Nest Pitch Results: The Clearing

Nest Pitch is over, and wow, I really wasn't expected the results. I'm ecstatic to announce that Team Sugar Rush cleared up the contest!

Not only did I receive four agent requests, I got to meet loads of lovely, supportive authors. Can't wait to read all your books, guys.

If you'd like to read the opening 300 words of THE CLEARING, here's a link to the blog of my wonderful mentor, Louise Gornall, My whole manuscript is a lot stronger, thanks to her.

I've also worked on the cover using copy-right free images. I think I'm getting the hang of Paint.Net.

Despite danger lurking between the trees, the banished always run into the forest. Ruby doesn’t understand why. Until rebellious behaviour gets her sentenced. Now, Ruby is about to learn first-hand why the banished must run.

Sixteen-year-old Ruby is not supposed to question the way of her village life. She is expected to settle down with her best friend and focus on bearing children, all while respecting the whims of the local psychics. But Ruby is frustrated with living within the confines of ridiculous village rules, that is, until her increasing rebellious behaviour gets her sentenced.

Now, Ruby finds herself amongst the banished and facing a forest that has swallowed up so many before her. No one has ever returned from the trees alive, but no one seems to fear them either. Why, when all Ruby knows of them is monsters and madness? With no choice in the matter, Ruby is going to discover what it is about the forest that entices the sentenced to brave its demons.

Comments

Book Review: Children of Blood and Bone

CHILDREN OF BLOOD AND BONE by Tomi Adeyemi 5 Stars Verdict: So good it hurts. The night magic died, Zélie watched her mother's murder as the Maji were slaughtered. Now Zélie has a chance to bring back magic. With the help of her brother and a rogue princess, she must outrun the crown prince and battle her self-doubts to restore magic to the world. This West-African inspired fantasy is powerful and all round awesome from start to finish. The writing is emotive and imaginative, the pacing is as perfect as it gets, and the characters are real with flaws and charm. I hardly know what to say. A brilliant book like this tells the editor in me to shut up and enjoy the ride, so I'd need to read it again to offer more of a critique. If every book was as good as this one, I would never be able to stop reading. The struggles, anger, and pain are carved into this book so deeply that the desires bleed through the pages and the triumphs feel earned. The emotion in this book is ...

Book Review: The Astonishing Colour of After

THE ASTONISHING COLOUR OF AFTER by Emily X.R. Pan 4 Stars Verdict : A synesthesiastic tale of dealing with loss. When Leigh's mother commits suicide, she visits Leigh as a bright red bird. Leigh follows her mother's memories to Taiwan to meet her grandparents for the first time and to try to understand her mother's passing. For a book so sad, it's very colourful. Leigh often shares her emotions as colours and it works very well, especially as the book travels through a whole river of emotions. It shows a battle lost, families broken, and the dark struggles of depression through the lives of Leigh and her family. To anyone affected by depression and suicide, this book contains those triggers. I felt it handled these themes with tender care and respect, without glamorising suicide or mental illness. The author also went to great lengths to portray a single instance of depression, and even clarifies at the end note that the story isn't mean to explain away d...

Book Review: Forest of a Thousand Lanterns

FOREST OF A THOUSAND LANTERNS by Julie Dao 5 Stars Verdict: Rich, gradual, and gory. Xiefeng is destined to be Empress of Feng Lu, but only if she lets the darkness guide her... I’ll admit, I can only read one high fantasy story a year and it has to really stand out. In this case, the East-Asia mythology aspect of this one drew me in within an instant. The darkness of the story, the unconventional twists in the relationships, and the gorgeous writing had me slithering through this book slower to enjoy it for longer. I always know a book has me where it wants me as soon as I stop counting pages. Xiefeng is an antihero I could get behind. She’s jealous, selfish, righteous – but her desires, suffering, and efforts and so strong, I rooted for her all the same. For a writer to make me like someone who is morally grey is a kind of magic I want to understand more. There’s no crescendo for this book. No huge twist or gut-wrenching moment which turns the book back on itself. That’...

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