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The Protagonist Speaks

Interviews with the characters of your favourite books

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July 2016

Vornen (of Oblivion’s Forge by Simon Williams)

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Dear readers, tonight with me is a member of a truly alien race. They have at last found the world of Aona, and in so doing have awaken ancient powers. Their world is now in turmoil, on the verge of total war.

 

Tell us about the world of Aona, what is it like?

Aona is vast – with four main lands, Aphenhast, Harn, Alhar and the separate lands of the South Ocean Islands. A lot of it remains unexplored. Aphenhast is ruled by one ruling family in the south, although their influence doesn’t extend much further than the Crescent mountains.

What can you tell us about the mysterious Gates?

I’m drawn to them and for a moment I see something that’s like a tear in the fabric of reality – a window to somewhere else, you might say. Some lead to other worlds, some lead only out into the Void between worlds. Regardless of that, all of them are dangerous and unpredictable. Legend has it that they were used millennia ago by the creatures known as marandaal, in an attempt to destroy all life on Aona. Continue reading “Vornen (of Oblivion’s Forge by Simon Williams)” →

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Zelia the Phoenix of Hope (of Free of Asenten by Zora Marie)

 

Zora Marie - Free of Asenten

Dear readers, tonight with us is a desperate girl facing a harrowing choice. Will she be the rising of hope or despair? Join us as we talk with her about her magical upbringing.

 

 

 

Tell us a little about where you grew up. What was it like there?

“I spent most of my childhood a little south of the Mountain of The Old Ones. It was okay, the land was beautiful and most of the species that lived there were kind to one another. It’s just, it could never have been my home, not with everything that was done to me and the things I was forced to do to others. No, where I truly grew up and learned was before that, even if my time there was comparatively little. I was raised by an elf in The Elven Kingdom of The East, until my first death. After that is when I was bound to that cave, with magic concealing me from the world with only those I was forced to torture and kill being allowed see me. Of course that is with the exception of Asenten since he was the one holding me captive.” Continue reading “Zelia the Phoenix of Hope (of Free of Asenten by Zora Marie)” →

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Anna Persson (of Red Desert series by Rita Carla Francesca Monticelli)

Red Desert

Dear readers, tonight we deviate from our usual Friday schedule, in order to celebrate the 40 year anniversary of the an important event in human space exploration – Viking 1 became the first spacecraft to successfully land on Mars!

The following interview was originally published in Italian as “Intervista ad Anna Persson” on http://www.kuiperbelt.it/intervista-ad-anna-persson/, and is republished here with permission.

Translation by Eric Klein.

Interview with Anna Persson

For several days now I am immersed in the lives of the creatures encased in what you call books. For days I come into contact with the entities in them and I interact with these entities, I can participate in their stories, the events that the imagination of the authors pour on the pages, whether they are digital or not.

My name is Lok and if you have followed me you know that I can do this and more.

Today I got in touch with Anna Persson, the main character of the Red Desert series by Rita Carla Francesca Monticelli. Anna is a friendly person yet reserved, it was not easy snatch two words from her. Since I’m not human I tried to be as empathetic as possible, trusting however on her curiosity about space and the endless creatures it hosts.

Warning, the following interview contains elements that reveal the events depicted in the books of Red Desert (they are called spoilers, aren’t they?). Continue reading “Anna Persson (of Red Desert series by Rita Carla Francesca Monticelli)” →

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Special announcement re Tommy of Counteract (by Tracy Lawson)

Tracy Lawson - Counteract Resist Ignite

Dear readers, some of you may remember the interview with Tommy of Counteract by Tracy Lawson. Well, it appears young Tommy is now the star of a three books series – and to celebrate this, Tracy Lawson is running a special promotion!

This is your chance to get free e-books and read the story of Tommy and Careen’s fight against the Office of Civilian Safety and Defense from the very beginning.

Here’s how it works:
Download Ignite: Book Three of the Resistance Series on July 19-20 on Amazon for $2.99:

http://amzn.to/295WBYY. Then send your receipt to tracy@counteractbook.com and in return, you’ll receive FREE downloads of Counteract and Resist, the first two books in the series!

We’ll be back Tomorrow, for another very special interview – one that is happening on a very special anniversary!

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Winston (of Winston – a Horses’s Tale, by Rita Lee Chapman)

Rita Lee Chapman - Winston - A Horse's TaleDear readers, tonight with me is someone who can’t sit on the interview couch, as his body is built to run in open meadows. Winston is a thoroughbred horse, and he’s here to tell us about the life of an animal many of admire but few understand.

 

 

 

 

Hello Winston, please tell us a little about yourself.

Hi Assaph.  Thank you for inviting me to be on The Protagonist Speaks.

For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Winston from Winston – A Horse’s Tale, written by Rita Lee Chapman. This book is for horse lovers from teenagers upwards who enjoy reading about horses.  It tells of my life and adventures in Australia from my birth, as well as stories of other horses I met along the way.  I try to put over the horse’s point of view on our needs and the reasons why we sometimes act as we do.

What was it like to be a young foal?

My earliest memories are of galloping across green meadows with the wind in my mane and tail as they streamed out behind me, kicking up my heels in pure excitement at being alive and at peace with the world.  At the back of my mind was the sure knowledge that Mum was there watching me, waiting for me to come trotting back to her, exhausted and hungry after playing with the other foals or trying out my still wobbly legs on some new and fanciful manoeuvre. Continue reading “Winston (of Winston – a Horses’s Tale, by Rita Lee Chapman)” →

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Ian Wilson (from Ian’s Realm Saga by Dianne Lynn Gardner)

The Ian's Realm Saga

Dear readers, tonight with us is a young man who discovered a magical land after following his father through a magical portal that opened on their computer screen.

Things, however, quickly revealed themselves to be not as idyllic as initially seemed. He is here with us to tell us about his adventures.

 

 

Tell us a little about where you grew up. What was it like there?

I grew up in the suburbs of Seattle. We had a small house in an old neighborhood. My dad had a foundry business and made things like armor for renaissance faires. He made swords too. Really big beautiful swords. Mom stayed home mostly. I think we were a pretty happy family except when I was ten years old my mom died and that kind of made everything go black for me and Dad. He tried to make up for her absence, treating me special but I could see he was broken hearted.  I clammed up like a shell. Started overachieving at school. Got too smart for my class and they skipped me to the next grade. We coped the best we could and then Dad found the portal. That changed my life forever-both our lives. We went into the Realm and, well that was it. Continue reading “Ian Wilson (from Ian’s Realm Saga by Dianne Lynn Gardner)” →

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Gaius Petreius Ruso (of Vita Brevis by Ruth Downie)

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Dear readers, tonight with us is a combat medic, servicing in the legions assigned to one of the Roman Empire’s most notoriously dangerous provinces – Britain. He’s here to tell about his adventures, and accidental involvement in crime.

How does a Roman army medic end up solving murders?

I’m glad you asked that, because the answer is: reluctantly. I’m supposed to be in the business of making people feel better, so despite what anyone tells you, I’m not keen on stirring up trouble. I wouldn’t have gone near that business of the dead girl back in Deva if anyone else had been willing to deal with it. Oh, and if the lady who is now my wife hadn’t been quite so insistent.

(Of course as the head of the household, I’m the one in charge. Not my wife. I want to make that clear, because some of the people reading this may be Britons, who often have trouble remembering the proper order of things. I know this because my wife, Tilla, is a Briton. On the other hand, since very few of them see the point of reading and writing, this paragraph may be redundant.)

To return to the subject of murders—I certainly don’t go looking for them, but in the course of my work I stumble across suspicious injuries, and now word seems to have got round that if you’ve found an unexpected body, Ruso’s the man to deal with it. My author tells me that in the future there will be a specialist unit called the Police Force who are called in to sort out these things, while doctors can get on with seeing their patients and writing reports for the Treasury administrators. I’m sure she must have got the second half of that wrong. No-one in their right mind would pay a doctor to work as a scribe. Continue reading “Gaius Petreius Ruso (of Vita Brevis by Ruth Downie)” →

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Desu (of Watership by Jenna Whittaker)

Watership - Jenna WhittakerDear readers, tonight with us is Desu. She is a Crawler, a member of a genetically bred race of caretakers who have watched over the last remnants of humanity. She is here to talk with us about humanity’s travels across the universe in it’s Hollow Earth spaceship.

We had the chance to interview her as part of her blog tour around the Earth. You can find more info about Desu, Jenna and the rest of the tour stop in the links below.

Tell us a little about where you grew up. What was it like there?

I was created in the depths of the earth, Assaph, by human scientists bent on the survival of their species. I am one of a horde of creatures, genetically modified to best suit the underground environment of the humans’ sanctuary.

Did you have any favourite toys as a child? Any cherished memories?

I had no childhood, no cherished memories…and I wish I did. It is something that brings me great sadness; that the humans have these things, and take them for granted. I would give anything to be one of them. They have families and happy memories–all I know is awakening in the darkness, fully grown, and ready to protect the humans with the rest of my kind.

What do you do now?

I protect the humans! For…I don’t know how long, I lived underground inside the hollow earth with them, watching over them, making sure they stayed in the city limits and stayed safe. But when the watership awoke and told us–all of my kind, the Crawlers–to take the humans and put them inside the ship, ready for departure, everything changed. Now I watch over the humans in a far more volatile environment–inside the watership, in space. Continue reading “Desu (of Watership by Jenna Whittaker)” →

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Jackie Moretti (of Love’s Illusions by Jolene Cazzola)

Jolene Cazzola - Love's IllusionsDear readers, relationships have always been complicated. Tonight on the guest couch with me is a young woman, trying to navigate the complexities of relationships in the age of sex, drugs and rock’n’roll.

 

 

 

Tell us about where you grew up. Did you have a favourite toy or memory?

I grew up in a middle class suburb of Boston, Weymouth, Massachusetts. Since I was born in 1951, it was pretty much like you saw on Ozzie & Harriet, in other words, dull, boring; the kind of place where all the neighbors would stop to make their purchase whenever one of the kids on the street set up a Lemonade Stand. My parents also had a hunting and fishing lodge in northern New England that was pretty cool. You can read more about it in The BackStory. It’s FREE at www.jolenecazzola.com.

I didn’t really have a favorite toy – I played with my animals, mostly cats, a German Shepard named Satchamo, a couple rabbits and some baby chickens I hatched for a school project. Eventually my parents talked me into letting a local farmer take the rabbits and chickens so they would have more room to roam around. He promised he wouldn’t eat them! And I grew worms to sell to the fishermen – do they count as pets? Continue reading “Jackie Moretti (of Love’s Illusions by Jolene Cazzola)” →

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