Farworld: Water Keep is a glorious adventure that young and old will enjoy. This wild ride will take you to places I guarantee you have never before imagined, and you will love every minute.
I don’t want to give away the fun twists and turns that I enjoyed so much, but I will tell you—when you read this book, read with your 3-D glasses on. You will be so blown away by the wild creatures J. Scott Savage has invented for our enjoyment! There are some pretty freaky things in there that make you really wonder what it must be like inside this guys’ head.
I loved it, and I know my boys will likewise thoroughly enjoy the varied and mind boggling creatures, and the anything-is-possible vibe to this book.
I give this book 4 out of 5 stars, and highly recommend it.
Don’t hesitate to pick up a copy as soon as you get the chance. In fact, you can go here to pre-order your own copy from Amazon.com. Or, you can get some of your own creative juices flowing and enter my contest to win your very own Advanced Reader Copy of Farworld: Water Keep.
**Contest**
Think about this passage from Farworld: Water Keep:
“Listen to me,” he said, his face dark and serious. “You are right. Everything does have magic in it. From the smallest of insect to the mighty trees of Before Time.”
Kyja looked up at him miserably. “But not me.”
Master Therapass smiled. “Even you, little one. But magic is not just spells. The magic you see on the outside—making pots and pans fly or brewing potions to make boys swoon before you—is but a tiny fraction of the power of true magic. The real power of magic lies within you. Who you are, what you do, and most importantly of all, what you may become.”
Kyja wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “You really think I might have some magic inside me then?”
“Listen to me,” he said, his face dark and serious. “You are right. Everything does have magic in it. From the smallest of insect to the mighty trees of Before Time.”
Kyja looked up at him miserably. “But not me.”
Master Therapass smiled. “Even you, little one. But magic is not just spells. The magic you see on the outside—making pots and pans fly or brewing potions to make boys swoon before you—is but a tiny fraction of the power of true magic. The real power of magic lies within you. Who you are, what you do, and most importantly of all, what you may become.”
Kyja wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “You really think I might have some magic inside me then?”
The wizard nodded. “I know you do.”
Now. Answer me this. Imagine Master Therapass was speaking to you, today. Sitting at your kitchen table, enjoying your homemade chocolate chip cookies and some lemonade. You are Kyja, desperately hoping that he might be right and there might in fact be some magic in you after all.
Tell me what his words mean to you. What do they tell you about yourself? About your life? How might his words change how you see things, see yourself? You can either email me at ali at aworkofheartphotography dot com or leave your entry in the comment trail for this post.
Because it’s my blog and I’m the Queen of GrrlWrrld, I’m going to pick the answer I like best. So there. I'll give you until August 15th to get in your entries, and then I'll pick the winner! Make sure you give me some way to contact you to let you know you've won.
Tell me what his words mean to you. What do they tell you about yourself? About your life? How might his words change how you see things, see yourself? You can either email me at ali at aworkofheartphotography dot com or leave your entry in the comment trail for this post.
Because it’s my blog and I’m the Queen of GrrlWrrld, I’m going to pick the answer I like best. So there. I'll give you until August 15th to get in your entries, and then I'll pick the winner! Make sure you give me some way to contact you to let you know you've won.
Seriously folks, this is a book you are gonna want on your bookshelves. And how cool to have your very own ARC, which hardly any other people have?
**Q&A**
Scott and I hopped a plane for Edinburough, Scotland. It was a long flight, but we still had the energy to rent a car and drive into the countryside where we found an old, stone hewed castle. Forget jet lag, we happily hiked the time-worn stairs to gaze out at the countryside below. The rocks feel almost smooth beneath our elbows as we lean over the precipice and gaze out at eternity. In the distance we can see the waves crashing against the rocky shore. I crack open the tartan thermos we picked up at the market in town and pour us each a cup of hot chocolate. Mmmm.
So Scott, how do you like the biting chill of the Scottish countryside when it’s baking hot back home?
Aye, yer a fine lassie indeed. I feel like raisin me voice to the sky and singin yer praises. Bet I fear the wee little birdies would die of fright at the sound of me voice. Sorry, I guess it was the Tartan thermos that pushed me over the edge. I’m okay now. This is great. How can you not be inspired to write fantasy in a setting like this.
Do you have a nice air conditioned office in which to create your literary masterpieces or do you have to keep a damp rag on hand with which to regularly pat your brow?
Fortunately I have A/C. But my laptop occasionally needs a damp rag.
Standing here, overlooking the gorgeous Scottish countryside, does any of it remind you of Farworld?
Yes. At least the parts of Farworld we’ve seen to this point. Very green and lush. But other parts of Farworld remind me a lot of the deserts back in Utah. And so far I haven’t seen any men in Farworld walking around in skirts and carrying bagpipes. But hey there’s still four books to go right?
I can't wait to see what goes into them!
Scotland has a rich history of mythical beasties. What would they think of some of the creatures you’ve conjured up?
Can any fantasy creature really compete with Nessy the Loch Ness Monster? I think even JK Rowling’s Dementors would have taken one look at her and said, “Dude, let’s go back to harassing those Quidditch players.” Got to admit though that I’d really like a Frost Pinnois to go flying overhead.
Oh man! The Frost Pinnois was my favorite creature from your book! The visuals on that guy were amazing. I can still totally picture him.
And magic is no stranger in this place either. In fact, even today you’ll find many people who believe they possess magic, or that magic is all around them. Would you feel right at home in a place like this?
Either you’ve been reading my mind or reading other interviews. I do think that there is magic all around us. Especially on a day like today where everything seems to glisten and sparkle, I totally expect to see a Leprechaun come bouncing up out of the clover. I wouldn’t want to live here year round. But if I could sit up in this castle with my laptop, writing my next book, I would be in seventh heaven.
Do you possess any magic of your own? Maybe a superpower? Care to share? I promise I won’t tell.
Either you’ve been reading my mind or reading other interviews. I do think that there is magic all around us. Especially on a day like today where everything seems to glisten and sparkle, I totally expect to see a Leprechaun come bouncing up out of the clover. I wouldn’t want to live here year round. But if I could sit up in this castle with my laptop, writing my next book, I would be in seventh heaven.
Do you possess any magic of your own? Maybe a superpower? Care to share? I promise I won’t tell.
Well, I don’t like to brag or anything, but I can grow super weeds. Seriously, nine, ten feet tall. Dogs go looking for their balls in those weeds and they never come out. The military has asked me to create an entire troop of them for dangerous duty situations, but my weeds are for the good of all mankind.
Ahh, then you'd fit right in here in Scotland--the rest of the world sees the Scottish Thistle as a noxious weed, but we Scots know the truth. But I think maybe you do too? The Thistle is one of the Scots' might jokes on the world.
You know they have a wicked sense of humor—surely you noticed that on our ride through town? Do you have any wickedly funny jokes to share?
I love it. That's just the kind of fun humor I enjoyed with your barn animals--have to admit, taht was one of my favorite parts of the book! Well, guess what Scott, I’ve got a few superpowers of my own, and I predict that Farworld: Water Keep will be a huge hit.
That is a superpower I can get behind. How can it fail with great interviews and reviews like this?
No kidding! Thanks for coming on this trip with me Scott, and for talking with me about magic and beasties—It was great fun!
It was great. Thanks for inviting me. I love hanging out with whirling girls who say, “beastie.” Thanks so much!!!!
