About the Book Book: Sky of Seven Colors Author: Rachelle Nelson Genre: YA Fantasy Release Date: August 8, 2023
In a strange part of the forest, the divide between worlds grows thin.
After the accident, Meg would do anything to wake her best friend from his deadly coma. At least, that’s what she whispered into the woodland shadows. She never imagined her wish would trap her in a gray other-earth, void of any color.
Meg’s vibrant humanity is a priceless artifact in the gray kingdom, coveted by the royal court. All she wants to do is find a way back home. Until she discovers the other-earth contains healing powers that can save her friend. But only if Meg becomes what the gray people need—a human bride for Kalmus, the powerful king of the capital city.
With her heart torn between earths, Meg’s choices may cost more than she knows.
Click here to get your copy! About the Author Rachelle Nelson grew up reading fantasy novels and getting her clothes muddy in the pine forests of Idaho. These days, she still loves hiking through mountains and libraries, though she is a bit less fond of mud. She doesn’t write true stories, but she writes about truth. When Rachelle is not reading and writing, she sings in a band with her talented husband, who makes her happier than should be legal. If you like adventures, good food, and honest conversations, you are her favorite kind of person. More from Rachelle
Sky of Seven Colors is a story, in part, about beauty. I wrote it for my younger self, and for all the women I love.
When I was twelve years old, the girls in my neighborhood frequently weighed themselves and ended up forming an “under-100-club”. I have no idea why the arbitrary measurement of one hundred pounds was chosen, but I do know I was the first to outgrow the standard. A fact that was made known to the neighborhood boys during a driveway basketball game.
A chant began. “One hundred, one hundred.” And I didn’t play basketball again for the rest of the summer.
At the time, I didn’t know I would soon grow to my full height of 5’9” and would always be “bigger” than the other girls. I was convinced I could never be beautiful if I was the biggest, and I desperately wanted to be beautiful. You will probably think I was vain if I tell you I prayed every night before bed that God would make me prettier.
Now, as a woman well into her thirties, I am much more comfortable with the body God gave me. I have been a youth mentor for over a decade, and while getting to know some amazing teens, I have come to appreciate that every girl wants to be beautiful.
And they are.
I’m not just saying that in the “everyone is pretty in their own way” sense. I mean it. It’s an indisputable truth.
Femininity is beautiful.
Youth in and of itself is beautiful.
And powerful. You don’t have to look far in the world to see that these things are desired, commodified, admired, sometimes cherished, and more often exploited. And every girl possesses them.
I have watched as generations of girls desperately long to be something they already are. They diet and compare and shop for anything to help them look their best. In our youth, we blindly walk out the perils and the gifts of beauty.
In my debut young adult fantasy novel, Meg travels to a colorless other-earth where she is the only human in a royal city of strange, gray people. The elites of society prize Meg’s color for its rare traits, and seek to control it, even pressing her into an ancient, binding agreement with their king.
Her color is intrinsic, like all of our bodies, not something she chose. And it is what everyone sees when they look at her. The color puts her in danger, and it is a gift she carries. But she must decide who she will be in spite of that gift, and also because of it.
Just like all girls must choose to respond to a world that sees them for their bodies.
The Bible has something profound to say about the connection between our outer and inner selves in this verse from 1st Peter: “Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as elaborate hairstyles and the wearing of gold jewelry or fine clothes. Rather, it should be that of your inner self….”
Meg is a very flawed character and doesn’t make all the right choices along the way. (I don’t know many people in life who fully have, even if we’re trying.) But she does come to understand that being desired and being loved are two different things, a truth I want every girl in my life to grasp deeply. And if Meg’s identity comes from within, she will have to choose the path of loving others, even when it seems impossible.
Especially then.
Blog Stops Becca Hope: Book Obsessed, August 17 Debbie’s Dusty Deliberations, August 18 Texas Book-aholic, August 19 Through the Fire Blogs, August 20 (Author Interview) Christina’s Corner, August 20 Locks, Hooks and Books, August 21 Tell Tale Book Reviews, August 22 Because I said so — and other adventures in Parenting, August 23 The Book Club Network, August 24 Truth and Grace Homeschool Academy, August 25 Blogging With Carol, August 26 Labor Not in Vain, August 27 Simple Harvest Reads, August 28 (Guest Review from Mindy Houng) Beauty in the Binding, August 29 (Author Interview) Raining Butterfly Kisses, August 29 Of Blades and Thorns, August 30
Giveaway
To celebrate her tour, Rachelle is giving away the grand prize package of a hardback copy of Sky of Seven Colors, a $50 Amazon gift card, a signed bookplate, a set of 3 bookish themed waterproof stickers, and a bookmark with exclusive Sky of Seven Colors character art!!
Be sure to comment on the blog stops for nine extra entries into the giveaway! Click the link below to enter.
https://promosimple.com/ps/2716b/sky-of-seven-colors-celebration-tour-giveaway
My Review:
This book was amazing.
The author must have an incredible imagination--to think of a different world with such different landscapes and an interesting society.
I also loved the main character's tenacity and the depth of even a teenager's love. The main character who has lost her beloved mother and relies on her friend who just happens to be a boy. The hero isn't on screen very much but we are convinced he's a good guy from the start. The rest of the characters, well, it takes some time to figure out who is on the side of good vs. evil.
This is a fantasy with a faith element only implied. The writing is beautiful and again, I was left in wonder.
So much wonder that I forgot to write the first time...I received this book free as part of the Celebrate Lit tours and my opinions are my own. I was not required to write a positive review, but I did.