Lark Rising by Sandra Waugh Tour Stop + Giveaway!

About the Author

Sandra grew up in an old house full of crowded bookshelves, in walking distance of an old library that allowed her to drag home a sack of six books at a time. It goes without saying, then, that she fell in love with the old house in Litchfield County, CT, because of its many bookshelves, and she lives there now with her husband, two sons, and a dog who snores. Loudly.

LARK RISING is her first novel and the first in the GUARDIANS OF TARNEC series. SILVER EVE follows in 2015.

☆ How to find Sandra ☆
Website ☆ Twitter ☆ Facebook ☆ Goodreads ☆ Pinterest ☆ Tumblr

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About the Book

Full of romance and nature magic, this debut fantasy is perfect for fans of Shannon Hale, Juliet Marillier, and Kristin Cashore.

“A beautifully realized world, a unique voice, and a compelling, action-packed story. This is a striking debut novel with a lovely folkloric flavor.” —Juliet Marillier, author of Wildwood Dancing

Lark has foreseen two things—she will fall for a young man with sage green eyes, and he will kill her.

Sixteen-year-old Lark Carew is happiest close to home, tending her garden and gathering herbs for medicines. But when her Sight warns her that monsters called Troths will soon invade her village, Lark is summoned on a journey to seek help from the legendary Riders of Tarnec. Little does she suspect that one of the Riders, Gharain, is the very man who has haunted her visions. Or that the people of Tarnec have called her there for another reason: Lark is the Guardian of Life, the first of four Guardians who must awaken their powers to recover four stolen amulets. Together, the amulets—Life, Death, Dark, and Light—keep the world in Balance. To take back the Life amulet, Lark will have to discover her true inner strength and give in to a love that she swears will be her downfall.

☆ How to find Lark Rising ☆
Amazon ☆ Barnes & Noble ☆ Goodreads

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Hello all! Today's guest post is by Sandra Waugh. Whenever I'm given the option to pick a guest post topic, I try to think of a topic that is unique to the author. While looking on Sandra's website I noticed lots of pictures of plants, then I remembered that Lark's passion is gardening, so I knew there was a personal story there. So let's welcome Sandra Waugh.

When we moved from NYC to the very old house in a very small town, I took on the duty of groundskeeper for our four acres. I did not understand the enormity of the task. Sure, I tended a potted fern that decorated my bedroom growing up (and still lives!) and bought packets of seeds at local harvest fairs imagining some day I’d create beautiful herb gardens to wander through wearing a floaty sundress, snipping a bit of lavender here, a smidge of sage there….

Okay. Fast forward to real life: That’s a moment only achievable if I’m NOT concurrently groundskeeper, cook, laundress, housecleaner, ms. fix-it, wife, and mom. Oh… and writer.

Basically it’s a mad dash outside to mow the lawn and the back field, then off to hack at the forsythia and wild roses and blackberries before they swallow everything. And then there’s poison ivy and God-knows-what-their-names are weeds and moss and various creepers that ruin any hope of lush green carpets to walk upon—things I bravely insist I’ll eradicate and never do. There are the overrun gardens that I’m determined to cultivate into jaw dropping jungles of color at the start of each spring, but then give up halfway through June. Oh and the hornets—I’ve learned the hard way that hornets live in underground nests and attack you from nickel-size holes. This summer I discovered eight such nests. Eight.

By September I am tossing fallen apples and pears into the woods because I forgot to pick any. Come November I shoulder the leaf blower and sweep every blade of grass. This takes four days. On the fifth the winds come and redecorate the lawn with branches and sticks and half the leaves from the neighbors’ piles.

When spring returns I start again.

But the crazy thing is, I am glad to start again. Because no matter how grueling, or annoying, or lame my efforts, the outdoors is so full of wonder and discovery that I will gladly trudge back into the fray. For everything I’ve missed, I’ve still seen. And it’s what inspired LARK RISING.

It’s true that a hawk landed on my porch, prompting the first pages; the rest evolved while mowing the lawn. Plant and creature showed me the way into this story—my own backyard offering glimpses of Lark’s gardens, her fence, Dark Wood, ghisane, the visiting hawk, the fox, the hare. I am inspired by Nature, what’s just beyond my doorstep, what I’ve watched each day on this tiny scale struggling to thrive. LARK is all about Nature—both its fragile balance and its tenacity. To be witness to such beauty, to share it is just… pretty great.

Lark says that she thinks the Earth sings to her.

I think it does. I’ve heard it.

☆ Sandra's Garden ☆




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This is a tour hosted giveaway!
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY
1 winner will receive a leaf necklace, $25 Amazon gift card, sachet, a signed hardcover of LARK RISING, and a bookmark and a postcard. US Only.

1 winner will receive leaf earrings, cuff, soap, sachet and a signed hardcover of LARK RISING, and a bookmark and a postcard. US Only.

3 winners will receive a signed hardcover of LARK RISING, and a bookmark and a postcard. US Only

a Rafflecopter giveaway

☆ The Tour ☆
Week One:
9/15/2014- Mom With A Kindle- Interview
9/16/2014- The Book Landers- Review
9/17/2014- My ParaHangover- Review
9/18/2014- Two Chicks on Books- Guest Post
9/19/2014- Carina's Books- Review

Week Two:
9/22/2014- A Backwards Story- Review
9/23/2014- Word Spelunking- Guest Post
9/24/2014- Literary Meanderings- Interview
9/25/2014- Fall Into Books- Interview
9/26/2014- Magical Urban Fantasy Reads- Guest Post