“This blend of urban and cross-world fantasy combines the excitement of the Harry Potter series with the dark grittiness of the Dresden Files books and should appeal to mature young adults as well as to adult lovers of the genre.”--Library Journal (The Lost Prince)
The Lost Prince (book 2 of the Guardians of Aandor series) made
its debut on August 20th, and the reviews so far have been overwhelmingly
positive. I want to point out one important change I've made regarding the ending
of this book compared with its predecessor; although Awakenings also received
much praise, many reviewers (and readers) were put out by the cliffhanger
ending, and didn't realize they were starting a series. I'd actually read reviews
where readers admitted I'd lost a star on their rating for this very reason.
With book 2, I decided to go with a more definitive ending. What does this mean exactly? It's the
difference between the ending of a Harry Potter book, where that book's story is relatively wrapped
up, and that in A Game of Thrones book, when the story stops just as a protagonist dies, his
family is scattered to the winds, and the bad guys are victorious. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.)
In truth, the ending I had always envisioned for The Lost
Prince already lent itself to this more definitive conclusion. (Unlike the
writers of the TV show, Lost, I actually do have an idea of where my story is
going.) And boy, what an ending it is! The fact is, books one and two roll
together like an epic self-contained 900-page story. If you didn't want to
continue reading this universe, you could stop at the end of The Lost Prince, completely
satisfied. If I had to create a metaphor for comparison I'd go with this:
Awakenings was a delicious home-cooked three-course meal with a modest, though
tasty dessert. (Think a scoop of gelato.) The Lost Prince is a scrumptious, seven-course
gourmet dinner with a three-tiered dessert tray bearing tiramisu, Black Forest chocolate
cake, flan, crème brûlée, pie, and of course, gelato. (For my non-culinary
readers--think deep-fried Oreos, deep-fried Snickers, and deep-fried Twinkies.)
Yes, folks, it's that good!
I'm really proud of this second novel. Some will live,
some will die, and Daniel... (heh, heh). The Lost Prince Hardcover from Tor Books is out in stores now.
What author doesn't dream of having their work translated
into another medium? Now that the final manuscript to the trilogy has been
turned in, people are asking when we'll see a Guardians of Aandor movie? My people are working to make that happen. But I thought it might be
fun to play Hollywood casting director in the meantime and cast characters from Awakenings and The Lost Prince based on Hollywood's current talent crop. [Spoilers for those who have not read the series]
The Lost Prince (book 2 of the Guardians of Aandor series) made
its debut on August 20th, and the reviews so far have been overwhelmingly
positive. I want to point out one important change I've made regarding the ending
of this book compared with its predecessor; although Awakenings also received
much praise, many reviewers (and readers) were put out by the cliffhanger
ending, and didn't realize they were starting a series. I'd actually read reviews
where readers admitted I'd lost a star on their rating for this very reason.
With book 2, I decided to go with a more definitive ending. What does this mean exactly? It's the
difference between the ending of a Harry Potter book, where that book's story is relatively wrapped
up, and that in A Game of Thrones book, when the story stops just as a protagonist dies, his
family is scattered to the winds, and the bad guys are victorious. (Not that there's anything wrong with that.) 
