learned and thus I enter 2011 with new insights...and hope you will join me on the journey!
CARPE DIEM!
2010 has been a year of highs and lows. The flow of change has wreaked havoc with my ability to write, while the periods of waiting has stifled my creativity. This has reflected in blog posts also, as well as a lack of attention to my Facebook Page. Without going into detail and boring you with the tale, allow me to briefly explain that my family and I moved down to New Zealand...and the paperwork has been a nightmare! Very hard to give all one’s attention to a manuscript or social interaction when one waits for a permit!
Still, I did manage the technical side of crafting Tales from the Path of Shades for upload on Smashwords. And that deserves a pat on the back, even if only from me, myself and I! Here’s to a fantastical 2011 that allows me not only to market my work, but also to delve the realms of new work. And watch this space for uploads of more Tales (yes, those are done, just need tweaking for ebook format).
I guess I’m saying it’s been a hard year, but despite it this writer hasn’t surrendered. In fact some of my best chapters were written under immense stress (I know every writer can identify with that!) and I certainly haven’t run out of ideas.
I don’t usually talk about myself- I prefer talking about my work in these spaces- and yet I have to admit this year has forced work and personality into a greater symbiosis. Lessons have been learned and thus I enter 2011 with new insights...and hope you will join me on the journey!
CARPE DIEM!
Monday, December 20, 2010
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Volume III - DARAK FALLEN - is now available!
We know who the main players are...and now the battles begin in earnest in Darak Fallen!
Available for download here: (smaple and full ms)
Sunday, December 5, 2010
BLURB CONTEST!
A complete copy of Gathering of Rain (eBook) FREE for the best blurb!
This writer needs fresh minds to structure an attractive paragraph!
The winning blurb will be used to market Rain across varied sites, with an acknowledgement. And will appear on the paperback version!
or
and download the free sample (yes, this will drive download numbers up- always great- but not the main purpose!) and have a read.
Listed below are a few concepts found in Gathering of Rain to help you:
Rain of the Mantle
Guardians of the Dome
Maghdim Medaillon
Ruby of Enlightenment
Infinity, the dara-witch
Margus, the Darak Or
Great Dividing Forest
Otherworld, Rift, Arcana, Lost Race, Soltakin, Epic, Seers and Sorcerers, Swords…
Post a link to Rain’s blurb below or email your entry to davidsonelaina@gmail.com
Guardians of the Dome
Maghdim Medaillon
Ruby of Enlightenment
Infinity, the dara-witch
Margus, the Darak Or
Great Dividing Forest
Otherworld, Rift, Arcana, Lost Race, Soltakin, Epic, Seers and Sorcerers, Swords…
Post a link to Rain’s blurb below or email your entry to davidsonelaina@gmail.com
Remember to tell me where to send your FREE copy of Gathering of Rain!
Deadline: 20 December
Thanks!
Thanks!
Saturday, November 27, 2010
SEITHE by Poppet - Review
SEITHE by Poppet
Erotic Thriller/Urban Fantasy
Erotic Thriller/Urban Fantasy
‘I am stranded between realms...’
Phoebe is uber angry and it dumps her into big trouble. She hurtles out into the dark without thought, uncaring of the dangers of night...and discovers great secrets hide under cover of that dark. She will discover everything is definitely not what it seems as first glance, that the veneer of daily life is exactly that, a veneer.
‘Somehow doing something utterly forbidden is always irresistibly enticing.’
Phoebe meets Seithe and is angry enough to accept his manipulations as a means to altering her current issues with men. Seithe seeks to awaken Phoebe to the truth beneath the veneer by using the magic of sensation to shock her into awareness. Phoebe needs to rely on her instincts, quickly.
Why? Everything is not what it seems...so, what does lie beneath? First, there is instinct. We have the power to use it well if only we could trust it. And then there is the great power in love, and what it is able to achieve for humankind. And for those beyond the restraints of mortality.
I am wholly entranced by Poppet’s ability to take known myths and legends and manipulate them into something close to believable, tying together varied strands into something that forms a whole...and that is as much as I’ll reveal at this point! I don’t want to reveal the crux of this tale- I urge you to discover it for yourself. Go on.
I will say Seithe is seriously sexy...and has an equally yummy brother...and sister. And if that doesn’t have you in the throes of curiosity...
I have been fortunate enough to review Poppet’s other books and while SEITHE isn't as visceral as those, it possesses an originality that is strangely real. Reality and fantasy knits together seamlessly to create an uber book. Poppet isn’t shy in dragging the reader into reaction once again. Brilliant indeed!
‘Call me poppet and drive a new pin in, why don’t you?’
This journey will leave you wishing it could be true.
Elaina J Davidson
November 2010
Monday, November 22, 2010
Majestic Table Mountain
Why did I post this? Because when I come across a good pic of the ol' table I grew up in the shadow of...I have to!
Sunday, November 21, 2010
House of Valla - Volume II is an eBook
Go on, have a look!
Free sample of both House of Valla and Gathering of Rain...
xx
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