by Kresley Cole
Genre: Young Adult (Paranormal/Fantasy Romance; Dystopian; Post Apocalyptic)
Date Published: August 15, 2016
Publisher: Valkyrie Press
Losses mount and deadly new threats converge in this next action-packed tale of the Arcana Chronicles by #1 New York Times bestselling author Kresley Cole.
When the battle is done . . .
The Emperor unleashes hell and annihilates an army, jeopardizing the future of mankind--but Circe strikes back. The epic clash between them devastates the Arcana world and nearly kills Evie, separating her from her allies.
And all hope is lost . . .
With Aric missing and no sign that Jack and Selena escaped Richter's reach, Evie turns more and more to the darkness lurking inside her. Two Arcana emerge as game changers: one who could be her salvation, the other her worst nightmare.
Vengeance becomes everything.
To take on Richter, Evie must reunite with Death and mend their broken bond. But as she learns more about her role in the future--and her chilling past--will she become a monster like the Emperor? Or can Evie and her allies rise up from Richter's ashes, stronger than ever before?
Day 382 A.F.
Death kept taking me farther from Jack. I stretched my arms out, fingers splayed toward the heat. "He can't be dead." I sobbed. "Can't. NO, NO, NOOOO!"
"You want to follow the mortal? Get your revenge first. The Emperor mocks your pain."
I could hear that fiend in my head--laughing.
The red witch exploded inside me, a force that could never be contained. I shrieked, "You will PAY!"
As the Emperor laughed, Death murmured in my ear, "I have your grandmother, SievÄ. That was the gift I spoke of. We'll teach you how to kill the Emperor. You'll avenge Deveaux."
"Don't you understand? Jack's not DEAD!" I screamed that over and over. "He's alive!"
With my mind teetering on the brink, I spied something in the skies above us. I gaped, disbelieving.
Real? Unreal? Just before oblivion took me down, a mountain of water curled over our heads, racing toward that hell of flames.
Circe's towering wave. Taller than a skyscraper.
-Quake before me!-
-Terror from the abyss!-
Richter and Circe's calls boomed in my mind, jolting me back from the blackness.
"Come!" Aric snatched me into his arms and sprinted from the clash. "When they meet, the blast and then the flood..."
I stopped fighting him; the need to turn Richter's laughter into screams clawed at me, which meant I had to survive.
Aric gave a sharp whistle, and a horse's nickering answered. Thanatos. With me secure in his arms, Aric leapt into the saddle, and spurred the warhorse into a frenzied gallop.
We all but dove down a slope, then charged up the next.
I gazed over Aric's shoulder as that tidal wave crested above Richter's lake of lava.
Heaving breaths, riding faster than humanly possible, Aric kept Thanatos at a breakneck pace. Up another mountain face. Down its slope--
Circle struck.
A hiss like a giant beast's. A detonation like a nuclear bomb.
The shock wave was so loud my ears bled. As loud as the roar preceding the Flash.
The air grew hotter and hotter. The ground rocked as a blast of scalding steam chased us.
BOOM! The force sheared the top off the mountain just behind us. Boulders crashed all around as we careened into yet another valley. Still we rode.
Aric grated, "Surge comes next."
The ground quaked from the weight of an ocean of water. I could hear the surge shooting toward us. "Aric!"
He got as far as he dared, as high as he could. "Hold on." Clutching me tight, he dropped from Thanatos who kept running.
Behind the cap of another mountain, Aric braced for impact. He wedged his metal gauntlet between boulders, wrapping his other arm around me.
Gaze locked on mine, he yelled "I'll never let you go!" We each sucked in a breath.
The searing water hit. The explosive impact ripped me from his chest, but he caught my arm, clenching his fingers above my elbow.
Death's grip. The ungodly force of the flood. My watery scream...
Aric never did let me go--
My arm...gave way.
Separated.
Death kept taking me farther from Jack. I stretched my arms out, fingers splayed toward the heat. "He can't be dead." I sobbed. "Can't. NO, NO, NOOOO!"
"You want to follow the mortal? Get your revenge first. The Emperor mocks your pain."
I could hear that fiend in my head--laughing.
The red witch exploded inside me, a force that could never be contained. I shrieked, "You will PAY!"
As the Emperor laughed, Death murmured in my ear, "I have your grandmother, SievÄ. That was the gift I spoke of. We'll teach you how to kill the Emperor. You'll avenge Deveaux."
"Don't you understand? Jack's not DEAD!" I screamed that over and over. "He's alive!"
With my mind teetering on the brink, I spied something in the skies above us. I gaped, disbelieving.
Real? Unreal? Just before oblivion took me down, a mountain of water curled over our heads, racing toward that hell of flames.
Circe's towering wave. Taller than a skyscraper.
-Quake before me!-
-Terror from the abyss!-
Richter and Circe's calls boomed in my mind, jolting me back from the blackness.
"Come!" Aric snatched me into his arms and sprinted from the clash. "When they meet, the blast and then the flood..."
I stopped fighting him; the need to turn Richter's laughter into screams clawed at me, which meant I had to survive.
Aric gave a sharp whistle, and a horse's nickering answered. Thanatos. With me secure in his arms, Aric leapt into the saddle, and spurred the warhorse into a frenzied gallop.
We all but dove down a slope, then charged up the next.
I gazed over Aric's shoulder as that tidal wave crested above Richter's lake of lava.
Heaving breaths, riding faster than humanly possible, Aric kept Thanatos at a breakneck pace. Up another mountain face. Down its slope--
Circle struck.
A hiss like a giant beast's. A detonation like a nuclear bomb.
The shock wave was so loud my ears bled. As loud as the roar preceding the Flash.
The air grew hotter and hotter. The ground rocked as a blast of scalding steam chased us.
BOOM! The force sheared the top off the mountain just behind us. Boulders crashed all around as we careened into yet another valley. Still we rode.
Aric grated, "Surge comes next."
The ground quaked from the weight of an ocean of water. I could hear the surge shooting toward us. "Aric!"
He got as far as he dared, as high as he could. "Hold on." Clutching me tight, he dropped from Thanatos who kept running.
Behind the cap of another mountain, Aric braced for impact. He wedged his metal gauntlet between boulders, wrapping his other arm around me.
Gaze locked on mine, he yelled "I'll never let you go!" We each sucked in a breath.
The searing water hit. The explosive impact ripped me from his chest, but he caught my arm, clenching his fingers above my elbow.
Death's grip. The ungodly force of the flood. My watery scream...
Aric never did let me go--
My arm...gave way.
Separated.
Read my reviews of the previous books in this series!
Since her first novel was released in 2003, Kresley has published twenty-two books with Simon & Schuster and has seen her releases translated into more than eighteen foreign languages. She has traveled over much of the world and draws from those experiences to create her memorable characters and settings. Two of her favorite places to visit include the rain forests of Central America and the Queensland area of Australia.
Cole’s trademark action, sensuality, and humor are exemplified in her popular Immortals After Dark Series, which revolves around the Lore, a secret stratum of hundreds of immortal creatures--ranging from Vampires to Lykae, Furies to Shifters, and Fey to Valkyrie--that each have their strengths, weaknesses, and age old prejudices against the others. Though they secretly live among humans, they constantly war among themselves, which gives her a lot of material.
In 2007, Kresley won the prestigious Romance Writers of America RITA award for best paranormal for her novel A Hunger Like No Other, and in January 2009, she became a #1 New York Times and Publishers Weekly bestseller with her sixth IAD installment, Kiss of a Demon King. In 2010, Kiss of a Demon King earned Kresley her second RITA award. 2011 brought Cole her second #1 NYT bestseller with Dreams of a Dark Warrior. In 2013, Kresley won a third RITA for Shadow's Claim and was inducted as only the 14th member of the RWA Hall of Fame.
She lives in Florida with her husband and far too many animals. She spends any free time traveling and enjoys all things related to boats and water.
To learn more about Kresley Cole and her books, visit her website.You can also find her on Goodreads, Facebook, and Twitter.
No comments :
Post a Comment
Thank your for stopping by. Please comment! I'd love to hear from you!