Shadows of Ghosts - Stefan Haucke VIRTUAL TOUR AND GIVEAWAY

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour. Prizes for the tour are as follows:

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Which mythological create are you most like?

That's hard to say, I've never identified myself with a mythological creature. Maybe Chiron the centaur who loved music and learning.

What are four things you can't live without?

Air, water, food and books. I have a severe addiction to reading. I love all sorts of stories, it doesn't matter the genre, as long as the story is well written. I also love reading history and books about science. Although, technically I could live without books I wouldn't want to.

What is your favorite television show?

My favorite TV how is Six Feet Under. Very well written. A great mixture of drama and humor. Some other TV shows I enjoy: Breaking Bad, Mad Men, The Walking Dead, Game of Thrones.

What is something you've lied about?

I very rarely lie. Generally if I lie it's to save someone's feelings. "Does this dress make me look fat?" "No, of course not."

If you could travel back in time, what historical events would you like to witness?

I would love to see Shakespeare's Hamlet the first time it was performed. It would be fascinating to see how the play was originally performed. Or almost any of Shakespeare's plays. Also,

I would love to witness Aeschylus's Oresteia trilogy when it was first performed in ancient Greece. I would also like to see Mark Twain giving one of his famous comedic performances. Another event I would like to witness is an abolitionist meeting in the United States shortly before the Civil War. I would especially like to hear Fredrick Douglass speak. He was known as a great orator. And it would be fascinating to witness one of the Lincoln Douglas debates.

Shadows of Ghosts carries readers to Enara, a kingdom at war with itself, where for centuries centaurs have been treated like animals because of their horse-like lower bodies; they've been forced to work as slaves in the southern agricultural provinces, and have been bought and sold like livestock. But a strong abolitionist faction has convinced many that centaurs' human torsos, heads, and intellectual abilities make them humans, who should be liberated from slavery and granted the same rights as any other person.

After four years of being forced to live in a remote village and having to keep his real identity a secret, Cal Lanshire, days away from his thirteenth birthday, is given the best birthday present he can imagine. He is told the war is almost over and he will soon be allowed to return home.

But then an old acquaintance unexpectedly arrives with news that changes everything. Cal's father, the king, has been assassinated.

Suddenly the outcome of the war and the very fate of the kingdom depend upon Cal being able to reach the capital where he will take his father's place.

With only his crafty best friend by his side and an escaped centaur slave to guide him, can Cal make it through an enchanted, hostile wilderness, past the assassins sent to kill him, and back to the capital before it's too late?

Enjoy an Excerpt:

Suddenly, Grintar shouted something, but Cal couldn’t understand the words. Grintar’s men spread out, and there was a tension that Cal could sense, like the way it felt seconds before a bolt of lightning was about to strike nearby. Grintar raised his sword over his head, held it there for several seconds, and then he swooped it down, slashing it through the air, and shouted, “Advance!”

Chaos exploded. Crossbow bolts and arrows whistled through the air, and men on both sides charged forward, yelling battle cries, and the ringing sounds of metal striking metal pierced the air as the opposing troops crashed into each other. Soon the agonized screams of the wounded and dying joined the other sounds.

The men who were guarding Cal moved him back, and they tightened their circle around him so that their shields were almost touching; Cal strained to see out through the thin slits in between the shields. All he saw was an occasional flash from the sun reflecting off metal, and at one point he saw a streak of red, which he was certain was blood pouring out of a wounded man.

It was difficult to estimate how long the battle lasted. The agonized screams and the ringing of metal striking metal seemed interminable, and it took all of Cal’s willpower not to clasp his hands over his ears, but the battle stopped so abruptly Cal had a sense that it hadn’t lasted more than three or four minutes. There came a brief span of absolute silence which, after the battle’s cacophony, seemed eerie, as if the dead had suddenly demanded the payment of silent respect.

About the Author

Stefan Haucke, driven by the desire to learn about other cultures and the need for adventure, has traveled to over twenty nations. He rode a camel near the pyramids in Egypt, swam with sea lions in the waters of the Galapagos Islands, climbed the Great Wall of China, hiked near the Acropolis in Athens, went dog sledding in northern Michigan, and photographed polar bears in Canada.

Along his many travels, Stefan has successfully worked as a deckhand, a shepherd, a dispatcher for an emergency services unit, an electric meter reader, and an office manger. He has also found the time to study the literature and history of ancient Greece, Russia, and the United States, and loves reading folktales, fairytales, and urban legends. He also enjoys astronomy, and on clear nights can be found gazing at the stars and planets with his telescope.

My website: http://www.stefanhaucke.com/
My GoodReads page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7567224.Stefan_Haucke
My Book can be purchased on:
Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Shadows-Ghosts-Stefan-Haucke/dp/0615902502
Kindle Edition http://www.amazon.com/Shadows-Ghosts-Stefan-Haucke-ebook/dp/B00H9XIJX6/
Barnes & Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/shadows-of-ghosts-stefan-haucke/1117690625
Indie Bound - Independent Bookstores http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780615902500
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