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Book Blurb:
Title: Return (Lady Toryn Trilogy Book 1)
Author: Charity Santiago
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
For the last three years, eighteen-year-old Ashlyn Li has been running from her destiny. A free-spirited ninja, Ashlyn would rather loot an abandoned city or challenge a fiend to battle than assume leadership of Toryn, her father's kingdom. However, when a series of attacks reunites Ashlyn with the friends who helped her save the sun three years ago, she discovers that her kingdom is at war and her father has presumed her dead.
Suddenly Ashlyn is faced with not only fulfilling her birthright, but also making sense of her feelings towards two very different men- Drake Lockhart, the enigmatic vampire who captured her heart three years ago, and Vargo, the charismatic assassin who was once Ashlyn's sworn enemy. Will Ashlyn ascend the pagoda and become Lady of Toryn?
Excerpt:
"I
once knew a girl," he said, his voice a perfect monotone, "who was
like a dying rainbow. Her colors were incomparable, her countenance a whirlwind
of brilliance."
Ashlyn
resisted the urge to pull away from his touch. If this was another story about
his dear long lost Loritta or the perpetually bratty Trace, she really wasn't
in the mood to hear it.
Three
years ago, she would have immediately yanked away and jumped up, jabbering
something about Drake's selfishness and his inability to let things go or think
about anyone but himself.
Today,
Ashlyn sighed inwardly and resigned herself to a drab sob-fest about one of two
women she hated for the pure fact that they were both incredible and mature
and…well, not her.
Drake
went on, oblivious to Ashlyn's inner turmoil, "As much as she shone,
however, she faded into nothingness, at times so quickly that I was unsure
whether she had existed at all."
He
paused, their breathing and the rain on the roof the only sounds in the room as
he gently extracted a splinter from between her fingers. "Years passed,
and she became a memory to me. It was a long while before I realized how
difficult it must have been for her, attempting to find a balance- somewhere
from oblivion to her own unmatched radiance."
His
hand covered hers, emerald light gleaming from between their interlinked
fingers as her flesh knitted beneath his touch.
"I
never thought I would see her again," Drake continued. His lips were close
to her ear, stirring the damp strands of her hair with his breath. "But
she came to me one night, three years later, out of the rain, as much a walking
contradiction as she'd ever been."
Ashlyn's
throat tightened.
He was
talking about her, sweet Drago, he was saying all that stuff about her.
She'd spent a month with Drake before, in close proximity, and he'd never said
this much during those entire four weeks, much less in a single conversation.
And
what he was saying now…? If she hadn't already been pretty much collapsed into
his arms, it would have happened, and probably with a bunch of drama and swoony
fluttering, too.
"What
seems impossible," Drake said, his fingers brushing across her palm with
obvious reluctance as he let go of her hand, "becomes possible in the
smallest, most trivial moments. The girl that I remember has become a woman I
cannot forget. Her strength has united a kingdom once thought lost. Her passion
has awakened the hearts of heroes unsure of their purpose."
"Her
stupidity caused the war in the first place," Ashlyn said uncomfortably,
folding her arms across her chest. Instead of utter elation at his words, she
felt like a child receiving a precious gift that was completely undeserved, and
as much as she wanted to let him console her, there was no way to deny the
truth of the situation.
When
she met Drake's gaze, his blood-red eyes were solemn, and he raised a hand to
cup her face, brushing his thumb across her cheek to remove the last traces of
her tears. "You can run from your destiny, Ashlyn, but it will find you
regardless," he said.
"I
was alone for three years," she told him. I am not leaning into his
hand. I AM NOT leaning into his hand. "I'm not the same person
anymore. Toryn isn't my destiny anymore. I'll just screw it up, like I have
everything else."
"I
was alone for almost twenty years," he replied. "You dragged me out
of the coffin nonetheless."
"That's
different." Don't do this to me, Drake. Don't make me fall for you all
over again.
His
eyebrows quirked, obviously in disagreement.
Ashlyn
frowned, trying hard to focus. "I only asked you to start thinking of
yourself as a man,
Drake, instead of a monster. That's hardly the same thing."
"I'm
asking you to think of yourself as a leader," he said. "You've spent
so long running from responsibility that you think yourself incapable of
fulfilling your birthright."
"We
haven't seen each other in three years. You don't know what I'm capable of- I
don't even know what I'm capable of."
He
grabbed her hand, abruptly, and brought it up to his chest. Through the cloth
of his shirt, his skin was warm to the touch, and Ashlyn let him press her hand
against the solidness of his shoulder, confused as to what he was doing.
"This,"
he said, his voice low, "is where I was struck by Devlyn's sword."
After a
moment, he slid her hand lower, until it was resting directly above his heart.
Ashlyn paused, entranced by the lack of a pulse beneath her fingers, the scent
of him filling her senses and enveloping her like the rain against the roof.
"This,"
Drake said. "This is where I would have been struck, if you had not
deflected the blow."
She met
his gaze, breathing so hard that she felt light-headed. His eyes bored into
hers, piercing her straight to her soul.
"I
know what you are capable of, Ashlyn," he said. "I know better than
anyone."
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About the Author:
In February 2011, Charity Santiago's 7-month-old son was admitted to the hospital with severe respiratory issues. While Charity stayed at his bedside, she kept them both entertained by downloading several books on her new Kindle and reading them out loud. It was during this time that Charity learned about Kindle's self-publishing program, and realized that she had an opportunity to share her writings with the world.
Charity is a native of southeastern Arizona, and a writer since childhood. She wrote her first manuscript, Guinea Pig Code, at age nine. When she’s not writing books, Charity spends her time reading on her Kindle, wrangling children, watching Sylvester Stallone movies and pursuing a degree in Education.
Blog:
http://charitysantiago.blogspot.com
Twitter:
http://www.twitter.com/cinephilemama
Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/charitysantiago
Goodreads:
http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4733058.Charity_Santiago
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