Book Thursdays: Water Princess, Fire Prince Cover Reveal + Author Interview!

I am so excited for today everyone! It is the cover reveal for a spectacular book coming in August.

Drum roll please!

*badabadabadabadabada*

Today’s cover reveal is for Water Princess, Fire Prince, written by Kendra E. Ardnek!

Let’s just talk about that cover for a minute. Oh goodness…it’s beautiful. Don’t those people look REAL?! So, if you’re the kind of person that judges a book by its cover – that is, if you’re like me – well…if you want to judge it by its cover, I suppose you may. However, you’ll be pleasantly surprised. Because as beautiful as the cover is, the inside is SO GOOD (and even more beautiful, literarily). Like, even better than it looks, or as it is described. *eyes glaze over*

This book is…oh my word, absolutely fantastic. Spectacular. I’m speechless, guys. *dies* It’s t.o.t.a.l.l.y. up there with my favorites. I’ll review it in August, so I can’t say any more now. But oh…how lovely of a story this is. Why don’t you read the description and previews for yourself and whet your appetite a little bit?

 

Book Description:

When the Lady Dragon does come,

Hold fast, do not fear, do not run
Your Water Princess will fight,

Fire Prince will set all to right
Each shall come from a Fall,

Their union will save you all.
Despite the fact that she’s on track for competing in the Olympics, and he’s practically raised his younger brothers since they lost their mom in a car accident, Clara Mandras and Andrew Stevenson are pretty much normal teens. They have normal hopes, normal dreams, and they live in a normal world.

All this is torn away from them when they are thrust into another world and declared Water Princess and Fire Prince. With no experience ruling a country, meeting each other for the first time, and being expected to fight the Lady Dragon – an evil sorceress plaguing the world of Rizkaland – Clara and Andrew are underprepared and inexperienced. Unless they learn to work together despite their standing opposition, Rizkaland’s hope will be lost.

What is to come will change their lives forever.

Author Bio:

Kendra E. Ardnek loves fairy tales and twisting them in new and exciting ways.  She’s been practicing her skills on her dozen plus cousins and siblings for years, “Finish your story, Kendra”, is frequently heard at family gatherings.  Her sole life goal has always been to grow up and be an author of fantasy and children’s tales that also glorify God and His Word. You can read more about her on her blog, knittedbygodsplan.blogspot.com.

Available for Kindle preorder: http://www.amazon.com/Water-Princess-Prince-Rizkaland-Legends-ebook/dp/B00YTQBTDI/  $2.99 the 19^th and 20^th ONLY (at which point I’ll put it up to its official price of 3.99)

Add it on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/24022364-water-princess-fire-prince

Part 1’s first chapter: http://knittedbygodsplan.blogspot.com/2014/12/water-princess-chapter-1.html

Part 2’s first chapter: http://knittedbygodsplan.blogspot.com/2014/12/fire-prince-chapter-1.html

 

And now, Miss Kendra E. Ardnek has graciously allowed me to interview her! Yay! 🙂

 

Kendra, what was your favorite part about writing this book?

 

Ooh … that’s a difficult question, because this was such a fun book to write, any angle you look at it. The characters sparkled with such wit, and each bounced of each other perfectly. The plot twisted and turned with some of the best plot twists I’ve ever written. Clara and Andrew are one of my favorite romances that I’ve ever written.

However, I think the world of Rizkaland itself wins out as my favorite part of the story. I’ve been building Rizkaland for several years, and it’s gone through many changes (Even down to it’s name – it was originally Arcaland), but of all my worlds, it’s the richest, and I know it best.

I agree. Every part of the book is amazing – plot, characters, dialogue, romance *dreamy sigh* – but it’s so true, Rizkaland is so real and magnificent! 🙂

What authors have you found the most inspiration from in your writing?

Laura Ingalls Wilder: Because it was while reading her books that I realized that stories were written by people, and that it was a viable option for my own life. (And, fun fact: My cousin and cover artist is her cousin a couple generations removed)

Tolkien: He was my first big introduction to fantasy (and fanfiction…) and for that, I’m eternally grateful.

C.S. Lewis: Rizkaland would probably not exist if it weren’t for Narnia. I’d been playing around in my Shire-inspired Rowa for a couple years when the LWW movie came out and I, dissatisfied with how it came out, purposed in my heart to write a better, “more accurate” version.

Gail Carson Levine: When I’m not writing intense portal fantasy like Rizkaland, you can usually find me working on my fairy tale retelling series, The Bookania Quests. Levine’s Ella Enchanted helped me through a difficult period of my life, and it taught me the magic of retellings.

Frank Baum: Because Oz.

I can definitely see those influences in Water Princess, Fire Prince. I love those books/series.

Who do you think the ideal reader for Water Princess, Fire Prince would be?

A girl whose favorite color is blue, loved the Nutcracker so much she wanted to change her name to Clara, did gymnastics for a while, and has blonde hair … and whose name happens to be Amanda … wait, that’s you …

Okay, I’ll get serious here. WPFP was written for girls (and perhaps boys?) who grew up on Narnia, but now want a more mature story. It’s for those who want a clean, but deep romance. It’s for those who want to explore new worlds, and know that the dragons can be beaten, because God is still in control.

Sounds like you wrote Water Princess, Fire Prince specifically for me! 🙂 Okay, perhaps not, but I know that the story resonated with me deeply. It is such a fun and yet mature story, and I’m so glad I get to be a part of the reveal!

 

Thank you, Kendra, for being with all of us here today and answering my questions!

 

Please, please, PLEASE check out this book. It’s one of those books that cries out, “I-could-have-my-own-display-at-Barnes-and-Noble” kind of books. Still not convinced? Well then, preorder it today for less than $3 and experience the fantastical world of Rizkaland for yourself!

*aj