Character Interview: Sefa Metavanya

By the request of one of my readers, I have with me today Sefa Metavanya. Sefa first appears as a minor character in The Crystal Lattice, but he is fairly prominent in both Sand into Glass and Arrow of Entropy. It is difficult to interview him without giving away too many spoilers, but I'm going to try.

Good afternoon, Sefa. Let's start at the beginning. What was your childhood like?
Sefa: Huh. Starting right out with a hard one, aren't you?

Just tell me what you want. You don't need to go into detail.
Sefa: All right, then. I was born in Lina but I mostly grew up in Watulya. I had an older sister who died when I was six months old, and that set me up for a lot of childhood stress. My father ended up walking out on us when I was still a toddler so my mom raised me on her own. I was mad at my father for a long time for leaving me, but now I'm more ambivalent because he explained to me why he did it. Won't get into that now. Anyway, I didn't have a lot of friends because my lightning talent displayed early and frightened away most of my playmates. I spent a lot of time reading. I did have a couple friends, but they lived in Lina and I didn't see them much. They were the younger children of Barchal Vun, who was the closest thing I had to a father when I was growing up.

Magical abilities, especially the likelihood of becoming an Emergent, tend to run in families. Are there other Emergents in your family, or are you alone in that regard?
Sefa: There is a long history of Emergence in my family. My mother is Aerlya Metavanya, the clairvoyant Emergent. Nearly everyone in my father's family is an Emergent. My daughters are both Emergents. Uli is a mimic and Catta is a metal mage.

Were you and your daughters trained by the Aulor Bethel Masiona, then?
Sefa: I was, but my daughters weren't. I wasn't about to send my girls to Bethel after the brutal education he put me through. By the time they were old enough to train, I found a better option for them. Bethel's brother Rassa moved to my village several years after Kirad Pass and after I watched him transform my sulky little brother into a healer Emergent, I decided my girls would be his next students.

Your little brother? Do you have other siblings?
Sefa: I have three younger half-brothers. I'm not going to talk about them, so don't ask.

Can you tell me a little about where you live?
Sefa: Sure. I never felt like I belonged with the Watulya Efi. A few years after my Emergence, my wife and I were having trouble finding a place that would accept us. I'm mostly-Efi and she was Toli, so our marriage was seen as distasteful in most places. We heard about this beautiful lake in the Alata Highlands, north of Argenor, so we went up there and scouted it out. It seemed like a perfect place to settle, but we didn't want to live there alone and be stuck entirely self-sufficient so we invited some other families similar to ours and soon we had a settlement. Rye Lake, the name of both the village and the lake. Other misfits trickled in from all over Melor and now we have a village with a population of about 250. Most of us are mixed-blood and we have a large number of mages and Emergents. This has led to some interesting combinations. For example, my younger daughter is married to a man with a Drey father and a Toli-Mero mother. I think in a couple generations Rye Lake will blend into an entirely new race, a conglomerate of all the other races in Melor. I love it here. The winters are brutal, especially for a southerner like me, but the summers are wonderfully mild and we have a spectacular view of the Athuals over Rye Lake right in our front yard.

Do you mind explaining the goggles to me? I'm a little unnerved by interviewing someone whose eyes I can't see.
Sefa: Sorry about that. [pushes goggles to top of his head] They're corrective lenses so I wear them all the time. My vision is terrible and I'm light sensitive, which is why they're tinted.

I wasn't expecting your eyes to be gray.
Sefa: They weren't before my Emergence. I used to look a lot like my mother - brown eyes and auburn hair. Rare coloring for an Efi, but Watulya Efi are a bit different from Efilon Efi. Now I have gray eyes and white-blue hair.

The last time I saw you, you were visibly electric and we were warned not to touch you or we'd be shocked. Now you look more approachable. Why is that?
Sefa: Well, I have two states and you must have seen me in my charged state. If you touch me when I'm charged, you'll get electrocuted. I'm normally not like that, but I turn into a bundle of static energy when I'm wound up. Normally I'm like this and I'm fairly normal, at least as normal as an Emergent can be.

Do you have a best friend?
Sefa: Two right now, actually. They're both completely insane, but that's what I love about them. Exi Achay and Rassa Buananor. It's a little funny that I get along so well with Rassa because I'm not fond of either his brother or his nephew.

Nephew... Arden or Theron?
Sefa: Arden, mostly. I've only met Theron twice and he's decent enough. Arden's the one I'd be perfectly happy never seeing again. Bethel, too, but he keeps showing up around here looking for Rassa.

What talent would you most like to have?
Sefa: I'm not interested in possessing another magical talent because the one I have is troublesome enough, but there are some skills I would like to learn. My younger daughter is a blacksmith and she's actually taken me on as an apprentice. I'm not very good at it yet, but I'd like to be. I also find Rassa's skills as both a luthier and a musician fascinating, but I suspect my innate electrical energy wouldn't allow me to do either without unintentionally destroying something.

What is your most treasured possession?
Sefa: My daughters. I certainly don't possess them, but I do treasure them.

What is your greatest fear?
Sefa: Losing another person I love. I know it's inevitable that someone close to me will eventually die, but just contemplating it makes me feel ill. I also fear the tremors that have rattled the universe on occasion the last twenty years or so. I'm not sure what they are, but they can't be good.

Do you have any interesting hobbies?
Sefa: I have hobbies, but they're not that interesting. I read everything I get my hands on. I like to hike up in the mountains. I have a little cabin up there. Lately I've been zapping rychan because their population has gotten out of control and they don't have enough carrion to sustain their numbers.

Zapping rychan? That seems like a strange thing for an Efi to do.
Sefa: Remember, I'm a Watulya Efi. We're forest guardians like the Efilon variety are, but we also understand that sometimes we have to kill things for their own benefit. I'd rather zap a few rychan to keep their numbers down than watch the beasts slowly starve to death.

I just have one final question before I let you get back to work at the forge. What was the last gift you gave someone?
Sefa: Seriously? That's an oddball question. Physical gift... I gave Exi a piece of jewelry a week ago. Non-tangible gift... I told another friend that he needed to stop denying that he was in love and just go for it. That bit of advice seems to be doing him some good for the moment.

Character Interview: Holly Thula

I've been wanting to interview another Shadows of Absolution character for a while, but it's a challenge to interview one of the four main characters without revealing too much of the story, because their pasts are so tied to their presents and the plot. I was originally planning to interview Dacibrega, but he's shy and doesn't like to talk about his transitions so he refused to speak with me. When Dacibrega declined, Holly Thula decided to entertain me instead. He's always been rather talkative, so I actually prefer his chattering to Dacibrega's short answers and stunned silence.

Good afternoon, Holly. I find you fascinating and I'm glad you decided to join me. First of all, could you tell me a little about yourself?
I was born in Efilon fifty years ago. Don't look at me like that. I've been told I look more like early twenties, but don't let my looks fool you. Everyone in my family ages slowly. Not just ages, matures. We take a little too long to learn how to do anything when we're kids. Sets us up for a casual life, really, if you're not like me. I hope you forgive me for not shaking your hand. I can't touch anyone. Suck the energy right out of them, you know? Can't help it, can't control it, just something nasty I was born with and it's gotten worse as I've gotten older. I'm kind of the personification of Despair. It sucks, but I can't do anything about it so I just had to learn to live with it so it didn't break me down.

You come from an interesting family, don't you? What are they like?
Well, my father's the former Crown Prince of Ganebra, you know before it fell. Aridani Thula. He founded Efilon after the fall, but he's kind of irrelevant now. Don't tell him I told you that. He's my opposite and kind of my balance, so he could withstand my touch longer than anyone else except for his father, Bethel. Bethel's an Aulor, a Time Child, and doesn't look much older than me even though he's a hundred or something. He's great and I've been travelling with him for a little while because he's the only one left who isn't afraid of me. My mom was named Lore Naron. I look more like her, blond hair, light eyes. She had a memory talent, never forgot anything she heard. I'm the youngest of five kids. I have three sisters - Haven, Lavender, and Willow - and a brother, Sage. We're not exactly fond of each other. I think they're resentful of my existence, because everything went to the abyss when I was born. I have two aunts and a bunch of cousins on my father's side, but I only met some of them a couple of times when I was a kid. My mom didn't have any siblings and her parents died in the fall, so my family is a little unbalanced.

You must have had a difficult childhood since you were unable to touch anyone.
Very. It was frustrating and lonely. Little kids don't know about personal space, and it took a lot of scolding to convince me not to touch people. I wasn't allowed to go to school or parties, and barely even allowed out of the house. My siblings made a game of telling me how much I screwed up their lives. My parents were great, but they couldn't hide their sorrow. Just their Despair. I think you've noticed you feel a little melancholy this close to me? Sorry about that. I'm not doing it consciously and I'm keeping as much of it drawn into myself as possible so it doesn't make you feel worse. Well, everyone else can feel it, too, and the whole town was afraid of me. They were always looking for an excuse to exile me, and I finally gave them one when I was forty-seven.

What happened when you were forty-seven?
My mom died. She had been a little ill most of her life, at least since I was born, but she lived to be a respectable age. Of course it was all my fault and I still have nightmares about her reaching forward to kiss me. The Efilon council immediately voted to exile me. My dad was the only dissenter, but no one really listened to him anymore so it didn't matter that he defended me. Well, it mattered to me, but not to anyone else. I knew I needed to leave, so I would have gone even if they didn't force me to.

Where did you go after you were exiled from Efilon?
East to Ara and the island of Liefen. I visited my Aunt Solace to see if I could join her Mero, but she couldn't come near me and was afraid of me. Her council voted to get me as far away as possible. There was one person who voted to let me join them, but I don't know who it was. Anyway, they were nice enough to give me a little boat, so I followed Bethel's energy pattern and met him on an island off southern Rikulon. He took me in, so I've been living on his boat, the Chulanlir, with him, Dacibrega, and until recently, Saruza. I like it. It's peaceful, no one glares at me except Daci, and the water gives me most of the energy I need. Turns out, I die if I don't absorb enough external energy, but the scavengers try to eat me first and then I end up eating them and living. I can consume moving water so being on the ocean helps and it dampens my aura drastically.

Is Bethel afraid of you like everyone else seems to be?
If he is, he hides it well. He can touch me a little still, because he is way stronger than everyone else and has a little energy to spare for me. He's been trying to teach me how to control my talent, but we're failing so far. We have time. We've just been sailing around gathering evidence to see if there are any Tenjeri left in the world. Haven't found any living Tenjeri so far. Saruza was probably the last, but Bethel wants to be sure of that. I think he's too busy internally panicking about his kids growing old and dying to think about being afraid of me. And the voices... I know he talks to people who aren't there, people I can't see. Ghosts or whatever, but it's creepy, and since he's and Aulor, I don't know if he's insane or actually talking to someone.

Do you have any hobbies?
Sure, have to pass the years somehow. I am a pretty good musician and composer. My dad was a musical prodigy, and I guess I inherited some of that. I paint, knit, crochet, and sew. Useful and necessary when you have to make or repair everything yourself. I'm the cook for the Chulanlir. Daci hates that. My father's people are all vegetarians because they're going for this whole nature guardian, non-violent approach to the new world. Bethel's been vegetarian since he was a kid, too. Saruza used to cook meat for Daci, but since she's gone now, he's stuck with my food. He's too stubborn to learn how to cook on his own, so he just complains to me about it.

So you don't get along with Dacibrega?
Oh, I do, as long as I keep a sense of humor about him. He's gotten better even in the months since I met him. I think he's trying to prove to me that he's not useless. Failing, but the effort is worthwhile. He takes me way too seriously and gets confused about my jokes. I like him, though. He's a resilient little thing, coming through what he did and still working on undoing the damage his own people did to him.

What is your greatest fear?
Accidentally killing someone I love. And, my problem getting so big that no amount of energy can sustain me, but the scavengers keep dropping by to keep me alive. I know I'm getting worse, so it's possible. I don't want to hurt anyone.

What is your greatest dream?
It's so simple, so mundane to everyone but me. I want to touch someone without hurting them. I want to know what real physical contact feels like without the threat of my soul interfering. A kiss and a cuddle in front of a fire on a cold winter night. Just an impossible dream. I'll never get to have that and I can't even imagine what it would really be like, just an idea. It's been decades since I cuddled up with my father without hurting him, and he's the only touch I can remember aside from Bethel's little butterfly taps on my forehead he uses to recharge me. It would be wonderful and so different if a touch came from someone outside my family, someone who could touch me without fear of being hurt. Can't have that, though, and I need to stop talking about it because it will just throw me into another breakdown.

Sorry, I didn't mean to upset you. What do you have now that makes you happy?
Bethel and Dacibrega. We have our spats, but they try to ignore my problem in favor of getting to know me. I love the ocean. I think I'll spend the rest of my life sailing, because it gives me a little bit of control I can't find anywhere else. I love creating new things, whether it is music, art, textiles, or food. Since I'll never have a family of my own, it's my only method of creating something new and entirely influenced and nurtured by me.

If you were marooned on an island, what three things would you like to have with you?
I'm starting to think I might go that route. Finding a nice, quite island and living out my life alone there. It would certainly be lonely, but it's better than hurting people. Well, to answer your question, first of all I'd bring the obsidian dagger my uncle Onyx made me. That thing is sturdy and can cut through anything. Second, I'd have to steal Bethel's library. I'd leave him with the books in languages I can't read, and take the rest. Not sure on the third, probably an instrument. Something durable if I don't have a lifetime supply of guitar strings, and I have no idea what my lifespan is, so that could be a lot. Maybe a metal xylophone so I can give the birds a little concert.

Where are you heading now?
Back to Malora. Bethel is going to see to my Aunt Thora about borrowing one of her rangers so we can find a mythical city. Ridiculous, but it's something to do. I'm sure someone will write down this adventure. Oh, someone already has? Prophetic, huh? Anyways, the wind is picking up so I'd better go see to the steering. You don't have to pretend not to be afraid of me anymore.



The adventures of Holly, Dacibrega, Bethel, and the ranger Isen are written and published in Shadows of Absolution.

Author Interview: Ron Hummer

Today I have the pleasure of interviewing Ron Hummer, author of 96 Rocks and A Hell of a Woman.

What is your writing process like?

I would say that since I like to write mysteries, I have to know ahead of time who committed the murder.  Once I know that, it’s pretty easy to sit down and write the first draft and get a good idea of where the story is going.   

        

What are your favorite and least favorite things about writing?

Favorite part is creating the story and the characters.  In 96 Rocks, I thought it was fun to try something different when I wrote the book from points of view from different characters.  Bruno Fischer and John Dickson Carr did this when they wrote about their detectives, Ben Helm and Dr. Gideon Fell.  

My least favorite thing is the proofreading.  I must have read my books 96 Rocks and A Hell Of  A Woman at least 8 times.  

Who are your favorite authors, books, or fictional characters?  

So many different authors.  For mysteries and thrillers: Barry Eisler,  Brad Thor,  David Morrell,  Harlen Coben,  Laura Lippman, Gayle Lynds, and Dennis Lehane.  Literary stories.  I like Russell Banks, Joyce Carol Oates, and Ann Tyler. 

What book are you currently reading and what is the last book you finished?

Just finished reading my first indie author, Miranda Valenz’s Coyote Hills.  Really enjoyed it.  I just purchased David Manuel’s Killer Protocols.  He’s another indie author.  I’ll be reading that next.  Currently finishing up Sean Chernover’s Big City Bad Blood.  Great book as well. 

I'm reading Coyote Hills, as well!

Can you tell me a little bit about your protagonists, Detective Ozzie Rivera (96 Rocks) and Don Gunn (A Hell of a Woman)?

Ozzie Rivera was a homicide detective in Colorado.  He’s married to an actress named Anita Cruz.  He started his own practice in Texas.  When he worked in Colorado as a homicide detective, he was known for closing most if not all his murder cases.   He was very upset and left the force abruptly because the DA in Colorado defied him and put an innocent man in jail.  

He’s a brilliant detective who has given lectures at universities across the country.  You could say that he has a very good sense of humor and puts on an act as a bumbling detective at times in order to throw people off when he is asking questions just like Columbo did. 

Regarding Don Gunn, he’s an advertising executive who works for Blake & Yurman.  He lost his wife in a car accident about six months ago and is on the verge of losing his job and career due to his non-compete agreement.   He’s very depressed and vulnerable when he meets a woman nearly half his age named Kim Hunter.   For many men his age, this is a dream come true but it turns out to be a nightmare since Kim is a person of interest in 5 murders.  

Both of these books focus on non-compete agreements?  Why have two books on the subject?  

In 96 Rocks, I really wanted to focus on a group of employees being on a non-compete agreement and working in a poor work environment.  All the employees are on a non-compete agreement that does not allow them to work at any radio station where the company has properties.  Since they have properties in nearly every part of the country, the only place where the employees can work in their profession is in California.   

About a month after this book came out, there was a story regarding Warren Stephens of Halifax Holdings buying 16 editions of the New York Times and then telling all the employees that they would have to sign a non-compete agreement that stated that they can’t work at a newspaper, magazine, radio station, or television station where Halifax Holdings had properties.  I think that story made my non-compete in the story seem soft compared to that one.   

In any case,  Herman Pearson, the general manager of the station, has created a poor work environment through his abusive behavior to all the employees and they are stuck on a non-compete agreement and can’t get another job outside their industry since they are unqualified for those jobs.  The book also raises questions about sexual harassment in the workplace since a woman could lose her job and career due to their non-compete agreement if she reports it.  After all, they are at will employees and can fired at any time for any reason.  

Regarding A Hell Of A Woman, we see Don Gunn on the verge of losing his job and his career due to his non-compete agreement as well.  Here we see the process of him going out on interviews for jobs that he is unqualified for, racing the clock, hoping to get a job before he is laid off due to budget cuts at the agency.  

Ron, you write mysteries infused with real-world situations, including non-compete agreements, an issue you are passionate about.  Many readers are not familiar with the issue, so could you briefly explain it?

Sure.  In my case, I signed a non-compete agreement 12 years ago.  The choice was to sign it or be terminated from my job.  That’s what the memo said to all the employees.  Since my industry has similiar non-competes, I didn’t have a choice but to sign it.  I should point out there there were other employees that were hesitant in signing the agreement and they were pulled into offices and were told to sign the agreement or be terminated.  They signed the agreement.  It shouldn’t shock you to know that other people were given a pass and did not sign the agreement due to favoritism.  

My non-compete states that I’m an at will employee and can be fired at any time for any reason and I would not be able to work in the industry for 2 years.  The agreement states that I can’t work for a company that has a competing product.  Since my company has 10 different products, I can’t work for another company in my industry even if it has one product.  As you can see, this isn’t like Coke and Pepsi, it’s more like Coke and bottled water.  

What can the company do to stop you from working for a competitor? 

Their lawyer can take out an injunction that would stop me from working for the competitor.  In addition,  there is language in the contract that would allow my company to sue the competitor for any lost business.   The lawyer would advise the person interested in hiring me not to consider me for the position unless I’m clear of the non-compete. 

What does your lawyer think? 

I’ve seen three employment lawyers.  All of them have said the same thing.  The contract is standard.  It’s like a form letter that lawyers fill out.  Wording is the same and that’s why it’s airtight.  They also said that companies like mine have an attitude that they’re doing me a favor by giving me a job since they can fire me at any time for any reason and not even give me a severance package. The only reward is my job.   Of course, I have the option of litigating this if I am fired but it would cost me $10,000 and there is a very good chance that I would lose since I signed the agreement.    Doesn’t matter what the conditions or the circumstances were.  

My lawyers have also said that the strategy behind this is to destroy my career since I’ll be out of the industry and will lose time and knowledge and have to be retrained if a company in my industry is interested in hiring me again. 

As a result, all this has led me to is a career of indentured servitude.  I haven’t had a raise in 9 years and I have made significant contributions to my company.  I’ve probably lost out on management positions that could have been available at other companies in my industry.   Yes, I have had a job for 12 years with my company but it doesn’t matter how late I stay.  My performance has to be at the highest level and if it’s not, then I’m history.  Those are the conditions that I’m working under and I’m sure that other people who are on non-competes like mine face the same situation. 

In the end, all of my lawyers said the same thing.  It’s up to the state government to regulate this.  As long as they don’t, then this will continue.  

What inspired you to translate the issue of non-compete agreements to mystery fiction?

I think it’s very easy to write about this subject and have it become a rant.  As Cyrus Webb said in a review of 96 Rocks, it doesn’t sound preachy either.  My feeling was if I created two stories and there was suspense, the reader would be able to get through the book and learn something about non-competes as well.  

Were there any other factors that caused you to write these books? 

Seeing over 200 people lose their jobs at my company and disappear from Linked In.  Seeing all the stories on Google News when I look up non-competes.  People from Groupon being dragged into court and paying legal fees just because they wanted to work for Google.  Rene Garcia and Arnold Arredondo not being able to open their own business where they live because they signed their non-compete with Reliable Fire 14 years ago.  

I would say that the biggest factor is watching TV and listening to the government officials not acknowledging that this is a problem since this could lead to long periods of unemployment.  After all, we are the ones sacrificing our education, our fiances, and out futures just to make these non-compete agreements work. 

Do you think the state and local governments will pass legislation regarding this like they’re trying to do in Massachusetts? 

No,  I don’t.  I called the governors office in the state where my non-compete is impacted and was told that they have non-competes that are just like mine.  I said I guess I’m wasting my time talking to you.  He said let me see if I can hook you up with a someone that could help you.  I called him five times and never got an answer.  

I called the representative for the opposing party and said that I wanted to make a campaign contribution.  He said sure, just let me give you my address.  I said before you do that, I want to talk to you about non-compete agreements.  He said are you part of a group?  I said no.  To make a long story short, he said well, it’s not up for discussion then.  

Of course this is up for discussion when the special interest groups want the government to help them with their non-compete agreements.  In Georgia in 2010 for example, the judges thought it was unreasonable to fire someone and say that they can’t work in their industry for 2 years.  The state governments response.  We’re losing jobs to Florida and Tennessee because the judges over there will rule for the employer and companies will move their offices there because they are employer friendly states.    So the government in Georgia passed Amendment 1 which ties the hands of the judges because that law states that even if the non-compete is unreasonable, it has to be reasonable for both parties.  

Another example is Governor Chris Christie passing the Trading Secrets act, making New Jersey the 47 state to do this.  This was passed 79-0.  That states that  employees can be liable for civil lawsuits if they are on non-compete agreements.  

So more non-compete agreements mean more jobs? 

That’s what the state government will claim but what happened in Massachusetts when the time came in 2004 for Facebook’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg to choose where his headquarters would be, California or Massachusetts?  He chose California along with hundreds of other companies and they are the only state that outlaws non-compete agreements.  Today, Massachusetts remains behind the Silicon Valley in jobs that they are fighting for.  This was when Mitt Romney was in office from 2002-2006.  

Now, for the last 3 years, the government is trying to outlaw non-compete agreements but nothing has happened yet.  The reason that they want to outlaw them is because entreprenuers are being prevented from starting up companies in the tech industry due to their non-compete and moving to the Silicon Valley because the best talent is there.  After all, where are you going to go if you’re a graduate of MIT, to Massachusetts where they have non-competes or California where they are outlawed?

It has been said that if these non-competes are outlawed in Massachusetts, then they may not lose out on the next Facebook.  People may stop packing their bags and move to California as well. 

I think the question at this point is what is taking so long and why didn’t Mitt Romney think about this when he was Governor since he let non-competes into Massachusetts like all the other Governors did at that time in their states. 

Any Final Thoughts? 

People have to draw their own conclusions about non-competes and ask who the state government is working for - employees or the special interest groups?  It can be both but the fact is that non-compete laws favor employers and it will continue until the government steps in and regulates them.   

Non-compete agreements are growing.  Local hairdressers, pharmacy technicians, and even dog and cat groomers in some states are on non-competes that state that they can be fired at any time for any reason and can’t work within a 50 mile radius of their employer.  Look up Canine Oasis and Petland for example.  

Does this need to be regulated?  Go to Google news and type in non-compete and you’ll see all the stories.  A recent one is regarding an FM radio station in Ohio who is suing their DJ’s because they left the station and started their program on the internet 3 times a week.  Is this really a landmark case or just another example of a company and their attorney gaming the system to see how far they can push the restrictions of the non-compete since the DJ’s cannot compete with the FM signal because core listeners can listen to their radio in their cars for example. 

You can look at the non-compete contract that Warren Stephens of Halifax Holdings put on his employees once he purchased 16 editions of the New York Times and said that new employees can be fired at any time for any reason and cannot work for a newspaper, a magazine, a radio station, or a television station for 2 years and ask the same question.  If you look up information on Warren Stephens, you’ll see that he’s a critic of Barack Obama and a supporter of Mitt Romney.  

Not that I mean to make this political but I think questions need to be asked about where these jobs are going to come from and the fact that many people are told that Mitt Romney will change things because he has the business background.   All this makes me wonder where that business touch is leading us to, especially when I read that Amazon wants to open a plant in Florida that will create jobs and the state government which is made up of Republicans say that we won’t give you the same tax breaks that you were given in South Carolina.  

Yes, there is a case to be made for people who are privy to company information but companies have been able to determine that by offering a year if not to years salary to people in that position if they are fired for any reason.  

There are people like me who are not privy to confidential information yet were are forced to sign these contracts because our job is our reward and will probably not see a severance package if we’re fired.  To make matters worse, there are people in my company and other companies who are not signing that agreement due to favoritism.  That’s nothing more than discrimination.  

One more point.  I did speak with one person who was running for office and explained my situation.  His response.  I don’t think that’s good because we’re paying unemployment benefits out on people who lose their jobs and this non-compete agreement is preventing them from getting another job.  

I don’t see the concern for the employees and the harm that non-compete agreements cause in any of these discussions regarding non-competes.  The only thing I do see is one reporter, Scott Kirsner, who does write stories about non-competes and the harm it is doing to employees.  

If you read 96 Rocks or A Hell Of A Woman or both, you’ll have a chance to see how people like me and others cope with being on this agreement.  In the end, you’ll have the power to express your feelings on a review whether it be for Amazon or Barnes and Noble or many of the other sites where my books are available.  

Where can we learn more about your books?

Kindle.  Nook.  Ebookit. ITunes.  Sony ereader.  Google eBookstore.  Ingram Digital which is diesel-ebooks.com

Any Current Projects

None at the moment.  

Thanks for having me here for this opportunity.  I really appreciate it.  

Thank you for your time, Ron, and I wish you luck on both your novels and your cause!

Z is for Zoli

Zany.   Meerkats are Turbotot's favorite.

Here I am at the end of the alphabet.  I'll conclude with another character interview. Echoes of Oblivion has Zephyr, but I'm really not in the mood for Zephyr's attitude today, so instead, I'll introduce a character from my newest book, Shadows of Absolution, which was released last week.  Zoli Achara's backstory does not come into play in the book very much, so I thought it would be fun to reveal my notes about his character that are not within the context of Isen's narrative.


Today I would like to introduce my readers to Zoli Achara, father of Isen Layel, narrator of Shadows of Absolution.  To start off, why don't you tell me a little about yourself.  When were you born?
Can we make this quick?  I'm supposed to be in the herb garden today.  I was born seven years after Malora fell.  My parents were busy landscaping what was left of the world when I was conceived.  They lost two babies before me, and when she started having early contractions, the midwife in their refugee party told her she needed to stay on bedrest and she might lose me, too.  She complied and the refugees stopped moving around for a while.  They were in an area of Lusifal called the Liban Hills.  They decided it was a good enough place to stay, so my dad built the Gana range around them while they were waiting for me to be born.  More people joined us and by the time he finished construction, there were about 200 people in Gana.  There are 600 now, so we're doing well.

How long ago was that?
Fifty-three years.  Web be damned, am I really that old?  I don't feel that old.

You don't look that old.  I'd guess you were about 35.
Thank you, that's flattering.  People on my mom's side of the family don't really age normally.  We're not entirely human, so I have no idea what our lifespan is.

Who do you look like?
My dad.  Entirely.  Black hair, amber eyes, same facial features.  I didn't inherit much from my mother.

Tell me about your family.
My family is great.  I told you about my parents a little, already.  My father Onyx is a Geophorian priest, and my mother Thora Achara... well, she's one of those Acharas.  Yes, the Ganebran Acharas.  She's also a Geophorian, which I imagine caused her some problems when she was young.  I have two little brothers, Vedan and Orien.  My wife is Lusa Layel.  She's the leader of the rangers.  We have three children.  Our daughters are Isen and Adi, and our son is Lian.

How did you meet your wife?
We had a huge influx of refugees into Gana not long after I was born.  That's about the time my mom named our people Baku and named the city Jata.  Lusa's parents were refugees from Kiribar.  She's five years younger than me, so I never really thought about her until we were older.  I thought she was after Vedan, but she surprised me.  When I was twenty-five and she was twenty, I was drumming at the festival.  She sat and watched me the entire night.  When I was putting away my drum, she cornered me and proposed to me.  I was shy and she caught me off-guard.  It took me three weeks to give her an answer, three weeks of her coming by every day to ask and me stammering in a corner.  I finally said yes and it was the best decision I ever made.

So, in the Baku society, women propose to the men?
Yes.  It's one of my mother's decrees.   She's the chieftan and what she says goes.  I've heard we're backwards from what society used to be, but my mother doesn't want to repeat the mistakes of the past.  Our women are warriors and leaders and our men take care of the children and the gardens.

Do you like it that way?
Hmm?  I don't really know anything different except stories of the old world.  I was a little upset when my mom told me I wasn't her heir, but I got over it.  I'm really not cut out to lead.  I'd rather be gardening.

What was your childhood like?
Rough.  Malora was a mess, and for a long time we were only focused on survival.  My mom worked really hard to relieve some of the tension in Jata by staging festivals, but it was a long time before people were interested.  It started to get better once my talent revealed itself.  I was able to grow enough food for everyone, and my brothers joined me once their talents displayed.  All three of us have the same talent, and we passed it on to our sons.  Maybe the Web influenced our abilities because we were needed, I don't know.  Back to my childhood... my mother wouldn't let mere survival be my only focus.  She was stuck on bedrest for all three of her surviving children, as well as the four between us who didn't survive, so she spent a lot of time reading to me.  She had a huge library and my father liked to search the destroyed cities for books to bring her.  I wasn't born yet when the world fell, but she didn't want me to forget why our lives were difficult.

What is your greatest dream?
It used to be stability for the Baku.  We had a hard time when I was young, but we're doing well now.  We no longer worry about making it through the winter.  We're happy, I'm happy.  Except for one thing.  I want to see my daughter smile again.  Isen has had a difficult and tragic year.  The man she loved died and she shut down emotionally.  I want to see her happy and I'm not sure if she is able to come back to that place on her own.  She's not receptive to our efforts, so it might take someone outside of our family to break her heart out of the icy cave she hid it in.

What is your greatest fear?
I'm afraid of too much.  The wandering predators, especially the wolves after I saw what they did to my nephew and Torin.  I have nightmares about that.  I'm afraid that our gardening talents will vanish and we'll starve.  My brothers and I aren't just green thumbs, we have a magical talent for coaxing plants to grow in horrible conditions.  I'm afraid of Holly Thula, my cousin.  I only met him once, but he terrified me.   Mostly right now, I'm afraid of Isen.  I don't think she's suicidal, but she seems to have resigned herself to a life alone.  It is hard to watch my child decide all she deserves is loneliness.  She deserves better than that.  She doesn't even speak normally anymore.  She's going through the motions of life instead of living it.

What is your favorite memory?
I have three.  The births of my children.  Lusa was in labor with Isen for two days.  She was two weeks late and I was starting to wonder if we'd ever meet her.  Finally, she came out and I caught her.  She was born in the caul, which is supposed to be lucky.  I hope that proves true for her someday soon.  My daughter Adi was breech and her head got stuck.  The midwife was able to maneuver her out, but she had to be resuscitated.  That was the scariest moment of my life, and when she finally opened her eyes and cried, this huge wave of relief and love washed over me.  She wasn't as alert as Isen was and it took her a while to finally nurse, but she was beautiful and alive.  She has some problems still from her birth, but she's doing all right.  Lian couldn't wait to get out.  He was born three weeks early after two hours of labor.  That was intense.  Lusa's other labors were long so we hadn't even called for the midwife yet.  We thought we would have another twelve hours at least, but then, all of a sudden, there was a baby.  Lusa decided she was done after him and three seemed like a good number to me.

You've told us about gardening and drumming.  Do you have any other talents or skills you'd like to share?
I can read runestones reasonably well.  I'm a good cook.  Lusa tells me I have a great singing voice, but I'm afraid to bring it out in public.  There are a couple of other things I do really well, but I doubt Lusa would want me to talk about them.

What magical talent do you wish you had?
Um... mine.  It's subtle, but useful.  We can't survive without food and it's fulfilling to watch seeds grow into edible plants in a matter of days.  It would be fun if I could grow them instantly, but all I can do is coax them to grow a little faster.  I can't think of anything else I'd want to do.  Some of my family members have nightmarish talents.  My uncle and his youngest son, especially.  Both of them affect the moods of the people they're near, one positive and one negative.  I don't think either of them can even touch anyone without an effect.  Even worse is my grandfather's talent.  I don't think I could handle anything like that without going insane within a week.

So you just want to be you?
Absolutely.  But taller.

I'll let you get back to your gardening now.  I look forward to learning about more of your family in Shadows of Absolution.
And I look forward to finding out what the abyss you do with my Isen.  Does she ever find her heart?  And if so, who helps her find it?  I really want to know if she'll be all right.

Spoilers.
Damn.  I tried.

V is for Valari

I have with me today Valari Banan, one of Meridian's most popular Geophorian mages and an antagonist from Mayfly Requiem.
Don't call me an antagonist.  I'm not an antagonist.

What are you, then?
A mage.  A good one.  You can call me Vale

I apologize, Vale the good mage.  How are you today?
Meh.

So, where are you from and how did you end up in Meridian?
I'm from Lusifal.  Lani brought me to Meridian.

The Aulor Lani?  How did you meet him?
Yes, the Aulor.  I know Dia too, but I wish I knew her better.  Lani saved my life.  I was falsely accused of some crimes and left to die in a cell.  Lani freed me.  He's great, my best friend really.

Interesting.  What else can you tell me about Lani?
Nothing.  This is supposed to be about me.  If you want to know about Lani, go interview him and leave me alone.

Sorry.  What was your childhood like?
Miserable.  My mom died a couple of weeks after my brother was born and my dad didn't want anything to do with us.  Us being my brother Roar and I.  Dad never really thought Roar was his kid.  Roar's a fire priest, so he's always looked a little different.  I was different, too.  Mages aren't appreciated where I came from.  Dad got sick of us after a couple of years and tossed us out.  We ended up being trained by the Geophorians in Moonhaven.

That must have been difficult.
Not really.  No point in staying with someone who didn't want us around.  We were better off without him.  Roar and I were better off together.

Are you close to your brother?
Very.  He's all the family I have.  I don't see him as much as I'd like these days.  He's kind of a rogue elementalist so Lani's been working with him since we came to Meridian.

I've heard you're an extremely talented mage and a favorite student of the magisters.  What is your favorite thing about being a Geophorian mage?
Yes, I am considered talented.  I was always the top mage in my classes.  I love feeling the power of a spell course through my veins.  I can taste it.  It's like sugared vanilla.  Delicious.

What is your favorite thing about Meridian?
I love the Orbs in the temple and the hydras in the lake.  Fascinating.  But my favorite thing has to be the Aulors.  Aucra's city is perfection and the presence of her children make it home.

When you walk into a room, what is the first thing people notice about you?
I'm damned charismatic, ask anyone.  Girls like me.  Some boys, too.  I think it's the black hair and blue eyes.  A lot of people find that combination striking.

I have to know, do you have a special someone, or are you single?
A little of each.  I have a wicked crush on a girl, but she's in love with someone else.  I'm still trying to get over her, and that makes me emotionally unavailable.

Sorry.  That stings, doesn't it?
You have no idea.  Hey, give me a couple of months, then we'll go out to dinner, okay?  I think I'll be ready then.

Sounds good.  It's a date.  What was the last dream you had?
Last night I dreamed I was the king of a small country.  How cool would that be?

So, you dream of power?  Anything else?
Immortality, maybe.  I'm fascinated by the Aulors.  I was even before I met them.  Imagine how much you could accomplish if you had hundreds or even thousands of years to plan and implement your dreams instead of having to cram everything into a few decades.  Who wouldn't dream of that?

I think I'd rather borrow Lani's talent and give myself a couple more hours each day.
Yeah, that would be great, too.  I've seen him in action, and he's impressive.  Very impressive.  I told you I don't want to talk about him.  He likes his privacy and we're supposed to be talking about me.  If you keep bringing up Lani, we're not going on that date.

I understand.  Vale, what is your greatest fear?
Being forgotten.  If I am forgotten after I die, then my life was worthless.  I don't want to be a mayfly.

Mayfly?
It just means I don't want to live a day and be forgotten before I'm even dead.  It's one of Lani's terms and it stuck in my head.

Do you have any nicknames?
Besides Vale?  And don't you dare call me Banana.  Well, the mages in Moonhaven liked to run my names together and call me Valariban.  I like it.  I might keep it if I ever run for office.

It's regal.  Last question, and then I'll let you get back to your duties.  If you were stuck on an island, what three things would you bring with you?
I'd rather bring people than things.  I'd say Dia, Lani, and you.

Me?
Certainly.  I must be going now. There are spells to write and tunnels to explore.

Tunnels?
I'll tell you when we go on our date.  I hope you like Kiran food.

Almost forgot.  Where can we learn more about you, Valari Banan.
You'll just have to read Mayfly Requiem.  I do warn you, Lani's opinions may have clouded his portrayal of me.  I'll let you come to your own conclusions.

T is for Tesji

Today I am interviewing Tesji, the narrator of The Crystal Lattice.  He has been kind enough to allow me to play around in his head for the last nine years, and he has a lot to say.

Good afternoon, Tesji.  First of all, would you describe yourself to me?

That's kind of a loaded question, isn't it?  Do you want the full version or the short version?

Short version.  You already told me the full version.

All right, then.  You know you have to clarify things like that for me because I can't keep my mouth shut.  I'm a half-Efi, half-Mero fire Emergent, but I'd rather be a musician.  How long has it been since the war?  Oh, never mind.  I'm about seventy years old now, which still puts me between adolescence and adulthood.  I was born in Vanora, grew up in Tiponia out west in the Efilon Wilderness, and was trained by the Aulor Bethel Masiona.  I have been accused of being arrogant, but I'm not.  Confidence isn't arrogance.

When you walk into a room, what do people notice about you first?

The hair.  I was born with an instant "look at me!" trait, and after my emergence it only became more noticeable.  For a long time I used it so people would immediately pay attention to me, but after the events I told you about, I cut it all off and went incognito.  I wasn't up for attracting any more attention to my family.  People still recognize me, though, so I get stared at a lot no matter where I go.  My cousins get mistaken for me quite often, but that is only because people notice the hair first.

What do you do for a living?  

I'm a bard.  For now, I'm working on several solo projects, but I'm thinking of starting a band with my cousin.  Faron wants to call it the Rogue Amoebas, but I'm leaning toward Lyrebird, and we'll tour all of the seedy joints on the east coast.

Tell me about your parents. How well do/did you get along with them?

Ugh, you're going with that one already?  Bad memories.  I didn't know my parents until I was an adult.  I was raised by my grandfather after my mother left and my father had a total breakdown.  I suppose my mother and I get along all right now, but that took a lot of work. 

Do you have any siblings?

Yes, one, but since our ages are so far apart I grew up as an only child.

Who else was in your family while you were growing up? How did you get along with them?

I only had my grandfather from the time I was eight until I left home.  He ignored me much of the time because he was so obsessed with his own projects.  We had some great conversations, but he probably gave me too much freedom.  I was a bit feral and uncivilized.

What were three things you liked to do when you were a child?

Much to the chagrin of the community, I enjoyed experimenting with pyrotechnics.  I read everything I could get my hands on and loved to explore the forests.  I wasn't supposed to wander alone, but I did anyway.  My grandfather only rarely noticed my absence and once I wasn't in school anymore, no one cared what I did as long as I kept my distance.

What were you afraid of when you were a child?

Nalica Achay.

What makes you happy now?

My chosen family.

What is your greatest fear?

I'm terrified of losing control of my abilities.  It's happened before and every time was a disaster.

What do you want from life?

I really need a couple of years of quiet, where nothing goes awry and no one is trying to kill me.  Yeah, that would be nice.  Might not happen.  I made too many people angry to be left alone.

What three things would you take to a Desert Island?

My sitar, Faron, and Safora.  Sitar for entertainment, Faron to make sure we always have food, and Safora for... well, I won't go into that.

How do you fall in love? At first sight? Over a long period?

Far too quickly for my own good.  My childhood crush hated me, but that didn't stop me from dreaming about her for decades.  When I was older, it was frustrating being the one to fall in love at first sight when the person of my affection took a long time to warm up to me.  Once she realized she loved me, we were inseparable, but that only came after she almost got me killed.

Do you hold grudges, or do you forgive and forget?

I used to hold grudges, but then I realized that even the nastiest people can change if you give them the chance.  I was shown a few different perspectives, and I try to be more empathetic now.

What do you consider to be your special talent?

Persuasion.  I recently convinced my cousin that squirrels don't exist.

What do you wish your special talent was?

I'd love to have a fraction of Arden's glass-making talent.  I also wish people would go back to seeing me as just a musician instead of a... well, you know...

No, I don't know.  Tell me.

I'd rather not.  I'm trying to put all of that behind me.  That's why I've gone back to using my birth name instead of my Emergent name.

Because Ravaki Thula is now infamous?

Precisely. 

What are you most afraid of?

The elements calling on me again.  I don't want to lose the serenity I struggled so hard to achieve.

I think the rest of Melor is afraid of that as well.

They should be.

How do you feel about your life right now? What, if anything, would you like to change?

The events of my past brought me to where I am today, so even if I could change my past, I wouldn't.  Ten years ago, I couldn't have dreamed about being where I am today.  I have my own family and I'm living within sight of Ara.  I am absolutely content with my life right now.  I wish I could bring back the people I lost, but there is no use in lamenting necromancy or time travel.

Thank you for speaking with me today.  What are your plans for the rest of the day?

Well, we were going to go swimming, but it's raining again.  I think we'll take Zella and Sora over to my mother's for the afternoon.  Thank you for the interview.  I'm not as crazy as everyone thinks I am, am I?

Maybe.  You have your moments.

Everyone does.

Author Interview: Patti Roberts

Patti Roberts is the author of  The Paradox Series, available in e-book format from Amazon (US & UK), Smashwords, and Barnes & Noble, and in print format from Amazon/Createspace.

Where are you from originally?

I was born in Brisbane Queensland Australia, grew up in Darwin in the Northern Territory and currently live in Cairns in Far North Queensland.

Tell us your latest news?

I've just met my son's girlfriend Amanda and she is lovely!!!

If you could have a dinner party with any authors from any time in history, who would you choose and why? I have to say George R. R. Martin because I love the richness of his writing. I would love to get inside his head! AND – all of my new indie friends – what a blast that would be!! A few that instantly come to mind are Ella Melder, Collette Scott, Lenore Wolfe, Starr West, KaSonndra Leigh, Jayde Scott, Carolyn Hockley, Mary Ting and Carlyle Labuschagne.

That sounds like quite a party!  I'll bring hummus and fresh pita.

What are your current projects?

Helping to support other indie authors by publishing "First 5 Chapters" - http://www.facebook.com/groups/356620871049132/ they are ebook publications that allows readers to try the first 5 chapters from some very talented indie authors. Each publication features 6 authors in similar genres. As you can imagine the idea is taking off in a big way. You can find "First 5 Chapters" on Smashwords, Amazon and Barnes & Noble and they are either free or 99c – less than a cup of coffee 

What books or authors have influenced your writing? Currently, George R. R. Martin (LOVE the TV series and the books) because there is so much going on. Such a huge host of characters. Kingdoms within kingdoms. It makes your head boggle but I like a book that demands you pay attention.


I still need to read that one.  I love the TV series.

Is there an Author that you would really like to meet?

George R. R. Martin and my indie author friends.

What book are you reading now and in what format (ebook/paperback/hardcover)? Ebook. Solomon's Men by by Glenn Starkey and George R. R. Martin.

Tell us a little about your background. When did you start writing? I started writing with the intent on publishing in 2009. I was feeling very down and misplaced after a failed relationship and I wanted to do something positive…. I needed to do something positive. I wanted to herd up all my unresolved emotions and put them to good use. So I went out and bought a new laptop computer and started writing. Hence the reason Paradox – The Angels Are Here is a little bit EMO! Writing has been the best therapy and I have never been happier or more fulfilled! I highly recommend writing to anyone that finds themselves in a similar predicament. That is when I started writing and how the Paradox Series was born. Out of the ashes… so to speak.

What is your series about? An Ancient World and the New World. It is about two souls being drawn together over the centuries to the present day. It is about love, loss, betrayal, Hope. It is about innocence lost. It is about the past and the present colliding and realising that nothing is as it seems... And that those that are lost to you, are never very far away. That behind this portal there are many, many ancient worlds waiting to be rediscovered.

Excellent.  I'll put it on my list for when my new tablet comes and I finally get to read e-books.

Where do you get your ideas? For every warp of life imaginable. Awake or asleep. And a creative and overworked imagination.


Me too.  I find a surprising amount of inspiration in the shower and on the news.

What is your writing process? I run different scenarios around for particular chapters in my head. I give the characters dialogue to see were it leads. It is one thing to have an idea for a story line but it isn’t until I bring in the characters to see how their personalities would react in particular circumstances that I really know how it has to be written.

Do you write full-time now? I do pretty much. However, much of that time is also spent planning, researching, marketing, and promoting. Many hours of marketing!!!

Your settings and descriptions are very detailed. Can you describe your research into your subject this time around? Same as always. Hours of research into ancient civilizations, myths and legends. From the tiniest red shiny beads found in the blistering Utopia desert to the magical realm of ancient forest trees. And of course a vivid imagination… a must when writing fantasy worlds.

Let us talk a little bit about Grace, a young woman who is coming of age in this story. She is certainly growing. Can you tell us about her inner motivation and how Juliette influences her? Grace Knows she is different - even though she isn't ready to accept that fact just yet. She senses a danger in knowing who she really is so she keeps most of those thoughts to herself by writing in a hidden journal. She has visions of a girl named Juliette. But she doesn't quite understand why or who this Juliette is. Through Grace, Juliette is also starting to come to terms with a past that she thought was long gone and buried.

You have also introduced some new characters, most notably Damon…. Hmmm. Is Grace developing a love interest for the future installments? Grace is certainly at an age where love is a priority for any "normal" teenage girl. And Grace so badly wants to be normal. So when Damon Draco comes along she is instantly drawn to his boyish good looks and mysterious charm. But is there more to it than just a teenage crush…

Another favorite is Keyla. Will she be playing a prominent role in the series? Most certainly. Keyla is everything precious and pure. Within her she holds powerful abilities pasted down from an almost extinct race of people that stretches back to the time before time. The ancient Bakhna Rakhna People from the southern mountains. Home of the Ancients.

Are any of your characters based on real-life friends or acquaintances? I name some of my characters after friends that have inspired me. Sometimes I will take a friend's personality and blend it with one of my characters to make them become more real - more dimensional. I give all of my characters birthdates, favorite colors, particular things they like or dislike. Imagine what their parents would be like. Even if I never write about those things. It makes my characters more real.

Do you ever incorporate yourself into your characters? My thoughts and feelings most certainly.

Are you still writing the series? If so, what will your future projects entail? Next on the agenda is book 3 - that is due to be released this year (2012). I will know in the next few months about how I want the 4^th book in the series to go.

Tell us about your cover. Did you design it yourself? Yes, I source the cover art from Dreamstime.com and then design the titles and fonts. I love cover art – I do judge a book by the cover!!!

Where did you get the inspiration for your cover? I can spend hours looking at pictures online for my covers, locations, and my characters. I have to have faces for my characters when I am writing dialogue for them. I search until I find a face that matches my character. Then I print it out and have it on a corkboard in front of me. I feel I can be more consistent with my characters traits and dialogue if I have a firm image of them to look at.

Does your reading inspire you and your work? Most certainly. It puts my head in the right place. When I writing for the ancient world I read books like the Game of Thrones. The visual media – music and artwork - finding the right artwork and music for my ancient world is just as important as finding the right face for my characters. Let's face it. We are not talking about an everyday world here. I have a special post on my blog dedicated to all that inspires my writing.

Where can we find you online?

Blog: http://theangelsarehere.wordpress.com/

Book trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gb_jTh7rj38

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/The-Paradox-Series/150822348341990

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Patti-Roberts/e/B004RXY0OI/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1

Amazon.uk: http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=sr_nr_p_n_binding_browse-b_mrr_2?rh=n%3A266239%2Cp_27%3APatti+Roberts%2Cp_n_binding_browse-bin%3A368165031&bbn=266239&sort=relevancerank&ie=UTF8&qid=1326647494&rnid=492562011

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/search?query=patti+roberts

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/980856.Patti_Roberts

What formats are your books available in? ebook and paperback

Where are your paperback books available for purchase? Most online stores including Amazon, Smashwords, Barnes & Noble and Createspace.

Book Review By Ella Melder (excerpt)

I do not remember when I have been more spellbound by a fantasy book before.

This book delivers on so many levels. Patti Roberts has grown up. Her writing skills rival some of the very big names out there and I would be surprised if awareness of her talent doesn’t sky-rocket within a few short months. With ‘Progeny Of Innocence’ we have no choice but to believe. It’s not a fantasy anymore, it is a certainty.

‘It is a shame,’ Patti says, ‘that real life events very rarely portray the grandiose victories personified in fiction’. Because we know, we feel that undercurrent to all of our lives. We’ve always suspected there is more to this inconsequential human existence and Patti Roberts makes it easy to imagine what this might be.

Patti Roberts is so comfortable with her creation that it leaves no questions unanswered. You can see the prisoners being dragged in, you can see the forest and its people, you can understand the relationships between the six ancient races and feel their resistance to Grigorian rule.

Paradox is not a story in a place – it is the legend of a whole world.

Win a signed copy of Book 3 – Bound By Blood

See details here - http://theangelsarehere.wordpress.com/2012/04/06/review-by-ella-paradox-is-not-a-story-in-a-place-it-is-the-legend-of-a-whole-world-enter-to-win-a-copy-of-book-3-bound-by-blood-october-2012-release-5/