Book Review - The Children of Darkness

The Children of Darkness (The Seekers, Book One)

By: David Litwack
Publisher: Evolved Publishing
Publication Date: June 2015
ISBN: 978-1-62253-434-0
Reviewed by: Amy Lignor
Review Date: July 31, 2015

As all readers know, the “dystopian” era of literature has become a booming business. From top sellers that have reached the screen quite quickly (aka: The Maze Runner), these tales have taken over the minds and hearts of everyone from YA lovers to adults who literally crave a new kind of suspense/thriller. So it is always a pleasure to review a brand new series that delves into the dystopian world and delivers an A+ storyline.

This, Book One of “The Seekers” series, introduces Orah and Nathaniel to the world; two pals who have been friends since childhood and share many traits that include awesome skill sets, as well as a penchant to want to overthrow the limitations put upon them by the powers that be. Yet, for now, they keep silent and go with the flow.

You see, it’s been a thousand years since the “Darkness” came upon everyone. This was the time that ushered in social upheaval and the collapse of the norm. Pain, violence, all bad things came along with the Darkness, and for ten centuries, religious ones (the vicars) who make up the Temple of Light have been doing their best to stop the craziness and try to bring some kind of order and peace to the people. Of course, the Temple isn’t all it’s cracked up to be; after all, they have to set rules and deliver punishment for those who do not follow said rules by using their ‘temple magic.’

Orah is beckoned to the Temple to endure what one would see as a ritual in a child’s life where they leave childhood far behind and hook themselves to the Light for all time. Nathaniel, being her pal and agreeing that the Temple is not as ‘light’ as it should be, tries to rescue Orah so she doesn’t have to become one of them for the rest of time. Adventure springs eternal when they both find themselves wandering Temple City and discovering secrets that are supposed to stay buried. Because if these secrets are known and a mysterious location is found, then Orah, Nathaniel and the rest of the people may be able to find a path that will allow them to rise up against the ‘Light’ machine, so to speak, and get their lives back.

The author has done an excellent job bringing this world to life. From the dark prisons to the awesome magic and awe-inspiring belief that Orah and Nathaniel have in each other – the plot unfolds easily, swiftly, and never lets the readers’ attention wane.

Quill says: After reading this one, it will be a real hardship to have to wait to see what happens next.

For further information on The Children of Darkness (The Seekers, Book One), please visit the author's website at: davidlitwack.com

Interview with Author David Litwack

Today we're talking with David Litwack, author of The Daughter of the Sea and the Sky

FQ: The ocean, of course, is important and used often in the story, is the ocean one of your favorite places to be and did that provide some inspiration for this story?

LITWACK: I live on Cape Cod, which is surrounded by ocean. Many an inspiration has come while walking by the sea. One of my favorite places to walk is along Falmouth Heights beach, with a constant view of Martha’s Vineyard, frequently shrouded in fog. There’s a mystery about the far side of an ocean, one that emphasizes the divide between people.

FQ: What was the time period of this book? Were you picturing the present time, sometime in the future, or this more a period of the past?

LITWACK: I made the setting an alternate world, albeit similar to our own. I wanted the freedom to have a complete separation between religious and secular societies, one that’s not credible in our own interconnected world. The advent of the Internet has produced two contrasting effects—the positive one of minimizing differences between people and the negative of allowing extremists on all sides to organize more effectively. How would the early stages of such advances in communication impact a polarized world? As a model, I used the mid 1970’s ARPANET, the predecessor to the Internet that was limited to the government and universities. In The Daughter, the new technology is embraced by the zealot, Benjamin, despite his disdain for secular science, but it also opens the door for the two worlds to come together.

Author David Litwack

FQ: Kailani is quite an intriguing character, what provided the inspiration for this character?

LITWACK: I had the concept of a girl from the Blessed Lands crashing her boat on the cliffs, but no model for the girl. During the planning phase for the book, I went to a wedding at a venue by the sea. A young girl, about nine-years-old, came walking down the aisle (to this day, I don’t know who she was). She was dressed all in white, carrying a bouquet of flowers, and had golden hair and striking blue eyes. As she drifted past a picture window, with the sun setting over the ocean, looking more serious than a nine-year-old should, I knew I’d found my model. Ideas are everywhere if you’re open to them.

FQ: What was the reason for her young age? Was there something in particular that made you choose not to make her older?

LITWACK: I needed a character old enough to have been inculcated in her culture, enough so she would build myths about what happened to her, but not so much as to rationalize it. I wanted the passion of a young child and innocence without cynicism.

FQ: The line between reason and faith can be tricky, how did you decide what to include in this story?

LITWACK: I believe the writer’s role is more to pose questions than provide answers. One of the great issues of our time is the clash between reason and faith. Extremists on both sides have become so polarized they fail to see that the most important questions remain unanswered. Through Kailani, those on both sides discover how much we share the human condition. Beliefs become less important than relationships, and the clash between reason and faith matters less than the power of hope and love.

FQ: Both faith and reason are shown in positive and negative ways, was that your intention when writing this story or did you intend to focus on one more than the other?

LITWACK: Our strident media would have us believe that everyone has a strong position on one side or the other. But most people are just trying to find their way in life. As the minister of commerce from the Blessed Lands says about the so-called soulless: “He’d met some. They were not as the senkyosei portrayed them in temple sermons—empty shells or demons. They were not so different from him. They loved their children and grieved for their dead.”

FQ: The questions continued to pile up as I read this story wondering about Kailani’s past giving this book a mysterious feel. Was a sense of mystery intended when you started writing this story?

LITWACK: One of the unusual things about this book is that the main character is never the point-of-view character. This was necessary to maintain Kailani’s mystery. If the reader was allowed inside her head, she’d either reveal her past too soon or have to lie in her thoughts, becoming an unreliable narrator.

Not to compare, but F. Scott Fitzgerald uses a similar technique in The Great Gatsby. The main character is Gatsby. The plot is to discover the secret of his mysterious past. He’s never the point-of-view character, and the reader only discovers his secret near the end.

FQ: Near the ending I was sure Jason and Helena would migrate to a new country, what was the reason for keeping them in their original country?

LITWACK: The Daughter is Kailani’s story, not theirs. The ending needs to be about her, not them. Furthermore, what they learn from her is that the fulfilment they were seeking comes not in some exotic new place but from within themselves.

To learn more about The Daughter of the Sea and the Sky please read the review at: Feathered Quill Book Reviews.

Book Review - The Daughter of the Sea and the Sky

The Daughter of the Sea and the Sky 

By: David Litwack
Illustrated By: Mallory Rock
Publisher: Evolved Publishing
Publication Date: May 2014
ISBN: 978-1-62253-431-9
Reviewed By: Kristi Benedict
Review Date: May 12, 2014

In author David Litwack's latest offering, The Daughter of the Sea and the Sky, the reader is challenged to question where the lines of reason, faith, and fantasy cross. Different people may have very different views on this and in Litwack's book; these different views are tested and in fact, cause a war. The war separates a once united area into two countries. One country, known as The Blessed Lands, believes in faith; the other country, called the Republic, throws faith aside for the lure of reason.

The story introduces Helena, a woman who grew up in the Republic. She had been taught her whole life that reason should always be the deciding factor and to forget all thoughts of faith. Her father wanted her to become a scientist who would find answers to all the problems of the world and be ten times greater than he was. She had promised him before he died that this would be her goal, but when a mysterious nine-year-old girl with golden hair and ocean blue eyes comes into her life everything Helena thought she knew is now being questioned.

When Jason went on his run across the beach he expected to see Helena and was hoping to rekindle the connection they once had, but nothing could have prepared him for what was about to happen. He found himself rescuing a young girl named Kailani from the ocean after the boat she was sailing crashed into the rocks. Suddenly his and Helena’s life is turned upside down as they try to find out exactly where this girl is from and why she insists on calling herself the daughter of the sea and sky. Both Jason and Helena know that trusting in blind faith as this girl believes can bring down harsh punishments in their country but feeling a sense of protection over Kailani they take it upon themselves to make sure she is safe.

Helena and Jason decide that the best solution is to take Kailani to a remote farm in the north where she can be away from the public eye and slowly adapt to life in the Republic. However, on this farm there are people who believe Kailani was sent there for some higher divine purpose and will stop at nothing to prove that this is true. It does not take long before Kailani’s presence at the farm grabs the attention of extremely high-ranking officials from both countries and has everyone wondering if this young innocent looking girl knows much more than she claims to.

The very beginning of this book hooked me quickly as the mystery of this unknown girl being saved from the ocean presented an intriguing mystery. However, this book became much more than a mystery as each person who meets Kailani starts to go on this journey of self-healing and discovery. It was unique to see a story that puts such a young character in a very important role. Each event that takes place relates to the decisions that lead to the next event and David Litwack does a great job of connecting these little details. However, when I made it to the end the conclusion to this mystery was not as intriguing as I thought it would be. Even though the ending was good in the sense that all of the characters are content, I was slightly disappointed as I was expecting something a little more exciting as the story builds all the way up until the last few chapters, but the ending fell somewhat short of my expectations. Regardless, overall it was a very fun and satisfying read.

Quill says: A uniquely written story with an equally intriguing main character. 

For more information on The Daughter of the Sea and the Sky, please visit the author's website at: www.davidlitwack.com

Interview with Author David Litwack

Today we're talking with David Litwack, author of Along the Watchtower

FQ: I’ve read many books about soldiers coming home from war, but found Along the Watchtower quite different and original. The use of a fantasy story to help with the healing process was very innovative. Would you tell our readers a little about how this idea came about?

LITWACK: I’ve always been fascinated by how subjectively people perceive reality, each of us bringing our own experiences and biases into play. But when we’re ripped from our normal lives and placed in extreme circumstances, our reality becomes totally fragmented. Such is the case with hospitals and war.
Then a couple of years ago, I become engrossed in the online fantasy game, World of Warcraft, playing with my son. I’m on the East Coast and he’s on the West, so we’d meet every Wednesday evening in the virtual world of Azeroth, where our avatars would go on quests together. I was struck by how quickly time passed and how immersed I became in the surreal mood of the game, wandering around in strange places, solving riddles and overcoming trials.

The fantasy gaming experience has a dream-like quality to it. And I began to wonder: how would this experience affect the dreams of someone whose reality has been fragmented by war, PTSD and traumatic brain injury? These concepts—war, hospitals, and the fantasy world of online gaming—came together in Along the Watchtower.

Author David Litwack

FQ: Your protagonist, Freddie Williams, is a big gamer. Do you share this passion with him?

LITWACK: As the father of two sons, I played a number of games with them when they were younger, starting with the granddaddy of quest games, The Legend of Zelda. As part of my research for Along the Watchtower, I played a lot of World of Warcraft, like Freddie Williams, playing as a human warrior and a Dranei priest. I enjoyed playing these games, but they take a lot of time and detract from my busy writing schedule. I unfortunately topped out at level 63. Maybe someday . . .

FQ: Freddie suffered from PTSD, and the symptoms he suffers read very true. I’m thinking, for example, when Freddie saw the soda can and froze because in Iraq they were sometimes used to hide IEDs. How much research did you have to do to make the text so realistic?

LITWACK: I did a lot of research. One of the best books I read was Achilles in Vietnam. Written by a PTSD therapist, it contrasts actual discussions from his sessions with Vietnam veterans with dialog from Homer’s Odyssey. In this way, he’s able to show the tragic effects of war on soldiers across the millennia. By the way the full title is: Achilles in Vietnam: Combat Trauma and the Undoing of Character.

I also researched brain trauma. In an Instant is the story of Bob Woodruff, the CBS news correspondent who had just been named anchor when he was injured in an IED attack while embedded with troops in Iraq. It gave me insight, not only into the struggles to recover from brain injuries, but also how strange is the working of the human brain. At one point, the brilliant Woodruff could rattle off all past American presidents, but couldn’t recall the names of his own children.
And I read and listened to many stories from veterans. Until Tuesday is the story of a young Lieutenant who had difficulty functioning after the war and was helped to recover when he got a service dog named Tuesday (As an aside, these dogs are incredible—they can sense when their master is having a nightmare and wake them up). The Blue Cascade is another heart wrenching story of an Iraq veteran who returned home bitter and disillusioned. He found a way to face what he’d experienced in the war by making a documentary film based on video he took during the initial invasion of Iraq.

FQ: As I mentioned in my review, I found the gradual merging of the two stories a real plus. Was this something you set out to do from the start, as you began to develop the story?

LITWACK: Yes, absolutely. One of the things I learned from my research is how difficult it is to return from a war and reintegrate into what we call normal life. For Freddie Williams, it’s especially hard, given his physical and emotional wounds as well as his tragic family background. I wanted to show his trials though his subconscious, since they were too painful to face in the real world. I decided early on that the best way to do this was to have Freddie, an inveterate gamer, invent a game-like fantasy world and confront his demons there.

FQ: In respect to the fantasy aspect of the story, are you a big fantasy reader? If so, what authors are your favorites? Do you have a favorite fantasy sub-genre that you enjoy?

LITWACK: I grew up on sci-fi and fantasy, reading Tolkien, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke. More recently, I’ve read Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series and discovered Neil Gaiman. But I also love literary fiction. I read all of Steinbeck and Hemingway by the time I was seventeen. In a way, Along the Watchtower is a blend of the fantasy of the former and the harsh realism of the latter.

FQ: I appreciated the mystery of the four trials that Prince Frederick had to solve. Was it a lot of fun to come up with such trials?

LITWACK: I’m not sure fun is the word. When I write, I identify closely with my characters. The fantasy world was a terrifying place for Prince Frederick just as the real world was for Freddie. It did, however, give me a lot of freedom to get creative in how each of Freddie’s real world trials were reflected in the fantasy realm.

FQ: Prince Frederick constantly wanted to use magic to help him out of his dilemmas, but he was repeatedly told, by various characters, that magic was not the way, that he needed to rely on himself. Is this a message for the real Freddie and his attempts to move forward, to heal?

LITWACK: Much as the VA doctor tells Freddie that escaping reality is not the way back in his recovery, Prince Frederick is told that the solution to the trial is within himself and not through some outside magic.

FQ: I found Prince Frederick’s search for the trials similar to Freddie’s search for his brother Richie. Was this deliberate?

LITWACK: Prince Frederick’s attempt to confront the trials in his world certainly reflect the emotions Freddie was experiencing. I did try to give the fantasy world a dreamlike feel. And just like in our dreams, we can find similarities with real events, but they’re not an exact match.

FQ: Your next project, The Daughter of the Sea and the Sky will be out soon. Would you tell our readers a little bit about the novel?

LITWACK: My third novel, The Daughter of the Sea and the Sky, is very different. It’s about an alternate world divided between the Blessed Lands, a place of the spirit, and the Republic, whose people worship at the altar of reason. A mysterious nine-year-old girl from the Blessed Lands sails into the lives of a troubled couple in the Republic and seems to heal everyone she meets. She reveals nothing about herself, other than to say she’s the daughter of the sea and the sky. But she harbors a secret wound she herself cannot heal.

It was recently accepted for publication by Evolved Publishing and is set to be released in May, 2014.

To learn more about Along the Watchtower, please read the review at: Feathered Quill Book Reviews.

Book Review - Along the Watchtower

Along the Watchtower

By: David Litwack
Publisher: Double Dragon Publishing
Publication Date: June 2013
ISBN: 978-1771150972
Reviewed by: Ellen Feld
Review Date: December 15, 2013

Along the Watchtower is a fascinating book that combines a story of the physical and emotional scars left by war and the wonders of a mystical fantasy world, all flawlessly wrapped into one page-turning book.

Lieutenant Frederick Williams, a passionate gamer who enjoys playing World of Warcraft with his fellow soldiers, is stationed in Iraq. While on patrol one hot day, his mind was distracted by the upcoming game scheduled for that night. Freddie was more concerned with how to get past the trolls in the game than what lay ahead of him, hidden in the ground. When the Humvee hit the IED, it destroyed the vehicle and almost killed Freddie. While the IED shattered his body, his dear friend, Specialist Pedey Sanchez, better known as the Archangel, took the brunt of the hit and died from the blast. Freddie survived, was sent to Ramstein Air Base and eventually home to New England where his physical wounds would slowly heal, but what about his emotional scars?

Because of Freddie's serious injuries, he was kept in a medically induced coma for most of his early recovery. The soldier's mind deals with the trauma by imagining a fantasy world, a world where Freddie is really Prince Frederick, the prince of Stormwind in the world of Azeroth. The kingdom has just lost their king, Frederick's father, and while Frederick is next in line to assume the throne, he must first face four 'trials.' Frederick has just thirty days, on his own, to discover, and solve the four trials. If he fails, then the evil Horde that waits outside the realm, will overrun the kingdom. For the thirty days, once at dawn and once at dusk, Frederick must climb up the watchtower and dream. What the dreams show, nobody knows for no prince has ever spoken about them, but how Prince Frederick responds will determine the fate of the kingdom. No other may enter the tower during the thirty days while the prince is tasked with solving the trials. Frederick is warned that magic will enter the tower, stairways will change, strange beings will appear, some to help, some to harm.

Meanwhile, back in the world of reality, Freddie begins his long journey of recovery. His leg has been saved, but it will take months of physical therapy before he can walk again. He is transferred to the VA Hospital in West Roxbury, MA, close to his childhood home on Cape Cod. The physical therapist assigned to the soldier is Becky Marshall, a woman who has brought many men back from the brink of despair. Becky is determined to get Freddie walking again, and works closely with him. As Freddie's body heals, it becomes clear that his emotional wounds are slower to resolve. Becky also realizes that her patient's wounds go all the way back to his childhood, when his family fell apart. Can Becky help Freddie resolve his issues, particularly since she's hiding secrets of her own?

Meanwhile, back in Stormwind, Prince Frederick is trying to solve the trials. Alas, the prince can't even figure out what the trials are, but he is starting to think that perhaps he isn't the right one to save the kingdom. When he wanders into the Royal Gardens one day, he meets a servant named Rebecca. At first Frederick suspects that the young woman is a demon sent to trick him in his trials, but he soon lets his guard down and the two form a friendship. Will Rebecca be able to help her prince solve the trials or might she lead him astray?

Along the Watchtower was an interesting mix of the real-life rehabilitation of a traumatized soldier with a fun fantasy story where the reader tries to solve the mystery along with Prince Frederick. Chapters are fairly short, with a full chapter devoted to one storyline, and then the next chapter switching to the other. The author easily and skillfully slipped between the two worlds so that there was no confusion or loss of flow. I was drawn into the story quickly and initially thought I preferred the fantasy world, but as the plot progressed, I was equally drawn into the real world drama. While the two stories seemed completely unrelated at the outset, as I read, I began to notice interesting similarities between the two. Without giving anything away, I'll simply say that both came to satisfying conclusions.

Quill says: Two stories for the price of one! Whether you prefer military stories or are more of a fantasy fan, pick up a copy of Along the Watchtower and be drawn into a quick reading book.

For more information on Along the Watchtower, please visit the author's website at: www.davidlitwack.com

Book Review - Along the Watchtower

Along the Watchtower

By: David Litwack
Publisher: Double Dragon Publishing
Publication Date: June 2013
ISBN: 978-1771150972
Reviewed by: Ellen Feld
Review Date: December 15, 2013

Along the Watchtower is a fascinating book that combines a story of the physical and emotional scars left by war and the wonders of a mystical fantasy world, all flawlessly wrapped into one page-turning book.

Lieutenant Frederick Williams, a passionate gamer who enjoys playing World of Warcraft with his fellow soldiers, is stationed in Iraq. While on patrol one hot day, his mind was distracted by the upcoming game scheduled for that night. Freddie was more concerned with how to get past the trolls in the game than what lay ahead of him, hidden in the ground. When the Humvee hit the IED, it destroyed the vehicle and almost killed Freddie. While the IED shattered his body, his dear friend, Specialist Pedey Sanchez, better known as the Archangel, took the brunt of the hit and died from the blast. Freddie survived, was sent to Ramstein Air Base and eventually home to New England where his physical wounds would slowly heal, but what about his emotional scars?

Because of Freddie's serious injuries, he was kept in a medically induced coma for most of his early recovery. The soldier's mind deals with the trauma by imagining a fantasy world, a world where Freddie is really Prince Frederick, the prince of Stormwind in the world of Azeroth. The kingdom has just lost their king, Frederick's father, and while Frederick is next in line to assume the throne, he must first face four 'trials.' Frederick has just thirty days, on his own, to discover, and solve the four trials. If he fails, then the evil Horde that waits outside the realm, will overrun the kingdom. For the thirty days, once at dawn and once at dusk, Frederick must climb up the watchtower and dream. What the dreams show, nobody knows for no prince has ever spoken about them, but how Prince Frederick responds will determine the fate of the kingdom. No other may enter the tower during the thirty days while the prince is tasked with solving the trials. Frederick is warned that magic will enter the tower, stairways will change, strange beings will appear, some to help, some to harm.

Meanwhile, back in the world of reality, Freddie begins his long journey of recovery. His leg has been saved, but it will take months of physical therapy before he can walk again. He is transferred to the VA Hospital in West Roxbury, MA, close to his childhood home on Cape Cod. The physical therapist assigned to the soldier is Becky Marshall, a woman who has brought many men back from the brink of despair. Becky is determined to get Freddie walking again, and works closely with him. As Freddie's body heals, it becomes clear that his emotional wounds are slower to resolve. Becky also realizes that her patient's wounds go all the way back to his childhood, when his family fell apart. Can Becky help Freddie resolve his issues, particularly since she's hiding secrets of her own?
Meanwhile, back in Stormwind, Prince Frederick is trying to solve the trials. Alas, the prince can't even figure out what the trials are, but he is starting to think that perhaps he isn't the right one to save the kingdom. When he wanders into the Royal Gardens one day, he meets a servant named Rebecca. At first Frederick suspects that the young woman is a demon sent to trick him in his trials, but he soon lets his guard down and the two form a friendship. Will Rebecca be able to help her prince solve the trials or might she lead him astray?

Along the Watchtower was an interesting mix of the real-life rehabilitation of a traumatized soldier with a fun fantasy story where the reader tries to solve the mystery along with Prince Frederick. Chapters are fairly short, with a full chapter devoted to one storyline, and then the next chapter switching to the other. The author easily and skillfully slipped between the two worlds so that there was no confusion or loss of flow. I was drawn into the story quickly and initially thought I preferred the fantasy world, but as the plot progressed, I was equally drawn into the real world drama. While the two stories seemed completely unrelated at the outset, as I read, I began to notice interesting similarities between the two. Without giving anything away, I'll simply say that both came to satisfying conclusions.

Quill says: Two stories for the price of one! Whether you prefer military stories or are more of a fantasy fan, pick up a copy of Along the Watchtower and be drawn into a quick reading book.

For more information on Along the Watchtower, please visit the author's website at: www.davidlitwack.com