Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: RIDERS OF THE REALM: ACROSS THE DARK WATER by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez

So thrilled to be able to talk about this book today. We unveiled the book trailer a couple of weeks ago on Project Mayhem, and will reveal the winner of a signed copy at the end of this post!

What It's About (from HarperCollins website):
Deep in the jungles of the Realm, the Sandwen clan live amongst deadly spit dragons and hordes of warring giants. But with their winged battle horses, they manage to keep their people safe.

Twelve-year-old Rahkki is a stable groom for the Riders in the Sandwen army, taking care of his brother’s winged stallion. The Sandwens believe they have tamed all the wild pegasi in their land, and turned them into flying warhorses. But when a herd of wild steeds flies over their village, Rahkki and his clanmates are stunned.

Meanwhile, a small herd of pegasi have journeyed across a treacherous ocean to settle in a new and free land. Led by Echofrost and Hazelwind, the Storm Herd steeds are unaware of the Sandwens. But when the unthinkable happens, Echofrost and the rest of Storm Herd will have to come to trust the Sandwens, or both may not survive.

Opening Lines:
"Every Sandwen child dreamed of riding a winged horse, though most never would, and one would rather not."

What I Loved About It:
Jennifer Lynn Alvarez is one of the most talented and most professional middle grade writers around. Her Guardian Herd books have a devoted following, and now she has a new series that I think will be equally popular: Riders of the Realm.

In this first book, subtitled Across the Dark Water, a band of Pegasi have escaped the terrors of Anok and crossed the Dark Water to the land of the Sandwen clans. First off, I have to say that Alvarez's world-building is exquisite. She has created a matriarchal culture, with warriors, tame Pegasi, dragons, giants, and now the herd of wild Pegasi which has arrived.

There is action aplenty, with fights, chases, and some super pegasus aerial derring do. I kid you not, I think this would be an excellent movie (so come on, Hollywood producers!)

I was moved by the relationship between young Rahkki and his older brother, Brauk--and the losses they have endured. The main point-of-view Pegasus character, Echofrost, has similar losses, and this really ties the narrative together. At the end of my reading, I was left yearning for more of this story (Jennifer Lynn Alvarez sets up some tantalizing story questions for a sequel). Oh, and did I mention there's also some great humor within the pages too? (Let's hear it for Lutegar, the swamp buffalo.)

In writing terms, Alvarez goes a great job of alternating the third person narrative between Echofrost and Rahkki's point of view. Also, she's a master of the chapter cliffhanger. Writers, she is definitely worthy of study.

About the Author: Jennifer Lynn Alvarez draws on her lifelong love of horses  when writing her books. She lives in Northern California with her husband, children, and more than her fair share of pets. She's pictured here with her beloved mare, Maddie.

Visit the official website to play games, take quizzes, meet the pegasi, chat on the fan forum, enter to win prizes, subscribe to the newsletter! www.theguardianherd.com

AND NOW...
THE REVEAL OF THE WINNER OF THE RIDERS OF THE REALM BOOK TRAILER AND GIVEAWAY (drumroll, please)

TAYLOR NORBIE!!!

(Taylor, please get in touch with me at my email, gilmartin_michael@yahoo.com, and I'll get your information to Jennifer's publisher so you can receive a signed copy. Congratulations!!!)

Book Trailer Premiere: RIDERS OF THE REALM by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez

Guys, this is so exciting. We're on the red carpet, with Jennifer Lynn Alvarez, author of the amazing GUARDIAN HERD quartet. Jennifer is one of the most gracious and professional authors I know, and so I'm fanboying and pretty much swooning that she chose Project Mayhem to be the space for the book trailer premiere of her new RIDERS OF THE REALM  trilogy. The first book in the series, Across the Dark Water, releases on May 1st, 2018. (Swoon again!)

Even more exciting, Jennifer will be giving away a signed copy of the finished book for ONE lucky reader chosen from comments on this post. (US readers only.)

Without further ado, let's settle in our seats, grab the popcorn, and turn down the lights. I present to you the book trailer for RIDERS OF THE REALM:

 

I love the illustrations, the music, the drama: basically everything about this! (For future consumption: I'll be reviewing Across the Dark Water on Project Mayhem in a couple of weeks!!!)

Jennifer Lynn Alvarez

Thank you, Jennifer, for honoring Project Mayhem with this premiere. We're big fans of yours!

How To Run A Top Notch Blog Tour in Seven Easy Steps by Michael Gettel-Gilmartin

Although my ultimate goal in life is to be the second coming of J.K. Rowling, I am currently only known for my efforts at blogging--both as the fearless manager of this here Project Mayhem, as well as the Don's reluctant sidekick at Middle Grade Mafioso. As such, I often get invitations from both authors and publicists to review books or to take part in blog tours.

In my first flush on enthusiasm, back in 2010, I would often jump at every chance. No request for a review was turned down; no blog tour ignored. It got to the point where blogging was becoming a full time job--except I was unpaid and my own novel writing was being shoved on a shelf to look pretty and sparkly and very obviously untouched. Something had to give.

As a result, I have now become exceedingly picky in accepting requests. (In fact, I feel a bit like an agent winnowing her query list and only showing interest in topics she really loves.) As for blog tours, I will take them on--on one condition: they are well-run, and I pretty much have to do no heavy lifting.

One of the best blog tours I have participated in recently was Jennifer Lynn Alvarez's cover reveal for book three of her Guardian Herd series--LANDFALL. Let me break down what Jennifer did that made it so easy for me to say yes.

1. She contacted me early, about five weeks before the blog tour was set to start. In her email, she showed familiarity with my blog, and addressed me by name. I therefore knew I wasn't part of a mass mailing--a technique which always makes me feel good.
2. She told me the dates of the blog tour, and asked for my top two tour dates.
3. She offered a selection of articles I could use in the blog tour: an interview with the illustrator, or an interview with the voice actor in the audiobook version, or a fan art showcase. (In other words, Ms. Alvarez was producing the content, which is balm to a busy blogger's weary soul.) 
4. To sweeten the deal, she included a swag pack I could give as a prize to a "winner" on my blog.
5. She promptly and professionally emailed me everything I requested, as well as links to her social media, and sent jpegs I could use in my post, as well as links about where to buy her books.
6. On the day of my post, she went on social media (Facebook and Twitter) and drew attention to my post. As a result, I had huge blog traffic on that day, along with many new commenters. She retweeted my own tweets, creating a pleasant buzz around the event.
7. After the blog tour had ended, she sent a very kind email thanking me for my hard work, and telling me she was looking forward to sending the prize pack to my winner, once I had one. (This reminded me that I actually needed to pick a winner.)

The thing is, I had not heard of the GUARDIAN HERD series before Ms. Alvarez contacted me. But you can bet your bottom dollar I'm a fan now, given that the author was so pleasant, personable, and professional. In fact, I'm linking to the original blog tour post, so you can see for yourself what a great cover Book 3: LANDFALL has, and read about David McClellan, the wonderful illustrator who created it. 

Let me know if there are other things which make it easier for you to take on blog tours. And let me know if you, or a young reader in your life, has read the GUARDIAN HERD books! I'd love to know what you think.