The SHINE LIGHT blog tour is well under-way, and until it’s over we’ll be cancelling regular reviews and posting all about the tour here.

So far Marianne’s talked about Ruzalia here on the first day of the tour.

Charlonge at Sassy Book Lovers.

The Night Creatures at VeganYANerds. We really *loved* Mandee’s review, especially the bit that says “Shine Light is a thrilling, disturbing ride with moments of honesty, friendship and love. Fans of the series will find this to be an excellent conclusion and new readers – what are you waiting for? Read this series now.”

Are you now ready for your next fix? Then meet Markes at Confessions of a Booky Monster tomorrow!

And for the full tour listing see the Burn Bright website. So far April has been the only one to crack the code. A large hint is to think QWERTY! Go to it guys, give April some competition!

Winner receives a mystery basket that will include some of Belinda’s lovely jewellery.

Burn Bright! Shine Light!

Welcome to the Shine Light blog tour. Each stop we’ll be revealing something new about the characters in Shine Light. What makes them tick? Do they have any secrets? Read on to find out . . .

Ruzalia:

Occupation: Pirate

Home: Sanctus Island just outside the Golden Spiral.

Special Characteristics: Flaming red hair, a dominant personality

When I think of Ruzalia I think of a wild, untamed sea. From the very beginning, it was important to me that she was a powerful character who inspired both fear and hope. When I was considering names for her, I went to my own writing group for help. I asked them what words denoted “red”. Margo Lanagan came up with the name Ruzalia and I fell in love with it.

It fitted perfectly for the woman who rescues over-agers from a speed boat steered by echolocators, and who bravely sails an airship at night. I knew immediately that she was a driven woman to whom loyalty was vital. It was the only way she’d survived in the lawless seaways in and out of the Golden Spiral. It seemed natural then that her motivation against Ixion be personal – an obsession – born of something that impacted her at a deeply profound level.

It would have been wonderful to have more time to explore her background and life on Sanctus. As it is we only get time to meet Mesree and Long-Li who are close friends but not blood relatives. We only get to hear how she has lost her sister, not find out the mystery behind it. I considered bringing the sister’s story more vividly into SHINE LIGHT, for indeed she was there on the island, but it seemed like too much of a contrivance and so I discarded the idea.

Also, I had to remind myself that Night Creatures is primarily Naif’s story, which unfortunately meant not everyone ended up with the story time they perhaps deserve. Ruzalia could easily fill her own novel; a pirate driven fuelled by revenge and hope, who has a talent for mechanical contraptions and a blinding passion for life.

I love Ruzalia – long may she reign!

Break each code at the end of every blog post on the tour and your name will go in the draw to win a**super mystery prize** basket. Email your answers to marianne@mariannedepierres.com.

“O VQZEI ZIT NGXFU YTTR ZITOK SOCTL ZG ZIT RQKA QFR AFGV OZL IXFUTK VOSS FTCTK WT LQZTR” – KXMQSOQ

Shine Light

by Marianne de Pierres

Here’s a sneak peek of Shine Light . . .

Stop 1 of 13

Ruzalia’s airship swayed and shuddered through the night towards Ixion. In the main cabin, the pirate traced impatient laps; head down, wild red hair loose at her shoulders. Her breeches were crumpled and her white shirt marked by a stain of old blood. Mesree’s blood.

Had she slept in the few days since she’d dropped Naif and Markes on Grave? It doesn’t seem so, Naif thought. Ruzalia’s eyes were swollen with fatigue and her smooth white brow was creased with fury and frustration. And grief. She’d lost Mesree and her island, Sanctus, to a coup. All the young people she’d risked her life to save from Ixion had rebelled against her,

frightened by the knowledge that they had only a short time left to live.

Naif exchanged concerned glances with Charlonge.

Her friend had stayed behind with the pirate and had been the fi rst to greet Naif and her allies when they were winched back into the body of the airship.

Though Char appeared less ravaged than Ruzalia, it seemed that even in a few days, her cheekbones had become more prominent in her face. They’d all suffered; too little food, too much worry.

‘Tell me what you know!’ Ruzalia demanded.

The pirate had allowed them a meagre meal, some bitter-tasting beer and a few hours of sleep before commanding them to come to the main cabin. Now they sat around the table: Markes, Emilia, Char, Jarrold, Liam and Naif.

‘We hid in the rafters above the Grave Elders’ meeting. They spoke of many things,’ Naif began.

‘I will know every single piece of it!’

Naif glanced at Jarrold and Liam, the two who had also listened in on the Elders on Grave. Neither knew Ruzalia, other than by reputation. Their nervousness now they were aboard the feared pirate’s ship was plain. Naif knew that neither would speak unless they had to. But while Jarrold couldn’t hide his curiosity, Liam stared at the fl oor, attempting to keep his disfi gured arm from sight. So it fell to Naif to tell what had happened.

Ruzalia wouldn’t wait any longer for their story. And Naif didn’t blame her. Too much hung on what they’d learned.

Ready for your next fix? Meet Charlonge at http://sassybooklovers.blogspot.com.au

Dead Set Great Ideas.

I unfortunately lost a dear friend to ovarian cancer around this time last year, and Halloween was by far her favourite holiday. With all the spookiness and the creativity, she was always happiest when helping out at her nearest haunted house.

Something else she usually celebrated with us all was the Day of the Dead or Día de los Muertos. Which is similar but more like and extension of Halloween.

So in honor of my friend I give you 3 day of the dead sugar skull tutorials that would have certainly made her smile.

Day of the dead by Michelle Phan

Sylvia Sugar Skull Day of the dead by petrilude

Day of the dead face by goldiestarling

Keep checking back for a few more glamorous ideas on the lead up to Halloween.

On remote Rollrock Island, the sea-witch Misskaella discovers she can draw a girl from the heart of a seal. So, for a price, any man might buy himself a bride; an irresistibly enchanting sea-wife. But what cost will be borne by the people of Rollrock – the men, the women, the children – once Misskaella sets her heart on doing such a thing?

Margo Lanagan weaves an extraordinary tale of desire and revenge, of loyalty, heartache and human weakness, and of the unforeseen consequences of all-consuming love.

Bel:

Cover

I have the Australian edition so it’s been illustrated and designed by Zoë Sadokierski. Before reading the book, the cover art isn’t as allusive as it is afterwards. It’s depicting 3 women amongst bubbles and seaweed.

Characters

This is a tough one for me because I wanted to slap so many of them. However amongst the morons there are small joys to be found.

Favourite

Daniel Mallett. One of only 2 men in the whole book who weren’t complete grubs. You’ll have to find out why for yourself. I don’t want to wreck it for anyone who hasn’t read it yet.

Least Favourite

Where to begin? Who to pick? Wow, so many choices. I think I’ll pick Mister Mallett, Daniel’s father. For Trudle. Again, it’ll give too much away if I tell exactly why.

Beginning

The children of Rollrock Island are collecting Sea Hearts for their Mothers along the beach and run into the crazy old witch Misskaella.

Storyline

Misskaella’s gift is bringing forth humans from seals. This skill changes the dynamics of Rollrock Island.

Ending

Not what I expected.

Thoughts

I know this is based on the Selkie mythos, and the brutality of all consuming love. But I think it should also be read as a message, to not allow anyone to take away your true nature. Only when you are being the real you, and allowing those around you to be the real them, will you find real happiness.

I adored Sea Hearts and its tragic message. I was sucked into the story from the first page and thought it was rather special to have chapters separated by individual works of art.

I’m glad there are a few characters who could snub their nose at what’s expected of them and they were able to rise above.

Quote

“You are, aren’t you?” I said. “A girl?” Daniel Mallett to Lory Severner

Lisa:

Cover

The cover of The Brides of Rollrock Island looks amazing! I love the ocean in the back and foreground. But the most important thing for me has to be that covers need to give readers a subtle hint about what the story inside may be like. I don’t really get too much of that from this very pretty cover; the ocean does give a hint to it being an island, but I felt like something was just missing.

Characters

When reviewing a book, especially one that I really liked, I enjoy talking a lot about the good components of the story, and a little of the bad. I can’t believe that in a book, I couldn’t put down and finished in less than four days, I disliked so many characters, for various reasons.

Favorite

My favorite would have to be either Misskaella because I love any characters who can do something out of the ordinary, and she has a very special ability. If Misskaella wasn’t my favorite, it would have to be Daniel, simply because he isn’t a pervert, or horn dog!

Least Favorite

Since there are so many characters that I didn’t really like I don’t feel right mentioning one and not the other. But even though I didn’t like some of these characters, they truly are what created the setting for this story, what made the characters I did like, shine even brighter.

Beginning

The beginning was really confusing to me, just because of the way things were said, laid out and described. One day a witch, named Misskaella is discovered, along with her ability to take a seals heart and transform into most beautiful women.

Story Line

As word spreads fast, a man visits Misskaella and asks her for a favour –  to change a seal into a women, so he can marry her. The man offers Misskaella a large sum of money, but this won’t be the only pay she gets!

Ending

There’s absolutely no way of explaining this ending without giving away more than half of the story!

Overall Thoughts

I would have to say The Brides of Rollrock was a pretty dense book. It did take some reading and re-reading for me. The words and descriptions are just a little unknown to me and something I’m not used to reading. But once I got comfortable with the words, I could really start enjoying the story itself. The book is also organized very differently than books I’ve read before; instead of using chapters, the book is divided into different sections. Each of these sections follows a different person and their experiences with the witch Misskaella, somehow interweaving with one another.

But with all of this, The Bride of Rollrock, was something I’ve never read before, and I’m really glad I did.

Krista:

Cover

I am a fan of the David Fickling Books cover and the girl laying there at the edge of the water really encompasses the theme of the story. But I have to say that I am not a fan of the title change. I think that Sea Hearts appeals more to me, although I couldn’t pin point exactly why.

Characters

The novel encompasses a few generations of families that reside on Rollrock – the constant being The Witch.

Favourite

I think this is the first time that I cannot pinpoint a favourite character. Throughout the story I found flaws in all of them, mostly selfishness and wasn’t able to fully embrace any one over the other.

Least Favourite

My choice would have to be the Witch Misskaella for sure. From the beginning of the story she could foresee what could happen in the future if she proceeded with the wishes. But the pull of money and perhaps the desire to be needed amongst the Islanders was a stronger force for her.

Beginning

After a mermaid shows up on land, the villagers treat her like an exhibit. But it also arouses more than just curiosity to a local boy who decides to ask Misskaella to provide him with a mermaid as a bride. She takes it under consideration before submitting to his request. Misskaella knows that once it happens, all men on the island will want one of these gorgeous brides of their own, triggering a domino effect.

Storyline

The story jumps from past to present and future.  Starting with the beginnings of Miskaella’s story, the reader learns of how the connection with the Selkie’s began and continues on to all of the men showing interest in marrying all Selkie brides, and the effect that has on their children and the human women in the island.

Ending

It was nice to see the story come full circle. The reader gets different perspectives on the story of the island from people that were there as well as the stories the children grow up hearing; and even the views of the people on the mainland and the rumours that come to them from the island itself.

Thoughts

I have only read one other story pertaining directly to Selkie lore. They do differ from your typical mermaid story because they are technically not mermaids but can easily be confused as such. This story really focuses on describing in detail what a Selkie is; the transformation and relationships with humans from the human perspective. It was very interesting.

Quote

“How different other families were, the shape of them, the things they presumed, the children that grew up in them.”

Author’s Website: http://amongamidwhile.blogspot.com.au/

Paperback, 343 pages

Published February 2012 by Allen & Unwin (first published January 10th 2012)

ISBN139781742375052