Eye
of the Soul (Pool of Souls #1)
Adult
Fantasy
Release
Date: October 7, 2013
Blurb:
Escape.
That should be Hyla’s first thought as her people are chained and imprisoned for no imaginable reason.
Instead, Hyla finds herself traveling through a land void of Natives, with human soldiers pillaging in desperate pursuit of her, and in search of the mystical Pool of Souls—home to the one man who can save her people.
Or so she believes.
Led by her faith in the deity Fadir, Hyla is met along her journey by Jadon—a human male and fierce King’s warrior, and his childhood best friend Conlin—one of the few Natives aware of his Fadir-given Talents.
Protected by Jadon, guided by Conlin, and with an unfailing belief in the purpose of her pilgrimage, Hyla carries on.
Like her, though, another searches for the Pool, and should he gain access first, everyone she loves, and everything she knows, could be lost.
Forever.
Excerpt:
Cursing her arthritic
fingers, Miri squeezed out a rag and draped it over the human man's hot
forehead.
“I’ve seen a lot more
harvests than you, old goat,” she muttered, lifting his eyelids. “I’m thinking
you’ll never catch up either. Doubt you last another half-moon’s phase.”
Miri pushed to her feet
and stretched her hunched back. A heavy sigh slipped past her wrinkled lips as
she glanced around the sick house. Keeping the night watch wasn’t too bad—she’d
volunteered often since her old bones wouldn’t allow much sleep.
“Joints wasted, hearing
all but gone …” Miri yanked on the long white braid lying over her shoulder. “I’m the
old goat.”
She shuffled down the
aisle, woolen kirtle swishing in the silence. A cool, autumn breeze rustled the
crimson leaves of the magnolia and palm fronds overhead, drawing her gaze
upward. Violet streaks lit the pre-dawn sky.
A dog barked, yipped,
and fell silent.
Miri peered across the
village green to the thatched buildings beyond. A shadow passed between two
cottages. Another three hurried toward the neighboring dwelling.
“Sight fading or my
mind, too?” Miri rubbed her watery eyes, blinked, and leaned forward. Light
flickered through the palm trees behind the outlying homes.
Torches?
The flames drew closer,
weaving between the trunks.
Humans from the
mainland? Miri’s hand clutched at her throat. Soldiers. Fadir have
mercy.
The men crept through
the village, taking up positions at every doorway. Two brutes, more horse-like
in size than human, approached the sick house. Sputtering torch held high, the
first strode forward, dark eyes intent upon Miri. A green surcoat covered broad
shoulders and fell to his thighs. The golden wheat sheaf of the city of Varosh
Cold sweat beaded upon
Miri’s brow. Breath burst from her lungs, and she moved back, clutching the
door jam.
The second soldier
stepped closer, chains and shackles clanking in his hand. He stopped two paces
away from Miri, and a smile stretched his stubbled cheeks, revealing rotted
teeth. “Good morning pointy-ears.”
Miri stared, heartbeat
thundering in her ears. She’d been called worse in her eighty-three birth
passings but never with such malice.
A single cry rang out
across the village, and doors crashed inward. Screams rent the air.
“Don’t fight Native
woman,” rotten-teeth sneered, shackles outstretched.
“W-why?” Miri
whispered, taking a step backward.
A scowl narrowed his
gaze, and his fist shot forward.
Bursts of light and
pain exploded through Miri as she crumpled to the floor.
Link to Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/
