by ALEXIA PURDY
REVIEWED BY: Ellen Fritz
OVERVIEW
Shade is just trying to graduate high school. Just another ordinary
teenager with some quirky talents. One day, the bothersome voices she sometimes
hears in her head bring her to a chance meeting with a powerful faerie warrior
named Jack. He wields electrical currents and blue fires along his skin.
Joining him, she enters the mysterious, frightening and magical world of
Faerie, where nothing is what it really seems to be.
Shade is selected by the Seelie Queen to fulfill a quest to obtain a liquid magic that could aid the Guildrin Court of Faeries in an ongoing war against the evil Unseelie Queen and her treacherous Lonares soldiers. Around every corner and across breathtaking landscapes of the world of Faerie that exists alongside our ever so mundane world, Shade grows along with her magic and meets some of the most powerful warriors Faerie has to offer. Shade battles evil dryads, conniving Teleen guards and challenges on her life with every step. In a world where nothing is taken for granted or underestimated, Shade discovers that she might not be as weak as she or others may have perceived.
REVIEW
“Interim Blue” is the ideal book to relax with. It carries you away to
the world of Faerie where you will meet Blythe the dryad queen, Dylan, a rather
special Teleen warrior and poor cursed Ursad. The main character, Shade, also
discovers that she has more than a little magical talent herself and despite
the fact that she misses her family in the human world, becomes very fond of
her special company of guards. Whisked away on this adventure that she feels
herself ill-equipped for, Shade copes remarkably well with strenuous exercise,
injuries and fear.
A moment in the book that deeply touched me, and which would stay with me for
a long time, was when Dylan, the captain of the Teleen Guard, offers to take
his brother, Darren's, punishment. The way in which the author describes the
world of Faerie and how it fits into the world as we know it, is extremely
believable. The characters are realistic and quite unique. By the end of the
story, I was sad to bid them farewell until the next book in the series is
released.
This first book in the Teleen trilogy, takes the reader on an exhilarating and unforgettable journey into a world unlike any other. Alexia Purdy
displays the kind of fertile imagination that promises her readers some
excellent books to follow.
ELLEN'S STAR RATING: 4/5
INTERVIEW with author ALEXIA PURDY
Q: How did you come up with the title for “Interim Blue – The
Teleen Trilogy”?
A: Well, I
was looking for something that related to the in between state that the Teleen
faerie warriors spend most of their time in. They glamour themselves to look
like humans because their natural state consists of electrical lightning and
blue fire that runs along their skin and they could inadvertently electrocute
anyone who touches them if they didn’t cover it up. So it’s quite necessary to
glamour themselves to mingle among others. This temporary state is what the
title and story is about. Plus it
sounded cool so I went with it.
Q: What made you decide that it should be a trilogy?
A: I love trilogies, it’s just about the right
amount of a story I usually can stomach.
Ha! It really felt about the
right length for this story, at least the way it feels to me.
Q: What was the hardest part of writing “Interim Blue”?
A: The
nights when it felt like work. Treading through a chapter when I really want to
get to an action scene, which I love to write, can get tedious. I’m not a
patient person and writing is a true challenge for my hyper-activeness. Making me
sit in the chair and just type was not fun but it definitely paid off. If you
can’t have any discipline in your craft, you might as well choose another
career.
Q: Can you tell us more about the next book in “The Teleen
Trilogy” and when it will be released?
A: Book 2 is called Ash and Embers. It will be
released next week November 26th 2011!!! It continues the story
where book 1 left off. Shade has matured into her powers, but still learning
more as she goes along about herself, her heritage and her role in the war in
Faerie. There are quite a few returning favorites and some new characters too.
There is quite a twist in the story and a lot going on in this book that will
keep the reader wondering what will happen next. The war is almost in full
throttle and the two sides, Seelie and Unseelie courts are gonna have quite a
task against each other. It’s definitely darker than the first as it treads
deeper into the hierarchy and treachery in Faerie itself.
Q: Did you learn anything from writing “Interim Blue” and
what was it?
A: I
learned that writing is definitely a ton of work. The research, time and sweat
involved are incredible. Discipline is required and making time to write is a
must. No one is here to urge me on except me so if you are not willing to put
in the effort with very little pay, do not become a writer! I personally love
it and feel like I’ve found my true calling. The stories beg to be written and
I am but a vessel to their brilliance. I also have learned that being
self-published does add quite a load of work in that I have to do everything
myself such as promoting, formatting, editing and selling.
Q: Which of your characters in “Interim Blue” would you
most/least like to invite to dinner, and why?
A: I would
be least likely to invite Sylphi, she’s the kind of mean girl that would smile
sweetly in your face as she turned the knife in your back. I would totally love
to invite Soap (Rylan) over, he is witty, hilarious and of course, super-hot! Though I tend to prefer Dylan, his broodiness
and moods are quite unpredictable and probably would not fare well at dinner.
Q: What is your writing routine like?
A: I have
no real structure, which can impede my progress at times. I like to write out
of order, chapters as they spill into my head, not in any timeline. I weave
them all together and polish it during revision. Outlines are out but I do like
to write up character descriptions like their eye color, personality, what
importance they are to the story, and their background. I write at night and
evenings, mainly to music. I change the music depending on what mood I need,
super-fast rock for fight scenes, sad melancholy songs for darker scenes. I
write mostly on the pc but Interim blue was written in long hand for the first
few chapters.
Q: Do you have any advice for aspiring writers?
A: Never give up. Write all the time and read a
lot. There is no magic formula, just you and your own persistence. Make the
time to write, even if there is none. I have 4 kids that keep me quite busy so
I sacrifice sleep time to write. Of course, I do spend many deliriously sleep
deprived days wandering about like a robot but it’s all very worth it, and naps
help immensely!
AUTHOR ALEXIA PURDY'S LINKS:
Amazon.com
Kindle edition: http://www.amazon.com/Interim-Blue-Teleen-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B005AQ4CJ4/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1321033409&sr=1-1
Paperback edition: http://www.amazon.com/Interim-Blue-Trilogy-Alexia-Purdy/dp/1463698100/ref=ntt_at_ep_dpt_2
Barnes & Noble (bn.com)
Ebook edition: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/interim-blue-alexia-purdy/1104277732?ean=2940012836106&itm=1&usri=interim+blue
Alexia Purdy’s Blog (paperback also available here
signed):http://alexiapurdy.blogspot.com
Facebook pages:
Alexia Purdy on FB: http://www.facebook.com/#!/alexia.purdy
The Teleen Trilogy fan page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Interim-Blue-The-Teleen-Trilogy-by-Alexia-Purdy/136515463095840
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