Hello, lovelies!! It gives me great pleasure today to host Sydney Williams and her new book, “Princes & Kings: A Rose in a Thorn Bush,” here on FAB!! For other stops on her Goddess Fish Promotions Book Tour, please click on the banner above or any of the images in this post.
Be sure to make it to the end of this post to enter to win a $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Card!! Also, come back daily to interact with Sydney and to increase your chances of winning!!
Thanks for stopping by!! Wishing you all lots of good luck in this fabulous giveaway!!
Princes & Kings
A Rose in a Thorn Bush
by Sydney Williams
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GENRE: Historical Fantasy
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BLURB:
In the year 1240 AD, the land of Gwynedd Wales found themselves without a leader when their king, Llywelyn the Great, died at a ripe old age. The natural successor to the king was his son Dafydd, who took on the job of ruler after his death. Soon after taking on the job he was forced to sign a treaty with the king of England and send his brother Gruffudd and his nephew Owain to England to be imprisoned in the Tower of London in exchange for keeping his land and title. His other nephew, Llywelyn, became the new head warrior after his father's imprisonment, travelling the country and patrolling the borders to the north and the south. After four years imprisonment in the Tower of London, Gruffudd died while attempting to escape from his tower cell, and his son Owain was released by the king himself. He wanted Owain to help him start a civil war in Gwynedd. Meanwhile, after finding out about his brother's death from a letter sent by his nephew Owain, Dafydd declared war on England, prompting Owain to escape Winchester Castle, where he had been recovering from his time in prison to find his brother Llywelyn and help him in the war between England and Gwynedd. During the course of the war, Dafydd was killed in battle, leaving the Welsh army without a leader. Being the brave and noble man that he was, Llywelyn called the men to him and, with his leadership, they managed to send the English packing. With the new weight of responsibility thrust upon his shoulders, Llywelyn rode home at the head of the army to find that his world had changed. Now not only was his father gone but his mother as well, and the land of Gwynedd was once again without a leader. It became clear that the best man for the job was Llywelyn himself, and he decided that there was nothing else to do but become the new ruler. He would do anything to keep his people safe, even if that meant taking on a responsibility that he felt he was too young for. He would never abandon his people for anything and let the English take everything from him.
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EXCERPT THREE:
From Chapter 2: Sanctuary in Flight
The town of Aberfraw Castle in the Valley of Clwyd Snowdonia, Gwynedd, Wales in the year 1240 AD
Feeling the need for a hot bath, and a good meal, he started walking down the hallway towards his room. It had been a hard day, but he didn’t plan to stay at home for long. In the morning, he decided he would head into the Welsh countryside to get away and clear his head. Whenever he was troubled, he would take his horse, Arling, and ride off, he didn’t care where, sometimes for weeks at a time until he felt clear enough in both body and mind to return home once more. He had always found the fresh air a balm to his nerves when he was upset over something that had been said or done that he had no control over. He had learned a long time ago that when he was feeling like blowing up it was better just to leave and go away for a while until he felt like himself again. Owain talked about him being reasonable and diplomatic, but in reality he was just as angry and confused as his brother most of the time. He just chose to take himself away and work through his feelings rather than let them burst out of him in anger at random.
He smiled at the thought of his horse. Arling was his pride and joy. He had raised her from a small filly and had trained her himself. Now she was one of the best warhorses in the land, never shying away from danger, and Llywelyn trusted her to carry him through any battle. She was always a brave companion wherever he went, and he always grateful to have her by his side.
Reaching his bedroom door, Llywelyn opened it and went inside. Sitting by the fire was his man-servant Olan, busy cleaning one of his many surcoats. A smallish man, Olan made up for his lack of height with a muscular body. His short black hair, and deep-set lake blue eyes, seemed to see everything, giving him an-other-worldly appearance. This ability to see through any situation had come in handy more than once over the years. He looked up when the door opened and saw Llywelyn standing there dripping wet from the rain. Upon seeing him, Olan put down the surcoat and stood up, giving him a small bow. Llywelyn smiled at him. “Very funny Olan,” he said. Olan smiled back.
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GUEST POST:
Describe Your Book Cover
In describing my book cover I will start with where the cover artwork came from. The artwork comes from a painting that my aunt made for me that is hanging on my living room wall. When she made the painting for me she made it tactile because I am blind and she wanted me to be able to enjoy it. Princes and Kings is only book one in the three part series I am writing. The great thing about the painting is that there are three different parts of the painting that I can use for each book in the series.
The name of my series is, A Rose In A Thorn Bush. The reason I chose this title for the series is because to me a rose is a very beautiful yet delicate flower that only has its thorns to protect it, but those thorns are not always enough. My main character, Llywelyn was a very strong historical character, but at the same time he had the weakness of being a ruler. From everything history has taught, being a ruler in ancient times made a person vulnerable to attack from every angle. That is where the part of the name In A Thorn Bush comes from. In my mind, Llywelyn was the human version of a rose that was caught up in a thorn bush of court intrigue and danger from almost every angle including his own family. The painting symbolizes the name of the series perfectly and I am very grateful that my aunt made me the painting.
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AUTHOR BIO:
Sydney has a big imagination and has been writing and performing from a young age. After going blind from Leukemia at the age of three, she found release from the medical part of her life through her music and her writing. In high school she excelled in English and history and after she left school she continued to write and to create her music. She formed her band, The Undercurrents with her best friend and drummer, Alex Nacci at the age of 22 and has been playing music with the band ever since.
Her book, Princes and Kings, is her first professional novel and it is book one of the historical fiction series she is writing titled, A Rose in A Thorn Bush about the last king of Wales. She was introduced to her main character in high school and with the encouragement of her Business Abilities coach she finely decided to write his story. Splitting the story into three books. Sydney has always enjoyed reading historical fiction and has found it an interesting genre to write in. After her series is finished she plans to continue writing about different historical British characters for as long as she can. Being Welsh on her father's side and Scottish and English on her mother's Britain is a place that interests her greatly and she has enjoyed writing about one of its characters. Giving her a chance to explore her heritage in a fun and exciting way and she looks forward to sharing her passion for the genre and the history of the British Isles with the world.
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CONNECT WITH SYDNEY:
Website:
Goodreads Author Page:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/21888149.Sydney_Williams
Goodreads Book Page:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/59442468-princes-and-kings
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BOOK BUY LINKS:
Amazon Kindle eBook:
Amazon US Paperback:
Amazon US Hardcover:
Amazon CA Kindle eBook:
https://www.amazon.ca/Princes-Kings-Sydney-Williams-ebook/dp/B09CMYGZKW
Amazon CA Paperback:
https://www.amazon.ca/Princes-Kings-Sydney-Williams/dp/0228863457
Amazon CA Hardcover:
https://www.amazon.ca/Princes-Kings-Sydney-Williams/dp/0228863465
Apple Books eBook:
https://books.apple.com/us/book/princes-and-kings/id1581434633
The Book Depository Paperback:
https://www.bookdepository.com/Princes-and-Kings-Sydney-Williams/9780228863458
The Book Depository Hardcover:
https://www.bookdepository.com/Princes-Kings-Sydney-Williams/9780228863465
BAM! Books-A-Million Paperback:
https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Princes-Kings/Sydney-Williams/9780228863458
BAM! Books-A-Million Hardcover:
https://www.booksamillion.com/p/Princes-Kings/Sydney-Williams/9780228863465
Indigo Chapters CA eBook:
https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/princes-and-kings/9780228863472-item.html
Kobo US eBook:
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/princes-and-kings
Kobo CA eBook:
https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/princes-and-kings
Smashwords eBook:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1099246
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GIVEAWAY INFO:
Sydney will be awarding $15 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Card (Winner’s Choice!!!) to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.**This post contains affiliate links and if clicked and a purchase is made, I may receive a small commission to help support this blog. This does not cost you anything, it just helps pay for all those fabulous community outreach projects and awesome giveaways on here**
This contest is sponsored by a third party. Fabulous and Brunette is a registered host of Goddess Fish Promotions. Prizes are given away by the sponsors and not Fabulous and Brunette. The featured author and Goddess Fish Promotions are solely responsible for the giveaway prize.
Sydney ~ Good morning!! Welcome to FAB!! It is so great to have you here!! Congrats on your new book and good luck on the book tour :)
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good read.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good book. I like the cover.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great book.
ReplyDeleteThis book sounds very insteresting. The cover is beautiful.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the guest post and the excerpt, Sydney, and Princes and Kings sounds like a great book for me to enjoy! Thanks for sharing it with me and have a sunhiny day!
ReplyDelete