Hey everyone! Welcome back to YA Excerpt Week on Mera’s YA Book List! Today we are joined by Author Jenna Kay!
I have made it clear that I love, love love Jenna and her work, and I am excited for the second book in her series about Clarity Miller. Luckily for us, today Jenna is not only gifting us with a excerpt from her novel Mark of The Seer, but she is also showing us a sneak peek of book two, Broken.
Check out this excerpt of Mark of the Seer!
***Post #1 of YA Excerpt Week is here: Glancing Through The Glimmer Excerpt and Giveaway***
I have made it clear that I love, love love Jenna and her work, and I am excited for the second book in her series about Clarity Miller. Luckily for us, today Jenna is not only gifting us with a excerpt from her novel Mark of The Seer, but she is also showing us a sneak peek of book two, Broken.
Check out this excerpt of Mark of the Seer!
***Post #1 of YA Excerpt Week is here: Glancing Through The Glimmer Excerpt and Giveaway***
MOTS Excerpt, Chapter 10 By Jenna Kay
I watched as she got in her car and took off for home. Sighing, I busied myself with the ho-hum motions of closing the store, doing mine and Janey's work. My body ached and my head pounded from lack of sleep, the nightmares I had been having for weeks now taking their toll. Sleep was easy for me to get to—I usually passed out right when my head hit the pillow. The problem was the dreams. They felt so real, waking me up in the early morning hours, leaving me wide awake and drenched in sweat. I was getting used to only sleeping two hours a night. I just hoped I could continue to go about life with a sane mentality.
Sam had been a no-show for a couple of weeks now, and I was beginning to wonder if I had made him up. Of course then I would catch sight of my tattooed hands and know without a doubt he was real—and possibly out of this world.
It was nine fifteen before I was finished. Setting the alarm and locking the doors I sucked in a deep breath, filling my lungs with the early November air.
Finally I could go home and rest, maybe even enjoy a few shots of tequila to shove me off to sleep. Heck, if I could just knock myself out for a few dreamless hours I would be totally grateful. Tiredly strolling to my car I noticed how exceptionally dark the night was. It was cloudy, windy, and smelled liked rain was on the way, possibly bringing storms in its path. On thinking that thought sprinkles started falling from the sky.
Only three of the six lampposts were operational around the supermarket, the dull orange glows barely lighting my footsteps across the parking lot. It was depressingly gloomy without the shine of the moon.
Halfway to my car I halted my steps, noting the change around me; Four apparent changes, to be exact, had occurred in the fifteen seconds I had stepped outside the store.
First, the temperature had dropped, like opening and walking into a deep freezer. With each breath I exhaled, little white cottony puffs flew in front of my face.
Second, the air had thickened, as if a giant vacuum cleaner had attacked the earth, sucking all the oxygen out of the atmosphere. Breathing was proving to be a challenge, my lungs working overtime with the air so heavy and dense.
Third, a creepy stillness had covered the region. No wind, no sprinkling rain, no nothing. Like God had hit the pause button on the earth, stopping its continuous spin.
Fourth—my hands, of course. My palms were tingling with heat, pulsating and glowing red.
The lampposts started to flicker on and off, snapping me from my reverie. I scanned the parking lot for anything out of the ordinary. While my eyes browsed the lot the three functional lampposts flitted out, leaving me in total darkness. Well, except for my glowing hands. I turned toward my car and my blood froze in my veins and a bitter frost flew over my skin, glaciating my bones.
Four guys, maybe teenagers, had appeared around my car. Two sat on the hood, one leaned against the drivers side door with his arms crossed and head facing down, and one was sprawled on top of the trunk with his long legs dangling off the bumper. They were all dressed in black, blending into the night. Even through the darkness I could see every detail on their faces, thanks to my flashlight hands. They all had pale faces and strong, flawless features, and my first mentation of these guys were that they were totally hot—but that thought rapidly vanished when they raised their heads and met my eyes with theirs. My breath caught in my chest and my heart sped up to my throat. I rubbed my eyes to make sure that what I was seeing was accurate.
Unfortunately what I was seeing was reality.
Shiny black eyes peered out at me from their pale faces. Not just really, really dark but black, with no whites around the pupils. With just one look at these devious characters I knew exactly what I was up against. They were definitely not human—I could tell by the animal-like glints in there ebony eyes.
My palms had stopped pulsing but the red lights glowed steadily. They were still burning like I was holding the hot end of a fire poker, but my head was elsewhere. My mind was focused on the sinister goth-looking guys who appeared to be out for blood, and their hungry eyes were zoned in on me.
Their glares held a visible grudge, as if they were violating me through their eyes. I wanted so much to run but found in a discouraging panic that my feet were super glued to the ground.
Fright, trepidation, painful ice-filled terror raced through my blood, shaking me from the top of my head to the bottoms of me feet. That was when the realism of the situation popped me square in the chin.
Was Sam telling the truth when he said he was an angel? And if that were true, is it possible that these dudes in front of me are demons?
Before I could speak the guy leaning on the drivers side door beat me to the punch.
“Clarity,” he said, his voice tender yet malicious. His hair matched the color of his shiny black eyes, falling just below his shoulders. He took a couple of steps forward, his moves fluent and light. The others followed, jumping up from their places on the car, their shifty eyes cemented on me. “Who a-are you?” I stammered nervously, my voice a small squeak.
He narrowed his ebony orbs, tilting his head to the side. They continued edging closer to me in smooth, graceful efforts. I could see that, to my disgrace, they were dangerously handsome.
“I believe the real question is what are you?” The others snickered except for the one with shiny gray, almost silver hair; He seemed unresponsive in his expression. The other two had very riveting hairstyles as well. One harbored platinum blond hair shaped into a high Mohawk, and the other had short and spiky blood red hair, much redder than Kora's new style. They were strangely and unnaturally attractive. But also they were extraordinarily brutish.
My body began to tremble, the fear finally winning over and taking control.
“I-I know w-what you are,” I whispered, my eyes presenting intimidation. Sam had been telling the truth. Holy. Crap.
“Good,” the black-haired dude replied, his lips curling into a sneer. “We know what you are, too.” His gaze drifted down to my hands.
I looked down at my hands. “You—you can see my tattoos?”
They all laughed, evil cackles of hatred. The black-haired guy narrowed his eyes once again.
“Yes, we can see your. . .tattoos.”
Instinctively I hid my hands behind my back. “I gotta go. . .”
“No, no, no, you can't go.” He laughed, shaking his black hair out of his blackened eyes. “No, see, we haven't been introduced properly. My name is Lukus.” Without taking his gaze of me he gestured to the others. “Go ahead, boys. Introduce yourselves.”
On cue platinum Mohawk guy raised a hand. “Markus,” he announced, his tone bored and careless.
“And I'm Stone,” spiky red-hair said.
Silver Head stood still as a statue, his expression wooden.
“This is Raine,” Lukus said as he slapped him on the back, adding, “He don't say much.”
I stood still, motionless, not knowing what to say. I wasn't sure what these guys were but if they were demons I didn't know how to react to their weird introductions. I hadn't taken any classes on Demon Etiquette.
“And you are Clarity,” Lukus said, licking his lips and roaming his eyes up and down my body. “Now that we know each other, let's get down to business.”
My heart was beating frantically against my ribcage. “What do ya want from me?”
Before I could blink an eye Lukus, fast as lightening, appeared right in my face, his breath the most horrible stench I had ever encountered. The other three moved just as inhumanly fast, trapping me into a heinous, tight circle.
“We want what every angel of darkness wants,” he whispered, his features twisting into a venomous sneer. “A Seer's soul.”
Angel of darkness? Seer's soul? What the crap?
Lukus grabbed hold of my arms and my breath became snared in my lungs. Just one touch from him froze my entire body, my heart turning into a big ice ball. My lips trembled and my teeth chattered as the temperature of my body took a downward plunge. The smell of rot and decay hung thickly in the ice cold air. He tilted his head to the side, studying me with fascination.
“You do know what you are, don't you?” he questioned. “Your little angel must have informed you.”
I stayed silent, not understanding what was happening.
Markus snorted. “She doesn't know, Lukus. The angel is too late.”
“Quiet Markus!” Lukus roared, his eyes searing into mine. “If the angel is too late that means she is up for grabs.” He paused, looking at the others. “Looks like we're about to bag a Seer, boys!”
My stomach contracted in horror as a weak cry crawled up out of my throat. The cold was so harsh it literally took my breath away, my lungs aching from the pressure. Their voices echoed all through the parking lot, evilly taunting me.
“Such a tasty soul!”
“Little sweet Ra'ah!”
“Let's take her now, Lukus. NOW!”Lukus smirked, his eyes gleaming with satisfaction. “Calm down, boys. Calm down.” He took his hand and gently stroked my cheek, his fingertips cold and biting against my flesh. “Let's take our time with this Chozeh.”
Ra'ah? Chozeh? Seer? What were they talking about?
“Don't t-t-touch m-me,” I stuttered, my teeth clicking uncontrollably.
Lukus laughed, then rubbed his nose roughly against my cheek, sniffing, as if he was trying to breath in my soul. “You said you know what we are—we want to hear you say it.” He continued sniffing my skin, as if savoring my smell.
Narrowing my eyes defiantly I responded, “S-screw y-y-you.”
My retort amused them as they let their offensive barks of laughter ring into the night. Numbness consumed my body, my legs failing me. Lukus let go of me and I fell hard to the pavement, hugging myself into a ball. The palms of my hands, for the first time in months, felt like ice packs, their red glow no longer blazing. My eyes flew upward and I found Lukus and the others had encircled me, like buzzards in flight searching for their next meal.
I don’t know how much you loved that but I definitely did! Keep reading for the exclusive of Broken, book two in the Seer Society series.
Broken Excerpt, Chapter One, By Jenna Kay
Broken Excerpt, Chapter One, By Jenna Kay
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 whilepulling 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.”
* * *
The scene at Kora's trailer park was simply surreal. The Garlandton fire department was there, along with the police department. Flashing red, white, and blue lights lit up the park like it was the fourth of July. A coroners van was parked next to her trailer, and two EMT workers came down the dirt pathway carrying a gurney that I presumed held the body of Ms. Dodd. Then a realization hit me: Today was New Years Day. Yet another horrible day to remember, I thought sadly.
A woman reporter from the newspaper was busy questioning the coroner in hopes of squeezing out a juicy scoop. I busied myself with finding Kora, which was proving to be difficult because of the sea of people that had drifted into her front yard. It was almost impossible to find my little bestie in the maze of bodies.
Almost.
I found her sitting on her porch steps surrounded by two guys in suits wearing badges on their belts, and some of her fellow Trailer Parkers, as Kora liked to call her neighbors, who were being emphatically nosy. They were talking all at once, bombarding her with question after question. Checking out the clean-cut vacancy in her eyes I knew for an absolute fact that she was not comprehending anything coming from their fast, blithering mouths. A stark white blanket was wrapped around her shoulders. Pushing through the masses I reached her, which landed me some ugly comments and grunts from the trailer park peeps. Kneeling down in front of her, getting nose-to-nose with her, I wiped tears off her cheeks with the back of my hand. I cringed as I studied her deer-in-the-headlights expression. She reminded me of a lost child in a department store, looking scared, confused, and helpless.
“Kora,” I said lightly, gazing into her bloodshot eyes. “Kora, can ya hear me?”
Thanks so much for joining us Jenna! I'll let her close up! Remember to enter the giveaway via the rafflecopter below for a chance to win a signed poster and bookmark from Jenna!
What if there is a world not visible to human eyes, where angelic and demonic spirits are in a battle over souls?
Angel vs Demon. Good vs Evil. Light vs Dark.
What if God has a chosen few on earth, certain humans gifted with the power to see and fight alongside their angels. . .what if they walk among us? What if there was humans that could force demons away from humanity just by touching them?
When Clarity Miller meets Sam her whole life and destiny is transformed.
The morning she awakes from a dream with her hands burning, glowing, and showing of strange marks, her sanity is questioned, but Sam is there.
Clarity has been chosen by God to be a Seer, and Sam is there to help her understand.
After work one night she is forced to learn the truth about the spiritual realm and what lives in it. She learns that angels are real, and demons are after God's most precious creation.
Humans.
Clarity's so-called “normal” life is stripped away, forcing her into a supernatural web full of confusion, light, dark, and death.
She has a decision to make...
Walk away from it all, or...
Save souls from being dragged to hell.
If you like YA paranormal give the Seer Society Series a shot!
Book One: Mark of the Seer
Book Two: Brokenness
Book Three: Masquerade
Book Four: Destiny
Book Five: (undecided)
Hope you enjoy and be blessed!
Jenna Kay, author of the Seer Society Series and The Gracen Chronicles
Pages to stalk me!!
Facebook
Goodreads
Twitter
Website/Blog
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét