Shadow Fire by Kimber Leigh Wheaton
(The Light Chronicles #1)
Publication date: February 24th 2014
Genres: Fantasy, Romance, Young Adult
Ashlyn – a free-spirited teenager whose peaceful life is
shattered when the village elders honor her with a perilous quest to recover a
stolen relic.
Zane – a jaded mercenary, torn by his undeniable desire for
Ashlyn and the dark secret that could make her hate him forever.
Delistaire – a malevolent sorcerer driven by an insatiable
lust for power.
All three are bound together by an ancient relic supposedly
infused with the power of a Goddess.
Shadow Fire - adventure, passion, secrets, and betrayal
As Ashlyn and Zane race to stay one step ahead of the evil
lurking in the shadows, their passions are ignited and their bond strengthens.
But will they find the relic before Delistaire? Or has their entire quest been
orchestrated from the very beginning by a madman in pursuit of ultimate power?
Excerpt:
Every step I take
is one step closer to death.
Hiking through the
dense underbrush, I try to calm my frayed nerves and control the fear
threatening to overwhelm me. Twigs and tendrils of ivy grab at my ankles as I
continue to forge ahead, forcing me to wrench away from their skeletal grip.
The sunlight is fading, signaling the end of another day, but this is no
ordinary day.
A loud crack
pierces the air. I freeze in my tracks, my breath catching in my throat.
Whipping my head around, I try to locate the source of the sound. My heart
pounds in my chest, the erratic rhythm painful. These woods are full of
predators, some animal, some monster, but the worst… human. Taking a deep
breath, I listen to the surrounding woods: birds chirp, insects hum, and small
animals scurry about as if they have no care in the world.
Lungs burning, I
force myself to continue walking. I didn't collapse three weeks ago when this
whole fiasco started, and I won't give in now. My family needs me to be strong.
The trees become
sparser as I approach the edge of the forest. My shoulders slump when I pass
the tree house we used to play in so many years ago. Any other day when I'm
this close to home after a long day of hunting, I'd smile, breathe a sigh of
relief, and perhaps look forward to dinner. Today there will be no raucous family
meal, no solace in entering the peaceful village, and nothing to smile about.
The villagers will
be awaiting my return, skulking in the shadows, desperate to catch a glimpse of
the walking dead girl.
I've dealt with the
whispers and pointing for three weeks with my head held high, my anxiety hidden
behind a mask of indifference. I don't want them to see me like this, trembling
in fear, broken. They've taken everything I am, every hope, every dream I've
had for the future and smashed them to pieces with little hope of salvation.
The townsfolk of Verdane decided my fate and they chose death.
The elders told me
being Chosen is an honor. Either they are ignorant or apathetic. Every
five years for the last twenty, a teenage girl has been chosen by the town, via
secret ballot, to undertake this dangerous quest, never to return. Perhaps if
the elders had to forfeit their lives instead they wouldn't be so quick to
label it an honor, they'd call it what it is… a sacrifice.
Buy it Now:
Author Bio
Kimber Leigh Wheaton is a YA/NA author with a soft spot for
sweet romance and is a member of Romance Writers of America.
She is married to her soul mate, has a teenage son, and
shares her home with three dogs and four cats. No, she doesn’t live on a farm,
she just loves animals. Her house is filled with dragons, though she does
lament that they are the porcelain, non-flying variety.
Kimber Leigh is addicted to romance, videogames,
superheroes, villains, and chocolate—not necessarily in that order. (If she has
to choose, she’ll take a chocolate covered superhero!)
Her debut novel, Shadow Fire, is the first book in the Light
Chronicles series. Watch for book two, Stolen Moon, a standalone sequel, coming
August 2014.
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