Covenant
(The Books of Raziel, # 2)
Sabrina Benulis
Genre: Paranormal Fantasy
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Date of Publication: 4/1/2014
ISBN: 9780062069412
Number of pages: 400
Word Count: 98,000
Book Description:
The haunting gothic tale started
in Archon continues-a mesmerizing work of the paranormal in which a young woman
discovers that she is caught in a labyrinth of intrigue where angels, demons,
and all the creatures between Heaven and Hell will stop at nothing to possess
her.
A year ago, Angela Mathers, a
talented artist with a tortured soul, enrolled at the Westwood Academy and
encountered the angels who haunted her dreams. Then she discovered the dark
truth … she is the Archon, a being of supreme power who will determine the fate
of the universe. But with such power comes great danger, and for every force
seeking to aid Angela there is another burning to stop her. After a scheming
demon kidnaps the Book of Raziel, Angela must find her way through a
nightmarish game and enter the Door to Hell to rescue her only friend before it
is too late.
The perilous fate of both Heaven
and Hell rests on her success.
Excerpt
Genesis
~ The Story So Far
In the beginning
of all things, there was a song, and starlight, and a Garden within eternity's
shadows. There, God created three great angels, and they were destined to rule
all of Heaven from three majestic thrones.
Israfel, the Creator Supernal, was
considered to be the most beautiful of these angels. A vision of bronze
feathers and grace, he found favor in the eyes of God and Heaven and soon
outstripped his siblings in both popularity and power. His brother Raziel, the
Preserver Supernal, became known for the virtues of wisdom and gentleness. And
then there was Lucifel, the Destroyer Supernal embodying creation's fathomless
darkness and depths, who despite her taciturn personality still managed to
snare the hearts of creatures.
The storms and upsets of the universe
could not touch these three angels. Sickness and death were beneath them.
But they were
not immune to the passions of the heart.
As Israfel's
favor grew, so did Lucifel's frightful envy and discontent.
Seeing herself as an equal to her
sibling and with a loyal band of angels to support her claim, Lucifel finally
broke with the established order and challenged Israfel's position as Heaven's
supreme ruler under God. When Raziel--who had always seemingly vacillated in
his loyalty between both siblings--took Lucifel as his lover, a bloody
revolution exploded. The children of their forbidden union were executed, but
in retaliation Lucifel engulfed Heaven in a War that ended in Raziel's suicide,
Israfel's abdication, and her own tragic destiny.
Though defeated
by both fate and circumstance, Lucifel chose to begin a new regime in lower,
darker places. Yet she was swiftly imprisoned in her new kingdom of Hell.
Those who had
once worshipped her in her glory were now her fearful jailers. They called
themselves demons.
In the darkness below all things,
caged and alone, Lucifel's ideals twisted even as her shadow of influence grew.
From Hell it then spread like a poison, touching even the mortal world.
Though her true motives remain
unknown, she is now suspected of wishing to open Raziel's fabled Book, seeking
to use its power to silence the universe and the light within it that mocks
her. Lucifel moves quicker by the day to manipulate events in her favor. But
Raziel's death was not completely in vain. He has returned as the guardian
spirit of a human girl to see that his sister Lucifel fails in her goal. This
human girl is called the Archon.
The Archon is the only soul believed
to be capable of opening the Book for the power of good. But like all creatures
She has a choice, and will either stand against Lucifel and destroy her, or
kill her only to take her place on the Throne of Hell and begin a darker era of
Ruin.
In either instance, Her decision must
be made quickly.
With the ties
that once held the universe together brutally severed, an order long teetering
on the edge of collapse has started to slide toward complete annihilation. A
silence more threatening than Lucifel's looms over all creatures--one without
hope of resurrection. The whereabouts of the Lock and Key of Raziel's Book are
unknown, and the task of opening it to save what remains of the world verges on
the impossible.
The Archon is a
soul born in mortal misery, and she has only recently grasped the virtue of
friendship. There are many who believe that her dark destiny is--like
Lucifel's--unavoidable.
But if Ruin and Death born of three
unhappy angels sparked the end, it is also true that covenants broken can be
remade, and that the wheels of fate can be turned backwards despite all odds.
Hearts call to one another, undoing the knots that have strangled hope, and
imprisoned peace. For darkness to exist, there must be a brighter light. The
world has always known pain, strife, and wars.
Yet it is the
bonds between souls that have moved the stars.
Zero
Many doors begged to be opened in the
city of Luz. Kim was certain he'd at last found the only one that mattered.
Like all ominous things, it had
materialized in the darkest hour of his life. Now he stood in front of its
immense black wood and gasped for breath, cold sweat trickling down the side of
his nose. A thousand warnings sounded off in his brain, and his lungs ached as
they sucked in the freezing air. His hands had gone numb. Ice shellacked the
tips of Kim's hair, and the strands swept punishingly against his neck. The
wind strangled him with every breath, searching relentlessly for other lives to
snuff out, sighing like a cold song through the alley.
A soft hiss
shivered through the bone cold night, and the harsh breeze died for a moment.
The damp and stone-filled city had hushed, as if waiting. Flurries drifted
serenely to the ground.
Kim glanced over
his shoulder, shuddering. Fear throbbed through him in waves.
He would have to
move fast. He didn't have much time to make a decision before she caught up to
him.
The door
beckoned, suspicious and dark. Should he? Shouldn't he?
Kim stared at
the door, gasping for breath. He peered at the odd carvings and symbols in the
wood. Impulsively, he reached for the snake-shaped iron knob.
Reality twisted
and warped like a flash of lightning. Without warning the iron serpent came
alive and lunged.
Inch long metal
fangs sunk into Kim's palm. Needles of agony wrenched through his arm.
Kim cursed under
his breath, tears of pain bunching at the corners of his eyes. He snatched his
hand out of the snake's reach, wrapping fingers around his injured palm. Blood
seeped hotly between his fingers. The iron snake recoiled back to its original
position, glaring into him. Its reptilian eyes glowed with an unnerving yet
familiar shade of orange. Try again, they seemed to say.
Frantically, Kim
searched every inch of the wood for a keyhole. But there was none, and he
realized with a newer shot of panic that he had no key anyway.
Another icy hiss
echoed through him, drifting through the alley along with the snow. A soft
rattle, like the sound of tiny bones rubbing together, cut through the silence.
Kim peered
around again, sweaty bangs screening his vision.
A pair of
phosphorescent yellow eyes gleamed back at him from the end of the cobbled
road. Sickle-shaped black wings flickered once within the night. The sad glow
of a gas lamp brushed the tips of his cousin's nails, and then her devilish
form melted back into the darkness.
In a few more
breaths, those nails would rip him apart. His hunter was badly hurt, but that
wouldn't buy Kim enough time to escape.
He glanced
around pathetically and sucked in more horrendously cold air. Silvery ice
shellacked the surrounding walls of brick and stone, the hard ground. Snow
drifted, fell, tumbled in the renewed gusts of winter wind. He didn't want to
die in the cold depths of Luz alone. Too much life awaited him, and possibly
love.
He clung to that
last hope with fanatical loyalty.
Kim clutched the cross necklace at his
chest, and his mind raced and filled with thoughts of Angela Mathers and how
much she needed him without even realizing it. He pictured her brave face, deep
red hair, and cool blue eyes. He felt her kiss on his mouth and ached for the
part of his heart he'd unwillingly left with her in a moment of such irrational
anger. He heard an angel's voice say like it had said before that Kim was about
to get exactly what he deserved.
A terrible, crushing sensation
threatened to stop his heart. The hair stood on the nape of Kim's neck. His
veins throbbed with terror. Blood rushed and roared in his ears. He fought off
the screams rising up into his throat. Unseen and silent, death's stealthy
approach felt keen as a knife in his back.
Kim threw himself at the door,
pounding on the wood with his fists.
Seeing Angela's
face in his mind one last time, he knew he'd give anything to reach her again.
The screams left his mouth at last, reverberating in the icy air. Someone,
anyone, for the love of God let him in. He knew footsteps were behind him and
ragged breaths and pitiless teeth and the thought was unbearable. He banged
harder and harder, ignoring the threat of another bite from the snake because
his hands were dead with cold and pain.
He would do
anything, if someone would save him.
The world
paused. A voice like a snake's touched the edge of his thoughts.
Anything? It
sounded amused.
Yes. Yes.
ANYTHING.
A tremulous
click broke the silence.
Kim jumped
backwards and stared, his heart pounding. The immense black door had opened,
and a sliver of nothingness peeped at him from the gap between door and wall.
Like a man in a trance, he opened the door wider, revealing a worn stone
stairway that led down into a dimly lit darkness. A stale but warm breeze
wafted upward from the depths. There was no telling what waited for him down
there. For a single moment longer, he hesitated.
Pain slammed
into him like a thunderbolt.
The door slammed
shut. Kim whipped sideways into the bricks, scraping his cheek on bitter ice.
His hunter
rolled to the slippery ground next to him, her sparsely feathered wings beating
the stone in a frenzy. Ice cracked and split beneath her weight. Cold air
rushed over him in merciless waves.
Scabs covered
Troy's black pinions, and her entire body had become even leaner with hunger.
Growls of rage peppered her almost unintelligible words. Kim stole one more
glimpse of his cousin's lethal angelic beauty, the sight of her sharp teeth,
the terror of her hypnotic eyes, and he wrenched himself from the slick wall
and once again flung open the door.
Troy grabbed his
leg, cutting more blood out of him.
Frustrated
shrieks sliced into him like her nails. Her broken ankle had cost her time and
speed, but it was her other injuries that had brought her close to starvation.
Kim screamed a prayer.
Shuddering, she
let go.
In a second she
was on her hands and feet, preparing to pounce again. Kim swung himself through
the doorway.
Troy's bony hand
grasped the bloody tatters of his coat and pulled. Kim slammed to the ground.
Her wings buffeted him, punishing his legs and waist. She scrabbled for a
foothold on the unfamiliar ice, and he fought against sliding into biting
range. Troy's hot breath reached his skin. The chain of his necklace threatened
to choke him.
Kim pulled with
all of his strength.
The coat fabric
ripped from between her fingers. The necklace chain snapped. With a cry of
triumph he dashed for the stairway again and turned, slamming the door shut.
Troy's feet and
hands clanged like a sharp wind against the wood.
Kim staggered
back, nearly pitching down the stairs. Grasping blindly, he clung to an iron
bar on the door's inside, trying to keep his balance. In a fury of Jinn nails
and thundering wings, Troy scratched against the door and rasped his name,
screeched out her fury. Her voice was like a song of terror.
The door
shivered beneath the onslaught. Kim was sure a mere two inches of wood
separated them.
It didn't seem
to matter. Something was protecting him and Troy knew it.
Her hisses of
defeat continued, cutting through him like poisonous ice. Kim let go of the
iron bar and stood at the top of the stairway, keeping his hand on his other
bleeding palm, whispering every exorcism prayer in his memory.
Hours passed.
Every so often, chalk-white fingers and sharp nails slipped under the door,
searching for Kim's skin. Above the howling wind, he heard Troy's hiss or the
rattle of the bones in her hair, and sometimes the screech of the crow that
haunted her side. So he waited with her, certain that one of them would
eventually give up but that, God willing, it wouldn't be him.
Finally,
unbelievably, she left.
Kim's sanity
returned by degrees. With it came suffocating hunger and thirst. He'd been
running from Troy for so long, food and drink had become hasty and disgusting
occasions. Now the overwhelming need for both began to overcome his terror at
what might be waiting outside the door. He touched it, weighing his fortunes.
No, he couldn't bear it anymore--
Kim set his jaw,
pushing on the door from the inside.
It wouldn't
budge. There was no interior knob either, only the iron bar that had left his
arm muscles aching. He was trapped.
A warm breeze
rose out of the darkness and brushed against his skin. The ice coating his hair
dripped onto the stone.
Kim patted his
chest, sensing emptiness. His cross necklace was gone, probably lying on the
icy ground where Troy had torn it from his neck. There was no sense in
grieving. That memento his foster-father had given him was now long past its
usefulness. The memories it symbolized would best stay where Kim had left them,
half-buried in snow and ice. Besides, he couldn't return even if he wanted to.
With the most
furtive glances, Kim examined the staircase.
He breathed
hard, his chest aching. His throat was raw from screaming, and as he stood,
every muscle screamed back at him in protest. Carefully, he stepped onto the
first set of stairs.
Troy's steady
breathing sounded from the door's other side.
She'd never left
at all.
With his next
step, she breathed louder, as if growing desperate.
Kim knew better
than to walk down a mysterious set of stairs, after entering a mysterious door,
all because he'd made a desperate promise. Yet he had no other choice, and deep
inside, he couldn't help feeling that this was somehow the right one. A whisper
at the edge of his memories called from far below. Perhaps this was the moment
he'd been waiting for.
Here is your
chance, the voice called to him again.
Despite Kim's
better judgment he believed it. He needed to believe it. So he left death
behind to meet salvation where it waited--darker and darker down.
About
the Author:
Sabrina Benulis graduated with a
Masters in Writing Popular Fiction from Seton Hill University. She currently
resides in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania with her husband Mike, and her
spoiled cockatiel Caesar. COVENANT is the follow-up to ARCHON, her first novel.
Interview:
I would like to welcome and thank Sabrina Benulis for taking the time to answer the following author interview questions.What is your favorite part of the story, The Books of Raziel?
This is going to sound a little predictable, but my favorite part of Covenant is definitely the end. I really wanted to fill it with a lot of tension and emotion between the main characters. Angela and Sophia's friendship is meant to be a very strong one, and I really wanted those feelings to grab the reader and not let them go.
How long did it take you to write Covenant?
Covenant took longer than I originally planned to write, but that is often the way with the second book in a series. They can be difficult because they are the middle bridge between the beginning and end, and if you're not careful, the plot can easily stall. If you want an average, most novels take at least a few good months to develop and at least a few more to write the first draft. That's assuming, though, that everything goes as planned.
If you could be best friends with one of your characters, who would it be?
Definitely Angela. She has her quirks for sure, and can be quite introverted. But she is fiercely loyal to those she perceives to be friends, and can be very strong and assertive when she has to be.
Who or what inspired you to be a writer?
I love sharing the stories, characters, worlds, and ideas that are in my imagination, but I'm not a film director, a comic book artist, or a cartoonist. I guess you could say the written word is my medium of choice to channel these inspirations. I always felt that it's important to pay attention to your individual talents and follow your heart in what you love to do, no matter what anyone says.
What books have most influenced your life?
The initial books that come to mind are The Lord of the Rings, The Last Unicorn, and Interview with the Vampire. But there are many books from my childhood that have stuck with me as well. Island of the Blue Dolphins was a huge favorite of mine. I must have read it a million times.
How do you overcome writer’s block?
Writer's block can truly be awful when it strikes. I've been lucky in that I've never had it longer than a day or two. Most of the time, it's just a signal that I need to take a break from writing and let my mind wander and relax a bit--to focus on other things. Often when I do that, suddenly, a solution to my current problem will just pop into my brain. I think writer's block can often be the result of pure stress, or even that strange situation when you write yourself into a corner and you really have to think of new ways to look at your story or plot.
What do you prefer paperback, hardcover, or ebooks?
This a difficult question to answer, because each version of a book has its charms. Paperback is great on a budget. Hardcover is great if you have a library and really love a particular book series. E-books are kind to the wallet too and, most impressively of all, you can store thousands of books on one little e-reader. However, they're not great for coffee table books or reference. I uploaded a reference style book to my Kindle once and it drove me a little crazy.
Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
My first and last goal when I write a novel or story is always to entertain. If I've accomplished that after you've read one of my books, then I am very happy indeed!
Wanted to say thanks for featuring me on your blog today! :-)
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