Monday, January 12, 2015

Blondie's Books From Friends -- Author Spotlight Graeme Ing

Blondie's Books From Friends -- Author Spotlight on Graeme Ing


It's a new year and I'm so excited to bring you a new feature on my blog. I will be giving my lovely readers a splash of watery fun using excerpts from some great authors' books. When you see blogs with the title Blondie's Books From Friends (Blondie's BFFs) you know you're in for a treat with a new water adventure from a talented author. If you would like to be featured on here please leave a comment below or contact me on any of my social media sites below. 

My first novel, Stealing Time, is out and is receiving superb reviews on Amazon. The one I just received minutes ago, "Hands down one of the best books I have read in quite some time." Please check it out here on Amazon. I'm working on getting it in paperback as soon as possible and I'm in negotiations with a voice talent for the audiobook. Book two is half-way done and I'm busy writing the rest of it.

As always I encourage you to leave a comment below. I'm always grateful when readers let me know they were here.

Blondie's BFF Spotlight

My first Blondie's BFF spotlight author is Graeme Ing and his Young Adult Fantasy novel, Ocean of Dust. I'm tickled to bring this to you and I think this is a gem of a book. I've spent the last two years touching base with Graeme as we both worked feverishly on our first novels. This is his first novel, his second one is also available on Amazon called Necromancer. I hope you take some time to check 
out both of his titles on Amazon and Audible.

This blog was created nearly 3 years ago as therapy for my unfortunate living arrangements where I'm totally land-locked in Dirtville, USA, without a decent body of water anywhere in sight. I love that my first author spotlight describes my town to perfection as I live in an Ocean of Dust here in Dirtville.  

Graeme Ing 

Graeme Ing
Graeme Ing engineers original fantasy worlds, both YA and adult, but hang around, and you’ll likely read tales of romance, sci-fi, paranormal, cyberpunk, steampunk or any blend of the above.

Born in England in 1965, Graeme moved to San Diego, California in 1996 and lives there still. His career as a software engineer and development manager spans 30 years, mostly in the computer games industry. He is also an armchair mountaineer, astronomer, mapmaker, pilot and general geek. He and his wife, Tamara, share their house with more cats than he can count.


Synopsis of Ocean of Dust


Fourteen-year old Lissa is snatched from her home and finds herself a slave on a trading ship traveling on a waterless ocean of nothing but gray dust. A feisty, curious and intelligent girl, her desire to explore the ship earns her the hatred of the cruel first officer, Farq.

Fascinated by the ocean of dust, Lissa becomes embroiled in its mysteries, sensing things that the crew cannot, while cryptic whispers in her head are leading her toward a destiny linked to the dust itself. Only one man aboard can help her make sense of her new talent, but can she trust him? All is not as it seems, and she must unravel the clues before it’s too late.

When a sinister plot casts her adrift on the barren ocean, her best friend is left in the hands of the treacherous crew. Everything hinges upon her courage, quick wits, and her ability to master her new talent.

Useful Links

Website:                           http://www.graemeing.com/
Blog:                                  http://www.graemeing.com/blog/
Facebook Page:               https://www.facebook.com/GraemeIngAuthor
Twitter: @GraemeIng   https://twitter.com/GraemeIng
Google+:                           https://plus.google.com/u/0/106761802400693987858/about
Goodreads:                      http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6571955.Graeme_Ing

Buy Links
Amazon (Kindle/paperback/audiobook):
http://www.amazon.com/Ocean-of-Dust-ebook/dp/B00A1FYtJX8

Audible:
http://www.audible.com/pd/Sci-Fi-Fantasy/Ocean-of-Dust-Audiobook/B00K0SBSCQ

Excerpt:

Beyond the dock, she noticed a gently rippling ocean, colored grey instead of the deep blue of the lake at home. Her eyes widened. She'd always wanted to see the dust ocean, and here it was. It seemed to go on forever.

She studied the way the dust flowed ashore in tiny waves. It didn't look wet; in fact, it didn't look like water at all, but an extremely fine powder. The dust ocean, she'd heard it called, but surely they hadn't meant that literally. How could the ocean not have water? She shook her head. It was hard to think straight.

Squinting against the glare of Eldrar, the largest sun, she peered out at several large ships anchored offshore. Tiny boats moved back and forth between them and the dock, each rowed by two men, and piled so high with cargo she wondered how they didn't sink.

. . .

Pete climbed in first and then the larger of the two men lifted Lissa into the boat. She felt her cheeks flush and couldn't bear to catch Pete's glance, didn’t want him to see her this way. I'm not a little child.

They moved to the backbench of the boat, and the two men stepped into the front. The boat wobbled and sank deeper in the grey dust, forcing Lissa to grip her seat with both hands. The skinny man thrust his oar against the dock, pushing the bobbing boat away. They began to row.

Lissa stared over her shoulder at the receding land. Her heart pounded and tears trickled down her face. Somehow, she knew that she would never see her home or her parents ever again. The world wasn't exciting after all, but cruel instead. She let herself sob openly. It didn't matter what anyone thought of her now. The wetness felt good on her chapped lips.

wind powered a small whirlwind that sucked up fine grey powder from the ocean surface. It rose several feet into the air and sprayed the powder in all directions. When the wind died, the dust fell back down to be absorbed into the waves.

Fascinated, she edged along the seat, careful not to rock the boat, and peered over the side. Unlike the lake at home, she couldn't see anything below the matt grey surface. How deep was it? She dipped her finger in, expecting it to feel like a bowl of salt, but the grains were so tiny that her finger met no resistance.

"Don't even think of trying to swim for it," the big man said, glaring over his shoulder. 

She pinched her lip thoughtfully. In the warmer moon-cycles, she liked to swim in the lake. What would stop her swimming here? After all, it clearly supported boats and huge ships. She plunged her entire hand beneath the surface and moved it about. The dust felt bone dry but grew cooler as she reached deeper. Scooping out a handful, she compared it to the spices in her mother's kitchen. None had been ground as fine as this grey powder. It flowed between her fingers like a liquid.

A gust blew a wave of dust across the boat and into her face. She coughed and licked her lips. It tasted bitter, like nothing she could put her finger on. She brushed her hands together and wiped them on her skirt. The dust particles fell off easily and the bottom of the boat was covered in the stuff.

Pete nudged her. "Look."

The rear of a ship towered above them, three or four stories high. The whole ship rolled side-to-side in a wide but lazy motion and was larger than she had expected. Windows were open on every level, with a narrow balcony halfway up. She read the huge letters painted across the stern:

The Fair Maiden Of Yamin


Connect With KJ Waters

When I'm not working on Stealing Time you can find me on my social media at the links below. My novel is out on amazon here.


    I am also the CEO of Blondie's Custom Book Covers, a company that helps authors and publishers create stunning book covers. Please follow our links here.
    • Check out our website here.
    • We are on twitter here.
    • Facebook link here.

    Posted by at
    Labels: ,

    No comments:

    Post a Comment

    Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)