The Evanescent by Carlyle Labuschagne (Giveaway)
Title: Evanescent
Author: Carlyle Labuschagne
Series: A Broken Novel
Publisher: Fire Quill Publishing
Release Date: 19th May 2015
ISBN: 9780992244637
Author: Carlyle Labuschagne
Series: A Broken Novel
Publisher: Fire Quill Publishing
Release Date: 19th May 2015
ISBN: 9780992244637
Synopsis
Her fall has just begun. Only his touch can save her from the shift that
could destroy it all. Within my blood runs a thing our kind calls the
Shadowing Disease. It shadows over, and bends everything to its will.
When the first blood- shift came, it tore through flesh and blood,
threatening to bend me, break bone, shatter my mind and entrap my heart
with its honeyed, seductive poison. It came with vicious intent, moving
my thoughts and altering me forever. The shift has caused a rift within
me. No one was safe when it entrapped me in its claws of foul lust. But I
have the only antidote against the evil that becomes me – his touch
alone has the power to release the spurs of sweet darkness that clung on
for dear life. I knew what I had to do; the desperation pulled my mind
with the deep determination of a hungry predator. By the time the
revelation raised me from the dark dungeon of my bounds – it might have
been too late.
Excerpt
Excerpt
My makers would say I was created for revenge.
I say, I was born to prove them wrong. I defied the Council and its
Keepers. Fought back against the dark
magic of our enemies, but I am afraid it had come at a cost. Inflicted with the dark disease, I was
lost in every possible way; and they were wrong – death does not bring you your
true purpose. After death, I am more misplaced than ever, but only because I am
immune to guidance. I relive my darkest moments over and over again, just to
remind myself of who I am.
I am
the destined one. The haltered. For me, there is no love and no release, only
destruction; but I am on a path to be free of its burden. I do love and I will have it, absorb it
and never, ever, let all its enchanting affections go. In order to be with
love, there is only one path to lead me there; through this war. But nothing
and no one knows what awaits on the other side, or what lies have been
afflicted upon us about the after. Remorse is an infection I no longer want. I
had made apocalyptic mistakes, and will probably keep on faltering forward. It
has become my only direction in a reality where there is none. To him, there is
no him, if there is no me. He is bound to me, and I hated it more than I will
ever confess. His cross to bear is me, and to be that – to be this – is a curse I must fight.
When the first true blood-shift came, it tore
through flesh and parted blood, threatening to bend me, break bone, shatter my
mind and entrap my heart to become its will. It comes with vicious
intent, moving my thoughts and touching me with a cutting effect from the
inside. It has many ways of bleeding
out, and when it releases, there is nothing I can do to stop it. No one is safe
when it entraps me in its claws of foul lust. Corrupt, damnable, depraved, destructive,
hideous, demonic; your kind would call it many things. I have a weapon against
the profane that becomes me – his touch alone has the power to release the
talons of a sweet darkness that clings on for dear life. It has one trigger –
my guilt. I can change it if only I can take the leap, surrender myself
utterly. I am ready with all of me, for all of him.
I know what I have to do, the desperation of
it pulls my mind with the unfathomable determination of a ravenous predator. I
let it sink in hard and true. I feel the swell of the fight fill me with a
bitter sweetness, and with a glorious soothing pain that tears my mind from the
disease which transforms me. My loss has become my fight as I watch it all
wither away. But, I will never stop fighting. I am my own destiny; my destiny
is to be with him. And the Truth-seekers of this prophecy will not take it
lightly.
Everything else becomes Evanescent.
~ Ava.
Bonus
Excerpt
The alien landscape before me is much like that of a desert I once saw in
pictures located in my father’s secret collection of ‘Earth’ books. I could
never have imagined something so barren. Despite the vastly strange moonscape,
there is a beautiful glow from the stars above, drowning everything in a golden
hue. It doesn’t look real; it looks as though I could just reach up, pluck the
stars from the black glossy sky and capture the brilliance in the palm of my
hand. The atmosphere is so thin, everything feels magnified. Dunes upon dunes
of sand shimmer with such vividness it’s like staring at churning waves rising
to their apex…readying themselves to crash upon the vacant shore. And as I
walk, the shuffling sound of my gravity boots sifting through the silky grains
of sand becomes rhythmic, echoing in the cosmic emptiness around me. At times
it’s soothing, almost hypnotic, putting me in a trance-like state, making this
journey a bit more bearable. Sometimes…I see things that aren’t there; shadows
moving in the darkness. Figures emerging just beyond the next rise of the next
dune. I draw my blade, yet as I get closer they simply float away on windless
air. I get the feeling something dark is churning beneath the sand as I make my
way deeper into the belly of this stark, foreign world.
My gravity suit sticks to my
skin as I move quickly, adding to my agitation. My throat is so dry it feels
like it’s imploding, punishing me for the abuse I have inflicted on my body.
If only she had listened, I
had never expected to stay this long. We were only meant to scout here…not
infiltrate. Unluckily my kind can’t die from hunger or thirst, our bodies find
a way to adapt. And although I’m sure
that uniqueness comes at a cost, it is one I am not sure I can afford during
the perils of this war.
Retrieving the others is my soul mission. And the thought of seeing her
again is what keeps me pushing forward. But as her Guide in this prophecy, I
can’t help but feel tormented by the bitter taste of failure. In a desolate
place like this it’s hard not to feel alone, difficult to push back the
negative notions. But thoughts of her lift my mood. It never bothered me that I
was defying my destiny. I thought there would be a way to be with her and save
her at the same time. I had thought love’s glory would give me wings, and for a
moment we were flying together in the heat of the light. Perhaps I flew to
close to the sun. Perhaps it had been too soon.
…I have burnt our wings, and
all I can see now is the fire that will destroy us all.
About the Author:
Carlyle
is an South African award winning author, with a flair for mixing
genres and adding loads of drama to every story she creates. For now she
is happy to take over the world and convert non Sci-fi believers.
Her goal as an author is to touch people’s lives, and help others love their differences and one another by delivering strong messages of faith, love and hope within every outrageous world she writes about.
Her goal as an author is to touch people’s lives, and help others love their differences and one another by delivering strong messages of faith, love and hope within every outrageous world she writes about.
“I
love to swim, fight for the trees, and am a food lover who is driven by
my passion for life. I dream that one day my stories will change the
lives of countless teenagers and have them obsess over the world
literacy can offer them instead of worrying about fitting in. Never
sacrifice who you are, it’s in the dark times that the light comes to
life.”
Carlyle used writing as a healing tool and that is why she started her very own writers support event – SAIR bookfestival.
“To
be a helping hand for those who strive to become full times writers,
editors, bloggers, readers and cover artists – it’s a crazy world out
there you don’t have to go it alone!”
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