Steven A. McKay's Blog, page 55
March 27, 2014
Steven A McKay: The Wolf and the Raven (Review)
The first review of The Wolf and the Raven is in!
Originally posted on parmenionbooks:
Author
Biography
My second book, The Wolf and the Raven will be released on April 7th, get your pre-order in now and come meet me at the London Book Fair between April 8-10!
I was born in 1977, near Glasgow in Scotland. I live in Old Kilpatrick with my wife and two young children. After obtaining my Bachelor of Arts degree I decided to follow my life-long ambition and write a novel.
Historical fiction is my favourite genre, but I also enjoy old science-fiction and some fantasy.
Bernard Cornwell’s King Arthur series was my biggest influence in writing “Wolf’s Head”, but I’ve also really enjoyed recent books by guys like Ben Kane, Glyn Iliffe, Douglas Jackson and Simon Scarrow.
I play lead/acoustic guitars (and occasional bass) in a heavy metal band when we can find the time to meet up.
Book Description
In the aftermath of a violent rebellion Robin…
View original 535 more words
Goodreads giveaway of The Wolf and the Raven
Enter to win one of five signed copies. Please share with your book loving friends ;-)
https://www.goodreads.com/giveaway/show/87031-the-wolf-and-the-raven
March 21, 2014
The Wolf and the Raven available to pre-order NOW!
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00J5JMY4M/ref=cm_sw_r_fa_dp_ILkltb1WVWYD0
Should be available worldwide as of today, go get your Kindle copy booked now! Paperback will be available on April 7th too.
March 20, 2014
Original artwork for The Wolf and The Raven
This is the incredibly bad sketch I sent to my cover designers at More Visual Ltd to give them an idea of what I wanted. The REAL (and much better!) cover will be posted very soon, along with a pre-order, so please check back over the next few days!
March 14, 2014
Special offer on Wolf’s Head
For a few short days Wolf’s Head is on special offer. Just £0.98 in the UK or $0.99 with similar tiny prices worldwide, get your copy now in time for the sequel, The Wolf and The Raven which will be out next month!
The paperback is also a very low price just now and comes with a free download of the Kindle version.
Buy it in your country here:
Please share the news with your book loving friends. 
March 5, 2014
HUGE NEWS!
Okay, I can now announce one of the things I’ve been hinting at for the past couple of weeks! I will be attending the London Book Fair, at Earl’s Court in London, as part of the Amazon stand.
The Wolf and the Raven will be released in time for it and I will be taking part in a panel each day, with two other self-published authors, talking about our experiences with the Kindle Direct Publishing and Createspace platforms.
If anyone is nearby, on April 8-10, and would like to pop in for a signed copy of the new book (or indeed, “Wolf’s Head”) come in and see me!
As you can probably imagine, this is really a dream for me – a once in a lifetime chance. The LBF is apparently the second biggest book fair in the world, and Amazon, well – MASSIVE doesn’t begin to describe the opportunity!
Stay tuned, because there’s more to come! 
February 27, 2014
Woo-hoo!
I have some huge – massive! – news that I will post just as soon as it’s fully confirmed. I’m so excited about this! On top of that, one of the first beta-readers for The Wolf and The Raven tells me it’s better than Wolf’s Head which is a huge weight off my mind, and that’s before the editor has even gone over it.
Stay tuned!
February 23, 2014
WOLF’S HEAD: a gritty, fast-paced retelling of a world-famous legend.
Another fantastic review. 10 stars out of 5, wow!
Originally posted on Alexszollo's Blog:
Robin Hood is one of the most iconic characters in the history of mankind, and I believe his enduring popularity is due to his nature as a “statement character”, as I like to call him. He stands for something that people can easily identify with. Numerous movies have portrayed him in different ways: the flamboyant Errol Flynn, the anachronistic-sounding Kevin Costner, the atypical Russell Crowe. 2 things have pretty much remained the same about Robin Hood in regard to his legacy as a character in popular culture. He’ s an outlaw fighting against corruption, robbing the rich, and he’s typically associated with King Richard the Lionhearted.
I had the honour of receiving a copy of a novel that places Robin Hood in a different historical period, but maintains his nature as an outlaw. I’m talking about WOLF’S HEAD, by Steven A. McKay.
This book is absolutely awesome. It starts right in the middle of a fight, which should tell its readers a lot about the action-packed scenes it contains, as young Robert(Robin) Hood makes his way through the England of King Edward, in 1321, a time of great political and social unrest, that brings men to the point of becoming outlaws to survive. This book has a smash-mouth style, it’s vivid, cinematic, and comes with all the beloved characters reexamined in a totally new way. The place of Lady Marion is taken here by young Matilda, and the story takes place in Wakefield, Yorkshire, rather than Sherwood, Nottingham. Friar Tuck has a really interesting story, and Will Scarlet is one of the biggest badasses I’ve ever read about in a Robin Hood novel. Mr. McKay has done his best to create a balance between the sense of time and place and an air of freshness. I see this book as being the basis of the next big Robin Hood movie. What I liked about it the most is the fact that for the first time in any version of the story I’ve come across, we are introduced to a very young Robin Hood(only seventeen at the start of the novel). That makes him a very likable hero, someone that’s really easy to root for, as everyone likes young men with a fighting spirit. I loved seeing Robin fight for the things he believed in, and honing his skills as a robber of the rich and helper of the poor. Mr. McKay has created the Robin Hood that we’ve all wanted to be at some point, and that earns his debut novel 10 stars out of 5. Thank you, Mr. McKay. Heckuva job!
