Wednesday, August 9, 2017

SPOTLIGHT - Blood Moon: A Captive's Tale by Ruth Hull Chatlien

Blood Moon
A Captive's Tale
by Ruth Hull Chatlien
Publication Date: June 14th 2017
Amika Press
Paperback & eBook; 424 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
 
BLURB
Southern Minnesota, August 1862. Smoke fills the horizon and blood soaks the prairie as the Sioux fight to drive white settlers from their ancestral homeland. Sarah Wakefield and her young son and baby daughter are fleeing for their lives when two warriors capture them. One is Hapa, who intends to murder them. The other is Chaska, an old acquaintance who promises to protect the family. Chaska shelters them in his mother’s tepee, but with emotions running so high among both Indians and whites, the danger only intensifies. As she struggles to protect herself and those she loves, Sarah is forced to choose between doing what others expect of her and following her own deep beliefs.

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"Chatlien’s mastery of the historical period—especially the life and culture of the Sioux—is notable and creates a fictional atmosphere of authenticity. A subtle dramatization of the conflict between white settlers and Native Americans in the 19th century."Kirkus Reviews

"Richly detailed, Blood Moon is an intrepid tale of bravery and adventure in America's western frontiers. Perfect for fans of immersive historical fiction." - Stephanie Thornton, author of The Tiger Queens and The Conqueror's Wife

"An engrossing tale of struggle and justice-of friendship, mercy, and a rare, moving love. Ruth Hull Chatlien writes with great sensitivity and vivid yet subtle prose. Blood Moon is a must-read for fans of western novels, as well as women's historical fiction." -Libbie Hawker, author of Tidewater

Giveaway

During the Blog Tour we will be giving away 5 copies of Blood Moon: A Captive's Tale and two $25 Amazon Gift Cards! To enter, please enter via the Gleam form Blood MoonGiveaway Rules – Giveaway ends at 11:59pm EST on September 8th. You must be 18 or older to enter. – Giveaway is open to residents in the US & Canada only. – Only one entry per household. – All giveaway entrants agree to be honest and not cheat the systems; any suspect of fraud is decided upon by blog/site owner and the sponsor, and entrants may be disqualified at our discretion. – Winner has 48 hours to claim prize or new winner is chosen. 

 

Author Info

Ruth Hull Chatlien has been a writer and editor of educational materials for nearly thirty years, specializing in U.S. and world history. She is the author of Modern American Indian Leaders for middle-grade readers. Her award-winning first novel, The Ambitious Madame Bonaparte, portrays the tumultuous life of Elizabeth “Betsy” Patterson Bonaparte. Her latest novel, Blood Moon: A Captive’s Tale, is now available for pre-order. She lives in northeastern Illinois with her husband, Michael, and a very pampered dog named Smokey. When she’s not writing, she can usually be found gardening, knitting, drawing, painting, or watching football.

MY INTERVIEW WITH RUTH HULL CHATLIEN

How would you describe your style of writing to someone that has never read your work?

I have been told that my writing is easy to read and very clear. Another characteristic is that I pay a lot of attention to the complexity of my characters’ psychology. The chance to explore what motivates people from the inside out is one of the main reasons that I write. People also comment on the wealth of sensory details I include, especially with my latest novel Blood Moon: A Captive’s Tale.

What are some of your writing/publishing goals for this year?

I’m in the research stage for my next novel. By the end of the year, I would like to finish the bulk of my reading and start to outline the book and work on character studies.

Do you feel that writing is an ingrained process or just something that flows naturally for you?

Do you have a character that you have been working on for a long time that still isn't quite ready, but fills you with excitement to work on the story?

In the back of my mind, I have the idea to write about a young woman of the minor nobility who flees the French Revolution and comes to America, but experiences post-traumatic stress disorder for a long time afterward. The thing that intrigues me about her is that she’s an empath, which is one reason why she was so wounded by what she experienced. For a lot of reasons I’m not ready to start on her story yet, but I can’t forget it either.

If you could spend one-week with 5 fictional character, who would they be?

The first would have to Frodo, with whom I have felt a deep emotional bond since I was very young. I identify with his deeply embedded sense of responsibility to others. I would also choose Jane Eyre because she and I are both intuitives who act on things we know without fully understanding how we know them. I’d pick Jo March because she’s so outspoken and feisty, and Elizabeth Bennett for her wit, and Harry Potter because of his resilience.

Where would you spend one full year, if you could go ANYWhere? What would you do with this time?

This is an answer that I probably wouldn’t have given at any other time in my life, but at this moment in time, my answer is Sweden. My grandparents were born there, but they didn’t pass on the language or much about the culture to their children. In March, I realized that I was going to hit a significant milestone birthday in another year and a half. And suddenly I had this burning desire to reconnect with my heritage. I have been studying Swedish every day since then, and I’ve looked at online pictures of the towns where my ancestors were born. I want to walk there for myself. I want to become fluent in the language. I want to understand the Swedish culture and the Swedish character. Living there for a year would likely be difficult for me because I have seasonal affective disorder and they have VERY long nights in the winter, but if I were given the chance, I’d do it.

Can you share you next creative project(s)? If yes, can you give a few details?

Sorry, I don’t talk about my projects at this stage.

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Blog Tour Schedule

Monday, August 7 Review at A Bookish Affair
Tuesday, August 8 Excerpt at Let Them Read Books
Wednesday, August 9 Interview at The Book Junkie Reads
Monday, August 14 Review at Oh, for the Hook of a Book!
Tuesday, August 15 Spotlight at A Literary Vacation
Wednesday, August 16 Spotlight at Cafinated Reads
Thursday, August 17 Review at Beth's Book Nook Blog
Monday, August 21 Review at Must Read Faster
Friday, August 25 Review at Svetlana's Reads and Views
Monday, August 28 Review at Book Nerd
Tuesday, August 29 Spotlight at CelticLady's Reviews
Thursday, August 31 Review at Jorie Loves a Story
Friday, September 1 Review at Broken Teepee Interview & Excerpt at Jorie Loves a Story
Thursday, September 7 Review at Locks, Hooks, and Books

Friday, September 8 Spotlight at Passages to the Past

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