Blade Singer by Martha Wells and Aaron de Orive Blog Tour and Giveaway!

Hi guys, welcome to the Blade Singer by Martha Wells & Aaron De Orive blog tour. Check out the Tour Page & Schedule. Be sure to read the awesome Guest Post here on my blog, enter the giveaway and then check out the other stops!!

Blade Singer by Aaron de Orive & Martha Wells

202 pages

Manuel "Manny" Boreaux, a troubled adolescent from Texas, is magically transported into the body of a goblin pickpocket in an alternate world inhabited by faerie creatures. Manny must quickly adapt to the danger all around him and try to find a way to get back home, a feat complicated by the pickpocket's association with a notorious gang of thieves. But when Manny uncovers a plot to assassinate a young king, he must enlist the aid of an elf cavalier and a cat burglar to thwart a Sidhe witch's scheme to ignite a civil war between humans and the Fae.

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Guest Post : 

Top Ten Middle Grade Books 

1.     The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis. I saw the animated film on TV before I read the book, but I remember being fascinated by Mr. Tumnus, Aslan, and of course, Jadis the White Witch. A wonderful example of world-buidling that features a set of very human (as in flawed) characters.
2.        Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. Once again, I saw the movie with Gene Wilder first and found the mysterious character of Willy Wonka to be wickedly mischievous and more than a bit scary. The book explained more about Wonka's background, which helped to make him more sympathetic but no less cool. The kids who tour the factory, however, are clever creations.
3.     The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. Has one of the best opening lines ever written for a middle grade novel, memorable, fun, and informative. And it introduced me to the amazing world of Middle Earth, a masterpiece achievement of world-building. Simply brilliant.
4.    Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien. In what is sure to become a theme, I saw the animated film before I read the book, which really helped me visualize the world of the rats. The novel, however, went much deeper into the history of the rats and what it was they were trying to do. And Mrs. Frisby is a fantastic example of a great middle grade protagonist. I can think of few heroes as remarkable as her.
5.     The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum. Can you guess what I'm going to say? Yep, saw the movie first and loved it. Still do. It's one of my favorites. The novel is much darker than the movie, which I really appreciated. And of course it gave us some of the most memorable characters in middle grade fiction. I can think of few as iconic as the Scarecrow, the Tin Woodman, and the Cowardly Lion. Bravo, Mr. Baum!
6.  The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman. Surprisingly, I read this book before I saw the movie. It's another great achievement in world-building, and especially noteworthy for its surprisingly adult themes. Addressing the societal and moral issues of a theocracy make it a remarkable work for a middle grade novel.
7.    The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud. I love the Bartimaeus series, absolutely love it. The character of Bartimaeus is an amazing literary creation - funny, cunning, powerful, and wonderfully flawed. The world is a realistic take on a society where wizards and normal humans are separated by class. The book deals with a variety of social topics but ultimately it's about the strength of friendship. A must-read for everyone.
8.         The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman. If you are a fan of The Jungle Book, then you must read Gaiman's wonderful homage to Kipling's work. A delightfully dark and Halloween-themed version of those classic characters (a vampire instead of a panther, a werewolf instead of a bear, a sociopathic hit man instead of a tiger). It's emotional and explores what it means for a child to become an adult. Fantastic stuff.
9.       Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone by J.K. Rowling. A school for young wizards and witches is about as brilliant an idea as there ever was. What kid can't identify with these novels? An effective blending of fantasy elements with the real world. I love how the series got more serious and dark as Harry aged, which is a great reflection of the transition from childhood to adulthood. If you don't read these, you're missing out.
10.     Holes by Louis Sachar. This novel stayed with me for a long time. The characters are some of the most realistic and emotionally affecting of any middle grade novel. I so want my nine year-old daughter to read this, yet at the same time I'm so nervous about her reading it. It's that kind of book. It's a punch in the gut, but one you'll be glad you received.

 About the Authors:

A graduate of the University of Texas' film program, Aaron de Orive began his professional writing career in the video game industry, serving as a lead or senior writer on Metroid Prime 3: Corruption, Star Wars Galaxies: An Empire Divided, Tabula Rasa, Anarchy Online, and Star Wars: The Old Republic. He is also the creator of the fantasy role-playing game SHARD: World of the False Dawn. Blade Singer is his first novel. Aaron lives in Austin with his wife, daughter, and two very spoiled terriers.

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Martha Wells is the author of a number of fantasy novels, including The Cloud Roads, The Siren Depths, The Wizard Hunters, Wheel of the Infinite, and the Nebula-nominated The Death of the Necromancer. Her YA fantasy, Emilie and the Hollow World, was published by Angry Robot/Strange Chemistry in April 2013, and the sequel, Emilie and the Sky World, was released in March 2014. Two collections of Books of the Raksura novellas will be published in September 2014 and Fall 2015. She has had short stories in Black Gate, Realms of Fantasy, Stargate Magazine, and Lightspeed Magazine, and in the anthologies Elemental, The Year's Best Fantasy #7, Tales of the Emerald Serpent and The Other Half of the Sky. She has essays in the nonfiction anthologies Farscape Forever, Mapping the World of Harry Potter, and Chicks Unravel Time. She has also written media-tie-in novels, Stargate Atlantis: Reliquary and Stargate Atlantis: Entanglement, and a Star Wars novel, Empire and Rebellion: Razor's Edge.

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Giveaway:

(2) $25 Gift Cards to Amazon or B&N (INT)

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