The
Tiger’s Watch (Ashes of Gold #1)
by
Julia Ember
Publication
Date: August 22, 2017
Publisher: Harmony Ink Press
Sixteen-year-old
Tashi has spent their life training as a inhabitor, a soldier who spies and
kills using a bonded animal. When the capital falls after a brutal siege, Tashi
flees to a remote monastery to hide. But the invading army turns the monastery
into a hospital, and Tashi catches the eye of Xian, the regiment’s fearless
young commander.
Tashi
spies on Xian’s every move. In front of his men, Xian seems dangerous, even
sadistic, but Tashi discovers a more vulnerable side of the enemy commander—a
side that draws them to Xian.
When
their spying unveils that everything they’ve been taught is a lie, Tashi faces
an impossible choice: save their country or the boy they’re growing to love.
Though Tashi grapples with their decision, their volatile bonded tiger doesn’t
question her allegiances. Katala slaughters Xian’s soldiers, leading the enemy
to hunt her. But an inhabitor’s bond to their animal is for life—if Katala
dies, so will Tashi.
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Interview with Julia Ember
What inspired you to write The Tiger's Watch?
In the novel, the protagonist,
Tashi is bonded magically to a tiger who they use to fight and spy. I think one
of my cats would like to believe it’s all about him, and there is a kernel of
truth in that. One of my cats is an affectionate murderer and a lot of
Katala’s personality is based off him. Of all the big cats, I’m especially
fascinated by tigers. I love their independence and their strength. They are
also one of the few predators on Earth that will hunt and kill humans. InThe
Tiger’s Watch, Katala does naturally kill, of her own accord, humans that
are Tashi’s enemies. She’s incredibly fierce and brutal, but also loving, in a
way only a cat can be. I’ve always loved stories that featured a close
bond between a human and an animal, as well as shifter stories. This book is
somewhere in between. Tashi both has an incredible bond with Katala, but can
also occupy her body and thoughts.
The world of The
Tiger’s Watch is a second world fantasy, but there are some strong
analogues to Bhutan. I visited Bhutan in winter 2014. It is one of the most
magical and enchanting places I have ever travelled. The country’s borders were
totally sealed to foreigners until the late 1990s, so it has preserved an
incredibly strong cultural identity. Even now, the Bhutanese government only
allows foreigners in on a very limited basis. I was floored by its natural
beauty, as well as the incredible Dzongs and Buddhist monasteries built across
the country. The architecture is stunning. More than that, I found the social
system amazing. The state funds all children to go to school. No one lives on
the streets. Crime is so non-existent that our guide told us (with horror)
about a group of nefarious criminals who had tapped a tree in the forest
illegally. Compare that with Chicago, where I’m originally from, and Chicago
doesn’t look great in comparison. The world of The Tiger’s Watch is
not Bhutan, but Bhutan was a root of inspiration. After returning from the
trip, I did a lot of additional research.
Can you tell us a little bit about the next books in Ashes of
Gold series or what you have planned for the future?
The series is planned as a
trilogy of novellas. The second book is already written, and will be
(primarily) from Pharo’s perspective. I don’t want to say much more about it,
for fear of inadvertently giving spoilers for the first book. It’s planned
release will be in March 2018, approximately six months after The
Tiger’s Watch.
I also released a Little
Mermaid retelling with another publisher earlier this year, called The
Seafarer’s Kiss. It also has a sequel, which I am currently writing, that
will release sometime in 2018.
In terms of my works in
progress, there are many! My agent is currently shopping my first contemporary
story to publishers, as well as a YA Space Opera.
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in The Tiger's
Watch?
The main character is
Tashi Pema, a genderfluid trainee spy. Tashi grew up in a poor mountain village
before being selected by one of the training masters at the Inhabitor’s
academy. They have very little memory of what their life was like before
entering the academy. At the academy, they and other children were trained to
use magic and create a bond with animals. These bonds allow them to see what
the animal sees, as well as use the creatures to attack their enemies.
Personality wise, Tashi isn’t exactly suited to this role. They are shy,
reserved and sensitive. They enjoy learning and studying languages rather than
fighting. But despite this, they are bonded to a golden tiger, so the academy
expects them to fight.
Their bondmate, a golden tiger
named Katala, could not be more different. Katala is a wild animal. Although
she is bonded to Tashi, she lives in the wild, hunts and exists apart from
humans. She also relishes murder and bloodshed.
You know I think we all have a favorite author. Who is your
favorite author and why?
In all honesty, I don’t think I
could decide! I definitely have favourite books, but I read so much that my
list is constantly evolving. I also don’t have the best memory, so it’s easy
for recent favourites to climb to the top in my mind. Some books I’ve really
loved in the past few years are: Three Dark Crowns, The Scorpio Races,
And I Darken, The Abyss Surrounds Us, The Girl from Everywhere, Six of
Crows and Queens of Geek.
If you could time-travel would you travel to the future or the
past? Where would you like to go and why would you like to visit this
particular time period?
The past – as long as I could
take some antibiotics with me! I would love to visit Viking age Britain. The
Vikings are my favourite historical culture to study. They feature heavily
in The Seafarer’s Kiss.
Do you have any little fuzzy friends? Like a dog or a cat? Or
any pets?
I have three pets. I have a
horse, who I have had since I was twelve. He is a loveable, fluffy draft cross.
He’ll be 25 this summer, so he’s getting older I also have two
cats. One of them, I’ve mentioned already. Sirius is a huge Ragdoll X. He’s a
bit of a one person cat, and has a propensity for hunting. My other cat is a
tiny Bengal. You’d think that Luna would be the hunter, given her breed, but
she’s way too flaky for murder.
Thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to visit with
us today.
AUTHOR INFO:
Originally
from Chicago, Julia Ember now resides in Edinburgh, Scotland. She spends her
days working in the book trade and her nights writing teen fantasy novels. Her
hobbies include riding horses, starting far too many craft projects, PokemonGo
and looking after her city-based menagerie of pets with names from Harry
Potter. Luna Lovegood and Sirius Black the cats currently run her life.
Julia
is a polyamorous, bisexual writer. She regularly takes part in events for queer
teens, including those organised by the Scottish Booktrust and LGBT Youth
Scotland. A world traveler since childhood, she has now visited more than sixty
countries. Her travels inspire the fantasy worlds she creates, though she
populates them with magic and monsters.
Julia
began her writing career at the age of nine, when her short story about two
princesses and their horses won a contest in Touch magazine. In 2016, she
published her first novel, Unicorn Tracks, which also focused on two girls and
their equines, albeit those with horns. Her second novel, The Seafarer’s Kiss
will be released by Interlude Press in May 2017. The book was heavily
influenced by Julia’s postgraduate work in Medieval Literature at The
University of St. Andrews. It is now responsible for her total obsession with beluga
whales.
In
August 2017, her third novel and the start of her first series, Tiger's Watch,
will come out with Harmony Ink Press. In writing Tiger's Watch, Julia has taken
her love of cats to a new level.
Giveaway:
·
Two (2) winners will receive a signed paperback of
The Tiger's Watch by Julia Embers (INT)
1 comments:
LOVE the blurb (shifters ROCK!)
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