The Necromancer’s Daughter Book Tour with D. Wallace Peach

Introduction

I’ve been blogging for nearly three and a half years and have met many fascinating people. As someone who worked in a collaborative field (education), I know how crucial it is to learn from other skilled professionals. Not only is D. Wallace Peach an outstanding writer, but she is also a genuinely kind and supportive person. She always takes the time to acknowledge others’ comments on her blog with sincere and thoughtful replies. It is a style I hope to emulate as a writer and in the manner I conduct myself. When I got an opportunity to take part in her blog tour for her new book, The Necromancer’s Daughter, my first thought was, where do I sign up?

I recently came across a thought-provoking question regarding what kind of genre I would be least likely to write. My answer was Diana’s specialty—fantasy. While I have little desire to write in this genre, Diana is slowly converting me into a fantasy reader. Having read two of her other novels (Liars and Thieves and The Ferryman and the Sea Witch), I knew the writing in her new book would be superb. That proved to be true. (See my review below.) Time to turn things over to Diana.

Blurb:

A healer and dabbler in the dark arts of life and death, Barus is as gnarled as an ancient tree. Forgotten in the chaos of the dying queen’s chamber, he spirits away her stillborn infant, and in a hovel at the meadow’s edge, he breathes life into the wisp of a child. He names her Aster for the lea’s white flowers. Raised as his daughter, she learns to heal death.

Then the day arrives when the widowed king, his own life nearing its end, defies the Red Order’s warning. He summons the necromancer’s daughter, his only heir, and for his boldness, he falls to an assassin’s blade.

While Barus hides from the Order’s soldiers, Aster leads their masters beyond the wall into the Forest of Silvern Cats, a land of dragons and barbarian tribes. She seeks her mother’s people, the powerful rulers of Blackrock, uncertain whether she will find sanctuary or face a gallows’ noose.

Unprepared for a world rife with danger, a world divided by those who practice magic and those who hunt them, she must choose whether to trust the one man offering her aid, the one man most likely to betray her—her enemy’s son.

A healer with the talent to unravel death, a child reborn, a father lusting for vengeance, and a son torn between justice, faith, and love. Caught in a chase spanning kingdoms, each must decide the nature of good and evil, the lengths they will go to survive, and what they are willing to lose.

Writing Sample

Today I thought I’d share a snippet from Chapter 3 where Barus takes a huge step that will change the course of his life:

Barus’s lantern burned deep into the night. The book transformed as he read, the practical and ordinary craft of healing morphing into a study of roots and fungi. He perused pages of cryptic elixirs with instructions designed to mislead, of potions where he couldn’t distinguish the active ingredients from the unnecessary. The book detailed the mysterious effects wrought by combinations of hallucinogens. With many of the ancient recipes, he discovered accompanying prayers and incantations. Much of it, he scarcely understood.

The last chapter in the book lay before him. Necromancy: The Summoning, Manipulation, and Resurrection of the Dead.

He tapped his fingers on the ominous skull inked into the page’s center. Olma had scribbled in the margins, circled the word Resurrection, and written Death Magic in her messy scrawl. He’d found what he sought, the powerful magic he longed to wield. While he sipped his cold soup, he flipped the page and read.

D. Wallace Peach’s Biography

A long-time reader, best-selling author D. Wallace Peach started writing later in life when years of working in business surrendered to a full-time indulgence in the imaginative world of books. She was instantly hooked.

In addition to fantasy books, Peach’s publishing career includes participation in various anthologies featuring short stories, flash fiction, and poetry. She’s an avid supporter of the arts in her local community, organizing and publishing annual anthologies of Oregon prose, poetry, and photography.

Peach lives in a log cabin amongst the tall evergreens and emerald moss of Oregon’s rainforest with her husband, two owls, a horde of bats, and the occasional family of coyotes.

Fantasy Writer D. Wallace Peach

Get in Touch with D. Wallace Peach

Amazon Author’s Page: https://www.amazon.com/D.-Wallace-Peach/e/B00CLKLXP8

Website/Blog: http://mythsofthemirror.com

Website/Books: http://dwallacepeachbooks.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/Dwallacepeach

My Review

The Necromancer’s Daughter is one of those novels that grabs your attention right from the get-go and keeps you riveted the whole time.

Barus possesses an unusual and powerful skill in necromancy, the ability to bring dead things back to life if certain conditions happen. Most people in Verdane associate this with witchcraft and are against the practice. The risks are extreme. There is no guarantee his attempt will work, and he could lose his life trying to resurrect someone in the process.

When the Queen’s health suddenly deteriorates, King Aldring commands Barus to come to the palace to try and help save his wife and their child. The Queen realizes she is about to pass, and her only concern becomes the life of her unborn child. After the Queen dies, Barus offers to bring her back to life. King Aldring faces the unenviable choice of whether to go against his convictions to restore the Queen’s life. His religious beliefs win out, and he decides it would be sacrilegious to resurrect her life. He falls into depression upon her passing and learning that his new baby is a girl.

Barus, fearing for the baby’s safety, decides to kidnap her and raise it as his own. He names the baby Aster, and father and daughter maintain a beautiful relationship. As Aster becomes a young adult, she learns about necromancy from her father, though her experiences up to that point are only with animals. She and her father must separate when some of the King’s men come looking for them. The King’s Vicar, Tamus, has a deep hatred for both but follows the King’s orders to find and return them. The Vicar’s son, Joreh, is torn, uncertain how to proceed. He also believes that necromancy is a sin, but he slowly falls in love with Aster. The internal struggle that Joreh goes through is one of the most compelling parts of the plot. Aster and Barus wish to be reunited one day but getting caught in the middle of warring tribes makes this unlikely.

Even though this was not an easy read, author D. Wallace Peach writes numerous engaging scenes, well-crafted characters, and plot twists that kept this reader on the edge of his seat. I recommend this book to anyone who loves good writing, especially those who enjoy epic fantasy tales.

Where Can I Purchase Diana’s Book

US: https://www.amazon.com/Necromancers-Daughter-D-Wallace-Peach-ebook/dp/B0B92G7QZX

UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Necromancers-Daughter-D-Wallace-Peach-ebook/dp/B0B92G7QZX

CA: https://www.amazon.ca/Necromancers-Daughter-D-Wallace-Peach-ebook/dp/B0B92G7QZX

AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/Necromancers-Daughter-D-Wallace-Peach/dp/B0B9FY6YZJ

IN: https://www.amazon.in/Necromancers-Daughter-D-Wallace-Peach-ebook/dp/B0B92G7QZX