Number one international and USA Today Bestselling Author Candace Osmond captivates her readers once again with her most recent book release, marking her 24th published novel, A Kingdom of Iron & Wine. Osmond is best known for her Dark Tides Series including 2018 novel The Devil’s Heart. 

Born in North York, Osmond has Newfoundland roots and grew up on Fogo Island. Influenced by creativity as far back as she can remember, the established author spent a large portion of her childhood drawing, writing, and painting. “While it’s definitely a beautiful place to live, there’s not a lot to do, especially with no other kids around who were my age,” she shared in a one-on-one interview with The Newfoundland Herald.

A Writer at Heart 

“I often found myself sitting on a rock, staring out at the sea as I dreamed of mermaids or other fantastical creatures. Some days, I’d see how far I could venture into the woods and discover giant burrows or small caves to crawl into.” The young writer had no limits to her imagination, and once a high school graduate she received acceptance letters to three different universities for creative writing. For fear of never making a career out of it she chose to study interior design instead, but continued to play around with the idea of writing a book. 

Osmond kept a handwritten plot in a journal and placed it aside, only to pull it out years later and have it become the reason her love for writing was re-ignited. The journal becoming the inspiration behind leaving the design world and diving head first into the world of freelance writing. 

“Getting paid to write for others while I worked on my own book? Yes, please! I finished the book, naively self-published it, and then got to work on my next book. I never really looked back, never gave the first title much thought or care,” she shared.

From creative writing classes and learning the ropes of the industry, to publishing short stories, trilogies, and novellas, Osmond’s love for writing was well reflected in her work. Today, Osmond has published over 20 books, hitting international bestselling lists including USA Today bestselling author, and even adding award-winning screenwriter to her long list of accomplishments. 

With years of knowledge and experience now under her belt, Osmond dusted off that original journal entry manuscript during the pandemic. Reforming and rewriting her first self-published work, she turned it into the book she had always wanted but lacked the proper skills to produce so many years ago. 

The finished product landed us here, covering the official release of A Kingdom of Iron & Wine in its final form. 

Mythical Existence

The title A Kingdom of Iron & Wine comes from the duology found throughout the novel, and will continue to flow throughout The Ironworld Series. The main character, Avery Quinn, is human. She stumbles upon a hidden mythical existence of fae, vampires, and shape-shifters.

“She straddles the line of both worlds; the tempting magic–like the alluring aroma of wine. And the harsh reality of the mortal realm–full of buildings and weapons of metal,” Osmond explained.

“I’ve never written a book or series with such a huge cast of characters. That was the most challenging part of this project, making sure they all have epic backstories, but also that those backstories connect to one another and mean something to the overall plot and future of the series. Most of all, I hope my readers find a character they can relate to. We’re always looking for ourselves in things; books, TV, movies, etc. And I think I represent many walks of life in this book/series. There’s really something for everyone.” 

This most recent release is similar to Osmond’s previous work in the sense that it’s in her chosen genre, fantasy romance, and is based in a Canadian setting, this one being Halifax. Twice as long as her usual novels, it holds a tremendous amount of thought, detail and adventure to keep readers hooked to the massive cast of characters, and a plot woven together with the past, present, and future. 

“I’ve always been drawn to fantasy and the paranormal, mostly because the possibilities are endless,” Osmond explained. 

“I have a huge imagination, I’m always thinking and dreaming of plots, themes, and magic systems. The smallest thing could ignite a massive idea. For example, I once saw an old ship-in-a-bottle at a thrift store, and it sparked the idea for a time travel fantasy about Newfoundland pirates that became six books.” 

Fantastic Tale of Magic

A Kingdom of Iron & Wine embraces the magical world of fantasy and throws us into the fantastic tale following Avery Quinn and her crew of misfit friends as she uncovers a secret society of werewolves selling fae blood to vampires on the black market. The epic and unexpected plot is balanced with romance as Quinn falls for Cillian, a vampire, as she navigates a hidden mythical world and uncovers all of its dark secrets. 

“Newfoundland has such a fantastical history of pirates, Vikings, and ghosts. The province is a breeding ground for Fantasy ideas, and I hope to bring as many as I can to life.”  

Purchase your kindle edition of A Kingdom of Iron & Wine and all of Osmond’s books on Amazon and in Kindle Unlimited! 

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The 45th Annual Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival: Digital Edition presented by Equinor is now streaming on-demand at www.nlfolk.com

Following a summer season of over 25 live performances in St. John’s, the digital edition of the festival will bring Newfoundland and Labrador artists to audiences near and far.

“Because our summer events had such limited audience capacity, we wanted to make sure there was an opportunity for everyone, everywhere to participate in the festival, so we are excited to present this digital programme for all to enjoy .”

— Anna Brophy, President, Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Arts Society

The Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival is presented by Equinor Canada, and works with local community partners such as DanceNL, Le Réseau Culturel Francophone du Terre-Neuve et Labrador, First Light Friendship Centre, and St. John’s African Roots Festival to present a diverse lineup of traditional and folk music, dance, and storytelling.

The 45th Annual Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival: Digital Edition is made up of five episodes each focusing on one of the following themes; Songs, Strings, Dance, Accordion, and Percussion. An additional episode for the kids will also be available. Featured artists include Duane Andrews and Andrew Dale, Tonya Kearley-Russell and Kelly Russell, Youngtree and Carole Bee, Billy Sutton, Frank Fusari, Kilautiup Songuninga (Strength of the Drum), Jim Payne, and more.

The episodes are now streaming on-demand on the Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Arts Society’s website, nlfolk.com and Youtube Channel until October 31, 2021. The series is available free of charge, but charitable donations are graciously accepted at nlfolk.com/donate.

Episode Details:

The Kids’ Episode – Kat and Sal, Your Indigenous Pals

This episode is for the young and young at heart. As young indigenous girls living in an urban city, Kat and her best friend Sal explore their friendship with one another through the sharing of their cultures. Sharing a passion for oral traditions, these two friends provide an interactive experience through rhymes, songs and stories from their Southern Inuit and Mi’kmaq cultures.

The Accordion Episode

This episode focuses on the accordion, a staple of traditional music in many cultures. Billy Sutton will share a few of his original tunes inspired by traditional styles of Newfoundland and Labrador and beyond, from his latest album “Not a word”. We’ll hear some more traditional tunes from Juliette Mini and her teacher Fergus Brown-O’Byrne, then from Shana and Dillon Brown, an accomplished brother and sister duo from Whiteway, Trinity Bay. Finally, Frank Fusari will play us out with accordion music in French, Spanish, and Italian styles. Thanks to our friends at O’Briens music for recording this episode at their shop on Water Street here in St. John’s.

The Dance Episode

This episode is presented in partnership with DanceNL and focuses on some traditional dances found in Newfoundland and Labrador. We begin with Fancy Shawl dancing from Rebecca Sharr and Kayla Stride. Then we’ll take a tour through Irish and Scottish step dancing and finish up with a group of Scottish Country Dancers.

The Percussion Episode

This episode looks at three very different percussion traditions. We start with the Inuit drum and dance group, Strength of the Drum. Then, Tonya Kearley-Russell will introduce you to her Jumping Jacks, a cross between a puppet and a percussion instrument, accompanied by Kelly Russell. Finally, Curtis Andrews will explain and demonstrate the mridangam (Mi-rit’-dung-gum), a hand drum from India.

The Songs Episode

We’ll open this song-centric episode with Summer Bennet, the winner of this year’s MusicNL Talent Contest. Then we’ll hear traditional throat singing from the Inuit Throat Singing Collective. We’ll spend some time with Jim Payne, who was presented with the Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Arts Society’s Lifetime Achievement Award this summer. Then we’ll hear from Lorna Lovell, a singer-songwriter from Newfoundland’s West Coast. Finally, Ruth Lawrence will tell you about Elizabeth Greenleaf and Grace Mansfield, who travelled the province in the 1920s collecting and transcribing traditional folk songs.

The Strings Episode

This episode is all about string instruments. We’ll start with a set from Duane Andrews and Andrew Dale. Then Brian Cherwick will take you on a tour of some traditional Ukrainian string instruments. We’ll have a swinging set from Peter Youngtree and Carole Bestvater, before closing with Portage, a group with members from Canada and the United States, including Newfoundland’s own Jean Hewson and Christina Smith.

Further details can be found on the Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Arts Society’s website www.nlfolk.com and social media channels (@nlfolk on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram).