Please visit the tour page to see the other awesome people that are participating on the tour as well as a great opportunity to see some different viewpoints on this really cool book: http://zooloosbookdiary.co.uk/
Let’s all get on the “same page” and get a taste of what we are in for with a professionally written BOOK BLURB:
The town of Unity sits perched on the edge of a yawning ravine where, long ago, a charisma of angels provided spiritual succour to a fledgeling human race. Then mankind was granted the gift of free will and had to find its own way, albeit with the guidance of the angels. The people’s first conscious act was to make an exodus from Unity. They built a rope bridge across the ravine and founded the town of Topeth. For a time, the union between the people of Topeth and the angels of Unity was one of mutual benefit. After that early spring advance, there had been a torrid decline in which mankind’s development resembled a crumpled, fading autumnal leaf.
Following the promptings of an inner voice, Tula, a young woman from the city, trudges into Topeth. Her quest is to abide with the angels and thereby discover the right and proper exercise of free will. To do that, she has to cross the bridge – and overcome her vertigo. Topeth is in upheaval; the townsfolk blame the death of a child on dust from the nearby copper mines. The priests have convinced them that a horde of devils have thrown the angels out of Unity and now occupy the bridge, possessing anyone who trespasses on it. Then there’s the heinous Temple of Moloch!
The Abdication is the story of Tula’s endeavour to step upon the path of a destiny far greater than she could ever have imagined.
Links:
- Amazon US
- Amazon UK
- Goodreads
- Author’s Website
- Author’s Goodreads
- Author on Facebook
- Publisher on Twitter: @matdorbooks
The review ⭐⭐⭐⭐
First, I would like to sincerely apologize for a late post to the tour. Zoe has been nothing but amazing in the process and I’m disappointed in myself for letting her down. I also want to apologize to the author for bringing in an air of uncertainty to the tour, and lastly to my tour cohorts, being timely is of the utmost importance when agreeing to join a tour and I will not give any excuses, but can only learn from this experience.
The Abdication, as I posted earlier is a book that stands outside what I would normally call my comfort zone and with all the madness that the world has been throwing at me lately, I took a risk in taking on a project that will take precedence over the million and one books I’m dying to read as well as books that have clocks ticking away, getting closer and closer to some kind of deadline or another. I say this only to put into perspective that I read my comfortable SciFi and Fantasy variations and to join a book tour for a book that seems to be more of that historical fantasy style was an unknown. However, my gut again does Not let me down. I loved The Abdication immensely.
The story started with Tula, who has been on somewhat of a journey, with what seem like spiritual overtones, to reach the city that stands at the top of the world. The city she seeks to find sits at the top of a rocky, desert type of mountain. Isolated by the height and difficulty in getting there is a city that has been there for ages and is supposed to be inhabited by angels.
Tula was immediately a character I felt comfortable with, as well as interested in. A really important part of why I loved the book so much was the way the author easily carries the story forward, introducing new people, events remembered, a reason for doing something, a donkey that seems to already know Tula…(sorry, my tangent and run on sentence habit was coming on strong there) these are all examples of how the author steadily, and with ease, keeps the flow of the story moving and interesting. Of course, the best part is how he has done it while adding more mystery and uncertainty, like following a trail of cookies, or sour gummy worms into the forest. Whether I am following my gummy worms to find my way back to the trail, home, or because they are leading me to a witches cottage who hopes to stuff me full of candy and sweets, just to try on her new line of oversize witch-made jumpsuits, is for you to decide. Only if you want to of course.
It was a natural and engaging read, once I picked up on the slowly revealing mysteries and answers to questions the writer had earlier provoked by the descriptive writing. Ease, that’s a feeling that came to me many ties while reading and flying through the pages.
So, again, I am reminded that my “comfort zone” is just a made up thing to help me pinpoint what I want to read and to feel like I am a part of this group or community. Being open to all genres is so important, and admitting that I have probably missed out on a ton of great books because I was unknowingly discriminating against this or that, because of ……well, this or that.
Lessons learned, mistakes made, mysteries revealed and introduced. In a short time I see that the book had a big impact on me and on the memorable scale, will be a lasting one.
I haven’t’ even discussed the high points of the story and the eerie bridge that is a big part of the story, separating the city, Topeth, where the earthly humans reside, from the seemingly vacant city that once was home to the angels and humans, but now, is thought to be inhabited by demons, or devils. To cross the bridge is a big no-no and even halfway through, Tula is planning her final stage for this long and lonely journey she’s been on for a very long time, only to hit the “wall” in the city of Topeth and the unexpected events and her growing attachments to some of the people she meets here. By the way, every character has an interesting place in this world, and was another thing that created a strong attachment to the book for me.
The end result was way more than I expected, but I was too caught up in a great storytellers vision to even think about expectations or what I thought about this or that. It was a great introduction to an author I feel lucky I was given this chance to read, and would call myself a fan and will add his additional creative works, we call books, to my hopeful future TBR.
Justin Newland is an author of historical fantasy and secret history thrillers – that’s history with a
supernatural twist. His stories feature known events and real people
from history which are re-told and examined through the lens of the supernatural. He
gives author talks and is a regular contributor to BBC Radio Bristol’s Thought for the
Day. He lives with his partner in plain sight of the Mendip Hills in Somerset, England.
The Stone Cloud 
Thank you so much for this fantastic review Ollie!! Loved it!
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