Leaders: a Twin-Bred novel - Release Day Alert

You might remember my reviews of Twin-Bred and Reach, the first two books in the Twin-Bred series. They are both beautiful and thought-provoking. So I'm happy to tell you the third book is out today!

And for those who haven't started this series yet, you can now get all three books in a boxed set.

Beware: the blurb of Leaders might contain spoilers if you haven't read the previous books.


Leaders: a Twin-Bred novel
by Karen A. Wyle

They fled Tofarn and found a new home. Should they care what happens to the old?

The Twin-Bred are finally ready to welcome visitors to New Landing, the planet on which they settled after their exodus from Tofarn. They have invited Lan-sol, child of the only Tofa Twin-Bred still on Tofarn, to cross the galaxy through the same wormhole that channels communications between the two planets. But suddenly, all communication becomes impossible.

Lan-sol must decide whether to venture into the now-silent unknown. And the Twin-Bred must ask themselves whether the fate of those they left behind is important enough to justify a return to the planet they once called home.




Find Karen A. Wyle on Amazon

Buy Leaders for Kindle here and the paperback here
Buy the boxed set for Kindle here

More information about the series, and buy links can be found here

Reach - Book Review

Reach (Twin-Bred, #2)
by Karen A. Wyle

What is it about:
Scientist Mara Cadell created the Twin-Bred -- pairs of fraternal twins, one human and one Tofa -- to bridge the profound and dangerous gap between the human colonists on Tofarn and the indigenous Tofa. Unexpectedly, it is the Tofa host mothers who now claim the capacity to bring peace between the two. The Twin-Bred themselves have been forced to abandon their mission and their planet, in the hope of finding a less hostile home. Only one pair remain behind, seeking to build new and separate lives with their
own kind.

But Mara and the Twin-Bred should know by now that plans provide little protection. New challenges are in store for all the Twin-Bred, and for those whose lives they touch.

What did I think of it:
A more than worthy sequel to Twin-Bred.

I will confess I had expected Reach to be completely about the humans and Tofa who left Tofarn to find a new world for themselves. So I was surprised when it turned out the story is as much about those left behind as it is about them. I was happy with this choice though as both the storyline set on Tofarn and the storyline following the travels of the space faring Twin-Bred are very suspenseful and intense.

The things happening on Tofan are a continuation of problems that started in Twin-Bred and it leads those of the twin-bred who decided to stay on Tofarn into danger. I really loved this storyline as it showed more of the Tofa and their culture.

Meanwhile the twin-bred who left Tofarn encounter their own problems and they have decisions to make that might have huge consequences. Wyle does a great job in showing how some things are universal and that the best solution to your problems is facing them.

Overall this is a compelling story about acceptance and trust. About the importance of trying to understand each other and accepting each others differences. This story shows we’re a long way from reaching these goals, but it also shows we can learn. All in all I enjoyed this book and I wouldn't mind when Wyle decides to write more books in this series.

Why should you read it:
It’s a compelling SciFi read.


Buy it from: Smashwords - Amazon US - Amazon UK

An Interview with Karen A. Wyle, Author of Twin-Bred

Today I have a special guest: Karen A. Wyle.

Karen is the author of Twin-Bred, an original and thought provoking SciFi story. You can read my review of Twin-Bred here.

Karen was kind enough to answer some question about herself and her book.


Did you always want to be a writer? If not what did you want to be?
I don't remember exactly when I first decided that I would be a writer. Our local paper published a poem of mine in some sort of kids'-writing column when I was in 3rd grade, but I don't know whether I submitted it -- my teacher may have done so. By age 10, I was determined to be the youngest ever published novelist. I was in the middle of writing the novel when I learned that some upstart 9-year-old in England had got there first. I was quite miffed, but finished the novel nonetheless. (It was a very strange mish-mash, as I recall. I haven't dared to look at it in quite a few years....)

Did you have to do a lot of research on twins for Twin-Bred?
I didn't do a great deal of research especially for the book. I've been interested in twins for many years, so I came to the subject with some background. I did look at some material on womb twin survivors when I first came up with the idea of Mara and Levi.

Will there be any zombies in one of your future books?
I doubt it.

(comment from Sullivan: That's not a definite no, so I'll keep hoping ;-) )


If you could start a new colony on another planet what would you name it?
I might follow the lead of the human colonists in Twin-Bred. All the human towns on Tofarn are named after science fiction writers. I did this as my own tribute to those writers and to science fiction writers in general, but I also thought it possible that humans who were realizing the dreams of science fiction writers and readers might make such a gesture. As to which one: I'd probably pick the Grand Old Man himself, and name the colony
Heinlein.

What can we expect from you in the future? ie More books of the same genre? Books of a different genre?
I hope to start on the sequel to Twin-Bred later this fall, so that'll be more science fiction. I have a sci fi story in rough draft that may be the starting point for a collection of linked stories. My other rough draft is general fiction, if a book taking place in the afterlife fits in that category. (It is not religious fiction. It focuses on family dynamics and the confronting of unfinished business; I created an afterlife with features that assist in the latter.)

I'd love to do historical fiction, but the amount of research involved is intimidating. It may happen.

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Thank you, Karen for answering these questions.
I'm looking forward to your next book.

Buy Twin-Bred at Smashwords
Buy it at Amazon
Buy it at Barnes & Noble

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What is Twin-Bred about:
In Twin-Bred, the human colony on Tofarn and the indigenous Tofa have great difficulty communicating with and basically comprehending each other. Scientist Mara Cadell, who lost a fraternal twin in utero, proposes that host mothers of either or both species carry twins, one human and one Tofa, in the hope that the bond between twins can bridge the gap between species. Mara has secretly kept her own twin, Levi, alive in her mind as a companion and collaborator.

Mara succeeds in obtaining governmental backing for her project – but both the human and Tofa establishments have their own agendas. Mara must shepherd the Twin-Bred through dangers she anticipated and others that even the canny Levi could not foresee. Will the Twin-Bred bring peace, war, or something else entirely?...

Twin-Bred - Book Review

Twin-Bred by Karen A. Wyle

What is it about:
In Twin-Bred, the human colony on Tofarn and the indigenous Tofa have great difficulty communicating with and basically comprehending each other. Scientist Mara Cadell, who lost a fraternal twin in utero, proposes that host mothers of either or both species carry twins, one human and one Tofa, in the hope that the bond between twins can bridge the gap between species. Mara has secretly kept her own twin, Levi, alive in her mind as a companion and collaborator.

Mara succeeds in obtaining governmental backing for her project – but both the human and Tofa establishments have their own agendas. Mara must shepherd the Twin-Bred through dangers she anticipated and others that even the canny Levi could not foresee. Will the Twin-Bred bring peace, war, or something else entirely?...

What did I think of it:
An original and beautifully written SciFi story.

Twin-Bred is written in a calm, narritive, almost detached tone of voice which fits this story about a scientific experiment really well. The story is really intriguing and I couldn't stop reading as I wanted to find out where this experiment would lead and what would happen to the human and Tofa children who were brought in to the world. Would they really be able to make a difference?

The Tofa are interesting and well worked out aliens. Wyle really succeeded in making them likeable, but at the same time mysterious and a bit creepy. As the story focuses on the humans and the Twin-Bred children, the 'real' Tofa stay mysterious, their actions strange and seemingly dual in nature and they act as a possible threat throughout the experiment.

In a way this story reminded me of Čapek's 'War with the Newts', not surprising as both stories shine a light on how humans treat each other and where we go wrong. But where Čapek's view is a grim one, Wyle still leaves some hope that we as a species might one day see the light.

All in all a beautiful, thought provoking tale.
I will keep an eye out for Wyle's next book.

Why should you read it:
It's an original and beautiful SciFi read.


Buy this ebook at Smashwords
Buy it at Amazon
Buy it at Barnes & Noble

Keep an eye on this blog for an interview with Karen A. Wyle somewhere next week.