Blog Tour: Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones

I am SO thrilled to be part of the Wintersong blog tour and especially excited to be the stop ON Wintersong's release day! So happy book birthday, JJ and Wintersong! Readers, keep scrolling for a fantastic guest post in which JJ talks about the music that keeps her inspired while she's writing.  

Rating: 

Pub Date: February 7, 2017

Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books

Genre: new adult contemporary romance

Format/Source: ARC, from the publisher at ALA

Status: book 1 of the Wintersong companion series

Summary:

Beware the goblin men and the wares they sell.

All her life, nineteen-year-old Liesl has heard tales of the beautiful, mysterious Goblin King. He is the Lord of Mischief, the Ruler Underground, and the muse around which her music is composed. Yet, as Liesl helps shoulder the burden of running her family’s inn, her dreams of composition and childish fancies about the Goblin King must be set aside in favor of more practical concerns.

But when her sister Käthe is taken by the goblins, Liesl journeys to their realm to rescue her sister and return her to the world above. The Goblin King agrees to let Käthe go—for a price. The life of a maiden must be given to the land, in accordance with the old laws. A life for a life, he says. Without sacrifice, nothing good can grow. Without death, there can be no rebirth. In exchange for her sister’s freedom, Liesl offers her hand in marriage to the Goblin King. He accepts.

Down in the Underground, Liesl discovers that the Goblin King still inspires her—musically, physically, emotionally. Yet even as her talent blossoms, Liesl’s life is slowly fading away, the price she paid for becoming the Goblin King’s bride. As the two of them grow closer, they must learn just what it is they are each willing to sacrifice: her life, her music, or the end of the world. 

Guest Post:

I’ve done a makeup look for Wintersong in my newsletter, as well as a playlist of songs. However, the playlist I’ve compiled isn’t actually what I listened to while writing; I can’t listen to music with lyrics in them when writing, lest the lyrics make their way into my words.

I listened to a lot of instrumental music, some because it was composed in the time period during which the book is set (late Classical/early Romantic), some from an earlier time period because the musical DNA was crucial for me to understand in terms of composition and influence, and others because it resonated emotionally with what I was writing.

Writing Playlist:

• Opus 1 (D. 328), “Der Erlkönig” – Franz Schubert 
• Concerto No. 4 in F minor, Op. 8, RV 297, L’inverno (Winter): 2. Largo – Antonio Vivaldi
• The Vitali Chaconne – attributed to Tomaso Antonio Vitali, but the true composer is unknown
• Toccata & Fugue in D Minor (arranged and transposed for violin by Andrew Manze) – attributed to Johann Sebastian Bach, although this is disputed
• Requiem in D Minor, K. 626: 1. Introitus – Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
• Rosary Sonatas: Sonata XI – The Resurrection – Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber
• Hide and Seek (as covered by Albert Chang/sleightlymusical on YouTube) – Imogen Heap
• With or Without You (as covered by 2CELLOS) – U2
• Andante favori, WoO 57 – Ludwig van Beethoven
• Love Dance (from Cirque du Soleil’s Kà) - René Dupéré
• Transformation (from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast) – Alan Menken

I was raised in a musical household, much like Liesl, although none of us are professional musicians (any more). The women in my family are prodigious singers, so a lot of my training is in voice, but I also studied the piano, flute, and harp and taught myself the guitar. Unfortunately I never did learn the violin, so there was a lot of research that went into the writing of Wintersong. ☺

Mary's note: Thank you, JJ! These are some fantastic instrumental pieces. I love instrumental music myself, although I tend to favor movie scores over classical. Thanks for sharing. Note to readers: I put the links in myself so these may not be *exactly* the versions JJ is listening to, but I hope you will be able to connect these pieces to the gorgeousness that is Wintersong!

Purchase Links:

   

Happy debut day to @sjaejones on the release of #Wintersong! This Labyrinth-inspired novel is so much fun to read. It's atmospheric and full of lush imagery and musical magic. 📚 Check out my stop on the Wintersong #blogtour for JJ's writing playlist plus a #giveaway! Link is in my profile. 📚 @griffinteen #wintersongnovel #bookstagram #instabook #booknerdigans #bookshimmy #booksandflowers #bookish #iheartya #yalit #bookblogger #currentlyreading

A post shared by Mary H (@knoxdiver) on Feb 7, 2017 at 8:21am PST

Tour Schedule:

Week One:

1/30: Dazzled by Books - Review

1/31: Adventures of a Book Junkie - Interview

2/1: Nicole's Novel Reads - Excerpt

2/2: A Backwards Story - Review

2/3: Two Chicks on Books - Interview

Week Two:

2/6: Buttermybooks - Review

2/7: Mary Had a Little Book Blog - Guest Post

2/8: OMG Books And More Books - Review

2/9: YA Books Central - Interview

2/10: Emily Reads Everything - Review

About the Author:

S. Jae-Jones, called JJ, is a voracious and indiscriminate reader, an avid traveler, and something of an adrenaline junkie.

Born and raised in sunny Los Angeles, she lived in New York City for ten years before relocating down to Dixie, where she is comfortably growing fat on grits and barbecue. When not writing, she can be found rock-climbing, skydiving, taking photographs, drawing pictures, and dragging her dog on ridiculously long hikes.

Author Links:

    

Giveaway: 

3 winners will receive a finished copy of WINTERSONG. US only.

a Rafflecopter giveaway