Angelia Almos's Blog, page 15

Spotlight & #Giveaway: Morrigan by Laura DeLuca

Morrigan by Laura DeLuca

Shuffled from place to place in the foster system, Morrigan doesn't know the meaning of home. Plus, she is different. She has power over fire, the ability to move objects with her mind, and glimpse into the future. Just when she believes her life can’t get any stranger, she discovers her true identity.

Filtiarn, a knight with a dark past and a surprising secret, has been tasked with guiding the heir of Tír na NÓg through countless perils to be returned to her family. Once Morrigan has been reunited with her mother and grandmother, their triad can save the forgotten land of magic from being devoured by an ancient evil.

Link to Follow the Tour: http://tastybooktours.blogspot.com/2013/05/now-booking-tasty-virtual-book-tour-for_155.html

Buy Links: Amazon | Books A Million | B&N | Smashwords


Author Info

Laura “Luna” DeLuca lives at the beautiful Jersey shore with her husband and four children. She loves writing in the young adult genre because it keeps her young at heart. In addition to writing fiction, Laura is also the sole author of a popular review blog called New Age Mama. She is an active member of her local pagan community, and has been studying Wicca for close to eight years. Her current works include Destiny, Destiny Unveiled, Phantom, Morrigan, Player, and Demon.

Author Links: Website | Facebook | Twitter | GoodReads

 
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RWA 2013

I'm heading off to RWA Nationals in Atlanta in less than two weeks. Haven't been to a writers conference since I attended RWA Nationals in San Francisco about five years ago. Had a great time then and am hoping to have a great time and learn a lot this year as well. I'll only be there for two of the three days (missing Friday to pick my daughter up from camp one state over).

Anyone else heading to RWA Nationals or any other writers conferences this year?

Spotlight and Interview: Alone in the Crowd by Patrick Stutzman

 ALONE IN THE CROWD by PATRICK STUTZMAN Available on 15 June 2013 on Amazon Cover Art by Tomomi Ink     Alone No More? Earth has finally sent a colony to the moon where Anna has been stranded, bringing with it hope of rescue. Although some are not quick to trust her, others welcome her with open arms, and she finds an unlikely friendship in a young colonist named Jason. As Anna teaches the settlers to survive, the looming threat of the aliens' return casts a dark, foreboding shadow over the colony. Can she earn the colonists' trust and prepare them in time for first contact?LINKS Visit the author’s website at The Worlds of Patrick Stutzman See what other works are available from the author at Amazon’s Patrick Stutzman page Visit the cover artist’s website at Tomomi Ink

Check out my fun little interview with Patrick below: 
 
What was the spark or initial idea that started your book?

I ended Book 2 of the series, Alone in Paradise, up in the air as far as Anna Foster's fate. Book 3 continues her story.

What was your favorite part of writing this book?
I enjoyed having Anna interacting with multiple characters, since the first two books had her by herself with a maximum of one or two other individuals tagging along. Bringing in different personalities created a fun and interesting dynamic for her. 

What is your favorite line from your book?
I don't really have a single line that is my favorite, but I do have a couple of scenes. One is where Anna is eating a meal with a few other characters, where the food is not exactly what they expect. The other is where a new character named Jason gets to experience what a new marine recruit goes through at boot camp.

What movie or television show would you say is most like your book in tone, topic, and/or characters?

Probably the closest my book comes to any particular movie or television show is James Cameron's Avatar. Though the book does not have an underlying "save the environment" theme, a lot of the character dynamics are there.

 If your book was made into a movie and you got to design the movie poster, what would the tagline say? 
The tagline on the back of the book is "Alone no more?" But for a movie, would "Alone in the Crowd: Alone no more?" cut it? Maybe take out the question mark for the movie poster. 

Cover Reveal: Hallows Haven by Melissa Brodsky and Nicole Madison

Hallows Haven
YA Paranormal
By: Melissa Brodsky and Nicole Madison
Blurb

Captain of the cheerleading team, 16 year old Gwen Valiente has it all--the best of friends, a loving home, and a bright future. Little does she know that the people she loves the most have been keeping secrets--life-altering secrets.

When strange things start to happen to Gwen, she is thrust into a magickal new realm called Hallows Haven. Leaving the ordinary behind, she discovers that she can do things beyond her wildest dreams. As Hallows Haven begins to feel more like home, Gwen wonders how she ever felt satisfied with everyday life in Michigan.

Too late, Gwen realizes that even in this realm full of light and magick, danger lurks. Someone close to her is not what he seems and someone will do anything to draw her out of Hallows Haven and into the darkness. Even worse, some of that darkness may already exist within her, threatening her chance to make Hallows Haven her permanent home.

Have Gwen's loved ones continued to keep dangerous secrets? Can Gwen resist the call of darkness?

Excerpt

Grandmother held out her hand. Out of thin air, a rather large, dull, old-fashioned brass skeleton key appeared. She fit it into the rusty lock covering the door of the banned room. The door crankily complained its way open, burping stale air in their faces. It was obvious that visitors to this room were infrequent.

“Now you will see why you were never allowed in here, Gwen.” She moved aside, allowing Gwen to enter the room before her.

It took a moment for Gwen’s eyes to adjust to the darkness of the windowless room. There was an iridescent glow pulsating from the long wall parallel to the door that made it look as though the wall were living, breathing. Gwen blinked. She couldn’t believe this had been in her basement this whole time and she had never known. A fantasy come to fruition. “Holy sh...!” she exclaimed.


Buy Links

It will be available on Amazon, iTunes, Kobo, Smashwords, B&N on June 24th.

Hallows Haven FB: https://www.facebook.com/HallowHaven

Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17925089-hallows-haven

Author Info/Links

-Melissa Brodsky used to tell everyone she knew that she was going to be a writer when she grew up. She's currently working on that goal. Living in Michigan in a modern-day "Yours, Mine and Ours" type household, Melissa is the biological mother of 3 and a full-time stepmother, as well. On some days, she may even be considered evil, and not just by her stepchildren. Most of the time, she is sitting at the kitchen table, poised over her computer while daydreaming up new plots for books. She blogs (on occasion) over at rockanddrool.com. She can be found on twitter at http://twitter.com/rockdrool and FB: https://www.facebook.com/MelissaBrodskyAuthor Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7018483.Melissa_Brodsky

-Since childhood, Nicole Madison has been guilty of daydreaming a little too much. One of her favorite pastimes is staring into space, dreaming up stories, characters, lives, and dimensions when she really should be accomplishing other things. She parlayed her love of creating first into a career as a freelance writer and then into fiction writing. Her favorite genres are paranormal fiction and romance, followed closely by horror.

A long time Pennsylvanian, Nicole spends her days writing, soaking up books, teaching her five children how to be weird (in a good way), dancing for the endorphins and gardening. She can be found on FB: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorNicoleMadison and Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7091157.Nicole_Madison

Spotlight and GIVEAWAY: Torn by Amber Lehman

TORN by Amber Lehman

Blurb


A group of Southern Californian teens learn pivotal lessons about sexuality, friendship, love and life.

It was different this time; we weren't acting on a dare. I knew our motive; we were practicing the act, hoping to impress the right boy when it came time. But then something happened in the mix of the moment, in the mix of the alcohol. It wasn't planned, but somehow our kissing experiment turned into something else. Things went further . . . and once they had, once I returned to earth from the euphoria . . . I wrestled with my feelings at that frank realization, questioning whether our said objective was entirely true.

When fourteen-year old Krista McKinley transfers from Catholic school in Ohio to California's public Crestmount High, she discovers she has a lot to learn. Luckily, she is befriended by Carrie and Brandon and things start to look up. But when a simple dare tests Krista's values, it sends her entire world spiraling into a confusing series of events that leaves her questioning her identity as well as the people around her.

Excerpt

Sunday night. I sat perched on the chair behind my desk with only the faint glow from my reading light. By 10:00 p.m. the night air was crisp as it floated through my bedroom window. I had been by myself for hours now.

I closed my math book and abandoned my homework. I couldn’t concentrate; wandering thoughts continued to distract me. I bit my lip and thought about my options. I wanted to talk. I needed to talk, and Brandon was the only person in whom I could confide. It was late, but I picked up the phone and dialed, praying he would answer.

After the third ring, Brandon said, “Hello?”

“It’s Krista.”

“Hey, gorgeous.” He sounded remarkably awake.

“I can’t sleep.”

“Daydreaming about Daemon?”

“Try bored. Josh is on a date and basically told us not to expect him home. Marc had an emergency call from the hospital. Just thought I’d see if you wanted to come over—hang out.”

After a moment he said, “Sure.”

“You’re the best, Brandon.”

“That’s what they all say.”

I couldn’t help smiling. “See you when you get here.”

I hung up the phone, then sat back on my bed and began thinking. I was scared to be alone in the house at night, but I had other things on my mind, too. Tonight would be the perfect opportunity to talk to Brandon. I had a daring question for him—that is, if I got up the courage to ask him. I’d been tossing around an unlikely idea in my head ever since he had surprised me with his boyishly sweet kiss. Just as Carrie and I practiced I began to wonder how things might be if I were doing the same thing with a boy.

Was it horrible of me to consider it? Was it something I had no business asking? Would he hate me or be offended if I did? I was afraid. I couldn’t be sure how he would react. Well, there was only one way to find out.

Twenty minutes later, Brandon rang my doorbell.

“Coming,” I yelled, sliding down the tile of the foyer in my stocking feet to come to a skidding halt at the door. I flung it wide open.

“Hey, you,” he said through a brilliant smile. He wore well-fitted blue jeans and a silky, short-sleeved, button down shirt in a deep shade of blue. He looked beautiful in blue. He came inside and closed the door behind him. We hugged in greeting, and I inhaled a sweet hint of his cologne.

“Thanks for coming.”

“No problem.”

“You can pick the movie,” I said as we walked into the living room. “Over by the cabinet.” Brandon headed toward the entertainment center while I went into the kitchen.

I returned with two cans of Coke, then flopped down Indian-style on the couch. “Did you find one?” I said.

Smiling, he handed me Can’t Buy Me Love.

“Again? We’ve only seen it a hundred times.”

“But Patrick Dempsey’s irresistible in this role.” He gave me one of his ridiculous grins.

“Fine. But I’ve never understood your taste in men.”

Brandon put the movie in, then sat down beside me. I tossed him a bag of Skittles. The usual hard-fast rules about not talking didn’t apply to this movie, since we knew it by heart. Sometimes it seemed as if we played it solely for background atmosphere. I made myself comfortable as the opening credits began to roll.

“How’s Carrie?” he asked.

Carrie hadn’t been at school for the past two days. In fact, her school attendance over the past month had been erratic. I really had no answer. When I had called Carrie’s house, her mother stated that she wasn’t accepting phone calls. So far, she hadn’t let me in on what was going on.

“She still hasn’t talked to me about it.”

I turned my attention back to the television and watched half-heartedly.

The movie had been on for a while as I considered my dilemma. I wrestled with the idea of approaching the subject; it had the potential to turn things weird, real quick. Brandon laughed at a scene from the movie.

I made a tentative beginning. “Brandon.”

He turned to look at me. “What’s up?”

“I kind of . . . need to talk to you.”

“So talk.”

“How many girls have you slept with?” Not very subtle. “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to,” I added quickly.

He studied me. “That question’s left field even for you,” he said.

I shrugged.

“So what’s up?” Grabbing the remote control, he lowered the volume.

“Just curious, I guess. You’ve never really talked about it.”

“There isn’t much to tell.”

“But you have. . .”

“Yes. Twice.”

I reached for my soda trying to act casual. “Did you like it?”

“The first time was kinda weird,” he said as if he were summoning some far‑off memory. “Very vague. I don’t know . . . I was really drunk. Barely have any recollection of it at all.”

“So if you liked guys, why did you bother with girls?”

“I guess because I was kind of lost. I knew I felt differently, but at the same time, I was afraid someone would find out, so I tried to ignore it. Basically went along with what everyone else was doing. All anyone ever talked about was how great sex was. There was always talk about what girls did what.” He shrugged. “My curiosity got the better of me. I figured I was missing out on something.”

“And . . . ”

His lips crooked into a smile and then he laughed. “It was . . . interesting.”

“When was that?”

“Two years ago.”

“Were you nervous?”

“Considering I had no idea what I was doing, yeah, I’d say so.” After a moment he added, “Well, at least I tried it.”

“But I saw a talk show that made it sound like gay men are totally turned off by women.”

“You watch too many of those damn talk shows. I can’t speak for everybody, but not all gays feel that way.” Brandon studied my eyes. “Am I going to have to drag out what’s bugging you?”

My stomach fell and my heart rate quickened. A lump formed in my throat.

“Does this have to do with Carrie? You know. . . I’ll help in any way I can.”

He might live to regret those words. “Thanks,” I managed to say. This was it. If I was ever going to have the nerve to ask him, it had to be now.

“Are you feeling well?” he said suddenly.

My voice, barely audible, struggled to get the words out; I had officially reached panic mode. “I need to ask you a favor.” Looking down at the couch, I picked at the fabric. “A big one.”

“All right. What is it?”

I couldn’t look at him, but I mustered up all the courage I had and took a deep breath. “Would you . . . ” I stopped, cleared my mind and tried again. My voice was barely audible. “Will you be my first?”

Heat rushed to my cheeks so fast that I thought I would surely pass out during the awkward silence that followed. I felt like an ass. I flicked a nervous glance at him. His face was utterly blank.

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have mentioned it.” Why had I opened my mouth?

“Kris, you can have any guy you want. Why me?”

“I trust you. I don’t know . . . all these things have been going on with Carrie . . . it’s so confusing,” I said. “Anyway, I—I want it to be you.” There. I said it. “Will you do it?”

There was no way to know what he was thinking because he didn’t answer me for a while. His voice had lost all humor. “You kinda caught me off guard.” He looked at me again. “How long have you been thinking about this? Have you actually thought this through?”

I ignored his first question. “I have. I’m completely sure.” I wasn’t, but I had to do something. “If I’ve offended you . . .”

“It’s not that.”

He sat perched on the edge of the couch, tipped forward with his elbows resting on his knees. He stared at his hands, brows pursed in concern. “You’re serious.”

“Dead serious.”

“I can get the keys to the beach house on Monday. We’ll—”

“No.” I swallowed hard. “It has to be now. You know Carrie and I are leaving for dance camp next week and I want to know…well I don’t now what I want to know but I want it to happen before then. And tonight, no one will be home tonight.”

He fell back into the couch, almost pale. “Tonight?”

“I need to know before I see Carrie again.”

Brandon opened his mouth but silence filled the air. He closed it when he couldn’t find a thing to say.

“Kris . . . ”

“I understand. It was ridiculous of me to think . . . ” I looked down, shifting my attention to my fingers. I finally made the admission. “At the party, I tried with Eric, but—”

“What? You really must’ve been on drugs! That’s craziness, Kris. I can’t believe you even considered it.”

His vehemence surprised me, and I sat there, silent.

“You’re afraid,” I said finally.

“Terrified.” He rubbed his hands together. “For more than one reason. If anything went wrong, I’d hate myself for it. And won’t you regret it not happening with someone you really like, maybe even someone you love?”

“I thought you didn’t believe in love.”

“We’re talking about you.”

“I just want to experience what most girls do. Doesn’t that make sense?”

“Make sense? You really don’t believe this a typical request, do you?”

“I’m not expecting it to be perfect. I know the first time is generally a disappointment. I read Seventeen magazine.”

His expression was wary. Maybe he didn’t want me to decide my sexual preference based on an experience with him.

He rubbed his hands over his face. “We’ll see what happens,” he said.


Buy Links: Torn on Kindle - Torn on Nook


Author Info

At age 22, author Amber Lehman began researching and writing what would become the novel TORN. Her writing occurred during a chaotic period of her life and she was often forced to set aside writing time to tend to family and personal matters. It was 5 years before TORN was completed to her satisfaction. It went through too many editing stages to count, and the end result was quite different than what was originally an 1100 page novel. After years of setting it aside, Amber finally revisited it and it was trimmed down to the 404 pages you now see. Then she waited another 9 years before she got the courage to publish it. Although TORN is closer to what Amber calls “faction” than fiction, TORN draws upon experiences from her life as she observed and participated in the social dramas surrounding her friends lives and past relationships.

A native of southern California, Amber loves to write and illustrate every chance she gets. She spends most of her days conversing with her cat, Mouse. She enjoys German culture and language, and while it’s no secret that she holds a special affinity for the LGBTQ community, she does also look forward to writing books in many different genres.


Author Links

Website: www.ClosetCasePress.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/amberlehman73

facebook.com/amberlehman73.
www.facebook.com/TORN.AmberLehman


Giveaway (Five Signed Copies) US ONLY



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Link to Follow Tour:

http://tastybooktours.blogspot.com/2013/03/now-booking-tasty-review-tour-for-torn.html

Horse Charmer Anniversary Tour & GIVEAWAY May 20-May31st

Today is the first day of my anniversary blog tour for my young adult fantasy Horse Charmer. I hope you follow along and celebrate with me especially for the chance to win a $20 Amazon or B&N gift card.

Here are the tour stops:

May 20th- Bookwyrming Thoughts- Guest Post
(Stop 2) The World Crafter - Interview
May 21st- Book Babe- Review
(Stop 2) Room to Write- Guest Post
May 22nd- Booky Ramblings of a Neurotic Mom- Guest Post/Review

May 23rd- The Girl With Red Cape- Guest Post/Review
May 24th- In this World of Books- Review

May 27th- Illustrious Illusions- Guest Post
May 28th- Deal Sharing Aunt- Review
May 29th- Emily Wood - Interview
(Stop 2) Kelly Hashway Blog- Guest Post
May 30th- Sweet Reads Reviews- Interview
(Stop 2) Dreaming with Words- Guest Post
May 31st- Whats Beyond Forks- Guest Post/Review
(Stop 2) Courtney Rene Blog- Guest Post


Horse Charmer is a young adult fantasy about a sheltered princess who discovers her remarkable gifts with horses on a dangerous quest to find her father’s murderer.

At sixteen years old, Cassia would rather spend her days in the royal stables than in the royal court. But as the eldest child of King Robet and Queen Sarahann she obediently performs her duties as the Princess of Karah.

Her safe world changes forever when her father is murdered in the neighboring kingdom of Vespera. Cassia grapples with his loss as her mother prepares her for her new role as queen. Her first task - she must travel to Vespera to marry a prince she barely knows to fulfill the treaty her father signed just before his death.

Nothing is as simple as it seems with political intrigues and unusual powers shadowing Cassia on her search to find out who killed her father and why.


Available as an ebook and temporarily on sale for 99¢ at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Blio, Diesel eBook Store, iTunes, Kobo, Smashwords, Sony.

Available in print from Abe Books, Amazon, Barnes and Noble, The Book Depository, Create Space, and your local bookstore.

HORSE CHARMER - Two Year Anniversary

Wow, I can hardly believe it has been two whole years since HORSE CHARMER was first released into the big bad world. HORSE CHARMER was and is a book of the heart with the horse based on my own childhood show horse who will always have a special place in my heart.

I'm having a party on FACEBOOK today to celebrate! Swing by between 2pm-4pm EST (or 11am-1pm PST) for some fun tidbits and GIVEAWAYS! 

I have also temporarily dropped the price of HORSE CHARMER to $.99. You can find the new price at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, Blio, Diesel eBook Store, iTunes, Kobo, Sony.


HORSE CHARMER will be going on tour with Tasty Book Tours from May 20-31st. Check back here at the start of the tour for a full list of blogs who will be hosting and reviewing, and for MORE fun giveaways.

May Kindle Fire Giveaway

 
This is a joint AUTHOR & BLOGGER SPONSORED GIVEAWAY!
Kindle Fire HD 7" GiveawayThe winner will have the option of receiving a 7" Kindle Fire HD (US Only)
  Or $199 Amazon.com Gift Card (International)
  Or $199 in Paypal Cash (International)
Sponsoring Bloggers & Authors
I Am A Reader, Not A WriterFeed Your ReaderGirls with BooksJust Bookin' AroundThe (Mis)Adventures of a Twenty-Something Year Old GirlBooks, Beauty and Bodacious DealsAuthor Emma MichaelsPage Flipperz YALori's Reading CornerOh, Chrys!Author Josh BakerAuthor Roxanne CrouseEve's Fan GardenAuthor Elizabeth IsaacsChapter BreakBuku-Buku DidiMolly & Mel's Obsessions Book BlogAuthor Jennifer LaurensAuthor MK McClintockBookhoundsStep Into FictionAuthor Lena SledgeAuthor Taylor DeanLeisure ReadsLibby's LibraryA Bookish EscapeRamblings of a Diva Book NerdSuspense Author Kim CresswellSuzy Turner, YA AuthorBooks Unhinged by StacyHggAuthor Lori Verni-FogarsiFae BooksWord to DreamsKid Lit FrenzyAuthor Tressa MessengerAuggie TalkPhantasmic ReadsKerry TaylorReviews by Martha's BookshelfMarissa's Space  Giveaway Details 1 winner will receive their choice of a Kindle Fire 7" HD (US Only), $199 Amazon Gift Card or $199 in Paypal Cash (International). Ends 5/31/13 Open only to those who can legally enter, receive and use an Amazon.com Gift Code or Paypal Cash. Winning Entry will be verified prior to prize being awarded. No purchase necessary. You must be 18 or older to enter or have your parent enter for you. The winner will be chosen by rafflecopter and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to respond or a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is in no way associated with Facebook, Twitter, Rafflecopter or any other entity unless otherwise specified. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. Giveaway was organized by Kathy from I Am A Reader, Not A Writer http://iamareader.com and sponsored by the participating authors & bloggers. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED BY LAW.   a Rafflecopter giveaway

Lessons from ParaNorman

I've been meaning to put up a Lessons from Movies post for a while now, but I have so many ideas for different posts and didn't sit down to to do any of them because I couldn't decide.

But I have been watching ParaNorman almost every day for the last week and a half. Can you tell I have a seven year old? :-) I love this movie. Even with the repetitive watching. In fact, it has made me appreciate the brilliant dialogue even more.

For this post, I wanted to focus on a single dialogue line. Well, a question and then a character's response. If you haven't seen the movie, major SPOILER ahead, as this little tidbit is right at the end of the movie.

The quote happens between Courtney (Norman's older sister) and Mitch (Neil's older brother). Mitch is portrayed as a typical dumb jock type that the girls crush on. I love this line because it is said in an offhand manner and then moves on. Nothing is emphasized and dramatized about this quick interchange before the focus shifts to other characters.

COURTNEY So I was thinking, maybe we could catch a movie sometime? Nothing scary. MITCHThat sounds great, Kathy! Y’know,you’re gonna love my boyfriend! He’s like a total chick-flick nut!
In looking up the quote, because I wanted to get it right (I pulled it from the actual script which you can read at Script-O-Rama), I discovered that there was a lot of drama over this simple line and the basic fact that the creators had put an openly gay character in an animated kids movie.

Me. I loved it. I was so incredibly impressed that they 1) put a gay character in a kids movie and 2) didn't make a big deal of it (this single line is the only reference) just like they don't make a big deal that other characters aren't gay. It's like the film makers are making a statement without making a statement.

I hope to use this same technique at some point and have one particular supporting character in mind who would be perfect for it.

Unicorn Keep Chapter Three - On The Road

Unicorn Keep - Chapter One Unicorn Keep - Chapter Two  Unicorn Keep by Angelia Almos
3. ON THE ROAD
Madelen’s parents didn’t send anyone after them. Or if they did, whoever it was didn’t catch up to them before the trio parted. The road Jiline found herself on was much narrower and not as well traveled as the one which Madelen and Wilm had turned onto. She’d waited at the crossroads until they had ridden out of sight before continuing reluctantly on her journey alone.

She survived her first day and night alone. Well, not totally alone. Ginger, her pony, moved out in an easy stride beneath her. She’d felt guilty when her parents had told her to take the pony to the city and had even given her a little money to help with Ginger’s board. She had never deceived her parents before and they had been so happy and relieved. But in a way she was heading off to her new apprenticeship, if a very short lived one.

She expected the mages would discover her fairly quickly. Not that she wasn’t Madelen, but that she was no longer a pure soul. Once they did, she would head back to the city and meet up with Wilm and Madelen. Madelen would then be safe to return home if she really hated being a housemaid. Wilm could finish his apprenticeship.

What she would do was a little less certain. Returning home without a trade would be humiliating, but perhaps she’d like being a housemaid. She smiled at her own joke.

They should have reached the city by now. Jiline’s journey on the other hand was far from over. Ginger, thankfully, was holding up just fine. She patted the mare’s slightly sweaty neck. The mountains had been looming over them for the entire day. Night would fall much faster closer to the mountains than in the grasslands where Ainsley was located.

She stopped Ginger at a river crossing and getting off, let the mare drink her fill. Judging the sun’s position, she pulled the letter from her saddle bag and scrutinized the directions. Her hair blew across her face and she tucked it behind her ears in irritation. She hated wearing her hair down, but Madelen rarely wore her hair up. So, now she would have to wear her hair down and loose. She didn’t mind wearing Madelen’s clothes since they were the same size, but the hair thing was going to bother her.

They had tried to make the swap complete by also trading horses, but Ginger had made her point clear when she’d tried to buck Madelen off. Madelen had quickly dismounted and refused to ride her. It added a wrinkle to their trading places plan, but she was glad to have her pony with her. She trusted Ginger as she wouldn’t have trusted Madelen’s gelding.

She looked at the river and the mountains behind it. This appeared to be the river on the map. Whoever had drawn the map indicated the river as a good camping spot, but she figured she had a couple more hours of light left and hated to waste them.

It would be at least one more hard day of riding and that would be riding quickly to reach the Keep. Ginger’s stride was shorter than a typical horse so it could be even longer.

Ginger’s head shot up and she pivoted, her ears pricking forward. Jiline moved quickly and swung onto the back of her pony prepared to meet whatever had caught her attention. Her stomach clenched. What would be worse? Someone sent after Madelen who would know who Jiline was or meeting a complete stranger while alone on the road.

Shoving the letter back into the saddle bag, she fingered the hilt of the blade tucked into her boot. It was more of a multi-purpose blade to cut her food, ropes, or whatever she might need it for. But she’d known when her father had passed it to her as she had prepared to ride off that the main purpose had been for protection.

The bushes quivered and Ginger’s body tensed, preparing to bolt away from whatever would emerge. She tightened her legs around the pony’s sides to keep her under her.

A boy emerged on foot. A stranger. He stopped, his horse behind him. Ginger relaxed and nickered a welcome. They hadn’t seen any other travelers heading for the Keep so far. Jiline didn’t release her grip from her knife.

He spoke first. “Greetings. Didn’t mean to startle you. I’m Herrick.”

She licked her lips and nodded a greeting. “Madelen.” The lie didn’t come as easily as it should have. She couldn’t hesitate in her new identity.

He slowly approached and stopped at the river’s bank. His bay horse lowered its head to drink, unconcerned with Ginger’s continued nickering.

She released her hold on her knife and patted Ginger’s neck. “Hush.”

Herrick was still watching her, despite the canteen in his hand, he hadn’t made a move to refill it. “You’re traveling to the Keep?”

Again she hesitated as she stared at him. Shaggy brown hair, lighter brown eyes, tan, athletic, he looked to be about Wilm’s age, but Wilm had been too old to be evaluated. Perhaps he looked older than he was, probably fifteen.

“Yes, are you?”

Herrick nodded. He then crouched down and filled his canteen. She took the moment to study him and his horse. Wealthy. Again like Wilm. This wasn’t a farm horse. His tack though dusty was of fine quality as were his riding boots. She shifted in her saddle. She didn’t own a pair of riding boots. Just her everyday boots which had been passed down from Cayla to Sussy to her. The clothes she wore were of slightly finer quality since they were Madelen’s, but not of the level Wilm or this stranger wore.

He rocked back onto his heels and hooked his canteen to his saddle. His movements were slow, careful. Was he trying to put her at ease? She sat stiffly on Ginger. Her pony had finally relaxed, but she just couldn’t dismount even if she looked like an idiot. Of course, his horse could easily overtake Ginger if she tried to run. But Ginger’s lack of height would benefit her in the trees and brush.

She would have missed him watching her from the corner of his eyes if she hadn’t been so nervous. He futzed some more with his saddle before turning to face her. His horse finished drinking.

He sighed. “We’re going the same way to the same place. It would be odd for us to travel separately.”

He had a point, but then again, just because he said he was heading for the Keep didn’t mean, one, he was trustworthy, or two, that he really was going there.

He turned away to mount his horse. “You’re welcome to ride with me or not.”

He urged his gelding forward to splash through the river. She suddenly felt completely and utterly ridiculous and let Ginger follow his bay horse. The river was deeper than it looked. He’d picked a path with the least amount of rocks, but being high up his feet were the only thing that got wet.

She wasn’t so lucky and quickly scrambled to raise her saddle bags above her head as Ginger sank to almost her own height and pranced across the water. With the splashing, Jiline was truly soaked. She should have waited. She wouldn’t dry off before it got dark and it was cold in the mountains at night.

Herrick rode a distance from the river and she followed him. Settling her saddle bags back down, she considered her predicament. She had one change of clothes which were already dirty. These had been her cleaner clothes.

But wet pants weren’t going to cut it. She also didn’t want to shove them wet in her saddlebags. If she stayed in the sun as much as possible she might have had some hope of drying them off, but as the trees towered over her she realized it was clearly going to be impossible.

Herrick’s horse suddenly stopped and she jerked her gaze from her wet boots to Herrick who was frowning at her.

“Right, pony,” he sighed as he dismounted.

Jiline gathered her reins up in worry. What the heck was he doing now? A blanket came out. He held it out to her.

“Once, we hit the trees, the temperature’s going to drop considerably. You’ll freeze.” His words were matter-of-fact.

“I’m aware of that.” But she didn’t reach for the blanket. “I have a change of clothes.”

He lowered the blanket. Shoot. Now she was going to have to change in his vicinity.

“I’ll wait,” he said, tucking the blanket back into his saddle bag.

She hesitated a second before urging Ginger into a trot to a grove of trees a distance away. Safely enclosed in the circle, she peered out to make sure he hadn’t followed. He hadn’t even remounted, but leaned against his horse looking back toward the river. She glanced around to make sure no one lurked. Though they would have to be awfully quiet for Ginger not to notice them.

She pulled her dry, if dirty, clothes from one bag and shivered. The damp material seemed to be clinging more than usual with the shade of the grove. Her tunic shirt came off easily and she dried herself with her cloak as well as she could before pulling on the other shirt. Water squished in her boots and she unlaced them. Rolling her eyes, she stepped onto the fallen pine needles with her bare feet. They would dry quicker if her feet weren’t in them. Tying the laces together, she hooked her boots to the saddle. She peeked out of the grove again. He was in the same position.

Her pants didn’t come off as easily and she had to sit down on the prickly pine needles to finally pull them off her legs. Stepping into her dry pants, she evaluated her saddle. It was just as wet and would make her dry pants soaked as soon as she sat on it.

Her cloak lay on the ground and she had her blanket. What did she need more? Probably her blanket for when they made camp. Folding her cloak, she set it on the saddle. Ginger shook her body and sprayed little droplets on her.

Jiline glared at her, but quickly ran her hands over the pony’s coat to push off any remaining water. As dry as she could get the mare, she tied her clothes to the saddle so they would dry.

Ginger shifted and turned to look back at her. She stared at her cute pony in mortification as she realized she looked like a walking clothes line. She was about to untie them to shove them in her saddlebags, but reminded herself to be practical. It would get everything else wet and she needed them to dry before they reached the Keep.

Shoving her pride down and hoping her cheeks weren’t as red as they felt, she mounted and rode Ginger out of the grove. Herrick mounted back up without looking at her.

It was only as Ginger reached him that she could have sworn his lips were twitching, but he didn’t laugh or say anything. So despite her flaming cheeks she let Ginger fall into step beside him as they hit the well traveled trail into the woods.

Darkness came swifter in the forest as she had expected. She didn’t know how she had known that it would, but it didn’t slowly gray as it did on the farm, but went from light to murky to dark.

Herrick kept his horse walking for a little while after dark and she had to admit it wasn’t completely dark with the harvest moon shining above them, but it made the forest a heck of a lot more creepy. Their ride was conducted mostly in silence. She wasn’t sure if he was normally so quiet or if he wasn’t talking since she was such a ninny about pretty much anything he did.

At last his horse stopped and Ginger stopped behind him.

“We should make camp here.” Herrick pointed to a clearing in the forest just ahead of them.

It was only as she dismounted Ginger that she noticed the fire ring in the middle of the small meadow of grass. The grass against her bare feet made her feel at home after traveling in the prickly pine needles and dirt for so long.

As before, Herrick was silent as he unsaddled his horse, hobbled him, and then stepped into the woods. She could hear some cracking and breaking, but wasn’t sure what he was doing, until he stepped out with an armful of branches of various sizes. He kneeled down at the fire circle and Ginger nickered at the gelding.

Moved out of her stupor, Jiline untied her damp clothes and boots. They weren’t quite dry. She would need to hang them up for the night. Hopefully they would be dry in the morning. Looping them over her arm, she shook out her slightly damp cloak. It had done its job of soaking the water up from the saddle. She walked Ginger back to a smaller tree and carefully hung the clothes on its springy branches.

Her saddle and bridle followed. Digging in her saddle bags, she pulled out Ginger’s hobble and buckled it around the pony’s front legs. A pat on the neck and Ginger walked carefully if slowly toward Herrick’s horse. She hoped he was friendly or at least tolerant. Ginger could be a little too social.

With nothing else to do, she did her own slow and careful walk to the small fire Herrick had built, a skill she had yet to master on the trail. Lighting a fire in the stove at home appeared to be a lot less complicated than one on the trail. All she’d been able to do was get some smoke last night.

She felt as if Herrick was staring at her, but he looked steadily at the flames. She set her belongings down and slowly lowered herself to the ground. The grass had been mostly trampled or cleared right around the fire ring. She glanced around the meadow and wondered at how many people had camped here. How many children her age or younger had stumbled across this small little meadow on their way to the Keep?

“Where are you from, Madelen?” Herrick asked softly.

She jerked her gaze back to him. He was staring at her now. Again, the vulnerability went through her. Which was totally unlike her. She was always the brave one and now she realized how silly it had been to think of herself as brave when she’d been surrounded by things and people she knew.

Forcing herself to breathe when she realized she was holding her breath, she glanced at the fire, before looking back at him. “Ainsley, a small village a few days south of here.”

“Your family sent you alone.”

Of course they had, they had believed she was traveling on a well-traveled road to the closest city with Wilm as her escort. But she didn’t say that. Instead, she sat up taller. “You’re traveling alone.”

“I’m not a child.”

She glared at him. “I’m not a child either.”

“You couldn’t be more than fifteen.”

Her irritation grew at his accurate guess. “Good guess. You can’t be much older than I.”

He shook his head. “I travel a lot. This journey is nothing.”

Raising an eyebrow at his dismissive tone, she asked him, “Where did you come from?”

“The sea.”

She glanced back at the fire. He had traveled a lot farther than she. The sea was at least a week from her village in the opposite direction as the Keep. And the sea stretched on forever according to her father. He’d shown her a map of the coast once. There was more water than land.

“Have you seen the sea?”

She shook her head and wrapped her arms around herself. She watched him dig in his saddle bag and pull out the blanket from before. He held it out and offered it to her.

Embarrassed, she shook her head. “Thank you. I have my own.”

Dropping it on his saddle, he watched her again. She was going to have to get used to having the stranger’s eyes on her. She didn’t know why he made her so jumpy, but it was something she was going to have to get over. He hadn’t threatened her in any way and in fact had only offered his assistance. So what if he acted annoyingly know-it-all. He did know how to start a fire. She wasn’t sure what time it was, but it was a little early to go to bed.

Biting her lip, she pulled her own saddlebag a little closer and opened one of the bags to pull out the small amount of what was left of the food she had packed. Traveling food was completely uninspiring, she’d been able to eat berries, some greens and fruits while she was in the grasslands and known what she was passing. But the farther away she’d gotten from home the less she had found that she recognized and knew was safe.

She also pulled her blanket out so he would stop offering his own to her. He hadn’t spoken again since he’d offered. She really needed to work on her social skills.

Unwrapping the food bundle, she considered the hard biscuits and meat. Yep, very uninspiring. But considering his own generosity, she lowered the bundle so he could see.

“Would you like some? I have soda biscuits and smoked meat, if you’re hungry?”

He smiled and slowly shook his head. “I have my own, but thank you.”

Setting the bundle in her lap, she chewed on the end of a piece of the salty meat. Though it was probably about an hour away from when she would normally fall asleep, she found it was harder to keep herself erect and her eyes open. Suddenly, all she wanted to do was curl up in a ball.

She slowly wrapped the bundle back up and tucked it away in her saddle bags. She wasn’t really full, but no longer hungry anymore. Hopefully she would be able to spot something more appetizing on the trail tomorrow. Of course, she would have to get over her self-consciousness around Herrick. She was going to be around a lot of people she didn’t know for possibly the entire winter. She didn’t believe it would take them that long to discover her soul wasn’t pure, but she wasn’t sure.

Herrick flicked his blanket out and lying on his back, he tucked his hands behind his head. He was now on the other side of the fire and she couldn’t see him as clearly. Which meant he couldn’t watch her as easily either.

She undid her own blanket and wrapped it around herself before laying down. Using her saddle bags as a pillow, she stared at Herrick’s boots. .........Last chance to grab Unicorn Keep on sale for only $.99. Price will return to normal at the end of April.
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