Welcome Marva Dasef and Bad Spelling

BAD SPELLING – Book 1 of the Witches of Galdorheim
A klutzy witch, a shaman's curse, a quest to save her family. Can Kat find her magic in time?

by Marva Dasef
Blog: http://mgddasef.blogspot.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/MarvaDasef
Twitter Handle: @Gurina

Book Trailer: You Tube
Release date: October 14th MuseItUp
Buy Link: http://tinyurl.com/3daem4r



Bio: Marva Dasef is a writer living in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and a fat white cat. Retired from thirty-five years in the software industry, she has now turned her energies to writing fiction and finds it a much more satisfying occupation. Marva has published more than forty stories in a number of on-line and print magazines, with several included in Best of anthologies. She has several already published books of fantasy, science fiction, and mystery. A few more are scheduled for 2011 and 2012 from her super duper publisher, MuseItUp.

DESCRIPTION

If you’re a witch living on a remote arctic island, and the entire island runs on magic, lacking magical skills is not just an inconvenience, it can be a matter of life and death–or, at least, a darn good reason to run away from home.

Katrina’s spells don’t just fizzle; they backfire with spectacular results, oftentimes involving green goo. A failure as a witch, Kat decides to run away and find her dead father’s non-magical family. But before she can, she stumbles onto why her magic is out of whack: a curse from a Siberian shaman.

The young witch, accompanied by her warlock brother, must travel to the Hall of the Mountain King and the farthest reaches of Siberia to regain her magic, dodging attacks by the shaman along the way. At the Troll Kingdom, a young troll, Andy, joins the siblings in their quest to find the shaman and kill the curse.

Win a free ebook drawn from comments. Select either MG fantasy "Bad Spelling" or adult mystery "Missing, Assumed Dead."

Character – Aunt Thordis
Katrina's aunt, Thordis, is both harsh on her niece for her failings as a witch, and her biggest booster -- but never to Kat's face.

Thordis is the most powerful witch on Galdorheim, and the administrator for the practical day to day operations of an island that runs on magic. The witch population combine a share of their personal magic for the common good. Maintenance of the protective shield around the village, lighting, food production all make use of a touch of magic from every resident.

When Kat and Rune run off to find Kat's Siberian family, Thordis takes charge of what the witches will do. She has to make an alliancewith a very unfriendly witch, Mordita. Possibly, Thordis isn't the most powerful witch on the island after all.
Thordis is both regal and officious. She demands respect and brooks no nonsense. While the governance of the island falls on a council of witches, just about anything Thordis says is what gets done.

I picture Aunt Thordis as Dame Judi Dench the head of M6 in the James Bond films. Thordis is a bit younger, and her hair long but always done in an elaborate style. In that way, I'm reminded of Endora in the Bewitched series, except with blond hair, not red.

Excerpt shows Thordis at her bossy best, getting things done

“Order, please.” Thordis pounded the gavel on the table. “Come to order!” she shouted over the din of a roomful of witches and warlocks all talking at once.

From the back of the room, somebody shouted back, “Why should we do anything about a couple of runaway kids?”

“Because,” Thordis said, glaring at the warlock, “it takes a village, you nitwit. We’re all responsible for each other.” She paused until she had silence in the room. “Did Katrina and Rune make a bad decision? Yes. Did they put themselves in danger? Yes. Do they deserve to die because they’re silly kids? No!”

“What do you expect us to do?” asked a witch, sitting in the front row.

“That’s why we’re here, Gladis. To figure out what we should do. Now, I gave you the short version of what Mordita and I saw. Mordita, do you have anything to add?”

Mordita, who had joined Thordis at the Council, sat to Thordis’ right. She shook her head.

“Ardyth, would you like to say something?”

Kat’s mother rose from her chair on Thordis’ left and stared directly into the eyes of every witch and warlock in the room with a single glance.

“These are my children,” she began, her voice almost breaking, “and they’re in trouble. I’m asking for your help in getting them home safely. I would do the same for your children if the roles were reversed.” Ardyth bowed her head, struggling to control her emotions. A single tear ran down her cheek.

Many people in the audience, especially the ones with children, nodded their heads. The wave of sympathy in the room was almost palpable. Thordis took advantage of it.

“Quiet!” Thordis spoke over the renewed murmuring, rapping the gavel once more. “The floor is now open for suggestions.”