Arcana Book Tour

Arcana

by Jessica Leake

Adult Historical Fantasy

Hardcover, 288 pages

November 18th 2014 by Talos

Amid the sumptuous backdrop of the London Season in 1905, headstrong Katherine Sinclair must join the ranks of debutantes vying for suitors. Unfortunately for Katherine, she cannot imagine anything more loathsome – or dangerous. Through her late mother’s enchanted journal, Katherine receives warning to keep hidden her otherworldly ability to perform Arcana, a magic fueled by the power of the sun. The machinations of the fashionably elite are a constant threat, but worse still are those who covet Katherine’s Arcana, seeking the power of her birthright. They could be hiding behind the façade of every suitor, even the darkly handsome Earl of Thornewood. With so much danger and suspicion, can she give her heart to the one who captivates her, or is he just another after her power?

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Welcome to Book City
Date: November 11, 2014

Special Report

Spoilers Ahead

Headline
Arcana
Jessica Leake

A romantic, suspenseful, genre-bending debut set in Edwardian London.

Amid the sumptuous backdrop of the London season in 1905, headstrong Katherine Sinclair must join the ranks of debutantes vying for suitors. Unfortunately for Katherine, she cannot imagine anything more loathsome—or dangerous. To help ease her entrance into society, Katherine’s family has elicited the assistance of the Earl of Thornewood, a friend and London’s most eligible bachelor, to be her constant companion at the endless fetes and balls. But upon her arrival in London, Katherine realizes there will be more to this season than just white gowns and husband hunting.

Through her late mother’s enchanted diary, Katherine receives warning to keep hidden her otherworldly ability to perform arcana, a magic fueled by the power of the sun. Any misstep could mean ruin—and not just for her family name. The Order of the Eternal Sun is everywhere—hunting for those like her, able to feed on arcana with only a touch of the hand.

But society intrigue can be just as perilous as the Order. The machinations of the fashionable elite are a constant threat, and those who covet Katherine’s arcana, seeking the power of her birthright, could be hiding behind the façade of every suitor—even the darkly handsome Earl of Thornewood.

With so much danger and suspicion, can she give her heart to the one who captivates her, or is he just another after her power?

City Calendar:
This is what happened during the week.
The story is mostly a period romance. It seems to be a stiff upper class society. But we have the little tidbit of Katherine our main girl being a bit magical.
We have action. But mostly romances. Suitors and lovers and happenings.
Not much.
And that’s what happened this week.

Personal Ads:
Katherine.
Oh dearest readers. I am well. And you? I’m married to the lovely Lord-Colin. He is simply divine. We are looking for a sitter for our soon-to-be-born child. (Because we ‘do it’ often enough.)
A bit stiff. A bit flirty. Odd and quirky. Magical. Looking for love in all the wrong, and right, places. Sister to Lucy and Robert. A bit tomboyish. Horseback rider. (Not side saddle.)

Opinions:
I really don’t know what to make of this book.
The speech is quite fantastic. It seems right for the time period. It’s proper and a bit verbose. Exactly how I imagine London all those years ago.
I also like the magic. It was nice. A bit confusing on what arcana was exactly. But still pretty fascinating.
Sadly, the plot is a bit dull. Too much romance. I like the ending. It’s fast-paced and pushing dearest ‘Wren’ to her limits. There seems to be only shameless flirting and rivalries. Of the Society sort.
I dislike Katherine. God. She’s insufferable! She’s a tomboy one moment and a drooling flirt in another. What’s up with you? Goodness. And she’s whiny. Very whiny.
The sexy, heated scenes? Please. Stop. No. I don’t need that. Oh god. Just stop. Right now. Right there. We don’t need to know he’s groping her!
I could go on. And on.

Weather:
Sunny with a chance of 50% rain
3/5

Prism Interview for Wren @ Into the Written Word/Welcome to Book City

What inspired you to start writing?

I have a cousin who’s only a few years younger than I am. I come from this big, Irish family, and most of my aunts & uncles are in the military, so I didn’t get to see my cousin very often. But for a short period of time—maybe 3 years?—we lived within driving distance of one another (and by driving distance I mean 8 hours, but that was better than when her dad was stationed in San Diego or Japan). We got to spend every major holiday together, and we’d stay up late into the night telling each other stories—ridiculous romantic dramas of our favorite actors at the time. Eventually, her dad was stationed in San Diego again, and she moved across the country, but one summer in college, we got to spend a whole week together again at our grandmother’s house in Texas. My cousin arrived with a spiral notebook with a half-finished story—she’d written the whole way from California to Texas—and it occurred to me that I could do that, too! I tried (and failed) to write a story in college, but it reminded me of just how much I loved it. Once I got started writing, though, it became a need, and when I haven’t written something in a long time, I literally crave it.
What is your favorite book/series?

Oh this is a hard one since there are so many! Maybe a favorite series from each age range? For MG, it’s definitely Harry Potter. YA would probably be The Hunger Games. And favorite adult series would be the Bridgerton Series by Julia Quinn. I’m really restraining myself here…the more I thought about it, the more I wanted to list them.
Who is your favorite author?

Can I name more than one?? You’re a book lover, I’m sure you can understand ;). JK Rowling, Robin McKinley, Jane Austen, C.S. Lewis, Brandon Mull, Phillipa Gregory, Cassandra Clare, Suzanne Collins, Maggie Stiefvater, Julia Quinn…I’ll stop there (but I could go on).
List your favorite book characters and why you like them.

Katniss from The Hunger Games because she’s so strong, Elizabeth from Pride & Prejudice because she wasn’t afraid to speak her mind, Mr. Darcy, of course, from P&P because he is so deliciously arrogant…until he meets his match.
Which character, in your book or not, do you like the most? The least?

In Arcana, I love Katherine and Lord Thornewood, but I probably love Lord Thornewood just a tiny bit more because…well, because he’s so charming ;). The least? Katherine’s grandmother. Hateful family members are about 100x worse than hateful strangers. In others’ books, though, I will always, always hate Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter. HATE.
Would you rather write about not having to write for the rest of your life or have amazing ideas you can’t write down on paper?

I’d rather have amazing ideas I can’t write down on paper because I’d dictate them to someone else—loophole!! Muhahahahaha.

Thanks so much for having me on your blog, Wren!

Or, would you like a special personalized/autographed copy of Arcana? You can purchase one from Fiction Addiction HERE.

About Jessica Leake

I’m a stay-at-home mom of three beautiful children (two toddlers and a newborn, in fact, so I think you can begin to see why my blog may be a bit neglected) and author of Arcana: A Novel (Skyhorse/Talos, November 4, 2014), my debut historical fantasy with a heavy dose of romance. I have a particular obsession with blending different genres, but almost everything I write has an element of fantasy and romance. I’ve been in love with historical England ever since my first literary crush: Mr. Darcy (I can’t even count the number of times I watched Pride & Prejudice–the A&E version, of course!!) I’m represented by the fabulous Brianne Johnson of Writers House, and I live in Greenville, SC.

Before I was a writer, I worked as a psychotherapist. I spent several years working at a psychiatric hospital in Birmingham, AL, but after my husband graduated as a pharmacist, we moved back to Greenville. I claim Greenville as my hometown now since I spent most of my childhood here, and I’m a proud alumna of St. Joseph’s Catholic School and Winthrop University.

Website – Goodreads – Facebook – Twitter – Pinterest

Tour-Wide Giveaway

– $25 Amazon gift card & personalized hardcover of Arcana (INT)

– Two personalized hardcovers of Arcana + swag (US only)

– One ebook of Arcana (INT – Mobi or Epub)

Ends November 23rd

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Come along and follow the tour!

Tour Schedule

11/3 – Launch

11/4

MI Bookshelf