The Tyrant King Blog Tour with Cheri Chesley

Review of The Tyrant King

When a mysterious stranger with an eerie resemblance to Gregory Gildersleeve, her deceased husband, arrives upon the heels of a devastating letter bearing the news of her younger brother’s death, Queen Krystal is catapulted into a series of events wrought with intrigue, danger and heartbreak. As time passes she learns that her beloved husband, Jareth, and the Kingdom of Fayterra are the true targets of the stranger, now known to be Gregory’s son, Donovan Gildersleeve. However, Donovan considers the destruction of everything and everyone important to King Jareth part of his revenge against the king he considers responsible for his father’s death.

Though Queen Krystal came from peasant stock she proves once again that there is nothing common about her as she takes up her sword and prepares to defend and protect those she loves, propriety be hanged!

There are an abundance of page-turning revelations and mysteries in this fantasy tale to keep you up well after your bedtime. But this engrossing story won’t make you regret the missed hours of sleep.

By Carol Marrs Phipps

Interview with Cheri Chesley

I’m Carol Marrs Phipps and today I am interviewing Cheri Chesley, the very talented author of The Tyrant King. The eBook was released on July 20, 2012 and print version July 31.

Hello Cheri. I want to thank you for granting this interview today. How are you doing?

A little sleepy, actually. But otherwise great! 🙂

We’ll begin our interview today with a few “Cheri” trivia questions.

Favorite Book: That depends entirely on my mood. It’s like asking me which is my favorite child.

Favorite Author: Again, tough to narrow down. I love Gail Carson Levine, Jessica Day George, Shannon Hale, C.K. Bryant, Ali Cross and Karen E. Hoover. And that’s just the top of the list.

Favorite Genre: I read pretty much everything but horror and erotica. But, right now, because I’m writing fantasy, I’m reading fantasy.

Pet Peeve: Having to repeat myself. Especially with my kids.

Place you’d most like to visit and why: Ireland. It’s always been Ireland. Part of my family heritage can be traced back there, and I love ruins, castles, scenery, and the like.

Please tell us a little about yourself.

I was born and raised in AZ, where I nurtured an early love of books and writing into creating my first novel in high school. I married in 1996 and had 5 children in rapid succession (I had twins, so that helped). In 2006 a series of personal and family incidents caused me to refocus on my writing. Now I’m writing, working, raising my kids, and trying to keep it all together–like everyone else.

What is your worst nightmare?

Call it a superstition, but I don’t believe in acknowledging my deepest fears and having that information out in the universe.

Were you inspired by any other writers?

Certainly. Most of the time it’s books I read and think, “I can never be that good” that inspire me to be the best I CAN be.

Would you tell us a little about your upcoming book? Is it a stand alone book or part of a series?

The Tyrant King is the sequel to my first book, The Peasant Queen, and it takes place 4 years after TPQ ends. Trouble starts when a stranger arrives in Fayterra with a link to the past that threatens to spiral Krystal’s entire peaceful world into chaos. I really think it’s the best thing I’ve written so far.

There is an unofficial fourth book in the planned trilogy that I released last year called The Wild Queen. It’s primarily for readers who liked my villain from The Peasant Queen (there were surprisingly many of them) and wanted to know more about his past.

The final book in the series, The Lost Princess, will be out next year.

If you could become one of the characters in The Tyrant King who would it be and why?

For a long time I’d have said Krystal, because in so many ways she was me. But, really, I’d want to be Alana. There’s a lot more to that character than the readers get to see. Maybe someday I’ll write her story, too.

When did you first realize you wanted to become a writer?

The seeds were planted in high school, but I waffled about it for a long time. Sure I’d love to be a writer, but is it hobby or profession?

It wasn’t until 2006 that I began to take myself seriously as a writer. It seems like a long journey, since it encompasses over 20 years of my life, but I wasn’t writing all that time. I was spending a lot of it growing up, getting married and having my own family.

What genre(s) do you write?

My current focus is YA fantasy, with a dash of romance. But I have several irons in the fire, so to speak. I have contemporary YA, good old clean romance, middle grade fiction, even a couple of mysteries.

How do you come up with the title and cover designs for your books? Who was the designer of your current book?

I work with the amazing Deirdra A. Eden for my covers. She does awesome work. The titles are mine–usually the third or fourth attempt at finding the “perfect” title for the story.

What do you think about book trailers?

I’m still on the fence. I admire so many of the trailers I’ve seen, but I’m not sure how effectively they help sell books. And I admit part of that is due to my severe creative handicap at coming up with one of my own. 🙂

Is there any book that you know you will just never read? If so, why not?

50 Shades of Gray. Honestly, I’m not remotely tempted. I’m simply not a fan of graphically sexual or violent books.

Do you have any advice for new writers?

Write. And read. And write some more. And share. Be open to learning how to make your writing better.

Would you share one thing about yourself that no one else knows?

That is impossible, since my husband knows everything about me. But something that perhaps is not well known is that I hate berries. I really do. I won’t eat anything with berries in it–unless it’s store bought blueberry waffles. Weird, but true.

When and where do you usually write?

I write whenever the impulse strikes, and wherever I am–I always have paper of some kind with me. But I prefer to sit at my desk when I’m working on my stories. That’s where I take all my scattered ideas and try to make sense of them.

Why did you choose Indie Publishing?

I was traditionally published at first, but they declined to take on the sequel so I decided to publish it myself. It’s next to impossible to find a publisher willing to start in the middle of a series.

But the more I get into it, the more I realize I like it. I like having control over the finished product–cover, formatting, editing, etc. The Tyrant King went through a professional edit after I was done editing it myself and sending it out to writer friends and reader friends for feedback. I believe in putting out the best book I can.

Are you currently working on something new and if so would you give us a sneak peek of what it is about?

I plan to have another book out by the end of the year. It’s called City of Light, and it’s about a young woman who purposely thwarts a demon’s prophecy to save her sister’s life.

Is there anything that I didn’t ask that you wish I had?

I don’t think we covered whether or not I have any pets. 🙂 For the record, I have the perfect little dog for our family. She’s a recent acquisition and we call her Sunny.

Where can readers follow you?

Blog: http://www.cheri-chesley.com/

Website: http://www.cheri-chesley.com/p/home.html

Goodreads author Page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/dashboard

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CheriWrites

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Cheri-Chesley-Author/117640374915557?ref=hl

Any other info you wish to share:

Readers who have read The Peasant Queen may enjoy the alternate ending I added to my website.

Also, I put up the first chapter of The Tyrant King on my site for those who want to read more.