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Roland Yeomans: Excerpt and Giveaway for End of Days

Today I'm hosting author Roland Yeomans, who's just released a new fantasy novel: END OF DAYS.


I met Roland through blogging and we got to know each other better in the A to Z Challenge. I really love both his writing and the high school setting for this supernatural novel. Roland says:

"I've read many YA books set in schools, and very, very few mention what goes on in the classrooms. The action all transpires before or after class, making the school almost non-existent when for students, it makes up a bulk of their weekly lives. In END OF DAYS, I brought the class into the lives of the students. Seeing as it was a high school for and taught by supernaturals, the classes were hardly boring!"

Here's are a couple of excerpts from End of Days:

1) Wolf Howl, a Lakota shaman, is a teacher at St. Marrok's.  He begins his classes with:

“Students, let us put our minds together and see what lives we can make for ourselves, shall we?
“The Sidhe who sent you here hope that I will talk of the Native American People and their failure to stop an invading horde of ever-increasing numbers and far advanced technology.”
He seemed to grow taller.  “Instead I will talk of how a small people held off overwhelming odds and in so doing set the stage for what the Western World calls civilization.”
He said the last word as if it tasted bad.
He leaned against the teaching boulder.  “To an invader, the indigenous people always look easy prey.  The Tuatha de Danann should have learned on September 11, 2001, that the age of heroes is not dead.  Heroes live among us like demigods in old Greek myth.  They are everyday people who value human dignity to such a degree that they will rise to protect it, sometimes sacrificing themselves in the process.”
 
2) Another teacher, a vampire priest (yes, this IS a fantasy -- LOL) uses DRACULA as a text to teach how to approach life.  How?
 
         Renfield started to pace.  “The whole story.  That is something none of the characters in DRACULA ever get.  Nor does the reader.” 
         Father Renfield rubbed his hands together, his eyes beginning to burn with a strange light.  “DRACULA is told entirely in letters, telegrams, press cuttings, and other similar narratives.  None of the people telling us the tale knows the entirety of what is actually happening around them and to them.”
         He stopped suddenly staring at each of us in turn.  “This means that DRACULA is a book that forces the reader to fill in the blanks, to hypothesize, to imagine, and to presume.”
         Renfield held up a long forefinger.  “As all of us must do as we live each day, each week, each year.”

Roland is giving away one ebook of End of Days to a lucky commenter! So get your supernatural groove on and talk to us, Obi Wan.

Comments

Thanks so much for doing this post for me. Father Renfield and Wolf Howl also thank you ... and it never hurts to have a vampire priest ana Lakota shaman on your side!

Everyone come visit my book site at Amazon and "like" it -- it costs nothing -- how cool is that? LOL.
Alex, if you're picked, then you get the eBook of your choice. Not too shabby, right? I hope you enjoy the read. Thanks for visiting, Roland
L. Diane Wolfe said…
I like the Dracula segment.
Thanks, Diane. Isn't it true that, like with DRACULA, we never get the full picture of what is going on around us but we have to piece things together for ourselves?
Carin: Thanks. I tried to make if fun while thought-provoking -- but mostly a great read for all ages. Have a great day today, Roland
Rek Sesh said…
Vampires normally get the cold shoulder from me, except the slightly different ones of Vampire Academy whom I loved.
But, I hear so much praise for Roland in the blogsphere that I am tempted to check it out.
It will get added to my wishlist list and a 'like' definitely doesn't cost anything at all. Good luck with the book.
F. Stone said…
I wish I had time to read for fun. Really 'booked' up doing research reading. However, I love to giving a thumbs-up for other authors. I'll do the 'like' and post info on my facebook - it'll be a treat for my followers. Congratulations, Roland. Thank you to Jennifer for passing along info on this wonderful book. Feather
Hart Johnson said…
Ha! I've written some classroom scenes because I agree, but they always end up cut because it isn't central to the action. It sounds like you've solved it, though, by making it central!
Stephsco said…
I think classroom scenes can work if the school and a teacher are integral to the plot. Like in Harry Potter, the most obvious example, the various teachers were directly related to various quests, and learning about potions with Harry & crew often "taught" the viewer about plot elements. If the classroom scene has a function to the story, it absolutely can work. If it's just there and not advancing the plot, it will probably eventually get cut.

I agree thought, some YA books - and TV shows like Vampire Diaries - it's a joke to even consider the characters students because they're never in class. At least if a story makes passing reference to class it helps.

thanks for sharing!
Cherie Colyer said…
Oh, I wish I had supernatural teachers when I was in school. Love the excerpts! Thanks for sharing and hosting such a wonderful giveaway!
Rek:
There are also sinister fae, Native American myths and legends coming to the defense of the Earth. And Father Renfield is one of a kind. I think you would enjoy this one.

Thanks, Feather Stone, for "liking" my book on Amazon and for putting me on Facebook, too!

Hart:
Yes, I've made the teachers and the activities at the school both deadly and central to the flow of the story. It was fun to imagine myself in such a school as a teen!

Stephsco:
A high school tale without any reference to classes neuters the reality of the story for me -- like you mentioned with VAMPIRE DIARIES.

Cherie:
I was thinking the same thing when I wrote the novel -- how neat it would be to have a Lakota shaman gesture and have the class bully sprout donkey ears or to see in an image the awesome army of Darius I! Thanks for visiting and chatting! Roland
Thank you, Jennifer, for having me today. It was fun. I hope some of you take a chance of the free sample that Kindle offers of my book. Have a great weekend, Roland
dolorah said…
Good lines to showcase. Roland, you are a master of dark sentiments :)

.....dhole