Storytellers On Tour Presents: In the Jaded Grove by Anela Deen

Today I’m thrilled to be kicking off the In the Jaded Grove Book Tour presented by Storytellers On Tour! This upcoming week we’ll be showcasing Anela Deen’s Portal Fantasy tale, In the Jaded Grove, book one of the Kindred Realms series. I’ve read one of Anela’s earlier novels, Beneath Cruel Fathoms, and absolutely adored it, so I’m super excited to hear what people think of this one! Stay tuned for some fantastic features from our Roadies across blogs and social media – it’s going to be a great week.

Keep scrolling to learn more about the book and author, read a small excerpt from chapter one, and enter to win yourself a signed copy, as well as a pretty incredible swag pack!

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The Tour

We’ve enlisted a group of wonderful and talented bloggers and Bookstagrammers to help us feature In the Jaded Grove. This is what we have going on, so make sure to check out each and every one throughout the week for some brilliant content, including reviews and more.

JULY 11TH – THE KICKOFF
Whispers & Wonder (IG: @whispersandwonder)
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JULY 12TH
Mae the Dreamer
Fantasy Book Critic
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JULY 13TH
Beneath A Thousand Skies
@ofproseandspells
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JULY 14TH
Armed with A Book (IG: @_armedwithabook)
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JULY 15TH
33 South Textworks
I Can Has Books (IG: @carrieicanhasbooks)
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JULY 16TH
Kayla C. Reviews
@fantasybookcraz_mum
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JULY 17TH – THE ENCORE
Queen’s Book Asylum

For more info, visit the official tour page at Storytellers On Tour.

AVAILABLE AT

The Blurb

Simith of Drifthorn is tired of war. After years of conflict between the Thistle court and the troll kingdom, even a pixie knight known for his bloodlust longs for peace. Hoping to secure a ceasefire, Simith arranges a meeting with the troll king—and is ambushed instead. Escape lies in the Jaded Grove, but the trees of the ancient Fae woodland aren’t what they seem, and in place of sanctuary, Simith tumbles through a doorway to another world.

Cutting through her neighbor’s sunflower farm in Skylark, Michigan, Jessa runs into a battle between creatures straight out of a fantasy novel. Only the blood is very real. When a lone fighter falls to his attackers, Jessa intervenes. She’s known too much death to stand idly by, but an act of kindness leads to consequences even a poet like her couldn’t imagine.

With their fates bound by magic, Simith and Jessa must keep the strife of his world from spilling into hers—except the war isn’t what it appears and neither are their enemies. Countless lives depend on whether they can face the truths of their pasts and untangle the web of lies around them. But grief casts long shadows, and even their deepening bond may not be enough to save them from its reach.

Chapter 1

Simith washed the blood from his sword while dusk scoured the light from the sky.

It was quiet here on the muddy bank and the stream made no sound when he sank his blade point into its depths. He palmed chilly water over the smeared length, watching it tunnel down the crystal blade to cloud the stream a murky violet. Troll blood was oddly beautiful. If the sky was a bit darker, he could imagine iris petals coated his sword instead of death.

Beyond the gnarled hedgerow that grew at his back, camp celebrations continued. Knights and Helms alike rejoiced the latest victory, as yet unaware of the silence he’d left behind in the prisoners’ tent. Traces of song wove its way to him through the thorns, half-heard and dreamlike while he bathed his blade with stained hands.

Pixies had no ballads for war, victorious or otherwise, but the fairies had plenty to share. A century of conflict with the trolls had supplied ample inspiration for the long-lived creatures. His own kind had joined the fighting a mere ten years past, but given enough time, perhaps pixies too would put to verse the rending of flesh and hope that took place on the battlefield.

Simith’s hand stilled beneath the water. The cold stream numbed his fingers, a chill that traveled from his arm all the way to the gauzy wings hanging down his back. No, it wouldn’t come to that. He’d made a promise and he would see it through.

Footsteps squished in the mud, a determined clip alerting him to the approach of a Helm. Sooner than expected. He’d hoped to have a bit more time to settle back into his skin before once more playing the ruthless knight for his fairy commanders. Not that there was much difference between the pretense and the reality aside from personal scorn. More’s the pity.

The footsteps halted behind him and Simith sensed the mockery in the pause that followed while he continued at his task.

“Cleaning your own weaponry is beneath your rank, Knight Simith.”

Helm Firo. Of course. The commander of the vanguard seemed to watch him with an unsettling amount of focus lately, as though he could smell the change in him.

“I don’t mind the task,” Simith answered.

“Meaning you still haven’t found a squire willing to serve you.”

He gave no reply. The other pixies of the fairy legion admired Simith’s battle prowess. They heeded his direction on the battlefield, but none sought his friendship.

He bore them no grudge. Simith knew their reasons. He knew what he was.

The Author

A child of two cultures, this hapa haole Hawaiian girl is currently landlocked in the Midwest. After exploring the world for a chunk of years, Anela Deen hunkered down in Minnesota and now fills her days with family, fiction, and the occasional snowstorm. With a house full of lovable toddlers, a three-legged cat, and one handsome Dutchman, she prowls the keyboard late at night while the minions sleep. Coffee? Nah, she prefers tea with a generous spoonful of sarcasm.

WEBSITE: www.amidtheimaginary.wordpress.com

The Giveaway

Enter to win a signed copy of In the Jaded Grove by Anela Deen along with an excellent swag pack which contains a collection of poems by Emily Dickinson, art print, stickers, postcard, book plate, and a bookmark!
International! • Ends 7/18

a Rafflecopter giveaway

That’s all I got for ya! Be sure to keep an eye on the official In the Jaded Grove tour page over at Storytellers On Tour to see what the other bloggers and Bookstagrammers have to share!

Find out more about Storytellers On Tour or join our team:
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Happy Reading!
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