Joshua Palmatier

Bwahahahaha! I have the cover art for the upcoming Leaves of Flame, the sequel to Well of Sorrows. And I also have the back cover copy. And I also have a never before seen (by me at least) review of well of Sorrows! So lots of fun things to share today.

First up, the cover art:





What do you guys think? I think the colors and such will make it pop on the shelf in the fantasy section. I like the swirling effect in the leaves, as well as the lightning strike with the ominous purple colors at the top. And it works well set against the cover of the paperback of Well of Sorrows, too. But even better is the cover copy on the back:

Cover Copy: One hundred years have passed since Colin Harten--transformed to something more than human by the magic of the lifeblood contained in the Well of Sorrows--used his new powers to broker a peace agreement between the human, dwarren, and Alvritshai races of Wrath Suvane. Since then all three races have greatly expanded their empires. And Colin has continuously sought ways to defeat the dark spirits known as the sukrael--and the Wraiths they have created to act for them in the physical world. Yet Colin has not been able to prevent the dark spirits from reawakening more and more Wells, thus extending their power across the lands.

Having mastered three of the five magics of Wrath Suvane, Colin has gifted each race with a magical Tree to protect them from incursionso f the dark forces. He has also realized that unless a certain number of the Wells are left open, their magic can never be stabilized, and the land will be torn apart by this uncontrolled force.

But now the enemy has located the one Well that is key to controlling the entire network, and if Colin can't find a means to stop them from claiming and activating this Well, it could mean the end of all three races. . . .

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I'd have picked up that book (and the first book) in the bookstore in a heartbeat if I'd read that cover copy. But if that isn't enough to convince you to pick up the books (if you haven't already), then consider this great review for Well of Sorrows from Gina Bowling at VOYA:

WELL OF SORROWS: "After fleeing their homeland, Colin and his family escape to a new world where they are second-class citizens at best. Colin runs into trouble with the ruler's son, and in order to save Colin from unjust punishment, his father agrees to lead an expedition into unknown territory. When the group is attacked, only Colin survives, aided by the Faelehgre, mysterious shadow-beings. Colin comes to learn of the struggle that has taken place for hundreds of years between humans, the Dwarren, and the Alvritshai. With the special powers he now possesses, he alone may have a chance to bring peace to this war-torn land. Benjamin Tate's debut novel is fantasy reminiscent of classics like J. R. R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings trilogy (Houghton Mifflin, 1994) with its other-world and fantastical peoples. The shadows of Light and Dark also call to mind the mysterious black shadow on the popular television series Lost. Colin is a strong protagonist who refuses to be bullied, and the secondary characters are developed well enough that readers come to know them. There is a touch of romance, but overall, this is a story of finding one's strength to survive in spite of hardship and great loss, and giving of oneself to right the wrongs of generations past. While the sheer volume of this tome will intimidate some, fantasy readers will be drawn in and likely make quick work of this debut work, pleased to learn that a sequel is hinted at in the final pages."

I mean, "reminiscent of classics like J.R.R. Tolkien's Lord of the Rings triogy"? How cool is that comparison? It actually makes me tremble a little, because it raises expectations and I'm not sure how comfortable I am with it. I mean, Tolkien. I don't think I'm at that level (yet). I'm still learning, experimenting, etc. But still, a great review and I'd love for people to think I was even close to Tolkien.

In any case, check out the books, and perhaps preorder Leaves of Flame if it catches your fancy. I noticed that Amazon.com doesn't have the mass market paperback for Well of Sorrows listed on their site at all, which annoys me, but you can find it at B&N online and can order it into your local stores. It's certainly readily available, no matter what Amazon.com thinks. You can also get any of my books (Benjamin Tate or Joshua Palmatier) directly from me, signed and personalized and everything. Contact me at jpalmatier@sff.net if you're interested.