About: Shadows of Dawn Part 2
By Jessica Marie Here is the second installment about the first book in my debut novel, The Shadows of Dawn. I have finished the first draft and am currently half-way through my first round of edits. The first of many rounds, but it is coming along. I am currently moving narratives and POV’s around to create more cliffhangers between various characters’ stories (this is a multi-POV story) and to break up different story-lines more evenly throughout the novel. What is this novel about? It is a mixed genre science-fiction and fantasy titled The Shadows of Dawn. The tagline is: Magic goes through 2,000-year cycles on Esnevaria. When magic returns it plunges the planet into chaos, war, and political upheaval. This book is the first of what will be a duology. The second book with pick-up exactly where the first leaves off. It’s a story of war, chaos, political upheaval, finding faith, and found family. It is told from multiple POV’s, though my main character is Sorscha Androula. Today I’ll be exploring her adopted brother, Alasdair Atria. Alasdair Atria: He is the adopted brother to the main character, Sorscha. He is a human and came into the orphanage four years after Sorscha did. He was a toddler when he came, but Sorscha took a liking to him and adopted him immediately. They quickly bonded and considered each other siblings within a few days. They would explore, get into trouble, and navigate the orphanage together. As elves age slower than humans, Alasdair and Sorscha were considered to be in the same age group and would attend the same lessons, classes, and grew up together much like twins might. All orphans who are found on the Capital are given the surname Atria. Alasdair has often wondered who his birth parents are. He contacted the orphanage and did some personal research to try and find his birth family, but there were no records to follow to uncover his heritage. He has never told Sorscha or their adopted mother, Sarine about his having looked for his birth family. He knows they would have understood and even tried to help. But he somehow couldn’t bring himself to tell them, various anxious ideas kept him from opening up about the topic. Alasdair joined the Capital Guard at the same time as Sorscha. They attended training together, though while she desired leadership and became an Officer, specifically training. He preferred to work the rowdy night shifts. The strangest events and wildest chases seemed to happen at night and that’s exactly what he liked. Plus, he knows once he settles down, gets married, and has a few kids he’ll want the structure of the daytime shifts. To be as present at home as he can be, not wanting to miss a moment of their growing up. Alasdair is the quick-witted, snarky, jokester who does a terrible job pretending he doesn’t have the softest heart on the Capital. The Setting - Politics: Esnevaria was once ruled by royalty and nobility for much of its recorded history. The snow and forest elves preferred a more tribal lifestyle, while the humans generally organized into larger cities with power concentrated at the top. During the fall of the era of magic 2,000 years ago, when the orbiting Capital was built, the humans realized they needed the assistance of the tribal elves in order to complete the Capital. The engineers and designers were entirely human, but the Capital could not provide for itself. It needed agriculture and farming to take place on the planet below and for those goods to be ferried to the Capital. The elves were far more competent in these areas and a deal had to be brokered. If those on the Capital wished to survive, they would need to relinquish their all-encompassing power. This was the beginning of the fall of nobility. The elves demanded their leaders to be present on the Capital and to represent their interests to the nobility. If they were ignored or taken advantage of, the elves would cease provisions. This slowly eroded the concept of the nobility being the only ones wise enough to rule and this slowly permeated the human society. This led to the demand of a new form of government. Barely two hundred years ago a war was waged and the nobility fell. From the ashes was born a republic where leaders were elected by the populace. Once a month I will introduce another character. Welcome to my novel and hope you enjoy these teasers of my story, can’t wait to see you back for the next installment! Covered so far: Sorscha Androula, Main Character & The Main Setting of this novel, the Capital – Read about it here
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February Book Reviews 2022
By Jessica Marie Poison Study by Maria V. Snyder 3/5 Stars I have very conflicting feelings about this book. I read the series in High School and I remember enjoying them, but I remembered absolutely nothing else, simply that I read them and liked them. I was curious and decided to give them another shot. Since I didn’t remember anything, it was essentially like reading them again for the first time. I read the entire book and read it rather quickly, I would stay up past my bedtime (yes, I’m an adult with a bedtime, and since I set the bedtime, I can break it, much to my morning self’s chagrin) to read just a few more pages. Snyder does a great job of ending every chapter on a cliffhanger that you simply must know what happens next. However, there was almost no character description or development. It is pretty much entirely plot driven. Which, the plot is full of twists and turns and constantly keeping you on your toes. But, I couldn’t really tell you anything about the main character or most of the side characters. I don’t really know who they are or what they want. I don’t think they have a dream, goal, or objective in any sense outside of their literal job in Ixia. Everyone is single-minded and one-dimensional. However, they at least weren’t making every stupid decision that a character could make. Like I said, very conflicting feelings. I enjoyed it, I have since finished book 2 in the series and am reading book 3. So, I do like the book(s), however, if you are looking for characters to fall in love with you may want to pass. But if you enjoy YA style fantasy, magic, and some political intrigue you’ll enjoy this book/series. The Two Towers by J. R. R. Tolkien 5/5 Stars I watch the extended editions at least once a year and every 5-10 years I listen to the books on tape again. I don’t particularly love the style of writing, that’s why I listen on audio versus physically reading. But it’s good to see little bits and pieces that are left out of the movies or develop the characters in a way that is hinted at and simply knowing more of the story. Liberty & Tyranny by Mark R. Levin 5/5 Stars My Dad suggested we listen to this book on tape as that is how he prefers to consume books, and so we listened to it when went on rides through the country. We would pause and debate or go further in depth about what the author was saying. We started listening in 2020 and only finally finished it now. When we started listening, we were on opposite ends of the political spectrum, though a great many recent events have changed us and we see more eye-to-eye on most topics. We still have some differences, but we agree far more than we realized now. I think listening to this book helped us facilitate that. It gave us a chance to talk out thoughts, ideas, and opinions that we had. See from different perspectives and try to understand how the world works (politically) and what could be improved upon. No matter your political affiliation, I would suggest reading this book. You never want to be caught inside an echo chamber and only hear one idea or opinion. And you can hear ideas, perspectives, or facts implemented in a way you hadn’t considered before. Plus, learn more about how government works in general. Overall, good book and would suggest to anyone. Alone in Wonderland by Christine Reed 5/5 Stars I absolutely loved this book! I thought Christine really captured the essence of trying to navigate being a 20-something female in America today. Our society, culture, and what exactly is independence. I loved her insights into van-life, outdoor recreation, and being a woman. I didn’t realize how much internal gate-keeping I did to myself by believing I couldn’t enjoy or give myself labels as an outdoors-y or wilderness loving woman because I didn’t do it as well, as fast, as often, or as hardcore as someone else. How she wrestled with those feelings and did what she wanted to anyway, all while fighting internal battles. The fact that we aren’t ever fighting one battle at a time, but wresting with different ideas, concepts, values, and beliefs all at once. The book was told very candidly. It felt like sitting down with morning coffee with Christine and she would tell just a little bit more of her story. I resonated with a lot of her thoughts and struggles. Seeing her life play out, I could see the reflections in myself and in so many around me. If you like nature, wilderness, outdoors, and are a 20-something woman trying to find your place in this world, this book is for you. This wilderness, outdoors, adventure woman memoir is quickly becoming one of my favorite genres. Winter In Maine By Jessica Marie I have lived in a lot of places. I grew up in Florida, lived in Wyoming for 14 months, our family accidentally traveled 42 US states for 14 months and then we settled in Colorado for about 13 years…until last year when we moved to Maine. Safe to say I have experienced my fair share of climates, places, and winters. While I am grateful for the experience of a full and complete northeast winter, I am not entirely sure it’s my favorite thing. First of all, when the family decided to move, my first vote was back to Florida. But we didn’t have enough votes for going south, so we went north. It wasn’t land-locked, which was on my list of requirements, and it was in a different place than I had ever spent much time in before. Since I was ready for a change, I decided to tag-along on the move to Maine. Maine is pretty great 2.5 if not 3 seasons of the year. Summer is bounding with events and activities and there is a lot to explore. Not just in Maine, but in the surrounding northeastern states. The fall is a stunning rainbow of colors as the leaves change. Spring is great because it means the end of the dreaded winter…but it also means inordinate amounts of mud and black flies. Though, if you ask a Mainer, they will tell you there are only two seasons, winter and preparing for winter. I thought having lived in Wyoming and Colorado that I knew winter. It was a pest, sure, but I knew what it was like and could handle it with the same relative ease I had been for most of my grown life. A northeast winter is different than the west. Winter truly starts to feel as such around the winter solstice, the temperatures drop to freezing and well below day or night sun or clouds and the snow begins to fall regularly. By regularly, I mean 1-5 inches every other day and at least one big snow storm of 1-4 feet every week or so. That 1-4 feet is on top of the 1-5 inches every other day. So…a lot of snow. And it stays…because the temperature is literally freezing every day and night. While the snow is incredible and even beautiful for a time, it quickly becomes a nuisance or worse. Snow, sleet, and especially ice coat everything on a regular basis making roads dangerous to treacherous. It was not uncommon for us to not leave the house for 2-3 weeks at a time (we work from home and have a business warehouse on our property). Then we would re-stock up on food and supplies and begin to hibernate again for an indefinite amount of time. I am lucky to be a writer, blogger, podcaster, and general creative (working also for our camping gear business) that allows me to work from home. Though, I would be lying if the winter dangers didn’t also factor into why I don’t/can’t look for an in-person job. But the time spent indoors has given me a lot of time to reflect. To think about my past and what I want my future to look like. Much like the seasons we cannot always be in the same state of life. We cannot always be on the go as it robs us of our time and ability to slow down, be introspective and intentional about everything we do. It allows for the reading of a lot of books, listening to a lot of podcasts, and becoming a master at keeping a fire. Our home is heated by a wood burning fireplace that I tend to manage. When we first arrived, I thought it would be easy, I was good at starting campfires, but low and behold a campfire and a wood-burning-stove fire are not the same. They require slightly different skills and levels of patience. I’ve come to learn the density of wood and how long a log will last. I have seen the full cycle of a tree falling in the forest on our back-80, sawing and splitting it to the right size, and perfectly curating a fire to keep it burning day and night for months on end to keep the house warm. So, how is winter in Maine? It’s cold. You learn to never leave the house without a hat, scarf, and gloves. And not just cute ones, the warmest you can buy. You learn to drive slow or when to not drive at all. You get a bit of cabin fever from staying inside and not leaving the house. Even if you did leave, not much happens unless you can snow-shoe, ice fish, or snowmobile…but I am not warm-blooded enough for those activities. Though I do want to try more snow-shoeing and even cross-country skiing next winter. But you also catch up on your indoor crafts, you appreciate the days you can leave the house and go to church or out to dinner. You read more, pray more, and spend more time thinking about how much you really wish winter was over. Just kidding…sort of. You slow down, you don’t get in a hurry. I can’t make winter end any more than I can prevent its coming. It is a cycle. The wheel of the year keeps on turning and I learn more every day the importance of each moment and to embrace it for what it is. Do I wish it was summer? Yes? But does a small part of me appreciate the slowness and inner work I have been able to accomplish during winter? Also yes. I am considering traveling to the south next January and February in my car, doing some van-life…but in my Hyundai Elantra. Take some time to explore a new place and escape the worst of winter in the northeast. We’ll see what happens. That’s my winter time fantasy at the moment, but nothing is written in stone. I’ll take what comes, follow my intuition, and see where the road ahead really leads. |
AuthorJessica Marie Cunningham - Intentional lifestyle blogger, aspiring author, and podcast host. All things Slow Living, Books, Writing, Art, creativity, Christianity, and personal stories. Archives
March 2022
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