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Dear readers: All excerpts are PDF formatted from the actual book pages to give you an authentic reading experience, and require Adobe Reader for viewing. If you don't already have Adobe's PDF reader, download it FREE at this view link .

Thank you for your interest in the Ancient Mirrors series. I look forward to chatting with all of you during Author Days here at EONS BOOK GALLERY. Jayel

Dragon Queen Synopsis

Imagine being summoned from the slumber of death, awaking in a shattered world you do not recall, betrayed by sibling, parent and lover…imagine your search for the truth.

Without knowledge of the past, the young apprentice, Yávië, and her companions stumble on a perilous quest that will test the depths of their loyalties and which paths they will choose. Together they embark on a journey to discover the truth of Yávië’s birthright and a world they no longer remember.

READ THE EXCERPT: view link

The Wrekening Synopsis

In The Wrekening, an ancient evil is discovered lying deep beneath the earth, waiting to be awakened by those possessing the Wreken wyrm shards. When the Dragon Queen and her guardians realize the shards must be recovered before they fall into the wrong hands; they turn to Cwen of Aaradan, fierce warrior and estranged niece of the queen. Cwen reluctantly agrees, and she and her band of renegades set off to reclaim the lost shards. However, Cwen's own inner-demons prove more difficult to overcome than any threat the group of friends encounter.

READ THE EXCERPT: view link

Damselflies Synopsis

Legend: real or imagined? In their demon-bound minds, fearful and powerful men consider Arcinaë, the last Damselfly, a threat to their race. Hunted by those men, Arcinaë must set aside her docile nature to learn the skills of weaponry and war if she is to protect her unborn offspring and ensure the future of her race.

READ THE EXCERPT: view link

Quondam Synopsis

When Cwen of Aaradan falls through a mysterious portal into the world of Quondam, she discovers her fate and an imprisoned dragonspawn's are intertwined in ways that will drag her, heartbroken and vengeful, into the heart of a devastating war.

READ THE EXCERPT: view link

Awards:

Dragon Queen and The Wrekening: USA BOOK NEWS '2007 Best Books' Finalists

Damselflies: 15th Annual Writer's Digest International Book Awards Honorable Mention

Quondam: Winner of the 2008 National Indie Excellence Award for Fantasy and Science Fiction.

Editorial Reviews:

A solid additon to every fantasy collection. The Library Journal

...set in a wonderful and magical world. Yavie is the perfect heroine...smart and honest. Writer's Digest

Jayel Gibson weaves magic with words. The Bloomsbury Review

This author is a warrior... Hagerstown Morning Herald

[Cwen of Aaradan] must overthrow a Queen to save both worlds in this riveting fantasy. Midwest Book Review

Reviews from Readers Like You:

With all great novels, you have to have great characters and I believe that Quondam has exactly those. They are complex and real. They do not try to present themselves in a fashion other than what they are and even in this fantasy world, it is not hard to relate to them. The troubles they go through, the situations they are placed in, it is all very real and plausible to us. The journey these two must make in order to find each other is painful and long. Constant obstacles are thrown in their path and it only brings us closer to them as they work through these challenges.

The plot of the story is very familiar in the sense that we have a harsh monarch who rules with an iron fist and a legend that says she will be destroyed. However, instead of taking the normal route for most fantasy novels (wherein the story arc spans over several novels), we get the entire story in one. Gibson gives us what we need and then moves the story along. I will say that the final battle was a little anti-climatic, but it worked. Reading through Quondam, it was obvious that this wasn’t a tale of war and strife, but of love and redemption. The war was only secondary and getting these two individuals together was all that mattered.

I truly enjoyed this novel and plan on finding Gibson’s other works. Quondam is only one of the many Ancient Mirrors Tales and the other three that I know of – Dragon Queen, The Wrekening, and Damselflies. After I was finished reading this, Anne Bishop came to mind. Quondam isn’t as dark and twisted as the Black Jewels trilogy, but it has a lot of the same elements. Anyone who is a fan of Anne Bishop will have no trouble with this novel and I would seriously recommend anyone with a passion for fantasy to check this novel out.

Jackie at Literary Escapism

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Gibson's characters are rich, unique, and vivid. She has created an elaborate world peopled with dark-skinned Noor merchant politicians, mute stryvers who serve the rich, venomous wasp women, evil nomadic bandits called Emyutes, fire assassins, firefly men, and shadowy hellwings. There are also the assorted wizards, gods, and warrior barkeeps. The characters are all believable and worthy of a reader's concern for them. But most importantly, Gibson has crafted an epic tale full of narrow escapes, battles, magic, death and redemption, and the quest for love.

Quondam is Gibson's finest work in this series. I highly recommend it.

Janie Franz, author of Freelance Writing: It’s a Business, Stupid!

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Quondam... has strong female characters.... The feminist tone in the book is strong as it is in the gaming world where the women fight shoulder to shoulder with their male warriors. And like the characters in video games the women in Jayel Gibson's book are beautiful, feminine and yet burn with fierce inner spirit. What makes this book a novelty is that Jayel Gibson is herself a gamer and believes that video gaming is actually good for people. And her books prove her opinion as the characters are complex, their missions difficult and the storyline is action packed. The books are immersing and deal with human frailties as well which not only hooks the readers but also lend the story lines credibility for in the end its not only about good winning over evil but about the indomitable human spirit - a concept that many games are based on where one continues to try and overcome hurdles and conquer missions despite repeated failures.

SwingingPuss.com

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I came up with a system for detecting good epic fantasy. I called it "Tom's Epic Fantasy Detection Test." ...I wanted something as real as my world--a place that I could see so clearly that I wished I could get aboard a plane and go visit it. The world Jayel Gibson has created in The Wrekening certainly passed this test. It is one that is complex, startling, and a true work of the highest imagination.

Thomas Bolme Jr. on Amazon.com

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About the only thing I liked about this book (which I couldn't even finish reading because I became so bored with it) was the world-building theology and its larger, macro-scoped storyline. Unfortunately, the "lens" of the author's storytelling style never zooms in deep enough and close enough to allow the reader to relate to the characters on a personal, individual level... to absorb the reader on the micro level.

Mike Karkabe-Olson "Mike" on Amazon.com

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Jayel Gibson has described the world of Ædracmoræ beautifully, spending lush words in describing its beauty. Even the physical description and skills of the guardians are described in detail, which give a good idea about the guardian being described. The tale itself is very good and holds a lot of promise and creates anticipation within the reader and covers a lot of ground in encompassing three major quests and wrapping it up nicely with the ending suitably closed but open ended enough for a sequel.

Anantj

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I commend Gibson for being able to weave a thrilling story that held my interest the entire way through. I really like the strong female characters presented throughout the Ancient Mirrors series, and Damselflies was no exception. These females are skilled warriors in battle and are also highly intelligent and usually stubborn, yet they are easy to like by the reader.... Damselflies was a truly exciting read.

BookMuncher.com

View the Ancient Mirrors Book Trailers:

QUONDAM: view link

DAMSELFLIES: view link

THE WREKENING: view link

DRAGON QUEEN: view link

I saw your blog post over on your author website and followed the links to this place. I joined so that I can come and chat with authors on the weekend.

Thank you for the previews and the booktrailers. I particularly enjoyed the preview of Damselflies and the booktrailer of Quondam.

I hope it is okay for me to post here.

Isobel