Author Guest Post: Karen Mahoney

Today I have the lovely Karen Mahoney, author of the equally brilliant The Iron Witch for a guest post on Being a Debut Author -

Welcome Karen!

So, I’ve been asked to write about the mythology/lore behind the creation of The Iron Witch, but rather than write about faeries (which I covered here: http://onceuponabookcase.blogspot.com/2011/02/guest-post-from-karen-mahoney-where.html) or the ‘Handless Maiden’ folklore (which I wrote about here: http://whatever.scalzi.com/2011/02/10/the-big-idea-karen-mahoney/), I am going to talk about something completely different.

Lots of people have asked me what it’s like to be a debut author – to have my first novel on the shelves and to actually be able to call myself a published writer. Full disclosure: I have actually been published before, but those were short stories in YA urban fantasy anthologies, so it’s sort of a different thing (although no less awesome, in its own way). But to have a full-length work of fiction published… a whole book of my own… that’s pretty amazing and, quite honestly, I never entirely believed it would happen.

Before I can tell you what it’s really like – how I feel about this big change in my life – let me take you back in time to when I was a twelve-year-old girl at school. In a class filled with about 30 other children I was asked what I wanted to be when I grew up (we were all being asked this, I think as some kind of class exercise):

Kaz (beaming and hopeful): A writer!

Teacher: You mean… like a journalist?

Kaz: Oh no, I mean I want to write fantasy books.

Entire class, INCLUDING TEACHER: LAUGHTER

So, you know, I can’t say I was always encouraged in my dreams to become a published author – and it’s taken me a long time to get here – but for all the hard work (and, yes, despite the times I’ve been laughed at!), I can tell you that it’s totally worth it. I wouldn’t want to do anything else with my life. Telling stories… making stuff up; writing it down and working at my craft; and then sharing those books and stories with others. That’s the kind of thing some people can only dream of and, even when I get stressed and busy (often with the business side of writing), I try hard not to complain. Well, at least not too much. ;)

Because I am really very, very lucky. Being a debut author is all the things I hoped it would be – and more. There’s more work involved than I thought there’d be, for sure (for example, with promoting your writing, both in person and online), but I don’t just mean that. I mean that it is truly an honour to have this chance to share with others the stories and worlds and characters that I create. To hear what people think about the things I write, and to touch the lives of readers all over the world, even in this very tiny way… Well, that’s pretty awesome.

I hope that you enjoy meeting Donna, Navin and Xan, and I hope you’ll return to Ironbridge when The Wood Queen comes out early next year! Thanks for having me. :)

*

Thank you, Karen! All I can say is - the pleasure is all ours. We love The Iron Witch, we love Xan (as I have told you maybe a thousand times) and I'm sure I'm not the only one who is eagerly waiting for The Wood Queen!

Book Review: The Iron Witch (Karen Mahoney) + Giveaway!

Freak. That's what her classmates call seventeen-year-old Donna Underwood. When she was seven, a horrific fey attack killed her father and drove her mother mad. Donna's own nearly fatal injuries from the assault were fixed by magic—the iron tattoos branding her hands and arms. The child of alchemists, Donna feels cursed by the magical heritage that destroyed her parents and any chance she had for a normal life. The only thing that keeps her sane and grounded is her relationship with her best friend, Navin Sharma.

When the darkest outcasts of Faerie—the vicious wood elves—abduct Navin, Donna finally has to accept her role in the centuries old war between the humans and the fey. Assisted by Xan, a gorgeous half-fey dropout with secrets of his own, Donna races to save her friend—even if it means betraying everything her parents and the alchemist community fought to the death to protect.

I rarely pick up to read fey novels, but for once I am glad I started The Iron Witch - it turned out to be so bloody good it was impossible not to love it. As it turns out, this is the only book that has a fey element that worked for me. Surprisingly, it doesn't even revolve much around it; I was surprised and intrigued to find dark elves instead! What a phenomenal debut this book is - truly a pleasure to read.

Donna Underwood is a reserved sort of character. Inherently isolated from the rest of her contemporaries, it is easy to see that her character is born out of her experiences and difference from the norm. She is very observant and is weary of many things; at times even paranoid of what might crawl out of the darkness. Her longing for the parents she has lost and the happiness she had to give up is so palpable in her words it is easy to sympathise with Donna. It is also apparent that she holds many secrets and is yet to discover more, so readers are drawn to her very nature.

There are not many secondary characters in The Iron Witch but Navin and Xan are both (HOT - I mean...) noteworthy and will clearly play bigger roles in the succeeding books. Nav is Donna's best and only friend, and between them is a friendship that is tiptoeing on something more. Although we do not actually see literal proof of this, Donna and Navin share such a comfortable, secure relationship with each other, that is quite difficult not to draw any conclusions. Donna is very expressive of how important Nav is to her - which is why when gorgeous half-fey Xan enters the picture, the tension becomes immediately clear. How to balance two gorgeous boys? Xan is both strong and yet vulnerable. Head strong and willing to take chances, I feel that Xan is a worthy choice for Donna, although we can never truly rule out Nav. It would be interesting to see how the romance sparks further in the series, and for the record I am unequivocally team Xan!

The Iron Witch is written very eloquently and never beats around the bush. It is very good in setting up the mystery early on in the book and is equally good in parting with the answers in a controlled way - much like enticing readers with deliberate gaps in the plot and then filling them out afterwards. It has a clever way of ensnaring its readers into the dark and twisted plot. It is also a book with a touch of magic, alchemy and steps into the realm of supernatural. The Iron Witch felt like an adventure book, an action book, a magical fairy tale and a romance book all rolled together as one.

Like I said - a phenomenal debut from Karen Mahoney!

Five Stars!

Giveaway!

Wanna to win a signed copy of The Iron Witch?

Basic Rules.

• Open to everyone, everywhere.
• Non-followers are welcome. But you do have to spread the word anywhere in cyberspace to enter.
• Ends 5th February 2011 12MN GMT
• E-mail will not be passed on to any third party.
• The winner will be chosen by random.org
• The winner will be e-mailed shortly after and will have 48 hours to reply. Otherwise a new winner will be chosen.

* Thanks to RHCB for both review copy and giveaway book and to the lovely Kaz for signing it :)