Blog Tour: Review and Author Interview–Shades of the Stars by David James

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Shades of the Stars
A Legend of the Dreamer Anthology
(Legend of the Dreamer #1.5)
by David James

Release Date: July 2, 2013

Goodreads

Amazon
Summary: Includes The Witch's Curse, The Warrior's Code, and an exclusive novella called The Enchanter's Fire. Playlists, essays on the magical world of the Order, deleted scenes from Light of the Moon and an author interview are also included. And a special look at the sequel, Shadow of the Sun.

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The Witch’s Curse: Before Kate met Calum in Light of the Moon, Magda met Samuel.
Magda cannot stop her heart from running rampant with the beating drum of love. Whenever her eyes find Samuel, she can feel the pull of strings so vividly alive against her heart. But for Magda, love goes against fate; her destiny as a witch forbids her to need anything but the dark binds of magic. Soon, the witch’s curse begins to call to Magda. To deny her love for Samuel would be unthinkable, but to defy her destiny would be impossible. Before the curse can consume her, Magda must decide between Samuel and destiny, and her heart may beat too savagely for anyone to stop.

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The Warrior’s Code: Live by the Code. Die by the Code.
In the magical world of the Order, Warriors fight for justice, freedom, and peace. Becoming a Warrior is an honor given to few, and twelve-year-olds Zackery Solts and Kate Black will do anything to have a place among the elite.
Zack and Kate must compete against eighteen others and pass three deadly tests of courage and skill. Above all, they must be strong because while the dangers of the tests are unknown, one thing is clear: not everyone will survive.

The Enchanter's Fire: Lily Woods is a girl on fire. Literally. Her element burns as fierce as her heart, and very few enchanters want to get close to a girl with such radiant power. None except for Shane Spencer, a boy as calm and cool as his icy element. But fire and ice don't mix, and the element Lily burns inside her is growing stronger. Unstoppable. Soon, Lily's fire may be the end of them all.
Taking place during the final, pulse-pounding moments of Light of the Moon, The Enchanter's Fire burns with action and romance.

Source: I received a copy of the book from the author/tour host in exchange for an honest review and participation in a blog tour.

Review:
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Shades of the Stars was an amazing anthology of all things Legend of the Dreamer. I loved the short stories so much and getting more of an insight into characters other than Calum and Kate. I also enjoyed the sneak peek at Shadow of the Sun, book two in the Legend of the Dreamer series. The deleted scenes from Light of the Moon were also interesting to read, giving me more of an insight into characters without an entire backstory. The information about the Order, the Orienos, the Warriors, Enchanters, and legends were helpful, interesting, and fun to read about. Shades of the Stars is the perfect anthology for fans of the Legend of the Dreamer series with everything fans could ever want.

The Witch’s Curse was Magda’s story and it was heartbreaking. I loved getting inside of her head and figuring out that she wasn’t always the way she was. She had hopes and dreams at one point, too. I liked her character in Light of the Moon, so getting to know her history was completely interesting to me. The story itself was written so beautifully.
“… the vein of love bleeds the darkest kind of magic.”
 “I could feel the darkness always. Feel it bend and break inside me; some dream only I could dream; some dawn only I could break; some life only I could take.”
The author has an amazing talent and his writing is poetic in nature, which was what I loved about Light of the Moon. It’s enchanting, lyrical, and absolutely beautiful.

The Warrior’s Code might be my favorite Legend of the Dreamer short story. I loved Zack and his fight was a tough one. His history was shocking and the insults, abuse, and teasing he had to deal with was horrifying. And yet, he is one of those absolutely wonderful people who are good through and through, no matter how difficult it is to be that way.

“…I wondered how mighty my own heart was, and if it would ever be as strong as Kai’s… Kai was someone I wanted to be.”
“Now was not the time for cold memories. I was better than them. I had to be.”

The Enchanter's Fire was amazing! Lily’s fear of not being able to control her own power resonated with me for some reason. Being told she was always out of control made her fear herself and second guess herself. And it was through the kindness and love of another person that she realized her own worth. I just loved her story. It was sweet and through the words of the author, even more poetic than I could ever explain.
“The best things are worth being afraid of, Lily. It’s when your heart starts beating fast that you know you’re doing something right.”
I loved getting inside the author’s head in the last few pages of Shades of the Stars. Author Helen Boswell interviewed David James and I loved seeing his answers to her fabulous questions.

I’m definitely a fan of the Legend of the Dreamer series and the author’s poetic style of writing. I highly recommend the series and this anthology is definitely something you don’t want to skip over. A lot of people tend to dismiss novella’s and in between short stories in series, but all of the short stories are wonderful and gave me terrific insight into the characters involved in the series. And I’ll always make time for the stories that the author publishes because they are written in such an incredible way.

The only negative thing I can say about the series is that the author’s writing is so intense and lyrical that I noticed I have to be in the mood for it. If I’m not feeling particularly romantic or deep, I find that it can be difficult to read. I only say that because I love the series so much and as much as I want others to read it, a word of caution is always helpful so that the right person reads it at the right time.

NOTE: Shades of the Stars is FREE this week (from 7/8 to 7/12) during the blog tour. Scroll down for the buy link!


About the Author:
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David James writes books about stars and kisses and curses. He is the author of the YA novel, LIGHT OF THE MOON, the first book in the Legend of the Dreamer duet, as well as the companion novellas, THE WITCH'S CURSE and THE WARRIOR’S CODE. A Legend of the Dreamer anthology, SHADES OF THE STARS, will be released in July 2013, and will include the exclusive novella, THE ENCHANTER'S FIRE. The final book in the duet, SHADOW OF THE SUN, will be released in late 2013. Living in Michigan, he is addicted to coffee, gummy things, and sarcastic comments. He enjoys bad movies, goofy moments, and shivery nights. Be sure to visit David’s blog and facebook to learn more about his various addictions and novels.

Author Links:

Twitter: @DJamesAuthor
Facebook: David James, Author
Blog: Paper Breaths of David James
Goodreads: David James


My Interview with Author David James:

 Me: What is your favorite part about being a writer?

David James: I love creating characters. It's weird to think about, that you're actually writing lives and emotions and feelings, but I love the concept. And I really enjoy writing fantasy.

What are the hardest scenes to write?

For me, writing the worlds is always the most difficult. Creating new worlds is hard, and to add the right amount of detail breaks me every single time. But I still love doing it, because the end result is so incredible.

Why do you write YA?

I write YA because of the urgency in which the characters fall in love. Simple as that. I love the way most YA character love so freely, so emotionally, and I think there's a lot to learn from them.

What is your all time favorite novel?

Oh, man. I don't know. If I had to pick ONE, it would probably be a Maggie Stiefvater novel. Shiver or maybe The Scorpio Races. 

Favorite fictional creature? Fictional character?

Harry Potter is pretty up there, and any creature in the Harry Potter world is fantastic.

Summer or Winter?

Autumn! 

Your book covers are gorgeous. Who designs your covers? If not you, do you have a say in the process?

Thanks so much! My covers are designed by Keary Taylor, who is both an incredibly talented designer and author. We both throw ideas around until we're happy with the end result, and I'm so thankful that they've all turned out as amazing as they have. I really love them, and Shades of the Stars might be my favorite one yet!

You often talk about diversity in books. What is your favorite book that serves as an example of a diverse novel?

I do. I think talking about diversity is important. Books should reflect the world, and the world is a variety of colors. I really enjoyed the diversity that was found in Harry Potter. If you look closely, there aren't too many cultures, sexualities, races, or ideas that weren't represented in Rowling's world. 

Author you'd love to meet?

Maggie Stiefvater! Though, I'd probably not know what to say.

Do you have a dream cast for any of characters in Shades of the Stars or the Legend of the Dreamer series?

Kind of. When I write, I find pictures of people who I think would best fit the characters so I'm always reminded of what they look like. For all my character, however, I picked models instead of actors, so I'm not even sure of their names! I didn't do it on purpose, so I may have to come up with a cast list sometime soon! I do think Alden Ehrenreich would make a great Calum, though. He played Ethan in Beautiful Creatures, and Ethan and Calum are very similar in a lot of ways.

Favorite book to movie adaptation?

Harry Potter! Or, actually, The Help was excellent.

Best writing fuel: coffee or tea?

COFFEE COFFEE COFFEE.
 
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Where to Buy Books in the Legend of the Dreamer Series:

Shades of the Stars (Legend of the Dreamer #1.5): Amazon
Shades of the Stars includes all of the Legend of the Dreamer novellas

Light of the Moon (Legend of the Dreamer #1): Amazon
 
 
GREAT NEWS!
 
The Kindle version of Shades of the Stars is FREE from 7/8 to 7/12!
 
Grab your copy: Amazon Kindle
 
 
 
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Blog Tour hosted by Dani at Crazy Girl Blog Tours




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