It’s August and I’m just counting down the days until fall reaches New England. But I’m grateful for one thing this summer and that’s Sourcebooks Casablanca blessing me with A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet. Seriously, this book is so good and it’s – without a doubt – the best book I’ve read this year. You’ll get a full dose of my squeeing soon, I promise.
With one look at the cover, I knew I wanted do something with Fireball – a cinnamon whiskey that is the culprit for 100% of my hangovers. Fire plays big role in the story as people are throwing fire magic around left and right. There’s also a dragon. But just as Fireball makes me hate myself in the morning, the heroine Cat has a huge dose of self-loathing. It was a match made in hangover heaven! Also, I’d like to note how simple this recipe is. Three ingredients, tops.
Cat, while tough and badass, is really just longing to be loved. As much as she denies it, she craves human contact because boy…this woman has had it pretty rough. I wanted to counteract the bite of the cinnamon with some sweetness, so I chose cider. But I wanted a cider that would keep that cinnamon or spicy feel. Not too sweet, please! And because I have a deep love of boozy fruit, I trawled the local farmer’s market, praying for apples. It’s not quite apple season here yet, so the pickings were slim and when I couldn’t find my favorite apple (Honeycrisp, if you’re wondering), I took what I could get.
The result is very reminiscent of a warm, cinnamon apple pie, though with a little bit of a kick at the end of each sip. The drink is named Chimera’s Fire after a form of magic in the book. It’s often used to imbue arrows in the book. Once the arrow hits you, it sears your skin right off. It’s a perfect analogy. While A Promise of Fire has its sweet moments, it’s not afraid to give you a swift punch in the gut with feels or with fireballs that melt people’s faces off – literally.
Also, we have a giveaway! Big thanks to Sourcebooks Casablanca for offering up five (5) copies to give away!
Plus, the Kingmaker Chronicles website has excerpts if you want to get a peek at chapter one and wallpapers if you’re in love with the cover like I am.
Shopping list
Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey
Hard cider
Apples (optional)
Proportions:
2 shots of Fireball
One bottle of cider
One small apple, sliced for garnish
Modifications and notes:
- I used a bottled cider. If you used cider that is canned, you might want to only use one shot of Fireball.
- Also, depending on how much you like cinnamon, you can use more or less Fireball. I found that two shots is perfect for me. You can definitely taste it, but it’s not overwhelming.
- As I mentioned before, I used a spiced cider – Angry Orchard’s Apple Ginger. Some other great spiced ciders are Woodchuck’s Fall Harvest (seasonal), Bantam’s Americain, Angry Orchard’s Cinnful Apple (seasonal), and Downeast’s Winter Blend (seasonal).
- For some bubbles, ginger ale is a good mixer!
Now to the best part! We have five (5) copies of A Promise of Fire up for grabs!
All you have to do to enter is leave a comment and tell us what sort of magical abilities you’d like to have! Lightning bolts from your eyes? Telepathic communication? Stop time for endless naps? The giveaway will end Sunday, August 7, 2016 at noon, EST, so get your comments in before then!
Standard disclaimers apply. We are not being compensated for this giveaway. Void where prohibited. Open to US/Canadian residents where permitted by applicable law. Must be over 18. Please control any laser beams you may have – we don’t need a Cyclops snafu on our hands. Keep cool and hydrated! We won’t be held responsible for any singed or charred articles of clothing and/or furniture. Any children with magic should be closely monitored.
Good luck!
UPDATE: And the winners are:
ReneeG
Cristie
flchen1
Meghan
M L
Thanks to all who commented and to the winners, keep an eye on your inboxes!
Teleportation, as many others have said. All my friends live far away, and not only would it be instant, it’d be free! (At least until the government figured out how to add a teleportation tax.)
I’m dying for a copy of this book.
Telekinesis or flight! Definitely not Cyclops-style laser eyes…
I want healing powers! Preferably both physical and mental. Coupled with the ability to avoid that pesky superpowers curse of excessive guilt over the inability to be everywhere and help every single person on the planet all the time.
Teleportation for instant commute to work on the weekdays and vacation on the weekends.
Fireballs from my fingertips!
I’ve always wanted to do the absent-minded household telekinesis thing. I could sit there and read a book, while the house is getting cleaned in the background and dinner is cooking. Basically, I want to be Molly Weasley. It would be so, so great.
I love Samara’s idea of Abracadabra – or ‘Make it so.’ That would cover so much territory!
I’d like the ability to bring people peace of mind just by touching them (but not absorbing their suffering).
I know I do not qualify because of being foreign. But I still want to tell my fav magic ability: I want to perfectly know all the languages of this world! That would be so awesome!!!! And useful.
Ooh, Ginger Apple Cider!! I didn’t know such a thing existed. Will totally try.
I’d like a magic bag like Mary Poppins’ that I could reach into and pull out anything I wanted or needed at any time.
Superpower? I’d flipping LOVE to be able to cloud peoples’ memories…specifically, I want to make my toddler forget all about those effing finger family videos!
I would love to have magical healing powers.
Teleporting! It’s got stealth and combat advantages.
Teleporting! That way, I could easily take those weekend getaways to Europe, all without having to deal with airports!
The magical ability I’d love to have is teleportation. I hate sitting in traffic, so it would be awesome to be able to instantly get where I wanted to go.
My Top Three Wished For Powers:
1. To be able to fly under my own power. Not only to avoid traffic, but think of all of the places you’d be able to explore.
2. To shapeshift – again think of all of the things you could explore.
3. A second pair of arms and the brainpower to run them independently. Bizzare I know, but how often have we wished for another pair of hands to do something?
I’m with @Megan — the magical ability to either slow down time or be able to speed read (enjoyably, not just what you learn to get thru textbooks, etc.) so that I can read all the books I have stockpiled (and continue to buy) before I die.
The power to not need sleep – and I would not let anyone know about it! Read, exercise, launch a business (or a rocket), take over the world … Whatever I want to do … me-time all night!
I love to travel so I would opt for some sort of flying. Love a pair of wings.
I want to fly because I hate driving. I wonder if I flew, I could also have a little imp as my pilot so I could play pokemon go?
I’d love some telekinesis.
Whenever it snows I want teleportation, but maybe the ability to control the weather would be better. Our maybe the would drive me crazy.
Definitely teleportation. Wings would require more money for a new wardrobe.
If not that, or better yet in addition to it, I’d also like to be able to do things a la Samantha in “Bewitched”. Always irritated me that she had these cool abilities and chose to do things by hand like a mundane. I won’t even discuss the drip she married.
I’ve always wanted the ability to duplicate another person’s skills by touching them. Learn a bunch of languages, get super good at anything and everything, and without all of that pesky learning process.
Super speed. I want to be able to do things like cleaning faster, because they are sooooo boriinnnggg!
Totally would want to be able to teleport. I would also want to be able to bring people and goods along with me.
Because….free TRAVEL!!!
your request is so vague. for a special ability while I continue to be me, going about my day job, something like Troi’s empathic abilities. for super hero powers, control of elemental forces. for magical abilities, I want to be Granny Weatherwax, or Harry Dresden, I can’t decide. Stuff your Potterworld.
Time dilation. Speed up when things are boring and slow down when I need extra prep time. That would be the most useful in real life, I think; if I were choosing based purely on fun, I think I’d like flight, because it would be so awesome.
Full-on biokinesis: the ability to alter my DNA in order to manipulate my appearance. This wouldn’t be shapeshifting, per se, as I wouldn’t be attempting to look like other people, but simply altering my appearance depending on the whim of the day. (Think Milla Jovovich in “Ultraviolet” or Scarlett Johansson in “Lucy”; both movies have scenes where the characters change their hair color with a thought.) I have small boobs, so… I want to experience life with bigger boobs? A few tweaks and done! I feel like playing up my one aspect of my heritage, say my Irish blood, and want long, spiral-curled flame red hair and emerald green eyes? No problem? Another day, maybe I’m feeling slightly more exotic and wish to sport straight, asymmetrically-cut silver hair and purple eyes? Easy-peasy, lemon-squeezey!
I just spent about 8 hours in the car with my kids. The ability to silence them would have come in really handy It would also be cool to communicate with animals.