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Gift suggestions for the fantasy fans on your shopping list.

Yuletide Gifts

As it sometimes happens, my interview fell through this month, and since it’s the official beginning of the holiday shopping season next week, I decided to give you my recommendations for holiday gifts.

#1 Greatest Holiday Gift for fantasy readers of all ages??

(You guessed it)

Author-signed copies of the award-winning Rowan of the Wood and Witch on the Water!

Rowan of the Wood, the first book in the series, won the Indie Excellence Award for YA Fiction. It’s a magical adventure tale about a young boy named Cullen who meanders through the redwood forest every day on his way to school, losing himself in fantasy books full of elves, fairies, and wizards. Cullen’s life changes incredibly one day when he uncovers an ancient magic wand that is inhabited by a powerful wizard, Rowan. Inadvertently, Cullen releases Rowan from the wand and finds himself not only possessed by the wizard but also by the wizard’s obsessive need to find his lost love, Fiana, who has used dark magic to stay alive over the centuries. She has descended so deep into the darkness that she has become something evil.

Read more reviews and testimonials of this magical book.

Rowan’s sequel, Witch on the Water, has only been out about a month. The preliminary reviews and reader testimonials have been overwhelmingly positive! Witch on the Water chronicles the continuing adventures of twelve-year-old Cullen and his friends, Maddy and April. Cullen thought he had enough trouble surviving school, dealing with his miserable home life, and being possessed by Rowan, a 1400-year-old wizard. But when Rowan’s wife, the sadistic vampire Fiana, comes back seeking revenge, Cullen and his band of misfits must do what they can to stop her. This time Cullen’s favorite teacher is Fiana’s first target.

Other great yuletide gifts include handmade ornaments, bookmarks, a handmade crossbow, and a super-cool, hand-carved Vampire Slayer Cross (pictured left). All in a beautifully wrapped package that’s delivered directly to your loved one’s doorstep! Please visit the Yuletide Shop for details on the packages. The books are also available on Amazon and for the Kindle.

Release the Magic this holiday season, and give the gift of fantasy!

Steampunk Stocking Stuffer

Last month I read Soulless by Gail Carriger, and I’m still thinking about it. It is most definitely THE STEAMPUNK STOCKING STUFFER this season! Check out my review:

Miss Alexia Tarabotti lives with her insufferably shallow family in a Victorian London where vampires, werewolves, and ghosts are an accepted part of society. Her remarried mother and step sisters care nothing about anything unless its the latest fashion and London’s High Society. Miss Tarabotti’s mother had given up on Miss Tarabotti finding a husband, with her large nose and tan skin, over a decade ago, leaving Miss Tarabotti a twenty-something, aging spinster.

Little does Miss Tarabotti’s mother know that Miss Tarabotti has no soul, and that makes her very special indeed.

After accidentally killing a vampire that quite rudely attacked her during a posh party, she’s thrown into a mystery surrounding this paranormal London underground where unregistered vampires start popping up and others are disappearing without a trace.

Excellent book. Superb writing.

Carriger brilliantly blends a (quite humorously executed) Victorian style of prose with the increasingly popular Steampunk sub-genre along with just a touch of delicious paranormal romance.

I will most definitely read this book again, this time with a highlighter to mark all the wonderful dialog and quips that made me laugh out loud the first time through.

Reading Ms. Carriger’s work inspires me to be a better writer, myself. I thoroughly look forward to the forthcoming sequel Changeless.

Be sure to check out the Soulless Victorian Dress-Up Doll website. It’s an awesome way to pass the long hours between lunch and the end of the work day.

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Christine Rose is half of the husband/wife writing team: Christine and Ethan Rose, award-winning authors of Rowan of the Wood, the YA fantasy series. The authors have just completed a year-long book tour, traveling the country in a fancifully painted RV they affectionately call the Geekalicous Gypsy Caravan. Christine blogs often, produces videos on YouTube (TheTuberRose), and was named one of the top 100 authors on Twitter by mashable. Catch her prolific tweets and pictures from the road @christinerose. http://www.christineandethanrose.com