I am absolutely honored to be part of the blog tour for Maria V. Snyder’s newest book, Night Study (review coming soon!). I have been a fan of Miss Snyder’s work for as long as I can remember, starting with her first novel, Poison Study. I remember receiving a copy from my mom for Christmas and diving right in to the world of Yelena and Valek. I am not often a fan of fantasy, as many people know, but I make a HUGE exception for Miss Snyder!

I was lucky enough to meet her in Edinburgh last year, and it was definitely a treat! So, this is an incredible thing to get to blog about her again!

Night Study is a continuation of the Study series and The Chronicles of Ixia. We continue to follow the adventures of Yelena, once poison tester for the Commander of Ixia, a land where magic is forbidden. It is preceded by Poison Study, Magic Study, Fire Study, and Shadow Study, as well as a handful of other books about the characters of Ixia and Sitia, the country to the south where magicians flourish.

I don’t normally gush, but I’m gushing now! This is a series I fell into and I kept falling! Yelena is everything I want in a heroine, and Valek, well, he’s totally swoonworthy! So, it is with pride, I share this blog piece by Maria V. Snyder!

Ten reasons why girls can enjoying reading fantasy just as much as boys

The fantasy genre encompasses such a wide range of sub-genres and styles, that it can appeal to every reader at every age.  Below are my top ten reasons to read fantasy:

1. Escape from reality – every day life can be a drag and fantasy can be a grand escape.
2. Magic – this adds more conflict and tension to a story and the variety of solutions can be quite clever.
3. Horses and other magical creatures – who doesn’t love dragons?
4. Magical worlds – experience a world that is unlike ours.
5. Your own problems pale in comparison – think about it – dealing with a problematic co-worker is nothing compared to fighting demons/evil wizards/corrupt monarchs for the fate of the world and your very own survival.
6. Cool weapons – people just don’t have sword fights anymore.
7. No internet – imagine being able to disappear without a trace. (this doesn’t apply to urban fantasy or any fantasy in a contemporary setting)
8. Supernatural creatures – vampires, werewolves, and Fae, oh my!

And here are a few reasons for the girls:

1. Strong female protagonists – fantasy has changed over the last couple of decades and now has many strong and intelligent women in the leading role.

Hot guys – Valek, Ari, Janco, Devlen, Kade, and Kerrick (If you don’t know who they are, then might I strongly suggest you read my Study books, Glass books, and Healer series ;).

You can get the Study series on Amazon, and Night Study is now available!

(Isn’t this a gorgeous cover!? Gotta love purple 😉 )

Happy Reading, my lovelies!