Thank you for joining us on the Virtual Book Tour for Marked, a Young Adult Science Fiction novel by Amy Saunders (31 January 2016, Amy Saunders, 194 pages). This is the first book in the The Birthright series.
PREVIEW: Check out the book's synopsis and excerpt below, as well as details of the first book in the series, Inborn, and the follow up short story, Bequest - both books are currently FREE!
Author Amy Saunders will be awarding a $25 Amazon gift card to a randomly drawn winner via Rafflecopter during the tour.
Synopsis | Teaser | The Series | About the Author | Giveaway
Synopsis
Starting over for Rosamund Brandt is more complicated than it sounds. Especially when the past keeps coming back to haunt her. As she and her mom and brother try to pick up the pieces in a new home, the universe seems determined to tear them apart even more as secrets multiply, and distrust grows.While new threats and unknowns emerge, Rosamund struggles with her own inner battle. Her new powers are growing whether she wants them or not, and their origins and nature are sketchy at best. The more that’s revealed to her, the more uncertain she feels.
Choosing allies and facing new and old enemies alike may not be their biggest problems. Not if Rosamund’s worst fears come true. Could she be the one they should fear the most?
Teaser: Excerpt
As entranced as I felt, I was still with it enough to act. Right before she plunged her spear into my forehead, I opened a black hole. She fell through, crashing face first on the asphalt. I backed up, bracing myself. She whipped her face toward me, springing back onto her feet. Besides having a killer power, she was also incredibly agile and fast.
Despite that, I wasn’t the least bit put off. Somewhere in my mind, I thought that was strange, but I couldn’t dwell on it. She stood, two short swords growing from the palm of her hands. She swung her arms in unison in tight, controlled movements. This wasn’t her first rodeo.
I should have been filleted with the first strike, provided they could actually slice through a solid object, but I ducked out of the way in time. Then again. She followed as I backed away, striking and swinging with force and precision. I should have been sliced and diced several times over, but I dodged each time. How? I didn’t have extraordinary reflexes for sure. And she definitely wasn’t missing.
As I dodged again, I realized something weird was happening to her. Each time she raised her arms, it was like she slowed down. But not of her own volition. I think she knew it was happening, too, because each strike got angrier, more determined. Like she was frustrated. I wasn’t frustrated, but I was confused, and getting tired.
She raised her arms yet again, so I slipped behind her through a portal while I had the chance. I pushed up against the wall for leverage, kicking her back. It threw her slightly off balance. She turned around and paused, listing her head like questioning what I intended to accomplish with that.
“Man, I really need to work out.”
But there was little time to berate myself. I twirled through a portal before she struck again, stabbing the wall instead of me. As she turned, her blades sweeping around with her, another set of blades, blazing like fire, swept up, sparks flying as the two sets collided.
I followed the new set of fire swords–curved, slender blades–up to the face of my mystery guy. The swords protruded from his hands like the shadow’s blades, and the rings around his irises burned like my mother’s did sometimes. His angular face was locked in a snarl. He spat something in the Maon language, which I took to mean, “Not on my watch.”
I blinked as that sunk in. He’d just spoken Maon.
Their blades circled around, locked together, and the Maon-speaking fire swordsman swung blow for blow, parrying and striking with as much fluidity and ease as the shadow. The shadow swung at his head, and he bent backward, the edge of the blade just missing his nose. He replied by crossing his swords and thrusting them out, which would have finished her off if she hadn’t dissolved in time for them to strike the air instead.
Their blades locked together again, and the fire swordsman pushed, shooting the shadow person to the other side of the road. She hit pavement and rolled.
Despite that, I wasn’t the least bit put off. Somewhere in my mind, I thought that was strange, but I couldn’t dwell on it. She stood, two short swords growing from the palm of her hands. She swung her arms in unison in tight, controlled movements. This wasn’t her first rodeo.
I should have been filleted with the first strike, provided they could actually slice through a solid object, but I ducked out of the way in time. Then again. She followed as I backed away, striking and swinging with force and precision. I should have been sliced and diced several times over, but I dodged each time. How? I didn’t have extraordinary reflexes for sure. And she definitely wasn’t missing.
As I dodged again, I realized something weird was happening to her. Each time she raised her arms, it was like she slowed down. But not of her own volition. I think she knew it was happening, too, because each strike got angrier, more determined. Like she was frustrated. I wasn’t frustrated, but I was confused, and getting tired.
She raised her arms yet again, so I slipped behind her through a portal while I had the chance. I pushed up against the wall for leverage, kicking her back. It threw her slightly off balance. She turned around and paused, listing her head like questioning what I intended to accomplish with that.
“Man, I really need to work out.”
But there was little time to berate myself. I twirled through a portal before she struck again, stabbing the wall instead of me. As she turned, her blades sweeping around with her, another set of blades, blazing like fire, swept up, sparks flying as the two sets collided.
I followed the new set of fire swords–curved, slender blades–up to the face of my mystery guy. The swords protruded from his hands like the shadow’s blades, and the rings around his irises burned like my mother’s did sometimes. His angular face was locked in a snarl. He spat something in the Maon language, which I took to mean, “Not on my watch.”
I blinked as that sunk in. He’d just spoken Maon.
Their blades circled around, locked together, and the Maon-speaking fire swordsman swung blow for blow, parrying and striking with as much fluidity and ease as the shadow. The shadow swung at his head, and he bent backward, the edge of the blade just missing his nose. He replied by crossing his swords and thrusting them out, which would have finished her off if she hadn’t dissolved in time for them to strike the air instead.
Their blades locked together again, and the fire swordsman pushed, shooting the shadow person to the other side of the road. She hit pavement and rolled.
Marked
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The Series: The Birthright
Click on the book cover to Look Inside the book on Amazon and read an excerpt.
Inborn [1]
**FREE for a limited time from Smashwords (pdf, epub & mobi), Amazon (US), Barnes & Noble (US), Nook (UK), iBooks, and Kobo**
Rosamund Brandt has had a semi-normal life for sixteen years. Well, semi-normal for a family descended from aliens. Sure, she could create portals and her family had a secret basement. But she went to school, had a best friend, and got her driving permit like every other teen.
However, her definition of “normal” unravels when a killer with multiple powers and an agenda steps into town. When Rosamund herself becomes a target, she has a choice between playing the killer’s game and saving a few, or getting to the core of the murders and stopping them for good.
Rosamund’s choice will save everyone she cares about–or unleash a new era for herself and her family, shattering whatever hope for going back to normal she had.
[Published 21 July 2015, 217 pages]
Bequest [1.5]
**FREE from Smashwords (pdf, epub & mobi),Barnes & Noble (US), Nook (UK), iBooks, and Kobo** 
A short story featuring characters from The Birthright series. Being a descendent of aliens seemed complicated enough to Rosamund Brandt, but after events in Inborn, she’s left with plenty of questions and concerns about her family history–and their future. But after another trip to the Lockewood mansion, she may have more to add to the list.
[Published 1 September 2015, 11 pages]
About the Author
Amy is a sci-fi/mystery addict with a soft spot for humor and romance. She lives in Massachusetts, and loves to bake and watch movies. Learn more about Amy and her books on her website.Follow Amy Saunders:
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