About the Book
Title: Beware Mohawks Bearing Gifts (The Cove Chronicles Book One)
Author: SA Collins
Publisher: NineStar Press
Publication Date: Monday, October 28, 2019
Format: eBook, Paperback
Price: $6.99 eBook
Length: 140K
Cover Artist: SA Collins
Category: SciFi, Native American, Alt-Universe/Earth, Queer Romance
Tags: SciFi as Magic, Myth Becomes Reality, Native American Centric Cast, Iroquoian Mythology, Mohawk Culture/Language, 1800s,
Warnings: Boy Brothel, child prostitution, violence
Series: The Cove Chronicles
Purchase Links
Publisher | Amazon | Amazon paperback | Barnes and Noble | Smashwords
Synopsis
It’s 1847, New York. William Matthias Hallett is a fashionable dandy of the Manhattan social set. His life is laid out before him: a world of soirees, riches and luxury. Yet all he wants to do is find an adventure so deliciously wicked that it would satiate his soul for an eternity. So, disguised in a lower-class manner, into the notorious Five Points he goes, seeking that spark of adventure. That is until it greets him in the form of his old schoolmates from Dartmouth College – a pair of Mohawk warriors who will up-end his world and all he knew it to be forever.
Series Blurb:
Set in an alternative Earth that deviates from our own known timeline, William Matthias Hallett, a Mohawk/British New York socialite and dandy, who wants very little to do with his upper-crust Manhattan set, sets out to the notorious Five Points, seeking an adventure so decidedly wicked to satiate him for a lifetime. He gets far more than he bargains for when he crosses paths with two Mohawk warriors from their days at Dartmouth college. Thrust into an unseen war that the Mohawks and the rest of the Haudenosuanee Confederacy has been fighting for over 600 years, William must come to terms with his maternal heritage that is pressing ever forward as their newly created sovereign nation rapidly expands, isolating the burgeoning United States along the eastern seaboard and now reaching a boiling point with the new Americans. Central to this sci-fi adventure is the creation story of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy where myth becomes reality in ways that William can scarcely imagine.
Review
SA Collins had me at “hello” with this book. All I had to do was read the blurb to be sure I wanted to read the rest of the book. And the promise of a whole series? Sign me up.
(Please do note before I begin that I cannot speak to the elements of Native mythology and culture because I’m not Native myself. But I don’t believe that means I can’t read, enjoy the tale, and relate to the characters. I am, however, from New York, and anything set in my neck of the woods that includes some of our history is super cool in my opinion.)
On the whole, the novel delivers on its promises. It’s centered on Native American people, mythology, and worldview, from an #OwnVoices perspective. The characters are solid, well-written and fully fleshed out. Even minor characters give me the impression they have a story to tell. The heavy character development is this book’s strongest point.
I also love that it’s a historical novel that largely feels like it comes from the era in which it’s set. Too often, books set in the past still read in a “voice” that sounds contemporary. Will, the first person narrator, speaks and thinks like he belongs in 1847. I did spot a couple of anachronisms that can’t be attributed to the book being alt-history, but I think they’re forgivable and not really of much importance. (Someone more familiar with the era may have a different opinion, of course.)
Blended genre stories are my weakness, and that was something else I enjoyed. The different elements of historical, fantasy, science fiction, romance, and literary fiction are intertwined nicely. The world-building is excellent. There are a few times when it does border on info-dumping, which slows down the pace somewhat. But otherwise, it’s done well, and the prose is absolutely gorgeous.
Speaking of pacing, I think that’s probably the book’s one big weakness. It’s inconsistent. Sometimes we get long passages that describe the setting, and other times we get lightning-speed action with little explanation. It didn’t exactly bother me, but it was noticeable. I would like to hope it will smooth out as the series continues.
Overall, I feel this book does as advertised on the cover, and I think the author does an admirable job bringing to us what I sense he set out to do. A first novel in a planned series is often a little uneven as it sets the stage, so I find any flaws to be outweighed by the positives.
For a fresh storyline, excellent writing, and an intriguing start to the series, I give this 8 fountain pens.
Excerpt
He leaned against the doorway with a slight smile upon his face and placed the message from my sister onto the desk nearest the door.
“So, are you planning to sleep upon the floor, or will you nest down in the kitchen?”
“Just be glad the bed I have in your room is large enough for us both. You will just have a bed mate until we can rectify the situation downstairs.”
“I could always sleep on your sofa in the receiving room, Will.”
“Certainly not. If I am anything, I am a superb host. I will not have you attempting to recline on a sofa that is barelysufficient to sit upon, let alone gain some much-needed rest.”
“Fancy little Indian, are you not?” He indicated the quality of my nightshirt and dressing robe.
“I walk in two worlds now; allow me my fashionable proclivities,” I replied as I began to change out of my clothing and into the nightshirt. For a few moments he stood there shaking his head and smirking at my nightly routine, though I did detect a blush moving across his face as I got down to my undergarments. As I pulled my shirt over my head, I noted he had slipped into the spare bedroom.
I carried the nightshirt and robe over to the spare room to join him as he began to slip off his leggings and mocs. After he shucked his shirt, I paused to appreciate the simple utility of the Haudenosaunee male wardrobe. Moments later, Joss changed from the comfort of his daily outfit into a simple loincloth suitable for sleeping, and here I struggled withovergarments, shirts, pants, undergarments, and various pieces that served only as ornamentation. I began to question for the first time the intelligence of my way of dress.
::But you wear your clothing so well. I do not judge your choice of them. This is simply what I know and have grown comfortable using. Why are you curious as to our way of dress?::
::Well, I suppose I should gain a better understanding of our people’s ways. I feel I know so little about my Mohawk life. I assume I can lean on you for that. Unless you find me a lost cause.::
::Will, have no doubt. You are Mohawk; your lineage is clear. You just have not had much in the way of guidance in our way of life. You can always turn to me for that.::
“Thank you. I cannot tell you how much that means to me. Since I came into this whole new world of the Guardians and Flintlings, I have felt little more than a leaf upon the raging river, with little hope of purchase with which to grant me some sense of security. You have provided the security I desperately need.”
“Wait here…” He gated out of the room, though to where, simply wearing his loincloth for protection against the elements, was beyond me. I did not have to wait long as he returned within a few moments with a beaded side bag in his hand. He threw it upon the bed and began to rummage through it. He extracted a beaded belt and a tightly rolled piece of blood-red cloth.
“Get out of that precious royal swaddling you have encased yourself in,” he chided me as he unrolled the cloth, revealing it to be about the length of the loincloth he was wearing. I realized he had retrieved his spare clothing, though from where I was uncertain.
Reading my musings, he replied, “I have spare clothing set aside in various places. I can retrieve them when needs arise. These shall be yours now.” He indicated the bag on the bed as much as the belt and loincloth he held.
“Oh, Joss…” I gasped, filled with awe at his offering, knowing that to refuse would deeply mar our new relationship. Not something I was willing to risk, given our being inextricably bound to each other.
Forgetting my near nakedness, I knelt upon the bed, running gentle fingers over them, and watched as he completed the folding around the back of the belt. A small smile broke over his face, bringing his eyes to light. Clearly,he was most happy in his offering. I only wished I had something to offer in exchange. As if hearing my thoughts, hehad a reply. “Just your wearing it will be more than enough,” he murmured as he handed me the garment. “Come, let us have you try it on.”
“I am afraid you will have to help me out a bit.”
Shortly thereafter, I found myself wearing my first Mohawk loincloth. My slightly burnished alabaster skin, with a dusting of freckles along my muscular shoulders that mellow as they wend their way over my bare torso, standing in stark contrast to the rich colored fabric of the loincloth.
He placed two gentle hands on my shoulders as we regarded my reflection in the mirror. I felt him course along our link with such gratitude and care that I was undone by his gesture.
Joss beamed, watching me take root in my heritage, pleased he could do this for me. After sheathing myself in some of the finest material and clothing the world could offer, I was amazed at how much comfort, both in movement and luxury, this simple natural garment afforded me.
He pulled out the leggings, a pair of mocs, and a shirt. After another few moments, I was fully clothed in my maternal heritage clothing. A sense of pride seemed to swell within me that I had not anticipated. I nearly wept from the sensation. I know Joss did not miss my eyes misting up from the transformation at his hands.
“Joss, I never knew just how comfortable these really are.”
“You wear them well; as if you were born to them,” he added with a bright grin, no doubt pleased with himself.
I paused, turning this way and that, before bringing Joss into a tight embrace, so thankful for his offering. He moved his head from my shoulder to place my forehead against his, his hands on either side of my face, gently holding methere.
::Like this, Ohnehta’kowa. When it matters most, this is how we share that moment.::
I nodded, thankful for his teaching and his generosity. I knew, being so linked with him, our intimacy would be something I needed to embrace and let flow. It was a part of who we are. If I were truly honest, I longed for it to go on into the night; spending this singular touching moment with him and to share it thusly shattered what I knew about myself and the world around me. Joss sensed this and gradually broke contact between us. I felt bewildered and in a slight stuporfor the loss of him. I needed to regroup.
“Yes, well, now to bed, eh?”
Interview
How did you choose the topic for this book?
This book was a long time in coming to life. In fact, I have been toying with the idea for well over 15 years. It has had many, many, many, revisions and iterations over those years. The inspiration came from two main sources: 1) I wanted to tell a tale with American Indians at the core of it and I knew it had to be sci-fi, because we’re always seen as the shaman, the alcoholic, or mystic, but not as people who struggle just like everyone else; and 2) I wanted to write a tale for my granddaughter with a young female protagonist who is at the core of the story. I started writing this during the first year of her life. Now, at seventeen, she is of an age to read such a tale. Secondly, I wanted to have my native characters have something monumental to push against. So, it had to be on an epic scale. Star Wars or Lord of the Rings, epic.
I decided that the creation myths were a good place to start. It begins with Skywoman and her twin sons, Spruce and Flint. There are three sections to this series – I’ve sort of outlined (I am a pantser by nature) – three books to each section, totaling nine altogether. The first three, of which Beware Mohawks Bearing Giftsis the first in the entire series, is set in 1847 New York city—in a world very much like our own, but not. It is a parallel universe where things did not transpire as they did here. So, it will be both familiar and off kilter for readers at the same time.
How would you describe your writing style/genre?
As a professional actor/stage performer (under a different name) for most of my life, character has always been front and center to my work. It was my husband who identified that my works (which are usually in first person) are really character studies—where the whys and wherefores of the characters’ actions, their perceptions and misconceptions, are central to the story—almost to the point of being more important than what the story is about.
To a great degree, this is central to my works. I am also fairly obsessed with father/son relationships. In one way or another, this familial dynamic is a focus of my works.
Were you a voracious reader as a child?
Yes, and one book more than any other was at the forefront, D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths. I checked that book out every week from the school library from the fourth grade to the sixth. Thirty years later, my brother sent me the book for my birthday. It was one of the most heartfelt moments my brother created for me. Proof positive, that thoughtful gifts are always better than overly expensive ones.
What’s your core motivation in this book?
That native characters can be front and center to an epic sci-fi adventure saga. They don’t have to be told from a “white man’s perspective” to engage the reader. If I’ve done my job right, any reader from any background should find commonalities within the characters they can identify with. We aren’t the stoic “Injins.” I also wanted the myths of the Haudenosaunee (aka Iroquois) Confederacy (Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca and Tuscarora), to be at the core of the work. Hopefully, readers will find this world engaging in a way they might not imagine.
It is the road not taken. Not many people know or were taught that when the American Revolution ended, Britain promised the Haudenosaunee for their services to the British crown that they would secure a sovereign native nation during the drafting of the Treaty of Paris. At the last minute, they reneged on that promise. This series deals with the ‘what if’ scenario. What if a sovereign Native nation was established as originally promised? What would that nation look like? How would it interact with other nations on the world stage? That’s at the core of this work. The relations between the newly formed United States and the Akwe:kon nation are not at their best. There is mounting tension that adds a whole other level of drama to the story. Historical sci-fi, what could be better?
Tell us one thing hardly anyone knows about you.
True story: Cher (yes, that Cher) thinks I am a broken gay. Piqued your interest yet?
It all began when I worked for a company here in San Francisco, where I live/work, and one of my co-workers, and great friend, Laura, was dating (then) Chas Bono. I got to know Chas (now, Chaz) a bit through Laura. One weekend Laura called me from Cher’s Malibu house because Cher was having a technical issue with her MacBook. As I am a trained systems engineer in the IT industry, I helped Laura walk through how to get Cher’s computer back up and running. Laura told me that Cher was pleased and wanted to know how much she owed me. I was only too happy to assist and told Laura to tell her that there was no charge. I was just glad I was there to assist.
She said Cher said thanks and I thought that was the end of it. A few days later, when Laura had come back to SF from LA, she informed me that Cher wanted to do something for me for being kind to help her out. I told her it wasn’t necessary. Laura asked if I wanted some piece of memorabilia (she suggested autographed lingerie or something along those lines). I laughed and said no, I am totally fine with just helping out. Evidently Laura called Cher later that day and relayed my message and supposedly Cher asked her, “Is he a broken gay?”
Laura knew I had a very favorite cookie from a local SF baker so she told Cher I might like a cookie from there and gave her the number to the bakery. Cher had her assistant call and had 200 of my favorite cookies sent within the hour of Laura’s call to Cher. There’s more to the story, but that’s the gist of it.
About the Author
SA “Baz” Collins hails from the San Francisco Bay Area where he lives with his husband and Zorro, a character of a cat. A classically trained singer/actor (under a different name), Baz knows a good yarn when he sees it.
Based on years of his work as an actor, Baz specializes in character study pieces. It is more important for him that the reader comes away with a greater understanding of the characters and the reasons they make the decisions they do, rather than the situations they are in. It is this deep dive into their manners, their experiences and how they process the world around them that make up the body of Mr. Collins’ work.
Social Media
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Giveaway
SA Collins is giving away a $20 Amazon gift card with this tour. For a chance to win, enter via Rafflecopter:
