Title Gold Cavern
Author Zola Blue
Genre Fiction, Action-Adventure, Mystery, History, Romance, Thriller
Book Blurb
The only thing that could summon Estelle from her new york apartment was a desperate call for help from the man who had saved her life as a child. Her grandfather, who had raised her from a child after her mother's tragic death, needed her to return for an urgent family matter.
.
Convinced of the legend of the missing village of Goldum, he gathers a group he can trust who can handle the journey into lower mountains before the snow arrives.
With Estelle to lead, she follows her grandfather's map, into foothills on ATVs. Much to her surprise, she and the others come upon another group of ATVs along their trail.
Lofton, a geologist, appears to lead a group that includes two hydro dam workers and his female assistant. With a massive gold nugget as evidence, the two groups continue together, having no real choice.
Together they discover the source of the gold is most likely coming out of an underground river, and they need scuba gear to continue. The underground journey takes several days and tortures all physically but mostly mentally. The smell of abundant amounts of gold has them all planning glorious futures.
Alliances and enemies are made in the small group. Still, all seems forgiven when they find the legendary lost village of Goldum buried almost intact. However, things go poorly when Estelle, who claims to be the rightful heir to the village and fortune, tells the disbelieving group that removing any gold will result in all of their deaths.
Excerpt:
“Don’t do this, Mecailo,” she shouted at him.
“Easy Swiftwater,” he soothed and stroked its sinewy neck. His valued longtime friend pranced on its back legs. He tried to throw him off. Seconds later, Swiftwater bolted forward and raced through the tunnel of falling rocks. Mecailo grasped the reins tightly. He held on with all his might as the horse hurtled through the murky air. His fried horse dashed through the dark bleakness, by memory alone, moving as if he tried to outrun some unseen assailant.
Mecailo felt a warm sensation against his leg and realized the satchel that held the gold smoldered. Searing heat charred through his pant leg and scorched his skin. Hurriedly, he snatched the bag from his sash. He hurled it away. “Stop Swiftwater,” Mecailo commanded, but the horse continued running. Seconds later, Mecailo’s shoulder rammed into something unyielding; the sound of shattering bone in his body sounded out loudly, and intense pain incapacitated him. He dropped the reins and toppled backward. Mecailo slammed onto the rocky ground. “Come back Swi—” Mecailo tried crying out. Powerless to scream, he listened to the sound of his horse’s galloping hooves, which grew ever more distant.
A yellow glow radiated near his feet; it was his satchel, and the straps of the bag were entangled around his sandal strap. Moments later, it exploded into flames, and sparks spat angrily outward as the leather material burned away. Exposed, the shimmering golden nuggets lay next to him upon the ground.
“Mecailo, you can’t take the gold out of the village,” the words of his wife echoed in his mind, one final time, just before a massive boulder plummeted from the ceiling and crushed the life out of him.
Buy Links (including Goodreads)
Why is your featured book a must-read?
"I think one of the best things about this story were the vivid descriptions Blue used. The details and the language used to describe the underground caverns really helped me a clear mental image in my head of what they looked like and imagine the scene playing out itself." ~ Goodreads reviewer
Giveaway –
Enter to win an e-book bundle of all 40 books featured in the Kindle Unlimited Bookish Event:
Open Internationally.
Runs November 10 – 15, 2020.
Winner will be drawn on November 18, 2020.
Author Biography:
Born in Florida, I am a resident of the US, but now I reside on a lovely island in British Columbia Canada with my mother and two dogs, and one cat. During the early years of my life, I worked in the business industry, thus reaching my goal of obtaining my degree in Business Management.
I love to read, and over my lifetime, I have probably read hundreds of books. Now that life has given a bit more time to concentrate on my personal life, I am following God and writing fun, fanciful fiction stories, which blend over into the fantasy realm.
I hope that each time I put words on the paper, it makes you want to read it. I always hope someone has fallen in love with my words and want to continue reading them.
Social Media Links