It's nearly July 25. In Australia, this has become a bit of a moment in itself, known as Christmas in July.
The problem we poor Aussies have is that the traditional Christmas meal - roast turkey/chicken/ham, roast vegetables, Christmas pudding - is a hot meal. And Christmas here takes place during the hottest time of the year.
But we love a good roast, so we've come up with an ingenious solution - have a traditional Christmas dinner in July, when it's cold enough to enjoy.
The festivals we have in our lives - those that are traditional, those that we make up ourselves - are an important part of the colour of our world.
It was important to me to have these sorts of festivals in my created world of the gadda, the secret magical race at the centre of my books. And so I devised the Festival of the Star - a yearly celebration of the gadda, their rules and culture.
The festival was the setting of the finale of the Dream of Asarlai trilogy and when I decided to write a sequel, setting it during the festival seemed the only thing to do.
If you were the member of a secret magical race, how would you hide from humans?
The bardria and its guardians have decided to hide in the open by showcasing the gadda stronghold of Sclossin to the humans as a tourist destination, in the process proving the residents are normal.
The purists, however, believe the best solution is to remove the gadda from all contact with humans. The Festival of the Star, the biggest celebration of the year, is the perfect place to begin their campaign.
The guardians are sure they’re ready for anything the purists throw at them. But are they ready for the resurrection of an old enemy?
The Festival is available for free until the end of July from here: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/181532
If you've not read a gadda book yet - make this the time you give it a go :)
And thanks to Aussie author and artist Patty Jansen for the fabulous cover!
1 comment:
Nicole! Thank you. The Festival is now on my kindle. I look forward to reading.
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