Welcome to my tour stop for Skinshifter, the first in the Sylvan Cycle series by Alycia Christine.
This is a high fantasy novel and the tour runs September 28 - October 9 with reviews, author interviews, guest posts and excerpts.
Check out the tour page for the full schedule.
About the Book:
Skinshifters are a curse. The Asheken deadwalkers proved that fact when they used skinshifters to spy against the Sylvan races during the Second War of Ages. Now, after three centuries of peace, the deadwalkers have found a secret way back onto the Sylvan Continent and this time they seek not just to conquer their enemies, but to enslave them body and soul. When the Feliconas Clan suffers the deadwalkers’ first raid, one werecat—a skinshifter who has concealed her abilities—survives the massacre. Even as Katja struggles with her grief and guilt over her murdered kin, she must unite with other Sylvan refugees to defeat the deadwalkers before they can butcher and defile the other races. But can this skinshifter trust her new found allies or will their secrets prove even more treacherous than her own?
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“As involved as it is vividly eloquent, Alycia Christine’s Skinshifter…is fueled by engagingly twisted fantasy elements, vivid imagery, appealing characters, rousing adventure and terse storytelling.” –Bestsellers World
“Action is well done, tension is wonderfully detailed and maintained throughout, and fantasy readers will find in Katja an appealing, believable character whose quest and concerns drive a story line that is vivid, accessible, and involving.” –D. Donovan, Senior eBook Reviewer, Midwest Book Review
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Excerpt
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Excerpt
Friends and Fiends
A shrill shriek cut her off mid-sentence. Its chilly cacophony resonated in their bones and traced terror up their spines. Katja pressed her eyes closed in silent supplication.
“What was that?” Lauraisha’s voice was cowed to a whisper.
“They’ve found us,” Katja answered with grim resentment.
“Who?”
“Deadwalkers.”
“What do we do?”
“Die, I’m certain,” a cold voice replied.
The females both jerked their heads to the left side of their cages and stared at the approaching figure. It was tall and lean, but firmly muscled. This was no deadwalker, but a Tyglesean warrior dressed in the Fifth Falcon colors.
The male sneered at the very human-liking Katja when he drew near the crates. “So, you are a changeling. My, my, Lauraisha, what scandalous company you keep. I’m curious if the fiend will be worth more to the deadwalkers or to Kaylor. I guess we’ll find out.”
“Lathin, let us out of here this instant!” Lauraisha commanded.
“Oh, no, I don’t think I will. You’re far more valuable to me alive, at least for the moment. I’ll be promoted if I bring you back safely to His Majesty. I think I’d infinitely prefer that to being burned alive for aiding a pair of witches.”
“We are not witches!” hissed Katja.
“Hmph,” the male spat and began to wrap ropes over the crates, securing them to the wagon. He then strapped wide-eyed horses in front of the cart and jumped up into the driver’s seat.
“Now, don’t you two yell or I’ll be forced to come slit your throats and, as I said, I would prefer you alive—”
A sudden wet gasp interrupted his last word, and then Commander Escos appeared to their left with a blood-stained dagger.
“What are you doing!”
“Having a change of heart,” he said while wrenching the blade against the nails sealing their crates.
“The camp is in chaos; deadwalkers are killing my men left and right. You must flee if you are to survive.” He opened their crates and looked around warily. “Lauraisha, your steed is hobbled outside my tent; take him and an extra horse and flee.”
“Why should we trust you after you imprisoned us?” Katja’s voice dripped with ire.
The Tyglesean stared, stunned, at the sight of Katja in human form.
“You’re a—”
“Skinshifter mage. Yes, Commander, I know what she is,” Lauraisha said tersely as she folded her arms across her chest.
Escos bowed and murmured, “You truly keep interesting company!”
“Why should we trust you?” the former feline repeated.
“That is your choice, isn’t it, My Madam? But, either way, I must defend my men.” Escos bowed and plunged into the brush beside the cart. The females glanced at one another and then sprinted after him, keeping as silent as they could. The journey to Escos’s tent, though short, proved arduous for the suddenly tender-footed Katja. By the time they untied Tyron and loaded their supplies into his saddlebags, Katja’s feet were bleeding so much that she had to bandage them.
Though the commander’s tent’s location was removed from the rest of the camp, they could still hear horrific screams echo across the clearing as if the fight between the humans and the deadwalkers were right outside the tent flap.
“Go! Go! Quickly! Take my horse and flee!” Escos said.
About the Author:
Alycia Christine grew up near the dusty cotton fields of Lubbock, Texas. She fell in love with fantasy and science fiction stories when her father first read Gordon R. Dickson’s THE DRAGON AND THE GEORGE and Robert A. Heinlein’s HAVE SPACESUIT—WILL TRAVEL to her at age ten. Her love-affair with fiction deepened when Alycia took a creative writing course while attending Texas A&M University. After that class, she was hooked as a writer for life. Her subsequent B.S. degree in agricultural journalism not only helped to hone Alycia’s skills with a pen, but also with a camera. Today she uses her skills as a photographer to capture the beauty of the world around her and add additional perspective to her fiction and nonfiction writing. Find her at http://www.alyciachristine.
Website | Twitter @AlyciaCZS | Facebook
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GIVEAWAY:
Four (4) special Book Bundles that contain a $25 gift card, an eBook copy of Skinshifter, and an eBook copy of The Dryad's Sacrifice (prelude novella) (INT)
Ends Oct. 14
Prizing is provided by the author, hosts are not responsible.
I look forward to reading this one.
ReplyDeleteI look forward to reading this.
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