I am super excited to get to be a part of the blog tour for Lament by Laura L. Zimmerman today!
Lament is the second book in the Banshee Song Series, published by Love2ReadLove2Write Publishing, or L2L2 as they’re also called. Before I get into my review of Lament and my interview with Laura, here’s the description from Lament! Warning though: the description contains some spoilers for Keen!
**Description and cover image from L2L2**
Half-fae banshee, Caoine, is devastated by the loss of her father, and graduation is just around the corner. Ignorant of an old enemy seeking revenge, she is whisked away to the Unseelie Realm where she learns someone dear to her is being held captive. She vows not to go home until he’s free.
Then she finds out she’s trapped, unable to return to the human realm.
In order to go home, she must set aside old prejudices and work with a nemesis to survive faerie tricks and fae creatures hungry for human blood. Only then will she discover the secret to her escape and her loved one’s freedom.
Aided by an unlikely band of fae, she uncovers more about her banshee powers than she dreamed possible, even as the fae remind her just how human she really is.
She’ll take the drama of high school over the pettiness of the fae any day.
Lament released yesterday! So, if you want to buy yourself a copy, you can do so right now! Here are some links:
And here is the Goodreads link as well!
Now, for my mini review of Lament!
I liked how Lament took place in the Unseelie Realm. I was super excited to get to learn more about the realm of the Fae and to see what Laura was going to do with it. I do wish the Unseelie Realm had been explored and fleshed a little more though. Aside from the protagonists’ various hideouts and a town visited, most of the time is spent in the wild. I would have loved to get to explore more of the Unseelie Realm.
I really enjoyed how Eric played a really large part in the plot of Lament. I was kept on my toes wondering if he was somehow up to something. Also, Eric’s presence helped me as the reader not get too lost in the new world and characters; he was a character I already knew in addition to Caoine.
The new characters in Lament were fun and all had great dynamics with each other. The plot was nice, and definitely ends with a big set up for book 3, Silence!
Like in Keen, there is some romance and a few kisses. There is also non-descriptive violence.
As I said in the title of the post, I got to do an interview with Laura! Ready for some fun information about the Banshee Song Series?
What inspired the Banshee Song Series?
My middle daughter inspired the idea of Keen. She suggested I watch the TV show
Teen Wolf with her. In it there’s a character that’s a banshee. I had never seen a
show or read a book with a banshee in it. I couldn’t stop thinking about the ‘wha
if.’ What if a teenage banshee was in the local high school? What would her life be
like?
I also based the character of Caoine on my oldest daughter. There are certain
characteristics that Caoine has that definitely fit with my daughter! In some ways,
it made writing Caoine a little bit easier.
Cool!, So the Banshee Song Series pull on Irish lore. What inspired you to use Irish
lore?
It was the fact that I chose to use the banshee as my main focus. The banshee has
deep Irish roots. The more I researched the banshee, the more I gravitated toward
using more of the faerie lore, as well! Also, I adore Ireland and it’s at the top of my
bucket list to visit someday.
That’s awesome. I want to go to Ireland too!
What was the hardest part about writing Lament?
Keeping the beginning journey through the Unseelie Realm interesting. I knew
Caoine had to wander for a while but finding ways to create tension along the way
while making sure the necessary information was revealed was more difficult than
I thought!
What was the best part about writing Lament?
The world building, for sure! It was so fun creating an entire world just from my
imagination. I relied heavily on pictures from fantasy worlds to help find
inspiration. But I loved that there were no set rules for the world I was creating
since it was all fantasy to begin with.
World building is so fun! So what was the biggest difference between writing Keen and Lament?
For Keen I had a clear picture of the entire story and what needed to happen before
I started writing. For Lament, I had a solid beginning and ending, with direction of
what needed to happen in the middle to move things along, but I didn’t have the
entire thing planned out. This resulted in a few more revisions/rewrites for Lament.
But I’m very happy with the final story, so all of it was worth it!
That makes a lot of sense!
In Lament, most of the story takes place in the world of the Faerie, while
in Keen, the story takes place completely on Earth. Which setting did you
enjoy writing more?
It was easier to write Keen, since I could pull from my personal high school
experience. But it was a bit more fun to write Lament, simply because I got to do
so much world building. I had zero restrictions. If I wanted a waterfall, I just
whipped one up for the scene! And I loved getting to explore all the ways the
Unseelie Realm could be different from Earth.
Which character in the Banshee Song Series is your favorite?
That’s a tough one. I’m attached to all of them for one reason or another. But if I
had to pick, I’d say Aubree! I based her personality on one of my good friends, so
maybe that’s why? I just adore her fun loving attitude. Her dialogue comes most
naturally to me, too.
Can you give us any hints about what might happen in book 3, Silence?
While Lament introduces a number of new characters, some of our old favorites
are left behind in the Mortal Realm. In Silence we’ll get to see all the characters
come together to work for a common cause. It should be, ahem, interesting to
see how they all get along! wink
And now everyone is super curious about what’s going to happen in Silence! 🙂
What piece of advice would you give to all aspiring writers?
Celebrate the small things. The road to publication can be long and discouraging at
times. If your idea of success is based only on once you’re published, it might feel
easier to quit when things get hard. (Especially with rejections!) Allowing yourself
to see success in the small things–writing everyday for a week, finishing a first
draft or revision, writing a guest post on a fellow writer’s blog, speaking to a group
about your writing journey–can help lift your spirits and inspire you to keep
writing!
I love that advice!
What is something about the publishing process that you were surprised
by?
The amount of time I needed to invest until the finished product was complete.
There are so many moving parts and all those decisions are made between myself
and my editor/publisher. Everytime I felt like I was done, I’d have a new round of
decisions to make or things to work on for the editing process or upcoming release.
It is exhausting but also one of the most rewarding things I’ve ever had the chance
to do! hearty eyes
Where is the best place for readers to connect with you online?
I love catching up with readers! You can find me on Instagram
@lauralzimmauthor, Twitter @lauralzimm, Facebook @authorLLZimmerman, and
on Pinterest and Goodreads under my author name! I’ve also got my Caffeinated
Fiction blog at lauralzimmerman.com, where I make bigger announcements.
Thanks so much for having me visit Hailey! I had a great time getting to talk all
things Lament! tosses more confetti
Thank you so much Laura! It was great to get to talk to you about the Banshee Song Series, Lament, and writing!
Tomorrow, head over to Michele Israel Harper’s website to learn about the online launch party for Lament!
Hailey Huntington 
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