Giveaway: Signed copy of Weathercock by Melissa Crandall, 5 winners!!

Welcome to my stop on the Back to the Books Giveaway Hop hosted by I Am A Reader Not A Writer and Buried In Books. My giveaway is for a signed copy of Weathercock by Melissa Crandall as well as a Weathercock bookmark. Thanks to the author’s generosity, there will be FIVE winners! Thanks Melissa!! You’ll find the details on how to enter at the bottom of this post.

Weathercock. The name evokes flames and chaos, and a mythic hero who will one day change the world. Young Kinner – betrayed by those he loves and sentenced to die – knows only one thing: in a world where women hold all the power and men are nothing but property, heroes are hard to come by.
Determined to find a life on his own terms, he flees execution only to discover he knows nothing about survival. Used to relying on others, he dreams of rescue. Instead of the Weathercock, what he gets is Rai and Bayna, mercenary soldiers on the run from the determined (and increasingly psychotic) Commander Remeg.
The last thing they need is to play nursemaid to a half-grown whelp, but a madwoman’s dark secret soon ties their fates. For a while, things actually go their way until further treachery casts a dark wing over the travelers. Alone once more, Kinner must discover within the bravery and skill to save not only himself, but also his friends.
And what of Weathercock? Can someone who doesn’t even exist appear when Kinner needs him most?

I just finished reading Weathercock and will be posting my review shortly. I thought it was an amazing fantasy novel and I loved how the author created a world completely run by women. I was thrilled when Melissa agreed to answer a few questions about Weathercock, some of the answers she ended up texting to me by flashlight after losing power during Hurricane Irene! Thanks Melissa, and I hope  you’ve been able to return home and have your power restored!

You can find Melissa at http://www.melissacrandall.com

THB: Describe Weathercock in just a few sentences. Melissa “Weathercock” is the coming of age story of a young man name Kinner, living in a world where women have all the power, men are nothing but property, and sterility is a crime punishable by death.

THB: Weathercock is an unusual title, what inspired that?  Melissa: Actually, a Jethro Tull song of the same name.  I was driving near Albany, NY a few years back and that song was playing on the radio.  There’s a bridge in the song that has a very martial sort of beat, and as that part was playing, I looked up and saw a billboard advertising Jagermeister with a big-boobed warrior woman like something out of Frank Frazetta riding a polar bear and I thought, “I can do something with this!”  (Just to let people know, there are no polar bears in the novel.  There is a big-boobed warrior woman, but she looks nothing like a Frank Frazetta painting.)

THB: Who is your target audience, YA or Adult?   Melissa: The book is appropriate for ages 15 to 100.  I do know of a couple of younger kids (particularly precocious 12 year olds) who have read it.  There’s a bit of salty language in it (two of the women in question are warriors; they don’t say “Gee, shucks”) and some sexual innuendo (although absolutely no graphic sexuality).

THB: Which chapter, part, or character was your favorite to write and why?  Melissa: Wow, that’s an extremely difficult question to answer (and hard to talk about without giving away the plot.)  As for the characters, I think my favorite is the one I’m writing about at any given time, even the so-called villains.

THB: What would you say is your interesting writing quirk? Melissa: I like to have a clean desk when I start writing.  Also, I’m much better off if I write in the morning.  I’d rather begin writing at 3 or 4 in the morning than 3 or 4 in the afternoon.

THB: What was one of the most surprising things you learned while writing your book?  Melissa: A secret that one of my characters had buried deep within her.  I was on the third draft before she let that one slip, and it was a profound moment because it drastically changed the course of the book (plus adding incredible emotional depth).

THB: Music: What would we find on your playlist?   Depends upon my mood.  I have very fluid taste in music — everything from Def Leppard to movie soundtracks.  I’m also very big into Celtic/folk music.

THB: What do you do to unwind and relax? Melissa: Read, watch movies, play music, walk, go to the beach.  When my dog was alive, a long walk with him was a great way to unwind.  (With any luck, there’ll be another dog in my life soon.)

awww..I’m so sorry to hear about the loss of your dog. As an animal lover myself, I know how hard that particular loss is. I hope you do find another furbaby to love!

THB: If you were to take Kinner on a shopping spree, which stores would he want to visit and what would he buy? Melissa: The thought of going shopping for himself would be so foreign to Kinner that he’d have mo idea where to begin.    And by the end of the story, his priorities have changed so he’d probably opt for EMS or some other camping supply place.

THB: Tell the readers anything else you would like them to know about Weathercock: Melissa: I guess I’d like readers to know going into the book that it’s a story about choices — those we make for ourselves, and those we allow others to make for us.  It’s about self-determination and claiming our place in the world.  And I hope it’s one heck of an enjoyable read!

It certainly is!! If you’re not one of the five lucky winners to receive a signed copy from this giveaway, you can get your copy of Weathercock at Amazon or Barnes and Noble.

Entry:

US and CAN only please, sorry

The entry is very simple for this giveaway. Just leave a comment with a way to contact you and that’s it! If you’d like an extra entry, follow my blog via GFC or Facebook and let me know. Winners will be chosen by Random.org on Sept. 7 at 11:59pm and will be announced sometime Sunday morning. Good luck and be sure to visit all of the other amazing blogs also participating.

(I was going to do a simple Rafflecopter, but I didn’t realize that Rafflecopter was by invitation only. If one of you could PLEASE send me a Rafflecopter invite, I would very much appreciate it!)