Trafford Publishing: Terra Splendora: The Grounds of Splendor

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Terra Splendora: The Grounds of Splendor

by T.L. Welch

196 pages; quality trade paperback (softcover); catalogue #03-0871; ISBN 1-4120-0502-7; US$19.50, C$22.00, EUR16.00, £11.50

A Kingdom lost, a Princess found, a grand adventure all around. A prophecy awaits, lessons learned, and new twists lie at every turn. For the young and young at heart!

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about the book praise for Terra Splendora about the author sample excerpt catalogue info

About the Book

TERRA SPLENDORA: THE GROUNDS OF SPLENDOR, tells the story of a girl named Terra who is a Princess of the earth, but doesn't know it. She soon finds herself chasing a dream (and a unicorn!) and fighting to find out within herself who she is. Along her adventure and in her travels, she makes friends (the main ones being Joviality and Frolic Fairy, Jesse Eugene the giant (Eugene by preference), Wedgewinkle the dragon, Sandman the guardian unicorn, and a mysterious knight named Sir Bailey Emelius Quimby) who help her through many challenges, discoveries, and prove that friendships can last through the most gruesome of circumstances. Eventually taking matters into her own hands, Terra stands up to make a difference in the Kingdom of Splendora, to fight the battle against The Evil for the good of all, and to take her rightful place as Queen. Terra learns the lesson that, "You are who you are; you can't change that, you can only mask it" in more ways than just one.
The adventure continues in TERRA'S LEGACY: A LIVING ECHO, book two, with Terra's daughter, Echo. Another twist is introduced and a dark threat is revealed. Echo must now live up to her name, repeating her mother's courage, and taking her own unique stand to protect the Splendora Kingdom, her family, her friends, her life, the magic of the earth that is in danger of being stolen, and the Kingdom's rich history. Echo must re-write history in order to rid the Kingdom of its most pressing danger, and preserve a safe future for all Splendorians by trying to prevent a battle to the death within Terra Splendora.

Praise for Terra Spendora

Through Tara's rich, vivid wording, I could picture her magical, fantasy world in my mind's eye. I also found myself getting attached to characters like Cinnamon the fox and Sandman the guardian unicorn -- wanting them to be my friends! Then, I found myself crying (out of joy!) at the end of Tara's book. I know when I get 'emotionally connected to a book' that's a good story. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for an adventurous fantasy!
5/5 star Amazon Review

A valuable lesson told through a magical story
The lesson this book teaches is 'You are who you are; you can't change that, you can only mask it in more ways than just one.' I love self help material that teaches me life lessons. And I love magical, fantasy stories. This book has both in one -- a valuable lesson set in a magical place. A perfect combination!

5/5 star Chapters Review

The book is very well thought out. I like all the different characters in the book. The book was so good I wasn't able to put it down.

5/5 star Chapters Review

About the Author

One night, while the world was asleep, a little girl had a very strange dream. She dreamed she was a Princess trying to save her Kingdom and having an awful time of doing so! When Tara woke up; she knew she had to write this one down! After re-reading this dream to the maximum degree, she decided it would make for an interesting story, and so, wanted to invite others along to the Realm of Splendora and introduce them to a whole new world of imagination and adventure; the one in her head!
Tara presently lives in Huntsville, Ontario. She likes writing poetry and singing! The thing she likes about writing stories is that, in them, she finds an escape and new experiences and also likes to know her writing can provide a simple escape for others who care to take the journey!
TERRA SPLENDORA: THE GROUNDS OF SPLENDOR is Tara's first book at age 21!

Sample Excerpt

She sat alone, or so it seemed. Even though she thought she was alone on the beach, a pair of eyes beheld her, but not for the first time. No, these eyes had watched this child grow and had waited these long many years for the right time to begin the introduction. Now, he felt, was that time.
As she sat on the rocks by the river skipping stones, the watcher looked down upon her from above. He had been there for quite some time thinking. How could it have been that she grew up so quickly? It seemed that only yesterday she was a tiny baby in need of an escape, but now she was grown up and in need of an explanation.
The wind began to blow. As it did, it caressed the girl's hair, weaving in, out and in-between each strand intimately. It lifted the ocean spray up with it so as to plant a kiss on the girl's cheek. The newly rising sun embraced her with warmth and she happily accepted nature's amorous outburst without reserve. The watcher witnessed this rare event and knew the time had come.
"If she is to know the truth, it must begin now." Slowly and quietly, he made his way down to her.
The sound of an approaching visitor was carried over by the wind. The girl suddenly became aware of it and nervousness overtook her mind. She hid behind the rocks, hoping that whomever it was would go away. She waited for a while and listened to the wind for a hint that it was okay to come out. She heard nothing and slowly looked out from behind the rocks. There was nothing and no one there. She walked about, searching for whatever had frightened her, but there was nothing to be seen. She felt relieved and turned around to return to the rocks. Behind her was the watcher. The girl was startled and lost her footing. She fell to the ground, smashing her head in the sand.
The girl lay frozen, breathing scarcely. She seemed to stare as if in shock. The watcher simply returned her blankness with a hypnotic, almost apologetic smile. He knew that she had never seen a unicorn before.
* * *
"The night is broken. Light slowly chases away the shadows that surround my watch post. The sun, the life beacon, stays low on the horizon. My eyes, ever searching, skim over the ocean of grasses in search of a ripple. All is as silent as a grave. There are no whispering winds this morning, just silence. The grass is wet and slippery between my toes, a cold and squishy feeling. I walk down the grassy bank to a tiny stream at which no souls are drinking at this time. The sand that makes up the shore is warm and dry. I decide that this is the perfect time and place to have a lie down, but although I am resting my body, there is no time to rest my soul. I must keep watch for another while yet. Although it is morning, it is not yet light enough to be called day.
A light breeze begins to rustle the grass now. The wind not only brings a cooling sensation to me, but also a sound.
I quietly get up from my position in the sand and sit upright, my ears perked, waiting for reassurance, and as the wind shifts through the trees, the sound comes again, like egg shells cracking on the inside curves of my ears. This is undoubtedly the ripple in the ocean of grasses for which I have been waiting. I cautiously peer up over the grassy bank and around the forest. I see nothing, but I hear again those cracking eggshells.
I jump up onto the path and carefully pick and choose my footing. Absolute silence is key. Silently following the direction of the sound, I make my way down the path and deeper into the forest. As I approach the cracking, it gets louder. Although I just want to scream at the pain it is causing, I must move onward. I have waited through an uneventful night; it is not too late.
The sun is brighter now and higher in the sky. It hurts my vision quite badly, but it is now or never.
The sound is unbearably close, and I think I might know what it is. Yes, it's a young unicorn chomping on grass. I sit quietly and observe the situation. He seems to be alone. He may be easy prey, but I'm not complaining. Easy prey is better than none at all. I hunch my shoulders and lift my hindquarters, waiting for the right moment to strike. When my chance arrives, I grab it. I make my first move and lunge at his neck; my teeth sink deeply into soft flesh. He didn't have a chance."
Echo, at that moment, came across the spot described to her to a scene she did not wish to see.

Catalogue Information