Welcome to our stop on Scott Tracey's MOONSET. Moonset is the first book in his new series called The Legacy of Moonset. This tour is hosted by Rockstar Book Tours and can be followed HERE. Today's stop is all about being a Witch on Moonset.
Scott Tracey is a YA author who lived on a Greyhound for a month, wrote his illustrated autobiography at the age of six, and barely survived Catholic school (and definitely not for the reasons you might think).
He is the author of WITCH EYES, chosen as one of Amazon’s Best LGBT Books of 2011, as well as an ALA Popular Paperback in the Forbidden Romance category. The final book in the WITCH EYES trilogy, PHANTOM EYES, will be released in the fall of 2013.
He is also the author of MOONSET, a new series which will be released April 8, 2013, as well as a contributor to the SHADOWHUNTERS & DOWNWORLDERS anthology, edited by Cassandra Clare.
His career highlights include: accidentally tripping a panic alarm which led to nearly being shot by the police; attacked in a drive-thru window by a woman wielding a baked potato, and once moving cross country for a job only to quit on the second day.
His gifts can be used for good or evil, but rather than picking a side, he strives for BOTH (in alternating capacity) for his own amusement.
Being a witch in Moonset
Being a witch in the Moonset world has the potential to be awesome, but it also comes with so many rules and regulations you might not like what you end up doing.
In the world of Moonset, magic is a language that only witches can hear and speak. But it's also about the way the words are spoken, the intent behind them. Magic is not just a "listen and repeat" kind of language, it contains many dimensions. No one ever really lives long enough to master ALL the spells out there. They just learn as much as they can.
Most kids aren't taught anything but the very basics until they're older. Childhood is all about rules and stories - grinding it into kids heads that magic cannot be exposed, and it should also not be abused. Witches have their own versions of fairy tales, the only difference is that all the stories that witches tell are based in actual fact. So they tell stories about Orpheus going to the Underworld to reclaim his bride, but what he ends up bringing back was the first wraith. Or they'll tell stories about the Pied Piper of Hamelin, but in their version he makes the children into serial murderers. Eventually witch kids grow up to find out that those monsters actually are real, and it's their responsibility to stop them.
By the time most children hit middle school, the magic lessons begin. Some kids start earlier than others, but the general rule is about seventh or eighth grade. Witches are taught in classrooms just like other kids, but they aren't graded on a flat scale. Teachers look for aptitudes - types of magic that the kids master easier than others. Everyone learns the same kinds of basics, but as kids gravitate towards one or more kinds of magic (like illusions, or spells that control others, or spells that affect inanimate objects) they get separated and tested more carefully on their skills.
As soon as they get some grounding under their belts, their lives are completely flipped around. Because there are so few witches (the war with Moonset caused lots of casualties), changes were made and now students are shipped across country to schools that are suited to their aptitudes. So kids good at combat magic end up going to D.C. while kids who are great at illusion spells head down south to Atlanta. As abilities are honed, students can be moved two or three times before graduating high school.
Magic itself is also heavily regulated. One of Moonset's goals had been destroying collections where magic and history were stored. They targeted private libraries filled with old spellbooks, as well as the existing magical government. In the aftermath, teaching the next generation of witches became crucially important. Now, the witch Congress oversees what kinds of magic are taught to students, and what kinds are forbidden. There are classes of spells that one must pass a test to learn, much like earning a driver's license. And whole branches of magic that will only be taught after a process much like applying to college. The stronger the spells, the more hoops to jump through.
And then comes the big divide. There are two kinds of witches in the Moonset world: those who practice magic by themselves, and those who are bound into a Coven. No one can control which
of these they fall into - some believe it's genetic, others believe there's a higher power calling the shots. But every so often, high school aged kids find themselves wrapped into a Coven of five to seven people - a bond that will connect them for the rest of their lives.
Covens get preferential treatment. They're the upper class, wealthy elite. They have access to stronger magic, they can do things that solitary witches can't, and they tend to be more durable when push comes to shove. They're also the vocal majority of the supernatural government that oversees the magical world. Being in a Coven is an instant pass into a better life.
That isn't to say being a solitary witch is such a terrible thing. Only solitary witches are eligible to join the Witchers - magic's alternative to the Navy Seals. When a wraith escapes back into the living world, it's the Witchers who get called in to clean up the mess. One Witcher on his or her own is easily the equal of an entire Coven, and have access to entire libraries of magic that are heavily restricted to anyone else.
Solitary witches also have the freedom to go wherever they want. Covens tend to be drafted towards a singular purpose - the government keeps a tight leash on them to make sure that Moonset doesn't ever repeat itself.
All in all, being a witch in the world of Moonset has just as many benefits as they do drawbacks. But being able to make your high school rival think she's being haunted without ever lifting a finger is still kind of awesome, whatever the costs.
The Legacy of Moonset #1
Author: Scott Tracey
Reading Level: YA
Genre: Paranormal/Witches
Release Date: April 8th 2013
Publisher: Flux
Available: Amazon • Barnes & Noble
Summary: (from goodreads) Moonset, a coven of such promise . . . Until they turned to the darkness.
After the terrorist witch coven known as Moonset was destroyed fifteen years ago—during a secret war against the witch Congress—five children were left behind, saddled with a legacy of darkness. Sixteen-year-old Justin Daggett, son of a powerful Moonset warlock, has been raised alongside the other orphans by the witch Congress, who fear the children will one day continue the destruction their parents started.
A deadly assault by a wraith, claiming to work for Moonset’s most dangerous disciple, Cullen Bridger, forces the five teens to be evacuated to Carrow Mill. But when dark magic wreaks havoc in their new hometown, Justin and his siblings are immediately suspected. Justin sets out to discover if someone is trying to frame the Moonset orphans . . . or if Bridger has finally come out of hiding to reclaim the legacy of Moonset. He learns there are secrets in Carrow Mill connected to Moonset’s origins, and keeping the orphans safe isn’t the only reason the Congress relocated them . . .
Flux has provided 5 copies of Moonset to giveaway during the blog tour to 5 lucky winners. Enter below. This rafflecopter is posted on each tour stop. You only need to enter once. a Rafflecopter giveaway
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I enjoyed witch eyes and look forward to this new series!
ReplyDeleteChildren of the Moonset Witches sound interesting. :)
ReplyDeleteChildren of the Moonset Witches because I'd like to see how the 5 make it. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHaven't read Witch Eyes series, but I'll have to check it out. Moonset sounds great!
ReplyDeleteChildren of the Moonset Witches! Cause I am rooting for them! :3
ReplyDeleteChildren of the Moonset Witches!
ReplyDelete