The 13th Floor Collection tour & Magna's Plea by Cherie Reich

Today has a theme with my tour post and the guest post I'm hosting.

I'll be talking why you should write short stories on the wonderful Summer Ross' blog.

And on my blog, I'm so excited to have the talented YA fantasy author Cherie Reich with a flash piece. It's a prequel to her short story, "Magna's Plea."

A princess will rise and challenge Fate.

While her father, brothers, and people fight against the Kingdom of Apentha, tenacious eighteen-year-old Princess Magna can only watch the destruction of Amora, her besieged city and kingdom. Her mother, Queen Vyvian, has refused to allow her heir to join the fray.

But Magna won't take no for an answer. She seeks out an end of the war from Prince Cyrun of Apentha, their prisoner. If she can't persuade him toward peace, then Amora may fall.

This short story prequel includes a sneak peek of Reborn, Book One of The Fate Challenges, forthcoming May 2014.

YA Epic Fantasy

The Fate Challenges #0.5

A 5500-word Short Story

Best of all, you can download this short story for FREE at Amazon / Nook / iTunes / Kobo / Smashwords / Goodreads and read online at Wattpad.

Cherie Reich is a speculative fiction writer living in Virginia. For more information about her work, please visit her blog and website.

MORAN’S VICTORY
They couldn’t let the Apenthans win.

Hazy twilight hid the Place of Lordéhi from Moran’s view. His sandaled feet sloshed through the reeds along the river’s bank. He plucked a reed and twirled it through his fingers. Guards carrying torches trailed his family and him. No one would attack them here. The sun had dipped into Hupogaia’s realm. War had gone to bed.

Beside him, his brother Thoran emitted a soft grunt in pain. An Apenthan soldier had slashed Thoran’s arm during today’s battle.

“Is the pain real bad?” Moran worried about the wound. Thoran was his best friend, despite a four-year age difference. They’d play-fought against numerous villains throughout the years.

“No, I’m fine.” Thoran gritted his teeth and clutched his injured shoulder. “I’ll be ready to fight again in no time.”

Father patted Moran on the head and ruffled his hair. “Apenth’s healers will heal Thoran.”

Why did he insist on treating Moran like he was ten? Father hadn’t allowed him out of the war tent. Moran wanted to face the same danger his brother and Father did. “I would’ve taken care of those Apenthans, if I’d been out there.”

He swished the reed in front of him as if it was a sword.

Thoran chuckled, despite his face growing whiter. “They have real weapons.”

“Pfft, I can still fight.” He tossed the reed into the water. Ripples spread out from it, but what was that? The waves skirted a slender piece. As his father and brother walked on, Moran got on his hands and knees and leaned toward it.

“Come along. We’ll visit the healer and then return to the palace.” Father called over his shoulder.

“I see something.” His fingers brushed against the object, and he tugged on it.

Something held it in place.

Moran reached out farther and yanked. The force nearly sent him onto his behind. He studied the thing in his hands. It appeared almost like a branch, but it was smooth. He brought it up to his eye and could see all the way through the hole.

“What do you have there?” Father stomped over.

“I don’t know.” He held it out to his father, but before Father could take it, bubbles erupted from the water.

Father jerked Moran from the river’s edge and unsheathed his blade.

The guards around them did the same.

A head popped up from the water and the rest of his body followed. The man—not much older than Thoran—gasped for air.

“An Apenthan!” Moran recognized the red battle clothes the Apenthans wore.

“Seize him.” Father shielded Moran and Thoran as the guards entered the water.

The boy and the guards fought before they overtook him and dragged him to the embankment.

“Let’s take him to the palace. Mother will decide what we should do with him.” Thoran straightened, as if his wound no longer bothered him.

“This can’t wait, but you’re still seeing a healer later, Thoran.” Father instructed a few guards to search the river for more Apenthans, even though we didn’t see any more. Then, he placed a heavy hand on Moran’s shoulder and gave it a squeeze. “You stopped this Apenthan from breaching our walls.”

Moran’s heart swelled with pride. He alone could’ve saved their kingdom. They’d have to think he was old enough to battle now, right? With a grin and a light step, he walked with the others from the river’s bank to the palace. He couldn’t wait for Mother and his sister Magna to see what he’d done.

He picked up another reed before he left and pretended it was a sword. Apentha could never beat Amora as long as he was around.

Polar Night review and In Your Pants blogfest

Blurb:
When Detective Danny Fitzpatrick leaves his hometown of Chicago and moves to Fairbanks, Alaska he wants nothing more than to escape the violence and heartbreak that left his life in pieces. Numbed by alcohol and the frozen temperatures of an Alaskan winter, Danny is content with a dead-end job investigating Fairbanks' cold cases. That all changes when a pretty blond woman goes missing on the winter solstice, and Danny stumbles upon some surprising connections between her disappearance and that of another Fairbanks woman three years earlier. Forced out of his lethargy, Danny sets out to both find the missing woman and solve his own cold case.

The investigation points Danny towards Aleksei Nechayev, the handsome and charming proprietor of an old asylum turned haunted tourist attraction in the Arctic town of Coldfoot. As he tries to find a link between Nechayev and his case, Danny's instinct tells him that Nechayev is much more than what he seems.

Danny has no idea that Nechayev is hiding a secret that is much more horrifying than anything he could ever have imagined. As his obsession with finding the missing women grows, Danny finds his own life in danger. And when the truth is finally revealed, the world as he knows it will never be the same.

My review:
Detective Danny Fitzpatrick only wants to escape the horror of his past. He leaves his Chicago home and takes a job in Fairbanks, Alaska working cold cases. While he's successful at numbing his mind with alcohol, a case comes along that snaps him into sobriety. Danny links a cold case of a missing girl to a new one, and through further research, he finds several more. His investigation takes him north to Coldfoot and to the haunted establishment of Aleksei Nechayev. Danny knows something's going on with Aleksei, but can't manage to convince anyone else of the fact without some hard evidence. When he finally comes across some information, it changes Danny forever and puts him in danger of more than just catching a cold in the freezing Alaskan winter.

This supernatural thriller will chill you to the bone and not just with the wonderful descriptions of Alaska. POLAR NIGHT gives us various points of view that takes the reader on a dark journey filled with nail-biting suspense and intense emotions. Danny has the heart of a hero, but is scarred by his past and it's wearing him down. He's a flawed man and yet still admirable. Aleksei is cold and immensely fascinating. Maria has an amazing spirit even in a terrifying situation.

While there's a thrilling plot and a great cast of characters, it's the setting and atmosphere that really make this book stand out. We don't often find books that take place in the far north, and usually not in the winter. I loved all the little every day tidbits Julie Flanders included about life in Alaska. Plus, I was enthralled by the haunted asylum. The little strange happenings and scary noises added to the tension of the story and brought out an even chillier atmosphere.

POLAR NIGHT is the debut novel from Julie Flanders. I can't wait to read more form her!

You can buy POLAR NIGHT here:

Amazon * Barnes & Noble * Amazon UK  * Smashwords 

Bio: Julie Flanders is a librarian and a freelance writer who has written for both online and print publications. She is an avid animal lover and shares her home in Cincinnati, Ohio with her dog and cat. POLAR NIGHT, a suspense thriller with a supernatural twist, is her first novel. Find Julie online at her blog, on Twitter, and on Facebook.

This fun little blogfest is hosted by the lovely Summer Ross.

It's very easy: take the current book title you're reading and add "in your pants" afterward.

I'm reading L.K. Hamilton's newest book.
AFFLICTION in your pants!
That doesn't sound healthy.

 

Day three of The Harbinger blog tour

Have you bought your copy of The Harbinger yet?
Amazon * B&N * Kobo * Smashwords

I have two wonderful stops today.
Or rather, I have one appointment and Zeus has the other.

Summer Ross grills me with three important questions.
See what my writing space looks like!

Zeus receives a visit from Apenth who is a god from Cherie Reich's world in her amazing WIP, The Phoenix Prophetess. See what Zeus thinks of the incident with his harpy servant and his hero.

Today's tidbit: The Harbinger reveals a few crucial secrets about the 13th floor. There are a few things that my CPs didn't even catch until the second time around.