Thursday, December 3, 2015

Blog Tour - Michael's Mystery by Linze Brandon


*** BOOK  TOUR ***

It was time for the Lords of the High Council to step in when the Grandmaster of Kryane is accused of murdering his own people. They had little choice but to prevent the collapse of the whole magicians order, so they sent Michael to investigate the allegations.
The people of the desert planet were an enigma, but none more than Andesine, the healer assigned to assist Michael. Why did she report the Grandmaster? Was she involved, or was there something more sinister going on?
The more people they interrogated the more they suspected that nothing was as it seemed. Not the murders, nor the Grandmasters' motive as everyone thought.
Unable to resist the growing attraction between them, Michael and Andesine learn that they had to trust each other with their own secrets, and risking any future they might have.
Time and again the High Lords had to step in to prevent chaos on Kryane, but time was running out for Michael and Andesine. They had to get a new Grandmaster in place before the Kryane Order collapsed completely. And they had to find the who the true culprit was.
Fortunate to escape an attack from this monster once, they were risking the lives of many others in the process. Before the High Lords could formulate a plan, Michael and Andesine were captured, leaving the High Lords helpless to prevent it.
Kidnapped and imprisoned, Andesine was confronted with the realisation that if they were to survive their ordeal, it was up to her and her long suppressed powers. But as a healer she saved lives, would she be able to destroy the monster before he forces her to unleash her power to destroy the future of mankind?

Goodreads

Interview with the Author


What description will fit you in real life? 
I like to challenge myself and have done so in my professional life. I trained as an engineer and went on to specialise in two completely different fields. I also managed my own consulting business until it had to be closed down for economic reasons. I think it is the main reason I started writing: I needed a new challenge.
I love books, always have. I taught myself to read before I went to school and have been hooked since then. I also collect modern first editions and have an extensive library at home. Since 2012 it also has books with my own name on the spine, and even though I recently published my thirteenth book the thrill of seeing my name on a book never ceases.
I have to plan my writing around a full time job as a project manager, managing a household and a husband with his own interests often taking him away from home.

How does it feel to be a published author/writer? What are your preferred genres?
- I always thought that after my first book, Géra's Gift, was published that it feel common place to see my name on a book cover, but it hasn't. I am always thrilled to bits and usually smile like an idiot for at least two weeks after a new book is published.
I prefer to write mixed genre romance. I love romance novels and devour them at every opportunity ebook or paperback, in whatever form I can get my hands on. I suppose I am a romantic at heart and mixing it up with fantasy settings or science, just flowed naturally once I started writing. I also write contemporary erotic romance.
Since I like reading stories that are different, I also ended up writing stories that are different especially my Third Gender series.
I also write non-fiction and plan to publish my first book early in 2016.
I love writing, but I have to be careful to look after my hands. I also use speech recognition software to write if my hands hurt too much. I use wrist supports during NaNoWriMo and found that to be a huge help.

What does your writing place look like? 
- I have an office at home that is my space. I write here, design my book covers and generally spend a lot of time here. On my writing desk is my computer, an extra screen for the graphics work, a laser printer for printing my books for editing and an ink stand with a variety of pens and other stationary.
I have my reference books within reach - dictionaries, writing references, etc. Also within reach are at least ten paperback books that I have not read yet. I also use the space for my art, and you can see blank canvasses, paint brushes and the cross-stitch equipment and materials all over the room.
My home office is cluttered and when the clutter irritates me enough, I will spend one day to clear out all the junk. That usually happens once a year, so it probably doesn't bother me the rest of the time.
I will also write in coffee shops, the odd lunch hour at work, and every opportunity I have available - especially during NaNoWriMo.

Which fictional character created by you is closest to your heart?  Why? 
- My favourite character is Elizabeth from Keeper of the Dragon Sword. She is a business leader and yet human enough to want love and happiness in her life. In the book she is faced with a terrible choice between rituals to save her people or enslaving the man she loves.
The choice she ends up making still demanded a huge personal sacrifice. I like this character the most because nothing worth fighting for comes without a price and she learns that sometimes the highest price results in the greatest reward.

What, according to you, are your strengths and weaknesses as an author/ writer? 
- Although I often work on several projects at the same time - a novel, short stories and non-fiction - I will finish a book. I have several unfinished manuscripts, and some I decided are not worth finishing for various reasons. I always need something to work on, even while editing, that is the reason for the unfinished projects.
I always make a list of at least one novel and four or five shorter stories to finish and publish in a year. Sadly it doesn't always work out that way mostly because of work interfering.
While I preach discipline as a writer, and practice it on a daily basis, it isn't always that easy. I don't have a daily word count target, although I keep track of the number of words I have written. It helps to keep me motivated. I have a daily writing time of one to two hours before going to bed. I write every day of the week, even if it is only ten words in my journal.
I am still evolving as a writer, but have come to accept that my greatest weakness is editing. To that end I will always use the services of a professional before a book is published.

Describe your latest book. 
- Michael's Mystery was published in October 2015. It is my third full length novel in the Nations of Peace series. In Keeper of the Dragon Sword (although it is not necessary to read it before reading Michael's Mystery) there are a number of mysterious murders committed with the aim to draw Elizabeth out of hiding.
In the third book, Michael is sent to Kryane to investigate the allegations that the Grandmaster of Kryane was responsible for these murders to avenge an age old vendetta against the Xa'anian Grandmaster.
Andesine reported the Kryane Grandmaster to the High Lords and was asked to help Michael investigate. From the start Michael realised that Andesine was different than any other healer and the more they worked together the more convinced he became that she might the one for him. But she was keeping secrets that he needed to find out before this could go any further.
But the more they investigate, the more they realise that there was a bigger power at work and he was after more than a greedy Grandmaster. As her secrets come to light it was becoming clear that Andesine held the key to this mystery after all.

Who and/or What inspires you the most? Why?
- Most of the time it is the story I am busy with that gives my ideas for more stories. However, there has been the odd occasion where other things have provided the inspiration for a story.
Such as an online chat I had with a Facebook friend - we have a common interest in our working environments. While we were chatting an idea for a story series suddenly hit me. I am not going to reveal more as the stories are not yet published - I am trying to figure out if the prequel will work or if I have to rewrite the first story with a different angle.
Sometimes I get ideas when reading another author's work. I don't copy their ideas but I might read a sentence and think, "what if?" It is this 'what if' that eventually ends up as a story on its own.

What all do you do when you are not writing?
- My main focus is writing for eleven months of the year. But I take December off and then focus on other creative endeavours. I like drawing and painting, and doing counted cross stitch projects as gifts or to decorate my home.
I practice tai chi and like to do archery and fly fishing when the opportunity arises. I like watching Manchester United play, but seldom have the chance to do so these days.

Which writing project are you currently working on?
- I have a few I am working on, but I am actively writing the first draft of a novel, entitled We, the One.
It is a story about a relationship between a woman who doesn't believe in happily ever after, and a man who never wants another relationship without the deepest intimacy and commitment two people can make.
I will soon be starting the final edit on the fourth book in the Nations of Peace series, Waiting for Adrian. It is planned for release in March 2016.
On her sixteenth birthday Erin figures out why she had been having horrible nightmares about a war. When Adrian is chosen as her Protector, it changes everything for the people of the Nations of Peace.

If you could re-write one Fiction/Non-Fiction written by another author, which would it be and why? - This happened once, but not after I read the book. In the Dark Hunter series written by Sherrilyn Kenyon there is a character, Acheron, that plays a pivotal role in the series, if not in each book. I do not recall the number of the book in the series, but the author did write Acheron's story. It was the book her fans eagerly waited for and then either loved or hated it. I am still in two minds about it.
I bought and devoured every book in the series and decided to write my own 'Acheron' story, long before Ms Kenyon published her version. Mine has a completely different take on the story. I wrote it for myself and will never even consider publishing it.



About the Author:

Teaching herself to read before she went to school, it was the start of her life long love affair with books. Trained as an engineer, Linzé has worked as an export consultant and is presently a project manager. Although she still loves to read, she also enjoys counted stitch embroidery, archery, tai chi, fly fishing, painting, her husband's medal winning photographs and watching Manchester United play.

She counts both novels and short stories to her publishing credit. Her fourth novel, Waiting for Adrian, is planned for publication early in 2016. Her story, The Vernal Equinox, was a finalist in a sci-fi flash-fiction competition in 2015.

Linzé Brandon lives in Pretoria, South Africa, with her engineer husband and German Shepherds who are convinced that the world revolves only around them.





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