King Blog Tour!

Today, I'm really glad to be hosting a stop on the King Blog Tour! I really loved all the books in the series, and as you can see from my review (link leads to the review), I loved this ending too!

So today, I have a blog post from R.J Larson (and I'm so glad she liked my question!):

Do the ends justify the means? 

I love this question! When people ask, “Do the ends justify the means?” often, they are actually asking, “Can I do something illegal or immoral to achieve something noble or good?”

No. Not recommended. Why? Because, to borrow a popular analogy, choosing a “shady” route to reach a noble goal often leads high-minded individuals down a dark and slippery path toward their own destruction. At the path’s end, they find themselves trapped in mire and brambles, wondering how their lives ended up in such a dire mess.

To offer an example from my latest book, King, the protagonist, Akabe of Siphra, is determined to glorify his Creator, the Infinite, by undertaking a monumental task: to rebuild his country’s ruined Holy House, which was destroyed in the previous reign.

Without spoilers—this situation crops up within the first few chapters—Akabe decides that, because he is Siphra’s king, he must take any steps necessary to achieve his noble goal. This includes marrying the daughter of a spiritual enemy, which is a huge no-no from the scriptures. Solomon himself, the wisest of all of Israel’s ancient kings, entered into many such marriages for political expediency. Wrong-wrong-wrong!

Why?

Because, for all of his wisdom, Solomon fell into one of the oldest spiritual traps ever devised by the Adversary, Satan: Use love, sensuality, and “political necessity” to lead the faithful astray and weaken their faith. Solomon’s presumably charming and exotic wives led him off course, away from his Creator, and his ultimate sorrow is reflected in the often morose verses of Ecclesiastes. (Ecclesiastes was most likely written by someone other than Solomon, but the book’s mood and intent undoubtedly mirror his mindset.)

Akabe has willfully walked into this same spiritual trap, with potentially disastrous, even fatal consequences. Souls are involved here. Not just Akabe’s soul, but the souls of his own people, and now they are endangered by their king’s impatience.

Moreover, Akabe’s new queen has been trapped in a social and spiritual situation she never expected or wanted, and Akabe is now morally and legally responsible for her misery.

Akabe has rationalized his impulsive shortcut to regain the sacred land consecrated to the Holy House by telling himself, “My Creator is silent. I must do whatever I believe is best for my people.” And, “How can He be displeased if I am marrying this Atean lady to rebuild His own temple?”

But was his Creator actually silent? Did Akabe receive any wise advice from others who cared for his spiritual wellbeing? Will Akabe escape his Adversary’s trap? And how can he possibly protect his vulnerable young wife? Stay tuned, dear reader. Stay tuned. J


 

King by R.J. Larson

Fantasy Meets the Old Testament in a Novel That Will Reach Readers of All Ages. 

Against his wishes and desires, Akabe of Siphra has been chosen by his people to be King. But what does a warrior know of ruling during peacetime? Guided by the Infinite, Akabe seeks to rebuild the Temple in the city of Munra to give the sacred books of Parne a home. But dangerous factions are forming in the background. To gain the land he needs, Akabe must forsake the yearnings of his heart and instead align himself through marriage to the Thaenfall family. Meanwhile, Kien Lantec and Ela Roeh are drawn still closer together...while becoming pawns in a quest to gain power over the region. As questions of love and faith become tangled with lies and murderous plots, each must seek the Infinite to guide them through an ever more tangled web of intrigue and danger.  

Amazon * Barnes & Noble

Author R. J. Larson R. J. Larson is the author of numerous devotionals featured in publications such as Women's Devotional Bible and Seasons of a Woman's Heart. She lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado, with her husband and their two sons. Prophet marks her debut in the fantasy genre.

Website * Twitter * Facebook

  Giveaway Details $25 Amazon Gift Card or Paypal Cash Ends 7/23/13 a Rafflecopter giveaway

Response to Faith Stories of One Good Catholic Girl

Hi all! If you remember, I reviewed her book some time back, and she's emailed me to explain the parts of her book that I disagreed with. She's kindly given her permission for me to share my email with you, and will be explaining more in a few weeks(:

Dear Eustacia, 

Thank you for reviewing my book, Faith Stories of One Good Catholic Girl, and for your remarks about it. I tried to respond on your blog, but couldn’t, so decided to email you. 

As you say, my book is a primarily a personal account of my Catholic faith. But the section on Original Sin was probably confusing. St. Augustine is the one who sent all the unbaptized babies to hell. Aquinas sent those babies to the “rim” of hell, called “Limbo”.  (Limbus comes from the Latin, meaning edge or boundary, or the “edge” of hell.) 

The point of that section is that, rather than theorizing about where sin came from, it is better to practice decency, care for others, and justice upon which Christianity is based. These guides are in the Ten Commandments, Eight Beatitudes, and the Sermon on the Mount.
Eustacia, your experience with Buddhists is very interesting. Buddhism as practiced in the Pacific Rim may be different than that adopted by Western cultures. I asked my sister again if Buddhists believe in sin.  She has lived in London, England, for 40 years and teaches Buddhism there so her response may be valid in a western experience of Buddhism. Here is what she said, 

“A quick answer would be "No, Buddhists don’t believe in sin.” But we need to qualify that. Buddhism does not have any commandments.
It is based on respect for life and the law of cause and effect. Every action (thought word and deed) will have a reaction,(Karma) There are ethics that are commonly acknowledged in Buddhism--truthfulness, honesty, moderation, non violence, compassion, cleanliness, humility.
Buddhism believes that everyone knows when they are creating value, or negative causes. Bad actions create bad karma, which will affect you in the present or future. Good actions, thoughts, words, deeds create good karma which will affect you in the present or future. Everyone has the potential to reveal their highest life state of Buddhahood immediately in this lifetime. No one can judge another person or understand their karma. We can only help each other reveal our Buddhahood.” 

Eustacia, you are a thoughtful and literate individual, and your blog does a service to your readers.  Keep up the good work! 

My Best, 

Diana Milesko

Victoria Rebels by Carolyn Meyer (Mod Podge Book Tours)

Today is the first time I've ever taken part in a book tour by Mod Podge book tours. It's a blog post from the author this time, and I think it's really interesting. 

The book is called Victoria Rebels and about the life of Queen Victoria. Sounds like a fascinating book doesn't it? (Hidden history nerd alert!)

Enjoy the guest post!

Why Did You Choose A Diary Format For Victoria Rebels? 

In fact, VICTORIA REBELS is not written as a diary; it's written in first person. That may not seem much different to the reader, but it made a huge difference in the way I conceived the story. When the story is told in the form of diary entries, the narrator, the "I" of the story, has no foreknowledge of what's going to happen down the road--years in the future or even the next day. She can only record what is happening in the present, or reflect on what has happened in the past. The challenge to the author is to set up the foreshadowing that leads the reader along. Several years ago I wrote three books for Scholastic's Royal Diaries series and discovered just how tricky that can be. In ANASTASIA: THE LAST GRAND DUCHESS, the young Russian princess enjoys her privileged life as storm clouds gather, with no inkling of the tragic end she faces. It's a much more confining storytelling format, and I struggled with it. In CLEOPATRA CONFESSES, I chose to write in present tense, which gives the narration a much different feel, and I considered doing the same with Victoria. But after experimenting with that for a while, I abandoned the idea and went back to the more conventional past tense. Somehow it seemed to suit her voice better.

In VICTORIA REBELS, Victoria is looking back at her early years as an unhappy young princess dominated by a man she hated, at the changes brought about when she became queen at the age of eighteen and was finally free of his domination, at her struggles to adjust to her new role, and at the arrival of love in her life. She tells her story from the vantage point of knowing the outcome in terms of her relationship with Sir John Conroy, her mother, and the man she marries. Chapter titles with the place and sometimes a date help to keep the reader oriented.

All the books in this post sound interesting don't they? Well, hopefully this is the start of more tours from Mod Podge stopping by here!

Also, there's a tour wide giveaway! Make sure to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Cover Reveal: Clara Snow by Alexandra Lanc

Today, I'm really excited to do a cover reveal for my Google+ friend Alexandra Lanc! So without further ado, here's the cover, and some information on this interesting book~ If you're on Google+, I recommend circling her(:

Tada~ I present the cover!

Clara Snow Synopsis:

Nearly a year has passed since that fateful Christmas in which Clara became the Snow Queen, and everything is about to change...

Jack and Clara arrive at the North Pole to find it under attack by mysterious forces, and in the fray, the unthinkable happens when Jack is kidnapped by none other than Rosaline, the former Snow Queen. Rosaline has somehow regained her powers, and challenges Clara to a duel to win back her title. In order to prove herself worthy, and attempt to rescue Jack, Clara travels to Rosaline’s castle in the South Pole with uncertainty in her heart.

But, Rosaline isn’t the only villain on the rise. The chaotic Immortal Eclipse has returned, with plans that no one can decipher -- plans that include Clara, and the destruction of everything that she, and the Winter Council, hold dear. Aided by her new friends -- Gertrude, a flying pink reindeer, and South, North’s eccentric brother -- can Clara hope to overcome the impossible by defeating Rosaline, and truly become not only the Snow Queen, but also herself?

The second book in the Snowflake Triplet, Clara Snow is a tale of wonder, hope, and of discovering the truth of who you are.

A Note From The Author:

What is it like to write a Christmas story? Well, I can definitely say that writing this series, beginning first with Clara Claus, has been a journey for me.

You never quite know how something is going to pan out until you start it, and usually when you start something – whether it’s writing or not – it never turns out like you thought it would. That has definitely been the case with this series, though how it’s turning out, and reception that I’ve gotten from it, is much more amazing than I could have ever hoped for.

I love Christmas, and that’s why when I sat down to write the first book Clara Claus, I was terribly excited to be writing about my favorite time of year. It’s one thing to watch Christmas movies, or see a parade, but writing has always held a special place in my heart.

Writing this new, upcoming book, Clara Snow, was no different, though it also was. It’s amazing to see how your characters grow from one book to another, and with Clara Snow, the second (technically) book in the series, a lot of growing takes place for the characters, just like it would in real life. And not only that, but there are some new characters that we will be introduced to, and some craziness that is going to happen! All in all, I think that this next book will be an experience for fans and newcomers alike, and that it makes a great addition to the series.

But, for those of you who are newcomers, let me tell you a little bit about the Snowflake Triplet series…

Growing up, my favorite “Winter and/or Christmas” character was Jack Frost, but he’s sadly not a character that you see a lot of, so one year around Christmas I decided that I wanted to write a Christmas story – and about my favorite character. Through much planning and debating on what the story would be about, I finally settled on a novel centering around Jack Frost and Santa’s Claus’ granddaughter, Clara. That novel became Clara Claus, the story of how Jack hates Christmas, and is about to be banished from his “job” due to it, and how Clara changes his mind about the Holiday with her view of things; but really more than that, it’s a story about Hope, and how that’s what Christmas is really all about. Clara Claus was followed by the novella Sugar Plum Dreams, which tells the story of the Sugar Plum Fairy, and next year will see rise to Clara Claus, the continuation of Clara and Jack’s story. 

Jack and Clara will be going through some trials in Clara Snow, but I think that readers will be happy to see how they overcome them – I know that I was! Be prepared for new faces, new places, new enemies, and the biggest surprise that fits into a tiny box.

Best Christmas Wishes,

Alexandra Lanc, December 2012

Links and Author Information:

Alexandra grew up writing. Since she could pick up a pen, she has scribbled in notebooks and binders, written on the computer. She draws inspiration from everything she sees, but her dreams are her main source of literary endeavors.
When not writing, Alexandra can be found reading, creating artwork, listening to music, and spending time with her family and friends.
Alexandra lives in the U.S.A. (Florida) with her family and calico cat, Sanura.

Website: AlexandraLanc.com

Twitter: @AuthorLanc

Google+: Alexandra Lanc

Blog: Words of the Worlds

Goodreads: Alexandra Lanc

The Moroni Deception - Interview with Jack Brody (Part 2)

Today, we continue with part two, where I interview/bombard author Jack Brody with all sorts of questions about Mormonism, his writing and even his dogs~

Hi Jack, thanks for coming to answer a few questions. First off, I think many of my readers (and even myself), don’t know anything about Mormonism. What books would you recommend as an introduction to the religion?

Although a portion mainly deals with the FLDS, or the fundamentalist, polygamist branch of the religion, the other half of Jon Krakauer's Under the Banner of Heaven does look fairly accurately at the founding of the religion under Joseph Smith. His book was, in fact, what first inspired me to research the religion further.

I noticed that your book included a lot of detail about the history of Mormonism. Was it very difficult to do the research? (As difficult as Chenault?) How did you make sure that you included accurate information.

From sources as varied as The Book of Mormon, to several first or second hand historical accounts of both the Mountain Meadows Massacre and the death of Joseph Smith, to a number of other books examining the religion, to reams of information available on the internet, I tried to find several corroborating sources, rather than just resorting to widespread myths and rumors about the religion.

A lot of the novel is about the truth of Mormonism. Would you say that the information in your novel is fair and accurate? Or did you use any creative license to make the plot more interesting? 

Well, if you read the reviews from the several Mormons who have read it--and even more criticisms from those who didn't--you might think that the information was not fair and accurate. However, everything having to do with LDS beliefs or historical points I would deem 99.9% accurate. I, in fact, made a point of not taking any creative license with those areas for the very reason that I didn't want to be accused of playing fast and loose with the facts. Most of the criticism there has been so far, I would point out, has to do with their perception of how Mormons have been portrayed in the novel, and nothing to do with the accuracy of their history or beliefs, which I take a small amount of pride in.

Ok, I suppose that’s enough about religion. After reading your novel, I wondered: Do you think that society has become too politically correct? For example, if you say something negative about a religion, you’re a bigot (unless it’s Christianity, then you’re a critical thinker). 

 I would agree to a certain extent that society has become too politically correct, but I think in this case, kind of like Dan Brown's two books, or even Salman Rushdie's Satanic Verses, it comes down to a perceived attack by a group that finds their religion the subject of a piece of fiction, and since everything maybe is not flattering, they take it simply as an attack, and, in turn, attack back--in this case by saying a number disparaging things about me and the book, more it seems in an attempt to get people not to read it. I do know that the allegation that all Mormons in the book are portrayed as either "miscreants" or "stupid idiots" as one person put it, really doesn't hold any water. The funny thing, though, was that this same person said in the very next sentence that the book had a very interesting premise.

And following from this line, do you think that there’s space for reasoned criticism in today’s society?

For reasoned criticism there is, and should be all the space in the world. Unfortunately, what you mainly seem to see these days, whether it's an over-reaction to a political cartoon or a bad Youtube film, or disingenuous political spin that some loyal party members eventually not only accept, but swallow as Gospel, to the attacks on my book, are for the most part, purely knee-jerk emotional reactions, often by frustrated people whom it would seem would rather not think things through too clearly for whatever reasons.

That should be enough difficult questions ;) Can you please introduce yourself to the readers? Imaginary Bonus Points if you do it twitter‐style! 

To tell you the truth, I barely know what Twitter is. So I would just say I'm a new novelist, with quite a bit of life experience in having dealt with people from all walks of life, that I've tried to interject into my novels to hopefully give it a little more authenticity, especially when it comes to characterization and dialogue.

What teasers can you give us about the two future novels featuring Michael Chenault? 

 Jeff Sharlet's The Family would be the first clue, and the second clue may have to do with an article I read a few years back about a white North Carolinan and his two sons who had converted to Islam, trained in Pakistan, and were in the process of creating their own terrorist cell.

And what are the names of your dogs? 

 For their own protection, my dogs have requested that I just use their pen names, "Cheech" and "Chong."

Thanks for answering all these questions!

You're welcome. And thank you for coming up with such good questions after reading the book. Although I have to admit you've probably asked the toughest questions I've had so far.

Interview with Nancy Rue

I know I'm late, but it couldn't really be helped. But anyway, if you remember, I did a review of The Whole Guy Thing by Nancy Rue a some time back (was it two weeks ago?). Anyway, I had the fantastic opportunity to interview Nancy and her are her answers:


Me: Thank you for letting me ask you a few questions! I loved reading the Lily series growing up (still do :D) But anyway, here are the questions

I used to be teased really badly by some of my Church mates; in fact, I felt like I was being bullied. But when I asked them about it, they claimed to be “just joking” (this is when we were around 17). The issue was sort of resolved when I changed to another youth group, where I feel that the teasing is good-natured but how should I have handled it?

Nancy: Bullying is hard enough, but when it happens in the church it’s particularly heinous. Here’s the thing: whether comments are intended to be good-natured or not, if they hurt, they aren’t okay. I advise girls in this situation to do one of two things

a. If the people making the rude comments are friends of yours, explain to them that what they’re doing is hurting your feelings. It’s okay to say, “I know I might be more sensitive than most people, but in the interest of our friendship, could you back off a little?” After all, teasing is only fun when it’s fun for BOTH sides

b. If the people doing it are not your friends and never will be because they are, in fact, bullies, the last thing you want to do is let them know how they’re making you feel. That only encourages them to do it more, since their intention is to mess with your head in the first place. Hold that head high, look them straight in the eye, and say, “You know, seriously, I thought you were better than this.” What are they going to say, “No, I am NOT better than this?” While they’re trying to figuring out what just hit them, walk away. Staying as far away from people like that as possible really is the best solution. It doesn’t make you a wimp. It makes you smart

Me: I know that The Whole Guy Thing is for young teens, but what advice do you have to share with older teens/young adults? We’ve kind of reached the stage where we can all talk normally to guys, but there are still plenty of the “does he like me?” moments happening.

Nancy: I think the same principle applies no matter how old you are. As long as you don’t measure your own worth by whether a guy likes you, you can relax and enjoy relationships and let them develop without a whole lot of angst. Besides, if you have to wonder for weeks whether he likes you, he probably isn’t that into you, as they say. If he isn’t, move on because there’s somebody out there who will appreciate the real you. I also want to say, “Be the best you that you can be, always growing and evolving, but do not try to change the core of who you are for a guy. It never works and I promise you that you won’t be happy.”

Me: One of my friends right now has 2 crushes on non-Christians (we’re both overseas students in Japan), so what should she do? We always read in the Bible about not being “unequally yoked” so we’re confused as to how to deal with it

Nancy: I think we have to be careful about applying Paul’s advice in his letters to specific groups of people too literally. For us in the twenty-first century, there are several things to consider

1. Are you just hanging out together for fun, because these guys are interesting and a delight to be with? If so, why not? We shouldn’t completely cut ourselves off from people who don’t believe as we do or we become rigid and narrow and miss out on some great people.

2. Are you shopping for a husband? If so, and you want to marry a Christian, then why go there? If it develops into something serious, you have tough decisions to make. Just keep it friendly and enjoy their company as friends

3. Are you confused about whether a Christian should consider marrying a non-Christian? Give it a lot of thought and prayer. Journal about it. Talk to couples who don’t share a faith. I personally don’t believe you’re going to lose your salvation if you marry someone who’s not a Christian, but if you’re committed to a life with God and your partner isn’t, the going can get rough. Just give the relationship LOTS of time before you make any long-term decisions.

Me: And um, my friend has another question. She wants to know how to approach guys as friends only. We actually have very little in common with the people we’ve just made friends with (different cultures and language barriers), so she feels that she always ends up saying something stupid. It’s quite awkward for us since in kendo (our new club), most of them are guys. She’s tried what you said in “Can We Just Be Friends” but she thinks that the differences are too big

Nancy: You definitely can’t force a friendship, right? The only thing that comes to me for your situation is to take a genuine interest in what’s different about them. Ask them to introduce you to the foods they love. Get them to play their favorite music for you. Ask questions about how they grew up and what challenges they face. Of course, if cultural differences prohibit guys from making friends with girls, all bets are off! Again, if it isn’t there, it isn’t there.

Nancy Rue

Me: And on that note, how should we deal with culture shock (relating to guys). Here, most guys are very un-self-conscious and my friends and I were startled a few times when we walked in and found our seniors changing. We don’t know what to say (or where to look!). What should we do?

Nancy: I’m thinking learn as much as you can about the culture, figure out what you CAN do to fit in and what you CAN’T, and most of all don’t make them feel like your way is the only right way. A sense of humor is absolutely essential. I think a blog about “Where to look when you walk in on naked bodies” would be hilarious!

Me: Thanks so much for answering my (our) questions! I really appreciate it(:

Nancy: My pleasure. These were definitely challenging!

Child Molesters, Child Rapists and Child Sexual Abuse by Lynn Daugherty

Some time ago, I reviewed a short book called Voices of Survivors by Lynn Daugherty, which was a short but very impactful book containing the accounts of victims of child abuse.  After emailing her to let her know I posted a review, and more emails back-and-forth, I ended up with another book: Child Molesters, Child Rapists and Child Sexual Abuse.

The book is about, and I quote: "more informational than my self-help books and can get a little “academic” at times, as there is a lot of information to present. It is still written in (hopefully) clear and understandable language though, rather than in psychological jargon. This fairly concise book is meant to help former victims and the general public understand more about how child sexual abuse takes place and what motivates abusers. The more everyone understands about this difficult subject, the better able we are to protect children from abuse. A major value of the book to former victims is that it reinforces the idea that they were abused, not because there was something “wrong” with them, but because there was something “wrong” with the abuser."

While the book is quite short, it is very informational. It has a total of 9 chapters covering subjects such as who abuses the children, how does it happen and treatment of abusers.In addition, it has short accounts from the point of the abuser, something was creepy (because I didn't want to know what was in their mind) and informative at the same time.

I think that this book is useful for understanding child sexual abuse. It covers things like the factors/pre-conditions for abuse and the types of abuse, which is something we should know, because if not, there might be a case going on around us and we'd be totally unaware.

This is really not a pleasant topic for me to write about. I'd rather be writing about happy stuff, or at least leaving the unhappy stuff to the realm of fiction (and I just know I wrote similar sentiments in the earlier blog post). But well, this book does have its place, and I don't regret taking the time out to read it. (I know the review's short, but a short awkward review is better than a long awkward one right?)

Three Questions with Patti Roberts

If you can recall, I wrote a review of the Paradox series by Patti Roberts sometime in mid-January. Now, in a follow-up, here are three questions that I asked, plus, a contest!

Me: What is your favourite character? Does having a favourite character make it easier to write about her?

Patti: I have so many favorite characters. They become my favorite usually because it is so easy to get into their heads so writing dialogue for them becomes so effortless, natural. You can actually picture them saying and doing the things they do.

Me:Are any of your characters based on people you know?

Patti: No characters are based on people I know. Some of the characters traits and names are though.

Me: And finally, an unrelated question: What bookshops do you recommend if someone visits Cairns?

Patti: That is hard to say. most of the big ones have closed down because so much is available on line nowadays. I will have to check for you :))

And since I'm sure that I left out many questions that you're wondering about, don't worry, Patti has a wonderful Question and Answer page here that goes beyond the usual "questions-about-motivations" into questions about the world of Paradox.

In addition, Patti is currently hosting an art contest.  She's looking for art work/fanart based on the Paradox series, and apart from having your images published in the book or her blog (credited, of course), prizes include, and I quote: "There are complimentary ebooks, t-shirts, caps, posters, tote bags and  signed copies of  the paperback version that the winners artwork is published and credited in."

I may not be artistic, but I'm sure many of you are. And if you're stuck for inspiration, Patti has a list of ideas on the contest page that you can use. ^_^

Follow Up To Forsaken by Andrew Van Wey

I wrote, perhaps two days ago, about Forsaken by Andrew Van Wey, and more or less gushed over it. Now, by virtue of the fact that I live in Singapore, the only books I can ever receive (so far anyway), are ebooks. Most authors seem to send a generic template with the book (or smashwords coupon), with maybe a link to where they want you to review. Mr Van Wey was probably the first author that invited you to reply (tell him where you reviewed), and the really friendly tone encouraged me to send a gushing fan-letter.

I don't normally write to authors unless I'm really really moved, so by nature, I don't expect a reply. So I'm quite surprised that I got a rather friendly reply. Here's a transcript (or "copy" a better term) or the email I sent, and its reply:

Dear Mr Van Wey (Or whoever screens your emails),

Thank you so much for the copy of your thriller. I read it within two days, which is amazing for me since I'm technically having exams :p 

If it's not too much of a bother, can I ask you how you came up with the idea for the book? It ties together the supernatural with art, which are two subjects that I didn't see as connected before. Was there any particular art legend/myth/story that inspired you? (Apart from Stephen King's books)

Yours sincerely,

^_^

Eustacia 

P.s oops, almost forgot, here's the link to the review on goodreads.com http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/228016736

And the reply:

Hi Eustacia,

Thanks so much for the kind email, although I assure you, no one screens my emails :-)  Although I should have someone screen me from using the internet during the day as I always end out distracted.

Thanks very much for taking the time to read and review FORSAKEN.  I hope your exams go well and wish you all the best with your studies!  

As for your question, how I came up with FORSAKEN, it all goes back to about 2004 when I got really interested in the idea of haunted art.  There were a lot of stories about haunted paintings, haunted boxes, haunted museums or artifacts stolen from crypts of pharaohs and such.  While I find that fascinating, I always wondered how, specifically, something haunted is created?  How does a ghost, physically, get into an object?

At some point I realized that the object itself had to be the message, that there had to be a reason why the ghost would choose to possess something, and that's where art came in.  People always discuss how paintings have messages, meanings, etc., all created by an artist.  I realized that this painting, specifically, was a message to a person who had long ago forgotten something bad he had done.  Essentially, this is the story of a person who has forgotten a terrible accident, and how the ghost of that accident brings about the remembrance of that.  People sometimes say: "That painting speaks to me," but in the case of Daniel/David, it literally does.  It was made by the entity his dead brother became in order to exact 'balance' over his death.  And he used art, something he loved as a child, to enact this vengeance because it was something his brother understood.  Perhaps, if his brother had been a famous musician, perhaps he would've used music instead, but art was a common language they both spoke, and one that I've always found rather creepy.  We generally don't hang photos of people we don't know on the walls of our houses, yet we hang paintings of people we don't know from them.  I always thought that dynamic was interesting.

I hope that answers your question.  Thanks again for taking the time to read and review Forsaken!  

With Warmest Regards,

Andrew Van Wey  

And before I end, here's a link to his site (he blogs too): http://andrewvanwey.com/. The stuff he writes are quite interesting, although I haven't read enough to make an informed judgement yet

An Update to Free of Charge by Miroslav Volf

I'm impressed.

I sent a letter I mean email, to Professor Volf yesterday, about my doubts about indiscriminate forgiveness and the law. To my surprise, when I checked my inbox today, I saw a reply. It's actually my first time writing to an author and I wasn't expecting to get a reply, especially since I wasn't sure if my email would be blocked by spam filters (I found his Yale email address). But to clarify things, here's his reply to me (my email to him was more or less the same question I was talking about in my last post.

"The issue that you present is not just a matter of the relation between the
two--the abused to the abuser--but also relation between the abuser and
others. The abused can and should forgive the abuse she/he had suffered, but
must love all the third parties who might suffer (and the abuser
him/herself) and therefore do what he/she can to prevent future abuse, and
do that both for the sake of the potential victims and for the sake of the
abuser. So yes, I think if the potential for future harm is there,
prevention (also via reporting to the police) is important. And in any case,
I do not think that personal forgiveness is incompatible in all cases with
prosecution by the state. Hope this helps."

If anyone was confused with the same things as me, I hope this helped clear it up too.