TK Richardson On Tour: Shield the Heart

This week celebrates the release of TK Richardson’s second book, Shield the Heart, in her series about Lilly, a teen who can read the hearts of other people. (Love that premise!) TK generously shipped me a review copy which has bumped my book club book straight out of the reading queue.

For her book blog tour, TK is doing a little something different. If you read her interview here a few weeks ago you will have noted that TK is a little crazy for Russia! Since her books have dollops of Russia with book two being set right in Russia, she is sharing her passion for the old country by sharing some of Russia’s greatest delights on her blog tour. (She hints that the tour may provide extra insights into the books too! So can’t wait for that!!)

Much to my honour, TK is stopping on my blog today as part of her week long tour.

Over to TK:

Hi Jean, thanks for hosting this stop on the blog tour for Shield the Heart!

The theme for this blog tour is a little different and I hope all of you will enjoy it. It’s titled ‘A Russian Tour’ because each day during the blog tour we’ll explore the Russian cities and historical sites that are the backdrop for my new YA novel Shield the Heart.

Sometimes the setting of a novel is so interesting and unique that it deserves a closer look, and that’s why I thought this blog tour would be so much fun. ‘A Russian Tour’ will give my readers a chance to get a better view of where everything in Shield the Heart takes place.
After all, these are the places that have inspired me, and I hope they inspire all of you, too.
Today on our itinerary we’re visiting Ipatiev Monastery!

To follow along each day and visit some of the places found in Shield the Heart, be sure to follow the blog tour.

Okay, onto our destination!

Ipatiev Monastery (Source)

Located in Kostroma, Russia, Ipatiev Monastery is famous for many reasons. The most noteworthy is that in March of 1613 Mikhail Romanov was chosen from here to become the Russian Tsar. The Romanov line ruled over Russia for some 300 years and never forgot from where they came.

Ipatiev Monastery is still celebrated because of this and is a top tourist attraction in Russia.

Ipatiev Monastery

Ipatiev Monastery was founded around the year 1330 and the following is a brief history:
“Most of the monastery buildings date from the 16th and 17th centuries. The Trinity Cathedral is famous for its elaborately painted interior. A smaller church was demolished by the Soviet authorities. There are plans to reconstruct it and consecrate it to the New Martyrs of the Romanov family. The main entrance from the riverside was designed by the celebrated Konstantin Thon.” Source.

To get a better view of Ipatiev Monastery and just how beautiful it really is, this video is remarkable. It is a bit long, but you’ll see how spectacular this structure is in the first couple of minutes.

And if you’re wondering how Ipatiev Monastery fits into a young adult novel where the main character has a special gift that centers around an ancient Russian prophecy, I hope you’ll read the book to find out!

Ipatiev House (source)

Character quote~
What I saw caught my breath up short. A massive white, stone castle towered directly in front of us and stretched as far as I could see. ~ Lilly Paige, Shield the Heart

I hope you’ve enjoyed this mini tour of Ipatiev Monastery. Be sure to follow us to our next destination. Tomorrow on the blog tour we’ll visit Optina Monastery!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jean, thanks again for hosting me on the blog tour. I hope you and your blog followers enjoy my new release!

One Gift, One Prophecy, One Choice
Shield the Heart

(Note: This book is part of a series. Book #1 Return the Heart. Book #2 Shield the Heart.)

What if the battle was in your heart?

Lilly’s gift of reading the heart seemed like a curse, but when she discovered her gift was linked to an old, Russian prophecy it changed everything. What she never questioned, though, was her own heart.

When the prophecy pulls Lilly back to Russia and demands to be fulfilled she is torn between love and loyalty. She must make the most difficult decision of her life and choose between the two. But Lilly’s decision is farther reaching than even she is willing to acknowledge. It stretches from East to West – from the past to the future.

Lilly discovers there’s more to the old prophecy than she realized and enemy forces are bent on stopping it from unfolding.

One thing is certain – there will be casualties. And sparing those closest to her may be impossible. While Seth attempts to shield Lilly from the truth, Nikolai reveals secrets that could change everything.

As Lilly falls into the arms of Russia she must decide: will love or loyalty reign? And can she live with the consequences? Two sides compete for Lilly’s heart and she must find the answers she needs before her enemies find her.

Shield the Heart, by T.K. Richardson, is the riveting second book in the series and takes Lilly deeper into Russia’s mysterious past… and her future.

Available in paperback and ebook

*For a chance to win a Kindle Fire and a signed copy of Shield the Heart, check out my (TK’s) contest!

About the author~

T.K. Richardson is the author of YA books Return the Heart, Shield the Heart, Simmer: Recipes for the Teen Palate, and Love, Me: Anthology of Short Stories. She is the founder of Partners In Print.org, a program that donates books to children in the foster care system. She also hosts  Compass eBooks and runs The Writers Resource Directory, a great site for writers filled with publishing and writing links, tips and advice. Her next books are due out later this year.  Find out more at http://tkrichardson.com

Book Review: Plug Your Book: Online Book Marketing for Authors

Book Review: Plug Your Book: Online Book Marketing for Authors
By: Steve Webber

This book is a study guide for Book Promotion 101. Even though I have been studying up here and there on book promotion–should the time come when I have a book to promote–there were many, many goodies and explanations for how and why to do things in this book that taught me more than a few new things.

In the past 5 years, things have changed dramatically in the ways authors successfully promote their books and this book has a bit for every kind of writer. Fiction, nonfiction, self-published or not. Even if you are just writing up a proposal for your planned nonfiction book, Plug Your Book can be very helpful. (Particularly helpful in terms of outlining your book’s marketing plan seeing as more and more writers are expected to do the majority of their own publicity.)

If you are a technophobe, fear not. Webber takes the time to describe and explain different aspects of online marketing as well as provide examples. Generally, he also takes the time to relate it back to the writer publicizing their book.

With the use of online marketing as described by Webber, books in niche markets are no longer subject to languish as ‘unknowns’. With a little well planned online marketing, they can take the book market by storm by using the web to find their diverse, wide-spread market–and at little cost. This book explains how to reach that niche market. (And bigger markets too, of course.)

Plug Your Book walks authors through online social communities/social networking, online book sellers (with a lot of attention spent on Amazon–dispelling myths, gimmicks and describing how to really make Amazon work for you), blogs (yours and others), blog tours, social searches, and basically 101 ways to drum up electronic word of mouth with little cost to you other than time.

Webber frequently provides online examples (one or two URLs are listed in the book for readers to use as further research) to further flesh out a topic. As well, Webber also has a website dedicated to the topic of online promotion and updates as well–essential seeing how fast things change online.

All in all, it is a book you will want to read slowly, pen in hand to mark all the good stuff. And if you are a writer, it is never too late or too early to pick it up.

Shop Indie Bookstores

Cool Marketing Idea

Have you seen those book trailers?

What are they? They are a short video, sort of like a visual back of the book blurb. I think that is pretty neat. I watched three off an agent’s blog and wanted to read two of the three books. This is interesting as I have seen one of the books on shelves as well as noticed ads for it and have been sort of like, ‘that’s interesting, but whatever’. I didn’t pick it up. I didn’t read the blurb. I didn’t buy it. But now, due to the little video, I have not only visited the book’s website and cruised around on it, I have made a mental note to check the book out of the library if I come across it (and ever find my library card again–stupid safe spot that I put it in). Still, I haven’t gone out and bought it, but I am one step closer to reading that book.