(Blogoversary Celebration) Excerpt: Stained by Ella James

I’m very excited to share with you, as part of Treasured Tales for Young Adults‘ blogoversary celebration, an excerpt from Stained by Ella James (The Stained Series #1).

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~ Excerpt from Stained ~

He lay awkwardly on his back, one arm across his wide, thick chest. His knuckles were raw, like he’d been fighting. She stared at his face over the shallow rise and fall of his chest, struck by how stunning he was. Statuesque.

Even flat on his ass, he had a sort of presence; she half expected him to stand up, dust his rugged blue jeans off, and saunter outside to a waiting band bus.

Sorry mates. Just a tour prank.

A mop of shaggy chestnut hair splayed around his pale, scraped face—a face that seemed jaded and wise, even without the light of consciousness.

Long lashes fluttered below dark brows, above generous lips and a straight-line nose. His emerald gaze found Julia. Then his eyes slipped shut, and he deflated with an airy whoosh.

Oh no!

Julia opened her Sight as she scrambled to his side, wincing when she reached him. Injuries were usually glowing white chains that knotted wherever someone was hurt. His chain was brilliant, beautiful silver, and bursting with gnarls. They seemed to cover every inch of him. Julia stroked his damp forehead as she noted each knot. One, over his heart, was tightening fast. She snatched it, and her chest began to ache. She crisscrossed and unlooped until it hurt to breathe.

As quickly as she could, she moved to the knot over his skull. It was a frightening mess of tangles—tangles made of tangles; the knot throbbed brighter every second. She tried to be careful, to be gentle, but she was working fast, and his face twisted as she worked. It was intense; more than anything Julia had tried to do before. Just half a minute in, and her nose started to bleed.

She should have stopped then, but there were so many knots, each one urgent, glowing like those little neon necklaces you got at the fair. She dove deeper, mixing her aura with his, and caught impressions of him in color: the red flare of anger, the riptide orange of vengeance, a shameful green regret. Confusion was prevalent, a blinding pink. But the black was strongest: rage and sorrow, an almost even blend that stained him.

And over that, translucent scenes. A worn adobe home, slanted and steaming under the summer sun. Splotches of gray sky, and below it a wide log cabin heaped with snow. Fistfulls of stone. Agony. Purple pain that made her weak. For too long, the ripping ache was all she knew. Then she saw skin like rich mocha. Beautiful, amber eyes. She felt the sting of muscle straining, heard screams so real they stung.

Oh. They were coming from her throat. She was spinning, too much energy in a battered body. It had never been like this. So intimate. So raw. When she could, she lifted her head from the cradle of her hands, and the ramshackle warehouse blinked to life. Those heavy-lashed green eyes were open, frantic jade searching her own.

(Blogoversary Celebration) Author Guest Post: Jenna Kay (Part Two)

Hi everyone, Here is the second part of Jenna’s guest post.  In this post, Jenna kindly shares an excerpt from Broken, book 2 in the Seer Society series.  Broken will be released in December 2012 by Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly publishing. Thanks for the excerpt Jenna.

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    Chapter 1 Excerpt/Broken, Book Two in the Seer Society

The vibration of my cell phone shook me wide awake, a digital clock on my nightstand reading three AM.  I jerked myself up, which was a totally bad idea.  My body was a big mass of pain due to the arduous workout routine I’d devised, which consisted of weights, punching and kicking a heavy bag, and karate.
 
Well, the little I’d read on karate, anyway.

I’d broken my arm the night of the Thanksgiving dance a few weeks back.  The night Nick Reece shocked the entire town by killing Kevin Davis and then himself.  Luckily the cast had come off, but the bad thing was that I had to wear a brace.  I was also told not to do anything strenuous.  Of course I was a really, really bad listener.

Yeah, I know it sounds crazy for a country gal like me to be learning to fight, but after recent events I’d felt it necessary to learn how to defend myself. Oh, and being a Seer and fighting demons had a lot to do with it as well. Grabbing the caustic-sounding phone I answered with a,  “Yeah?”  No one answered, though I could hear someone breathing heavily on the other end.

“Hello?!”  I said with more force, beginning to get angry because if this was a freaking prank call or a pervert I was sooo about to go ballistic on them.

“C-Clarity. . .”  A voice spoke softly but loud enough for me to recognize.

“Kora?”  I exclaimed, becoming fully awake.  “What’s wrong with you?  Do ya know what ti–”   

“Clarity, can you come over please?”  Kora cut in, surprising me with her defeated tone.

My hands began to tingle with a familiar heat, signaling to me that something was up.  Since I’d learned about my Seer abilities I was slowly beginning to trust my little “alarms” in the palms of my hands.  

When they glowed green that meant that angels were near.  When they glowed red that meant that demons were near.  When they glowed a bright white light that meant that the Big Man upstairs was with me.  Sam, my guardian angel, had informed me later of how special that particular light is—the most important of all.  

The worst color was black, which didn’t glow but covered the entirety of my Seer marks (crosses, wings, and crowns).  I felt my heart fall to my toes when I saw that my hands were covered with black, like I had stuck my hands in tar.

Jumping out of bed, cradling my cell phone between my cheek and shoulder while pulling my long, tangled hair back in a ponytail I said,  “I’ll be right over.”  I paused, closed my eyes and took a deep breath.   “Kora. . .what’s happened?”

“It’s mom,”  she whispered.  “She’s dead.”

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Wow, what an excerpt.  Thanks for sharing Jenna. Have you read Mark of the Seer?  Are you looking forward to the sequel, Broken?

Check out part one of Jenna’s guest post.

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Say hello to Jenna:

goodreads ~ facebook

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Author bio (from Jenna’s website) -

Jenna Kay has always had a vivid imagination.  Blessed with three older brothers and two loving parents that encouraged her to follow her dreams, she decided to leave an 8 year career of being a cosmetologist to become a full time author.  Jenna felt that it was time to bring the supernatural to life.  Her novel, “Mark of the Seer” will be Jenna’s first with Crushing Hearts and Black Butterfly Publishing.

Jenna currently resides in North Georgia where, when not writing, she spends time with her three young children and her loving husband.  Jenna’s heart is to impact the lives of young adults that are going through the hardships of this life with a hope that there is way more out there than just the pains of the world.

(Blogoversary Celebration) Author Guest Post: Jenna Kay (Part One)

Jenna Kay, author of Mark of the Seer, has stopped by the blog today with a guest post to kick off the Treasured Tales for Young Adults blogoversary celebration.  Welcome to the blog Jenna, and thank you for being a part of Treasured Tales’ blogoversary celebration.

This is the first part of Jenna’s guest post.  Check back soon for part two.

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Music and Writing Part One

Today I’m going to be sharing a scene and the music that inspired it from Mark of the Seer.  This is a dream that Clarity has about her friends and how easy it is for them to be sucked into a delusional world (how easy it is for them to follow the crowd).  It’s also when Clarity wakes up to her hands scorching and baring her Seer marks.  The song “I’m so Sick” by Flyleaf inspired this.

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The small room was crowded with teenagers dancing to loud techno music.  Lights colored red, yellow, purple, and green flashed, pulsating on their faces in a psychedelic way.  Their eyes were closed, concentrating on the beat of the music, faces a complete blank.  They moved the same way, the same rhythm.  All of them. . .but me.

 I was standing in the heart of the crowd, sticking out like a sore thumb.  I felt like a sheep who had wandered away from its herd, stranded in a mist of deep abandonment.

Then a door caught my eye.  It was off to the side of the cramped room, bright rays of light seeping through the cracks.  Almost like the lights were purposely shining in my eyes, trying to grab my attention.  

 I started pushing through the thick of kids, the door beckoning me to come closer.  Shoving as hard as I could I found that the entranced teens were not budging.  I screamed at them to move, to get out of the way.  But to my dismay they acted as if they couldn’t hear me;  As if I wasn’t there.  They seemed completely oblivious to my shouting and shoving.

Halting my rant, I gazed at them in extreme wonder and despair.  What was their problem?  Why were they ignoring me?  I knew they could hear me—my screaming was at maximum capacity!This had to be a joke, some kind of sick game that everyone was playing, but why me?  What had I done to make them act as if I were invisible?

Relief flooded me when Kora came into view.  Pushing through kids, I made my way to her, finally having enough strength and motivation to move the zombified kids.

She was dancing in front of the door I’d spotted.  Funny how she wasn’t there a second ago.  I hugged her, greeting her, waiting for her to open her eyes and greet me back.  My relief quickly vanished.  Her eyes remained closed, seemingly unaware of my presence.    

No.  Not Kora.  She wouldn’t dare play a prank this nasty on me!  Grabbing her shoulders I shook her, screaming at her to open her eyes and look at me.  But all my trying was for nothing, my attempts failing miserably to get her attention.

Blog Tour: The Acropolis

R.K. Ryals has stopped by my blog today, for her blog tour for The Acropolis. Here is an excerpt from the book, and make sure you follow the rest of the tour with the links below!

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Emma Chase:

“We’re just above my home,” Conor whispers suddenly in my ear, and I jerk. Logical Emma wants me to look down. Instinct tells me not to, and even without looking, I can feel the panic attack coming on.

“Deep breaths,” Conor reminds me.

I start breathing in and out the same way pregnant women in labor do. It isn’t attractive, but it is better than passing out.

“Deeper breaths, Sweetheart. You really don’t want to meet my mother while only half-conscious. She’s hard to deal with after eight hours of sleep and a whole pot of coffee.”

I am practically panting now, my eyes squeezed shut.

“You’re not helping,” I say through gritted teeth. Conor chuckles.

“The only way to defeat these fears of yours is to face them.”

It isn’t that I disagree with Conor’s logic, it’s that I honestly don’t want to agree with it. I keep my eyes squeezed shut, my breathing hard until I feel my feet hit something solid. And even then, I still pant like an idiot.

“You can look now,” Conor says, his tone laced with amusement.

“Your mother is going to love this,” Will murmurs as he comes up beside us.

His words, dripping with sarcasm, finally makes me open my eyes. We are on a pleasant street in early afternoon. There are houses spaced a nice distance apart. We are facing a two-level red brick home with a wraparound porch and burgundy shutters. The sun glints off a pool just visible from where we are standing on the front lawn. There is a black Mercedes parked in the drive in front of a closed garage.

“Are you counting yet?” Conor whispers to Will.

Will smiles.

“Already on four . . . . “

There is a scream from inside the house. I jump, my body instantly ready to bolt. Conor is prepared, his arm still tight around my waist, and he pulls my thrashing frame more tightly against his chest.

“Calm down, Darling. That’s just Roach scaring the hell out of my mother. He was in his gargoyle form, which means once he reverted back to his mortal form, he was naked as the day he was born. And, Lord knows, you didn’t want to see that on my front lawn.”

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Isn’t this excerpt awesome; doesn’t it make you want to read the book right now?  I’m so intrigued by it.

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More information about The Acropolis and author R.K. Ryals:

blog ~ The Acropolis blog tour info ~ purchase from Amazon