YA-AHOLIC BOOK BLOG: Team Unicorn Guest Post AND Giveaway! :D

(From Field Guide to the More Monstrous Wildlife of Faerie, Volume U. This article refers to unicorns inhabiting the land of Faerie as found in the Songs of Magic series by J.L. Bryan. For other kinds of unicorns, see other sources instead of this one.)

Unicorns (Physignathus unicornis): A Brief Description of Them and the Sorts of Things They Do

The unicorn is a rare creature in Faerie, and rarely seen because of its shy and reserved nature. What can be known about unicorns has been collected here, but they remain a mysterious animal. Unicorns are difficult to study because of their high intelligence and their tendency to play pranks on researchers.

Anatomy:

Unicorns are typically the size of miniature horses, but are distinguished by their pastel coat colors, cloven hooves, and sparkling crystalline horns. The smallest unicorn on record was eight inches high and ridiculously adorable. Typical unicorn coat colors include chocolate, butterscotch, cinnamon, strawberry, and cream. Unicorns can be difficult to see, primarily because of their ability to turn invisible.

A few reports indicate unicorns may be able to dramatically increase their size when threatened, but these have not been confirmed.

Horn:

The horn has powerful magical properties, the full extent of which remain unknown. These include healing and life-giving magic that can benefit both plants and animals.

Habitat:

Unicorns love water and prefer to live near springs, ponds, and rivers. A few beach unicorns have also been reported, usually cavorting with the giant seahorses. Most of Faerie’s unicorn population is believed to live deep within the sugar swamps, where the towering primordial sugarcane has turned the water sweet (and the mud chocolatey) over thousands of years.

Diet:

Because of their slight stature, cheerfully colored hooves, and big, innocent eyes, it may be surprising to learn that unicorns are carnivores. They have a strong preference for poisonous animals, including the swamp cobra, the winged toad, and the spitting spider. However, unicorns are also known to enjoy candy apples and marshmallows.

Social Behavior:

Unicorns may be solitary or live in very small, tight-knit herds, sometimes called “cliques.” Little is known about the details of their social life, except that they really, really enjoy playing hide and seek, as well as other tag-related games.

Domestication:

Unicorn domestication has never occurred on a large scale. Isolated incidents report that a unicorn (or clique of them) may befriend the occasional lonely but good-hearted swamp farmer. Their presence will greatly boost the yield of major sugar-swamp crops, including cacao beans, sugar beets, and candy corn (see: Horn). They also protect the crops from pests, by eating them.

Pets:

A few attempts have been made at keeping unicorns, particularly pygmy unicorns, as domestic pets. This is not recommended. Unicorns are wild, stubborn, and surprisingly destructive animals. Also, your unicorn may be smarter than you, which makes the owner/pet relationship awkward. Adopting a unicorn should be recognized as a long-term commitment, as the average lifespan of a unicorn is seven hundred thousand years.

Unicorn Encounters:

Unicorn encounters in the wild are very rare, because the unicorns will probably turn invisible and hide until you leave. If you are looking to make contact with a unicorn, be sure to bring a bag of gumdrops or live tarantulas to offer as a treat, because unicorns like gifts.

Remember: Unicorns are wild animals and should be approached with caution and compliments.

To read more about these unicorns, and the realm of Faerie where they live, try Fairy Metal Thunder, the first book in J.L. Bryan’s Songs of Magic series, for just 99 cents!

Along with his awesome guest post Author J.L. Bryan is donating a copy of his book Fairy Metal Thunder to one lucky winner, this book is all over the blogging world and is suppose to be amazing! The giveaway is international, BUT if you are US you are entering to win a paperback copy, if you are outside the US you are entering to win a ebook copy (: Below is info on Fairy Metal Thunder, and then a short form for you to fill out to enter! :D

Fairy Metal Thunder by J.L. Bryan

First book in the Song of Magic series

Find Fairy Metal Thunder: Amazon . Amazon UK . B&N

Find J.L. Bryan: Website . Twitter . Facebook

Jason plays guitar in a teenage garage band called the Assorted Zebras, but they have no fans and no gigs, and they're going nowhere. Even worse, Jason has a crush on the lead singer, but she already has a near-perfect boyfriend.

One night, Jason steals enchanted instruments from the fairy world. Suddenly (with a little help from YouTube) every kid in the Midwest is crazy about the Assorted Zebras.

The fairy instruments drive the crowds wild, but the new gear is brimming with dangerous and destructive magic. The band struggles to gain control of their instruments and avoid the supernatural bounty hunters sent by Queen Mab of Faerie to track them down, all while trying to finally land their first gig.

To see the rest of the Zombies VS Unicorns month posts go HERE :)