I’m
walking through an immense library with shelves that tower over me, their
height reaching clear to the glass ceiling where endless stars shine through
the velvety black sky and into the room. Their light dances upon my hair, my
skin.
At the
end of the room is a gleaming bronze spiral staircase leading to another
tome-packed level. Lifting the hem of my long skirt, I place my feet carefully
on the filigree metal and make my assent using the bannister to guide my way.
Never
before have I seen a library of this magnitude in person. Never have I walked
among so many books in such an awe-inspiring environment. Everything is warm
colors of mahogany, bronze, and amber. And the stars. If only the steps I’m
climbing could get me closer to that rich sky with its infinite curtain of
illuminations.
My
sight falls to the books on the shelves, an endless supply of reading material,
none duplicated. As I run my fingers delicately over their spines, I tilt my
head to better read the titles printed in gold there. The farther down the
aisle I progress, I notice every title is one that I’ve read over the course of
my life so far. They are in order from my earliest years until what I had been
indulging in just last night as I fell asleep.
As I
begin to pull a volume from its home, a door at the end of the passage pulls my
attention. The nearby lamp’s ambient light glinting off its curve urges me to
come closer.
The
nearer I move toward the massive structure, the fuzzier my head becomes until a
burst across the plains of my mind seizes the entire landscape, and everything
around me dissolves into nothing. No, not nothing. What remains is the rippling
indigo sky and the whispering stars. And the enormous circular bronze door.
Filling
the inner space, inset into it, is a series of interconnected and locking
complicated shapes of darkly shining metal. Elongated swirls and curves
. . . No, they’re branches and vines and leaves. All of them winding
and twisting as if in the wind, an effortless dance of intricate lock art. But
rather than the leaves falling from the branches, they shift and fall into
place. I can hear the metal sliding and turning smoothly through the
mechanisms, and when one reaches the designated spot a lilting click resounds,
almost musical in its tink of metal against metal.
A few
minutes pass before the door eases open several inches, revealing a vault.
Beyond the door is a singular glowing light in the pitch darkness.
The
stars grow louder. How is it they can whisper? I don’t understand what it is
they say. They speak too softly, and yet with an urgency.
I stretch my hand toward the vault to widen
the opening, so I can see what lies inside. Even though their language is
beyond me, I know this is what the stars are telling me to do.
As the
distance grows smaller from my fingers to the door, my mind grows hazy and yet
somehow sharper at the same time. The odor of the forest— oak moss, birch,
cedar, pepper, and a mere clue of honeysuckle— swirls around me. Is it coming
from the vault?
Darkness
descends all around. I hear hooves pounding the earth far-off behind me but
approaching fast. The slightest hint of trees begins to fill in the dark
horizon, moonlight starts to filter down through the fiery leaves and green of
the pine needles.
I can
almost distinguish the impending figures of multiple horses in the distance.
They have riders on their backs, but I can’t make them out. Should I remain or
flee? My heart is racing, beating in time to the pounding of the horses’ feet.
I turn
to run; I’m blocked. Standing immediately in front of me is Gideon. No, it’s
not him. This man’s face is similar in structure, as is his stance, but the
hair and eyes and his attire are all wrong to be Gideon. His hair is not deftly
groomed dark locks, but rather a roughly tamed mane of gold and honey. His eyes
are not the midnight sky, but sunshine-warmed amber. His clothing is not from
my world or time. He’s wearing what seems to be armor of leather and a metal
that looks to be bronze. He has a bow harnessed across his back and a broadsword
in his hand.
Before
my brain has a chance to tell my feet to move, his hands are in my hair pulling
me gently closer to him. I feel his hands at the back of my head. His breath
whispers against my ear, “You need to remember.”
Nine
While Nine
The
Nine While Nine Legacy
Book
One
Stasia
Morineaux
Genre: Dark Urban Fantasy/
Contemporary Fantasy/Dark Fantasy
Publisher: Parliament House Press
Date of Publication: July 24,
2018
ASIN: B07F2HC1ZX
Number of pages: 314
Word Count: 123,799
Formats available: eBook,
Paperback
Cover Artist: Shayne Leighton
Tagline: Something Dark Is On Its
Way
Book Description:
Isabeau Finne’s perfect world
utterly unravels when she meets Death's right-hand man one fateful night,
spiraling her life into a world of chaos and the impossible.
Suddenly, she is no longer
Isabeau and becomes part of the most secretive inner-workings of Death itself,
as well as an otherworldly dominion of ancient magic.
Now beings—which we were taught
as children were merely fictional creations of wildly whimsical minds—are
edging their way into her world as well.
Buggans and Kobolds and Vargs…oh
my!
She yearns for the simplicity of
her old life—this one is full of dangers, unanswered questions, and cryptic
dreams.
After one particularly anomalous
dream in which she learns of the Nine While Nine Legacy, things become truly
precarious.
Now, someone sees her as a risk…a
threat…and wants to eliminate her.
Fortunately, she falls under the
protection of Gideon—unless she leaves his territory—which is the one thing she
wants the most…and wants the least.
Nine While Nine is a dark
urban/contemporary fantasy—a modern dark faerie tale—replete with dark
adventure, mysticism, a romantic sub-plot, light horror, world-building, and a
new mythology. Isabeau is a seemingly ordinary young woman, living in
modern-day suburbia. Until she discovers who she truly is: A Sióg O'Cailleach.
A witch of the Fae.
Paperback Available at Parliament
House Press
Book Trailer: https://youtu.be/BhFK5hDkeCg
About
the Author:
Stasia Morineaux grew up in
Southern California, pursuing faeries in the garden and seeking spirits in the
local graveyard with her cat Bartleby; they also spent countless nights hunting
down things that went bump!
She now resides in Asheville,
North Carolina with her hubster and kidlet, as well as with a bevy of creatures…both
real and “imaginary”.
Mysterious dreams, copious hours
of awesome music, and obscene amounts of coffee fuel her writing sessions of
paranormal, urban fantasy, dark fantasy, the supernatural...and sometimes even
a sprinkling of chick lit!
In her spare time she likes to
relax on her balcony, feet kicked up, listening to the squirrels arguing with
the crows in her woods.
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stasia.morineaux
Twitter: https://twitter.com/StasiaMorineaux
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/StasiaMorineaux/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/Stasia_Morineaux
Tour
giveaway
10 Lucky winners will get an
eBook of Nine While Nine
There is a GRAND PRIZE too!
A signed, personalized paperback
of NINE WHILE NINE and a Deluxe Mystery Box ($100 value) filled with NINE WHILE
NINE inspired goodies from Hemlock and Blackthorn House (Incense, Candles, Bath
Soaks, Oils, Teas, and much more!)
Contest closes at midnight on
July 24th.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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