Once Upon a Retelling: The Raven's Tale by Cat Winters

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Welcome to Once Upon a Retelling! I'm a huge fan of retellings, and I'm really interested in hearing about authors' own love of the original stories, and what inspired them to retell those stories. And so Once Upon a Retelling was born, a feature in which I interview authors about their versions of well-loved tales.

Today, I'm stoked to have Cat Winters stopping by the blog to discuss her fantasy retelling of the life Edgar Allan Poe, The Raven's Tale.

Can you tell us a little about The Raven’s Tale? What kind of a retelling of Edgar Allan Poe’s life is it?

THE RAVEN’S TALE focuses on the events of Edgar Allan Poe’s life between February 1826 and April 1827, when he was 17 and 18 years old. The novel opens when young “Eddy” is preparing to escape his difficult home life and head to the prestigious University of Virginia. I’ve stuck closely to the historical details of Poe’s real life and populated the book with his family members, friends, and classmates. However, half of the chapters are narrated by young Poe’s burgeoning Gothic muse, so you’ll find fantasy intertwined with reality in my interpretation of the legendary author’s teen years.

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Review: The Steep & Thorny Way by Cat Winters

The Steep & Thorny Way by Cat Winters (Proof) - Something's rotten in the state of Oregon.

Hanalee Denney's hometown is not a welcoming place in the 1920s. Hanalee is the daughter of a white woman and an African American man, so she has no rights under the law. If that weren't enough, the Ku Klux Klan is a powerful force in the area, breeding fear and hatred, even among friends. Her father, Hank Denney, died a year and a half ago, hit by a drunk-driving teenager. Now the killer is out of jail and back in town... but he claims that Hank wasn't killed by the accident at all but, instead, was poisoned by the doctor who looked after him - who just happens to be Hanalee's new stepfather. The only way for Hanalee to get the answers she desperately needs is to ask her father - a "haint" who wanders the roads at night.

Inspired by Hamlet and infused with the real history and feel of Prohibition-era Oregon, The Steep and Thorny Way is a gripping and thoughtful story of intolerance, forgiveness, and finding one's own path. From the blurb.

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