Author: Shona Husk
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Word Count: 77k
Tour giveaway: A copy of The Changeling
Soldier (Annwyn 2.5), print.
Formats: epub, mobi, pdf
Tour Dates: March 16 - 27
Tour Dates: March 16 - 27
A darkling with a
lust for power…
Henry Saint shouldn’t exist. Every year on his birthday, he
kills someone and takes their soul so that he may live another year. He is a
darkling, not fairy… but not human either. Yet he is bound by the laws of both
worlds. With a new King on the throne of Annwyn and the mortal world trying to
rebuild after plagues killed so many, Henry seizes the opportunity to carve out
a place of his own. He wants Detroit.
A spy without a soul…
Darah was Felan’s spy before he became King of Annwyn. Now
he has one last mission for her. He wants her to join the darkling’s Court and
discover what Henry’s endgame is. No one trusts the Banished when they gather
in great numbers. As Darah gets drawn into Henry’s world she realizes he can
give her the one thing she could never find in Annwyn—love. But is love worth
betraying her King?
Excerpt
This time, though, he’d have fairy magic
on his side. Or at least in his possession, if not exactly on his side. He
glanced at Darah.
“So, Darah, what did you do to end up
here?” The cup warmed his hands. Summer was fast becoming a memory as autumn
took hold.
She paused, the cup almost to her lips.
After being surrounded by humans and the ugly and awkward Greys for so long,
her beauty was like a rose growing among the weeds in sidewalk. Something rare
that made him pause.
Her tongue darted over her lip. He
shivered, unprepared for the spark of lust the thought ignited. He’d spent a
long time keeping those kinds of thoughts deeply buried, and he wasn’t entirely
sure he wanted to release them. Certainly not with a woman he barely knew and
didn’t quite trust.
Although to be fair, most of his
encounters had involved women for whom kissing wasn’t part of the job. It was
safer for everyone, even if it didn’t satisfy the ache. Darklings didn’t get to
love. Any human he did love would eventually die. And Greys, he’d tried once.
It was easier to go without.
“I stole from the old Queen.”
“If you were exiled before the power shift
and the change of Kings, you’d be dead.” All fairies caught on the wrong side
of the veil had died, only the Greys had survived because they were already cut
off from the magic. “Don’t lie to me.” He wasn’t a mortal fool who knew nothing
of Annwyn.
“That wasn’t a lie.” And she sounded
offended that he would accuse of stooping so low. That revealed a little more
about her; at least she wouldn’t lie to him…merely mislead. “I was a shadow
servant for a year and day as punishment. However, the taint of being one of
the mad Queen’s ladies has stained my reputation.”
Henry narrowed his eyes. Her words were
too careful. She had never once actually said that she was exiled, merely
agreed with the assumption. “You aren’t exiled, are you?”
She sipped her soup but didn’t answer. No
confirmation or denial. He was taking that as an affirmative.
He leaned back. This one had teeth and
cunning; he was going to have to watch her closely. It had been a long time
since anyone had roused the thrill of a hunt and the chance of a good game.
Damn his fairy blood for that one too.
“Why Detroit?” He smiled, and plucked some
of the bread. It was always made fresh, but it really needed butter.
“I could ask you the same question.”
“Very well, a truthful answer for a
truthful answer.” All fairies loved a deal. Was she enjoying the idea of a game
as much as he was? How far was he willing to take it? It was a delicate dance
and he couldn’t afford to gamble too much, nor get too distracted.
“That’s an acceptable deal.” She smiled
and her gaze sharpened.
He exhaled as lust traced a razor edge
over his skin. If he mis-stepped, dancing with Darah was going to hurt.
Author Bio
SHONA HUSK is the author of the Shadowlands Series and the
Court of Annwyn Series. You can find out more information about Shona and her
edgy romances at www.shonahusk.com or follow her on Twitter @ShonaHusk,
Facebook www.facebook.com/shonahusk
or join her newsletter.
