Please help me welcome J.M. Robison to my blog, she’s here to talk about her debut fantasy romance, The War Queen.
THE WAR QUEEN:
300 years ago, the people dethroned their king and queen to prevent another tyranny. Now instead, the people nominate a State Head every three years and Altarn is the first female to hold the position. She’s used to tolerating the biases of men but Kaelin, the State Head of his territory, has declared her incompetent and has even, according to Altarn, threatened to steal her land – she believes he wants to make himself king. Believing she must “dethrone” Kaelin, Altarn rides to her last ally to ask for aid in the war against Kaelin she knows is coming. But in her absence an army launches an attack… and it’s not Kaelin’s.
Taking advantage of the startling situation, Kaelin kidnaps Altarn so he can take her land without her in the way. Soon realizing he needs her help to fight this army instead, he releases her and, since Altarn’s army is too small to win the war alone, she is forced to accept his help, but payment for his help will be her land. No one believes Kaelin is secretly trying to make himself king, so after the battle is won, alone in her knowledge and lacking allies, Altarn must become the War Queen of legend to dethrone another king… though she unexpectedly dethrones his heart instead.
EXCERPT:
“You’ve never been to a war council, have you?”
“I don’t see how the proceedings are any different than a regular court session where other problems with equal importance are discussed. I have been doing that for a year.”
He exhaled and leaned back, crossing a boot over one knee. “It’s different for Ruids. We discuss war plans every week because of our pirate problem. The mood is different, the light in our eyes is different. It’s life and death we speak of, and that holds a special kind of ceremony we honor in our speech, in our manners, and our dress.”
“Why would my dress not honor this ceremony?”
“It might…except you look like a damn princess. I don’t know about Blindvar, but we killed our princesses long ago. Your people don’t want a princess. They want a war queen. A princess can’t handle the emotional responsibility of sending people off to their deaths, but a war queen can. You’d be surprised how willing your soldiers would be to die for you, so long as you did it without crying as they march away. They need to be reassured you’ll hold your ground when they cannot.”
BUY ‘THE WAR QUEEN’ HERE:
SMASHWORDS: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/668824
APPLE: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/the-war-queen/id1159909372?mt=11
KOBO: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/the-war-queen-1
NOOK: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-war-queen-jm-robison/1124714823
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THE WAR QUEEN centers on the minority class of females in positions of great responsibility. I compare Altarn’s position to our current day President where Americans are facing the reality that females can and are running for President. Female heroes are also rising in comic books and Disney has recently revamped some old favorites with independent females. Being a Staff Sergeant in the U.S. Army, I have personal experience knowing how it feels to be in positions of responsibility and lacking support from my male counterparts, treated with bias, even. But in all things you never give up, and you trust your heart, and when doubters say, “You can’t,” you draw your sword, say, “I will”, and charge forward anyway.
CONTACT J.M. Robison here:
Facebook (this is my writing group where I teach writing skills and tips): https://www.facebook.com/groups/608577589306606/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JMRobison
Website: http://jmrobison.wixsite.com/jmrobison
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Abbey MacMunn 