Title: Dragons Walk Among Us
Author: Dan Rice
Genre: YA Fantasy
Book Blurb:
Shutterbug Allison Lee is trying to survive high school while suffering the popular girl's abuse. Her life is often abysmal, but at least her green hair is savage. Her talent for photography is recognized by the school paper and the judges of a photo contest.
While visiting her friend Joe, a homeless vet, Allison's life irrevocably changes after an attack leaves her blind. All her dreams as a photojournalist are dashed as she realizes she'll never see again. Despair sets in until she is offered an experimental procedure to restore her vision. But there are side effects, or are they hallucinations? She now sees dragons accompanying some of the people she meets. Can she trust her eyes, or has the procedure affected her more than she can see?
Excerpt:
I open up a web browser and type in Tahoma University’s URL into the address bar and punch enter. I navigate around the website until I find the faculty homepage for Dr. Frederick Radcliffe, a tenured professor of medieval history. There is an old picture of him as a younger man. Not much in terms of what classes he teaches or any kind of personal information. There is, however, an email address below his picture. Radcliffe@tahomau.edu. I copy the address.
I have an old email account that I rarely use. I set it up when I was maybe twelve or thirteen for no reason other than I could. As best as I can remember, it has no truthful personally identifiable information included as part of the account. I login to the email account after two tries to guess the password. I create a new email message and paste Dr. Radcliffe’s email address into the text box. In the subject line, I type: I know what you are.
The pointer hovers over the send button.
Send.
Don’t send.
Send.
Don’t send.
Why am I doing this? I need to think this through. Maybe I should sleep on it. I click on the save draft button then close my laptop. It’s 1:35. In the morning. Thank goodness, there is no school tomorrow. If I don’t sleep until noon, I’ll be a zombie all day.
I flop down in bed. The mattress squeaks under my weight. I throw my head back against the pillow and squeeze my eyes shut. In under a minute, I’m staring at the ceiling, obsessing over Dr. Radcliffe and his ephemeral dragon. I know what you are. Do I know what he is? Is he a magician? A dragon in disguise? Or, and this is the most likely scenario, I’m crazy, and he’s just a college professor.
What will sending the email get me? No response, more than likely. Will that tell me anything? The message might be blocked by a spam filter. Or he might delete it without reading it. What if he reads it? If he’s just a professor, he won’t reply unless he’s lonely or weird, the kind of person who follows anything down a rabbit hole. If he is something other than an ordinary college professor, he won’t reply. Why would he? Why risk revealing himself over an email? What if he responds, and he is a magician or something else? Why would he reply in that case? To protect himself? Yes, to protect his secret. Contacting him might put me in danger. It might put my dad and friends in harm’s way too.
I roll onto my side and shut my eyes, ready to let go of my obsession with Dr. Radcliffe and get some much-needed sleep. I end up flipping and flopping like an asphyxiating fish. Unable to get comfortable, I sit up and growl. Rest is not in the cards. Much to my surprise, the prospect of danger excites me. I’m drawn to it. Something predatory stirs deep within me.
I slip out of bed and pad across the room to my laptop. I don’t bother sitting down. I just flip open the machine and glance at the time. 2:01. Damn. I access my ancient email account and open the draft email to Dr. Radcliffe. The professor might be dangerous, he might toast me up with dragon fire and eat me for a snack, but I’m not the prey in this scenario—he is. I hit send, close the laptop, and snuggle underneath my blankets. Warm and cozy, I’m asleep within minutes
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/dragons-walk-among-us-dan-rice/1139530393?ean=2940162168041
What’s the first binge-worthy book you read and why was it a must-read?
The first binge-worthy book I ever read? That's a tough one! I remember loving Lloyd Alexander's The Chronicles of Prydain as a young lad. I was fully immersed in Taran's adventures. The latest binge-worthy book I’ve come across is one I just read—Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King. It is one twisted tale with a cast of weird and memorable characters. I can't wait to read the other two novels in the trilogy.
What makes your featured book a binge-worthy read?
When Allison discovers she can see a world no one else can, she doesn't know where to turn for help. Her friends? The adults in her life? All she really wants is to fit in and belong, but she discovers that to survive, she must master her latent supernatural abilities and accept that being different is beautiful.
Dragons Walk Among Us is an award-winning, high-energy young adult fantasy that Kirkus Reviews calls, "An inspirational and socially relevant fantasy." The novel is the first in the Allison Lee Chronicles. Book two, The Blood of Faeries, is due out later this year.
Giveaway –
One lucky reader will win a $75 Amazon (US or Canada) gift card.
Open internationally. You must have a valid Amazon US or Amazon Canada account to win.
Runs August 1 – 31
Drawing will be held on September 1.
Author Biography:
Dan Rice pens the young adult urban fantasy series The Allison Lee Chronicles in the wee hours of the morning. The series kicks off with his award-winning debut, Dragons Walk Among Us, which Indies Today calls "A perfect balance of fantasy, suspense, excitement and fun!"
While not writing, working the 9 to 5, or chauffeuring his soccer fanatic sons to practices and games, Dan enjoys photography and hiking through the wilderness.
To discover more about Dan’s writing and keep tabs on his upcoming releases, check out his blog and join his newsletter.
Social Media Links:
Website: https://www.danscifi.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DanSciFi
Twitter: https://twitter.com/DanRiceWrites
BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/dan-rice
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/danricewrites/