Straight Reading from the Library: The Gift by Tegon Maus

This review is in conjunction with a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Tegon Maus will be awarding a $25 Amazon or Barnes and Noble GC to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

READ THE BLURB

Tucker Littlefield is a liar, a thief, a con-man. In an attempt to take advantage of a party thrown by the King, he becomes involved in the kidnapping of the King’s niece, Elizabeth. Injured, he is saved by a shaman who turns Tucker into a Soul Bearer who is enslaved by its power, compelled to devour the souls of the dead. "I am Tucker Littlefield. Know all that I say now is true-spoken.”

READ THE REVIEW

This was an interesting story about a storyteller – Tucker Littlefield – and a quest he is sent on—to rescue Elizabeth, the Queen's niece. Tegon Maus has a way of bringing together interesting, and quirky, characters—you may not always like all of them, but you can't help being intrigued by them. I've read, and enjoyed, other works by this author (you can see my first introduction to him here, so I was very excited when offered the opportunity to read this one!

The story starts with Tucker, in an inn, telling the story of his friend, Enon Tutelo…and the adventure begins. It's very plot driven. We don't see a lot of evidence of the world building, but you can feel Mr. Maus has a clear vision in his head of the different types the people the world. Likewise, with the story being all from Tucker's point of view, you don't really know what is going on in the other characters' minds. This is Tucker's story--and it has more of a purpose than just entertainment. It moves quickly as Enon and Tucker do their best to fulfill the mission they are on.

There are some funny moments.. particularly the dialogue between Tucker and Eloise. I found myself laughing out loud during some of those moments. I would love to see this made into a movie!

This is a fun read –fast paced, exciting, and a wonderful example of Mr. Maus' humor and superb storytelling skills. It's always a tread to read one of his works and this one is no exception. I do hope there are more of Tucker Littlefield's chronicles to come.

READ AN EXCERPT

The voices of the Norha grew louder, rivaling the crunching of leaves under their feet. They were coming closer, following the path of their discovery, and I feared it led to me. They were just on the other side of my tree. The dog pushed hard against me as they started around.

Suddenly, the sound of someone running came from the opposite side of the clearing, and then an unmistakable voice.

"Enon" it called, shrill, and heart wrenching. Elizabeth.

The Norha clamored in pursuit of the child.

I pushed the dog away and bolted to my feet just as Enon scooped her up in one huge arm and disappeared into the trees.

The angry cries of the Norha rent the air as they gave chase. The dog raced in their direction and I was quick to follow. I did not, however, get very far. Bowen grabbed me, covering my mouth.

"Wait, watch," he whispered.

Enon had disappeared and the Norha were about to do the same. I wanted to help. I struggled to free myself from his grip but he was much too strong.

"There," he said softly, pointing in the direction the dog had gone. Three more of the Norha appeared to follow the first and then another set and another. Shortly, the forest was alive with them. There had to be more than fifty. Bowen translated as they yelled to one another in their search for Enon.

"We have to help him," I hissed.

"Not yet. There are too many. We can't help Enon if we are captives ourselves."

He was right, of course but my heart raced with fear, with hate, and a touch of panic.

The voices grew louder and more frantic.

I had come to know those voices; their language was harsh, almost like barking. Then Noget growled, it sounded almost human. The din of an escalating fight was followed by the muffled screams of Elizabeth. My heart jumped into my throat, as the noises became fiercer, more intense.

MEET THE AUTHOR

I was raised pretty much the same as everyone else... devoted mother, strict father and all the imaginary friends I could conjure. Not that I wasn't friendly, I just wasn't "people orientated". Maybe I lived in my head way more than I should have, maybe not. I liked machines more than people, at least I did until I met my wife.

The first thing I can remember writing was for her. For the life of me I can't remember what it was about... something about dust bunnies under the bed and monsters in my closet. It must have been pretty good because she married me shortly after that. I spent a good number of years chasing other dreams before I got back to writing.

It wasn't a deliberate conscious thought it was more of a stepping stone. My wife and I had joined a dream interpret group and we were encouraged to write down our dreams as they occurred. "Be as detailed as you can," we were told.

I was thrilled. If there is one thing I enjoy it's making people believe me and I like to exaggerate. Not a big exaggeration or an outright lie mine you, just a little step out of sync, just enough so you couldn't be sure if it were true or not. When I write, I always write with the effort of "it could happen" very much in mind and nothing, I guarantee you, nothing, makes me happier.

http://www.tirpub.com/tmaus
Buy the book at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Tirgearr Publishing.

ENTER THE GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway