Well, in true form, I missed World Book Day. (I’m real good at missing dates.)
But I still have a book for sale, so I’ll do a shameless plug anyway. There are even some good reviews up on Amazon right now! Please check it out!
Get your copy (Kindle or paperback) on Amazon.
I’ve also been working on getting it up in other places, as well. Stay tuned!
Here’s an excerpt, just a teaser:
Her feet carried her all the way to the marketplace before the storm hit.
It rolled in out of the southwest like some kind of dark omen. Giant black clouds encased the city, smothering it. Devouring it. The streets of Praan, previously filled to bursting with happy, festive citizens, emptied within minutes. Women ushered their children indoors, and even the alley dogs found places to hide from the strengthening winds. Everyone knew the power of this kind of storm. Katrya ran, heart pounding. The last time a greatstorm had hit Praan, half the market had been destroyed. That had been months ago. Usually these things swirled harmlessly in the void between the mountains, but every now and again they threatened the great cities themselves.
Why does this have to happen now? Her frantic mind immediately went to the worst possible outcome. She could see the city crumbling off the mountainside like so many tiny rocks, the ships smashed to splinters, except for the carriers, which rode the high winds somberly toward the cities across the void, carrying the dead and dying, the family-less, the homeless…
Ien grabbed her arm in a rough grip, pulling her up short. “You need to stop panicking,” he said softly, imploring her with green eyes. The anger of mere minutes before had evaporated at the knowledge of the coming storm. Navigators could sense when storms were coming; after all, the storms were their fault anyway, manipulating the winds in the void as they always were.
Ree broke Ien’s gaze and glanced down the street. She could just see the stone archway to the dock. She and Ien were already halfway through the market.
“Ree!” she heard from her right.
She turned in Ien’s grip, saw Nola running toward them, green dress billowing around her dramatically. Ien released Ree’s arm.
“Where is Mack?” Nola asked.
Oh Mounts, he’s on the ship.
Ree opened her mouth to respond, and it hit.
The dark cloud over Praan exploded. A scream ripped from her throat as what seemed like a wall of solid rain slammed into her body. It felt like chunks of ice piercing her skin, tugging at her clothes, her hair. The empty street became a battleground of whirlwinds and flying objects. “Katrya we need to get inside,” Nola shouted over the deafening torrent. Ree’s mind flashed to Mack and the Arienna. The man was still on the ship—maybe even trying to save it. And that ship was her life. No, no, no.
“Ien, can’t you do something?” she screamed back at him. Overhead, the clouds only darkened. She tried to hide her face from the near-scalding freezing rain in the crook of her arm. She peeked out and tried to see through the tempest, all the while taking one step forward, then another—toward the dock. Toward the Arienna. She couldn’t see beyond a few feet; the dock and the stone archway were hidden by sheets and sheets of pounding, unforgiving rain, and the wind lanced her skin. She closed her eyes again. She felt Nola’s hands on her shoulders, dragging her back, towards a sheltered alley. Before she squeezed her eyes shut and let Nola pull her to relative safety, she barely saw swirling darkness begin to descend on the harbor.
A greatstorm.
Can she save her ship?? Will Mack survive?? Guess you’ll have to get the book and find out. :)
Liz Makes Stuff 