Today, guest author Madhuri Blaylock is here to discuss the main theme in her new release, The Boy. She will be giving away a $25 Amazon gift card, so be sure to enter her Rafflecopter contest below.
LOSS: lôs,läs/ noun
noun: loss; plural noun: losses
1. the fact or process of losing something or someone."avoiding loss of time"
2. an amount of money lost by a business or organization."insurance can protect you against financial loss"
3. the state or feeling of grief when deprived of someone or something of value."I feel a terrible sense of loss"
The noun loss is defined as “losing something or someone” and is a central theme in book two of The Sanctum Trilogy, THE BOY.
Picking up right where THE GIRL left off, readers find Dev racing against time and fate to save Wyatt Clayworth’s life after he suffered a horrible injury in the novel’s closing battle. Without giving away too much of the storyline, for me THE BOY is a treatise of sorts on loss and the different ways we cope in an effort to move forward.
And how we sometimes fail in that endeavor.
Of course, by describing THE BOY as such, I do not intend to suggest that the novel fails to include the political machinations, treacherous conspiring, enduring friendships, and passionate relationships introduced in THE GIRL. They are very present but work to enhance the theme of loss rather than stand on their own.
Readers might disagree, but as the writer, this grand theme guided me throughout. And saddened me all the while. I love THE BOY, but I also find it to be very melancholy. Beautiful, but tinged with despair.
On a very basic level, there is the loss of Wyatt Clayworth and how those who love him - his parents, his sister, his best friend, and his love - cope with his absence. But underlying this obvious loss are subtle ones for each character, all stemming from Wyatt’s absence, and affecting each profoundly.
A good example is Jools Clayworth, Wyatt’s younger sister, who many, including myself, have characterized as bratty and rather childish. The closing scene in THE GIRL finds her screaming at Dev and blaming her for Wyatt’s injury. The woman we meet in THE BOY could hardly be described as childish, as Jools is forced to take on a leadership role while her parents mourn the loss of their son. Unable to similarly escape into her sadness and mourn her brother, Jools steps into shoes many believed Wyatt would one day fill, does her best to move the family forward and continue putting the pieces into play to challenge the current leadership of The Sanctum.
This theme plays out for every character in different ways, each coping the best they can, striving to move past their pain and forward with their lives. It was intense to write, at times downright heartbreaking, but in the end, I believe suffering through the loss makes each of my characters stronger, even when their actions might not seem so.
It humanizes them, makes them relatable, and in the end, instills a sense of optimism, for when one has survived and made it to the other side of such pain and despair, certainly something good is waiting around the corner.
At least one should hope...
noun: loss; plural noun: losses
1. the fact or process of losing something or someone."avoiding loss of time"
2. an amount of money lost by a business or organization."insurance can protect you against financial loss"
3. the state or feeling of grief when deprived of someone or something of value."I feel a terrible sense of loss"
The noun loss is defined as “losing something or someone” and is a central theme in book two of The Sanctum Trilogy, THE BOY.
Picking up right where THE GIRL left off, readers find Dev racing against time and fate to save Wyatt Clayworth’s life after he suffered a horrible injury in the novel’s closing battle. Without giving away too much of the storyline, for me THE BOY is a treatise of sorts on loss and the different ways we cope in an effort to move forward.
And how we sometimes fail in that endeavor.
Of course, by describing THE BOY as such, I do not intend to suggest that the novel fails to include the political machinations, treacherous conspiring, enduring friendships, and passionate relationships introduced in THE GIRL. They are very present but work to enhance the theme of loss rather than stand on their own.
Readers might disagree, but as the writer, this grand theme guided me throughout. And saddened me all the while. I love THE BOY, but I also find it to be very melancholy. Beautiful, but tinged with despair.
On a very basic level, there is the loss of Wyatt Clayworth and how those who love him - his parents, his sister, his best friend, and his love - cope with his absence. But underlying this obvious loss are subtle ones for each character, all stemming from Wyatt’s absence, and affecting each profoundly.
A good example is Jools Clayworth, Wyatt’s younger sister, who many, including myself, have characterized as bratty and rather childish. The closing scene in THE GIRL finds her screaming at Dev and blaming her for Wyatt’s injury. The woman we meet in THE BOY could hardly be described as childish, as Jools is forced to take on a leadership role while her parents mourn the loss of their son. Unable to similarly escape into her sadness and mourn her brother, Jools steps into shoes many believed Wyatt would one day fill, does her best to move the family forward and continue putting the pieces into play to challenge the current leadership of The Sanctum.
This theme plays out for every character in different ways, each coping the best they can, striving to move past their pain and forward with their lives. It was intense to write, at times downright heartbreaking, but in the end, I believe suffering through the loss makes each of my characters stronger, even when their actions might not seem so.
It humanizes them, makes them relatable, and in the end, instills a sense of optimism, for when one has survived and made it to the other side of such pain and despair, certainly something good is waiting around the corner.
At least one should hope...
About the novel:
“Every now and again an excellent novel will come forth dealing with fantasy and magic that will just grab and hold my attention from beginning to end. That is exactly what THE GIRL did.” -- OOSA Online Book Club
In THE GIRL, Madhuri Blaylock introduced readers to the world of The Sanctum, one corrupted by greed and savagery and hellbent on achieving a single goal: destroying the prophesied hybrid. When one of its most celebrated warriors questioned his allegiances, age-old secrets were unveiled and violence erupted. The journey becomes more perilous and intense as the trilogy surges forward with
THE BOY
Can you cross the plains of death, collect every piece of your soul and make it back to the land of the living?
And if you complete the journey, will your loved ones welcome your return?
The Ramyan have been answering such questions since the creation of The Sanctum. A mysterious sect of Magicals, haunting the blank spaces of time and memory, they serve no one but themselves and their higher purpose. They exist on a plane removed from earthly matters, shifting easily between the living and the dead, moving in time to the beat of their own drummer.
At least they did. Dev and Wyatt change all of that when the prophesied hybrid lands on the steps of Rinshun Palace, seeking help for the wounded Class A Warrior. That decision alters lives and sets old agendas back on course. But at what cost to Dev and Wyatt? And does that really even matter?
“The characters in Madhuri Blaylock's novel...are well written and unique, and the story is just fantastic...I just loved every page of the story!” - Readers' Favorite
Excerpt:
Jasmine.
The first sense awakened was smell; the first familiar scent was jasmine. It was not overpowering, as it tended to be at times, but rather just a hint in the air, enough to arouse a memory.
Shopping in the market and the vendor giving her a string of flowers for her hair. She wanted to weave them into her braid but there was no time. They were simply wrapped around her neck, a sweet-smelling chain, but not half as pretty as they would have looked in her hair.
The green grass.
Her sight returned next and she thrilled at the vision before her, the tall grass of her home, so lush and brilliant. So soft to her touch which followed and soon she could feel her body returning to itself, feel the ground below her and hear the life around her.
Sound.
The water of the channels, lazily rolling along, the birds calling to one another in an endless conversation of nonsense and the branches of trees, swaying in the wind, scratching against each other.
And finally taste.
Metallic.
Iron.
She wiped her mouth and the back of her hand came away red.
Blood.
She sat up and spit. Bright red against the brown of the dirt. She didn't care. The blood was insignificant; the boy was of much more importance.
The fact that Dev could sit up at all was amazing, a testament to her minute learning curve. Only her second time toying with portal travel and she had no broken bones, not even a scratch she realized as she studied her arms and legs. She stood up slowly, her legs feeling a bit shaky, and wobbled around like a newly-birthed colt. She stretched her arms above her head and shook them out, needing to get the blood flowing through her limbs properly. All the while, she scanned the area for his dark hair, his fair skin.
Wyatt.
“Every now and again an excellent novel will come forth dealing with fantasy and magic that will just grab and hold my attention from beginning to end. That is exactly what THE GIRL did.” -- OOSA Online Book Club
In THE GIRL, Madhuri Blaylock introduced readers to the world of The Sanctum, one corrupted by greed and savagery and hellbent on achieving a single goal: destroying the prophesied hybrid. When one of its most celebrated warriors questioned his allegiances, age-old secrets were unveiled and violence erupted. The journey becomes more perilous and intense as the trilogy surges forward with
THE BOY
Can you cross the plains of death, collect every piece of your soul and make it back to the land of the living?
And if you complete the journey, will your loved ones welcome your return?
The Ramyan have been answering such questions since the creation of The Sanctum. A mysterious sect of Magicals, haunting the blank spaces of time and memory, they serve no one but themselves and their higher purpose. They exist on a plane removed from earthly matters, shifting easily between the living and the dead, moving in time to the beat of their own drummer.
At least they did. Dev and Wyatt change all of that when the prophesied hybrid lands on the steps of Rinshun Palace, seeking help for the wounded Class A Warrior. That decision alters lives and sets old agendas back on course. But at what cost to Dev and Wyatt? And does that really even matter?
“The characters in Madhuri Blaylock's novel...are well written and unique, and the story is just fantastic...I just loved every page of the story!” - Readers' Favorite
Excerpt:
Jasmine.
The first sense awakened was smell; the first familiar scent was jasmine. It was not overpowering, as it tended to be at times, but rather just a hint in the air, enough to arouse a memory.
Shopping in the market and the vendor giving her a string of flowers for her hair. She wanted to weave them into her braid but there was no time. They were simply wrapped around her neck, a sweet-smelling chain, but not half as pretty as they would have looked in her hair.
The green grass.
Her sight returned next and she thrilled at the vision before her, the tall grass of her home, so lush and brilliant. So soft to her touch which followed and soon she could feel her body returning to itself, feel the ground below her and hear the life around her.
Sound.
The water of the channels, lazily rolling along, the birds calling to one another in an endless conversation of nonsense and the branches of trees, swaying in the wind, scratching against each other.
And finally taste.
Metallic.
Iron.
She wiped her mouth and the back of her hand came away red.
Blood.
She sat up and spit. Bright red against the brown of the dirt. She didn't care. The blood was insignificant; the boy was of much more importance.
The fact that Dev could sit up at all was amazing, a testament to her minute learning curve. Only her second time toying with portal travel and she had no broken bones, not even a scratch she realized as she studied her arms and legs. She stood up slowly, her legs feeling a bit shaky, and wobbled around like a newly-birthed colt. She stretched her arms above her head and shook them out, needing to get the blood flowing through her limbs properly. All the while, she scanned the area for his dark hair, his fair skin.
Wyatt.
About the author:
Madhuri is a Jersey City Heights girl via Snellville, Georgia, who writes paranormal fiction and is slightly infatuated with tattoos, four-inch heels, ice cream, Matt Damon, scotch, Doc Martens, Laini Taylor, photo booths and dancing like a fool.
She's currently working on The Sanctum trilogy and hopes one day soon, everyone is walking around with copies of The Girl and The Boy in their pocket or on their Kindle.
She wants to get a goat and a burro, but since she lives in the city, will settle for some chickens.
To learn more about her, you can follow her blog at madhuriblaylock.wordpress.com, follow her on Twitter at @madhuriblaylock or like her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/thesanctumtr...
She's totally chatty so drop her a line any time.
Madhuri is a Jersey City Heights girl via Snellville, Georgia, who writes paranormal fiction and is slightly infatuated with tattoos, four-inch heels, ice cream, Matt Damon, scotch, Doc Martens, Laini Taylor, photo booths and dancing like a fool.
She's currently working on The Sanctum trilogy and hopes one day soon, everyone is walking around with copies of The Girl and The Boy in their pocket or on their Kindle.
She wants to get a goat and a burro, but since she lives in the city, will settle for some chickens.
To learn more about her, you can follow her blog at madhuriblaylock.wordpress.com, follow her on Twitter at @madhuriblaylock or like her on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/thesanctumtr...
She's totally chatty so drop her a line any time.
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