Book Review: Tales of Nalu

The Tales of Nalu are short stories that prequel the upcoming The Hidden Dagger Trilogy by Jennette Mbewe. They're very well-written and very intriguing!

Can a desert princess find love with a foreign king?
Johari lives in the shadow of her beautiful sister until a foreign king notices her, but in her haste to prove herself worthy of affection she finds herself compromised and on a difficult journey to make things right.

This short story is a prequel to a The Hidden Dagger Trilogy, the first of which, Secrets Kept, will be releasing soon.

This is a tragic story of a girl making a wrong decision, then choosing to suffer for it in an attempt to protect and redeem herself. It is well-written with unique imagery and conflicting feelings. I really appreciated the fact that the author wrote about an immoral situation without stumbling the reader. The subject of the story  makes it suitable for older readers, but it was gently and cleanly handled.

As I said, this is a very sad story, but it sets the stage for an upcoming novel that I'm looking forward to read. The seed has been planted...I'm ready to travel into the world of Nalu!

~

 
 The teaching of the Guardians has guided Semine’s footsteps since her infancy. When her mentor shows up with information contrary to what she’s been taught, she doubts her decision to follow in their footsteps. She must decide if there is life beyond what she has always known or embrace a new, mysterious path and reject the Guardians’ legacy.

This is the story of descent into darkness. How two young people with great aptitude follow something that at first seems right, but which compromises their purity, friendship, honesty, respect, and trust. As such, I wasn't overly fond of the story. It shows the background of whom I suspect will be the villainess for Secrets Kept. However, I expect Secrets Kept to be less discouraging because it is not about succumbing to evil, but defeating it. Hope over despair. Light over darkness.

Like I said, I think both of the above stories are only suitable for mature readers...probably over 16. It's always difficult for me to figure out appropriate age limit when a story deals with sex, even when it's off scene and not descriptive, which this thankfully is. I mean, the Bible deals with it too, and J.L. Mbewe being a caring Christian lady keeps overt description off scene and doesn't make the reader uncomfortable, besides just having the subject itself. So I guess it depends on the personal exposure of the individual.

 To what lengths would you go to save the world?

Elothryn keeps the darkest secret of Nälu: The cursed dagger of Raemoja. A weapon powerful enough to release the greatest evil from the underworld. For generations, his family has lived without incident until now. The hunters have his scent and will stop at nothing to reclaim the dagger. Elothryn and his son flee, seeking help, but will they find it?

This was my favorite of the three! It is a story of courage and determination. The author creates a suspenseful journey in a short time period and draws you close to the main characters. (Who happen to be elves. How cool is that?) There's a bit of violence, blood and death, but nothing too gory. And while this story is again sad, it also has a note of hope to it. I think this one especially is a must-read before Secrets Kept. :)
 
 The world of Nalu features humans, elves, dwarves, mer-folk, and feline shape-shifters! All three stories are soon to be releasing in one volume. And while these prequels might be sad, I doubt that The Hidden Dagger Trilogy will be, once it has all come full circle. I could be wrong, but Mrs. Mbewe says she loves happy endings!

An intriguing stage, full of perilous history and potent mystery, has been set for The Hidden Dagger Trilogy by J.L. Mbewe! I'm curious to see how all will work together for the Greater Glory!

Eternity

They put their backs to the Final Water and ran together up the green and golden slopes, vanishing into the lights of the sun and the moon and the greater, ringing light of the Song ever singing. --Dragonwitch by Anne Elisabeth Stengl

Earlier this month, I did a post on the coming hour when the this world shall end and all will go to the eternity they chose in this life through accepting Christ or rejecting Him. Those who accept the grace and redemption of God's sacrifice have an incredible future in front of them in Heaven, a future without end.

But what shall Heaven be like? Many people have imagined beautiful things that reflect God's glory. Indeed, some of my very favorite books touch on the heavenly realm we have not yet seen.

...the grey rain-curtain turned all to silver glass and was rolled back, and he beheld white shores and beyond them a far green country under a swift sunrise.--The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien

I have heard it said that there cannot be Good without Evil. I must strongly disagree using these four words: "In the beginning, God..." (Genesis 1:1) God has no evil in Him. When he created the world He did not say, "It is good, except for..." All was perfect. Evil spawned out of something that began as Good. Lucifer, greatest of the angels, became proud and jealous--a deadly combination--and his actions would mar the world. But one day Evil will again be cast off--this time forever.

When we live in heaven, everything will be perfection and to our complete satisfaction. We will not say, "Good was so much better on earth when we had Evil to compare it to." We're not going to be short-changed in heaven, nothing will be lacking. Rather, we will finally be complete and cleansed. For Evil is the rips in the canvas, the mold on fruit, the refuse on the tile. When it is wiped away, we shall not miss it. We shall see Good, unscathed and uncontested, and it will be more glorious than we could ever imagine.

"I have come home at last! This is my real country! I belong here. This is the land I have been looking for all my life, though I never knew it until now." --The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis

What shall we do in Heaven? We're not quite sure, we can only speculate.

But as it is written:

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9


 I like to imagine our activities. Will we sing? Of course! And if you're a bad singer down on this earth, you won't have to worry about that up there. But what other ways do we worship God down on this earth? Are you an artist? A writer? An architect? A designer? A scientist? Do you love meeting new people? Do you love exploring new lands?  Whatever gifts you enjoy down here and whatever gifts you wished you had, will likely become abundantly greater in Heaven! That story you never could quite finish, the painting that refused to be perfect, the impossible building structure, and your scientific research that you were never able to figure out might be ready to continue! You have the greatest Artist, Author, Designer, and Creator to turn to for advice! We'll be surrounded by the incredible godly people we read about in history lessons!

Will we be able to do crazy, impossible things that we couldn't do on earth--like flying, super-fast running, and free-falling? I don't know. More speculation comes into play as we stretch our imaginations to the greatest things we can think. But we will have perfect bodies, and there will be no more pain or sorrow.

There is of course, the alternate eternity. A fate not intended for man but for the traitorous Satan and all his minions. But he is the prince of this fallen world, and if we do not turn from this path and take the sole salvation offered through Christ, we'll find ourselves following the Evil One right into damnation.

I look forward to Heaven. Do you?

All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page; now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story, which no one on this earth has read: which goes on for ever; in which every chapter is better than the one before. --The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis

Goddess Tithe Reveal!

I'm so excited for this story! Let me introduce the first novella of the award winning series Tales of Goldstone Wood by Anne Elisabeth Stengl! Isn't the cover marvelous? I love the watercolor spread of the sky and the soft, gentle colors. It's so cool to have a fantasy story set in an Oriental-based ship! 

Coming This November

The Vengeful Goddess

Demands Her Tithe

When a stowaway is discovered aboard the merchant ship Kulap Kanya, Munny, a cabin boy on his first voyage, knows what must be done. All stowaways are sacrificed to Risafeth, the evil goddess of the sea. Such is her right, and the Kulap Kanya's only hope to return safely home.

Yet, to the horror of his crew, Captain Sunan vows to protect the stowaway, a foreigner in clown's garb. A curse falls upon the ship and all who sail with her, for Risafeth will stop at nothing to claim her tithe.

Will Munny find the courage to trust his captain and to protect the strange clown who has become his friend? 

 ~

Anne Shares the Back-story of the Cover

I had the fun of designing this cover—finding reference photos, inventing the composition, applying the text, etc.—but the actual artistic work was done by talented cover artist Phatpuppy (www.phatpuppyart.com), whose work I have admired for many years. It was such a thrill for me to contact and commission this artist to create a look for Goddess Tithe that is reminiscent of the original novels but has a style and drama all its own.

The boy on the front was quite a find. I hunted high and low for an image of a boy the right age, the right look, with the right expression on his face. Phatpuppy and I worked with a different model through most of the cover development stage. But then I happened upon this image, and both she and I were delighted with his blend of youth, stubbornness, and strength of character! It wasn’t difficult to switch the original boy for this young man. He simply is Munny, and this cover is a perfect window into the world of my story.

You can’t see it here, but the wrap-around back cover for the print copy contains some of the prettiest work . . . including quite a scary sea monster! Possibly my favorite detail is the inclusion of the ghostly white flowers framing the outer edge. These are an important symbol in the story itself, and when Phatpuppy sent me the first mock-up cover with these included, I nearly jumped out of my skin with excitement!

Illustration Sneak Peak

Anne Shares Back-Story on Illustration!

There are eight full-page illustrations in Goddess Tithe featuring various characters and events from the story. This is the first one in the book. I decided to share it with all of you since it depicts my young hero, Munny the cabin boy, under the watchful eye of his mentor, the old sailor Tu Pich. Munny is on his first voyage, and he is determined to learn all there is to know about a life at sea as quickly as possible. Thus we see him utterly intent upon the knot he is learning to tie. Tu Pich is old enough to know that no sailor will ever learn all there is to know about the sea. Thus he looks on, grave, caring, and perhaps a little sad. He might be looking upon his own younger self of many years ago, fumbling through the hundreds of difficult knots his fingers must learn to tie with unconscious ease.

I enjoyed creating all the illustrations for Goddess Tithe, but this one was my favorite. I love the contrasts of light and dark, the contrasts of young and old . . . youthful intensity versus the perspective of age.

  Excerpt from Goddess Tithe!

Here is an excerpt from the middle of the story. In this scene, Munny has been ordered to Captain Sunan’s cabin to clear away his breakfast . . . an unexpected task, for a lowly cabin boy would not ordinarily dare enter his captain’s private quarters! Munny hopes to slip in and out quietly without attracting the captain’s notice. But his hopes are dashed when Sunan addresses him, asking how their strange, foreign stowaway is faring:

__________

“And what do you make of him yourself?”

Munny dared glance his captain’s way and was relieved when his eyes met only a stern and rigid back. “I’m not sure, Captain,” he said. “I think he’s afraid. But not of . . .”

“Not of the goddess?” the Captain finished for him. And with these words he turned upon Munny, his eyes so full of secrets it was nearly overwhelming. Munny froze, his fingers just touching but not daring to take up a small teapot of fragile work.

The Captain looked at him, studying his small frame up and down. “No,” he said, “I believe you are right. Leonard the Clown does not fear Risafeth. I believe he is unaware of his near peril at her will, suffering as he does under a peril nearer still.”

 Munny made neither answer nor any move.

“We will bring him safely to Lunthea Maly, won’t we, Munny?” the Captain said. But he did not speak as though he expected an answer, so again Munny offered none. “We will bring him safely to Lunthea Maly and there let him choose his own dark future.”

“I hope—” Munny began.

But he was interrupted by a sudden commotion on deck. First a rising murmur of voices, then many shouts, inarticulate in cacophony. But a pounding at the cabin door accompanied Sur Agung’s voice bellowing, “Captain, you’d best come see this!”

The Captain’s eyes widened a moment and still did not break gaze with Munny’s. “We’ll keep him safe,” he repeated. Then he turned and was gone, leaving the door open.

Munny put down the pot he held and scurried after. The deck was alive with hands, even those who were off watch, crawling up from the hatches and crowding the rails on the port side. They parted way for the Captain to pass through, but when Munny tried to follow, they closed in again, blocking him as solidly as a brick wall.

“Look! Look!” Munny heard voices crying.

“It’s a sign!”

“She’s warning us!”

“It’s a sign, I tell you!”

Fearing he knew not what, Munny ran for the center mast and climbed partway up, using the handholds and footholds with unconscious confidence. Soon he was high enough to see over the heads of the gathered crew, out into the blue waters of the ocean. And he saw them.

 They were water birds. Big white albatrosses, smaller seagulls, heavy cormorants, even deep-throated pelicans and sleek, black-faced terns. These and many more, hundreds of them, none of which should be seen this far out to sea.

They were all dead. Floating in a great mass.

Munny clung to the mast, pressing his cheek against its wood. The shouts of the frightened sailors below faded away, drowned out by the desolation of that sight. Death, reeking death, a sad flotilla upon the waves.

“I’ve never seen anything like that.”

Munny looked down to where Leonard clung to the mast just beneath him, staring wide-eyed out at the waves. “How could this have happened? Were they sick? Caught in a sudden gale? Are they tangled in fishing nets?”

There was no fear in his voice. Not like in the voices of the sailors. He did not understand. He did not realize. It wasn’t his fault, Munny told himself.

But it was.

__________

Doesn't that all sound absolutely stupendous??? If you want to find out more about the novella, here is its blog. Feel free to share the button!

Author Bio:

Anne Elisabeth Stengl makes her home in Raleigh, North Carolina, where she lives with her husband, Rohan, a kindle of kitties, and one long-suffering dog. When she’s not writing, she enjoys Shakespeare, opera, and tea, and practices piano, painting, and pastry baking. She studied illustration at Grace College and English literature at Campbell University. She is the author of the Tales of Goldstone Wood, including Heartless, Veiled Rose, Moonblood, Starflower, and Dragonwitch. Heartless and Veiled Rose have each been honored with a Christy Award, and Starflower was voted winner of the 2013 Clive Staples Award.

 


Now, Anne is giving away not one, but two proof copies of Goddess Tithe!
a Rafflecopter giveaway