Title: Daughter Darkness
Author: Alyssa Charpentier
Genre: YA Dark Fantasy
Book Blurb:
15-year-old Twilight dreams of a better life away from her uncaring family, longing for purpose and adventure. When her humdrum existence is soon shattered forever, she is thrust into the wickedly enticing realm of the Shadows, a society of sorcerers who look to her as their living salvation from the light. As darkness seeps into Twilight's soul, she comes to live by three words - "maim and kill." In this brutal coming-of-age tale, young Twilight finds herself tangled in a twist of existential crises, divine dangers, and monstrous mishaps as she navigates the various bends and turns of her new life, always wondering whether she should obey her "true nature" and remain in the dark - or fight for a glimpse of light beyond the Shadows' compound walls.
Excerpt:
“Welcome, friends, to our home,” Zemorah announced cheerfully as
she guided us through the throng in the foyer and down a dark hall leading
away from the commotion. It was down one of those halls that I had escaped
from the compound so long ago.
“Here, you will have a most thrilling time. Please just step through this
door here, and we can begin.”
We entered into a side door along the hall and into a completely dark
room that I was only able to see in because of my inborn night vision. The
zyz with us could not see their hands in front of their faces. Most of the
group was still too drunk to care about what was happening, but some, like
Dres, were beginning to have obvious doubts.
“This better be worth it,” the woman who had asked about the party
price grumbled.
The zyz were looking around the room, trying to see each other or parts
of themselves, but it was so utterly dark that it was impossible for them. I
watched as Zemorah and her lady friends approached a spiral–shaped
array of purple candles on the floor and lit them with small gusts of valdur.
When the zyz party witnessed the valdur, all of them, even Dres, let out
audible gasps.
“What in the world?”
“Is that magic?”
“It can’t be!”
Now, instead of plain fear, the zyz were fascinated. I could still smell
the odor of their fear hormones, but their feelings at viewing valdur glided
into excitement at observing something that did not exist in their sheltered,
ordinary world.
“This is our gift from our god,” Hadyei explained as she and the other
women seated themselves around the candles together. “Please, come join
us. Let us share this gift with each of you.”
“I don’t know about this,” Dres spoke. “This is some weird stuff.”
“Oh, darling,” Ananikaa called, “Don’t fear us. We have been given
unnatural power according to the laws of your world, but we are not of this
world. It is easy to fear what you do not understand, but we ask that you
give us and our blessings a chance.”
“Yes, a chance,” Liis echoed.
“Come sit with us,” Zemorah beckoned.
We all arranged ourselves awkwardly around the candles and
wondered what would come next. I almost, but not quite, pitied the zyz.
So wide–eyed and confused, they had no knowledge that any of this
existed. That in their very own mundane world, there existed not only
magic but a family of sorcerers who practiced it. And, I thought with
pleasure, a truly real deity who had gifted us with that magic.
“What now?” One of the men in the group asked.
“Yeah, show us your magic,” another man demanded.
“I’ve heard of witchcraft, and this is just like in the legends and fairy
tales,” a woman stated. “This can’t be real; none of it. It’s gotta be a hoax;
it’s too damn by–the–book to be real, so quit wastin’ our time and let us go
already. We came for a party!”
Buy Links (including Goodreads):
Amazon -
Author Biography:
Alyssa Charpentier is a dark fantasy author, poet, and U.S. Sailor. Her debut novel, Daughter Darkness, commenced her career as an author and marked the birth of her Myrk Maiden Trilogy. Alyssa has written for Daikaiju Enterprise's G-FAN magazine and attended G-FEST as a book vendor in 2022. When Alyssa isn't ravaging worlds or regaling her readers with twisted tales of light and dark and good and evil, she can be found enjoying Godzilla films, playing with giant bugs, and composing digital music.
Social Media Links:
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/TheMyrkMaiden