Chantress Fury Tour: Review + Giveaway

Chantress Fury (Chantress Trilogy #3)
Author: Amy Butler Greenfield
Genre: YA Fantasy
Release Date: May 19th, 2015
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
288 pages

Rating: INSERT YOUR RATE HERE

Synopsis:

The sea is coming. We are coming. And we will drown you all.

With a song, Lucy can control the wind and the water; she can bring castles and kingdoms to their feet. Since Lucy mastered her powers, King Henry has kept her close as he’s rebuilt England. She’s his best ally—and his workhorse. And now he’s called her to investigate attempted murder: His men claim they were almost killed on the Thames…by a mermaid. All Lucy can glean from the creature they’ve captured is a warning: The sea is coming. We are coming. And we will drown you all. 

And then the floods begin. Swaths of London are submerged as the people scramble to defend themselves against the water—and the monsters—that are flooding their streets. As mistrust of Lucy's magic grows, the king relies on Nat, Lucy's great love, to guide them through the storm. But Nat is cold and distant to Lucy. He swore his love only a year before, and now he calls her “stranger.”

Lucy is determined to defeat this powerful new magic alone if she must. But then she hears an eerie song within the water…can it mean that she’s not the last Chantress after all? 

Sweepingly romantic and crackling with magic, Chantress Fury triumphantly concludes the powerful Chantress trilogy.

Chantress Fury is the third and final installment in the Chantress Trilogy - a young adult fantasy that continues to follow our heroine, Lucy, as she faces what might be her biggest challenge yet. King Henry has kept her close to him as a trusted advisor and ally as he begins to rebuild England back up to where it once was. When the King asks her to look into a murder attempt near the Thames, Lucy has no idea what's waiting for her there. The men swear they were attacked by a mermaid. As Lucy investigates further, she finds and captures the mermaid, and is able to make out a warning - that the sea is coming, they are coming with it, and intend to destroy them all. Soon after, violent floods begin to cover large areas of London. The people are trying to save themselves from the rising water and the monsters that are coming with it - which causes widespread distrust in Lucy's magic and abilities. The King turns to another ally - Nat - to help everyone through the disaster. Nat's cold and aloof behavior towards her break her heart, but Lucy is determined to stop whoever - or whatever - is causing the destruction, even if it means she has to do it alone. The last thing she expects is to hear a song in the waters - one that's very similar to her own Chantress magic. Everyone, including the King and Lucy herself, believe that she's the last Chantress on Earth. But what if she's not alone after all?

I absolutely love all fiction that has to do with magic and I adored the first two books in this trilogy. This final installment picks up awhile after the events of the second book. I had no problem getting sucked back into Lucy's life and her world - it felt as if I never left. I continued to love learning more about the Chantresses - I think it made the story deeper as a whole along with making Lucy an amazing main character. Another thing I really enjoyed in this installment was the continuing concept of alchemy. Alchemy is incredibly fascinating to me, and I loved the way the author wove it seamlessly into the story alongside the magic and the central story line. Once again we are introduced new characters in the book, along with the reunion of old friends and love interests. There's so much that happens in the book that it's hard to touch on everything. The whole concept of the mermaids and other monsters was fascinating and I was dying to know who was behind them and the floods. There's a bit of a mystery there while Lucy pieces it all together, and I was reading as fast as I could through the entire book to see what would happen with that plot twist, the question of another Chantress, and several other aspects of the story. I think that Lucy's character experienced a lot of character growth in the book on multiple levels - maturity, confidence, inner strength, love, and many more. I've enjoyed watching Lucy's character develop over the course of the series - it seems like she grew with each book. Of course, I have to talk about the romance between Lucy and Nat. Since the ending of the second book, I've been dying to know how things would go between them once he came back to London. Their relationship is a rocky and complicated one - and it takes a large part of the book for them to finally decide what they each want. Overall, this was a wonderful final book in an enchanting trilogy - one that has become dear to my heart. I hate final books in series because they are so incredibly bittersweet - we finally get to know how everything turns out. But that also means there will be no more books for us to escape into. I really didn't want the trilogy to end - I wish there were going to be more than just the three books. Since I can't change things on that end - I'm definitely going to be keeping an eye on this author. I'm excited to see what she'll come out with next! Very highly recommended for fans of magical fiction, fantasies, romance, historical England, action, adventure, and more! There's a bit of something for everyone in the series, no matter your usual genre preference. This is one mesmerizing trilogy that you won't want to miss out on!

An Enchanting Trilogy - Definitely a New Favorite!

Follow the Chantress Fury by Amy Butler Greenfield Blog Tour and don't miss anything! Click on the banner to see the tour schedule.

Amy Butler Greenfield was a grad student in history when she gave into temptation and became a writer. Since then, she has become an award-winning author. 

Amy grew up in the Adirondack Mountains and later studied history at Williams College, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Oxford. She now lives with her family in England, where she writes, bakes double-dark-chocolate cake, and plots mischief.

PRIZES: 

(1) signed copy of Chantress Fury by Amy Butler Greenfield (INT)

(1) finished copy of Chantress Fury by Amy Butler Greenfield (US Only)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Chantress Alchemy Blog Tour: Author Interview + Giveaway

 

Welcome to my stop on the blog tour for Chantress Alchemy being hosted by Rockstar Book Tours! Today I have an interview with the author to share with you and don't forget to enter the giveaway at the end of the post! To follow along with the rest of the tour, click on the banner above.

Chantress Alchemy (Chantress Trilogy #2)

Author: Amy Butler Greenfield

Genre: YA Fantasy

Release Date: May 6, 2014

Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books

Description:

Lucy races against time and magic in this sequel to the “richly and thoughtfully written” (Publishers Weekly) Chantress.

Lucy is the last Chantress, the only remaining girl who can sing magic into the world. Since she defeated the evil Lord Scargrave, England has changed—and not for the better. With crops failing and the people rebelling, Lucy is called urgently back to King Henry’s court. His Inner Council is convinced that making gold through alchemy will save England. But a critical element to the alchemical process has been stolen. Lucy is tasked with finding it with her magic… or else. And until she succeeds, the castle is on lockdown.

Court too has changed. Scargrave's brutal Chantress-hunter has become King Henry's closest advisor. Lucy’s beloved Nat has fallen out of favor and is shunned by his colleagues; their romance means trouble for both of them. Worst of all, something goes wrong with Lucy’s magic. The palace is a labyrinth, and there’s a monster at its heart — a monster who may have the power to defeat Lucy once and for all.

Amy Butler Greenfield returns to the beguiling world of Chantress for a suspenseful tale of courtly intrigue, music, and magic in Chantress Alchemy.  

1. What inspired you to write the series? 

So many things went into it! My love of music, my transatlantic moves, my fascination with rule-breaking, my worries about terrorism and surveillance….

But if I had to pick a single moment when the series began, it would be a bleak winter’s day when I stopped worrying about what other people wanted to me to write next, and I just asked myself, “If you could only write one more book, what would it be?” It was like unlocking a door I didn’t know was there – and Lucy’s story came spilling out.


2. What kind of research did you do for the books? 

Since the Chantress Trilogy is set in an alternate 17th-century England, I suppose I could give myself permission to make everything up. But I’m fascinated by the real 17th-century England, and as a writer I really like working with the grit of actual history, so I’m always poring over old diaries and maps and menus to get the kind of details that bring a scene alive. My favorite part of research involves visiting actual English houses and gardens, sometimes by candlelight. (Luckily, this is fairly easy for me to do: My husband is British, and we live in England.) Then I take everything I’ve learned and twist it slightly - and add Chantress magic.


3. Are any of your characters based on people you know or even yourself? 

I never consciously set out to put someone I know on the page, but I think there’s a little bit of me in every character, even the worst of them. And that’s probably how it should be, because as a writer you need to be able to see the story from each character’s perspective, even if you don’t ultimately sympathize with them all.


4. How many books do you have planned for the series?

There will be three books.

5. What made you want to become a writer? Was there a specific person or situation that motivated you to write?

I can’t remember a time when I didn’t love books. I wanted to read all the time – often when I was supposed to be doing something else! I also loved playing with words, and I was a passionate keeper of diaries when I was in my teens and early twenties. But what really made me a writer was illness. In my 20s, I became so seriously ill that it wasn’t clear I would survive, and one of my big regrets was that I’d never tried writing a novel. Once I was well enough to dictate words, I started, and I’ve never really looked back.

6. What's up next for you?

I’m hard at work on the third Chantress book – title to be revealed soon!

Thanks so much for having me on your blog! 

Thanks so much for stopping by and chatting with us today Amy!

Amy Butler Greenfield was on her way to a history Ph.D. when she gave into temptation and became a writer. Among other honors, her books have won a PEN/Albrand Award, the Veolia Prix du Livre Environnement, and a Beacon of Freedom Award.

Amy grew up in the Adirondack Mountains of New York State and went to Williams College and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. As a Marshall Scholar at Oxford, she studied Renaissance Europe, imperial Spain, and colonial Latin America. She now lives with her family on the edge of the Cotswolds in England, where she writes, reads, and bakes double-dark-chocolate cake.

She loves music, romantic adventure, history, quirky science, and suspense, which explains how she came to write her first YA novel, Chantress. Her next book, Chantress Alchemy, will be published in May 2014.

Website | Blog | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads 

Buy Links: Amazon / Barnes and Noble

Giveaway: 
(2) Finished copies of CHANTRESS ALCHEMY from Simon Teen (US Only)
(1) Signed finished copy of CHANTRESS ALCHEMY from Amy (International)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Chantress Alchemy Blog Tour: Review + Giveaway

Chantress Alchemy (Chantress Trilogy #2)
Author: Amy Butler Greenfield
Release Day: May 6, 2014
Publisher: Margaret K McElderry Books
352 pages

Rate: 4

Synopsis:

Since defeating Lord Scargrave with her music, Lucy, the last Chantress, has lived by the sea, mastering the intricacies of Wild Magic. But now her quiet life is about to end: the wheat crop has failed, the people are rebelling, and Lucy is called urgently back to King Henry IX’s court. There she finds the Inner Council planning to save England by making gold through alchemy. But the golden crucible — the critical element in the alchemical process — has been stolen, its guards murdered. Lucy is charged with finding the traitor behind the attack. 

Meanwhile, enemies old and new are gathering. Scargrave's brutal Chantress-hunter has become King Henry's closest advisor. Lucy’s beloved Nat has fallen out of favor and is shunned by his colleagues; their romance means trouble for both of them. Worst of all, something goes wrong with Lucy’s magic. The palace is a labyrinth, and there’s a monster at its heart — a monster who may have the power to defeat Lucy once and for all. 

Amy Butler Greenfield returns to the beguiling world of Chantress for a suspenseful tale of courtly intrigue, music, and magic in Chantress Alchemy.

Chantress Alchemy is the second installment in the Chantress Trilogy - a young adult fantasy that follows Lucy, the last Chantress in the world, as she tries to learn more about her magic and how to harness it. Things have been quiet since Lucy helped save the kingdom and restored the rightful king - King Henry - to the throne. Suddenly, Lucy is called back to court because the crops have failed, the people are starting to rebel, and a key part of the Council's one shot at fixing everything has been stolen. Lucy learns that a lot has happened in the months since she left and the entire country is in an uproar. The King's Inner Council has decided to turn to alchemy to fix the problem of money  - by creating the fabled Philosopher's Stone. Lucy is charged with the task of finding the missing crucible and who stole it, but soon it's clear that things won't be that easy as more deception is uncovered, the King's life is put in danger, and Lucy's magic disappears. Will she be able to find the person responsible before it's too late? Will she be able to regain her magic or is it gone for good this time?

I absolutely love all fiction that has to do with magic and I adored the first book in this trilogy. This installment picks up a few months after the events of the first book. I found myself immediately pulled back into Lucy's life and her world - an alternative version of 17th century England. I loved learning more about the lore behind the Chantresses - I think it made the story deeper as a whole along with Lucy's character discovering more about herself and those before her. She never had much information about her magic and she learns a lot in this book that makes her question things she never thought possible. Another thing I really loved in this book was the alchemy aspect. Alchemy is incredibly fascinating, in my opinion, and I loved the way the author wove it into the story alongside the Chantress magic and the royal court. There were lots of details about alchemy in the book, which I loved and  brought the story to a whole new level. There are new characters introduced in the book, along with reunions with old friends and love interests. Lucy's character experienced a lot of character growth in the book on several levels - maturity, confidence, inner strength, love, and lots more. I enjoyed watching her character develop as well as the relationships between the other characters. The bit of the book that's a mystery - who stole the crucible and is behind everything - took a bunch of twists and turns. It had me guessing the entire time until we finally found out who the "bad guy" is - and I couldn't believe it. Overall, this was a great second book in an enchanting trilogy, and I'm already eagerly awaiting the final book to see what's going to happen. There's only one part that I didn't like - the ending - and those of you who have read it know why. I'm really hoping things will take a different turn in the final book. Highly recommended for fans of magical fiction and fantasies!

Click on the banner or here, to follow the FFBC Blog Tour

Amy Butler Greenfield was a grad student in history when she gave into temptation and became a writer. Since then, she has become an award-winning author. 

Amy grew up in the Adirondack Mountains and later studied history at Williams College, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Oxford. She now lives with her family in England, where she writes, bakes double-dark-chocolate cake, and plots mischief.

Win (1) hardback of Chantress Alchemy (INT)

Win (1) hardback of Chantress Alchemy (US Only)


Question of the Day: Have you read any of this series yet? If so, what did you think? Are you excited for the last book?

a Rafflecopter giveaway