E.J. Wesley's Winter Thrills and Chills Tour

I'm hosting a stop on  E.J. Wesley's Winter Thrills and Chills Tour for his Moonsongs Series.  This tour is running January 6-17 and consists of reviews, interviews, top tens, guest posts and of course, giveaways!  Be sure to check out the tour page for the full list of stops.

Interview

1) First, tell us about yourself – where you live, your family, and those sorts of details.

I live in Northern California right now by way of South Texas (by way of Missouri, by way of Oklahoma). :) We haven't lived here all that long, but so far Napa and San Francisco are as cool as advertised. My wife and I have two dogs (rescued mutts), one of whom (a beagle-mix named Alex) likes to thwart my writing time by insisting I throw something (Frisbee,  ball--whatever) for her to retrieve. Constantly. 

2) How long have you been writing?

With the ambition of publishing fiction, around 7 years. Professionally, 12 or so. (I worked as a grant writer for a few years...)

3) Do you have a favorite place to write?

Coffee shops are great! I seem to be more productive away from home. All the external "noise" seems to help me focus on nothing but my work.  But I usually end up in my little home office plugging away with hounds underfoot (or desk).

4) Why did you decide to write Moonsongs Anthology?

I wanted to try my hand at a short-fiction series. I'm really inspired by my favorite TV shows (Lost, Battlestar Galactica, Walking Dead, Fringe, etc.), so I wanted to see if I could create a similar experience with words. The second aspect of it was that I wanted to create something a character in her early 20s trying to find herself--just with monsters and stuff instead of professors and jobs. :) 

 5) Who is your favorite character in your book and why?

Jenny (the heroine) is great. She's tough, determined, and a smart a$$. But I'd have to say Marshal (her BFF) might be my favorite. It's hard to distinguish them for me because they're really two halves of one complete person. (Neither is whole without the other.) But Marshal is a little softer, and a little more willing to let his vulnerabilities guide him. Yet he's also something of a smart a$$. So it really probably depends on the scene. 

6) How about your least favorite character? What makes them less appealing to you?

There's this guy named Bill in the 3rd story (Dark Prelude). He's such a huge jerk! LOL He's bigoted, sexist--you name it. And people in Jenny's small town actually somewhat look up to the guy. He gets under my skin for sure.

7) Do you proofread/edit your own books or do you get someone to do that for you?

I always use an outside editor. While I definitely do a few rounds of my own, there's just no way I can distance myself enough from it to catch all the little things. After I've read each of these stories a dozen or more times first-word-to-last-word, things tend to blend together. I need those extra sets of eyes.

8) What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

When I'm not writing, I like to play the guitar, video games, watch movies, read, watch/play sports, and draw/paint. I'm rarely sick (which is a miracle because my wife works in a hospital), but when I am I'm a total baby about it.

9) Do you read much and if so who are your favorite authors?

Yes! I read all the time. My favorite modern authors are Stephen King, Neil Gaiman, George R. R. Martin, John Green, Jim Butcher, and J.K. Rowling. But I really don't stick to one author. I read pretty much anything you stick under my nose. Getting me to sit still long enough to stick something under my nose is the problem! :)

10) What question do you wish that someone would ask about your book, but nobody has? Write it out here, then answer it.

I wish someone would ask me: What's the overall message or point to the Moonsongs stories? 

Because they're urban fantasy and shorter, I feel like there's some presupposition that there's not really a big theme or anything of substance as far as character depth is concerned. And there actually is! I've had several readers (of various ages) tell me how much they relate to Jenny. She starts the first story a little jaded and hardened by life. She's lost in this small town, understood by really only one person in the world (Marshal), and has no real connection to her ancestry or family. (Most of them are dead.) So it's really a story (stories) about self-discovery and friendship as much as it is about fighting dragons, werewolves, and such. 

~Book 1 - Blood Fugue~

“Some folks treated the past like an old friend. The memories warmed them with fondness for what was, and hope for what was to come. Not me. When I thought of long ago, my insides curdled, and I was left feeling sour and wasted.”

Jenny Schmidt is a young woman with old heartaches. A small town Texas girl with big city attitude, she just doesn’t fit in. Not that she has ever tried. 

Life has pummeled her heart into one big, lonely callus. She has no siblings, both parents were dead by sixteen, and her last grandparent—and caretaker—was in the ground before she turned twenty-one. She’s the last living member of her immediate family. Or so she thinks…

“We found my ‘grandfather’ sitting at his dining room table. An entire scorched pot of coffee dangled from his shaky hand. His skin was the ashen gray shade of thunderclouds, not the rich mocha from the photo I’d seen. There were dark blue circles under each swollen red eye. A halo of white hair skirted his bald head, a crown of tangles and mats. Corpses had more life in them.”

Suddenly, instead of burying it with the dead, Jenny is forced to confront the past. Armed only with an ancient family journal, her rifle, and an Apache tomahawk, she must save her grandfather’s life and embrace her dangerous heritage. Or be devoured by it.

Amazon | Smashwords | Barnes & Noble| iBooks | Goodreads

~Book 2 - Witch's Nocturne~

After receiving an ancient tribal journal from her grandfather, Jenny is sent on a mission of discovery in an attempt to unravel clues to her family's monster hunting past. The journey becomes more than academic when she is asked to confront a coven of dangerous witches who plan to cast an insidious spell on the plains of West Texas.

Amazon |  Barnes & Noble |  Smashwords | iBooks | Goodreads

 ~Book 3 - Dark Prelude~

 

Jenny Moonsong recently inherited the title of "monster hunter" and an ancient tribal journal/how-to manual passed down by her Apache ancestors. Unfortunately, a lot of on-the-job training is required to be a monster hunter, and unlike her computer repair business, this gig could literally kill her.

Dark Prelude finds the feisty protagonist, Jenny, searching for her best friend Marshal's missing father in the midst of a freak, West Texas winter storm. To survive the frigid night, she'll have to deal with a hated town rival, face a monstrous creature no Moonsong hunter has ever encountered before, and undo a mysterious curse. Can she keep everyone alive? If not, who will pay the ultimate price?

Amazon | Smashwords | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Goodreads

~Book 4: Dragon's Game~

Jenny Moonsong recently inherited the title of "monster hunter" and an ancient tribal journal/how-to manual passed down by her Apache ancestors. She has already faced a werewolf, witches, and a troll. But nothing could prepare her for her latest confrontation...

Dragon's Game, Moonsongs Book 4, finds Jenny out of her rural West Texas element, searching for an evil witch in an urban Houston nightclub. After attempting to help a handsome and mysterious stranger out of a jam, she finds herself on the run from a ruthless gang who are even more dangerous than they initially appear.

Forced into a twisted game of life and death, Jenny must navigate the complexity of a budding relationship, and somehow survive a night filled with unexpected horror and paranormal mystery.

Dragon's Game is approximately 14,000 words or 45 pages of humor, horror and paranormal mystery. It is the fourth volume of the Moonsongs Books, an ongoing series of New Adult, urban fantasy novelettes by author E.J. Wesley.

Amazon  |   Barnes & Noble |  Goodreads

~Book 5- Vampire's Ball~

Jenny Moonsong recently inherited the title of "monster hunter" and an ancient tribal journal/how-to manual passed down by her Apache ancestors. Being a girl of action, she has found herself particularly capable when it comes to battling the werewolves, trolls, and other supernatural denizens lurking in the Texas night. Until now.

Vampire's Ball, Moonsongs book 5, finds Jenny and her best friend Marshal in their most harrowing adventure yet. Traveling by boat to an extravagant masquerade party located at a Galveston Island mansion, Jenny must parlay with an ancient vampire in order to secure the release of the dragon princes, Isis. The unexpected return of an old "friend" turns the evening into chaos, and leaves Jenny and company once again fighting for survival amidst a sea of supernatural foes.

Vampire's Ball is approximately 12,500 words of humor, horror and paranormal mystery. It is the fifth volume of the Moonsongs Books, an ongoing series of New Adult, urban fantasy novelettes by author E.J. Wesley.

Amazon  |   Barnes & Noble |  Goodreads

~Moonsongs Anthology~

The Moonsongs Anthology 1 collects the first three Moonsongs books--a series of New Adult paranormal-horror-action novelettes--in one exciting volume. Follow Jenny and her best friend Marshal on their dangerous quest to unlock the secrets of her past.

Moonsongs Anthology 1 collects the three previously published Moonsongs adventures: Blood Fugue (Book 1), Witch's Nocturne (Book 2), and Dark Prelude (Book 3).

Available in print & eBook via Amazon  | Goodreads

~About the Author~

Growing up in small-town Oklahoma, there were limits on the amount and types of entertainment at my disposal. Perhaps that’s why I set my imagination free. After collecting degrees in psychology and counseling, life brought me to Missouri, Texas, and Northern California—where I currently read, write, and live. I fill my spare time playing video games, watching movies, planning for the zombie apocalypse, reading graphic novels, and playing with my dogs.

My passion for New Adult literature led me to producing the weekly New Adult Lit Chat on Twitter, and contributing to the NA Alley Blog. I’m also the author of the Moonsongs Books, a series of New Adult, speculative-rural fantasy novelettes.

~Links~

WEBSITE | BLOG | NA ALLEY (contributor) | TWITTER |  NEW ADULT LIT CHAT (founder/producer) |  FACEBOOK | GOOGLE+ |  LINKEDIN |  GOODREADS

Giveaway:

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This tour was organized and put together by CBB Book Promotions.

My Review:  December 2013   ~ Review Copies ~

Moonsongs Anthology 1 by E.J. Wesley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

First, I would like to thank the author E.J. Wesley for giving me this book for an honest review. This book has three short stories in it, they all intertwine and flow nicely together. I don't normally read to many short stories, because a lot of times they are lacking character and definition. This is not happening with these short stories. Nice job E.J. Wesley.

View all my reviews