Roxanne Rhoads's Blog, page 79
September 23, 2022
A Bewitching Friday
SPOTLIGHT: ALEX McKENNA and DEATH IS NOT THE BEGINNING #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/x1Tj50KRatg
Book Spotlight & #Giveaway ~ Arch by Michael N. Riley ~ #HistoricalFiction #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/5BVI50KRaBv
The Talking Cure (A Novel of Magic and Psychiatry) is the story of psychiatrist Dr. Cynthia Mann and her new client, Zach Cutter, a supernatural investigator who’s leading her into a world where magic really exists—and it’s a world of danger and romance, too https://amzn.to/3LBVjJ4
Book Spotlight & #Giveaway ~ Seekers: The Winds of Change Seekers Saga, Book One by Troy Knowlton
@troy_knowlton
~ #YA #Fantasy #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/QZGS50KRazw
Alex McKenna and Death Is Not The Beginning Alex McKenna Series Book Four by Vicki-Ann Bush - YA Paranormal, LGBTQ #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/5aPX50KRash
[Spotlight & Giveaway] Arch by Michael N. Riley #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/7v9V50KRay2
Vicki-Ann Bush Shares Her Spells for Help and Protection
https://paranormalists.blogspot.com/2...
The Talking Cure
A Novel of Magic and Psychiatry #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/ONFr50KQ7Lv
Poetry Corner & Seekers: The Winds of Change by Troy Knowlton #YAFantasy
#bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/Brk550KOSpa
Alex McKenna and Death Is Not The Beginning by Vicki-Ann Bush #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/5Yiy50KRawJ
September 22, 2022
A Bewitching Thursday
Book Spotlight & #Giveaway ~ Alex McKenna and Death Is Not The Beginning (Alex McKenna Series, Book Four) by Vicki-Ann Bush
@VickiAnnBush
~ YA Paranormal, LGBTQ #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/NSFM50KQ7Cc
Poetry Corner & Seekers: The Winds of Change by Troy Knowlton #YAFantasy
#bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/Brk550KOSpa
ALEX MCKENNA AND DEATH IS NOT THE BEGINNING BY VICKI-ANN BUSH - BOOK TOUR + GIVEAWAY #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/sg6150KQ7Eh
Sparkling Glitter Bat DIY Excerpted from Pumpkins and Party Themes by Roxanne Rhoads #NoCarvePumpkins #DIYHalloween #halloween https://www.abewitchingguidetohallowe...
The Talking Cure
A Novel of Magic and Psychiatry #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/gWlr50KQ7Lw
Arch by Michael N. Riley - Book Tour + Giveaway https://www.jazzybookreviews.com/2022...
SEEKERS: THE WINDS OF CHANGE BY TROY KNOWLTON - BOOK TOUR + GIVEAWAY #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/i2Co50KQ7K8
September 21, 2022
A Bewitching Wednesday
Poetry Corner & Seekers: The Winds of Change by Troy Knowlton #YAFantasy
#bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/7WGH50KOSp8
Guest Blog with Arch Author Michael N. Riley #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/AGQc50KOSlI
SPOTLIGHT - YA PARANORMAL LBGTQ+ - ALEX MCKENNA AND DEATH IS NOT EH BEGINNING (Alex McKenna, #4) by Vicki-Ann Bush #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/197450KOS9C
The Talking Cure -A Novel of Magic and Psychiatry by Barbara Lien-Cooper and Park Cooper #PNR #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/iK2v50KOSs4
Alex McKenna and Death Is Not The Beginning
https://lshadowlynauthor.com/2022/09/...
For all who have been patiently awaking for an ebook copy
the Kindle version of Ghosts and Legends of Genesee & Lapeer Counties is finally available https://amzn.to/3f4QcoH
[Spotlight] The Talking Cure by Barbara Lien-Cooper and Park Cooper #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/PJEM50KNIWx
Author Interview- Alex McKenna and Death Is Not The Beginning by Vicki-Ann Bush #YAParanormal #LGBTQ #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/3Y0r50KOS4g
September 20, 2022
The Talking Cure -A Novel of Magic and Psychiatry by Barbara Lien-Cooper and Park Cooper #PNR
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The Talking Cure -A Novel of Magic and PsychiatryThe Cutter/Mann SeriesBook OneBarbara Lien-Cooper and Park Cooper
Genre: slow build paranormal romance Publisher: Wicker Man StudiosDate of Publication: Aug 2022Number of pages: 434Word Count: 85,000
Book Description:
--Zach Cutter claims he's not really an antiques dealer as such, but that he's really a supernatural investigator.
--Zach claims he's got repressed memories, missing at least a year of his life, probably more.
--Zach claims he can do magic. Not stage magician magic-- real magic.
--Zach claims he's got feelings for his new psychiatrist, Dr. Cynthia Mann.
--Zach claims a lot of problematic things.
But they're all true.
After a disturbing case in New York made Dr. Cynthia Mann wonder if the supernatural might actually be real, she's started her life and her practice all over again in Cleveland, where she meets a new patient, stranger than any she’s ever met before—and far more charming than anyone she’s ever met, too.
During the progress Zach makes as Cynthia’s patient, he tells her stories about his past, and their relationship slowly edges from a doctor-patient one to a friendship—and Zach clearly wouldn’t mind if it became more.
Together, Cynthia and Zach will eventually have to find a way for him to get out of the trouble he stumbled into long ago...
Book Trailer https://youtu.be/vmmgq1MeTBc
Excerpt
“You’re really going to make me do magic, aren’t you?”
“Yes. I can’t believe your story otherwise.”
He reached out to some fresh roses that were in a vase on my desk. “Watch,” he said.
No magical energy came from his fingers, and nothing felt or looked any different. He was just... touching them. But he looked at me as if he’d done something. “...You didn’t do anything,” I said.
“Touch the petals.”
As I reluctantly reached out to the petals he’d been touching, his fingers, drawing away, touched my hand. “C’mon, they won’t bite you,” he said. Then he reached out again, and guided my hand across the petals of the flower.
The roses had been real that morning—I’d put them in fresh water.
But now they were fake flowers, made of silk. “You have nice hands,” he said.
I took back my hand. “What did you do to my flowers?”
“Magic,” he said.
“Slight-of-hand magic, you mean. You could have just distracted me...”
Zach sighed and raised his hand, showing me his palm, the fingers splayed out like he was about to start pointing to it and lecturing me about palm-reading. Then he lowered it down until his hand was laid out flat on my desk. I watched his hand lower, then I watched it sit there, waiting for something to happen. His hand didn’t move... nothing seemed to move... though there was some slight change I couldn’t put my finger on.
After a few seconds, I looked more closely around his hand at the desktop. The top of the desk was transparent.
My desk had been made of wood. Now, however, the entire desk was made of glass.
It was still exactly the same shape. It was at least the same weight, since it didn’t budge when I pushed at it.
I pulled out a drawer. A glass drawer slid out, on metal wheels turning on metal rails screwed into the glass by metal screws. I hadn’t really needed to pull out the drawer—I could already see, somewhat, what was inside: regular-old, boring white envelopes, some staples, paperclips, pens.
All faintly visible through see-through glass, glass with a woody brown tint to it... and a sort of vague wood grain set into it somehow...
“Don’t worry, it’ll only last a few hours, then it’ll change back to wood,” Cutter assured me.
What. In the world.
I stared at him for almost half a minute. He looked at me patiently. It was as if we were trying to “read” each other, trying to figure out... I don’t know. Each other, I guess.
I looked away first. “I’m sorry, Zach, but you’re not a client of mine yet... I can’t... until I get to know you... I don’t just give out sleeping pills... I’m sure other doctors might, but...”
“I don’t want another doctor. I want you, Cynthia.”
Great. The first handsome, smart guy I’d met in a while, and not only did he have to be a potential client, he was some sort of... magician...? “I’m not sure that would be...” I said, “I mean...” On top of everything else, I found that I was blushing.
“What if I told you that...well, uh... I actually... it’s not just sleeping pills... seriously, I do have some real problems...”
“What sort of problems...?”
“...Repressed memories.”
“Oh? When did that start?”
He smiled weakly. “After Celeste died. The time right before that is very fuzzy. And the time right after that is pretty much lost to me. I lost months... probably a lot more time than that.” He glanced at a clock on the wall and grinned a winning smile. “But I imagine my time’s up for today...”
“Yes, I suppose it is...”
“Unless you’d like to go out to dinner with me...?”
“Mr. Cutter, if you’re to be my client, I can’t... we can’t meet socially...”
“I’ve always liked women who have a bit of an authoritarian side to them...”
I took out my appointment book. “Let’s get you an appointment for next time. I don’t really appreciate walk-ins, and...”
“—Argh, I hate sticking to appointments. Being a magician isn’t exactly a 9-to-5 job...”
About the Authors:Barb Lien-Cooper is originally from Minnesota. She was a guitarist/singer-songwriter, and got an album put out on the Imp label. However, she also had health issues: Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and fibromyalgia and extreme environmental sensitivities and allergies. (She also has Complex Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder due to issues involving her family of origin.)
For a while, brain fog from the CFS and the fibro made it harder for her to read long and involved works of fiction... So (since she'd always loved them in her childhood) she got into reading comics and graphic novels, particularly the comparatively avant-garde work coming out at that time from DC Comics.
Park Cooper was born and raised in central Texas he read a lot of books and comic books—and then one day, someone in the letter columns of the comic Sandman announced that they were doing a fanzine for readers of that comic. Barb and Park both wrote in.
Park liked the writing Barb submitted to the fanzine, and he wrote to her, and they began writing to each other. Then they started talking on the phone... they fell in love... they started visiting one another...
Then they got married! (To each other!)
They wrote about comics and popular culture for some websites (some of them award-winning), and wrote a lot of reviews and articles and things.
A little after that, Barb started writing her comic Gun Street Girl, and a little after that, they started adapting and editing many, many manga for major American publishers importing manga (and sometimes their South Korean and Chinese counterparts) from the far side of the Pacific. Near the end of this, Barb and Park wrote the manga pitch The Hidden for TokyoPop, perfectly timed to appear the week that that company fell apart.
Then Barb and Park wrote the sci-fi vampire graphic novel Half Dead for Marvel Comics and Dabel Brothers Productions. Somewhere around this time, Park successfully completed his Ph.D. in literature, and then Barb and Park wrote a vampire prose novel, and Park started writing his cyberpunk comic Swipe for Angry Viking Press, and there were also other various short stories and novels and non-manga-related editing jobs, too many to bother counting here...
These days, Barb and Park live happily together in Austin, Texas.
Web: https://parkgsg.wixsite.com/wickermanstudios
Twitter: https://twitter.com/parkcooper
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100057705847859
A Bewitching Tuesday
Vicki-Ann Bush Shares Her Spells for Help and Protection #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/oF8A50KNINe
[Spotlight] The Talking Cure by Barbara Lien-Cooper and Park Cooper #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/PJEM50KNIWx
Interview - Alex McKenna and Death Is Not The Beginning by Vicki-Ann Bush #YAParanormal #LGBTQ
#bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/OCLS50KNILK
Seekers: The Winds of Change by Troy Knowlton #YAFantasy #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/WpY350KNIQ7
For all who have been patiently awaking for an ebook copy
the Kindle version of Ghosts and Legends of Genesee & Lapeer Counties is finally available https://amzn.to/3f4QcoH
[Blitz & Giveaway] Alex McKenna and Death is Not the Beginning by Vicki-Ann Bush #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/xUNh50KNIJ2
Arch by Michael N. Riley #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/9NUn50KNIRR
Interview - Alex McKenna and Death Is Not The Beginning by Vicki-Ann Bush #YAParanormal #LGBTQ
Do you have a specific writing style?
Chaos. I never really have a plan, what comes to me is what I do that day.
Do you write in different genres?
I have in the past but the last several years has been YA Paranormal.
If yes which is your favorite genre to write?
YA Paranormal
How did you come up with the title for your latest book?
I’ve often heard, “Death is only the beginning.” But what does that mean? Sure it’s a representation about life everlasting, but what about the things you love in life? Those things are gone forever. No second chances. So death is not the beginning for some things, it’s the ending.
Is there a message in your novel that you want readers to grasp?
Actually, the message is in the series. Acceptance.
Is the book, characters, or any scenes based on a true life experience, someone you know, or events in your own life?
Yes. The paranormal comes from years of being sensitive to the afterlife and being able to share it in my family.
Of all the characters you’ve ever written, who is your favorite and why?
I really enjoy writing Margaret. She’s her own person, and she’s fiercely loyal to those she loves.
What book are you reading now?
I’m currently reading, The Final Girl Support Group, by Grady Hendrix.
What books are in your to read pile?
Phantoms, by Dean Koontz
If you had to choose, which writer would you consider a mentor?
Dean Koontz
Alex McKenna and Death Is Not The BeginningAlex McKenna Series Book FourVicki-Ann Bush
Genre: YA Paranormal, LGBTQPublisher: The Parliament HouseDate of Publication: September 20, 2022ASIN: B09M53WXWNCover Artist: Shayne Leighton
Tagline: Death Doesn’t Mean Forgiveness
Book Description:
In the fourth and final installment for the series, Alex faces his most difficult case yet—the school bully.
For two years Kyle tried to make Alex’s life even more complicated than it already is. Choosing to single him out for his psychic abilities and other life events, the angry teen took every chance he could to challenge Alex’s well-being.
Despite the constant insults, when the bully is murdered and comes to him for help, Alex sets aside the past to help a soul in need. Searching for the killer, Alex uncovers a truth that answers the question why he was the victim of Kyle negative attention, and the answers that will set them both free.
Book Trailer https://youtu.be/x8WDjIEQkaM
Amazon BN Parliament House Press
Excerpt:
Slipping off his jeans and boxer briefs, he unraveled the straps and stepped into the harness, centering it to his body. Then, pulling the front cradle away from his skin, he placed the packer in the sling and positioned it to the left. He had no idea why he did that, but he did. Pulling his boxers back up, he turned sideways to soak in the full view. Swiveling to face forward, he pulled his t-shirt over his head and tossed it on the toilet lid. Inching closer to his reflection, he examined the scars lining his chest a few inches below his nipples. Tracing the seam with his fingertips, he peered into the mirror. A lot changed over this past year.
Glancing to the side, he cocked his head. Rapid breath competed with the drumming of his pulse pumping through his chest, deafening all other sounds. He turned toward the small window that faced the backyard. He was drawn to it, being pulled as if tethered to a rope wrapped around his waist. Padding towards the glass, he rested his shoulder on the frame and peered out. Abruptly he pulled back…what the hell was Kyle doing in his yard? Quickly, he pulled on his t-shirt and jeans and flung open the door.
“Tesoro, I gotta go downstairs.”
“Why? What’s going on?” Margaret rushed into the hallway.
“Fucking Kyle is in the backyard.”
“What? I’m coming with you.”
The teens swiftly took the stairs focusing on their mission to confront the bully who’d verbally abused Alex for the past three years.
Wilby lay on the throw rug in front of the television when they jumped down to the solid wood floor, skipping the last few steps.
“Hey!”
“Wilby, stay in the house.”
“What? Why?”
“Just listen, okay?”
“No.”
Alex narrowed his eyes, but Wilby followed them anyway. Sliding the glass door open, Alex stepped onto the small porch that crowned the yard. Kyle stood in the center of the property on the pathway that split the yard into two equal sides. Behind him stood an unattached garage. There wasn’t a solid fence, only a row of hedges separating their property from the sidewalk and any unwanted guests, like the guy who stood poised and ready for whatever he was ready for.
“Alex, don’t. He’s not what you think.” A young boy stood at his side.
“Jacob, this isn’t the time for games.” Alex narrowed his eyes.
Margaret tapped his shoulder. “What did he say?”
“Not important.”
“Well, looks like Kyle left in a hurry,” Margaret remarked.
“What? What are you talking—” Alex glanced down at Jacob. The little boy shook his head up and down. “You’re kidding me?”
“I tried to tell you,” Jacob murmured.
“Alex? You can see me, right?” Kyle asked in a shaky voice.
The boy glared at the intruder. “Kyle’s like me.”
Jacob had died in a car accident with his mother, and somehow, they were separated. Afraid to face the unknown alone, the six-year-old would haunt the halls at his elementary school until the day he followed Wilby home. He’d heard from others in the ghost world that Alex had special gifts and helped the dead. Alex tried several times to convince the little boy he’d be okay to crossover, but fear had rooted deep, and even the coaxing of a living teenager who talks to the dead wasn’t enough for the boy to go. He’d been a permanent resident of 55 Geranium Avenue ever since.
“Now who are you talking to?” Margaret huffed.
“Kyle.”
“Kyle from school? What the heck? He’s not here—uh oh.”
“Yeaaah. Uh oh.”
“Is he, I mean, is he messed up?”
Alex understood why his girlfriend had asked the question. It wasn’t just because she was curious; it was one of the ways she connected with him. She knew some of the gruesome spirits he’d encountered over the years. They’d had several explicit conversations. Margaret was his everything, and that meant shouldering the burden of seeing things that were hard to look at. Even if it was only through his descriptions.
“No. He looks like he always does.” Alex turned back to Wilby. “Bro, get in the house now, or I’m telling Ma, and you know what’ll happen. You won’t be playing any of your games for a really long time.”
“Okay, okay. Jeez. Just because I didn’t get the know doesn’t mean I have to be sent away all the time.”
“Hey. No one said you’re not getting it. Just wait.”
“Whatever. I’ll be in my room.”
Alex’s heart ached for his brother. He’d been waiting since he was about five to get the gift that most of his family from his ma’s side possessed. There was always the possibility that Wilby could be like his dad, but he tried not to think about it. Alex had seen spirits since he was old enough to talk, but it was different for everyone. There was still time. Alex let his gaze travel from Wilby to Kyle, the terror that had been the starring role in most of his nightmares since the ninth grade now had an aura of a mouse more than a lion. Slouching shoulders, gaunt cheeks, and eyes wide with fear consumed any remnants of the hulk he was.
Alex took a cautious step toward the billowing ghost. A new spirit hasn’t mastered the skills of holding onto a solid appearance, and in the beginning, it can look like ripples in a pond.
“Kyle, what happened to you?”
“I…I don’t know. I can’t remember. Why can’t I remember?”
“It’s okay. You’re gonna be okay. It happens sometimes. It’ll come back to you.”
Alex glanced over at Margaret. She was biting her cheek. She knew he was lying. It didn’t always become clear what happened to the person, and those were the spirits that went insane. Not fully comprehending their death, how they got there, where they’re going. They refuse the light and wander endlessly in an abyss of the dead, the living, and the creatures that are damned and sinister. Telling Kyle that now would serve no purpose other than a cheap jab at revenge for all the crap he’d done to him. Alex couldn’t do it.
“Kyle, listen to me. We’ll figure it out, but for now, I want you to follow me to my room. Can you do that?”
“Yes.”
“Are you sure you want to do this? The guy’s a beast. A creep.” Margaret huffed.
“I know, but he’s a dead creep, and he needs my help.”
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About the Author:Originally from New York, Vicki-Ann currently reside in Nevada. Writing Young Adult paranormal, she finds inspiration from events that have been in her life for as long as she can remember. Inheriting the sensitivity to the supernatural from her family, they continue to be an endless source of vision.
Released in September 2019 from The Parliament House, Alex McKenna and The Geranium Deaths. The first book in a YA, Paranormal, LGBTQ series, that features a seventeen year old, transgender boy with paranormal abilities.Book Two, Alex McKenna & The Academy of Souls, debuted October 2020.
Vicki-Ann has several titles that have received Reader's Favorite Five Star seal, as well as the 2017 and 2018 winner of, 50 Great Writers You Should Be Reading. Most recently, Alex McKenna and The Geranium Deaths, received the Gold medal in the Readers Favorite Book Awards for Young Adult, Paranormal.
Newsletter: https://bit.ly/3KmZbNG
Website: https://www.vickiannbush.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/VickiAnnBush
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vickiannbush/
Tik Tok: https://www.tiktok.com/@authorvickiannbush
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/VickiAnn.Bush.Author
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Vicki-Ann-Bush/e/B004I4ZQWG
a Rafflecopter giveaway
September 19, 2022
A Bewitching Monday
Character Confessions- Seekers: The Winds of Change by Troy Knowlton #YAFantasy #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/UsQy50KMJNo
Guest Blog by Arch Author Michael N. Riley #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/gSng50KMJNO
The Talking Cure -A Novel of Magic and Psychiatry by Barbara Lien-Cooper and Park Cooper #PNR #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/rFsh50KMJQJ
The Girl From Saint Petersburg
Sacrifice, Starvation and Survival. What will she do to stay alive? #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/fUpu50KMJPE
The Enthronement by Charity Mae [Tour with Excerpt] #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/p6W250KMJOF
September 16, 2022
A Bewitching Friday
The Talking Cure - A Novel of Magic and Psychiatry by Barbara Lien-Cooper and Park Cooper #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/jHkH50KLlVQ
[Spotlight & Giveaway] The Girl from Saint Petersburg by Jovana Peters #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/VYHj50KLlUZ
The Enthronement Book One by Charity Mae - Young Adult Fantasy/Romance - You'd think winning a princess test is easy. It's a lot harder when you have to kill the prize. #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/oybp50KLlTH
Tonight, Friday, September 16, we're at Tea Bee in Grand Blanc signing copies of Ghosts and Legends of Genesee & Lapeer Counties
Stop in for books and tea, and be sure to sample Tea Bee's fall flavors.
https://www.facebook.com/events/42923...
Seekers: The Winds of Change by Troy Knowlton #YAFantasy #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/IUqx50KLlSP
Arch by Michael N. Riley #bewitchingbooktours http://ow.ly/jl7p50KLlRV
Arch by Michael N. Riley
ArchMichael N. Riley
Genre: Historical FictionPublisher: Writers RepublicDate of Publication: June 24, 2022ISBN: 9798885364409Number of pages: 190Tagline: Some men are just to mean to die!
Book Description: The book is set around 1900, when New Mexico was still a territory.
Doc Strafford has bought a small mercantile in Portales, New Mexico Territory, to start a new life. Over the years, Doc has become more involved in the growth of Portales. He eventually sells his interest in a saloon to two seedy characters, Jewels Davis and his albino son, Jefferson.
When Doc invites his old friend from the Civil War to visit Portales and the surrounding territory, it draws suspicions from the Davises to the point that they torture Doc's hired hand, Gustavo, just to find out what Doc is up to.
Amazon BN Writer’s Republic
About the Author:Michael N. Riley was born in Grants, New Mexico, in 1960, the second generation born in New Mexico from either of his parents’ families. Like most, they homesteaded from other states. His father’s side was from Texas and his mother’s family was from Alabama. When he was three, they moved from Grants to Clovis, New Mexico. He went to school and graduated high school and eventually moved to Portales, New Mexico, to attend Eastern New Mexico University. He ended up getting married and working for an electric cooperative reading electric meters. During that time, he had several old timers tell him stories about coming to New Mexico when it was a territory. Most of them were old ranch hands and farmers. Their eyes would light up when they told stories about the real Wild West and some of the shenanigans they would get into. This is how he came up with this story.
http://authormichaelnriley.com
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Seekers: The Winds of Change by Troy Knowlton #YAFantasy
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Seekers: The Winds of ChangeSeekers Saga Book OneTroy KnowltonGenre: YA FantasyDate of Publication: July 12th, 2022ISBN: 979-8840330708 ASIN: B09VDBYBK7Number of pages: 356Word Count: 86000Cover Artist: Lara Lampert, 99designs
Book Description:
After an assassination attempt that could lead to an all-out war, Tyras and Oren, two young Seekers of the Argan Empire, are each given secret missions in an attempt to thwart the coming chaos. Both tasks require the Seekers to venture through the war-torn continent of Tiarna where the young men face mortal danger, horrible monsters, and hostile groups – all challenges Seekers are trained to combat.
Luckily, the two Seekers also find guidance, friendship, and romance along the way. However, powerful and mysterious forces are conspiring behind the scenes and both Tyras and Oren will have to overcome a host of obstacles, including their own inner demons, in order to maintain a glimmer of hope for success.
With war imminent and the unknown ahead, will the Seekers triumph, or will they be swallowed by the turbulent, relentless Winds of Change?
Set in a new, masterfully created high fantasy world, Seekers: The Winds of Change is perfect for fans of An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir and We Free the Stars by Hafsah Faisal.
Amazon
Excerpt CHAPTER 1- THE PHANTOM IN BLUE
The night sky was like A dark and shifting ocean, pitch-black and ominous. Strong winds kicked up swaths of desert sand into the horizon. The waves of brown earth raged across the heavens with a low roar. The rough weather spewed thousands of coarse, rocky grains that tore into anything standing in their path. It made the inhabitants of the Koterran mining camp miserable. The small encampment sat at the edge of a large rift in the sands, where precious iron and sandstone had already been torn from the earth. Webs of scaffolding hugged the edge of the chasm and stretched deep into the hole below. The tents of the camp were arranged in two circles. A dozen or so constituted the outer circle, and five made up the inner circle, the largest of which housed the spoils of the dig. A robust campfire sat in the center, which shone defiantly against the darkness of the wild night.
Serana sat on a rock at the edge of the campfire’s light and peered off into the distance. She wondered why her father made the decision to send her to this bizarre corner of the kingdom to guard this tiny, insignificant camp. A whole party of knights accompanied her, which seemed unnecessary. There’d been reports of bandits attacking caravans in the area, causing the High Commander to take action. He’d entrusted his daughter with organizing the camp’s protection. On the surface it made sense, but this was a job for regional guards, not Serana and thirty royal knights. Perhaps there’s some other reason, besides bandits. What if there’s a threat too dangerous to reveal, one he wanted to keep secret? The idea both terrified and excited her.
A powerful gust of wind smashed through the circling encampment like an ocean tide crashing against rocky shores. It ripped through the tents and carried enough force to extinguish the fire, shrouding the camp in near-total darkness. Bedlam ensued as miners and knights ran around in that darkness, fumbling like blind infants, trying to find where they had left their torches.
Serana didn’t join in the hysteria. She listened through the commotion, blocking her ears from the miners’ squabbling and sensing outward. She could feel a presence approaching the camp’s edge. She squinted at the outer circle of tents and saw the shape of a figure moving across them, like a predator circling its prey. Her hand reached for the sword at her hip, but she stopped short.
She realized there was a danger in having her weapon drawn, with so many people running around in the dark. In her moment of hesitation, she lost sight of the figure. She shouted a command to her knights: “Gather your bearings and spread out. We aren’t alone!”
Most of the soldiers had already lit their torches and were quick to follow their leader’s command. They began fanning out toward the camp’s edge, swords in hand. Serana scanned back and forth, observing their progress, watching and waiting for one of them to spot the unknown assailant.
A sharp noise cracked through the air, like a tree branch snapping under heavy duress. Serana looked in the direction of the sound and noticed that one of the torches had gone out. She called out to the knight holding it. No response. She ran toward the shadowed area, hand on her sword hilt. She made it halfway to the perimeter when she noticed movement on the roof to her right. Serana instinctively drew her blade and slashed upward as a figure leapt from atop the tent, vaulting over her. Her weapon missed its mark, only managing to cut a small amount of fabric off the edge of the intruder’s cloak. A dark blue scrap of cloth blew off into the wind. That cloth and its color were enough for Serana to understand what kind of enemy she faced. The blue of the material, coupled with the acrobatics, identified the invader as a Seeker of the Argan Empire.
Serana turned around and bolted back toward the campfire, shouting as she ran, “Knights, hurry back to the center of camp; the trespasser is going to the supply tent!” Her soldiers had the tent encircled mere moments after the order had left her mouth. She knew that she had the Seeker cornered. She paused at the tent’s entrance, signaling for two of her most trusted knights to follow behind her. They shuffled to her side, and the three of them entered the tent, swords drawn and ready.Upon passing the threshold, she saw the Seeker sitting on a pile of sandstone, holding the artifact in his gloved hand. The emerald orb, roughly the size of an apple, glittered in the faint torchlight. It had a perfect round shape and gave off a pulsing green luminescence.
The Seeker ignored Serana, staring at the artifact with curious eyes. He spoke to the Koterrans in a tired and dismissive tone. “Well, I have what I’ve come here for. Let me leave in peace, and there won’t be any trouble. I’ve no quarrel with any of you.”
Serana’s fury boiled out of her. “You’re in no position to be making orders, Seeker! How dare you invade our camp in the middle of the night, like some blue phantom coming to haunt us. That artifact belongs to the Kingdom of Koterra, and I’m not letting you steal it from us. If you want this to end peacefully, you’ll hand it over right now!”
The Seeker turned and looked at the Koterran, his blue eyes perfectly visible even in the night’s darkness. He looks young for a Seeker, she thought. He couldn’t have been much older than her, and she was a couple years shy of her second decade. His pale skin reflected the orange tint of the torch fire, and his messy brown hair poked out from under the blue hood of his cloak. His deep blue eyes shimmered in the flickering firelight, giving off a slight luminescence of their own. The Argan foreigner had a calculated look on his face, as if his mind focused on something far, far away.
A few tense moments passed wherein both parties seemed
to be sizing each other up. The Seeker’s voice broke the silence.“You know as well as I do that I can’t do that. Under imperial law, all artifacts of the Lost Kingdom must be impounded and sent to the Archive at Arga for safekeeping. I’m doing you a favor, really. Get out of my way and let me do my job!”
“Watch your tone, Argan! You’re far away from your empire, and there are plenty of dungeons in Koterra that I’d be happy to toss you in.” Serana clenched her teeth together, adrenaline mixing with her rage as she squeezed the hilt of her blade.
The Seeker lowered his gaze and shook his head. “Well, I can’t say that I didn’t give you a choice. I would suggest that you duck and cover.”
Serana only had a few seconds to ponder his cryptic words before the explosion knocked everyone off their feet. Debilitating ringing echoed through her ears. It was the last thing she heard before going unconscious. The blast disoriented everyone except the Seeker, who had braced himself for it, knowing that it would arrive at the perfect time. A flurry of sand, broken tents, and rubble showered the poor Koterrans, subduing them. The Seeker found it easy to escape in the chaos, and he made his way through the camp with little resistance. He’d almost reached its edge when the second explosion went off. He hadn’t counted on this, and the surprise rattled him, sending him flying into the dark envelope of the tumultuous night.
About the Author:Troy Knowlton has always had a burning desire to tell stories. He started at a young age by drawing maps of made-up continents and fantasy kingdoms. The empty kingdoms beckoned to be given life, and his work eventually blossomed, leading him to create full narratives and characters for his worlds. He currently lives in California where he works as an X-Ray technologist and teacher when he isn't writing. He's also a great lover of history, currently working to earn his bachelor's degree in History and Political Science.
Website: www.troyknowlton.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/troy_knowlton
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TroyKnowltonWrites
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22334349.Troy_Knowlton
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