NOCTURNE Blog Tour
I am thrilled to be hosting a spot on the NOCTURNE by Cheryl Mahoney Blog Tour hosted by Rockstar Book Tours. Check out my post and make sure to enter the giveaway!
About The Book:
Title: NOCTURNE (The Guardian of the Opera #1)
Author: Cheryl Mahoney
Pub. Date: June 5, 2020
Publisher: Stonehenge Circle Press
Pages: 300
Formats: Paperback, eBook
Set against the backdrop of 1880s Paris and the stunning Opera Garnier, The Guardian of the Opera: Nocturne brings you the familiar tale from a different direction. Meg Giry met the Phantom once when she was twelve years old, a new ballet dancer lost in the Opera’s maze. Years later, when an Angel of Music offers singing lessons to her best friend Christine Daaé, Meg is sure she knows what’s actually happening. But as strange events unfold and the pieces stop adding up, Meg has to wonder if she truly understands the Phantom—or Christine.
Erik is a man of many talents and many masks, and the one covering his face may be the least concealing. The opera house is his kingdom and his refuge, where he stalks through the shadows as the Phantom of the Opera, watching over all that occurs. He never intended to fall in love; when he does, it launches him into a new symphony he’s certain can only end in heartbreak.
INTERVIEW
- What is on your nightstand? I tend to have a big stack of books on my nightstand. I’m currently rereading The Last Command by Timothy Zahn, the third in his Thrawn Trilogy. I also have The Colour of Magic by Terry Pratchett, which my husband and I are reading together out loud, a book of daily prayers, and some very old superhero comic books for when I want something completely light and fun.
- What author would you totally fan? I do pretty much fan Tamora Pierce. Her Song of the Lioness quartet was huge for me when I was a kid, when there seemed to be far fewer books with girls as heroes. I’d be a little afraid to meet her because I don’t know what nonsense I’d end up babbling in excitement! If I managed to be coherent, I’d like to tell her that I love her books, and not only that, I’ve made two different friends by mutually enthusing about our love for her books.
- What makes you cringe? In fiction, I hate deeply dysfunctional and even abusive relationships that are presented as romantic. Well, I hate those kinds of relationships in life too, of course, but I see them often in fiction and wonder what readers are taking away from the story, about what they should expect or view as normal in relationships. This is one reason I’ve made some significant changes in interactions and balance of power in my retelling of the Phantom of the Opera story.
- Do you obsessively plot out each point or just go with the flow? I tend to have a general idea of where I’m going, and then let the story develop as I progress. Sometimes characters surprise me by wanting to go a different direction than I had expected. I also have a tendency to think I’m writing one (or two) books, and realize that I need to split the story and make it into more volumes. The Guardian of the Opera trilogy was supposed to be one book. And then two books. And now…
- Is there a word you love to use? I use “really” and “just” far too often. I just really like them though! In all seriousness, I think all writers have some words we know we lean on too hard, and it’s part of revision to try to get them out of the book. In terms of good words, I particularly enjoy “juxtaposition” and “punctilious,” but it’s hard to find the right moment to use either one!
About Cheryl:
Cheryl Mahoney lives in California and dreams of other worlds. She is the author of the Beyond the Tales quartet, retelling familiar fairy tales, but subverting expectations with different points of view and new twists to the tales. She is also a co-author of The Servants and the Beast, and its companion piece, After the Sparkles Settled. Cheryl loves exploring new worlds in the past, the future or fairyland, and builds her stories around characters finding their way through those worlds–especially characters overlooked or underestimated by the people around them.
She has been blogging since 2010 at Tales of the Marvelous (http://marveloustales.com). Her weekly Writing Wednesday posts provide updates about her current writing, including excerpts. She also posts regularly with book and movie reviews, and reflections on reading. She has been a member of Stonehenge Writers since 2012, and has completed NaNoWriMo seven times.
Cheryl has looked for faeries in Kensington Gardens in London and for the Phantom at the Opera Garnier in Paris. She considers Tamora Pierce’s Song of the Lioness Quartet to be life-changing and Terry Pratchett books to be the best cure for gloomy days.
Giveaway Details:
3 winners will win a finished copy of NOCTURNE, US Only.
Tour Schedule:
Week One:
| 6/1/2020 | Lone Tree Reads | Guest Post |
| 6/1/2020 | Mythical Books | Guest Post |
| 6/2/2020 | Hurn Publications | Guest Post |
| 6/2/2020 | Smada’s Book Smack | Guest Post |
| 6/3/2020 | BookHounds ya | Interview |
| 6/3/2020 | Books A-Brewin’ | Review |
| 6/4/2020 | Two Chicks on Books | Excerpt |
| 6/4/2020 | Twirling Book Princess | Excerpt |
| 6/5/2020 | Fire and Ice | Excerpt |
| 6/5/2020 | JaimeRockstarBookTours | Instagram Post |
Week Two:
| 6/8/2020 | History from a Woman’s Perspective | Review |
| 6/8/2020 | Lifestyle of Me | Review |
| 6/9/2020 | Locks, Hooks and Books | Review |
| 6/9/2020 | She Just Loves Books | Review |
| 6/10/2020 | Jaime’s World | Excerpt |
| 6/10/2020 | Reese’s Reviews | Review |
| 6/11/2020 | The Phantom Paragrapher | Review |
| 6/11/2020 | A Dream Within A Dream | Guest Post |
| 6/12/2020 | Popthebutterfly Reads | Review |
| 6/12/2020 | A Gingerly Review | Review |
The cover of the book looks wistful with a ballerina in front of the Opera House.
I’m glad you got the wistful sense – that’s exactly what I wanted, as Meg definitely wants more in her life. Something she continues to explore over the course of the trilogy!
Congrats on the new release! It sounds intriguing. Great interview. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much – my pleasure!
Enjoyed the post, sounds good!
Thank you – always good to hear!