Saturday 31 October 2015

Fire walker (The Worldwalker Trilogy #2) by Josephine Angelini

22469323Book Blurb (From goodreads)
Worlds divide, magic slays, and love lies in the second book of Josephine Angelini’s The Worldwalker Trilogy.
"You think I’m a monster, but my choices, as ruthless as they seem, are justified."
Lily is back in her own universe, and she's ready to start a new life with Rowan by her side. True, she almost died in the Pyre that fueled their escape from New Salem, and must hide her magic for the safety of everyone she cares about, but compared to fighting the Woven, the monstrous creatures inhabiting the alternate Salem, life is looking pretty good.
Unfortunately, Lillian, ruthless ruler of the 13 Cities, is not willing to let Lily go that easily. If she can’t persuade Lily to return to her world, she will force her to come back by doing away with the ones she loves.
Picking up right where Trial By Fire left off, Firewalker is another sexy, fast-paced, heart-breaking thrill ride from internationally bestselling author Josephine Angelini!


My Review:
I was looking out for This book for so long that when I finally saw it whilst passing a book store I just had to get it right then and there.
The plot in this book was intriguing and probably the only reason that I liked this book so much. It kept you on the edge of you're seat and twisted what you know in such a way that by the end of the book you are not quite sure who the bad guy is or if there ever is a bad guy. I took place in the two parallel universes, Lilly's at the beginning and Lillian's for the rest of the story.
A lot of new character were also introduced into this book which made it a lot more diverse and added in a lot more mystery into the book. Lilly and Lillian were very hard to understand in this book. They are so much more similar than I ever realised. They had a lot more contact in this book, through mind speak, and we saw a lot more of Lillian's background and start to understand the reasoning behind all of her actions. Because of this we also see how Lilly is almost turning into a better version of Lillian because she is learning from all of Lillian's past mistakes.
I have to say it, but the writing was often sloppy. Especially at the beginning. The dialog was so bad sometimes that I needed to cringe. I think that she was trying to hard to sound like a teenager would that she almost lost the character's voice in the process.
All in all I give it 3 out of 5 stars. The story was gripping, I just hated the writing style.


Wednesday 21 October 2015

Magic to Memphis: What if your life is working from the inside out? by Julie Starr

Book Blurb (from Goodreads):
Music, murder and everyday magic.
Jessie is seventeen years old, a runaway musician living rough in a trailer with a pit bull dog called Bear. That’s fine by Jessie; she’s got big plans. A music contest in Memphis offers the chance of money, fame and escape from a nowhere town with no real prospects.
Turns out there’s more in Memphis than music. When Jessie’s mom sends her a box of things belonging to her dad, she finds out that he made the same trip years ago. She’s determined to find him, but has no idea that the ring her dad left her is being hunted by a sadistic killer. Nor does she realize that he will stop at nothing to get it back.
Suddenly, a simple music contest turns into a fight for survival and only a puzzling traveler called Finch has the answers Jessie needs. But will she listen? And can she trust in herself enough to change her luck and make magic happen?


My Review

***I received the eBook free as a review copy from the author/publisher in exchange for an honest review***

This was a really captivating and unique book.
I absolutely enjoyed this book. It had just the right mix of contemporary, mystery and magic. What I really liked, was that the magic wasn't the typical elemental magic; it was a light, everyday magic. This book revolved around a seventeen year old girl called Jessie, who ran away from home to search for her father who went to Memphis to become a big musician. On the way, Jessie became part of a rogue band in Dorma and her goal is to go to Memphis and find out more about her father, because he never returned to his family.
I was pleasantly surprised when I read this book, because it was definitely not what I was expecting. The writing captivated me from the very beginning; however, I was very confused at the start about what was happening. Then I really loved how the story progressed from then on. The slight mix of magic in this otherwise contemporary book was really well done. I also liked the plot and the action. Close to the end was an emotional part and really well written. Another part that could be worked on, was the perspective switches. They seemed a bit abrupt and so was the transition from Jessie's dreams back to the waking world, because the dreams seemed random at first and I had no idea what was going on.
The characters were well-rounded and had their own unique personalities. My favourite characters by far are Finch and Bear. Bear was just so adorable and the way he always follows Jessie around and tries to protect her is really cute.Finch was a very interesting character. He is a journalist and wrote an article in the newspaper about everyday magic. He always seems so calm, innocent and wise at the same time, which is a strange mix that works out for him.
Overall, I loved how the story worked out, especially the closer I got to the end. I was captivated from the start and always wanted to keep on reading.
Finally, I give this book 4 out of 5 stars!

Saturday 17 October 2015

Queen Of Shadows (Throne of Glass #4) by Sarah J.Maas

18006496The queen has returned.

Everyone Celaena Sardothien loves has been taken from her. But she’s at last returned to the empire—for vengeance, to rescue her once-glorious kingdom, and to confront the shadows of her past…

She has embraced her identity as Aelin Galathynius, Queen of Terrasen. But before she can reclaim her throne, she must fight.

She will fight for her cousin, a warrior prepared to die for her. She will fight for her friend, a young man trapped in an unspeakable prison. And she will fight for her people, enslaved to a brutal king and awaiting their lost queen’s triumphant return.

The fourth volume in the New York Times bestselling series continues Celaena’s epic journey and builds to a passionate, agonizing crescendo that might just shatter her world.



My Review:
I have waited a year for this book and was devastated when I finally got it that I couldn't read it because I had to read another book. I needed to lock the book away from myself whilst I read that book to stop myself reading it, it was that good.
The plot of this book was so fast paced and unpredictable that I barely had time to breath before we were off on the next problem/fight/adventure. We pick off about maybe three days from Heir of Shadows, maybe a little longer, it's kind of hard to judge. Aelin/Celaena is in a pub and that is about the only real calm that we get before everything goes to hell and a million question are raised. The fight scenes were some of the best in the series and were spread out well throughout the book so we never went too long before seeing someone's nose being smashed in. There were moments when I questioned what was going on. I knew that there was a plan. I just never knew what it was, that made a good surprise when something seems to go horribly wrong and you throw the book across the room, go to pick it up, keep on reading, and find out on the next page that it was all part of the plan. *sighs* If you have read the book you probably know what part that I am talking about...
Aelin/Celeana was different in this book, but in a good way. She seemed less sure in the decisions that she was making but she rarely looked back after she made them. She second guessed herself a lot less after a decision was made. She also seemed to step into the role of becoming Queen of Terrasen a lot better after she had finally accepted who she was at the end of Heir of Fire. Rowan was by far my favourite character in this book. We really got to see a lot more of him and his character development in this book was significant. You would never guess that he is the same character that we met just one book ago.
If you haven't read this book or this series yet, I do not know what you are doing with you're life. Why are you still reading this? Go! Buy it! Read it! Because I'm giving this book 5 out of 5 stars. 

Thursday 15 October 2015

Book Blitz - Canvas Bound by Laura M. Kolar


Canvas Bound by Laura M. Kolar
(Captive Art #1)
Publication date: July 3rd 2013
Genres: Fantasy, Romance,
Young Adult
Book Blurb:

Sixteen-year-old Libby Tanner’s art comes to life. Her painted skies turn from day to night, leaves rustle on trees, and sometimes, a mystery boy appears.
While attending England’s Aldridge Art Academy, Libby meets charming Brent Henderson, a performing arts student who showers her with attention. But his rival, gorgeous Dean James, is the one who occupies her mind, even though he’s very much attached to his current girlfriend.
Libby soon learns there’s more to both Brent and Dean than she ever imagined. In order to save her future and the boy who’s captured her heart, she must unlock the secrets behind her art by entering the most dangerous place of all… the world within her paintings.
But once she steps into the canvas, she risks being trapped forever.


Purchase (The book will be on sale for 0.99c during the blitz.)


AUTHOR BIO
Laura M. Kolar lives with her husband and daughter in a one-stop-light town in northern-lower Michigan. Though she didn't discover her love of books until she turned thirty, as a self-declared hopeless romantic, she has spent the past few years reading and writing stories with mostly happy endings. If not at her day-job or with her family, you will find her sipping a cup of chai latte while sitting in her favorite rocking chair, hunched over her laptop writing or spending entirely too much time on Twitter.

Author links:

 Guest Post:

It’s been over a year since I’ve written anything. Sure, I’ve opened a few of my old manuscripts and looked at them, maybe changed a few words here and there. But to add actual word count has been more than a struggle.
Some of you authors out there are gasping right about now. How can she call herself a writer when she doesn’t write? Well, while I may not have added word count, I’ve never stopped thinking about writing or brainstorming story ideas. I just can’t seem to pen words to paper (or type them). Even writing this post has taken me more time than I care to admit.
When I sit down, thinking I have some time to work, I get completely stuck. Not just writer’s block, it’s a major malfunction. Somewhere between my head and my hands there is a disconnect.
It’s to the point where I’ve seriously considered trying to find a ghostwriter. Is that cheating? I should be able to figure out the dialog, or at the very least describe the scenery, but even those things have been elusive.
This past weekend, I participated in a book festival with a bunch of other author’s and I thought to myself, I wonder if any of them have struggled this badly before. Feeling like a failure at something you love to do is probably one of the worst feelings ever. The best comparison I can come up with is that it feels like I’m continually sending rejection letters to myself.
I keep waiting for that breakthrough moment when all my ideas fall together perfectly and the story flows out like a gushing waterfall of words. But how long should I keep waiting? When is the point where you just start typing nonsense and hope that you’ll be able to edit it into a presentable piece of work? I don’t know.
I also don’t know why or how it happened. Maybe I just got too busy with other things. Maybe it’s because I started a new day job. Maybe it’s because my laptop keeps telling me the battery is at the end of its useful life. Most likely it’s a combination of many factors all rolled into one giant jumbled ball of goo, keeping me from my goal of publishing more books.
Though, however long it takes for whatever it is that needs to be straightened out, I’ll be ready. Because there will always be another story to dream up. My imagination isn’t dead. The follow through is just on hiatus for a bit. 

And here's an excerpt from the book:

CHAPTER ONE

I paced my studio floor as evening descended on the field in my painting. The sparse oak trees cast lengthening shadows on the acorn-littered ground, where the grass was more golden brown than green. The sunny sky became a star-filled night, and the field turned murky as the shadows faded into the black oblivion... just like my mystery boy.

He’d vanished.Again.So did the rush of him appearing in my finished work, my joy squelched by the

expression on his face. Usually he wore a smile—a sad one, but still a smile. That night, he’d just looked miserable.

I stopped pacing and stared at the canvas, reaching out to the spot where I’d last seen him. Maybe if I could touch him or knew where he went when he disappeared, I wouldn’t feel so hollow from his absence.

An icy trail ran down my arm a moment before my fingers grazed the wet paint. I pulled away, checking to make sure I hadn’t smeared the field. It was the first time he’d appeared since I’d arrived at Aldridge, and I didn’t want to ruin whatever connection I had to him. My hands shook as I picked at my nails, which were coated in splatters of color from painting all day. A glimpse of him, sad or not, had been enough to keep me working, hoping to see him again. I’d picked my fingers mostly clean when a knock came from the door to the adjoining room.

Please go away.

The knock came again, more urgent.

If you’re here, he won’t come back.

He wouldn’t anyway, though. He never came to the same painting twice.

“Libby, if you don’t open this door, I’m going to break it down.” Travis sounded more concerned than angry.

I sighed heavily as I dragged myself across my studio and into my bedroom, kicking a path through my discarded clothes to open the door. “This is solid walnut and has a steel lock. You’d only hurt yourself trying to break it down.”

“Hmm... good point.” His eyebrows knitted as he gave me a once-over. “Did you forget, or are you wearing that to dinner?”

I glanced down at my paint-covered T-shirt and jeans. “This is what I always wear to dinner.”

“Right. Surprise, surprise. Olivia Tanner forgot.” He breezed past me, patting my shoulder on his way to my bathroom where my closet and dresser were located. “You’re lucky you have me as your social director,” he said, ducking behind the door.

He wasn’t joking. If not for Travis, I’d probably never leave my private suite. We’d met two weeks ago, on my first day at Aldridge Art Academy. He’d enrolled several months before me and was assigned as my student liaison, a job he took very seriously. We were both from the States and had clicked right away—probably because he was the only person I’d ever met who liked Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall movies as much as I did.

Travis emerged from my bathroom, holding up my red dress. “You’re also lucky you have me as a fashion consultant.”

I hadn’t been paying attention to what he was wearing, but as he stood waving the gossamer fabric between us, I noticed his white shirt, black coat, slacks, and tie. His usually

tousled blond hair was combed neatly, and he wasn’t covered in bits of clay from sculpting all day.

“Oh, crap. I forgot.”

“Yep, we’ve established that.” He thrust the dress at me. “I know you’d rather stay locked in your room like an old maid and sniff paint fumes all night, but trust me, you do not want to miss this.”

I grabbed the dress and glared at him. “I don’t sniff the fumes. My studio is well ventilated. And if you’re telling me I don’t want to miss a fluffy dinner where a bunch of teenage girls ogle over a bunch of teenage boys, sorry. Not for me.”

“See, that is something an old maid would say, and you are a teenage girl.” He shook his finger at me. “Or did you lie about being sixteen?”

“No, I didn’t lie. I’m sixteen going on seventeen, not seventy.”

“Anyway...” He waved me off.. “I hear there’s a fresh batch of cute guys, and you haven’t met any of the performing arts students yet. Most of them are great people.” “Most of them?” I put one hand on my hip, the other still clutching my dress.

“Well, I don’t know all of them. Yet.” He waggled his eyebrows. “But the point is, you have to come out of your studio, and this dinner is mandatory.”

Huffing at him, I flung the dress over my shoulder and stomped into the bathroom. After an impressively fast shower, I pulled my chestnut hair into a bun and fastened it with bobby pins, allowing a few curls to fall around my neck. I stepped into my dress, glad I’d shaved recently, and tugged at the hem. The style reminded me of the famous Marilyn Monroe image, the one with her skirt billowing up around her. Mine had the same plunging neckline and gathered waist.

I’d thought I brought a simple black dress, the one I always wore to gallery showings. But sometime after I’d packed my garment bag, my mom swapped it for this one, with a note that read, “Saw this and thought of you. For a girl who sees the world in such vivid colors, you should dress that way, too. Wish I could see you in it. You always look beautiful in red. Love, Mom.” I sucked in a deep breath, willing away my thoughts of home as I tugged at the hem again.

“You almost done?” Travis called from the other room. “We’re going to be late.”

“I still can’t believe they make us do this.” I applied some foundation, wishing I were painting a canvas instead of my face.

“You mean independent study and no one enforcing a ridiculous curfew isn’t enough freedom for you? Wait. Don’t answer that. If your parents had any idea how loose they actually are with the rules around here, they would yank you out so fast it would make my head spin. Oh, the scandal! Teenagers sneaking in and out of each other’s rooms under the cover of night. Anyway, think of it like an assembly, England’s Emily Aldridge Academy of Arts’ special brand of torture.”

I laughed at his horrible attempt at a British accent as he uttered our prep school’s original name. “I thought you said no cell phones and blocked social media sites were their own special brand of torture?”

“Yes, well, they want us to be free-spirited, just not over the Internet.” He sighed. “At least tonight is better than one of my parents’ stupid dinner parties. I have to pretend to be someone I’m not at those.”

“I’ll let you be whomever you want if you let me skip tonight.” I dabbed my lips with a tissue then picked up my jewelry from the counter. “I’m going to lose several hours of painting time, and I’ll probably be out of the mood when dinner is over.”

“Even you don’t believe that. You’re never out of the mood to paint. But sure, I’ll let you skip tonight. You can skip out the door, down the hall, and all the way to the dining room. Though if your goal is to not draw attention to yourself, I’d suggest walking.”

I didn’t respond as I fumbled with my necklace. The delicate silver chain held a single teardrop-shaped topaz, my birthstone. Eventually, I gave up trying to get it on and opened the bathroom door.

“Whoa!” His sky-blue eyes grew to the size of saucers.I glanced down at myself. “Too much?”He stood up from my desk chair and circled around me. “No, but I’m seriously

questioning my sexuality right now.”I rolled my eyes and dangled the necklace in front of him. “I need help with this.”“I’m serious, Libby. You’re...” He took the chain and fastened the clasp with ease before

his gaze wandered down to my plunging neckline. “Eyes up here,” I said.

His lips spread in a wide Cheshire cat grin. “Sorry, even I can appreciate a nice rack.” “Well, don’t get used to it.” I smoothed down my skirt.“I won’t. But this”—he waved his hand at me—“is not the way to avoid attention.” “That’s it.” I gritted my teeth, realizing my rack would soon be on display for the whole

student body. “I’m chang—”

“Oh no, you don’t.” He grabbed my hand. “We’re late, and besides, in my opinion, not even your cleavage beats a well-defined six-pack on Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome.”

“You win.” I pulled my hand from his grasp. “Let’s go.” I slipped on my black heels and made my way to the door. “You coming?”

“Yep, just enjoying the view.” He shut the door to my suite behind us. “Committing it to memory actually. It may never happen again.”

I glanced over my shoulder, almost wishing I’d let him try to break down the door. I didn’t want him to get hurt, but I would’ve had more time to paint.
The giveaway is in the sidebar!

Wednesday 14 October 2015

What a Load of Rubbish by Martin R. Etheridge

Book Blurb (from Goodreads):
Malcolm Tilsley is a street cleaner. He is well educated and smart and clean. And being a street cleaner is all he ever wanted to be. Street cleaning is a family tradition, it's in his blood, and he wants to be the best there has been. Willy Eckerslike, Managing Director of Suburbiaville Newtown council has different ideas and wants to replace Malcolm with a fantastic vehicle called the "All-in-One-Der". Manned by Rubbish Robots, the mobile wheelie-bins equipped with mechanical arms and different attachments are faster, more efficient and cheaper than humans. It makes Malcolm redundant. What A Load of Rubbish is a brilliant mix of social theory, human spirit and classical heroism that culminates in a battle between man and machine.




My Review 

***I received the eBook free as a review copy from the author/publisher in exchange for an honest review***

This was a short and entertaining book to read.
What a Load of Rubbish follows the story of Malcolm Tilsley, who was a street cleaner since 20 years. However, the Council created a machine, that would clean faster and more efficiently than Malcolm. He then starts sulking and becomes seriously sick. Afterwards, he challenges this new cleaning vehicle to a contest: man versus machine.
I found this book interesting and it was also a fast read, for it was shorter than the books I normally read. It was captivating to read and the atmosphere was very light and humourous. I really liked the conversational tone the writer used to tell the story, which makes you want to keep on reading and is captivating. However, I thought that the events were too coincidental. Something has to lead to these events, they can't just happen.
The characters were very stereotypical. Malcolm was way too nice and was trying too hard to do his job. Gisele was an alright character, even though she was over-the-top most of the times. There were a lot of other minor characters, who played a role in the story; however, they didn't really have an unique personality. As an example, Willy Echerslike was the normal stereotypical bad and mean boss. He tried to be the top and doesn't care about other people. The characters aren't complex and weren't very interesting. What eventually became a big let-down for me was that the different accents and dialects were definitely overdone. Especially Gisele's German accent, because the author wrote the English words as they sound with a German accent. The same was for the different English dialects.
Overall, the book was fun to read even though it wasn't very exciting. It was a light read; however, I thought that the events cannot just happen without anything leading up to it. The characters and their accents were stereotypical. The accents kind of made them difficult to understand in some cases, so I was confused about what they are saying.
Finally, I give this book 3 out of 5 stars.

Thursday 8 October 2015

Laura Tisdall - "Echoes"

Laura Tisdall

Hey! This time we interviewed Laura Tisdall. She is the author of the amazing book "Echoes", we really recommend you to read it! Here is the interview:
 
1) What inspired you to write "Echoes"?

I've long been a fan of 'spy-fi' TV shows like Alias and Fringe, that are contemporary but merge big arcing, emotional storylines with elements of science fiction or future tech. Echoes isn't science fiction, but the main character Mallory is a cutting edge computer hacker, so I suppose I was aiming for something in that kind of vein. I think the question of online idenity vs real life persona - and how we reconcile the two - is also a big issue nowadays, so that was something I really wanted to explore as well.


2) How did you come up with the character names? Are their personalities based off your life?

The names come from a sort of trial and error process, as in I'll have a concept for a character and I'll write out lots of different names that might suit them. I'll also look through lots of lists of baby names, trying to find the right one. It can take a while, but generally there'll be a point where a certain name will jump out for a certain character and just click. In terms of personalities, none of the characters are based on my life, but I suppose I'd say there are elements of it or experiences I've had that have informed why they are how they are. 


3) What have you learned from writing?

That things are rarely perfect the first time! Revising and being prepared to try and look at things again in a different light can be helpful in lots of areas of life. The other thing writing has taught me is to be pretty thick skinned about criticism (or at least more so)! Although it can feel like it, most creative criticism is not a personal attack, but coming from something in your work genuinely not chiming rightly with another person. It's absolutely fine to disagree, but also sometimes identifying the source of that discord can be really helpful in ultimately improving the work.


4) If you could hack as well as Mallory, what would you do?

Probably not hacking! I think I'd use the skills to do something like software programming. That always looks rather cool. And it's legal - which is obviously a plus.


5) What are you working on now?
The first book I wrote, Tainted Earth, hasn't been published yet, but it was supposed to be the start of a trilogy. It's still a story I really want to tell, so I've started to go back and look at the sequel to it again, with a view to finishing them and hopefully eventually releasing all three.

Don't forget to check out our reviews for "Echoes" here

Wednesday 7 October 2015

Die Erste Schlacht (Zauberer-Trilogy #2) by Michael Peinkofer

Book Blurb (from Goodreads):
Erdwelt am Rande des Krieges: Die Orks überschreiten die Grenze der Modermark. Die Menschen rüsten zum Angriff, um das Joch der Elfenherrschaft abzuschütteln. Doch die größte Gefahr droht durch einen gerissenen, unheimlichen Feind - den Dunkelelfen Margok, der noch immer nicht besiegt ist. Die drei jungen Zauberer Granock, Aldur und Alannah werden damit betraut, in einem zerstörten Tempel nach Hinweisen auf den Verbleib des Dunkelelfen zu suchen. Jenseits der tiefen Dschungel Aruns stoßen sie nicht nur auf ein uraltes Geheimnis und eine verschollene Zivilisation. Sie müssen auch erfahren, wo die Grenzen ihrer Freundschaft liegen. Und im Norden entbrennt die schicksalhafte Schlacht um die Zukunft von Erdwelt ...




My Review
This was a decent sequel to an amazing first book.
The book continues the story of Granock, Aldur and Alannah. Now they aren't novices anymore, after having completed their studies and believing that they have stopped the Darkelf from returning to life. But now there are rumours that the Darkelf is actually still alive and the three young magicians are dispatched to find hints.
I'm not saying that I didn't like the book. However, I definitely enjoyed the first book way more than this book. The first book was exciting to read, while this book was quite boring for half of the book. I really wanted to like this book as much as the other book. The first book was amazing on so many levels, this book was missing many important aspects though. The first half was lacking action, there was some kicking in during the second half. The humour was missing as well, which was an enjoyable factor in the first book. However, I still liked this book, even though it wasn't as great as its prequel.
The characters had a standstill and even a step back in their character development. Aldur went back to being plain annoying because he thought he was so high and mighty and above everyone else, including his best friend Granock.Granock was the same as before, although the epicness of his character was a bit toned down. I found that I liked Alannah a lot more in this book, because she seemed more like a real character.
Overall, the writing style did still make the book an enjoyable read, especially when the actual fighting started happening in the second half of the book and the tension was building. The first half was kind of a let-down after the awesomeness that was the first book.
Maybe I am rating this book a bit harsher than it is, but due to the first half of the book and the slight disappointment I felt because of it, I am giving this book 3 out of 5 stars.

Tuesday 6 October 2015

Michael Peinkofer - "Die Zauberer"

Michael Peinkofer
Hi guys! This time we interviewed the author Michael Peinkofer, who wrote the amazing German book series called "Zauberer-Trilogy" which I recently read. This is our first German interview, so this is quite exciting for us. Here is the interview!

1) Was hat Sie inspiriert "Die Zauberer" zu schreiben?
Während der Arbeit an der Orks-Trilogie (die mittlerweile eine Tetralogie ist :-) ist viel Material über die Zeit der Hochelfen und den Zweiten Krieg zusammengekommen, in dem sich Menschen und Orks verbündet haben. Also fand ich, dass es eine gute Idee wäre, diese Geschichte zu erzählen, die ca. 1000 Jahre vor den Abenteuern der Orks spielt. Die "Könige"-Trilogie spielt dann übrigens 500 Jahre später, nimmt aber immer wieder Bezug zu den "Zauberern".
2) Wie haben Sie Erdwelt und die Elfische Sprache erfunden? Wie sind die verschiedenen Figuren entstanden?
Wie Meister Tolkien habe auch ich mich als "Basissprache" des Walisischen bedient, um die Elfensprache zu gestalten - für die Orksprache habe ich hingegen das schottische Gälisch als Muster benutzt. Das hat den Vorteil, dass solche Kunstsprachen sehr viel realistischer wirken, als wenn sie bloß ausgedacht sind. Die Figuren kommen meist von ganz allein, wenn ich die Geschicht in groben Zügen im Kopf habe - ihre Charaktereigenschaften, ihre Stärken und Schwächen  usw.
3) Wenn Sie irgeneine Gabe haben könnten, was wäre sie?
Das Wetter beeinflussen zu können, wäre manchmal ganz praktisch. Obwohl - man könnte es wohl nie allen recht machen ...
4) Welche Bücher haben Ihr Leben am meisten beeinflusst?
Mein Leben als Autor wurde ganz sicher von Tolkien am meisten beeinflusst - die Antwort lautet also "Der Herr der Ringe".
5) Woran arbeiten Sie zurzeit? Was ist Ihr nächstes Project?
Nachdem ich die "Könige"-Trilogie abgeschlossen habe - der dritte Band "Sieg der Könige" ist gerade erschienen und wird auf der Frankfurter Buchmesse vorgestellt -, bin ich gerade dabei die beiden Orks Balbok und Rammar in einem fünften Abenteuer zurückkehren zu lassen, das ein bislang noch unbeleuchtetes Kapitel der Erdwelt-Geschichte behandelt. Und danach geht es - wohl schon im kommenden Frühjahr - in eine ganz neue Fantasy-Welt mit ganz neuen Figuren ...

Don't forget to check out my review for "Die Zauberer" here