The Wolves Keeper Legend fantasy book

All About {n} Book Critique

“This book takes you and submerges you into this magical world that you become completely immersed in and when you’re finally done reading it you can’t believe you read it so quickly and are saddened that it’s over. Ms. Weber weaves a magical tale with her words. This is an epic journey about believing in yourself and finding the strength to overcome obstacles - with a love story sprinkled in for good measure. I found it very useful that we had a table at the front of the book helping out with vocabulary as well as characters - since there are some words that I had never heard before. The characters were well fleshed out and I really enjoyed the story of Sealgair and Awena. I recommend this for young and older readers alike, or anyone who enjoys fantasy, good writing and magical characters.”

Posted by Nely 09 July 2009

CONFESSIONS BY BOOK HABITUÉ

The Wolves’ Keeper Legend by Sylvia Weber Full Review


A really good story/concept, but just not as polished as it should be.

I had a hard time following the story, especially the dialogue. Part of this was definitely a linguistic issue-- an English-speaking (first language) editor really should have polished it up. Or maybe it's just because I'm American. Maybe the British wouldn't find anything strange at all.

Part of it, though... I think the story just needed more development before being finished and published. A lot of it (especially the dialogue) felt like it was written by a very very young writer. For example, there are exclamation points everywhere! (Like that one, hehehe.) Sylvia Weber did write the original story at age 12, which is fabulous, but it probably needed more polishing now that she's a more mature writer.

I liked Seanns and Maise, but I didn't feel like there was as much depth to them as I'd like.

And I'm still really confused on a few things-- the "papyrus pearls" concept totally went over my head. Could just be me, but I didn't get it. And the feathers Seanns was supposed to give his parents-- did he? We never hear about those again.

The descriptive prose is beautiful, though. Really lyrical. For example--

"In those unique moments, everything stopped. Even the agitated ocean seemed immobilized in ravishment. The whole universe was dominated by an expectant silence; a mixture of fear of the unknown, magic and respect."

"And these rocky slopes, declivitous and abrupt, were hanging dangerously over the stormy ocean's waves. The sea's colour permanently oscillated between opal green and grey-blue; a gigantic wild animal, threatening to devour everything and everybody."

Lovely.

The world-building gets better as the book goes on, too. The journey they go on is great.

And, just in case anyone was wondering, "invigilate" is indeed a word. I'd never heard it before. Do you have any idea how long it's been since I had to look up a word in a book? (Actually, I can tell you how long it's been. It's been since late summer/early fall of 2005 when I read Connie Willis' Bellwether.) And so is "declivitous", even if spell-check doesn't believe it is.

I would definitely say this is for teenagers-- YA. Though I wouldn't call it a paranormal, even if there is a werewolf (sort of).This is, as you know, a Virtual Book Tour bookYou can also learn more at The Wolves' Keeper Legend

Posted by Britt at :00 AM
Labels: fantasy, Virtual Book Tours, YA

Sylvia said...
Dear Britt, thank you for your critic. It was very detailed and very helpful. I didn't get it... Did you like it? Without concerns to the technical aspects and to the dialogue (of course I will improve it), my question is... Was the reading enjoyable?
I hope you did. As to the feathers, they will be back; they have a different part in a different story. Later...
Thank you once more.
All the best to you.
I'll be back!

July 13, 2009 7:42 AM
Britt said...
I did enjoy it. The descriptions especially were just beautifully done-- wonderful to read.

I'm planning to take my copy to my book group next time we get together and pass it around!

July 13, 2009 9:49 AM
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EVERITHING DISTILS INTO READING: The wolves Keeper Legend by Sylvia Weber


Tuesdays: Teaser/Whereabouts

I am looking for a papyrus-pearl in a stone pot. I am hoping that it will cure my mother Awena and bring me closer to my father, who has been cursed to stay away from his people and made the wolves abode as his own. They too love him like a kin. And I who has been brought up by another set of wonderful parents, stiil hanker for my real father and mother.

~The Wolves' Keeper Legend by Sylvia Weber

There was a child, yes! But he died... He was killed by the weavers, a little while after he was born.

~Page 231, The Wolves' Keeper Legend by Sylvia Weber

Read the review of this book .
Posted by gautami tripathy at 14:06 25 comments Links to this post
Labels: Tuesday posts

It took me a while to get into the book. It began in a narrative style, which was hard to fathom at times. However after 50 pages, the book bgan to grow into me. It is about a boy Seann's who does not understand what makes him love those wolves or why does he like Awena, a woman, who is lost in her own world and cannot recognise anyone. He feels love for her as much as he does for his own mother. He knows she is in some kind of a inner prison and he longs to release her. He along with his friend and an old shephard undergoes that journey, which is dangerous but has to be undertaken.

His affinity for wolves is revealed to him but it shocks him so. For all his 13 years, he comes to possess a wisdom, which isn't understood by most. This novel is written with fantasy elements. And is very atmoshpheric too at times. It does drag at times but the magic of the book manages to hold it to a certain extent. I expected a better ending but under the circumstances, it does make sense. One can't help love Seann's, Maise, and Awena.

The evil magician keeps Awena and Sealgair separate but he too can't get Awena's love. Love can't be forced. It has to be given out of own's free will. And it can't be killed either no matter what. The wolves might be the enemies of men but they too know which human is to be trusted.

Received this book via Pump Up Your Book Promotion's July Authors on Virtual Book Tour. Thanks Tracee!

THE BOOK CONNECTION

Today's guest blogger is Sylvia Weber, author of The Wolves' Keeper Legend.

".... From the beginning of time, it seemed that rivalry between man and wolf was at the root of man's dislike for the animal, discovered only too well by Sealgair. Was his fate forever to be condemned to isolation, to see terror and hate in the eyes of the once he once loved? All he could see in his mind was the last pictures of Awena's beloved face, which he carried in his heart for all his life.

Was the only way out to discover the special secret held by the papyrus-pearls in the stone pot - what secrets could this hold? And which stone pot could keep that precious secret when there were so many of them?

Seanns' quest to find the pearls and uncover the secret ended with tragic consequences, resulting in him not only discovering the truth of his birth and who his real mother and father were, but the realisation that his father lived among the wolves..."

I've asked Sylvia to give us a lit bit of Awena's story. Here's what she has to say:

Awena was a beautiful girl who arrived to Caladh. She and Sealgair fell in love and lived a happy time together, until one day, in the Fire Festival, Fiosaiche fell in love with her too. From there on, Sealgair and Fiosaiche had a hard time, each one of them trying to be the prince of her heart. She chose Sealgair, but Fiosaiche was never happy with her decision. So, he made a pact with the evil powers to get Awena's heart. But there is no such power that can defeat true love... Fiosaiche was downhearted and spiteful, and decided that, if he could't have her, no-one else could. So, he casted a spell over Sealgair and Awena that would keep them apart forever. So, how can this terrible destiny be changed? By then, Awena was already pregnant...

Dan's Journal


My thoughts
It is interesting to learn that when Sylvia Weber wrote "The Wolves Keep Legend' she was only twelve, but only recently translated it from Portuguese to English and had it published. This fantasy novel comes with its own vocabulary of places and characters. It is a world of dreams, hopes, love, promises and truth. Since written as a child, you may think that it is a children's book, but in reality the underlining message is that we are all searching for love and an ideal world.
Posted by Dan at 6:55 AM 0 comments
Labels: 3 star fantasy

Amber Stults – Book Reviewer and Author



The Wolves Keeper Legend by Sylvia Weber
Filed under:Review — posted by Amber on @ 12:58 am


The Wolves Keeper Legend is the debut novel of Sylvia Weber. Printed by Vanguard Press in the UK, it’s categorized as General / Children’s fiction. The English and Gaelic vocabulary lend the book as suitable to pre-teens or teenagers. The book contains two intertwined stories. One story is about Sealgair and Awena, two lovers who have been cursed to be apart by the jealousy of a sorcerer. The second story is about their son’s quest to locate the papyrus-pearl in the stone pot. Seanns is a boy who means no harm with his mischief and strives to do what is just.

Weber’s style has been called poetic prose. She uses a variety of words to create imagery for the reader. Here are two sentences/paragraphs from the book to provide a little taste:

Sealgair reclined by the crackling fire and felt the heat flowing across his body like a sunbeam.

When the first rays of dawn began painting the celestial view in crystalline colours, he was awakened by the effusive peeping of birds greeting the sun.

Doesn’t it seem more interesting than my contrasting interpretation? ”Sealgair felt the warmth of the fire as he lay next to it. When the dawn broke, the sound of birds woke him.”

Having read quite a bit of fantasy in the last year I look for details that might be missed by younger readers and provide clues to later scenes. It’s possible Weber’s style distracted me from realizing those details were picked up later or an editor missed some continuity. My theory is The Wolves Keeper Legend is only the beginning of Seanns’ adventures – Weber left a few things out because they are not for this particular story but play a role in future tales about Seanns.



About Sylvia Weber
Sylvia Weber was born in Abrantes, Portugal, on 20th June 1968. She started writing at the age of twelve, sending articles to newspapers and participiating in school contests. Graduating in Modern Languages and Literature, her whole career was dedicated to teaching and developing the children’s greatest potential.

A wide diversity of interests took her to a life of researching and studying a variety of subjects such as languages, phytotherapy and painting. A strong belief in dreams took her to the United Kingdom at the age of thirty-nine, searching for a place to call ‘home’.

comments (3)

1.

Dear Amber, thank you for your deep interpretation. You’re right, I did intend to leave some doors open to a sequel. I thought that Seanns would deserve more than one book. I realise now that I broke some readers’ hearts by not facilitating Seanns’ final meeting with his parents, but it will be so much more emotional when it happens! My apologies for that. Your vision is excellent. See you later.

Sylvia Weber´s last blog ..Howling to the Moon My ComLuv Profile

Comment by Sylvia Weber — July 22, 2009 @ 3:34 am
2.

I suppose it’s not here in Canada yet? this is the second review of this book and I’d really like a chance to read it :)

Karoline´s last blog ..What’s on my desk Wednesday My ComLuv Profile

Comment by Karoline — July 22, 2009 @ 8:08 pm
3.

I checked the Canadian Amazon site and it’s temporarily unavailable. Chapters didn’t have it listed. :(

Comment by Amber — July 22, 2009 @ 11:38 pm

My Publishing Journey or How I Became a Published Author

We started looking for a Publisher in 14 April 2008.
First of all, we bought the books Writers' and Artists' Yearbook 2009 and Writers' Market UK 2008. We read them right through, me and my husband, every tip, every detail. On one hand, it helped us with the bases - how to compose a query letter, how to write a good Synopsis. But then we thought - if I was a Publisher, or an Agent, would I be interested in reading the same model of query letter a hundred times a day? Wouldn't I be so bored that I would start just throwing them in the bin? We started breaking the rules, writing more from the heart, avoiding the cold business letter. Of course, in some cases, probably the Publishers and Agents threw our inspired letters on the bin anyway, but at least we were doing what we believed.

These books indicated that if I had a celebrity to back me up, my book would be easier to publish. We tried to contact some celebrities, but, of course, most celebrities' addresses are not in the lists or in the net. The ones we found didn't mind. One answered, but by reading the e-mail we suspected immediately that our message didn't even get to her.

Agents? No way. As a first writer, to find an Agent to help us is like for a first time actor to win an Oscar. We tried to contact all the ones we found in the lists, but the answer, generally, was that they are not interested in unpublished Authors. It is understandable, it is a business and certainly they know how hard it is to find a Publisher. So they don't want to invest in a full risk book, even if it is very good. I'm not talking about mine, I'm talking in general. But I must say, though, that my husband, being a foreigner like me and not knowing the Market at all, managed to publish a first-writer book. Then, why can't they?

The most frustrating thing that I found in this process is to know how rare is to find someone who effectively reads the book before saying his verdict on it. How can we judge a book without reading it? How can we say "It's no good!" without knowing it? As a teacher of Literature, I taught the great Classics to youngsters and some of them were absolutely "dry" in the first pages, presenting the family genealogy, the story of the past generations, the story of cities... But I always told my pupils "Give it a chance, read further into it! When you get into the story, you'll see how good it is." And it was true - the book caught their interest and, after that, they just couldn't let it go. So, sending the first sample chapters of a book, wherever it is, is a misrepresentation of a book, is a deceit. My impression, even knowing of the amount of books that arrive each day to the hands of an Agent or of a Publisher, is that they should take more time and read carefully through the books, but make a correct evaluation instead of a hasty one.

What really launched the true possibilities of publishing a book was the site www.firstwriter.com. It has a fee, but it is a hundred per cent worth every cent. There, we could see an extended list of all kinds of publishers and Agents, that can't be found, as I know, anywhere else. There are the characteristics of each one - what genres they do prefer, how to submit a book, when they accept submissions, and, utterly important, the feedback of who already went through the process. This site is updated every twenty four hours. They are very careful and dedicated and very supportive to those like us, who are tired and demoralized by knocking every door and only finding unfunded refusals. There, the publishers are classified by the way how they work, if it is a Classic, a Vanity, a Publisher on demand or a Self-publisher and we know what we can count on - includes how much they pay or how much we must pay for them. Lots of precious information, the best site for who is trying to find a way.

We started by sending the queries by e-mail - around twenty a day. It was easier, faster, and we didn't have any expenses. Then, printing the sample chapters, writing letters, SASE envelopes; sending them everywhere where there was a Publisher or an Agent interested in Fantasy or Fiction books. My husband spent whole nights doing it, while I was working at the night-shift. Thanks to his perseverance I'm here. Answers "No, at the moment we have too many..." or "No, at the moment we are not receiving..." Some of them didn't even answer at all. I didn't keep all the answers, and today I regret it so much. There was one, I remember, who said "No, in a true dialogue, a person doesn't put two sentences together, and each sentence doesn't have more than five, six words."

One month, day after day. Some publishers asked for the whole manuscript, we filled our hearts with hope. My husband prepared a special box, his design of the cover, the book printed in high quality paper. First quality, all very beautiful. Some of the manuscripts came back untouched. We sent more - Special Delivery, SASE.

When we were starting to get absolutely desperate, running out of possibilities, we resourced to the Self-publishers. We never resourced to Vanity publishers, though I think that is a way of doing business as good as any other. There was one self-publisher, his name was Jonathan, as I remember, who told us "I like your book, we can publish it, but wait a little while longer. I'm sure you'll find another way." One of the most extraordinary and supportive answers I received. All my respect to him, and all my respect to the self-publishers, because they give a chance to those who have nothing and we can't take as a rule, knowing the market, that the self-published books have no quality. That's a nonsense. No-one gives a chance to the first-time authors, even presenting potential best-selling, high quality books.

Then, when we least expected, the answer came from Pegasus.

But remember: you can have published a great book and see it die in your shelves or in the friends and family's hands, without the proper promotion....