As the junior wizard sentinel for New Orleans, Drusilla Jaco’s job involves a lot more potion-mixing and pixie-retrieval than sniffing out supernatural bad guys like rogue vampires and lethal were-creatures. DJ’s boss and mentor, Gerald St. Simon, is the wizard tasked with protecting the city from anyone or anything that might slip over from the preternatural beyond.
Then Hurricane Katrina hammers New Orleans’ fragile levees, unleashing more than just dangerous flood waters.
While winds howled and Lake Pontchartrain surged, the borders between the modern city and the Otherworld crumbled. Now, the undead and the restless are roaming the Big Easy, and a serial killer with ties to voodoo is murdering soldiers sent to help the city recover.
To make it worse, Gerald St. Simon has gone missing, the wizards’ Elders have assigned a grenade-toting assassin as DJ’s new partner, and undead pirate Jean Lafitte wants to make her walk his plank. The search for Gerry and the killer turns personal when DJ learns the hard way that loyalty requires sacrifice, allies come from the unlikeliest places, and duty mixed with love creates one bitter gumbo.
Today is our stop for the Witch Song Blog Tour hosted by Mundie Moms Here is the Chapter 4 of Witch Song by Amber Argyle
By Amber Argyle
Published by Rhemalda Publishing
To Be Released on September 1st, 2011
4. Witch Hunters
As soon as the village was out of sight, Brusenna broke into a run. Her golden hair swished behind her as her feet flew over the packed Earth. When she reached the turn-off in the road, she dove into the trees and collapsed next to Bruke. Drawing in her knees, she marveled that she didn’t feel terrified. Quiet the opposite. She felt powerful. Even so, tears plunged down her cheeks.
“Why are they so cruel? I’ve never done anything to hurt them!”
Bruke whined and licked her face. He froze and a low growl erupted from his throat. He bit the pendant and pulled back. The black leather thong strained against her neck. “No Bruke! You’re going to break it!” She pried it from his teeth.
Wiping her face with her palms, she darted into the forest, singing the song to hide her path from any who might follow.
Trees and plants, hide my way. Let no one come unless I say.
The entire way, Bruke whined beside her.
When she yanked open the door to her house, the light was beginning to fade. She stood, breathing hard on the doorstep. But she couldn’t seem to go inside. The house was hollow and empty. One look back at Bruke and she stepped aside. “Come.”
Bruke trotted inside as if it were the most natural thing in the world, though he’d never been allowed inside before. After
Witch Song 27 making a round, he sat on the floor in front of her as if to say,
“What next?”
Brusenna let out a nervous laugh and suddenly realized how hungry she was. “Next is supper.” Lighting a lantern, she busied herself fixing a meal for the two of them, but Bruke didn’t seem interested in eating. She took a hearty bite and moved the food to her cheeks so she could talk. “Come on. Eat your supper.”
Instead, Bruke jumped up and placed his paws on her thighs. His eyes fixed on the pendant, he growled.
The tiny hairs on Brusenna’s arms stood on end. She swallowed. “All right, boy. I’ll take it off.” Reaching behind her, she undid the clasp and took the necklace to the money box, placing it beside her father’s ring. “Satisfied?” she asked as she came down the stairs.
With a contented groan, he settled down to his meal.
Grunting, Brusenna plopped back on her chair. When she’d finished her dinner, she tried to memorize more songs from her mother’s journal, but she couldn’t seem to keep her eyes open. Giving in, she eased into her bed, with Bruke lying down at the foot. Almost immediately, she fell asleep.
A wet tongue in the palm of her hand and a soft whine brought her around. Glancing out the window, she saw the velvety blackness of deep night. Rubbing her eyes with the pads of her fingers, she sat up. “What?”
Bruke went to her closed door. He growled softly, as he’d been trained to do if strangers were sneaking around. The hairs on the back of Brusenna’s neck stood on end. Could Corwood have found a way through her forest? She threw off the blankets and peeked out her window. She saw nothing out of the ordinary.
Carefully, she padded to his side. That’s when she noticed a soft glow coming under her door. Had she left the lantern burning? She strained to listen over the sound of her heart thudding in her ears. The light moved! Someone was here! Pure energy surged through her veins. Bruke let out another whimper. Holding her hand on his nose, she shushed him. “Stay.”
You can also read Amber’s Q&A about her debut here, follow the two different blog tour going on here, and find out where Amber will be signing at here.
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created here at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because we are particularly fond of lists here at The Broke and the Bookish. We’d love to share our lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!
It’s been tough picking only 10! Thank god I made it, I don’t want to explain why I chose this books but I guess some of you are also looking forward for this books. Whats your Top 10 TBR list for fall? Let us know in the comments 🙂 Happy Tuesday to everyone *waves*
It’s Monday! What are you reading is a weekly meme that comes to us from Sheila at Book Journey. To participate, simply post what you finished reading in the past week and what you plan to read this week. It is a good way to find other books you may enjoy reading. After you write your post, head over to Sheila’s blog to leave your post’s link on the link entry form at the bottom of the What are you reading? post.
What I Finished
Across The Universe by Beth Revis
The Vampire Dimitri by Colleen Gleason
Matched by Ally Condie
Valren by Kerry Castorano
What I’m Reading
Fallen by Lauren Kate
There’s something achingly familiar about Daniel Grigori.
Mysterious and aloof, he captures Luce Price’s attention from the moment she sees him on her first day at the Sword & Cross boarding school in sultry Savannah, Georgia. He’s the one bright spot in a place where cell phones are forbidden, the other students are all screw-ups, and security cameras watch every move. Even though Daniel wants nothing to do with Luce–and goes out of his way to make that very clear–she can’t let it go. Drawn to him like a moth to a flame, she has to find out what Daniel is so desperate to keep secret . . . even if it kills her.
Ok, so today I was at my normal rounds of blog hoping when I stumbled upon the tumblr page of Beth Revis (which I believe is a total Potter fan). I then saw a post saying that she watched the Unauthorized Biography of J.K Rowling and the inner Potter in me kicked in! I’m a self professed Potter fan since high school I’ve been reading the books and until now haven’t got a time to finish the series. But yeah and so I searched Youtube if there’s a video then I watched it. Then I got myself crying while watching it, I say if you haven’t watched you’ll know what I have to say. “WATCH IT NOW!”
*In this TV Movie you’ll see the life of Joan Rowling, as child she was just a normal kid except her mind isn’t. She has a mother who is very sweet, a father who understands her and a sister who is always there for her no matter what. As a child she loves to read, which I believe is where she got her imagination. As a teenager she was wild she did crazy stuff with his best friend which she called a “Weasley”. Would you believe that she got declined from Oxford? But that didn’t stop her from dreaming big, she finishes her studies. On her way to a job interview she then came up with the idea of Harry Potter through her dream and started drafting/writing it. She landed on a decent writing company. But her boss feels the same way as she did, so he talked to her and said:
“Your heart is in the right place, but you should be doing what makes you happy”
And so she gave up her job as a writer, and then found a job at Portugal as an English teacher. Rough times come through her mother died because of sclerosis. She then met her husband and had a baby with him. But again life isn’t really perfect for Joan and her husband *forgot the name* due to unemployment he started drinking all day. She had it with him so she left Portugal and got back to Chepstow her birth place. With only the state funding her for a living and being unemployed she started to write Harry Potter and The Philosophers Stone with the push of her sister. It was magical! She wrote it while nursing her daughter. After she finished it her next goal is to get published so she started sending out her draft to agents, it was hard being an unknown author she got declined most of the time which is most likely to be because she’s just new. On her journey to get her books published she found another teaching job which compensates for their daily living. She found an agency in the name of Christopher. In no time found her a publishing company which is Bloomsbury. And you probably know what happened next…*
It’s my first time seeing a TV Movie Biography and to start I didn’t expect it to be like this, going through the life of Joan is a big experience for me as a fan, I love Harry Potter and getting a chance to know what the writer experienced while writing it makes me relate. Watching this Biography has relived my Potter blood! I love Harry Potter and I can always say that I love the author who made it possible for creating such an EPIC book. For aspiring writers I recommend to watch this biography and make it an experience of your own. One great lesson for me while watching this Biography is to never give up! If you love writing then write, who knows where it might land you 🙂
Also if your a Potter fan you’ll find this Biography full of facts about Harry Potter so you might want to check it out.
*This is based only on the Biography that I watched, it may vary from the real Biography*
First off, to start this interview, how are you today, Falpain?
I am very well, thank you, and hope the great God Kar smiles on your endeavors.
What is your favorite memory growing up?
Oh, I have so many! My childhood by the sea was a very happy one. I suppose the happiest memories I have are the ones of playing on the sandbars with my brother. We liked to watch the fishermen with their nets. In those days, our father still thought we would have magical abilities, and so he had much more time for us. Sometimes he sent our tutors away and came out with us onto the beach in his bare feet and taught us the names of all the creatures we found in the tide pools. He would never do that now.
Do you love your father even if he thinks you’re a disappointment to him?
It is a hard thing to discover that your father never really loved you for who you are, just for who he thought you were. It was something my brother couldn’t live with. But yes. I think even with everything that’s happened, I still love my father. I’m not sure I want to be like him, though.
Do you miss your twin?
Terribly. All those happy memories of the sea are tainted now. Since my brother drowned, the sea always reminds me of him.
How is it living in Bitterlands?
I’m one of the lucky ones. My family is an old one and we have money. But the Bitterlands are so full of refuges from the war that the land cannot support us all. The Witchlanders were stupid to think they could force so many of us onto these tracts of poor land without any repercussions. Sometimes I hope another war does come, so we can take back what they stole.
Could you imagine living in a world without magic?
The great God Kar sings the world into being with his magic. He is singing right now, and if he stopped for even a moment, you and I and everything around us would disappear. The world is nothing but magic and so, no, I don’t think a world without magic could possibly exist. It is an illogical question. Maybe even a blasphemous one.
If you were given a chance to be another character in a book, who would it be and why?
I am by far the most intelligent, good looking, and interesting character in this book. I hope this doesn’t sound like bragging. It’s just that this book is full of all sorts of low, common and uneducated people—Ryder, in particular! It really does make me wonder about the moral character of the author. But she is a woman and cannot be expected to have the taste and intellect of a man.
Thank you so much for stopping by!
Kar’s blessing to you.
About Witchlanders – goodreads, amazon, B&N, Indie Bound High in their mountain covens, red witches pray to the Goddess, protecting the Witchlands by throwing the bones and foretelling the future. It’s all a fake.At least, that’s what Ryder thinks. He doubts the witches really deserve their tithes—one quarter of all the crops his village can produce. And even if they can predict the future, what danger is there to foretell, now that his people’s old enemy, the Baen, has been defeated? But when a terrifying new magic threatens both his village and the coven, Ryder must confront the beautiful and silent witch who holds all the secrets. Everything he’s ever believed about witches, the Baen, magic and about himself will change, when he discovers that the prophecies he’s always scorned— Are about him.
About Lena Coakley – website, facebook, twitter Lena Coakley was born in Milford, Connecticut and grew up on Long Island. In high school, creative writing was the only class she ever failed (nothing was ever good enough to hand in!), but, undeterred, she went on to study writing at Sarah Lawrence College. She got interested in young adult literature when she moved to Toronto, Canada, and began working for CANSCAIP, the Canadian Society of Children’s Authors, Illustrators and Performers, where she eventually became the Administrative Director. She is now a full-time writer living in Toronto. Witchlanders is her debut novel.
Witchlanders Book Trailer
Contest Info: Answer the video question (YouTube video embed code listed below) in the comments, you are entered in the Kindle3 Giveaway. Gather up to 15 entries by commenting on each Tour Stop. Open US/Canada
Heavenly by Jennifer Laurens Paperback, 294 pages Published August 15th 2009 by Grove Creek Publishing
I met someone who changed everything. Matthias. My autistic sister’s guardian angel. Honest. Inspiring. Funny. Hot. And immortal. That was the problem. What could I do? I did what any other girl would do-I fell in love with him. Zoe’s sister darts in front of cars. Her brother’s a pothead. Her parents are so overwhelmed; they don’t see Zoe lost in her broken life. Zoe escapes the only way she knows how: partying. Matthias, a guardian sent from Heaven, watches over Zoe’s autistic sister. After Zoe is convinced he’s legit, angel and lost girl come together in a love that changes destiny. But Heaven on Earth can’t last forever.
While YA Paranormal-Romance novels don’t tend to be very appealing to me, I love how this book isn’t just the ordinary girl-meets-hot-guy-not-to-mention-he’s-a-guardian story, but it has so much than that — something really deeper that will change your life’s point of view. I have to admit that only a handful of books moved me emotionally, and though this book may not be the best one to do such thing for me, I do appreciate the realizations this book has taught me.
It’s amazing how this book felt so real and genuine. And when I say realization, I’m talking about how this book made me feel like the road to life might be tough, bumpy and full of challenges at times, but at the end of the day, despite all the complaints and grievance, we still have things to be thankful for no matter how big or small that we don’t even notice. And Zoe’s life isn’t an exception. She might look like a typical teenager, but deep inside she carries an emotional baggage and pressure of dealing with her sister Abria with autism, and the negligence she feels from her parents because of each of them’s responsibility of taking good care of her sister. Under this tough circumstances, don’t we sometimes seek for a means of escape? Don’t we sometimes want a space to breathe and let go of our problems, just for a second? I think we all do.
And Zoe’s escape is partying. While that might sound inappropriate and childlike, I admire Zoe. Despite wanting to release her anger and frustration brought by her difficult life, her love for her sister remains unconditional. I can totally imagine how sometimes you want to complain, but you just can’t put it aside for the one general thing that she is your FAMILY. She’s a part of you and you just can’t take that away. Right? And it’s not just Zoe I admire but their whole family. Their strong faith in each other didn’t fail them in the end and it kept them going. Honestly speaking, the love story between Matthias and Zoe didn’t push a strong impact for me, and the ending was a bit off. I’m just like drawn to the family unit more in the story, and it just kind of odd to think that Zoe had to go and leave her beloved family behind. I guess I’m not yet ready for that, but well…
In my opinion, I think books should be as realistic as this kind of novel as possible. It feels good to relate and learn something that you can actually apply in reality, and this book didn’t fail.
– Cassandra Clare
– Stephanie Perkins
– Julie Kagawa
– Marie Lu
– Tahereh Mafi
– Michelle Hodkin
– Kiki Hamilton
– Kody Keplinger
– Becca Fitzpatrick
– Amber Argyle
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