We put a great deal of effort into promoting our new, recent and upcoming books but often our previous releases get sidelined.
In this latest series I am offering authors in the Cafe and Bookstore a chance to promote an earlier book (not your most recent) by sharing an excerpt from the book of 500 words. At the end of the post you can find out how to participate.
Today Barbara Spencer shares and excerpt from Click of the Pebble: Tryst with the Devil (Book 1 of Children of Zeus)
About the book
Prequel Series to ‘The Year the Swans Came’
Born into the carinatae, a race of shape-shifters and magical beings, Yöst believes his life in their island village wondrous – until death comes to call. In the guise of the local priest, who is determined to wipe the carinatae from the face of the earth, only Yöst and two young children, Zande, destined to be the next ruler, and Tatania, survive the massacre.
Aware the priest will not cease his search until they too are dead, Yöst begs sanctuary from Ramon, a gypsy farmer whose family fled the war in Spain and, unaware of their history, Ramon offers a home in return for work.
Unused to labour of any kind, Yöst strikes up a close friendship with Rico, the only son in a house full of girls, who helps him through the first difficult years. As their relationship strengthens and deepens, Yöst begins to think of staying and making his life there as a farmer … forgetting that as carinatae, his own date with destiny is fast approaching.
And so is death …
An excerpt from The Click of A Pebble -Tryst with the Devil
Yöst listened to the darkness unsure what had woken him. In the distance, surf stirred restlessly and wind soughed through the tops of pine trees. Yet that wasn’t it. Those were sounds he heard every night since he’d come to live on the island, five years previously.
This was more the click of a pebble against a glass window. He and his mother had had glass windows in their tiny house on the mainland. Once he had broken a pane throwing a stone against its brittle surface. He stared into the darkness listening to the quiet breathing of his five companions. Older than him, two were from the great continent of Africa, their skins the colour of aubergines ripening in the sun. Geography was good, Yöst decided, grateful that his mother and grandmother had insisted he attend school, crossing the narrow gap between the island and mainland by boat.
‘Learning will take you places,’ his grandmother’s voice chided him, invading his thoughts as she did almost every night, her voice ringing out as plainly as it had when she was alive. That had been her speciality, nagging, when all he wanted was to play with the other boys. Going on and on about learning how to gut a rabbit and build a fire, ‘so that you can care for yourself when I am no longer about.’
‘Why should I bother?’ he had retorted impatiently. ‘None of the cobs do that sort of work.’
‘That’s no excuse. Just because someone else is lazy and stupid. If they stuck their arm into a fire, would you do that too?’ she countered. ‘I want you to do more than read and write.’
‘Why?’
‘Because the world is changing and when you are fully grown, you may not wish to live this life.’
‘Not wish?’ Yöst echoed. ‘How can there be anything more wondrous than our lives? I cannot wait to fledge; it is the most exciting thing ever.’
‘Yöst!’ The old woman had frowned, his name on her lips a rebuke. To her grandson, she was as old as Methuselah, even though her dark hair had little grey in it. Fifty was very old – too old. She had to be old to die from something as trivial as a cough. ‘Listen to me. This is no longer a world in which we belong—’
‘Grandmother, I’m not listening.’ He had laughed then and run outside to watch the young cobs.
A few days before she died, she had suddenly renewed her attack; warning him to be wary of people on the mainland and making him promise never to speak out about his heritage.
‘Why not?’ he asked, resting her head against his shoulder so she could sip a drop of water.
‘It’s only my usual winter cough,’ she had told him in the April, ‘It will be gone soon.’ Except it hadn’t, her cough worsening each day.
‘Because people fear anything different.’
‘Fear us!’ Yöst had laughed in protest. ‘We are too few to fear.’
‘It makes no difference. We are carinatae, descendants of Zeus, magical creatures—’
‘You aren’t,’ Yöst retorted.
She chuckled, her amusement quickly evaporating, her thin shoulders humped over her chest as she fought for air. ‘No, but I loved a man who was,’ she said, her words spoken on an outward breath, fast and shallow.
©Barbara Spencer
One of the reviews for The Click of A Pebble
Having read The Year The Swans Came, I was excited to read this first book about the beginning of the mysterious Zande’s life. The story begins when Zande is very small, about five years old, with a massive tragedy, which leaves Zande, a tiny girl called Tetania and an older boy of about thirteen called Yost, entirely alone, their mothers and companions having been brutally murdered. Although this does indeed begin Zande’s story, this book is really Yost’s story.
Yost, Zande and Tata become used to their new life with a family on a farm and Yost discovers the character building results of working rather than the life of ease he’d lived before, and the comforting love of living with a family with all their diversities of characters. It is a ‘coming of age’ story really, and the discovery of who he is, apart from being a ‘Child of Zeus’, or Caritinae – part man, part swan. We also learn more about the nature of the caritinae, which was somewhat puzzling in the other book, especially with regard to what happened to Peter.
The skilful ‘pen’ of Barbara Spencer brings all her characters to life so that the reader can’t help ‘knowing’ them and loving each one with all their curiosities and differences in the people they are, brought about by their life experiences before they came together. I was totally involved with Yost as he learned to work and to open up in response to love and caring shown towards him, helping to eventually dispel the nightmares brought to him by the terrible experience of witnessing the massacre of his people.
I am looking forward to being able to read the next book.
Read the reviews and buy the book: Amazon UK – And: Amazon US
A selection of other books by Barbara Spencer
Read the reviews and buy the books: Amazon UK – And: Amazon US – Follow Barbara: Goodreads – Connect to Barbara Spencer: Blog: Barbara Spencer Author – Twitter: @BarbaraSpencerO – Facebook: Barbara Spencer Author – Facebook: Barbara Spencer
About Barbara Spencer
In 1967, Barbara Spencer hi-tailed it to the West Indies to watch cricket, the precursor to a highly colourful career spanning three continents, in which she was caught up in riots, wars, and choosing Miss World.
A regular visitor to both primary and secondary schools, in 2010, the publication of Running, a Y/A thriller, took Barbara countrywide, her travels eliciting a series of Blogs and short stories which were published in 2017 as Age and the Antique Sideboard. This marked her retirement from writing, since when Barbara has written several books for an older audience.
The first of these, The Year the Swans Came, a magical fairytale for adults/top teens, was published at the end of 2018.
Thank you for visiting today and I know that Barbara would love to hear from you.. thanks Sally.
How to participate in this series
In this latest series I am offering authors in the Cafe and Bookstore a chance to promote an earlier book (not your most recent) by sharing an excerpt from the book. Please check the link if it has been some time since you were promoted in the Cafe.
The aim of the series
- To showcase a previous book and sell some copies.
- Gain more recent reviews for the book.
- Promote a selection of other books that are available.
- Share an excerpt from the first book in a series to encourage readers to buy following books.
I will top and tail in the usual way with your other books and links, bio, photo and social media. I will also select a review that I feel has the best selling pitch for the book.
- This series is open to authors in the Cafe and Bookstore who have more than one book (as this already gets promoted on a regular basis) and have reviews for that book I can select from. Cafe and Bookstore
- I suggest an extract of 500 words or a poem that you feel best reflects the theme of your collection. This is a PG rated blog and there are younger readers so it would be great if you could bear that in mind.
- If you have an illustration or images you can attach to the email for me to include. No need to send the cover as I will have that or will access from Amazon.
- I will check reviews on Amazon sites as well as Goodreads and select one I feel is a great advertisement for the book.
- As an author in the Cafe and Bookstore I will already have all your details, links and covers of other books so need to send anything further.
- Please send your excerpt and any accompanying images to sally.cronin@moyhill.com
N.B..If you participated last year in the two series and would like to check which book you shared, please email and I will let you know.
Look forward to hearing from you.
A great excerpt and review. Wishing Barbara all the best 🙂
Thanks for sharing, Sally. Hugs xx 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Harmony..hugs
LikeLiked by 1 person
Harmony – thanks for reading and taking the time to comment. I know fantasy is not to everyone’s taste but magical realism is much gentler and Yost is one of my all-time favourite characters – and yes I am prejudiced in his favour – but I didn’t create him, he crated himself!
LikeLiked by 2 people
Congratulations to Barbara – what a great excerpt and review. Toni x
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks very much Toni..hugs
LikeLiked by 1 person
Toni – apologies for not getting back to you before. The Click of a Pebble (indeed the entire series) is unusual in that it is set against the 2nd World War. On my last visit to Amsterdam in 2010, I visited the Anne Frank House. And there is a direct analogy between the slaughter of the carinatae and the Jews in Holland.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Sounds incredible, Barbara x
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you for the lovely excerpt and review. I would read them all, but my reading speed is very time consuming too. 😉 I will put it on my second list, and will be happy to read very soon. Michael
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great thanks Michael… hugsxx
LikeLike
Michael thanks so much for commenting. I do understand all about reading speeds. Mine has slowed enormously with age. But I wish you joy when you do get around to reading The Click of a Pebble, I know you will enjoy it.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Thank you very much, Barbara! Its always fascinating to read, and maybe with more practise its going on better. Have a beautiful week! Michael
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great review. I am intrigued. Looking at Barbara’s other books–Lions of Trafalgar looks wonderful. What a noble beast.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great thanks Jacqui..xx
LikeLike
Hi Jacqui – Lions was the 3rd book in the Jack Burnside trilogy which I wrote for ages 8 – 12. That’s how I began my career for children, and would you believe no ebooks, always paperbacks. I also wrote thrillers for YA’s. Time Breaking became recommended reading for schools and then in 2013 I began writing for adults with The Year the Swans Came which is historical romance.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Terrific excerpt, Sally.All the best to Barbara.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you John..hugsx
LikeLiked by 1 person
Poking my nose in John. It was wonderful of Sally to promote this series which is just complete. So different from anything I have written before, I found great satisfaction in the storyline and canvas taking us from France to Holland where WW2 catches up with them.
LikeLiked by 2 people
I can imagine. Sounds like you enjoyed bringing it to life. 😊
LikeLiked by 2 people
Hi John- Yes, I loved bringing it to life. I have a passion for Amsterdam and always wanted to set a series there – its canals and waterways marvellously erotic.
LikeLiked by 1 person
This looks like a fabulous read! I love the cover and the blurb, but the excerpt hooked me! Thank you for featuring Barabara here today, Sally!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Wonderful thanks Jan..hugs
LikeLike
Jan would you mind if I did a little dance. I also love the cover – it is absolutely Yost and it took ages to find. And for someone who is useless at writing blurbs, thank you for the compliment. I must admit the entire trilogy was a joy to write but I had an enormous amount of help from the characters who have become real friends.
LikeLiked by 1 person
A powerful excerpt backed by a wonderful review – thanks for this, Sally!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for commenting Alex…hugs
LikeLike
Alex – thank you so much for taking time to comment, it means so much especially to me as I have had a strong career when I wrote for children and YA’s in the UK and with Sally’s help am trying to establish a toehold in the US.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great review and excerpt. Congrats to Barbara ❤
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks Debby hugs..♥
LikeLiked by 1 person
dgkaye – hi is my memory playing up but didn’t you comment on the Year the Swans Came? What I wanted to do is link the 2 series, Swans which is 2 books and the trilogy, intermingling characters and events and tying up all their history in the final book, Sunset on Golden Wings which is the sequel to Swans. But each series is complete on its own – if I am making any sense. 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
Yes I did Barbara, so you have a good memory. Thanks for letting me know how the series ties together. It’s on my TBR 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Reblogged this on Author Don Massenzio and commented:
Head over to the Smorgasbord Cafe and Bookstore for the Share an Excerpt from a previous book 2021 featuring The Click of a Pebble Tryst with the Devil (Trilogy, The Children of Zeus Book 1) by Barbara Spencer
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thanks for reblogging Don..x
LikeLiked by 1 person
You’re welcome.
LikeLiked by 2 people
Don – that is so kind of you to take the trouble to share. After a long career writing for children and YA’s, this new series needs to be better known. Thanks so much.
LikeLiked by 2 people
You’re welcome.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: Smorgasbord Blog Magazine – Weekly Round Up – May 9th – 15th 2021 – 1960s hits, Grief, Green Kitchen, Health, Stories, Poetry, books, reviews and funnies | Smorgasbord Blog Magazine
Looking forward to reading this. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Great thanks Meeks.. have a good week..xx
LikeLiked by 1 person
You too, Sally. -hugs-
LikeLiked by 1 person