We vampires do not make easy prey. Our
weaknesses are few, our strengths many. Fear is something we do not know, and
death but a distant memory. So tread softly, pray to your god, and gird
yourself with silver when the moons arise and night’s dark prince awakens. We
fear not the wizard, nor the warrior, neither rogue, nor priest; our strength
is timeless, drawn from darkness and we know no master save the hot lust of our
unending hunger. We long for blood, your blood and no blade, nor spell, nor
clever artifice, can keep us long from our prize. Feel our teeth at your
throat, your life ebb from you, and know as darkness comes to claim you that
the price of your folly is your everlasting soul.
In Drisdak, the city on the Sea of Sorrows, the citizens have much to
dread. Unease and foreboding has always been associated with the local wizards
guild; peasants have an innate distrust of magic and those who use it. But now,
something else is on the rise. A mysterious fire at the guild has left two men
dead and a third missing. A small matter, you say? Well, one of those men was
the guild master, and his successor wants to know what happened to him. Enter
Coragan of Esperia, the renowned bounty hunter. If anyone can unravel this mess
he can. But is even he prepared to challenge the horrible evil that lurks at
the heart of the mystery? An ancient vampire by the name of Lucian val Drasmyr.
Excerpt:
“Condemn
me, then. Howl my sins to the heavens and shriek my crimes to the wind. I am
evil, my love. Your pronouncements mean nothing.”
Silence
greets my words. She does not know how to respond to someone who embraces his
villainy. Irritated with my remark, she crosses her arms and purposely looks
away. At last, she speaks. “Why do you keep calling me that? My name is
Clarissa, not ‘love.’”
“Because
I care for you so deeply.” My chuckle does little to lighten her mood. “In
truth, I call you that because it amuses me and annoys you... there is no other
reason.”
“Well,
stop it, Lucian. I don’t like it.” She seems almost sad, in a human sort of
way, almost as if she were reminiscing about an old romance.
An
irritated smile crawls across my face. I have grown weary with her petty human
mannerisms and her conviction that what happens to her actually matters. She
will learn her place. “You have little choice in what title I call you by, my
dear. I, however, have much in mine. By you, I prefer the term ‘master’ to my
name. It has a much more pleasing ring to it.”
Suddenly,
her eyes flash in angry rebellion. “I will never call you mas—”
A
moment’s worth of concentration and she is on her knees gripping her skull. Her
head bends back, eyes bulging, and she begins to shriek in an inhuman voice.
The Children of the Forest go silent as she starts to writhe on the castle
stones.
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Matthew D.
Ryan is a published author living in upstate New York on the shores of Lake
Champlain. He has a background in philosophy, mathematics, and computer science.
He also has a black belt in the martial arts and studies yoga. He has been
deeply involved in the fantasy genre for most of his life as a reader, writer,
and game designer. He believes he saw the legendary Lake Champlain Monster
(a.k.a Champy) once and he has a cat named Confucius.
Author’s
Smashwords Page: http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/matthewdryan
Author’s Book
Page: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/131156
Author’s
Blog: http://www.atoasttodragons.com
Author’s
Facebook Page: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100000038781652
Author’s
Twitter Handle: @MatthewDRyan1
Author’s
Goodreads Page: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/579148.Matthew_D_Ryan
Author’s
Shelfari Page: http://www.shelfari.com/matthewdryan/shelf
The book is
available on Smashwords, Amazon, BN and elsewhere for free.
~Giveaway~
Matthew will be awarding a set of metal miniatures: 3 Nosferatu Vampires (US only) to a randomly drawn commenter during the tour. For a chance to win leave a comment with with your email address. For more chances to win please follow the Tour.
I really like the blurb. It sounds really good. A bit different than most of this genre.
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