**Guest Post & Giveaway** Laura Howard

Laura has created such a unique story with a strong and independent main

character!! Read below to find out a little more on how her Fae came together.

Guest Post

 When you think of fairy tales, do you imagine towering castles and lovely princesses- or perhaps adorable pixies with bluebell caps hiding behind azalea bushes?

As a girl, those are all the things I dreamed of. I spent hours reading stories of handsome knights and mysterious mermaids, picturing myself in the role of heroine.

It wasn't until after my 30th birthday that I discovered the darker side of fairy tales- Faerie Tales. My first taste came in the form of Melissa Marr's Wicked Lovely. In this story, I met equally beautiful and terrible creatures that were nothing like the fairies I'd grown up with. I was hooked! I went on to read Holly Black's Tithe and once again was transfixed by the idea that pixies and elves would be more likely to trick you into dancing til your feet were stubs than to grant you your hearts desire.

Now, I've read dozens of spins on the darker side of Faerie.  One in particular that inspired me in my own writing is the Sevenwaters series by Juliet Marillier. This series combines a retelling of the Seven Swans fairy tale with another twist on fairies. In her work, the creatures known as the Good People or the Fair Folk are actually the descendants of the Celtic gods of pre-Christian Ireland. The Tuatha de Danaan, or children of the goddess Dana, were forced underground once the humans took to Christianity.

The fun part of this magical race is that they see themselves as highly superior and when the mood strikes they will go to great lengths to cause trouble for humans.

Whether you like stories with sweet flower fairies or you prefer the dark and disturbing side of the Fae, it's easy to see why fairy tales remain so popular, even amongst thirty something's: they offer us a chance to leave the ordinary behind and play pretend while we're lost in their pages.

Laura Howard lives in New Hampshire with her husband and four children. Her obsession with books began at the age of 6 when she got her first library card. Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High and other girly novels were routinely devoured in single sittings. Books took a backseat to diapers when she had her first child. It wasn’t until the release of a little novel called Twilight, 8 years later, that she rediscovered her love of fiction. Soon after, her own characters began to make themselves known. The Forgotten Ones is her first published novel.

Find Laura

Goodreads||Twitter||Facebook||Website 

Giveaway

Laura has kindly donated a couple of e-copies for a giveaway!!  I really

hope that you guys give this one a go because I loved Laura's writing

and the story was such a quick read <3

a Rafflecopter giveaway