As if there weren’t already enough giveaways going on around here, I am thrilled to present the second selection for our focus on Allegorical Fantasy in the month of March. Picking only two books each month has been beyond difficult, because there are so many fabulous stories I would love to share with you. But this was one of the first ones that popped into my mind as soon as I had settled on the theme for this month … and I hadn’t yet had a chance to read it. Curious?
Our giveaway today is for a paperback copy of The Word Changers by Ashlee Willis. I can’t recall exactly when I stumbled across Ashlee’s blog, but somehow she and I got to chatting a few months ago—close to the release of Orphan’s Song—and once I started following her blog, I knew I had to read her book, though it was several months before I had the time to do so.
March had scarce broken upon us when I set The Word Changers down and slid it back into place on my shelf and breathed a mighty contented sigh. This book has a classic quality to it, with all the timelessness and agelessness of the Chronicles of Narnia. Definitely a keeper. So I’m quite glad that Ashlee Willis has agreed to offer a giveaway copy and provided some fascinating insight into one of her most intriguing characters (in my opinion) in The Word Changers. Enter through the Rafflecopter below, but first read a bit about the book …
The Word Changers
Escaping from the turmoil of her home, fifteen-year-old Posy finds herself at her usual haunt: the library. When she chooses an unfamiliar book from the shelf, she does not devour its words as she usually does… Its words devour her. Posy is pulled into the pages of a fairy tale in turmoil. Characters whisper of rebellion against their Plot. And Posy must find a lost princess whose role in the story is crucial, before her own role in the book comes to a horrible end.
With the haughty Prince Kyran as a reluctant companion, Posy ventures past the Borders of the Plot, into the depths of the treacherous Wild Land forest that lie beyond. Secrets are buried there, dangerous and deadly. Yet the darkest secret of all is the one Posy carries within herself. Soon it’s clear that finding the lost princess is the least of Posy’s concerns. The Author of the book must be found. His Plot must be put to rights again, his characters reminded of who they were first created to be. Only then will the True Story be written, both for Posy, and for the tale she has now become a part of.
Find The Word Changers on Amazon/Add The Word Changers on Goodreads
Meet the Author
Ashlee has a passion for three things: God, family, and books, and is happiest when all three can be enjoyed together. She divides her time chiefly between homeschooling her young son, reading about fantasy worlds she wishes she could visit, and dreaming up fantasy worlds of her own to write about. She loves taking walks in the woods, drinking tea with friends, and spending time with the ones she loves most. Ashlee lives in the heart of Missouri with her husband, son, and six cats, where she is busily at work on a brand new YA fantasy series.
Find Ashlee on her blog, Facebook, Twitter, and Goodreads, or email her at AshleeW@zoho.com.
An inside look with Ashlee Willis: How can a mist be a character, you might wonder? I’ll admit, it wasn’t in my original plan when I was outlining The Word Changers. It came about of necessity, and then grew beyond even the bounds that my imagination had for it to begin with. Posy, my main character, falls into a book and is forced to become one of its characters, acting out the Plot each time a reader opens the pages.
The problem is, she’s new to the story and doesn’t know her part. So the Mist is assigned to her. It follows her around, hovering about her shoulders, prompting her with lines, directing her where to go, how to eat, what to wear, even gently scolding her when she errs. Yet when the Author of the book originally wrote it, he had intended much, much more for the Mist. Even so, when Posy enters the Plot, King Melanthius has reduced the Mist to a mere prompter of lines and direction-giver. It is kept, stoppered and silent in a bottle, until it is wanted, and only freed for very particular needs. But as Posy’s actions begin to change the story around her, so the Mist changes, too. It grows both inward and outward. And though its voice grows softer and calmer, the reach of that voice grows further, even to the very edges of the Kingdom and beyond.
Once the Mist is free, it begins to free others as well, whispering softly to them. It reminds them of whom they were first written to be. It reminds them of the beauty their story once had, and can have again. The Mist was a character I never intended to write at all. But as it grew, almost of its own accord, within my story, it became one of my best-loved ones.
Thank you, Ashlee, for visiting with us today and offering a giveaway copy!
Josh Hardt says
This book sounds fantastic!
I'd love to be pulled into the Circle saga by Ted Dekker as one of the people of the Green Forests. Seeing Elyon (God) as a boy who revels in playing would be awesome!
Gillian Bronte Adams says
That would be totally amazing. Love the Circle saga. Definitely time for a re-read.
Syrena Leeland says
Wow, this sounds fascinating! I'd love to read it. (: The Mist is what interested me the most, I think. He sounds like a very intriguing character. ;)
Gillian Bronte Adams says
The Mist was very interesting! I'm glad Ashlee chose to highlight it for the Back-Page Pass!
Amelia McClew says
I have been looking at this book for a while now! It sounds great! It is on my to-read list! :) And I would want to be a part of the River of Time series by Lisa T Bergren. And I would be Gabriella! :)
Gillian Bronte Adams says
Ah, being Gabriella would be super cool. Honestly, it would be cool to be either one of the She-Wolves of Sienna. Though they do seem to draw danger wherever they are.
Hannah White says
Awesome idea! I'd want to go to Hogwarts as Hermonie, of course. ;P
Hannah White says
Sorry, mistyped: Hermione!
Gillian Bronte Adams says
Maybe just skip over book two … I feel like being petrified for such a length of time would not be something I would care to experience. :)
Sarah says
I'd probably enter Howl's Moving Castle as Sophie Hatter . . . or maybe The Lunar Chronicles as Cress.
The Word Changers is an amazing book; I'm glad it made the giveaway list!
Gillian Bronte Adams says
I'm in love with the new cover too! I think it fits the story so well. :)
Elizabeth Anne D. says
I would totally want to be Eowyn from LOTR, or wait, maybe Lucy Pevansie, or… oh, I can't decide, there are too many!
Gillian Bronte Adams says
Eowyn would probably be tops on my list … or Shallan from the Stormlight Archive.
Hannah says
Oh…….that's a tough question. Maybe Golden Daughter as Sairu. Of course, there's some emotional problems to deal with as her, but who wouldn't want to be able to smile like her? :D
Gillian Bronte Adams says
Sairu's smile won me over from the first moment it was mentioned in the book. One of my sisters has a bit of a smile like that. I may or may not have been thinking of her while writing one of the installments for When Destiny Comes Calling, prompting Alexander to gripe about how Destiny's smile is the mysterious, knowing sort of smile that better befits portraits and statues than living people.
Susan says
That's such a hard decision. There are so many books I want to be a part of. I would love to be Lucy from the Chronicles of Narnia or Will from the Rangers Apprentice, or Katherine from Magnus. (I love that book. I've read it well over 5 times.) I would also like to be Dame Imraldera, Rose Red, or Sairu from the Tales of Goldstone Wood.
Andrea Nan says
That's a really hard question, there's so many good ones to choose from. I would love to be Cinder from the Lunar Chronicles.
alifeonmission says
Wow, with all the poor tortured characters these days, I'm not sure what character I'd truly like to be, haha. But recently I read Resistance by Jaye L. Knight and I really liked/admired Kyrin, so let's say that. :)
Gillian Bronte Adams says
Definitely something to consider. I doubt anyone will be volunteering as tribute in Katniss Everdeen's place. ;)
Beth MacKinney says
I'd be a ranger in the Ranger's Apprentice series, I think, because I'd have my own horse, and I'd be an incredibly good archer (which I'm not right now). I'd also take sneakiness to a professional level, but it would be okay because I'd always use my power for good.
Caryl Kane says
I would be Alice Ringwald in Water Walker.
Athelas Hale says
This book looks fantastic… And one of these days, I will find a way to read it.
If I were to be in any book, I think I'd be the random lass who helps out, you never know her name, and she changes the whole direction of the story. Because that's one role I could play – helping completely by accident. :p
Gillian Bronte Adams says
Lol. That's probably the role most of us would end up playing if you threw us into a fantasy world. That or the random stranger who's always in the wrong place at the wrong time and gets the wrong person in trouble. :)
Kathryn MacKinney says
I would want to be a ranger from the Ranger's Apprentice series. That series has always been one of my favorites. I would also settle for a bo staff fighter in A Cast of Stones.
Gillian Bronte Adams says
I'd settle for learning the bo staff in real life. How cool would that be? I definitely enjoyed A Cast of Stones and the rest of the series, and the Ranger's Apprentice is just classic coolness.
Clare says
I'd like to fall into my own book, and get to meet all my characters and find out what they really want to do, I don't know who i'd be though because I would not get to meet that person then…
Gillian Bronte Adams says
That's a good point … and if you were to take a character's place in a story, would you automatically have the same skill set? Otherwise those of us who are opting for important characters (like Eowyn) might unwittingly change the course of the battle if we get killed the second we step on the field instead of living to slay the witch king. Something to think about …
Ants and Epic says
Oh! I've been wanting to read this book!
Hm…I would probably want to be one of the small, mysteriously helpful characters in the Goldstone Wood series!
Ekaterina says
This book sounds absolutely amazing! I can't wait to read it.
The book I would like to be in is the Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, and I would love to be Lucy.
deborahocarroll says
EEP! I looooved The Word Changers! <3 One of my top favorite books I read last year. ^_^ And the Mist was one of my favorite characters! (After Kyran, of course. ;) Because he's the bestest.) I want a Blue Mist of my own! <3
Awesome giveaway! Whoever wins is going to be a VERY fortunate person to get to read this special, beautiful, awesome story! :D
Leah E. Good says
I would like to fall into either Narnia or Ilyon. Narnia as my all-time favorite, and Ilyon as my current favorite.
This book sounds so unique! I would love to read it.
Opera Tutu says
Probably Narnia. :) Thanks for the giveaway!
Riley says
I would love to be a part of the Narnia series. or Lord of the Rings!
Charii Skelton says
I can't decide which character I would be, but I know it would be within the Goldstone Wood series. I'm really hoping I get the chance to read your book, thank you so much for the giveaway!! :D
Jane says
I like heaps of books but for now I'd choose either Lydia Demarek from Brotherband, or someone from Ranger's Apprentice, like Will or Gillan.
Rachel says
Ranger's Apprentice is so good.
Rachel says
This book sounds like so much fun. If I found myself in a book, it would have to be fantasy (I would have no idea what to do if it wasn't) and maybe one of my favorites like Narnia or Lord of the Rings or one of the more recent books I have read. Not sure what character.
Elizabeth says
It sounds so good!! Hmm…for a character….Eowyn from LOTR, or Lucy from Chronicles of Narnia, or… yep, probably Lucy, because I wouldn't want to go through some of the things that Eowyn did.
Katie Grace says
I'd want to fall into the worlds of Ilyon or the Goldstone Woods. Either I'd want to be a random, lesser-known character, or a bird. xD That way the other characters can't make me stay behind on their adventures if I'm not deemed brave enough or smart with a sword.
Sierra Faith says
Wow that is such a hard question…….. I really like Shay in Jill Williamson's safe lands series but I wouldn't like being pregnant yet :D I thik I would like to be Kale in Donita K Paul's Dragon Keeper Chronicles series :)
Emily Kopf says
I was thinking about this recently and I decided I would like to go into the Dusk Gate Chronicles and be Quinn. The story is sweet and romantic, and the fantasy world is not as dangerous as some of the other ones.
Grace Gidman says
I loved this book, I read it on Kindle, but I would love to own a hard copy as well!
I would probably want to be in Francine Rivers "Mark of the Lion" series, probably as Rizpah. That series is out of this world and I adored her character.
Nightingale says
Fun, fun question as always! I'd like to be in Inkworld of Cornelia Funke's books but only as Meggie so I could write and read myself out of sticky situations. I'd also LOVE to be sucked into Howl's Moving Castle or any of it's sequels, as Sophie Hatter or even a random minor character. It's the sort of story where even the most unlikely of characters can have an adventure. :)
The only thing that would tempt me into Middle-Earth (don't get me wring, I love the place, just wouldn't last five seconds) is being Galadriel. I think I might risk it to be her. ;)
Dmitri Pendragon says
I can think of plenty of characters who I'd like to be, but they're all in my own unpublished works. So I don't know if that counts.
What I've noticed as I've read through the comments is that some people have mentioned they wouldn't like to be particular characters because of the struggles they face. But aren't their struggles what really makes us see who they are? Why would we want to be them if we don't want to face their struggles? This is a fairly recent thought for me, but one that's now changing my thinking when I get asked these questions.
I think I'd like to be Waterson from Patrick W. Carr's The Staff and the Sword Trilogy. He's my favourite non-POV character from that series, and I thought his resolution at the end of the third book was perfect. I notice a few others have chosen characters from that series as well.
Sierra Joanne says
Wow, what a hard question! Maybe Lucy from the Chronicles of Narnia, or Alyss from the Ranger's Apprentice, or Lydia from the Brotherband Chronicles. I can think of lots of books where I'd love to be in the world of the book, but it changes a lot when I'm actually one of the established characters (as opposed to an oc in a fanfiction)…
myself says
It would probably be a different book on any given day, but today it would be "A spy wore red" and the character, Aline of course. (…who wouldn't want to be a brilliant college graduate/model turned spy recruited to mingle among the upper echelons of Spanish society during WWII!)
songbird says
Today it would be The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. I would be Lucy, because she is the only girl they mention on the ship.
Annie Hawthorne says
"The Word Changers" sounds highly allegorical, which I love.
Oh, goodness! How to choose? I'd say either Lucy or Aravis in "The Chronicles of Narnia"; or Valancy in "The Blue Castle."
Ryebrynn says
I would love to be in The Tales of Goldstone Wood books. And to be Dame Imraldera.
-Ryebrynn
Rebekah Burroughs (BekahB) says
I would want to be in Rilla of Ingleside, and be Rilla.
Faith says
First off, I love your blog and have been reading it for awhile! Secondly, I would want to be Gandalf off of The Lord of the Rings.
Emma Jayne says
The Door Within trilogy! I would love to meet Mallik and Nock, along with everyone else, with swords at our sides!
Ryebrynn says
When are you doing to announce the winners of this giveaway?
Thanks,
Ryebrynn
Gillian Bronte Adams says
Hi Ryebrynn! Thanks for asking. I contacted the winner several weeks ago, simply forgot to check "yes" to displaying the winner on the widget.