Read Brock Eastman's interview with Andrew Maloney for Family Fiction

OVERVIEW

On a cold, stormy evening in Ireland, five teenagers suddenly find themselves lost, separated, and unprepared for a dangerous quest “beyond the Veil” into Morsden Forest, a secret world hidden from ours. There they must learn to grow, learn to trust, learn to fight, learn to sacrifice, and learn to love in order to rediscover the first of seven lost jewels that contain the ancient verses of the Master Song. Together with a myriad of the Awakened - humanlike animals and plants - they will battle wild beasts, wraith-like doppelgängers, and an evil power nearly as ancient as creation itself. Will they stand strong and discover the virtues they have within themselves? Or will they, too, fall to the Corrupted?

THE MASTER SONG (Blue Time #1)

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Blue Time, the first book in the “Master Song” series, is written in the vein of high-fantasy fiction, comparable to The Lord of the Rings (Tolkien), The Chronicles of Narnia (Lewis), and The Song of Albion (Lawhead).

The story centers around Quinn Taylor, a teenage girl who discovers that she is the heir of an ancient legacy and unwillingly becomes the last protector of the Master Song. She and her friends are set on a quest by the Coedaoine (Treepeople) to recover the seven verses that make up the Master Song before the malevolent Bàsisolc can gather all the pieces to himself first, and thus Corrupt the entire world.

In the beginning, the Composer created a world where humanity and the Coedaoine lived in peace. The Coedaoine were the shepherds of the Composer’s new world, and when it was decided that Man should possess dominion of the earth, the Treepeople agreed to help mankind and teach him the only song that could be sung by a human: the Master Song. Seven key virtues are represented in the verses of the Song: love, wisdom, might, valor, kindheartedness, devotion, and meekness. On their own, each verse grants the ultimate expression of its virtue to the singer. However, the virtues can become Corrupted and perverted from their pure form. Love, the greatest virtue, can become obsession. Wisdom can become control. Might can become brutality. Valor can become pride. Kindheartedness can become manipulation. Devotion can become fanaticism. Meekness can become frailty. And so, to protect every living thing on the planet, the power of the Master Song must be carefully guarded by only the purest of people.

The Treepeople have a special ability given to them by the Composer. To them it was given to sing the songs of the Composer and by doing so to awaken the various creatures of the forest. An Awakened being not only grows in physical size beyond their “natural” state, but they also gain the abilities to think, reason, speak, and discern (and thus choose) between good and evil. There is, however, a restraint placed upon the power of the songs the Treefolk sing... they are only of effect during the “time-between-times” of dusk, commonly called Blue Time in the Master Song series.

The legend of a time-between-times is a focal point within the story. There are parts of our world that are “Veiled” by the Treepeople. These are hidden lands that can only be entered during Blue Time. In some Celtic mythology the “Otherworld” was parallel and simultaneous to ours, only hidden in “shadow.”

The humans that populate the Hidden Lands are called Aossí (Fair Folk). The vast majority of the Aossí are unaware of our world even though we share a common ancestry from times before the Veil was set.

VERSE OF VALOR (Blue Time #2)

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Cyno Dolan, an Awakened coyote, stumbles across a mystical Voice in the swamplands of Tírcluddaithe and is tasked with organizing a breakout from captivity for the Coeduine known as the Most Evil. The Coyote returns to the Westlands and throws in his lot with a conquering usurper named Guarí, but his loyalties lie elsewhere. Who is he really serving? The glory-hungry Bull King...or someone far more sinister?

Meanwhile, King Orbo III is summoned to give an account of his hand in the Battle of the Sanctuary, and a political trap is laid by Dubric the Dark in an effort to consolidate his power over the Hidden Lands. Whispers of civil war are in the air while the incognito Prince Chadric strikes off on a quest of his own to find his missing father, High King Alaric.

Meeting a host of new allies and enemies alike, Nolan and his friends return to Tírcluddaithe, this time exploring the Westlands and uncovering a web of trickery and deceit while looking for the next Verse of the Master Song. Can Nolan muster the courage to prove himself a worthy guardian of the legendary Valor verse?

MAIN CHARACTERS

Quinn Taylor is a Welsh teenager and the last descendent of the Seven Queens (the original possessors of the Song.) She is the only one who can break the gemstones and release their verses. She comes from a broken home and is quite a tomboy. She lives with her father, a pastor in Cardiff, and despises her mother for being unfaithful and destroying the family. Quinn’s grandmother, Audrey, was used by the Coedaoine to hunt for the verses when she was younger. Quinn may also privately have some feelings for Nolan. Her discovered virtue is Love.

Nolan Marten is an American who suffers from asthma. Considered an odd boy, he secretly talks to trees, has trouble in school because of a daydreaming personality, and is not a brave person. He unconsciously feels his father is embarrassed of his peculiarities, and his mother is overprotective because of his physical weakness. Nolan’s discovered virtue is Valor.

Stanley Stewart is Nolan’s only friend, a chubby genius. Stanley is the “smartest kid in three states,” but his parents ignore their son’s potential. He is the brains of the group, a bit of a know-it-all, and runs at the mouth. His discovered virtue is Wisdom, the brighter compatriot of knowledge.

Genevieve Eleanor is Nolan’s cousin and Quinn’s stepsister. She is very conceited and snobbish. Her smugness stems from an abandonment issue: she was raised by her mother when her father left the family. Her mother is getting remarried to Quinn’s father. Her discovered virtue is Meekness.

Emry Marten is Nolan’s younger brother. In the Hidden Lands, Emry is befriended by an Awakened she-bear, who lost her cubs to man’s hunting. The two develop an unbreakable relationship, and Emry’s discovered virtue is Devotion, the height of faith and trust.

Fiorlen is a Treeperson. Her father has been kidnapped and she joins the group to find him. She has an Awakened lightning bug for a pet. Her discovered virtue is Kindheartedness, the ultimate expression of compassion.

Chadric is the son of the High King of the Hidden Lands; he is one of the Fair Folk. He uncovers a plot that his uncle, Dubric, seeks to usurp his father’s throne. Chadric steals the Red Sword, the symbol of his father’s power and authority, and goes into hiding. He meets up with the group and accompanies them. It appears that Genevieve may have feelings for him. Chadric’s discovered virtue is Might.