The Second Tale Coming Soon

The Tales of Tanglewood:
The Curse of Satyr Stump

Colin, Blood of the Fey, returns to Tanglewood shortly before Sahwen night, a time when the magic of the 'wood has a strange effect on all things within it. Things have entered the ‘wood that should not be there, and the pathways are no longer safe.

The blackberries have spoiled, a pooka roams the ‘wood, and a strong calling pulls Colin close to Satyr Stump, where Fionn the satyr has been cursed by Grainne, the Grey Lady.

Tasked to face the dark druidess and help break the curse upon Fionn, Colin seeks help from the druid Bairtlemead Muffingrow, the ferrish Ailfrid, and the elfin girl Deidre. But it will be the satyr chieftain himself who joins Colin, seeking to help restore another piece of Tanglewood that has been claimed by deiney corruption.

But the Grey Lady will not yield so easily, and Colin and Fionn are both nearly powerless in her domain. Colin learns very quickly that during Sahwen, Tanglewood can be a very dangerous place indeed.

Sahwen is the Gaelic pronunciation of Halloween, which is actually spelled "Samhain."

Visit the official Tales of Tanglewood website to download a preview of The Second Tale.

Book Review in the Improper North Shorian

Finally added the December review to the website

Tales of Tanglewood Facebook Group

The Tales of Tanglewood Facebook Group page can be found at this link

I-Con photos of the book signing and with Holly Black

It was my extreme pleasure to have read the Spiderwick Chronicles, happily consuming all five volumes one New Years Eve weekend three years ago at a hotel in upstate New York. I read most of them either sitting beside a fireplace or perched on a balcony, swaddled with blankets, while a gentle snowfall laid claim to the mountains in the distance. It was an experience I shall not soon forget, as the magic of the books, coupled with the magic of that weekend, was one of those precious moments in time which begs remembrance.

And so it was also a pleasure to find myself on a discussion panel this morning at a fantasy convention with the author of The Spiderwick Chronicles, Holly Black, as well as her author friend Jane Yolen. Our discussion covered Realms of Fantasy in both the past, present & future, and was entertaining and informative.

Holly signed my copies of The Spiderwick Chronicles, and I gave her and Jane signed copies of my own book.

My book signing at I-Con went very well, and the discussion panels I was a part of were very interesting and entertaining.

Guest Author at I-Con 28

I will be a guest author at I-Con 28 at SCCC Brentwood Campus, April 4th & 5th. I will be available to sign my book from 1pm - 2pm on Saturday, and will be on panels discussing fantasy and other subjects on both Saturday and Sunday, along with Spiderwick author Holly Black & others. (See the I-Con schedule for full details)

I-Con 28 website & schedule information

I've been interviewed by The Plot Cafe

Interview with Tales of Tanglewood Author-Scott Michael Kessman

Tales of Tanglewood now on Kindle

“What Do I Read After Harry Potter?” The Answer Now Available on the Kindle

Shortly after the release of the last Harry Potter novel, hundreds of thousands of readers with an appetite for more magical adventures were left asking “What do I read next?”

The Spiderwick Chronicles filled the void for younger readers, and Eragon sustained many in the young adult market, as did the Twilight series. But as those captivating novels and other series have also come to an end, or will not release any new additions for quite some time, there remains a void that still needs to be filled.

Enter The Tales of Tanglewood. Written by Long Island author Scott Michael Kessman, The Tales of Tanglewood: The Lon Dubh Whistle is the first in a new series of fantasy/folklore adventures surrounding a boy named Colin and his magical connection to a place called Tanglewood.

Tales of Tanglewood: The Lon Dubh Whistle melds together influences of Celtic and Irish mythology with modern-day folklore. Within its pages, readers will find the adventures of Colin, a child who is fully aware of the hidden world of myth and wonder hiding within the woods just beyond his home, long kept secret by old magic. Only the fey magic which runs through his veins has enabled him to find what others cannot; the Tanglewood, the wood within the woods. Full of odd characters and fey beings, the Tanglewood is a world of magnificent folklore come to life.

Several reviewers of The Tales of Tanglewood have likened it to Harry Potter and other popular fantasy series, recommending it as a suitable follow-up:

“How many of us were so involved with Harry Potter and his world that we were sad to come to the end of Book 7…There are so many fantastic series being published today. But which one to choose? The Tales of Tanglewood, I believe, is such a series.” – C. Aphrodite Spanos

“The descriptions paint a beautiful picture of Tanglewood and its creatures and there is plenty of the magical beauty that tends to enchant younger readers in the first place (you know, that same sort of magical beauty that drew us all into Harry Potter, except here it is the intrigue that grabs those younger readers).” - Shaun Duke "Arconna"

"Tales of Tanglewood" brought me the same type of enjoyment that I had when I was first introduced to Harry Potter. – Anonymous review

“It would not surprise me if this book became a cherished tale like that of Eragon.” – Ashley Sinatra

The Tales of Tanglewood: The Lon Dubh Whistle is available in most bookstores and online stores such as Amazon.com, and is now available on the Amazon Kindle as well, for a low introductory cost of $3.99.

The website, located at www.talesoftanglewood.com, includes additional information about the books and characters, and allows visitors to download the first three chapters of the first book, as well as the first three chapters of the second novel, due out in the latter part of 2009.