Review: Silver Hollow by Jennifer Silverwood.

Silver Hollow

Jennifer Silverwood

Genre: Paranormal Romance/ Fantasy Romance/ Chick-lit

Publisher: SilverWoodSketches

ISBN: 1481000144 

ISBN13: 9781481000147

ASIN: B00A47LGRA

Number of pages: 322

Word Count: 131, 325

Cover Artist: Najla Qamber

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Book Description:

Amie Wentworth writes paranormal romances, not because she is looking for a degree in ectoplasm, but because she’s got bills to pay. Ever since her parents’ car crash, she has been led a reclusive life and trusted books more than people. Not even a letter from her long-lost uncle, begging her to visit, gives Amie incentive for anything other than ire – until she is stabbed in an alley and brought back to life by a mysterious stranger. 

After crossing the Atlantic to her father’s homeland, Amie is dragged into the very sort of tale she is used to selling. Silver Hollow is a place of ancient traditions and supernatural dangers, where everything is the opposite of what it seems and few escape sane. 

To make matters worse, the man who saved her life keeps turning up and her would-be-murderer is still at large.

But when she comes face to face with the ugly truth, will she too be sucked into her father’s madness? Or will she discover that madness is just another name for honesty?

Excerpt 

The windows Amie passed on her mad dash back to her rooms betrayed the first glimpse of dawn. How her bare feet managed to take her back without getting splinters from the fallen wood beams or getting lost, she didn’t have time to dissect. Amie darted past the shadows, relieved when the West Wing was nearly behind her.

Home stretch, Wentworth! You’re almost there and you didn’t even last a week in track.

She grinned, touching the end of the feather sticking out of her robe pocket. This was her biggest mystery and most intriguing find. She wondered if any of the books Henry had put in her bookcase could shed some light.

Amie squinted and gasped when the distant candle light winked out of existence. The corner shadows literally moved to stand in front of her, blocking her vision. Confused and more than a little freaked out, Amie decided to just plunge through the gap. It had to be a trick of the eyes. She’d been awake most of the night, after all.

When she impacted the shadow, she realized too late it was hard as a brick wall. Within seconds she was flipped onto her back, the breath knocked out of her and the candelabra pooling wax onto the floor beside her head. She was too frightened to shout, flashbacks of the night she was attacked penetrating her mind. So she flinched when the shadows shifted and drew into her candle’s light to reveal the impression of a face.

Amie threw up her hands and scrambled backwards when the shadow reached to touch her. “Don’t come any closer! Get away from me!” she hissed, afraid to scream and wake the house. A part of her was still convinced this was a figment of her troubled imagination. Shutting her eyes, she willed the spirit to flee, then froze in terror when it spoke.

“Forgive me for startling you. I only intended to be certain ye were real, flying about the castle in yer nightdress as if ye had all the golems of the world at your back.”

“Your voice…” she whispered, blinked up at the source of the deeply masculine voice. “I feel like I’ve heard that before.” When he chuckled at her words she frowned, so he explained.

“I’ve been told a great many things by maidens far uglier and others with only a reflection of your true beauty, but never this. Tell me,” he said after a tense pause, where she focused on the reflection of her candle’s flames dancing in his black orbs, “what reason should a blood-filled woman have in the West Wing this night, lest she be a wight?” He was mocking her yet her curiosity won over her frustration.

“What’s a wight?” she asked and could have sworn his eyes shifted colors, from black to red to silver and then brilliant blue.

“A walking specter, milady, doomed to haunt its resting place forever.”

“I’m not a wight,” she said. For a long moment he said nothing, only peered intensely over her, until she felt the blackness would swallow her whole.

“Then neither am I, Jessamiene Wenderdowne,” he whispered, drawing back into the darkness. Amie’s heart was pounding, her blood racing. He shouldn’t have been able to leave so quickly. There were no other rooms past hers, no alcoves she had uncovered, or hidden passages to escape into. Yet as soon as his whisper was nothing more than a memory and his face had left her candle’s glow, she knew she was truly alone.

About the Author:

Jennifer Silverwood was raised deep in the heart of Texas and has been spinning yarns a mile high since childhood. In her spare time she reads and writes and tries to sustain her wanderlust, whether it's the Carpathian Mountains in Transylvania, the highlands of Ecuador or a road trip to the next town.

After attending three different universities without managing to square a degree, she decided to the next logical thing; become a writer. Always on the lookout for her next adventure, in print or reality, she dreams of one day proving to the masses that everything really is better in Texas.

My Thoughts:

"Two must rule together, one for the night and one for the day. this is the way it has always been done"

Where to begin? I have many things to say.

First of all, if you are looking for the usual YA super light reading book, this is not for you. 

You need a little concentration to catch up with so many characters and the weird names when Amie, our protagonist gets to Silver Hollow. I know I was lost lol

But then I found it fascinating and I can say that everything, from the plot, to the writing, to the characters (well, most of them at least) make an enchanting story.

The things I liked less were that it's in third person (so not my thing!) and that the beginning was a little slow.

The action and important things start at around 25%.  Mmm... coincidently with sexy  and enigmatic Emrys' appearance ... shocker! :P

No really, you need to pass that first part and then it becomes ten times greater. 

What I liked?

- I love the pieces of the book she is writing mixed with her reality. 

- The world Jennifer Silverwood created is magical, with castles, haunted libraries, faeries and gnomes. So innocent and sweet. Fantastic! what you expect in this type of book and more. 

It reminded me of everything I dreamed as a kid.

- The characters! Well built, interesting, diverse.

Eddie, mysterious, somewhat shy and suddenly not shy at all hehe. LOVED HIM! 

Emrys: No complaints! I always love that "bad guy but only on the surface kind of thing" LOVED HIM! 

Henry ... awesome. 

It's really funny how everyone in the house speak and act, specially Rachel and Alistair in the kitchen, they reminded of Alice in Wonderland when she is having the  tea party with the Mad Hatter! 

ok, let's say this book is like a really cute mix between Harry Potter, Alice in Wonderland and The Chronicles of Narnia lol.

Well, Amie, she was great at times and annoying at others. But evoked emotions, which is one of the best accomplishments a character can achieve. 

With witty and sarcastic answers or comments that always made me giggle, she was completely whiny and dramatic at other moments. 

Also, for a paranormal writer, she has a little imagination!

"Once they made it past the circular door, she began to wonder if there really were such things as hobbits. Maybe Tolkien got stuck here on holiday once... would explain a lot."

In a few words, I would totally recommend it to everyone that enjoys fantasy stories!

                                     Twitter- @JennSilverwood

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Interview - Guest Post: Silver Hollow by Jennifer Silverwood.

SILVER HOLLOW

by Jennifer Silverwood

Genre: YA Fantasy.

Released: November 9th 2012, by Silverwood Sketches.


Blurb:


Amie Wentworth writes paranormal romances, not because she is looking for a degree in ectoplasm, but because she’s got bills to pay. Ever since her parents’ car crash, she has been led a reclusive life and trusted books more than people. Not even a letter from her long-lost uncle, begging her to visit, gives Amie incentive for anything other than ire – until she is stabbed in an alley and brought back to life by a mysterious stranger. 

After crossing the Atlantic to her father’s homeland, Amie is dragged into the very sort of tale she is used to selling. Silver Hollow is a place of ancient traditions and supernatural dangers, where everything is the opposite of what it seems and few escape sane. 

To make matters worse, the man who saved her life keeps turning up and her would-be-murderer is still at large.

But when she comes face to face with the ugly truth, will she too be sucked into her father’s madness? Or will she discover that madness is just another name for honesty?



INTERVIEW:

1. When did you know you were a writer?

 It's impossible for me to pinpoint the exact moment when I knew I was a writer. Through childhood and young adulthood there were tiny glimpses when it came through. I remember watching Little Women and wanting to be Jo March. After reading Laura Ingalls Wilder's novels I wanted to be just like her one day. But it was after devouring almost all of L. M Montgomery's novels as a young teen when I decided to get serious about being a writer. 

2. Describe your book briefly for those who haven't heard about it.

Silver Hollow is about a twenty-something authoress who has had her dreams come true. Except now she's stuck writing the same kind of story and craves new adventures. Amie lives a pretty simple, uneventful life, until she's stabbed outside her home in the back of an alley and brought back to life. Her estranged uncle sends her an invitation to come to his estate in England and after her close call with the grim reaper, Amie decides to take him up on it. 

After this it's one whirlwind of mystery, adventure, antiques and magic and romance. 

3. How did you come up with the idea for S.H?

I wrote the first few chapters for my twin besties, to play around with our possible future selves. They loved it so much that they begged me to write more and once I did, it took on a life of its own. 

4. Can we find you in your books? 

Well in case you couldn't tell, Amie is pretty much me. While she's maybe a skewed interpretation of my character, certainly exaggerated in some cases, she has every ounce of my sarcastic, pop-reference humor. Poor thing. 

5. Which of your character was the best to write? why?

Best is a loose term but I can certainly answer which was my favorite. It would have to be Emrys Bane. Gray area characters are a personal fav of mine and Emrys has this color in spades. He's always conniving, and always doubting his own actions. He's the kind of guy who's been there and done everything you can imagine and is bored with life. So when Amie comes along he gets shaken up. Unfortunately for her, that's not always a good thing.

6. If you could meet any character of any book, who would it be and why?

Hmm...I'd have to say Luthe from Robin McKinley's Hero & the Crown and The Blue Sword fame. He was my favorite character in both books, and I would love to live in his awesome valley with all those mysterious magical people. 

7. Would you like your books turned into a movie?

Of course I would! It would depend on if they could keep it true to the original work, though. I'd allow some license I suppose, but the worst thing is when they take a book and turn it into something unrecognizable, like what they did to Blood and Chocolate.

8. Do you have a dream cast in mind for Silver Hollow?

Before now I hadn't really thought about it terribly much. But I'd love to see Michael Fassbender or Ian Somerhalder play Emrys. Either one would nail that part. 

Dearg, I'd pick someone like Evan Peters or Jay Ryan. 

Somebody like Emma Stone would need to play Amie to keep up her blend of snarky humor and wonderment.

For Uncle Henry, maybe Bendict Cumberbatch or Tom Hiddleston.

9. Describe yourself in 5 words.

Chocoholic. Introvert. Christian. Dreamer. Artist.

10. Future projects?

At the moment my editors and I are working on getting the next Heaven's Edge novella, Ohre, and the paranormal romance, Stay, ready for publication. I don't ever believe in slowing down...too much...so I try to have a project ready on the back burner. After this I'm working on finishing Vynasha, a dark fantasy retelling of Beauty and the Beast. After that, well, let's not get ahead of ourselves. Hopefully you'll still be reading my books by the time we get past that point!

There you are ma'am. Thanks so much for your patience and courtesy :)

Can't wait to get going on these other projects with you. 

GUEST POST:

WHY FANTASY

I’ll never forget watching “The Wizard of Oz,” for the first time as a little girl. The moment when Dorothy opens her front door and steps into a fantastical world filled with bold and beautiful color, rocked my world to say the least. Fantasy is like that, opening your eyes to things invisible to the average, human eye. It’s people’s ways of exploring the deepest and unexplored regions of their imaginations. Much like Bastian in “The Neverending Story,” what you learn is that your imagination is endless as Fantasia (Fantastica in the book ;). 

I’ve published two novels and one novella so far and if you’ve read anything about them, you’d know that all three have fantasy tied into their cores. Qeya, my sci-fi novella and the series are technically science fiction. But this popular genre is riddled with things only seen in the dreams of humans. Not to say it wouldn’t be cool to visit some other star’s worlds and meet some aliens for myself. Silver Hollow is a light modern fantasy with all the usual staples, castles, fairies, magic, unicorns and dragons, “oh my!” And most recently, Stay, while not clearly defined, centers around a girl who was cursed by the ruler of the seas. The earliest stories in human tradition, myths and legend, sound like fantasy to us now. But once upon a time, people believed them without question.

Today, in this modern, fast-paced, and bleak society we live in, people crave escape. While many go to other genres, there’s a reason fantasy or the paranormal is so popular right now. Turn on your T.V or go to the movies and you’re nearly bombarded with all the fantasy bandwagon. (Not that I’m complaining!) 

In Silver Hollow, the main character, Amie, is a paranormal fantasy writer who got sucked into writing the same type of book over and over again. She makes fun of her own novels until her life turns into one of them. And isn’t that what we’re all secretly trying to do, every time we pick up another story to get sucked into? We want to escape into another person’s adventures, live outside our hum-drum lives if only for a few hours…or six. 

I suppose this and all the other little tidbits mentioned above are the reasons that all of my books have elements of fantasy in them. I crave the escape as much as the rest of you and there are times I wish I could jump onto Falcor’s back like Bastian and visit Fantasia for real, or open my front door to the land of Oz. Every book I read or write is like that for me, taking off the rose-colored glasses we see life through and stepping on the other side of “the Veil,” as Amie is finally able to do in Silver Hollow. 

Feel free to share all the reasons you love fantasy as much as I do, below. And maybe, just maybe, if we’re lucky, we too will come across our own luck dragon one day.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

I am an artist, musician, author and believer in bigger dreams.

I have been to Dracula's castle and lived to tell the tale.

I work with children, though by the end of the day it feels more like they worked me lol

I know how to properly use a rifle, survive a world of diapers, snotty noses and physical maiming from same children on a daily basis.

I'm a Christian and a Texan, you can guess the rest ;)

I've never quite fallen out of the habit of dreaming bigger than is healthy and can't seem to stop.

Find her at: http://jennifersilverwood.com/