Drain
Me
Ellie
Gray Chronicles, Book
1
Lana
Sky
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Date of Publication: November 28th 2014
ISBN: 150275438X
ASIN: B00OW46BD0
Number of pages: 550
Word Count: 38k
Cover Artist: Imogenary Designs
Book Description:
When diagnosed with a fatal illness
at the age of twenty six, Eleanor Gray is resigned to her fate—at least until
the enigmatic Dublin Helos appears and makes her an offer she knows she should
refuse:
Life or Death?
With a decision as harmless as
checking the wrong box on a mysterious questionnaire, Ellie is plunged into a
dangerous world where souls are sold to the highest bidder and pleasure is
fueled by pain.
The rules of this new life are
simple: submit everything—mind, body and soul. But the further Ellie falls
under Dublin’s control, the more she comes to realize that it’s not just her
sanity at stake, but her heart and a whole lot of blood too.
Available at Amazon
Excerpt
The fact that he
knew my name didn’t alarm me.
My family owned
half the city, including a good portion of this very hospital. Considering that
my sister’s escapades were constant fodder for the tabloids, I would have been
more insulted if he didn’t know who I was.
But once again …it
was that look in his eyes. It chilled me right down to the bone; I know you,
Eleanor Gray, it said. Way more than just a face from the Society Pages.
Before I could
choke out a reply, he smiled—for real this time—and my poor brain struggled to
find the right words to describe it. Dazzling. Magnificent ...
The flash of
pearly white teeth nearly knocked me senseless. I lost my grip on the
handkerchief for a split second, sparking the taste of copper over my
tongue.
“Word travels fast
around here,” he said, voice traveling down my spine.
I felt my nose
wrinkle as I frowned. Apparently news of my terminal illness had spread before
I’d even left the damn hospital. How long before my picture ended up splattered
over the front of some tabloid beneath the headline, Heiress given weeks to
live?
I didn’t answer.
Instead, I willed my nose to stop bleeding, though I had a feeling that I was
quickly becoming in danger of needing transfusion number four.
I felt so dizzy
all of a sudden. As if, at any moment, I could pass out. Faint.
“What do you see?”
“Huh?”
The question threw
me off and had me turning to face him before I could help it. Wordlessly, he
inclined his head and my eyes automatically followed.
The hall we were
in opened onto a causeway, where patients and visitors alike wandered the
pristine floor.
The sight reminded
me of a hotel—albeit minus the IV poles some people sported instead of
suitcases. The air was the same: that busy, ‘places to go, people to see, get
the hell out of my way’ vibe that made everyone seem closed off, further away.
Without meaning
to, I found my gaze settling over a young girl who had her head wrapped in a
polka dot headscarf. Beside her, a man I guessed to be her father pushed an IV
pole that rattled over the floor.
She was almost as
pale as I was, with dark, bruise-like circles underneath her eyes—but that
wasn’t what stood out to me the most.
She was smiling.
Walking, talking and …smiling. Despite the obvious physical signs, if you went
off that expression alone, you would have never guessed she was sick at all. My
gaze remained glued to her, even as the mysterious doctor spoke up again.
“Mortality,” he
said grimly. “It’s the most precious commodity in the world, don’t you agree?”
I nodded. I may
have not been that invested in my own life, but I could read the fervent desire
on all the other faces—from the new mother carrying her infant in a car seat,
to the elderly man clutching a newspaper to his chest.
The lust to live
was always the same.
“There are some
who would do anything for another chance at life, for more time.”
He spoke so
matter-of-factly that it wasn’t until my mind processed what he was really
saying that his morbid tone struck me like a blow.
“I-I don’t know
what you’re talking about.” I sounded like I was under water. My nose was still dripping. Even the pressure
of my hand wasn’t enough to staunch the blood flow.
“You wouldn’t,” Mr. Gray Eyes said with a
shrug. “Immortality doesn’t interest you, does it, Eleanor?”
Alarm raced down
my spine—no longer was I convinced that this was just a random chat with a
stranger. It was all in his tone.
“I have to
go.” I clutched the now bloody
handkerchief and tried to stand. My legs felt as flaccid as limp noodles. Sweat
poured down the back of my neck, and the erratic beat of my heart quickened and
then faltered. Thump, thump, th-ump.
“You’re not afraid
of death,” the man—though I was now seriously doubting that he was a
doctor—continued. “You welcome it; or so you tell yourself. But, I’m here to
offer you a choice—”
“I think …I need a
real doctor.”
I was through
humoring him. Without bothering to be polite, I attempted to stagger in the
direction of the activity, grasping onto anything to steady me. My hands were
slippery and my once-burgundy peacoat was now soaked scarlet.
Hemohemorrahgia
kept haunting me in Doctor Wallis’ curt tones. 90% fatality!
“Mortality can be
a hindrance of sorts.”
The man was still
talking, only I had no idea just what he was getting at. More importantly, why
hadn’t he gotten a doctor or flagged down a nurse? I clung to the wall and
scanned the crowd of blurring faces, desperate to catch sight of another white
lab coat.
“I think I …need
…help.”
It took all my
strength just to get the words out. And he only ignored me.
“I’m here to offer
you a choice, Eleanor: accept your impending death, or …something else.”
What else? I
struggled to ask but was only greeted with silence. It stretched on for a good
five minutes before I realized that he had finally left. That strange vibe was
gone at least, but so was any sensation or feeling in my limbs. Or sound. My
vision was an inky shade of gray, nearly black, but …
When I finally
gave into the darkness, I swore I could hear him whisper one last time, “It’s
your decision, but if you’re smart, you will make the right one.”
Author Bio
Lana Sky is a reclusive writer in
the United States who spends most of her time daydreaming about complex male
characters and legless cats. She writes mostly paranormal romance, in between watching
reruns of Ab Fab and drinking iced tea. Only iced tea.
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Interview
Please welcome Drain Me author Lana Sky to Diane’s Book Blog.
How long did it take
you to write Drain Me?
I took me around seven
months to write Drain Me, and another seven more to edit!
Who or what inspired
you to be a writer?
I’ve always told
stories. For as long as I can remember
I’ve created up imaginary people with imaginary drama to keep myself
entertained. As a kid I would constantly
daydream and writing helped me hone that habit into something tangible.
What books have most
influenced your life?
My favorite book of
all time would have to be A Great and Terrible Beauty, by Libba Bray. It introduced me to a newer side of the
paranormal genre that I had never really been exposed to before. It definitely sparked my love of Gothic-style
storytelling.
What is your typical
day like?
Well, I work as a
nurse during the day. When I’m not doing that, I’m watching various reruns on
Netflix and/or writing.
Nothing beats a good
paperback!
Do you have anything
specific that you want to say to your readers?
Thank you guys so much
for sticking by me on this incredible journey!
Your support means so much! Love
you guys.
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