Storytellers On Tour is a Blog/Instagram Tour organising service. It was born out of Justine’s (Whispers & Wonder) and my love and dedication toward SFF indie books and authors. Our goal is to give as much exposure to our clients as we can, while we also build a community among our Roadies. Find out more about us on www.storytellersontour.online!
This past week we gave the spotlight to the Hollow Road, a Fantasy by Dan Fitzgerald in celebration of its release! Our Roadies brought a wide selection of content to this show with reviews and other posts. Now it’s time to bring the show to an end and it’s my pleasure to present you with the encore, including some extra content. Come and learn a bit more about the world of Hollow Road through Dan’s inspirational board and a Q&A!
Shall we?
Dan Fitzgerald is a fantasy writer living in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Washington, DC with his wife, twin boys, and two cats. When he is not writing, he might be gardening, doing yoga, cooking, or listening to French music.
Find out more about Dan and his books at www.danfitzwrites.com, or find him on Twitter or Instagram, with the handle danfitzwrites in both places.
Legends describe the Maer as savage man-beasts haunting the mountains, their bodies and faces covered with hair. Creatures of unimaginable strength, cunning, and cruelty. Bedtime stories to keep children indoors at night. Soldiers’ tales to frighten new recruits.
It is said the Maer once ruled the Silver Hills, but they have long since passed into oblivion.
This is the story of their return.
Carl, Sinnie and Finn, three companions since childhood, are tasked with bringing a friend’s body home for burial. Along the way, they find there is more to the stories than they ever imagined, and the mountains hold threats even darker than the Maer. What they discover on their journey will change the way they see the world forever.
Travel down Hollow Road to find out which legends are true, and which have been twisted.
Click on the blog name to read their full review or other content!
SEPTEMBER 13TH–THE WELCOMING
Whispers & Wonder – interview + IG spotlight
SEPTEMBER 14TH
The SwordSmith – review
“What struck me the most about this book, was the development of the friendship and bond between Carl, Sinnie and Finn. They are three friends, reunited again after taking different paths, tasked with taking a friend’s body home. Right from the beginning, I knew I was in for a treat with this strong, character driven fantasy story and at 243 pages it’s a great read.”
Themself – review
“What becomes apparent as the story moves on is how much of the folklore of the Maer, and other creatures, has been forgotten, and how human stories dramatise themselves over time. Hollow Road is the beginning of a trilogy, and we can see the main characters eyes being opened to a larger world than they’d previously believed in. How much the rest of the human realm will react calmly and accept the new normal remains to be see, but I’m now looking forward to reading the sequel to Hollow Road when it finally comes out!”
@bookriot_edah – IG spotlight
SEPTEMBER 15TH
Maxine’s Obsessions – review
“Each character has an interesting backstory, they all have well developed personalities, and they each hold your attention. I was expecting for Hollow Road to be Carls’ story, but I was wrong. The author has done a fantastic job of making sure each character had their share of the spotlight.”
SEPTEMBER 16TH
Bookends & Bagends – review
“In terms of world-building, where the geography is the flesh and bone and the characters are the heart, the mind is most definitely the deep and well-considered lore. Not content with creating traditions and attitudes for one set of people Dan Fitzgerald does it for two. In Brocland we experience the culture of the humans of Gheil their morals and laws, but later we experience, well… somebody else’s.”
jea reads – IG spotlight
Marian L Thorpe – review
“As with all good speculative fiction, Fitzgerald has asked some hard questions about our society; about how we judge and fear people by their outward appearance. His characters – and readers – see that once true dialogue begins, commonalities outweigh differences. But while individuals learn this, and accept the Maer as human, will the Realm, the larger government which is only hinted at in this first book?”
SEPTEMBER 17TH
dinipandareads – review
“There was a good message about accepting others despite obvious differences. I wanted to spend more time with the Maer and to also learn more about their origin, but I do have a feeling that’ll happen in the second book, so I’m looking forward to that! Plus, the story ended with a rather cryptic message from one of the characters and I’m really curious to see what surprises lie ahead.”
The 13th Shelf – review
“Hollow Road will appeal to slice of life narrative fans, the old school D&D crowd looking for a comfortable evening read, and people like me, who have read maybe one too many epic ‘stop-the-big-baddie’ fantasies and want to see what else can be done with the genre.”
SEPTEMBER 18TH
The Bookwyrm’s Guide to the Galaxy – review
“I keep longing to read fantasy and science-fiction where queer characters are a casual norm, instead of a source of suffering or a box to check to appease critique, and this book hit like a cold drink in the desert.
Though guided by its wonderful cast, Hollow Road stands on its foundations as a serene adventure quest with a clear focus, and not without its mortal perils, both intimate and extrinsic.”
Out of this World SFF Reviews – review
“But the main thing that I loved about this book was the story itself, which drew me in immediately with the mystery of the Maer and then kept me there with the promise of discovering so much more being at work behind the scenes. A fascinating fantasy story that I unequivocally recommend to even the most picky reader. There is much to like about this book and I can’t wait to read book two which I think I heard the author say was coming out in December. That’s good because I need to continue with this story after eagerly gobbling this one up!”
@the.b00kreader – IG spotlight
Dan kindly gave me to show off some of the character arts made by Illustrate_vnzl. In order: Carl, Sinnie, Finn, Karul, the Ka-lar, Mashtorul and Ujenn.
Welcome to the Asylum, Dan! Take a seat by the fire, have a glass of beverage of your choice and tell me something about yourself!
Thanks Timy! I’m enjoying a nice refreshing sour beer, a gose from Lost Nation Brewery in Vermont, in case you were wondering. Here’s something interesting about me: when I started writing fantasy a couple of years ago, I realized I hadn’t read a fantasy book in decades. I kind of thought they were mostly trash, based solely on my experience of reading them as a teenager in the 80s. So I set out to find some new fantasy to read and holy cow! I could not have been more wrong! I’ve recently read six books in a row written by women, more or less by accident, because they were the kind of contemporary fantasy books that sounded most interesting.
What inspires your writing? Do you listen to music, stare into the fire, listen to the whispering of the wind, make deals with the Devil?
I’ve always been obsessed with hidden places beyond the reach of civilization. I love to get out in nature, among the plants and beasts, and imagine a world in which humans are the exception. In a world as overdeveloped as ours, I love the idea that out there, somewhere, is something that’s never been seen or discovered before. And so I write these stories.
Your MC is locked in an asylum. What did he/she do to end up there?
It’s easy to see why any of the characters would be driven to madness by the Ka-lar. Its gaze is enough to freeze you in place, so you can’t move a muscle, and it has the strength of many men, and can tear a person apart with its claws. A woman from Brocland, the village where my MCs come from, discovered her husband’s body after the Ka-lar had finished with him, and I’m not entirely sure she ever recovered.
Describe an asylum set in the world of your book, Hollow Road!
In Wells, the capital, there would certainly be an asylum, and it would not surprise me to learn that the Realm stashes perfectly sane people there to keep them from talking about the South, or about the Maer. The conditions would not be comfortable, but the Great University is in Wells, so there would surely be scholars and doctors who study mental illness, and perhaps they could help somewhat, for those in need.
Which fictional character (it can be one of yours) and/or author would you like to live with in an asylum and why?
I would want to be in with Finn, the Bodily Control mage from Hollow Road. I would join him in his yoga-like poses to keep my mental strength up, and his good humor would keep me from losing hope. Also, if we were trying to escape, his skills would come in rather handy.
While you are locked in here for eternity, we will allow you one book – what would you choose?
My Pléiades edition of the complete works of Chrétien de Troyes. I have always loved reading and deconstructing medieval romances, and as an added bonus I would enjoy dusting off my knowledge of Old French with the help of the modern French translation at the top of each page. That sort of thing keeps one’s mind sharp.
Well then, we hope you’ll enjoy your stay in the Asylum! Any last words? *locks door*
The mind is its own place and in itself, can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.
If you are interested in Hollow Road and would like to get in contact with Dan Fitzgerald, you can find him on social media:
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Grab a copy of Hollow Road at your local Amazon!
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