The Unseen Spirits must be entertained, so that the city may prosper......
About the Book:
In the summer of 1914, Jane Fairchild, a young English musician, is kidnapped by magic and sent to Spellhaven, an island city ruled by magicians. Here, peace and prosperity are maintained with the assistance of Unseen Spirits bound to the service of the Lords Magician. The Spirits must be kept in good humour by the performance of all kinds of shows, dance, drama and music. Jane is one of many people kidnapped from the outside world and forced to contribute to these entertainments for a set period of service.
Only Jane is having none of it. She will not perform for her kidnapper, Lucian Palafox, but agrees to undertake an apprenticeship with another magician impresario, provided she is taught magic in return. Jane's forays into magic lead her deeper within the mysteries of Spellhaven, her rivalry with Lucian escalates and the quarrels between them grow strong enough to shake the city to its foundations.
Genres: Fantasy, Adventure
Release Date: August 17, 2017
Publisher: Mirror World Publishing
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The lady sat on a terrace, in a corner bordered by pots of lavender and rosemary. She was alone, with a chessboard by her side.
Childeric said, ‘Lady Imblen, this child, who speaks no Latin, bears a mark of Lucian. She says she does not believe in magic.’
Jane said, slowly and distinctly, ‘I am a subject of the British Empire. I demand to be sent home.’
The lady seemed very old, though upright and sturdy. Her white hair was coiled under a jewelled cap and the clasps on her jacket were enamelled in blue and white. She looked at Childeric, not at Jane and said, ‘What is her calling?’
‘She is a musician, seemingly. She has instruments in that bag.’
Before Jane could protest further, her glance was held by Lady Imblen’s dark, heavy-lidded gaze. Jane found herself wondering how long the woman had been sitting there. She might have been immersed in contemplation for weeks or years, hardly to be interrupted by small troubles.
Lady Imblen said, ‘Play a tune for me.’
Jane was out of practice and she could still feel the bruises from her journey, but maybe once they heard her music, they would listen to her words.
She took out the easiest of her instruments to play, a penny whistle she sometimes used for teaching. She began with Three Blind Mice, slowly at first, and then at a brisker tempo. A small breeze curled round her and strengthened the salty sparkle in the air. Out of the breeze grew a shape which flickered in and out of her sight, as though of some immense beast made of air and fire. She thought of the invisible lion she had imagined when she arrived in the city and at once she caught brief, fiery glimpses of a lion’s paw, the hunch of a maned shoulder, the glint of an eye. They moved round her, vanishing as soon as seen. If the lion was there, it must be dancing to her music and she grew afraid to stop. She muddled her notes and tried to change tunes, but that was worse. She could feel the creature’s impatience, so she went back to the Mice and steadied the tempo, but she wondered how long she could keep going.
A voice joined in, somehow unwinding the tune. The outline of the lion flared up, black and burning, and then disappeared. Childeric put his hand over Jane’s.
‘You may stop now.’
‘What was that?’ She could hardly speak. ‘What did you do?’
Lady Imblen said, ‘That was your doing, not ours. It seems Lucian has made a good choice this time.’
‘What do you mean?’
Childeric said, ‘The air in this city is crammed with spirits. It is our task to keep this Unseen Audience entertained, so that the city may prosper. Maybe you had beginner’s luck just now, but maybe you will have a greater contribution to offer us than I would have guessed.’
‘No,’ Jane said. She went to crouch beside Lady Imblen. ‘My lady, I don’t understand. I never wished to come here. I never gave Mr. Hunter any promises: I barely spoke to him. He had no right to send me here.’
‘You may make your complaint to him when he returns.’ The lady did not even sound interested. ‘He won’t be long. You would do well to learn some Latin while you wait.’
Follow the tour to read guest posts, reviews, and exclusive excerpts!
https://saphsbookpromotions.blogspot.com/2017/08/book-tour-schedule-spellhaven-by-sandra.html
Read an Exclusive Excerpt!
The lady sat on a terrace, in a corner bordered by pots of lavender and rosemary. She was alone, with a chessboard by her side.
Childeric said, ‘Lady Imblen, this child, who speaks no Latin, bears a mark of Lucian. She says she does not believe in magic.’
Jane said, slowly and distinctly, ‘I am a subject of the British Empire. I demand to be sent home.’
The lady seemed very old, though upright and sturdy. Her white hair was coiled under a jewelled cap and the clasps on her jacket were enamelled in blue and white. She looked at Childeric, not at Jane and said, ‘What is her calling?’
‘She is a musician, seemingly. She has instruments in that bag.’
Before Jane could protest further, her glance was held by Lady Imblen’s dark, heavy-lidded gaze. Jane found herself wondering how long the woman had been sitting there. She might have been immersed in contemplation for weeks or years, hardly to be interrupted by small troubles.
Lady Imblen said, ‘Play a tune for me.’
Jane was out of practice and she could still feel the bruises from her journey, but maybe once they heard her music, they would listen to her words.
She took out the easiest of her instruments to play, a penny whistle she sometimes used for teaching. She began with Three Blind Mice, slowly at first, and then at a brisker tempo. A small breeze curled round her and strengthened the salty sparkle in the air. Out of the breeze grew a shape which flickered in and out of her sight, as though of some immense beast made of air and fire. She thought of the invisible lion she had imagined when she arrived in the city and at once she caught brief, fiery glimpses of a lion’s paw, the hunch of a maned shoulder, the glint of an eye. They moved round her, vanishing as soon as seen. If the lion was there, it must be dancing to her music and she grew afraid to stop. She muddled her notes and tried to change tunes, but that was worse. She could feel the creature’s impatience, so she went back to the Mice and steadied the tempo, but she wondered how long she could keep going.
A voice joined in, somehow unwinding the tune. The outline of the lion flared up, black and burning, and then disappeared. Childeric put his hand over Jane’s.
‘You may stop now.’
‘What was that?’ She could hardly speak. ‘What did you do?’
Lady Imblen said, ‘That was your doing, not ours. It seems Lucian has made a good choice this time.’
‘What do you mean?’
Childeric said, ‘The air in this city is crammed with spirits. It is our task to keep this Unseen Audience entertained, so that the city may prosper. Maybe you had beginner’s luck just now, but maybe you will have a greater contribution to offer us than I would have guessed.’
‘No,’ Jane said. She went to crouch beside Lady Imblen. ‘My lady, I don’t understand. I never wished to come here. I never gave Mr. Hunter any promises: I barely spoke to him. He had no right to send me here.’
‘You may make your complaint to him when he returns.’ The lady did not even sound interested. ‘He won’t be long. You would do well to learn some Latin while you wait.’
Purchase Links:
Mirror World Publishing eBook:
Mirror World Publishing Paperback:
Amazon US:
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Amazon CA:
Amazon CA:
https://www.amazon.ca/Spellhaven-Sandra-Unerman-ebook/dp/B072YRDLD2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500909249&sr=8-1&keywords=Spellhaven+by+Sandra+Unerman
Amazon UK:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Spellhaven-Sandra-Unerman-ebook/dp/B072YRDLD2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500909290&sr=8-1&keywords=Spellhaven+by+Sandra+Unerman
Kobo:
Amazon UK:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Spellhaven-Sandra-Unerman-ebook/dp/B072YRDLD2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500909290&sr=8-1&keywords=Spellhaven+by+Sandra+Unerman
Kobo:
https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/spellhaven
Barnes & Noble:
Barnes & Noble:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/spellhaven-sandra-unerman/1126613810?ean=9781987976342
Meet the Author:
Sandra Unerman lives in London in the UK. When she retired from a career as a Government lawyer, she undertook an MA in Creative Writing at Middlesex University, specialising in SF and fantasy, and graduated in 2013. Since then, she has had a number of short stories published. In 2016, these included stories in Three Drops from a Cauldron, the Midwinter issue and Aurora Wolf, the September issue, both available online. She writes reviews and articles for the British Science Fiction Association and the British Fantasy Society. She is a member of London Clockhouse writers and other writing groups. Her interests include history, folklore and medieval literature.
Connect with Sandra :
Website: https://sandraunermanwriter.com/
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Sandra-Unerman/e/B0034NS9VM
Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6566116.Sandra_Unerman
Goodreads Book Page: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35546814-spellhaven
Meet the Author:
Sandra Unerman lives in London in the UK. When she retired from a career as a Government lawyer, she undertook an MA in Creative Writing at Middlesex University, specialising in SF and fantasy, and graduated in 2013. Since then, she has had a number of short stories published. In 2016, these included stories in Three Drops from a Cauldron, the Midwinter issue and Aurora Wolf, the September issue, both available online. She writes reviews and articles for the British Science Fiction Association and the British Fantasy Society. She is a member of London Clockhouse writers and other writing groups. Her interests include history, folklore and medieval literature.
Connect with Sandra :
Website: https://sandraunermanwriter.com/
Amazon Author Page: https://www.amazon.com/Sandra-Unerman/e/B0034NS9VM
Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6566116.Sandra_Unerman
Goodreads Book Page: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/35546814-spellhaven
