#BookReview — Across the Fourwinds (The Maidstone Chronicles #1) by Shane Trusz and Darryl Frayne #Fantasy #Historical

Across the Fourwinds

(The Maidstone Chronicles #1)

By Shane Trusz and Darryl Frayne

Most high school grads hold a world of opportunity in their hands. Will and Morgan hold the fate of two worlds. 

Since his mother’s tragic accident, Will has been a loner. And for good reason: he claims to see strange creatures emerging from the forest near his home. Ostracism is a way of life until he meets Morgan, a fencing champion with everything going for her—except a dark family secret. 

In pursuit of answers, these unlikely friends enter the forest and discover a magical kingdom threatened by a powerful enemy. When a young sage reveals their true identities, Will and Morgan join a small but courageous resistance on a quest to save the Fourwinds. 

Can friendship and hope stop the swelling tide of destruction from breaching the portal into our world? 

“I believe what you saw was a creature called a harvester...”

Morgan Finley’s life had changed when her family moved to Cochrane, Cleveland, Ohio. Her father, who had been so supportive of her fencing career, and so loving, has became someone Morgan and her mother fear.

Will Owens’ life had been blessedly normal until his mother had died in a tragic accident, and his father, unable to live without her, killed himself. Now Will sees things that are not there — strange creatures with glowing eyes and evil intents crawling out of the Arden Forest. But, no one believes him because no one else sees what he does. The whole town thinks him mentally ill, as do the doctors. Ostracised by those he grew up with, Will must endure a terrible isolation. He is friendless and alone, that was until the day he met Morgan. Not long after that, the strange creatures crept into the town, and people began to die.

From the small sleepy town of Cochrane to the mysterious yet beautiful land of the Four Kingdoms, Across the Fourwinds (The Maidstone Chronicles #1) by Shane Trusz and Darryl Frayne is a story that is not only radiant in its narrative but reads with an almost lyrical sense of movement and grace.

Written with a great deal of imagination and energy, Across the Fourwinds is one of those books that a reader can quickly lose themselves in. I found myself transported to a land where anything was possible, and mythical creatures ruled supreme. You will find them all here — the elusive elves, the treacherous gnomes, the frightful minotaurs, the wary yet beautiful mermaids, and of course, the mighty dragon. This book is the epitome of fantasy.

But, this book is no fairy tale. These are dark days for an evil Dark Queen threatens to destroy not only the Four Kingdoms but Earth as well, and she is growing more powerful by the minute. Thrown through a gateway, Will and Morgan find themselves on an adventure of a lifetime as they join forces with Rowe of the Nest to destroy the Dark Queen — it is the only way to bring order and peace back to the land. Trusz and Frayne have penned some highly appealing characters. Will’s story pulled at my heartstrings. Everyone thinks he has lost his mind and avoids him because of this, at times, even Will believes he is ill — if no one else can see these demon-like creatures then surely they are just a cruel trick of his imagination? When Will finally discovers the truth and realises that he is gifted with the sight, the relief he feels is tempered only by the fact that he has no idea how to defeat these dark monsters. I thoroughly enjoyed watching his character grow with confidence throughout this story. Will is a young hero who a reader can really get behind. Likewise, Morgan is a wonderfully dynamic young woman who is brave and courageous, but also fearful of the world she finds herself in. Her outrage at the injustice she sees and her compassionate heart made Morgan an unforgettable character.

There is one other character that I have to mention, and that is Rowe. He is brave and honourable and kind — the perfect guide for Will and Morgan as they navigate this foreign land. I thought Rowe was fabulously portrayed. His compassion and his foresight made him an extremely likeable character.

The setting of this story is luxuriantly detailed, and even though it is fictional, it feels authentic. Kudos, Mr Trusz and Mr Frayne.

Across the Fourwinds (The Maidstone Chronicles #1) is a real treat for lovers of J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings series.

I Highly Recommend.

Review by Mary Anne Yarde.

The Coffee Pot Book Club.

Pick up your copy of

Across the Fourwinds

Amazon UK • Amazon US

Shane Trusz

For as long as I can remember, I've had the soul of a gypsy. Having lived in Ontario, Quebec, Manitoba, Alberta, British Columbia, and Haiti, I seem most comfortable when there's change brewing on the horizon. 

My adventure into the world of writing began just as my life was coming to an end, or at least it seemed that way for a time. When I was 15, I was diagnosed with Recurrent Idiopathic Pericarditis. Overnight, I went from a typical teenager with great parents, growing up in Cochrane- snowboarding, mountain biking, and playing any sport with a ball- to being laid up in bed for weeks at a time in terrible pain. Living in the deep north, we were 8 hours away from an MRI machine and for a while, things didn't look so good as doctors struggled to figure out what was happening, and why. The pericarditis would come back a few times a year throughout my teenage years and for a while, I lost my way. I remember being rushed via air ambulance to Toronto and my Ante Linda had sent along a book for me, The Sword of Shannara, by Terry Brooks. I wasn't a reader back then, and when I finally succumbed to the boredom (imagine being in a bed for weeks in a world before the Internet), I finally cracked the cover and my world was forever changed. 

Life doesn't always end up the way we think it should, but isn't that part of the ride? Hard lessons are sometimes necessary to prepare us for the next big adventure as we journey towards leaving this world a little better off than when we arrived. 

After finishing the original Shannara Trilogy, I started writing. I can't remember when exactly I started, but I do remember having a plethora of ideas as I tended to do a lot of daydreaming, especially in school. I spent years writing books that will never see the light of day as I cut my teeth learning this new craft. To this day, if I don't get my ideas down on paper regularly, I feel out-of-sorts.

My greatest challenge as a writer stemmed from the fact that I loved to write massive stories, and conversely, struggled to no end with the countless tiny details of flushing out something great. Shortly after moving back to Canada from Haiti, I reconnected with an old friend, Darryl Frayne. I knew Darryl was just about the complete opposite of me, in that he loves to mine the gems found beneath the extra words that don't belong on the page. He works down in the weeds, pruning and clipping and shredding and planting and changing the paths as required to develop great story. The magic that unfolded was...well, I suppose you can be the judge. 

In the in-betweens, I married my high school crush back in 1998. Joy has added all manner of color to my life and to this day, makes life an absolute thrill ride. When our son came along in 2004, well, I love viewing the world through his animated features and cannot wait to see how he is going to leave the world better off than when he arrived.

Darryl Frayne

I was born in Ontario, Canada and have lived in various places in Ontario as well as brief stints as a post-secondary student in Wisconsin, Missouri, and British Columbia.

After university, I married my best friend and we settled in Langley, BC. I never imagined we would stay in Langley for long, but here we are, decades later. And I love it. 

I've worked in the graphics industry since university to help pay the bills and raise two amazing sons. But my love of research and writing has never faded. It led me to pursue an M.A. at Regent College in Vancouver (2007) and to write numerous articles online.

As far as I can remember, my journey into writing began when I was about 11 or 12 years old. I had always enjoyed stories, so I experimented with some comic-book style writing. I would draw my characters in small boxes, complete with talking bubbles for dialogue!

My favorite books growing up include The Wizard of Oz, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Chronicles of Narnia, and The Lord of the Rings. As an adult, some of my favorite fiction writers include Terry Brooks, Patrick Rothfuss, and more recently, Michael J. Sullivan. I also have an affinity for YA stories with believable, endearing characters created by authors like J.K. Rowling, Kate DiCamillo, Rick Riordan, and Suzanne Collins. I could list so many others; there are far too many wonderful stories to read!

I am grateful for my timely meeting, subsequent friendship, and working relationship with Shane Trusz. He has a great gift for storytelling, conceiving grand adventures, and passionately spreading the word about our books. Although we are different in many ways, I am constantly surprised at--and thankful for--the way our gifts unite to form unique, enjoyable stories.

Connect with the authors: Website • Blog.

Check out Diana Rubino's fabulous book — From Here to Fourteenth Street #RomanticThriller #HistoricalRomance #Victorian @DianaLRubino

From Here to Fourteenth Street

By Diana Rubino

 

Now on Audio with the soothing voice of narrator Nina Price

It's 1894 on New York's Lower East Side. Irish cop Tom McGlory and Italian immigrant Vita Caputo fall in love despite their different upbringings. Vita goes from sweatshop laborer to respected bank clerk to reformer, helping elect a mayor to beat the Tammany machine. While Tom works undercover to help Ted Roosevelt purge police corruption, Vita's father arranges a marriage between her and a man she despises. As Vita and Tom work together against time and prejudice to clear her brother and father of a murder they didn't commit, they know their love can survive poverty, hatred, and corruption. Vita is based on my great grandmother, Josephine Calabrese, “Josie Red” who left grade school to become a self-made businesswoman and politician, wife and mother.

Excerpt

As Vita gathered her soap and towel, Madame Branchard tapped on her door. "You have a gentleman caller, Vita. A policeman."

“Tom?" His name lingered on her lips as she repeated it. She dropped her things and crossed the room.

"No, hon, not him. Another policeman. Theodore something, I think he said."

No. There can't be anything wrong. "Thanks," she whispered,  nudging Madame Branchard aside. She descended the steps, gripping the banister to support her wobbly legs. Stay calm! she warned herself. But of course it was no use; staying calm just wasn't her nature.

“Theodore something” stood before the closed parlor door. He’s a policeman? Tall and hefty, a bold pink shirt peeking out of a buttoned waistcoat and fitted jacket, he looked way out of place against the dainty patterned wallpaper.

He removed his hat. "Miss Caputo." He strained to keep his voice soft as he held out a piece of paper. “I’m police commissioner Theodore Roosevelt.”

"Yes?" Her voice shook.

"I have a summons for you, Miss Caputo." He held it out to her. But she stood rooted to that spot.

He stepped closer and she took it from him, unfolding it with icy fingers. Why would she be served with a summons? Was someone arresting her now for something she didn't do?

A shot of anger tore through her at this system, at everything she wanted to change. She flipped it open and saw the word "Summons" in fancy script at the top. Her eyes widened with each sentence as she read. “I can’t believe what I’m seeing.”

I hereby order Miss Vita Caputo to enter into holy matrimony with Mr. Thomas McGlory immediately following service of this summons.

An Author’s Inspiration

New York City’s history always fascinated me—how it became the most powerful hub in the world from a sprawling wilderness in exchange for $24 with Native Americans by the Dutch in 1626.

Growing up in Jersey City, I could see the Statue of Liberty from our living room window if I leaned way over (luckily I didn’t lean too far over). As a child model, I spent many an afternoon on job interviews and modeling assignments in the city, and got hooked on Nedick’s, a fast food chain whose orange drinks were every kid’s dream. Even better than the vanilla egg creams. We never drove to the city—we either took the PATH (Port Authority Trans Hudson) train (‘the tube’ in those days) or the bus through the Lincoln Tunnel to the Port Authority Bus Terminal.

My great grandmother, Josephine Arnone, “Josie Red” to her friends, because of her abundant head of red hair, was way ahead of her time. Born in 1895 (but it could’ve been sooner, as she was known to lie about her age), she left grade school, became a successful businesswoman and a Jersey City committewoman, as well as a wife and mother of four. She owned apartment buildings, parking garages, a summer home, did a bit of Prohibition-era bootlegging, small-time loan-sharking, and paid cash for everything. When I began outlining From Here to Fourteenth Street, I modeled my heroine, Vita Caputo, after her. Although the story is set in New York the year before Grandma was born, I was able to bring Vita to life by calling on the family legends and stories, all word of mouth, for she never kept a journal.

Vita’s hero Tom McGlory isn’t based on any real person, but I did a lot of reading about Metropolitan Policemen and made sure he was the complete opposite! He’s trustworthy and would never take a bribe or graft. I always liked the name McGlory—then, years after the book first came out, I remembered that was the name of my first car mechanic—Ronnie McGlory.

I completed the book in 1995, and my then-publisher, Domhan Books, published it under the title I Love You Because. The Wild Rose Press picked it up after I gave it many revisions and overhauls. My editor Nan Swanson did a fabulous job making the prose sparkle.

Changing the Title

When I proposed the story to Wild Rose, I wanted to change the title, since it went through so many revisions. I wanted to express Vita’s desire to escape the Lower East Side and move farther uptown. I considered Crossing 14^th Street, but it sounded too much like Crossing Delancey. After a few more hits and misses, the title hit me—as all really fitting titles do.

What Was 1894 New York City Like?

The Metropolitan Police was a hellhole of corruption, and nearly every cop, from the greenest rookie to the Chief himself, was a dynamic part of what made the wheels of this great machine called New York turn. 

The department was in cahoots with the politicians, all the way up to the mayor's office. Whoever wasn't connected enough to become a politician became a cop in this city. They were paid off in pocket-bulging wads of cash to look the other way when it came to building codes, gambling, prostitution, every element it took to keep this machine gleaming and efficient. They oiled the machine and kept it running with split-second precision. The ordinary hardworking, slave-wage earning citizen didn't have a chance around here. Tom McGlory and his father were two of a kind, and two of a sprinkling of cops who were cops for the right reasons. They left him alone because he was a very private person; he didn't have any close friends, he confided in no one. He could've made a pocket full of rocks as a stoolie, more than he could by jumping in the fire with the rest of them, but he couldn't enjoy spending it if he'd made it that way. They knew it and grudgingly respected him for it. He was here for one reason--his family was here. If they went, he went. As long as they needed him, here he was. Da would stop grieving for his wife when he stopped breathing. Since Tom knew he was the greatest gift she gave Da, he would never let his father down.

Praise for From Here To Fourteenth Street

A Review From Romantic Times:

Immigrant Vita Caputo escapes New York’s Italian ghetto and secures a job in a Wall Street bank, along with a room in a Greenwich Village boarding house, thanks to Irish police officer Tom McGlory. With her new beginning, Vita even joins the Industrial reform movement.

Tom is an honest cop, with little interest in women until he meets Vita. When Tom’s cousin is murdered and Vita’s father and brother are arrested for the crime, the two team up to investigate and soon discover that they are falling in love.

Vita and Tom face economic problems, prejudice, and cultural differences. Ms. Rubino’s research is obvious. Kathe Robin

From Rhapsody Magazine:

FROM HERE TO 14th STREET by Diana Rubino is all that and then some. Everything about this book is what writing should be--original and wonderfully executed. Bravo! Karen L. Williams 

From Book Nook Romance Reviews:

Diana Rubino has done a masterful job of researching the life of Italian and Irish immigrants in turn-of-the-century New York, its society and politics and crime. She paints a vivid picture of the degradation immigrants of Italian descent suffered, particularly at the hands of the earlier Irish immigrants they succeeded. Barred from all but the most menial jobs, forced to live crammed into the worst slums, she makes it easy for the reader to understand why many of them turned to a life of crime and violence. Not only can the reader see what Vita and Tom see, they can smell it, hear it, and taste it.

Vita is a delightful heroine, as full of vivid life as the city she lives in. Stubborn, determined to escape the ghetto in which she lives and make something of herself, she never loses her commitment to and love for her family. That very devotion, however, threatens her growing relationship with Tom, since the Irish and Italians are the Capulets and Montagues of 19^th century Manhattan. Although she cannot help falling deeply in love with him, she knows that her father and brothers will never permit her to spend her life with him. And, in a departure from the usual super-masculine hero, Tom is a sensitive, secret poet as well as a cop.

If you like vivid characters and a book that carries you effortlessly back to an earlier time, FROM HERE TO 14^th STREET is a good choice. Elizabeth Burton

More about the Lower East side: One fascinating place to visit is the Lower East Side Tenement Museum at 97 Orchard Street, once an actual tenement. They have tours describing life as it was back then, with each floor of the building decorated (if you want to call it ‘decorated’) to depict each time period when immigrants lived there. I read a lot of books to research this story. One book I remember reading as a kid is How The Other Half Lives by Jacob Riis, a photographer and reformer of the time. The photos in his 1901 book vividly illustrate the poverty and deprivation of the times, for adults and children alike. Pick up your copy of From Here to Fourteen Street Amazon Kindle • Amazon Paperback • Amazon Audio

Diana Rubino

My passion for history and travel has taken me to every locale of my stories, set in Medieval and Renaissance England, Egypt, the Mediterranean, colonial Virginia, New England, and New York. My urban fantasy romance, FAKIN’ IT, won a Top Pick award from Romantic Times. I’m a member of Romance Writers of America, the Richard III Society and the Aaron Burr Association. I live on Cape Cod with my husband Chris. In my spare time, I bicycle, golf, play my piano and devour books of any genre.

The historical monarch I’d most like to meet is Richard III, my favorite of all time.

Connect with Diana: Website • Blog • Facebook • Twitter.