Devri Walls - The Irresponsible Reader

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Devri Walls is (as far as I know) the first author I featured on this blog from around here. She’s participated in two previous Q&A’s with me over the years (this and this), and is a great person to work with (and, as far as I know, all around good person). She was the first author I thought of talking to for this series and am so glad to kick things off with this chat from her. Be sure to click the link to her page and check out her books. (hopefully, after you read the rest of this).

Before we get into things, why don’t you give the reader a brief introduction to you and your work.
My name is Devri Walls and I write all things fantasy! I love writing large worlds that are easy to follow, character driven and well paced. If you’d like to connect you can find links to all my work and social media on devriwalls.com. And if you’re looking for help with where to start, my suggestion would be book one of the Venators series, Magic Unleashed.
(far be it from me to contradict our guest here, but you shouldn’t overlook The Wizard’s Heir, either)

Are you a native Idahoan? What is it about Idaho that keeps you here?
I am native, yes. I was born and raised in the middle of nowhere between Kuna and Melba (Editor’s Note: for those of you from out of the state, that’s the middle of nowhere now. It was even more so when she was raised there. And even more nowhere-y when I grew up near there), graduated from Kuna High and swore I would never live here. HA! The irony. I have actually grown to love this state as I’ve aged and while I’m not sure if I’ll retire here, it’s a beautiful area with a lovely atmosphere. The more I travel to do signings the more I appreciate this state I call home.

Are you tied into some sort of local author/bookish group/culture? If so, tell us about it and how it helps you as an author. If you’re not, is there a reason for it?
I always dread this question. I am not tied to the local author groups or culture. Why not? Well…I am a put my head down and do the work kinda gal. I don’t actually enjoy sitting around talking about it. That being said, I do have many author friends that are scattered across the U.S and are very near and dear to me. Friends I can absolutely call during those dreaded author breakdown moments that plague us all. Being an author is a bizarre “island life” and it’s so important to make sure you find “your people” in this world.

That’s a lot of dread in one answer 🙂 Have you tried and found that local groups aren’t for you, or did you just not have a need to seek one out?
I’ve never felt the need to participate in writer’s groups, but for those of you who are looking for the comradely of a writers group I would offer a couple pieces of advice.

Writers groups are the most beneficial when it motivates you to get that next chapter done. It’s like a gym partner except with a bunch of people who think sitting around and talking about people and places that don’t exist is super cool.

While it’s imperative that you learn to listen to critique, pulling in seven different “opinions” on your rough draft is not the greatest environment to learn how to do that. While I realize that this may not be feasible for everyone I highly, highly recommend that you look into hiring either a professional writing coach or editor. One experienced editor and/or coach on your side will do more for your writing than two years of a creative writing program.

What kind of events in the area do you attend—either to sell/promote your books or to network with authors? Are there any outside of this area that you hit regularly and wish we had something like it here?
I haven’t found events locally that I have that “I can’t miss this” feeling around. If I’m going to spend the money and take the time to attend events, I want it to deliver on what it promises. If it’s to sell or promote myself I need it to have enough attendance to do so. If it’s educational I need true industry professionals teaching. For me, Comic Cons have been great for reaching large masses of people. For education I’ve been most impressed with LTUE in Utah. They have such an incredible range of classes and teachers.

That makes a lot of sense, and points to something I wondered about—do local events bring in the sales? Have you spent much time thinking about that and ways that could be improved, or with your wider audience-base, is that something you haven’t found a need to do?
This is such a hard question. There are several problems at work here. One is just local culture, some places are literally “cheaper” than others. This area can be a little cheap. I teach voice lessons as well and my prices would be considered obscenely low in other areas but it’s what this area will support. A woman did try to start a conference here (for several years) and couldn’t get people to pay for the tickets! She had to give most of them away.

The conferences that do really well have at least one “big name” they’ve pulled in to justify the ticket price and to encourage people to travel into the area to attend. That of course becomes the “what comes first” scenario because you need the money to pay for the bigger name but you need the bigger name to get the money.
I hear you—most people here would consider that “cheapness” a feature of this Valley, not a bug. I can only imagine how difficult it would be to build something like that.

What’s the breakdown of your audience—do you have a strong local base, or are your readers from other parts of the world?
I would say my audience is spread out due to the number of events and signings I’ve done around the country. That being said, my books have had a really good run in local libraries and have had such beautiful support from Rediscovered Books in Boise that I do think it’s created a localized pocket of fans.

Do you bring Idaho (or some sort of Idaho-sensibility, assuming one exists) to your work? Whether or not anyone else sees it, can you look at some aspect of your writing and think “That’s Idaho” or “I would do ____ differently if I was a Kentuckian or from Illinois?”
I think the author’s heart and soul comes through in whatever they’re writing so my upbringing certainly colors everything—whether I intend to or not. Now, do I think someone will read my fantasy and think, that girl’s from Idaho! Probably not. That being said, you can very much see repeating landscapes in my work that is very much Boise and its surrounding forest.

One final question, is there a book (or two…or 18, if you get really carried away), that embodies Idaho/the Idaho spirit to you to recommend to my readers?
My problem is when I read fiction I want to ESCAPE. And reading anything that is “local” to me does not feel like an escape. It feels like life. Which I have quite a lot of, thank you very much. That being said, I have read one book that is set locally. The How and The Why by Cynthia Hand. It’s told between the two storylines of a mother giving her daughter up for adoption and that same daughter growing up and asking questions about her adoption. It’s a great book and a perfectly accurate representation of the Boise area.

Thanks for your time and participation (and patience)! Hope you enjoyed it!

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Venators: Legends Rise (Audiobook) by Devri Walls, Daniel Thomas May: The Venators Have Their Hands Full in this Packed Adventure

By HCNewton

On October 17, 2020

In Audiobook, Fantasy, Fiction, Venators, YA/MG/Children's Books

For the last part of my Tour Stop, I’ll be talking about the Audiobook version of Venators: Legends Rise, as I have with the first two books in the series this year as part of The Write Reads Tours for them. And, as before, I largely copied what I said about the paperback-but tweaked things a little bit and added something about the narration (just in case you read the earlier post and think I’m repeating myself, you’re right, I absolutely am.)

Venators: Legends Rise

by Devri Walls, Daniel Thomas May (Narrator)
Series: Venators, #3

Unabridged Audiobook, 18 hrs. 9 min.
Tantor Audio, 2020

Read: October 6-9, 2020
Grab a copy from your local indie bookstore!

“How long ago were we here?” she asked.

“I don’t know. Two weeks? Three? I’ve lost track of the days.”

She sat with that for a moment, trying to reconcile the timeline. “Why does it seem like forever ago?”

“Because it was.” Grey rested his forearm across the saddle horn, face pensive. “We’ve lived a lifetime since then.”

I’m glad to see that I’m not the only one who couldn’t believe how little time went by in the first two books.

What’s Legends Rise About?

At the end of Promises Forged, Tate is taken by the Fae and is sent back to the Gladiator games that he’d escaped from not that long ago. He’s doing this so he can get his wife and son to safety (and maybe see them for the first time in years, too).

But our heroes, Grey and Rune, need to get him free from that—preferably without letting the Council know he’s been taken. So while they’ve been assigned to go rein in the remnants of the Werewolf pack they let get away in Magic Unleashed, and maybe bring another pack to order, they’ll use that assignment as cover for their real concern.

A neat trick if they can pull it off.

Along the way they get to train, they get to experience more of their new world and abilities than they’ve been able to thus far in their crash-course introduction to the ways and mores of Eon. The training, obviously, is really important if we’re to continue to believe their success in combat. A couple of lucky breaks like we’ve seen so far is one thing, but at a certain point, we need to see some competence out of them.

Venator Development

This book sees Rune and Grey getting to know each other better—Grey shares a lot with Rune and she responds as she ought. They both settle into roles as partners, their individual personalities helping them support the other in weak spots while working together.

Grey continues to be the character I’m most invested in and most interested in for this series—his strengths—compassion, empathy, concern—are seen even more clearly than before. He’s quite the contrast to the Venators of legend on Eon. Yes, it gets him into trouble. Yes, he has flaws and stumbles into being someone I really don’t like during the final battle of the book. But assuming he can keep himself from that in the future, and stay true to who he is, he’ll be the hero that Eon needs and will keep me reading the series.

Rune on the other hand…I change my mind about her repeatedly in each book. As a character, Walls keeps developing her along the lines we’ve seen so far—particularly in Promises Forged, building on those traits and showing herself, her trainers, Grey, and the Council what she’s capable of. I’m not crazy about some of her choices and actions—but I think most of them will be good for the series, and one of them will lead to melodrama and problems (and will be a source of delight for most readers).

I’m glad that I’m not all-in with either character—it makes them feel more real, more grounded that I like aspects of them, and am troubled by others. It also points to the tendency Walls showed in Promises Forged for the Venator powers to shape the thinking and attitudes of the individuals and how much these two need to strive against that. Give me a complex protagonist any day.

Some Skin in the Game

Zio makes a move here—a lot sooner than I expected her to, too. It’s not a big attack, it’s more of a surgical strike, just to sound out her opponents and test out her pet Venator. If more happens and she gains some big advantages while she’s at it, all the better.

She’s craftier than I gave her credit for and I think that this was a smart move by Walls—both for the progression of the story and for the development of Zio as a character. It’d be easy to write her off as a Skeletor-type, just a power-hungry magic-user trying to cause chaos and destruction for her own gain. And, yes, I still think she is that—but I think there’s more to her than that.

A Bonanza of Backstory

Two of the most important figures for our Venators are Beltran and Verida. We know there was some sort of romance in their past, and that it didn’t well at all. We get that filled in a little bit, which is good. But more than that we get looks into their pasts—what brought them to the point they were at when we first encountered them.

We see a lot of what motivates Verida in her desire to train these Venators, to aid the resistance. We get some insight into what drove the wedge between her and her father. We even meet some of her family and can see that she could very easily have been a different kind of person. I walked away from this book liking Verida a lot more than I did before.

We see more of Beltran’s story, too, and come a lot closer to understanding him—I think Walls is keeping a surprise or two about him up her sleeve, though. I’d like to think that someone with his centuries of experience would possess a little more maturity, and not be quite so emotionally adolescent—but maybe for his species you don’t hit that for a few more hundred years.

An Almost Entirely Frivolous Sartoirial Question

Does anyone on Eon wear loose clothing? Every time* someone’s pants are described, the words “tight” and “leather” appear. From just about everything I’ve ever read, leather pants are really uncomfortable. Maybe society would be better, people would be more prone to get along if Rune introduced them to denim? Could Grey get people to wear chinos and with the improved blood flow help cooler heads to prevail?

* No, I haven’t done a search on e-copies of this to verify this, there may be exceptions—roll with the hyperbole here.

At the very least, from this point can’t we just take it as read that every time Walls says “pants” that she means “tight” and “leather” and trim 1-2% of her word count?

Is this petty? Sure. But Walls spends enough time talking about clothing that questions arise. If I were so inclined (and someone would have to pay me to be), I think I could do an entire post on the clothing of Eon.

My Big, Not-Frivolous Question

What are people (the Council/Zio/Resistance) fighting for? Control of Eon? Power? Sure, that’s obvious. But Power for the sake of Power is dull and hard to care about as a reader. If you look at Panem, you can get an idea why people are fighting for it (on either side), ditto for The Society in Red Rising, Luna from The Lunar Chronicles—you get the idea.

What are the ideals of this society? What has the Council betrayed? Are they pretending to uphold something from the past that they’ve actually abandoned and that the resistance are trying to restore? (see the Rebel Alliance in Star Wars)—while at the same time, Zio has another idea entirely?

What’s the point of this Resistance movement? What are their goals? When are we going to finally meet them?

Where’s the joy in this world? Where’s The Good (or just good)?

We spend some time in a city and in a village here—they couldn’t be less similar, so we’re getting two separate looks at Eon society. The city puts Mos Eisley to shame, and the poor village is just…well, poor. Even before tragedy hits (thanks to the Venators, in a way) this village, I don’t see that there’s a lot going for it or its citizens.

I guess that I was just struck by the question, “why?” Why are these factions working so hard to gain control of this place? I don’t doubt for a moment that Walls has a handle on this question—she knows it. I just hope she clues her readers in soon.

How was the narration??

Daniel Thomas May really impressed me this time. He balances the action and emotion well, keeping the focus on the characters. Walls gave him a large cast of characters to work with in these pages and he handles it well. I feel like I should have more to say, but I really don’t. He does a good job and kept me entertained.

So, what did I think about Legends Rise?

This was by far the most ambitious of the Venators novels (I know it’s only book 3, but I read two versions of book 1, so I’m counting this as the fourth), and I applaud Walls for taking a big swing here. I wonder if she maybe tried to do too much, though. I’ve tossed this idea around a lot over the last few weeks and I’m undecided. I’m hoping that listening to the audiobook for the upcoming Book Tour will help me decide.

We got some good backstory on pivotal characters, we see a lot more of the world and have a better understanding of parts of it, the Earthlings get a chance to acclimate a bit more to Eon and spend some time with citizens. And, yeah, there are some pretty great action sequences. There’s even some romance for those who want that sort of thing—and I’m certain almost every reader of this series will be very pleased by it (I actually don’t mind a romantic subplot, I just can’t stand this one and think it’s a bad move for everyone involved).

Regardless of what the stars may suggest—I enjoyed this book and recommend it. Furthermore, I like this series, I’m really curious about what’s going to happen next and I think anyone who reads them will, too.

3.5 Stars

My thanks to The Write Reads for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided.

EXCERPT from Venators: Legends Rise by Devri Walls

By HCNewton

On October 17, 2020

In Fantasy, Fiction, Quotations, Venators, YA/MG/Children's Books

For the next part of my stop on The Write Reads Blog Tour for Venators: Legends Rise by Devri Walls, I have this nifty excerpt provided by the author. Enjoy!

from Venators: Legends Rise by Devri Walls (available from Brown Books Publishing Group)

After such a long day and a full meal, Rune and Grey were both yawning. Beltran was feeling the exhaustion himself, but he needed Rune to be at least partially awake for the conversation he had planned for tonight. He got to his feet and brushed off his pants.

Verida eyed him from across the fire. “Where are you going?”

“I tried to explain before we left but was rudely interrupted.” He crossed to the packs and started pulling out shimmering pieces of fabric, grinning at Verida’s silent glower. “I have gifts from Arwin.”

Grey leaned back on the palms of his hands, craning his neck. “What is that?”

“Your tents.” Beltran strolled behind Grey, separating one from the rest and dropping it in his lap.

“This is my tent?” The fabric whispered through his hand, sliding away like liquid silk and pooling in his lap. Grey’s face fell. “We’re going to freeze.”

“On the contrary.” Beltran handed one each to Verida and Rune. “Tonight you will be warm, comfortable, and most importantly, unnoticeable to anything passing through the area.”

Given his ability to shift, Beltran didn’t actually need a tent—he could sleep just about anywhere in a well insulated form. But he was endlessly fascinated with Arwin’s abilities and wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity to experience the wonder of magic by volunteering to turn himself into a bear.

Besides, with Rune so nearby, he was particularly attached to this human form, and would rather not be covered in fur in the middle of the night. Although, considering the cold shoulder she’d given him since the incident, an unexpected tent visit from Rune was probably a touch optimistic.

“How are we supposed to use this?” Grey asked. “Are there stakes or ropes or—”

“Grey.” Beltran tsked. “We’re dealing with a wizard. Arwin would be offended. Observe.” He flipped the fabric outward, the way Arwin had shown him. It snapped in the air. He gave it a sharp yank, pulled it over his head, and released. The fabric fluttered down around him and caught, puckering as if suspended by something, and then draping to the ground.

At first Beltran could only see the brightness of the fabric, but then a translucent circle appeared at the center point above his head. The effect grew larger, flowing down like rain water until it appeared that he was surrounded by nothing at all. The only tell-tale sign of the tent’s presence was the occasional shimmer that rippled across the inside.

Beltran saw everything, but to an outsider, he’d just become invisible.

Verida looked at the fabric in her hand like it was a viper, and Beltran stifled a laugh. She hated magic. The lack of control, understanding, and predictability ate her alive.

“Go ahead,” he called. “Try it.”

Rune’s nose crinkled. “Not very soundproof, is it?”

“Intentional. I asked Arwin to leave it that way.”

“Why would you have done that?” Verida took out her nervousness on the first thing she found, gesturing wildly. The delicate fabric clenched in her hand, flipped, and rolled. “What if Grey snores?”

Grey’s head snapped up, his brow furrowed. “But…I don’t.”

Well, Verida darling, that way, when you try to kill me in the middle of night, Rune and Grey will hear my screams and come running to my aid.” He poked his head between the flaps and would’ve winked—he wanted to—but the look on Verida’s face said she’d probably remove the offending eyeball.

“I’ll speak to Arwin about the glaring flaw in his design when we return.”

“I’ll let him know to expect you.”

“Hey,” Rune said. “Why didn’t we use something like this instead of nixie bubbles?”

Verida whirled, shouting, and shaking the tent in the air. “Because I didn’t know Arwin could do this, and we weren’t walking around the council house openly asking for help to disobey the council!”

“All right, all right,” she held up a hand. “Sorry I asked.”

Don’t worry Rune, it’s not you,” Beltran said, stepping out from the tent. “Verida hates magic.”

“Stop. Talking!”

He shoved his hands in his pockets, and shrugged at Rune as if to say…see?

“I don’t think I’m understanding,” Grey interjected. “Did you really choose not to soundproof this because you were afraid she’d murder you in your sleep?”

“Would you blame me?” Beltran mimicked Verida’s earlier flailing and grinned. “But no. Arwin said I could have invisibility or sound protection. I chose what I thought would be the most beneficial.”

“It would’ve been nice to know you brought tents before I packed the regular ones,” Verida snapped. “We could’ve done without the additional weight.”

“We’ll need both. Arwin gave me a very long speech loaded with copious amounts of wizardly terms that I wasn’t completely familiar with, but basically meant that fabric doesn’t hold magic as well as earth. He infused a stone—and proceeded to instruct me no less than fourteen times not to lose it—and then connected the rock to the fabric via another spell. It was very convoluted but amounted to the simple fact that the fabric can only hold so many hours of magic before needing to be placed back in the pack with the stone. These should last until morning, but once the tents are depleted, they’ll need to rest for at least a full day before they can be used again.”

He smiled at Verida, who asked, “then why are we using them tonight?”

“I thought it best to test out their capabilities.”

“I see.” She pulled in a tight breath through her nose. “And hope we don’t need them tomorrow? Excellent.”

“A better option than pulling them out when we desperately need them and discovering they don’t work.”

“Hold up,” Rune interrupted. “Let me get this straight. Our tents have to… charge?”

Beltran looked at her blankly. “I have no idea what that means.”

Rune rolled her lips in.

Grey burst into laughter, holding up the tent like he’d found the prize of an era. “Rune! Look! It’s the new upgraded iTent! The Bluetooth connection is non-existent but it’s new, improved, and doubles as a shelter.”

“But,” she snickered. “How’s the screen size?”

The two Venators continued, laughing hysterically, and dropping one joke after the next.

“I have absolutely no idea what they’re talking about,” he said dryly, glancing to Verida. “And I’m really starting to dislike how often that’s happening.”

“Agreed.”

At least they agreed on something.

Read the rest in Venators: Legends Rise by Devri Walls.

Thanks to Devri Walls for this excerpt! Also, thanks to The Write Reads for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided.

BOOK SPOTLIGHT: Venators: Legends Rise by Devri Walls

By HCNewton

On October 17, 2020

In Book Tour, Fantasy, Fiction, Venators, YA/MG/Children's Books

I’m very pleased today to welcome The Write Reads Blog Tour for Venators: Legends Rise by Devri Walls. How excited about this am I? I’m posting this on a Saturday, and I never do this kind of thing on a Saturday. This Tour Stop consists in this little spotlight post, an excerpt from this novel coming up soon, and then my take on the audiobook coming along in a bit. Let’s start by learning a little about this novel, okay?

Book Details:

Book Title: Venators: Legends Rise by Devri Walls
Publisher: Brown Books Publishing Group
Release date: July 14, 2020
Format: Ebook/Paperback/Audiobook
Length: 448 pages

Book Blurb:

The path will be forged in sweat and blood.

Rune, Grey, the shape-shifter Beltran, and willful vampire, Verida, set out to rescue their friend and mentor, Tate, from the gladiator games. But first they must navigate the perils of Eon and its warring factions. Each of this band of four carries with them a secret that threatens to tear their group apart from within. Rune now bears the mark of the promise she made to save Grey’s life – a nixie bubble lodged in her arm that could call her away to do their bidding or spell her death.

Even as their loyalty to their cause and to one another faces its greatest test, Rune’s twin brother Ryker is forging an alliance with their mortal enemy, the powerful sorceress Zio, who has plans of her own for the Venators and Eon.

Hearts will be bared, secrets unveiled, and relationships made and destroyed in this stunning new installment of the Venators series.

About the Author:

Devri Walls is an international best selling author. She lives in Meridian, Idaho with her husband, two children and one adorable little mutt. Writing in all things fantasy, she would do just about anything for a working magic wand.

Mostly because she’s a walking disaster and a wand would be of enormous help…although she’d probably trip and break it. So, there’s that.

She graduated with a degree in theater and has studied vocal performance most of her life. She now teaches voice lessons when she’s not writing novels, cooking dinner, playing taxi, spending time with her amazingly supportive husband or trying to read.

Social Media:

Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Youtube ~ Instagram ~ Pinterest ~ Bookbub ~ Amazon ~ Goodreads

My thanks to The Write Reads for the invitation to participate in this tour and the materials they provided.

Venators: Legends Rise by Devri Walls: The Venators Have Their Hands Full in this Packed Adventure

By HCNewton

On September 15, 2020

In Fantasy, Fiction, Venators, YA/MG/Children's Books

The surest sign that the end of July and all of August got away from me is this: I haven’t posted about Venators: Legends Rise yet. I wanted to get my initial impressions of this out before now, closer to the e-book release date, but now with the Paperback release this week, this will have to work. I’ll be taking part in a book tour for this book in a month—and will have new thoughts, second impressions, and things to say about the audiobook then (as I have with the first two books this year). But here’s where I am at this point.