Book Trailer Spotlight: The Wars Between by Lee Mavin

 

For centuries there had been an ongoing war between Asalandia, the proud monarchy of the east and Kastanair the progressive democracy of the west. However, the years of war would end with the most unlikely turn of events.

Outis Everrett, the disappointment of his family, a measly poet, is suddenly thrusted into an epic adventure across the sea, with the King’s blessing. His poem, the poem that somehow won the first annual Asalandian poetry competition, was meant to be taken across the seas, to the enemy island of Kastanair, there, it would be read by the President of Kastanair, the newly elected and very progressive, Penelope Chinwa and she was supposed stop the war after reading those so special words.

So Outis set sail aboard the Golden ship, guided and protected by the Knights of Sunrise and their adventures began. The Knights are led by Bartholemew Aries, the most famous soldier in Asalandia, though when their ship drifts off course to the mysterious island of Aquos Atalantious, the Princess of the island soon lures him to stay. So, the Knights of Sunrise become distracted by the beauties of this foreign island.  After failing to find the prince, who had been taken by a monstrous octopus, the Golden ship sails onto Kastanair, without its leader, who had fallen in love with the Princess. They then sail to Syanthia, where the worlds’ meat was produced. There they meet, the young Kastanairian, Gwenia Xiachung, an enthusiastic vegan on a mission to stop everyone eating meat. Outis is thrown into a pig saving mission with Gwenia and is intrigued by the young girl. After saving the pigs and convincing the head of meat production to change his ways with a beautiful poem about animal empathy, Gwenia falls in love with Outis. She joins him and the Knights of Sunrise on the voyage to back to her country, Kastanair. Once they finally reach the shores of Kastanair, they are attacked on the shores by a small army, led by Caslian Jesper, the tough captain who worked his soldiers to exhaustion. The Knights, Outis and Gwenia are rescued by Nastab and his band of terrorists who take them on horseback through Kastanair to Mount Xian. Nastab and his men come from a rebel group who had been dwelling on the plateau of Mount Xian, plotting to overthrow the government of Kastanair. However, their leader, who had driven their group to crimes and violence, was hoarding their food and treasure.

Caslian Jesper follows the terrorists to Mount Xian, in pursuit of two of his enemies at once, the terrorists and the Asalandians. Outis and Gwenia are suddenly taken off their horses by huge hawks, who fly them up Mount Xian, to a cave opening. There Gwenia and Outis meet The Tall Man, a strange man with huge black eyes who has no name. He takes them into the cave, and they fall more tall people. There they learn that the tall people had been in the caves for hundreds of years and they care not for treasures of war. The tall man collects water from an underground stream and fruits from the cave roofs and they take Outis and Gwenia up to the top of the mountain. There they find Caslian’s army had managed to climb to the top of the mountain in attempt to attack but they were too drained to fight so the tall man shared his fruit with them. Both sides rested as Outis read a poem to the leader of the terrorists.

Outis and Gwenia are then taken to the capital, by an eclectic group including Nastab, The Tall Man and the Knights of Sunrise, they journey through the planes of Kastanair where they are attacked by wolves. The Knights and Nastab fight the wolves off valiantly and they continue. When they finally reach the capital Outis reads his poem to the President, but it is not the words of his poem alone that convince her to stop the war, it is the group he brings with him, a group of once enemies, who had come together with the same goal. 

╰┈➤Book Details

• Genre: YA Fantasy
• Language:English
• Pages: 300

To find out how to purchase this book, visit https://a.co/d/02udA4rM. 

Lee J Mavin is the author of 11 books. He is also a teacher and father. He has a Masters in Creative Writing and am solely focused on writing fiction (fantasy and horror) and poetry. He is now in collaboration the illustrator Karolina Piotrowski, a Polish artist who has brought many stories to life. He has worked and studied in China and Japan and studied with Dr Xiaohuan Zhao (a master of Chinese poetry) to complete his book Li Bai’s Shadow, at the University of Sydney. He has two children who are both avid readers, so he is always in the loop with trends in children’s fiction. He is married and lives in Sydney, where he teaches English.

His latest book is the YA fantasy, The Wars Between.

Visit his website at leejmavin.com. 

Connect with him on social media at:

╰┈➤ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lee.mavin.925/ 

╰┈➤ Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/mavin798 

╰┈➤ Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5103759.Lee_J_Mavin

╰┈➤ TikTok ➜ https://www.tiktok.com/@leemavin4  

📖Authors To Watch: Marie McGaha, Author of Your Ghost: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Echoes That Remain #authorstowatch #interview

 

  

Marie McGaha is an award-winning writer whose work includes clean historical romances, Christian devotionals, and heartfelt children’s books. A storyteller at her core, she weaves faith, resilience, and gentle humor through every page she writes.

She makes her home in southeast Oklahoma, in the foothills of the Ouachita Mountains, where life is anything but quiet. Her days are shared with four spoiled dogs, a crippled rooster with more attitude than feathers, a noisy guinea who believes it runs the place, a couple of flighty hens, and a watchful roo who keeps an eye on everything that moves. This lively little farm—equal parts sanctuary and circus—provides endless inspiration, companionship, and the kind of grounding only God’s creation can offer.

Whether she’s crafting a tender love story, guiding readers through Scripture, or bringing the Bible to life for children through animal characters, Marie writes with a voice shaped by faith, loss, healing, and the stubborn hope that refuses to let go. Her work reflects the heart of a woman who has walked through fire and come out carrying stories worth telling.

You can also join her for daily devotionals on YouTube at @HeReignsChurch, where she shares encouragement, Scripture, and the steady reminder that hope is still alive. You can contact her by email: church.hereigns@gmail.com. 

Marie’s latest book is Your Ghost: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Echoes That Remain.

Visit her blog at authormariemcgaha.blogspot.com. 

Connect with her on social media at:

╰┈➤ Facebook: www.facebook.com/AuthorMarieMcGaha

╰┈➤ LinkedIn: Linkedin.com/in/mariemcgaha 

Can you tell us a little about yourself?

I’ve been a writer since I was a kid and had no idea how to write but I always knew I was a writer. I have written several books in different genres from historical romance to Christian non-fiction, children’s books, and now my latest book, Your Ghost. I have many grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Can you tell us about your latest book, Your Ghost: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Echoes That Remain?

This book is by far the most personal and emotionally honest book I’ve ever written. The death of my husband, Nathan, wrecked me. I hadn’t been single since I was 28 years old, and now, in my 60’s, I was single. Losing him was the most difficult thing I’ve ever had to face, so I began writing notes here and there, trying to purge the emotions and pain, and eventually, I had 600 pages of notes. One day, while looking them over, I thought maybe I wasn’t writing just my feelings but maybe others felt the same way and maybe what I went through would help them too.

Is Your Ghost: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Echoes That Remain your only book?

No, I’ve been writing since long before there were computers in the home and the internet was a dream in someone’s mind. I have written many books in several genres from historic romance to non-fiction devotionals, to children’s books.

Now, can you tell us a little bit about your soulmate that prompted you to write this book?

Nathan is the best man I’ve ever known, then and now. He had never been married, had no children, yet married me with five kids at home and took on the role of being the support of the family like he’d always been with us. He didn’t just marry me, he married us all and took the responsibility very seriously. I was always the most important person in his life and he did everything within his power to make sure I was happy and we all had everything we needed. He was my biggest fan, best support, and loved me like I was the only woman on earth. And he was impossible at the same time. He teased me like we were children on a schoolyard. He played jokes on me, irritated me, which made him happy, and he played with the kids like he was their age. I’ll tell you a little story about him. We lived in the mountains of Idaho and our son-in-law came up the night before to help get wood split for the winter. The next morning at breakfast, I had made sausage, scrambled eggs and pancakes. We sat at the table and Nathan and our sil filled their plates and began eating. Nathan went to put butter on his pancakes but it had just come out of the fridge and was hard, so he banged on it and then held the knife above the cube perfectly still. Our sil froze mid-bite, glanced at Nathan, then at me as if he expected something terrifying to happen. I rolled my eyes as I picked up the butter dish and stuck it in the microwave for a few seconds, then placed it back on the table under Nathan’s knife that was still hanging in the air waiting. He never looked at me or changed expressions, he just buttered his pancakes as if nothing had happened and continued eating. Our sil glanced at Nathan and then at me and slowly began eating again. He was truly a unique man and I will love him forever.

In your book, you discover that grief is not a straight line but a sacred, winding path. Can you explain this?

Grief is not a linear pattern but rather, comes in waves, in varying degrees, and can be any shape you imagine. Even when you think you have a grip on it, something can trigger it and it’ll hit you as if it’s the first time, or it can be a soft hit that you can shake off. It has no limit, no pattern, and no mercy. It is like a nightmare you can’t wake from, and then, sometimes, it’s a fleeting thought. It rips you apart, tears out your heart, assaults your soul, and takes a long time to abate. You never know when it will hit next, how hard it’s going to be, if it’s going to knock you over, or just push a button or two. It comes in varying degrees, at times you least expect it, and refuses to let you go. The one thing I’m sure of is that it never goes away, it never gives peace, it’s just a constant reminder that the biggest part of your life is gone and isn’t coming back no matter how much you cry, beg, or bargain with God.

God played a huge role in helping you to handle your grief. If there were something you could tell him right now, what would that be?

I thank God every day that I’m still here and that He is pulling me through day by day. He is the only reason I survived this long and I am grateful, which wasn’t always the case. In those early months, the whole first year really, I didn’t want to be here. I wanted to be with my husband and I tried. Grief causes insanity. And I had a huge dose of it. I railed at God for taking my husband, knowing how it would affect me, knowing it would wreck me, knowing I couldn’t survive without Nathan. I begged God to bring my husband back. Certainly, if God could make Adam from a handful of dirt, He could bring my husband back from a handful of ashes. Instead, He gave me 2 Corinthians 4. I read it and read it and read it probably twenty or thirty times a day. I still read it because it still gives me hope and strength to get through one more day without Nathan.

Thank you so much for this interview, Marie. What’s next for you?

Thank you for having me. I’m writing another children’s book that I hope will out this fall. This one is for my sister’s two granddaughters and I hope they like it!

Where to purchase the book:

https://a.co/d/0hXo8ni2

Where to find Marie McGaha

https://authormariemcgaha.blogspot.com/

YouTube @HeReignsChurch

 

 

 

Your Ghost: A Memoir of Love, Loss and the Echoes That Remain is a searing, faith-anchored memoir of love, loss, and the long road back to oneself. When Marie’s husband dies without warning, her world fractures in an instant, leaving her to navigate the brutal, unfiltered landscape of grief. In the quiet of an empty house and the chaos of a shattered heart, she wrestles with God, memory, and the haunting presence of the man she can no longer touch but cannot let go.

Told with unflinching honesty and spiritual depth, Your Ghost traces the intimate, day-by-day unraveling and rebuilding of a woman who refuses to let tragedy define the rest of her life. As she confronts guilt, loneliness, anger, and the strange moments when his nearness feels almost tangible, Marie discovers that grief is not a straight line but a sacred, winding path. What emerges is a story not only of devastation, but of resilience—a testament to enduring love, stubborn hope, and the quiet miracles that carry us forward when we think we cannot take another step.