The Windwalker Series
Book 1
by Claire Ashgrove
Urban Fantasy / New Adult
About the Book:
Halle Rhoads knows she is different. She's killed with the will of her mind and the strength of a cataclysmic storm, and she's been hiding from her terrifying power, living under the guise she perished in that same natural disaster. Yet when she risks discovery to protect her sister, she's thwarted by a handsome, meddling stranger who claims he can teach her how to control her magical gift. Wanting nothing more, Halle agrees and is thrust into a magical world full of dark realities.
As she struggles to master her power, she stumbles onto a dangerous truth. She's a windwalker, the chosen vessel of the ancient dragons' who once ruled the world. There are many who would stop at nothing to possess the power in her blood, should they discover her secret. With necromancers hunting her and Halle's closest allies guarding secrets--including her enticing tutor--mastering her magic becomes a matter of necessity.
But embracing her destiny is altogether different. For in so doing, she must embark on a journey that will lead to magical warfare, isolation, and inevitably, death.
With necromancers hunting her, elusive shadow-walkers stalking her, and her only allies conspiring against her, she's forced into a destiny that family, friendship, and even love, cannot alter.
Morning, Readers! Thanks so much for letting me pop in and talk about my new Urban Fantasy, Before the Storm. My assistant asked me a question, and it brought me to today’s topic about the heroine,
Ten Things Halle
- If she wasn’t amid a war, she would be trying to kill her uncle. (Oh wait. She is.)
- If she wasn’t so busy training with Kale—in a multitude of ways—she’d spend her evenings serving drinks at The Frost Club. But truth be told, she’s never made much in tips. (Gee. I wonder why.)
- If she
didn’t have a sister, she would be lounging in the sun at
- If she had access to a gun, she’d be planning to kill her uncle. (Only to be frustrated when bullets don’t harm him.)
- If she could control the lightning, she would be tracking child molesters and strategically taking them out.
- If she wasn’t preoccupied with her unwanted duck, she’d be finding new menus with tolerable food for the camarilla.
- If the
city of
- If she owned a car, she would be plotting how it could aid her getaway…after she killed her uncle. (Notice a pattern?)
- If she came into a million dollars, she would relocate Kale’s stepmother halfway around the world…preferably locked in a remote stone tower.
- If she
had never encountered Kale, she would be discovering she cannot change her
destiny.
Excerpt:
“Go ahead. Do
it again,” he challenged. “If this is what it takes to get you to embrace who
you are, then throw your best one at me, Halle .”
The surprise
I’d felt seconds ago disappeared with his taunt. Indignation heated my cheeks.
Where did he get off? It wasn’t like I was denying I had power all this time. I
couldn’t control it. Still couldn’t.
If I had any idea how, he’d be flat on his back immobile so I could get past
him and unable to speak further.
Again, energy
arced through my body. This time, the feeling was more natural. I opened my
mind, allowing it freedom, and when it broke through my surface, I remained
standing steadfast.
My hair
curled around my face as a gust of wind filled the cavernous hallway. But
before it could reach its mark, Kale braced one foot, uttered something I
couldn’t hear over the roar, and once more, my magic dissipated. His clothing
fluttered as if he’d stepped outside in no more than a gentle breeze.
“Screw you!”
I blurted and strode forward, intent on shoving around him. “You’re not going
to stop me. I’m going to find her!”
To my
surprise, he stepped sideways and let me pass.
Quietly, his
voice rang out behind me, a note of warning in his steely tone. “What are you
going to do then?”
I kept
walking, scanning the long hall for an off-shooting tunnel that carried the
whisper of the outdoors. There was one here somewhere. We’d come in it earlier
this week. It took double the time than the way I’d been going, but it was away
from lying, secret-keeping, Kale.
“What are you
going to do, Halle ,
when she tries to kill you?”
At that, I
laughed. “She won’t kill me. She’s my mother.”
“Was.”
I snorted,
not bothering to slow my pace. But though I’d never let him know his words got
to me, a chill stole down my spine. That unease was tempered by the dark recess
that caught my attention and marked the exit I’d been seeking. I headed
directly for it.
“What are you
going to do when your uncle tries this?”
As I took
another step into the mouth of the adjoining corridor, anticipating leaving
Kale’s taunts behind, I ran nose-first into something hard and unmoving. It
repelled my like a bird flying into a clean windowpane, and I stumbled several
steps backward, only to crash on my ass. I rubbed my smarting nose and stared
at an invisible barrier, the dark depths of the dimly lit hallway as clear as
they had been moments ago.
“What the
hell?” Scrambling to my feet, I shot him a baleful glare. “Just leave me
alone!”
“What are you
going to do with this, Halle ?”
Before the
echo of his voice died away, the entire corridor went black. Not the sort of
dim light that comes with nightfall. But the absolute nothingness of being trapped
underground in the belly of a cave. No shadows, no hints of another presence. I
lifted my hand, touched the tip of my nose, and still couldn’t see my fingers.
Not even the faint outline.
In the next
moment, the oppressive, sickeningly-sweet smell of decay permeated the air. It
flooded my nose, made breathing next to impossible. My throat closed, gag
reflex kicking in. With that came the churning of my stomach and something
more—paralyzing fear. Voices whispered through the darkness, ghostly and full of
menace. I didn’t know if they were real or products of my panicking mind. But
the cold feel of perspiration spread over my skin, and the overwhelming urge to
run possessed me.
In her non-writing time, she’s runs Finish The Story, a full-scale editing house co-founded with Bryan Thomas Schmidt. She lives in Missouri and enjoys cooking, studying ancient civilizations, and spending downtime with her two sons and too-many horses, cats, and dogs.
Author Links:
As part of Before the Storm’s release celebration, Claire’s sponsoring a giveaway of a $15.00 Amazon or Barnes and Noble Gift Certificate. All you have to do is enter the Rafflecopter below. In addition, she will have several other opportunities over the next two weeks to win more prizes. To see complete tour dates, and the other release-week events, check out the Before The Storm Tour Schedule!
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