Sunday, August 4, 2013

Authors Are Rockstars: Amy Butler Greenfield! (and GIVEAWAY!)


Welcome to Day 4 of the Authors Are Rockstars tour! For the rest of the schedule, click HERE, HERE, or HERE.

Today, I'm hosting Amy Butler Greenfield, author of Chantress! Before I introduce her to you, let me tell you why this lady is a ROCKSTAR!

Well, first, she has an amazing book called Chantress, out in the world since May 2013. I'm a huge fan of historical fiction, especially historical fiction with fantasy elements. WELL, to my immense pleasure, Chantress has BOTH! Amy has an amazing, fluid writing style that totally sucked me into Chantress. Also, she's like, the nicest person ever! She always responds to me on Twitter, no matter how annoying I am. Amy lives in England (way cool!), and she has a Ph. D in history. So, she's a kind, cool, and smart cookie! And she lives in the land of yummy accents! Am I right? :D 

And here is the lady of the hour!



Music and Magic

When the idea for Chantress came to me, I was sitting in a coffee shop. At the beginning, I knew only this:  There was a spymaster, and a ruby, and girl who could work magic.  

But what kind of magic did she have?  

I might’ve gotten stuck if I’d stopped to think about it, because there’s so much to choose from.  She could have been a healer, or a diviner, or a summoner.  She might have worked magic through cards, or Latin, or crystal balls.  She could have called on gods, or djinns, or ancestors.  But somehow I knew from the start that she was a singer who worked her magic through music.  

To me, music is magic.  Just look at how it can change our moods!  Certain songs boost our energy. Others make us daydream.  Maybe there’s a person you miss, or a relationship that went sour, and you think you’re over it… only to find that music dissolves every wall, and you’re crying again.   

Even without words to guide us, we have a deep response to music.  Certain chords and progressions and tempos tend to cheer us up.  Others make us weep.   Sometimes every note seems to wring our hearts.  

Music also connects us with memory.   You probably know this already, just from your own experience.  If you listen to a song you haven’t heard for a while, it often brings back the last time you heard it in vivid detail:  the color of the sky, the feel of the air, the clothes you were wearing, the people who were with you then.  

With music, therapists can even reach the minds of people suffering from severe dementia—especially, it turns out, if they play the music those people loved as teenagers.  Listening to tunes they loved decades ago, they smile and laugh.  Sometimes people who haven’t spoken in years know every word to their favorite songs.  While they listen, they feel a little more like themselves again.

In the world of Chantress, singing has even more power.  Lucy casts spells with it.  She transports herself to new realms.  She can even walk into people’s minds.  

But even in our own ordinary world, there’s a tremendous power in music.  And it might just be the closest thing to real magic we’ll ever experience.


More About Amy:

Amy Butler Greenfield was a grad student in history when she gave into temptation and became a writer. Since then, she has become an award-winning author.  She lives with her family in England, where she writes, bakes double-dark-chocolate cake, and plots mischief.



About Chantress:


Chantress by Amy Butler Greenfield
Book One of the Chantress trilogy
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Publication Date: May 7, 2013

Summary (from Goodreads):

Lucy’s Chantress magic will make her the most powerful—and most hunted—girl in England. 

“Sing, and the darkness will find you.” This warning has haunted fifteen-year-old Lucy ever since she was eight and shipwrecked on a lonely island. Lucy’s guardian, Norrie, has lots of rules, but the most important is that Lucy must never sing. Not ever. Now it is 1667, Lucy is fifteen, and on All Hallows’ Eve, Lucy hears a tantalizing melody on the wind. She can’t help but sing—and she is swept into darkness. 

When she awakes in England, Lucy hears powerful men discussing Chantresses—women who can sing magic into the world. They are hunting her, but she escapes and finds sanctuary with the Invisible College, an organization plotting to overthrow the nefarious Lord Protector. The only person powerful enough to bring about his downfall is a Chantress. And Lucy is the last one in England. 

Lucy struggles to master the song-spells and harness her power, but the Lord Protector is moving quickly. And her feelings for Nat, an Invisible College apprentice and scientist who deeply distrusts her magic, only add to her confusion... 

Time is running out, and the fate of England hangs in the balance in this entrancing novel that is atmospheric and lyrical, dangerous and romantic.



Check out my 4-star review of Chantress HERE!


The Giveaway:

Thanks to the publisher (Simon and Schuster), one winner will win a copy of Chantress - USA only! Read the terms and conditions in the Rafflecopter. Good luck!


69 comments:

  1. I absolutely love country from the fifties, and rock n' roll. Thank you for the great giveaway! :D

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  2. I like listening to easy-pop and easy-rock music. They're perfect as soundtracks for any book I'm reading or any task I need to accomplish. Thanks, Simon and Schuster, for the great giveaway!

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  3. Fav type of music has to be pop. I know, not very original :) And thank you Simon and Schuster!

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  4. My favorite type of music is probably country. Thanks Simon and Schuster for the giveaway :)

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  5. Hard to say what is truly my favorite, I love music in a wide range from classical to pop rock and everything in between. I think my absolute favorite would be the days of the rat pack ( Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra)

    Thank you and Simon and Schuster fir this giveaway

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  6. I love different types but probably mostly pop. Thanks for the giveaway Simon and Schuster!

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  7. I am mostly a country or rock fan. Thank you for providing Chantress for the giveaway, Simon and Schuster!

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  8. Thank you Simon & Schuster for the giveaway! I pretty much listen to all types of music. I love soundtracks because you get a variety of music on one CD. Latest favorites: Step Up Revolution, Oblivion and Take Me Home Tonight.

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  9. I love country music!! But I'm also obsessed with Demi Lovato :)
    Thanks for the awesome giveaway!

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  10. i pretty much like a lot of music like r&b, some rap-not a lot, a little bit of country, i like some disney songs..
    thanks for the giveaway!!!

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  11. I don't listen to all that much music because most of the time I listen to books but when I do my favorite is pop.

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  12. Alyssa, you are *never* annoying! And it's so sweet of you to say such lovely things. Thanks so much for having me on your blog!

    (I have to confess - I never did get that PhD. I liked writing too much to go back!)

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    1. *blushes* Well, thank YOU, Amy! I'm so happy to have been paired with you! And that's totally okay - the effort counts, right? :D

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  13. Thanks so much for being a tour host Alyssa! And great post by Amy :)

    Hugs,
    Jaime

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  14. Thanks Simon & Schuster. I love grunge music. I'm a 90s girl.

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  15. I love rock and country. Thank you Simon and & Schuster for the great donation.

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  16. Thank you Simon and & Schuster!

    My favorite kind of music is goth/industrial.

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  17. I haven't read Chantress yet but I've heard amazing things about it and I'm really looking forward to it! Love this post!

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  18. Thank you, Simon & Schuster!!

    I love pop music. (: And classical, but no one really listens to that LOL.

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  19. Thank you so much Simon and Schuster for the awesome givaway and my favorite music is all Spanish and R&B music!

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  20. Usually, I listen to Rock and Pop, in any choice of language.

    Thanks, S&S!

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  21. I think my go-to music is country. But I'll listen to pretty much anything. And thanks S&S!!!

    Grace Radford/Anna Pett

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  22. Thank you so much Simon and Schuster! I really want to read this book. Music is SO magical! Especially symphonic gothic metal, like Within Temptation.

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  23. I totally agree with Amy's post! :) I LOVE listening to music! My favorite genre would probably be rock- alternative rock, punk rock, post hardcore... though not classic rock. XD And thank you, S&S! Been dying to read Chantress! :)

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  24. My favorite kind of music is Rock!

    Thanks for providing a copy of Chantress, S&S! We heatily do appreciate it :)

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  25. My favorite is classical. I love listening to it while reading and jogging. Thanks Simon and Schuster for the giveway and to you for hosting.

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  26. I like a lot of different styles of music from alt to classical, I don't know if this is a style but I really like trailer, gamer music/movie scores an example would something like Kerry Muzzey's Bernini's Angels and the Gladiator soundtrack.

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    1. And thank you Simon and Schuster for providing the Chantress for one of us lucky readers to enjoy:)

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  27. Thank you Simon and Schuster! I've heard great things about this book! as for my favorite type of music I would say Indie pop/pop. But I like to listen to classical/piano while studying.

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  28. Thanks for the giveaway...

    My favorite kind of music is Christian...like Mandisa, or Chris Tomlin,

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  29. thank you for the great prize and I'm a country music fan but I do like some rock too.

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  30. I listen to most everything. I grew up listening to the oldies LOL!! No I am not that old hahaha....Thank you Simon and Schuster.

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  31. I have such an eclectic taste in music. But primarily, I'd say just pop/rock. I grew up in the 90's, sooo... Haha :)

    Thank you for such an amazing giveaway, Simon & Sschuster!

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  32. I can listen to most anything...start off the day with classical, move to more emo/accoustic/folk, then transition to pop to help me get through the day and rock out on my ride home! :)

    Thanks of course to Simon and Schuster for the giveaway! Yay!!

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  33. I like all kinds of music, but my favorite is Classic Rock.

    Thank you Simon and Schuster for the giveaway! It is awesome!

    Les Johnson
    katja9_10 at hotmail dot com

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  34. I've been DYING to read Chantress! Thanks for a great post! :D I definitely agree that music is magic.

    My favorite music is classical and pop, I also love jungle. (Yeah crazy combo!)

    Thank you Simon&Schuster for the giveaway--u rock!

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  35. Thanks, Alyssa and Simon and Schuster! My favorite music? Pop and Soul.

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  36. I'm big on classic grunge. Nirvana is my true love.

    Thank you for the giveaway! :)

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  37. When it comes to music, it doesn't really matter which genre it is. I'll listen to anything that I connect with or that I like listening to. That tends to be a lot of pop/rock, but I do love a lot of others.

    Thank you so much for the giveaway. :)

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  38. I like a bit of everything...Rock when I'm in a crazy loud mood, Soft when I'm sad or more low key, hip hop when I'm dancing, Country just about anytime of the day and that's just the beginning!!!

    Thanks for the great giveaway!!!

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  39. I don't really have a favorite type of music. I'll say my current favorite group is MUMFORD AND SONS.

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  40. I like pretty much anything, but especially pop/Rock and Folk.

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  41. My favorite is hard rock and metal music.
    Thanks for the chance to win!

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  42. Thank you Simon and Schuster for the giveaway! You guys publish some awesome authors.

    My favorite music is ehh rock? anything from Cradle of filth to Chris Daughtry... I'm very colorful when it comes to my musical choices.

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  43. I honestly don't listen to a lot of music so I couldn't pick a type.

    Thanks for the giveaway, Simon & Schuster!

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  44. I listen to any and every type of music!

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  45. I don't have a favorite but lately I love music like Mumford and Sons, The Lumineers and The Civil Wars. Thanks!

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  46. Hmm maybe country... I love country and rock!

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    1. Thank you simon and schuster for the giveaway!!

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  47. I like most kinds of music...but listen to a lot of Industrial....Nine Inch Naila & Skinny Puppy, etc.

    Thank you Simon & Schuster for the amazing giveaway!
    elizabeth @ bookattict . com

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  48. I like a lot of different genres, but I'm mostly r&b kind of girl.

    Thank Simon & Schuster, you rock!

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  49. I"m really into classical pop! And just funky fun pop! Thanks!

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  50. I've rediscovered recently that I really enjoy punk, but not all punk, just specific bands :)

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  51. Classic Rock! Thanks S&S for the wonderful giveaway!!

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  52. I'm majorly into 90s Pop music! It reminds me of my childhood, most of which was spent in a car or on the schoolbus! :) I also love soundtracks though, for the variety. Thanks Simon and Schuster, you own my soul as per our usual agreement.

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  53. I don't listen to music, sadly. I do however, want to get my hands on this book - thank you so much, S&S!

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  54. I actually love all types of music. REally! I don't discriminate! :) Thank you to S&S for this awesome giveaway! Can't wait to read this one!

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  55. Thank you for the great giveaway! And I like hip hop music.
    erma2167@att.net

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  56. Thanks to Simon and Schuster for the giveaway! :)

    And I truly love all types of music. I used to listen to a lot more of it though. Now it really just depends on my mood

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  57. I'm not sure I have a favorite type of music. I really like most everything except country and rap :P Thanks for the awesome giveaway!!

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  58. I enjoy all types of music including country but, I don't like some rap or techno.

    Thank you S&S for hosting the giveaway:)

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  59. Thanks, Simon and Schuster! I like all types of music, right now I am into Lana Del Rey and The Avett Brothers. :)

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  60. I have very eclectic taste in music and really do listen to a bit of everything. Favorite bands of all time include The Indigo Girls, Live, Guns 'n Roses, Barenaked Ladies.... these days I'm loving Philip Phillips, The Lumineers, Fun., Mumford and Sons... You name it, I've probably listened to it!

    Thanks so much for featuring Amy -- I LOVE the Authors are Rockstars event!! -- and thanks to Amy for the great post and to Simon and Schuster for the giveaway!

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  61. I love all types of music, but I love a song with a good beat, whether that be hip-hop, rock, alt, punk, pop, etc.

    Thanks Simon & Schuster for the awesome giveaway! And thank you Amy Butler Greenfield for writing such an awesome book!

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  62. It really depends on my mood. I can listen to anything in the right circumstances and when I am having really particular moments I am an Opera lover!!!

    Thank you S & S for this prize donation!

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  63. Thank you Simon & Schuster for offering the prize for this giveaway
    As for favorite music, I have none. I enjoy most all types of music and it depends on the musician and song whether I add it to my lists or not.

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