Blog Tour & Giveaway: Timespell by Diana Paz

Today WinterHaven Books is participating in the release day blog tour for Timespell by Diana Paz hosted by Xpresso Book Tour. Our stop includes an exciting book excerpt, author interview and tour-wide giveaway. Enjoy!!

Timespell by Diana Paz
Publication Date: April 1, 2013
Publisher: Rhemalda Publishing
Purchase Links: Amazon | Barnes & Noble

In TIMESPELL, the brash and impulsive Julia must team up with her sweet and straight-laced best friend, Angie, and the malicious and power-hungry Kaitlyn in order to keep the witch-like powers of her inheritance. But these powers come at a cost. The girls are bound to serve the Fates, and their first mission sends them back in time to Marie Antoinette’s Paris and eventually, into the chaos and war of the French Revolution.

Timespell Excerpt: Julia

The teacher went on. Julia tried to stay awak, but it was like the woman spoke in a hypnotic voice on purpose. She could practically hear her saying, “You’re getting sleepy … very, very sleepy.”

“Julia Corona,” Mrs. Ramirez snapped. Julia straightened again, forcing her eyes wide open. “Name a victim of the Reign of Terror. Now.”

“Right.” Crap. Mrs. Ramirez really had it in for her today. She flipped back a page in her textbook. “A victim,” she repeated.

“There were so very, very many. Sad times …,” she trailed off.

Mrs. Ramirez crossed her arms.

Julia chewed on her lip, scanning a paragraph about the September Massacres. The mark on her arm grew warm and she frowned.

The page in her history book went blank.

She blinked. An involuntary sound escaped her throat as the blank page began filling in. Word after word, image after image, shifting and changing until the page looked nothing like it had before. A moment ago it had talked about survivors—Pauline de Tourzel and her mother—and the next moment it talked about their untimely deaths.

“We’re waiting.”

She flipped the page, wondering if being sleepy had made her hallucinate. There was no mistaking the warmth flowing from the mark on her arm. Her heart pounded as she watched another page rearrange itself, entire paragraphs disappearing.

She slammed the book shut. Mrs. Ramirez narrowed her eyes.

Julia swallowed. “I—want to remember without looking.”

What was going on? History was changing, and shutting her book wouldn’t stop whatever was happening in the past.

Author Interview

Let’s start with your writing routine. Do you have a particular place you like to settle in to write?

I usually start with a snack and music, sometimes I spend a few minutes daydreaming about my characters and what I have planned for them… then I dive into my manuscript! My favorite place to write is on my sofa, tucked into the corner with my laptop, and I’m big on having a steady supply of tea and cookies within reach. I tend to snack a LOT while writing, but it balances out because I end up forgetting to eat during revisions.

In the novel, the three main characters seem very different. How would you describe them? Was writing in three points of view a challenge?

I enjoyed the challenge of viewing the world through each of my character’s eyes. Julia is sarcastic, outspoken, protective, and impulsive. Angie is steady, polite, thoughtful, and reserved. Kaitlyn is contemptuous, cynical, guarded, and fearless. They each have flaws and strengths that play into their relationship. I wanted to see if three girls who were so dissimilar could overcome their differences and, if so, would their experiences change them? What would their motivations be? Would they cooperate for the good of the world? For their own agendas? For personal gain? What about loyalty to one another? It was fascinating to me to think about how the girls would react to an existence that forced them to unite, and I loved seeing each of them grow.

Do any of the characters personalities resemble your own, or people you know?

Even though I created the main characters as their own people, I can’t help but infuse pieces of myself, and the experiences I’ve had, in every character I write. Because of this, I would say that I can relate to each of them.

Timespell delves into the time period of the French Revolution. What drew you to this historical period? What made you choose certain locations in the book?

I loved the idea of Marie Antoinette being the same age as my main characters when she made her Parisian debut. I think that’s probably what first had me poking into researching this particular era. The more I read, the more fascinated I became, and before I knew it, I had several scenes in mind for the story based around key events surrounding Marie Antoinette’s life. I liked choosing locations that made sense in the story and the timeline, so I decided to use Tuileries Palace as an anchor throughout a lot of the time travel that occurred in Timespell. Between Marie Antoinette’s Parisian debut and the terrifying march on the palace many years later, it was a great place to have the girls battle demons and experience key events of the Marie Antoinette era.

About the Author

Diana Paz writes books about magic, adventure, and romance. She was born in Costa Rica, grew up on Miami Beach, moved to Los Angeles in high school, and went to college in San Diego. Basically, she’s a beach bum. Diana graduated from California State University, San Marcos with a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts. She loves old movies, epic fantasy, all kinds of music, and heading to the beach with a good book. Preferably sipping a highly sweetened iced coffee. 

Follow this Author

Website | Blog | FaceBook | Twitter

As part of the book blitz the Xpresso Book Tours is offering a grand prize giveaway for one paperback and 3 ebook copies of Timespell. Be sure to fill out the rafflecopter for a chance to win!!

a Rafflecopter giveaway