Author: karin-rita-gastreich

  • SPOTLIGHT on OZMA: October is for OZMA 2020 Book Awards – Fantasy, Magic, Other Worlds, and Other Creatures, Book Awards

    SPOTLIGHT on OZMA: October is for OZMA 2020 Book Awards – Fantasy, Magic, Other Worlds, and Other Creatures, Book Awards

    Ozma Awards for Fantasy Fiction

    Why do we love Fantasy now more than ever? With the promise of bringing  new horizons, a grand new adventure, magical worlds, and perhaps even a treasure… with a flick of our finger and that which was not suddenly appears… with magical creatures and fantastical places waiting to be explored – what’s not to love? 

     

    Chanticleer International Book Awards is looking for the best books featuring magic, the supernatural, imaginary worlds, fantastical creatures, legendary beasts, mythical beings, or inventions of fancy that author imaginations dream up without a basis in science as we know it. Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Dragons, Unicorns, Steampunk, Dieselpunk, Gaslight Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, or other out of this world fiction, we will discover the best among them and award them an OZMA Book Award! 

     

    The last day to submit your work is coming up faster than you may think – October 31, 2020, is just around the corner. We invite you to join us, to tell us your stories, and to find out who will take home the prize at CAC21 on April 18th, 2021.

    As our deadline draws near, don’t slip into an alternate reality and forget to enter your fantasy novel! We accept completed manuscripts and recently published works.

    Enter today!

     

    The OZMA Book Awards Hall of Fame: 

    The OZMA BOOK AWARDS Grand Prize Winner for 2019 is: 

    Manufactured Witches by Michelle Rene

    Michelle Rene participated in our 10 question Author Interview series and this is a bit of what she has to say about writing… It is a powerful and equalizing force in the world. As long as you can string sentences together, you have a voice. Your story can be told. It doesn’t matter how old or young you are. Your wallet and waistline have no bearing. You don’t even have to be formally educated. Everyone’s story is possible, and stories change the world.”

     

    The First In Category Winners for 2019 are: 

     

     

    • Elana A. Mugdan – Dragon Blood 
    • Michelle Rene – Manufactured Witches   
    • Noah Lemelson – The Sightless City 
    • KC Cowan & Sara Cole – The Hunt for Winter 
    • Susannah Dawn – Search for the Armor of God  
    • Dan Zangari & Robert Zangari – A Prince’s Errand   
    • Tim Westover – The Winter Sisters: A Novel

     

     

     

    2018 Chanticleer Int’l Book Award Winners!

     

    The 2018 OZMA Book Awards GRAND PRIZE WINNER for Fantasy Fiction Novels:

    Dragon Speaker by Elana A. Mugdan

    Elana took home the OZMA Grand Prize Ribbon

    Elana Mugdan, our Grand Prize winner, earned her title for Dragon Speakera story about a young girl who is charged with rescuing a dragon and, ultimately, saves her world in this wide-reaching fantasy conception of love, war, danger, and magic. Massive amounts of magic!

     

     

    Congratulations to the 2018 OZMA Book Awards for Fantasy Fiction Novels First in Category Winners!

    • Virtuous Souls by Pamela LePage
    • RAGNAROK: Demon Seed by Ea Bishop
    • Money Jane by T.K. Riggins
    • Heart Of Shadra by Susan Faw
    • Into the North: A Keltin Moore Adventure by Lindsay Schopfer
    • Antler Jinny and the Raven by Chris Dews
    • Luminess Legends: Dragon Ascendants by Paul E. Vaughn

     

     

     


    The 2017 OZMA Grand Prize Winner is T.K. Riggins  for How to Set the  World on Fire ,
    a coming-of-age School of Magic novel that readers will find hard to put down.

    T.K. Riggins has this to say about writing, “I started writing because of a dare. My friend was searching for something new to read, but instead of recommending a book, I decided to write something for her. It was a ten-page short story that was based on a farming event from my past, and I turned it into a tale of fantasy. It was a fun experience, and my friend was so impressed that she wanted to read more, so I just kept going.” Find out more in his 10 Question Author Interview, here.

    2017 First Place Winners include: 

    • Eva’s Soul by Sarah M. Morin
    • Daughter of Aithne by Karin Rita Gastreich
    • In Her World: The Dark-Winter War by John W. Lord
    • The One Apart: A Novel by Justine Avery
    • Runebinder by Alex R. Kahler
    • The Engine Woman’s Light by Laurel Anne Hill
    • The Bookminder by M. K. Wiseman   

     

     


    2016 OZMA Grand Prize Winner:

     

    Mythborn II Bane of the Warforged by Vijay Lakshman 

    Where myths and legends are brought to life!

     

    2016 First Place Winners:


     

    Our 2020 Chanticleer International Book Awards feature more than $30,000.00 worth of cash and prizes each year! 

    • The 2020 Ozma Grand Prize Winner is named Chanticleer Reviews Best Fantasy Fiction Book of the Year and goes on to compete for the Chanticleer Overall Grand Prize Best Book of the Year
    • The Overall Grand Prize Winner is named Chanticleer Reviews Best Book of the Year and awarded the $1000 prize
    • All winners receive a Chanticleer Prize Package which includes a digital badge, a ribbon, and a whole assortment of goodies detailed below (winners outside the US pay a shipping & handling fee)

    That’s more than $30,000.00 worth of cash and prizes! The Fine Print.

    ~$1000 for one lucky Overall Grand Prize Winner
    ~$30,000+ in reviews, prizes, and promotional opportunities awarded to Category Winners

    Currently accepting entries. Deadline: Oct. 31st, 2020.

    What are you waiting for? Enter today!

  • Daughter of Aithne: The Silver Web Series, Book 3 by Karin Rita Gastreich – Romance Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, Magic Realism

    Daughter of Aithne: The Silver Web Series, Book 3 by Karin Rita Gastreich – Romance Fantasy, Sword & Sorcery, Magic Realism

    Writer and ecologist Karin Rita Gastreich draws inspiration from her trips to the magical forests of Costa Rica to bring life to the Silver Web series. An unforgettable journey, Daughter of Aithne, is the finale to the epic story of Queen Eolyn the High Maga, set in a world of seemingly never-ending war where female practitioners of magic (maga) are feared.

    Set ten years after the conclusion of Gastreich’s second installment in the series Sword of ShadowsDaughter of Aithne begins during an era of abundant peace. That peace quickly turns to turmoil when a group of Eolyn’s magical progeny commits an act of grave betrayal by kidnapping Princess Elisara, daughter of the former Queen Taesara.

    The Mage King Akmael immediately orders all maga to lay down their arms and have their magic bound. For years magas have been prosecuted for having magic and were all but annihilated by the crown. Except for a small amount that managed to escape hoping to one day be able to live their lives of magic according to their beloved culture. Fear of women’s magic is still alive in the kingdom, and the King, wishing only to protect his queen and her daughters, attempts to avoid an outbreak of war by banning all magas use of their craft.

    Gastreich uses vivid language to transport readers into the story. An overarching theme of distrust and vying for loyalties in and among kingdoms presented in this third installment of the Silver Web series is reminiscent of other high fantasy series such as George R. R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire. Gastreich masterfully executes an effective use of narrative misdirection throughout the story.

    Karin Rita Gastreich has an apparent love for the magic of nature and breathes that into the heart of her books, but she also successfully sets real-world issues at the forefront. She follows a common trope within the Young Adult genre by taking an issue from today and melding it into her narrative. Here, the main element in the Silver Web trilogy is the stark contrast of beliefs and opinions centering around magic and especially female magic welders. Many fear their magic and believe magas are dangerous, but then have little or no issue with male mages.

    A triumphant story of adversity, Daughter of Aithne is the exciting conclusion to the Silver Web series. Readers of all ages may hope this is not the last time Gastreich will return to her fantastical world of magic.

    Daughter of Aithne won 1st Place in the CIBA 2017 OZMA Awards for Fantasy novels.