<>

Albert Camus

Don't walk behind me; I may not lead. Don't walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me and be my friend.

Wednesday, April 11, 2018

Once they were humanity's exalted protectors... - Fractions of Existence by J Lenni Dorner

"I mean, really, how many of the old legends have come true? What are the odds that I’m the next Nostradamus or Baba Vanga? *insert creepy haunting sound* 
No? That didn’t make you hit the buy button? Fair enough. Here are some other reasons: " - author

Description:

Published: September 20th, 2017

Once they were humanity's exalted protectors— now they are being hunted.

Xavier will weigh all human life against Gwendolyn's ignorant happiness.
The good news is that her choice can blow his away.

Omnipotent beings find each other while playing an online game. Xavier has been searching for Gwendolyn, his true mate and the missing member of the Existence. Only if reunited can the group regain the rest of their memories and access all of their powers. Hidden in plain sight, disguised as humans, they help who they can, as best they can, when they can. 

The Eyes in the Shadows, a religious sect, has been trying to free humans from the “prison” of life on Earth for millenniums. The Existence has always been able to thwart them… until now. They've discovered a way to end the world that no one will see coming. 

Gwendolyn has her future all laid out. There is a plan. She knows what her parents want for her and how to get it. Then Xavier, a friend from a virtual game, makes her question everything. He's full of secrets, one being an understanding of her fear of the wind. 

She tries to suppress her intense attraction to the mysterious and frustrating Xavier. She's engaged, after all, and the thoughts she's having aren't proper. Gwendolyn is swept into a whirlwind of secrets, danger, and a forbidden attraction. She'll drive across the country in her beat-up old car, not knowing if he is genuinely interested or just being polite. (He refuses to kiss her!) Gwendolyn's journey is full of self-doubt, sacrifice, and dark visions that invade her sleep. Will she uncover the truth about herself?

The following TRIGGER WARNING may contain spoilers :
This urban fantasy is 99k long and contains some strong language, sexual situations, alcohol, a scene with medical marijuana, violence (including a memory of the murder of a sadist seconds before he commits rape), an arranged marriage, and college student debt. The majority of this book takes place in 2005. 

GUEST POST
Reasons to read this book

The Existence series starts off as a pre-dystopian. You should read it so you know how to survive. 

I’m probably kidding about this book series being your key to survival. That was, most likely, the joke of a speculative fiction author. I mean, really, how many of the old legends have come true? What are the odds that I’m the next Nostradamus or Baba Vanga? *insert creepy haunting sound* 
No? That didn’t make you hit the buy button? Fair enough. Here are some other reasons: 

There’s a forbidden romance. And there’s some non-romantic sex. 
There’s a rescue scene for action lovers. 
It’s an urban fantasy, but not like the most populary-written ones. ( HERE ) Fractions of Existence lacks mention of vampires, detectives, orphaned main characters, magic users, dragons, butt-kicking female loners (Jez isn’t really a loner), a butt-kicking normal human who plays with paranormals, or protagonists who hunt paranormals for vigilante justice. It IS an urban fantasy, just not that kind of urban fantasy. 
It’s a diverse book! There's a MC with an underrepresented body type (Wend), a MC of color (Heath), a half-Japanese character (Jun), a contemporary world arranged marriage (Wend and Tred), and it's by a Native American author. 
The main characters are in their early twenties, thus making it a New Adult book. (The sensual scenes, some language, and a few scenes with drugs and alcohol also put it in this category. The real kicker is Gwendolyn’s student loans.) 
There are historical scenes. 
If you’ve ever roleplayed in a MMORPG setting, especially the old text-based chat games, you’ll appreciate this story. 
Xavier is the main character in the beginning, but Gwendolyn is the main character at the end. #GirlPower 
Read Fractions of Existence for the characters, to see if you can figure out: WHAT-ARE-THEY?

About the author:
While embracing the ancient tribal traditions, J Lenni Dorner learned a legend originated by The Grandfathers. 

J is best known for the Existence series. Book One, "Fractions of Existence," is available on Amazon as of 2017. Also known for the writer's reference book, "Preparing to Write Settings that Feel Like Characters."

In May 2016, J became a member of the Operation Awesome Team, running the Debut Author Spotlight on Wednesdays. Blogging from A to Z #AtoZchallenge co-host as of 2017. 

The Creative Writing Institute holds writing contests which resulted in J Lenni Dorner's publication in "WRONG!: A themed anthology 2014" and in "LOST!: A themed anthology 2017" (available on Amazon).

J weaves fantasy with lore to unhinge your mind. 

This speculative fiction and reference author is happily married and living in Pennsylvania (USA) on the original lands of the Lenni-Lenape people. When not reading or writing, J enjoys video games, funny cat videos, finding drawings of dragons on Pinterest, and watching movies. 

Author's Giveaway
a Rafflecopter giveaway

4 comments:

J Lenni Dorner said...

Thank you for having me! And thanks for all the Twitter love. You rock.

CCAM said...

You're welcome
I liked your reasons :)

James Robert said...

Congrats on the tour and I appreciate the book description and the great giveaway as well. Love the tours, I get to find books and share with my sisters the ones I know they would enjoy reading and they both love to read. Thank you!

Dan Denman said...

I like the design of the book cover. I like the description of the story and the main characters.