I'm thrilled to be taking part in the blog tour for Canadian author Natale Ghent's latest YA novel Dark Company, which was just released earlier this month!

Dark Company is a new spin on the ancient battle between the forces of light and darkness. Caddy will need to escape the Grey Men who pursue her, and Skylark must come to terms with her new afterlife and prepare to fight. All the while, the evil Speaker's powers grow...

Thanks to Random House Canada, I was able to ask Natale Ghent a few questions about Dark Company!

Natale Ghent brings us an engrossing fantasy set in the near-future about the war between two worlds and a girl pitted in the battle of good and evil.

Seventeen-year old Caddy is haunted by visions of global destruction. They come on like seizures, taking her to a desolate place where dispossessed souls struggle to be heard. It is one possible future--one she feels she must prevent. But in a world where food and money are scarce, and the struggle over resources between the continents is escalating toward war, Caddy has little hope.

When her father goes missing, she searches for him and is abducted into a cabalistic society called The Dreamers--visionaries who "dream" to sustain the light against the dark energies that threaten to take over the planet. Caddy is shepherded into the society by a high school classmate called Poe, and through him, uncovers long-hidden truths about herself and her father.

The situation darkens when Caddy learns that the dreamers are hunted and killed by an ancient order known as the Grey Men--a cult dedicated to eradicating the light to assist a demonic entity they call The Speaker. By killing the dreamers, the grey men open rifts in the light that allow The Speaker to seed evil and darkness on the earth plane with the ultimate goal of destroying the planet. Things become more complicated when Meg, a girl from Caddy's high school, who has been ushered into this other reality, clashes with Caddy to supress the forces of light and to try to win back Poe's heart.

As she falls deeper and deeper into the world of the dreamers, Caddy discovers layers of deceit and treachery realizes it's up to her to find a way to overcome the dark and prevent the light from being extinguished forever. . .

1) DARK COMPANY is told from the alternating perspectives of Caddy and Skylark, two very different girls with a role to play in the fight against the evil Speaker. Whose point of view was the most challenging to write?

I would have to say Caddy’s point of view was more challenging. I was so excited about Skylark that I thought about her all the time. Caddy was more of a slow bloomer. She isn’t as exuberant as Skylark and keeps her feelings hidden—she has to because she has so many secrets to protect and so few people to trust. By the end of the novel I was really enjoying spending time with Caddy, and I grew to deeply appreciate what she brought to the story.

2) What inspired you to write about an endless battle between the forces of Light and Dark? I've grown accustomed to reading YA paranormal novels centered around angels and demons, but your unique spin on the genre and shift away from the terminology was very refreshing! 

I was inspired to write about an endless battle between forces of Light and Dark because I had so much experience with it in my personal and professional life—as crazy as that sounds! I used to work as a hypnotherapist. A lot of my research and practice revolved around spirit and entity release. I encountered some extremely dark stuff doing that work. It helped me to understand how important it is to open the door on this topic. The terminology and unique spin were drawn from these experiences.

3) In DARK COMPANY, there is a powerful book kept in the Hall of Records called The Book of Events that allows you to view the past. Is there a moment from your own past that you would love to revisit again?

This is such a beautiful and thoughtful question. There are so many moments I would like to revisit, it would be painfully hard to chose only one. But I would have to say that I would really love to revisit a happy time in my past when my family was all together. There is one moment that stands out in my mind: We were quite poor growing up and would sit around the gas stove with our feet on the open door, keeping warm. During one of these times, my brother said something so funny, we all doubled over, howling with laughter, and in the process, broke the stove door off its hinges. My poor mum! She couldn’t keep anything good in the house with five kids!

4) Meg/Skylark finds herself recruited as a member of the Warrior Frequency, much like how angels have their own kind of hierarchy they belong to. Which Frequency would the Light of Corometh likely choose for you?

Another juicy question! I’m currently working on a quiz meme that people can take to determine their Frequency. If I took my own quiz, I would probably be placed in the Healer Frequency. I just can’t help myself from helping others. There are so many different healing modalities—I’m fascinated by them all. And I love falcons. How cool would it be to have a falcon as an animal friend? I particularly love kestrels.

5) While DARK COMPANY does not end on a cliffhanger, there is definitely a sense of more challenges to come for Caddy and Skylark in the future. Is there a sequel planned for the novel?

I definitely plan to write a sequel and maybe even a third, if all goes well.

Thank you so much for the awesome questions! This has been so much fun!

If anyone would like to know more about Dark Company, they can visit my website at http://www.darkcompanybook.com/. 


Giveaway! Thanks to the generosity of Random House Canada, I will be giving away a signed copy of Natale Ghent's Dark Company to one lucky reader! 

• please fill out the Rafflecopter form to enter
• must have a Canadian mailing address
• winner's mailing information will be forwarded to publisher
• do not leave your email address in the comments
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