Episode 73 of the GSMC Book Review Podcast features an interview with author Cynthia Diamond about her book, Alchemy's Hunger, the fourth book in her Wyrd Love series. The books are standalone novels but have interconnecting characters, and the first 3 books feature the stories of the 3 Constance sisters. Alchemy's Hunger tells the story of Nick and Faith, both of whom are running from troubled pasts and both of whom have the power to save the other.
After escaping the terrors of his dark cabal, Tony Harris craves redemption. With just one ritual, he could resurrect the mother he accidentally killed. All he needs is a Conduit- a being that holds an endless well of magic. But when the Conduit turns out to be a quirky, optimistic woman named Faith, his world is turned upside-down. Now Tony must choose; bring Cybil Constance back to life or give his heart to someone who believes in him. With the cabal hot on his tail, Tony is unsure he’ll survive long enough to make the choice.Faith Conway longs to forget her abusive ex-boyfriend but between emotional scars and an overprotective mother, she has lost all confidence in herself. Now, thrust into a strange place called the Wyrd, a devastatingly handsome mage appears to protect her. All she has to do is help him with one mysterious, magical ritual. Despite his smooth promises, Faith wonders if Tony’s motives are honorable or if his devilish smile will only lead to more heartbreak. (Source)
Tony is brooding, in search of redemption, and quite possibly not a good person. Faith is quirky, running from her own demons, and quite possibly too good of a person for Tony. But Tony needs Faith, who is a conduit, to perform the ritual that will (he hopes) earn him the redemption he seeks. Faith doesn't realize she needs Tony, but he might be the person to help her heal from her own past.
Faith and Tony are from different worlds. Faith is from the mundane, human world, while Tony comes from the Wyrd, the world of magic and mythical creatures that exists alongside our own. Tony is aware of both worlds, but Faith has no idea the Wyrd exists, let alone the fact that she has any connection to it. She has a steep learning curve, and isn't inclined to be trusting, so Nick has to find some way to convince her to help him.
I love high fantasy, but I also like urban fantasy where the magical world exists with our own world, we just can't see it. Cynthia blends these two worlds together and makes the reader want to take another look at the space around them to see if maybe, just maybe, there's something else there that they've never noticed before. She has a love of writing dialogue and this passion is evident in this book. Her characters are witty and their conversations are, well, conversational, as well as funny and engaging.
Genres:
- Contemporary Fantasy
- Urban Fantasty
- Romance
What I enjoyed:
- When you listen to the interview you will hear Cynthia say, "what if?" a lot. She sees the world and wonders, what if X, Y, or Z was happening? For instance, what if vampires were responsible for that building over there or some event that you or I might not ever think when looking at the same building or event. The magical and mundane worlds coexist in her novels, and you can absolutely see in the writing how Cynthia's what-iffing creates the world underneath the regular world we see every day. (Why yes, I did just make if a verb...thank you for noticing!)
- Faith's quirkiness. She is a little bit goofy, but very kind, and she made me smile on nearly every page.
- The dialogue, especially Faith's inner (and often not-so-inner) monologues.
- The fact that Faith reads Harry Potter when she can't sleep.
Quotes:
- "But she had ridiculous taste in clothing. Faith was clad in neon pink skinny jeans, a baggy sweater vomited over with rainbow hearts, and a pair of scuffed combat boots. Around her neck was a chunky necklace of chipped rhinestones, the brass chain tarnished. Faith Conway looked like she had wrestled a Goodwill and lost. Horribly."
- "The subject was dropped but it didn't make Faith feel any better. The whole 'you're too naïve' conversation was wearing thin on her nerves. When would she be considered old enough to ' know better'? Fifty? Sixty? Dead?"
- "'I mean, I figured it would be a lot more entertaining for both of us if we just met up, took a walk, see if we could find a place open now. Though the only place I know open at this time is the Seven-Eleven but we could get a Slurpee I guess if you're into that sort of thing.' She moaned. 'Oh God. I know you're not the type to be into Slurpees. Forget I mentioned Slurpees. Actually, forget I mentioned any of this!'"
Where you can find Cynthia online:
Facebook: @cynthiadiamondauthor
Twitter: @cinsdiamond
Instagram: cinsdiamond
Booksprout: Cynthia Diamond
Tumblr: cynthiadiamond
Pinterest: Cynthia Diamond
Amazon Author Page: Cynthia Diamond
GoodReads: Cynthia Diamond
BookBub: @cynthiadiamond
Author Bio:
Since she was a child, Cynthia craved anything that featured heroines with strong personalities. Now she writes books for sassy nerds with a sharp sense of humor. Starting her adult life in theater, she earned a Masters of Fine Arts in Costume Design, but her first love was telling stories. After some encouragement, she dove down the rabbit hole and created the Wyrd Love series.When not telling tales about hot dragons and werewolves with tight behinds, Cynthia is an SCA geek and an amateur artist. She resides in sunny San Diego, California with her husband Max, two cats of varying intelligence, and a ton of goldfish. (Source)
Do you love Urban Fantasy? How about romance? Does Alchemy's Hunger sound like a book you'd like to read? Well hooray for you because I have 3 copies from Cynthia to give away! All you have to do is go to either our Facebook or Twitter pages and share the episode with Cynthia's interview, or go to Instagram and comment on that post. Simple as that: just comment on, share, or retweet episode 73 and you'll automatically be entered to win Alchemy's Hunger!
To hear the interview with Cynthia please click here.
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