Fist Look - Persephone's Orchard by Molly Ringle.

Accomplished author and dear friend Molly Ringle - a lady who I am proud to know through our mutual association with Central Avenue Publishing - has returned with her landmark new novel Persephone's Orchard, a thrilling re-imagining of the Greek legend of Persephone and Hades. 

The guff on the book is thus;

The Greek gods never actually existed. Did they? Sophie Darrow finds she was wrong about that assumption when she's pulled into the spirit realm, complete with an Underworld, on her first day at college. Adrian, the mysterious young man who brought her there, simply wants her to taste a pomegranate. 

Soon, though she returns to her regular life, her mind begins exploding with dreams and memories of ancient times; of a love between two Greeks named Persephone and Hades. But lethal danger has always surrounded the immortals, and now that she's tainted with the Underworld's magic, that danger is drawing closer to Sophie.

In exploring the rich body of Greek mythology in order to bring her ambitious project to life, Molly Ringle has stepped out of her comfort zone to craft a thrilling story that combines elements of that classic mythology, action and adventure and romance that is grounded in the present day Pacific North-West that Ringle portrays with great affection.

 

I was privileged to be able to act as a beta reader for Persephone's Orchard and as a result had the pleasure of reading the first full draft of the novel during it's development. My contribution focused mainly on the nuances of Adrian's character, his speech and background in New Zealand but I was immediately taken by the grandeur of the story which opens up through an unassuming beginning. The world which Molly Ringle creates is vivid and large and it quiet a delight to spend time in. 

Molly Ringle herself, explains the roots of the story and how she expanded on those to go in a different direction with the legend.

“The ancient myths usually tend to agree that Hades kidnapped Persephone, completely against her will, traumatizing her and breaking her mother Demeter’s heart,” says Ringle. “But ever since I was a teenager I wanted to see a version where Persephone loved Hades, and he loved her too. But in rewriting the myth that way, it became clear that if Hades wasn't the villain in the triangle, someone else would have to be—or nearly so.”

With an already significant buzz being generated around Persephone's Orchard, Molly Ringle can be assured of yet another runaway success to her already considerable stable of works. 

Ringle is the author of several novels including the award winning The Ghost Downstairs, Relatively Honest, and What Scotland Taught Me. She is best known for winning the Bulwer-Lytton Prize in 2010, which is a tongue-in-cheek contest sponsored by San Jose State University. Entrants are invited to compose the opening sentence to the worst of all possible novels – that is, deliberately bad. The contest is named for English novelist Edward George Bulwer-Lytton, author of the much-quoted first line, “It was a dark and stormy night.”

Persephone's Orchard is available now.

Purchase Persephone's Orchard here.

Connect with Molly Ringle here.

Tweet with Molly Ringle here.

DFA.

Chase-ing Flukes - A Conversation with Nichole Chase.

Nichole Chase is an author whom I've featured here a couple of times now and there is a good reason for that - she is seriously good.


Nichole has proved herself to be an author of considerable talent and savviness as she has carved out a prominent name for herself in the world of YA fiction over the past couple of years - most notably with her highly popular Dark Betrayal series. But not content to sit idle, Nichole has opened a new door upon her verdant imagination with the release of an entirely new and equally exciting series that begins with the debut - "Flukes" which hits shelves on October 8th. Already, from the buzz I've observed across the internet, Nichole Chase will deliver another engaging mold-breaking fantasy that will hook readers in and won't let them go.

The guff on "Flukes" is thus: 

Meena has a secret guarded closely by her family—a secret as dangerous as the sea, and buried just as deep. When court appointed community service workers are assigned to Flukes, the family-owned animal sanctuary, everyone is on high alert. It doesn't help that Meena finds herself attracted to sexy-as-sin Blake Weathering, one of the new workers. If he wasn't so distracting, she might be able to land Flukes a much-needed cruise line contract.

Blake Weathering, the first in his family to attend public school, has developed a tough image. Unfortunately it lands him in trouble. Now banned from his high school graduation ceremony, getting his diploma is dependent upon a community service gig cleaning fish crap. No diploma, no trust fund fortune—and no way to escape his overbearing father. The last thing he needs is the distraction of a mysterious girl with teal eyes who pulls at his heart strings.

When Blake discovers Meena’s secret, they are both thrown into a desperate search for information about her past. Two worlds pull them in opposite directions, and they will have to fight to hold onto all that really matters.

Already, I am hooked by the few lines that describe the novel and my inquiring mind was immediately hungry for more. So what better way to satisfy that hunger than to approach the woman herself. I had the pleasure to meet up with Nichole just this week and, over some coffee and poppy seed muffins, Nichole revealed a little about the origins of "Flukes". 

I've been working on the Dark Betrayal Trilogy for over two years. It's been a long, intense process. I needed a break. Something a little lighter and fun. Something that could stand alone. I had no idea what it would be. Then while giving my daughter a bath, she was trying to learn how to float on her back. She put her legs together and said, "Look! I'm a mermaid!" She was so happy, I couldn't help but laugh. Then a thought hit me. How adorable would a real mermaid baby or toddler be? Unbelievable adorable! No where near as precious as my cutie, but still, pretty darn lovable!" 

Lovable indeed and it's apparent that, the idea was not going to leave you alone. 

The thought stayed with me. It haunted me. My thoughts drifted to how I would care for a little mermaid. What type of people would be good parents for a mythical creature. If humans were to raise a mermaid, how would she learn about her mer-side. And then... then it really started to get interesting. What if there were important things about mermaid heritage that a mermaid raised by humans wouldn't know? As all good ideas do, this one grabbed me and didn't let go. Meena came to life, as did Blake, her tempting bad boy. I fell in love with these characters. Head over heels in love and I hope that the readers will, too. 

The characters and indeed the mermaid angle sounds really fascinating and, given you've so skilfully created a convincing world with the Dark Betrayal Series, I gotta say you're well placed to make this new book a huge success. I gather that "Flukes" is shaping up to be a series in its own right. Is that indeed the case and how will "Flukes" differ from the Dark Betrayal Trilogy? 

Flukes will be a series, with every book revolving around a different couple. They will be linked, but can each stand on it's own. It's quite different from the Dark Betrayal Trilogy. They are not Young Adult novels, but rather New Adult. They center around college aged individuals, which means the reader should expect mature themes and material. They are also Paranormal Romance, instead of Urban fantasy, which means the story focuses more on the couple than on an outside plot.

Awesome stuff. Nichole and I chatted for a little bit longer about the novel but I don't want to give it all away here and spoil it for you. Rest assurred, however, that my early tip for "Flukes" is that it will make a big splash and Nichole Chase will have a serious success on her hands.

Flukes releases in eBook on October 8th and shortly thereafter in paperback.


Nichole Chase continues to describe herself as a daydreamer. She lives in South Georgia with her husband, energetic toddler, two dogs, and two cats. For years she has had story lines and characters begging for attention, but she resolutely pushed them aside to focus on more normal (read, boring) jobs but she has thrown caution to the wind and now heeds the voices in her head and frantically writing their stories.

When not devouring novels by the dozens, you may find her writing, painting, crafting, or chasing her daughter around the house while making monster noises.

Visit Nichole's official site here

Connect with Nichole here

Tweet with Nichole here