Golden Braids Blog Tour: Hair We Go Again

Kendra's been crazy busy, but she still somehow managed to get the tour package out relatively on time. So today, we have here a book spotlight, and a mini interview with the author!
I was also signed up for a review. However, that would be difficult to do, seeing as I have neither read the book, nor received a copy. I'll give a review of the first book (Sew, It's a Quest) instead, seeing as I read it just last week (I think? Time's been extremely relative for me lately) and everything's still pretty fresh in my mind. :P

Since Sew, It's a Quest isn't the topic of this tour, I'm going to go ahead and write it up on a separate post. For now, glory in the finished product that is Hair We Go Again.

Update: I have received my ARC copy, and will try to read and review it tomorrow (hopefully work doesn't ask me to do overtime). Also, I put up my review for Sew, It's a Quest on Goodreads.

Another update (8/18/19): Got the book done and the review written on the 12th, posted on Goodreads, and forgot to update this. Whoops. So the below is updated to be the book review, and not the book spotlight. Enjoy!

Book Blurb:

Still reeling from recent trauma, Robin and Eric struggle to find stability in the midst of increasing tension both at home and with others. When friends ask their help to rediscover their castle, lost during their hundred-year sleep Robin and Eric agree to help. But this castle holds secrets of its own – including what may be the fate of Eric’s long-lost brother – launching them on another quest. Meanwhile, Maryanne's busy on a much more important mission of her own: find a jackalope. Yet no one’s ideas seem to coincide with hers, and family disagreements muddy everything. Can healing ever be found when people refuse to communicate? (less)

Book Review:

Hair We Go Again by Kendra E. Ardnek
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was a fun adventure with the crew.

The plot itself was cut-and-dry, as most fairy tales are, but it wasn't...well, dry. The characters had sufficient motivation, reacted realistically, and oh my word were they fun to watch/read/follow along, whatever term you prefer.

Not sure if I should mark this as a spoiler or not? So I'll mark it. (view spoiler)[One of the things I liked (besides the sibling relations, the way marriage things were handled, the accuracy of the children, the awesomeness of the worldbuilding...) was the...hmm, it wasn't deus ex machina, exactly? Sure, their problems were solved in a seemingly swooping way, but those solutions introduced a whole new set of problems (and also stirred up some old ones). It was also wonderful seeing the characters' shock at their obvious problems being (seemingly) addressed so quickly. (hide spoiler)]

(view spoiler)[Can I gush about how cool Rapunzel's abilities are? Specifically, the powers names she gives holds? And how they end up being opposite? Can you imagine the possibilities if she gave one of her kids a name like: Abaddon, Rapscallion, Plague? And what if their siblings had names meaning opposite things? How about if everyone would mix their names up because they'd probably associate the names with matching personalities?
That'd be almost as funny as Robin and Robert swapping places until their nursemaids found out! (hide spoiler)]

The sibling bickering at the end. It's so. Darned. Accurate. So it's just as frustrating as the real deal. It gets resolved in a most wonderful fashion, to boot.

Maryanne was adorable, determined, and just as rambunctious and stubborn as a real one year old. She also talks like a real one year old, so sometimes I had to rely on other characters' interpretations of her speech to tell what she was saying.

Oh, so who says that romance ends after marriage? I don't think anyone outright says that when it comes to fiction, but it's heavily implied in movies and whatnot (trying to "reignite that spark" or whatever). Not so with this book! Looking back at the length of the story, I wonder at the amount of tenderness and turbulence that was packed into so few pages. (view spoiler)[(I was going to say more, but it devolved into a rant about the media, values, etc. So I shall spare you that. My siblings weren't so lucky and had to hear me hissing at the computer. :P) (hide spoiler)]

Definitely a must for fairy tale lovers. You may want to pick up the other books in the series, though; I was kind of thrown off at first because of the mentions of previous events that I didn't know (I've yet to read books 3 and 4), but then I received a summary of each book before that, and it was smooth sailing (well, reading) from there. But I'll be picking up the other books, so...yeah, it's good. To summarize: siblings, magic, drama, relationships (is that implied in drama, or visa-versa?), and problem solving. Pick up your copy today!


View all my reviews

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42800675-hair-we-go-again
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07T16WK69/

Mini Interview:

1. What other authors are you friends with, and how do they help you become a better writer?

My closest friends would include Morgan Elizabeth Huneke, Erika Mathews, and Sarah Pennington. They all three, encourage, support, and critique me in turn - these girls are seriously awesome. 

2. What character surprised you the most in the writing of “Hair We Go Again”?

I'm not sure there were any who outright SURPRISED me, but it wasn't until after I wrote Honor that Eric became the focus of the book's conflict. 

3. What conventions/writing workshops have you attended/want to attend?

I just got back from Realm Maker's the other week. It's the main one that I've always been interested in, and this was my second year. 

About the author:

Kendra E. Ardnek loves fairytales and twisting them in new and exciting ways. She's been acting them on her dozen plus cousins and siblings for years. "Finish your story, Kendra," is frequently heard at family gatherings. Her sole life goal has always been to grow up and be an author of fantasy and children's tales that glorify God and His Word. Find her online at: Website || Blog || Goodreads || Facebook || Twitter || YouTube || Newsletter || Instagram || Amazon

Many thanks to Kendra for organizing the tour! Check out the full list of tour stops here.

Tour stops for today:

Knitted By God's Plan - Five Reasons To Read
Light and Shadows - Five Reasons To Read


Reviews
Christina and Camera + Mini interview!
The Language of Writing
The Labyrinth + Mini interview!
The World of a Writer


Interviews
Reality Reflected - Robin
The Rambling Rose - Rapunzel
Dreams and Dragons - Eric+Lukas