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Feb 1, 20235 min read

New Release | The Blood of Faeries by Award-Winning @DanRiceWrites #yafantasy #newrelease #bookboost



Title: The Blood of Faeries


Author: Dan Rice


Genre: YA fantasy


Publisher: The Wild Rose Press


Book Blurb:


Allison Lee wilts under the bright light of celebrity after being exposed as a shape-shifting monster. She'd rather be behind the camera than in front of it. Being under the tooth and claw of her monstrous mother is even less enjoyable. All she desires is for everything to go back to the way things were before she discovered her true nature.


But, after she accidentally kills a mysterious man sent to kidnap her, she realizes piecing her old life back together is one gnarly jigsaw puzzle. When Allison's sometimes boyfriend Haji goes missing, Allison and her squad suspect his unhealthy interest in magic led to his disappearance. Their quest to find Haji brings them face-to-face with beings thought long ago extinct whose agenda remains an enigma.


Excerpt:


I admire photos I took of the cherry tree in the front yard in the morning’s wee hours displayed on my laptop. A glacial blue sky punctuated by pink clouds is behind the green leaves and branches playing out in fractal patterns. My computer dings. A text message from Dalia pops up and fades away in the screen’s top right-hand corner.


I open the messaging app. I wish I could text as easily on my phone as my peers do, but I can’t. All my dad allows me is an archaic pay-as-you-go flip phone, which makes texting a hassle, so the only thing the phone is good for is making calls. It’s shocking how old school Dad is about tech, considering he’s a frigging computer science prof.


—Saw Leslie and Jason at cross country practice. They want to hang out.—


I smile. Getting out for a little bit will be great. My room is like a cage, and there are still three weeks to go until school starts.


—The protesters don’t have to leave until 7.—


—I’ll set something up for after 7. Cool?—


—Sure.—


—What about Haji?—


My lips straighten. I jab out my response.


—What about him?—


—Should I invite him or not?—


I sigh and run a hand through my hair. I still haven’t forgiven Haji for appearing on Devin’s podcast, Skaags and Dragons. Devin is Dalia’s ex and a complete bottom feeder. He has turned his involvement in The Incident into a podcasting empire by spinning apocryphal tales about me, the monster girl. It was quite a coup for the slimeball to interview Haji, who shared kisses with me in the wreckage of an automobile after I had saved Mauve, who happens to be a dragon, from my mother. I warned Haji not to go on the podcast, but he did anyway. I’ve scarcely said a word to him since. That was at the start of summer, nearly two months ago.


—It’s OK. I’ll not invite him.—


—Maybe I should forgive him.—


—He regrets going on the podcast.—


I rest an elbow on the table and start chewing on my lower lip. I’m glad he regrets going on the podcast, and maybe it’s time to bury the hatchet. But am I ready? Maybe it doesn’t matter if I’m not prepared. I should meet him now before school starts, so we can clear the air somewhere other than the hallways of Cascadia Prep. I’m about to type out a response when my door creaks.


Ripping out my earbuds by the cord, I spin in my chair to face the intruder, expecting my dad. Only it’s not him in the doorway. A man dressed all in black points a handgun at me and raises a finger to his lips for silence.


Keeping the gun trained on me, he steps inside the room and quietly shuts the door. Inside me, the sleeper stirs, powerful and ravenous. I can break this man, this would-be assassin or whatever he is, but I need an opening. Even fueled by the sleeper’s supernatural might, I doubt I can cross the room and disarm him before he pulls the trigger. I can transform, but that stratagem falls in the realm of last resort since my skaag form is bigger than the bedroom. Transforming might destroy the house.


“Stand,” the intruder demands.


“Why should I? Are you going to shoot me?” I’m more worried about Dad than I am for myself.


“I’ll shoot you in the leg.” He adjusts his aim.


“What if you hit my femoral artery? I’ll bleed out.” What did the gunman do to Dad? How in the world did he overcome Mother?


He frowns. “It doesn’t matter where I shoot you as long as it’s not immediately fatal. I know you heal fast. Now, stand up. Hands behind your head.”


I comply. “How do you plan to escape with me as a prisoner? Since you know I can heal quickly from a gunshot wound, you probably know I’m faster and stronger than you. Do you really think you can walk out of here, avoiding the security detail, with me in tow? Take your eyes off me for a second, I’ll disarm you and break your arm in the process.”


Sweat rolls down his brow. “Stifle it. Turn around. Keep your hands behind your head.”


“You’re making a mistake.” I can’t believe he overcame Mother. Taking me by surprise is one thing, but overcoming Mother, a battle-hardened, magic wielding, full-fledged skaag, is next level.


“We have your parents downstairs. You don’t start doing what you’re told without giving me lip, they’ll get hurt.”


Dad shouts from downstairs, followed by a loud thud, but no gunshot. I drop my hands and dart toward the intruder. Before he can pull the trigger, I’m on him, wrenching the gun up and to the side. Burning pain lacerates my right shoulder, and the crack of the gun is deafening. I’m more surprised than hurt because the sleeper’s prowess courses through my veins.


I tear the gun from his hand, which falls with a thump to the carpet. Rage and hunger not entirely mine alone muddle my thoughts. Kill this tool. Feed upon his flesh.


The man pistons a fist into my face, serving to enrage the sleeper further. I grab him around the crotch with one hand and hurl him against the wall. He slumps to the floor next to the door with a dazed expression plastered on his face.


My right arm goes numb, and blood moistens my deltoid. I hold up my left hand, palm outward. “Stay down. I don’t want to hurt you.” I leave out the fact the sleeper desires nothing more than to eat him alive.


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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 Kirkus Reviews calls, “An inspirational and socially relevant fantasy.”


To discover more about Dan’s writing and keep tabs on his upcoming releases, visit his website: https://www.danscifi.com and join his newsletter.


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