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Madison’s Song
A Cassie Scot Companion
Novel
by Christine Amsden
Blurb:
Her voice is enchanting; his
soul is black...
Madison Carter has been terrified of Scott Lee
since the night he saved her from an evil sorcerer – then melted into a
man-eating monster before her eyes. The werewolf is a slave to the moon, but
Madison's nightmares are not.
Despite her fears, when Madison's brother, Clinton,
is bitten by a werewolf, she knows there is only one man who can help. A man
who frightens her all the more because even in her nightmares, he also thrills
her.
Together for the first time since that terrible
night, Scott and Madison drive to Clinton's home only to discover that he's
vanished. Frantic now, Madison must overcome her fears and uncover hidden
strengths if she hopes to save him. And she's not the only one fighting inner demons.
Scott's are literal, and they have him convinced that he will never deserve the
woman he loves.
*Stand-alone
companion to the Cassie Scot series
About the Author: Christine Amsden has been writing fantasy and science
fiction for as long as she can remember. She loves to write and it is her dream
that others will be inspired by this love and by her stories. Speculative
fiction is fun, magical, and imaginative but great speculative fiction is about
real people defining themselves through extraordinary situations. Christine
writes primarily about people and relationships, and it is in this way that she
strives to make science fiction and fantasy meaningful for everyone.
At the age of 16, Christine was diagnosed with Stargardt’s Disease, a condition that effects the retina and causes a loss of central vision. She is now legally blind, but has not let this slow her down or get in the way of her dreams. In addition to writing, Christine teaches workshops on writing at Savvy Authors. She also does some freelance editing work. Christine currently lives in the Kansas City area with her husband, Austin, who has been her biggest fan and the key to her success. They have two beautiful children.
At the age of 16, Christine was diagnosed with Stargardt’s Disease, a condition that effects the retina and causes a loss of central vision. She is now legally blind, but has not let this slow her down or get in the way of her dreams. In addition to writing, Christine teaches workshops on writing at Savvy Authors. She also does some freelance editing work. Christine currently lives in the Kansas City area with her husband, Austin, who has been her biggest fan and the key to her success. They have two beautiful children.
Connect with Christine:
Don’t forget to enter the giveaway at the end!!!
Excerpt:
Prologue
Madison couldn't move. The only muscle in her body
capable of stirring at all was her heart, and it felt like it was trying to
make up for the rest. No ropes bound her. Nothing visible pressed her back and
legs into the coarse beige carpet of her new rental home. Yet even as she
writhed and twisted against unseen restraints, she knew she was trapped. Tied
to the ground in a way that made her feel like a virgin sacrifice atop an
altar.
The man looming over her, chanting spells and
arranging crystals, didn't look like a powerful sorcerer. David McClellan had
too weak a chin and beady little eyes. Those eyes, brown as mud and just as
compassionate, told her without words that they would be the last thing she
ever saw.
She didn't even understand why! Not that it would
make a difference if she did. But she wasn't anyone special. She wasn't important.
She was just an elementary school music teacher – or would be after she
finished a semester of student teaching. This kind of thing didn't happen to
her. To her friend, Cassie, scion of a powerful family of sorcerers, maybe. But
Madison had no family connections and almost no magic aside from her beautiful,
subtly enchanting voice. Why would anyone hurt her for a song?
A tear fell sideways into her sweat-dampened hair,
joining countless others and doing exactly as much good. How long had she lain
here, helpless? Minutes? Hours? It might only have been seconds. The box of
“Card and Board Games” she had been carrying into the house lay on its side a
foot or two away, some of its contents now strewn across the bare living room
floor. There hadn't been any warning. One second she was on the way to her new
bedroom to unpack her tenth or eleventh box, the next instant she was on the
floor. Immobile. Helpless. Confused. Terrified.
Oh Lord! Why hast thou forsaken me?
There was magic in the air, growing stronger with
each new crystal David arranged into a pattern only he could see. Cold, deadly
magic that reinforced her every childhood fear. Her father had told her that
magic was from the devil. Was this what he'd meant? Was this her punishment for
brushing up against the world of sorcery, no matter how lightly?
David placed one last crystal before ceasing his
chant. The silence felt ominous, like a lull before the storm, and when he
moved away, out of her sight, a fresh wave of panic seized her. She strained
anew at her bindings until the scent of incense filled the air. She had a
sudden, vivid memory of Palm Sunday Mass, and of Father Owen making the sign of
the cross as he wafted the same scent over his congregation. Father Owen didn't
believe magic was evil; he had told her more than once not to listen to her
father's “superstitious nonsense.”
The time had come to pull herself together. To
think. She wasn't helpless. She had a little magic of her own, even if the
thought of using it made her feel sick inside. God had not forsaken her. He had
given her a tool, if only she could rein in her stampeding heart rate long
enough to search her memory for what little knowledge she possessed.
First, she had to find her quiet place. Madison
drew in a deep, shuddering breath and started to close her eyes, when a glint
of something metallic caught her attention. She stared at the long, lethal
dagger in David's hands, an ornate golden hilt largely hidden within his iron
fist. His eyes drifted up and down the length of her bound body before settling
on her midriff. He lowered the blade.
He was going to cut her. She squeezed her eyes
shut, bracing herself against the expected pain. Or worse.
Think, Madison. Focus!
She took one last steadying breath. Then she
counted. Breathe in one ... two ... three ... four ... breathe out ... five ...
six ... seven ...
Her concentration snapped when cold metal bit into
warm flesh. Her eyes popped open, her muscles strained once more against
invisible bonds, and she screamed.
Wait, she could scream? She had a voice?
“Silence,” David commanded.
Her throat continued to work, but no sound emerged.
She felt like a fish being gutted, choking and spluttering as David returned to
the work of cutting into the soft, sensitive flesh of her belly. Yet even as
tears refilled her eyes and fear devoured her heart, some part of her
recognized that her guts remained intact. Whatever David was doing to her with
the dagger involved tracing shallow patterns across the surface of her skin.
Fight the pain. Take deep breaths. Ground and
center. She was not in the empty living room of a house she had not quite moved
into yet, she was at church, singing in the choir. Above her, Jesus hung from a
cross, a crown of thorns atop his head, a soft glow surrounding him. She
usually found the magic within that glow. She reached for it...
“Stop that!” David slapped her hard across the
face.
Once again her eyes flew open. She saw the dagger
dripping with blood – her blood. Had her feeble grab for magic actually made a
difference? David seemed to have noticed something, but what?
“You're just making this harder on yourself,” David
said.
“What do you want?” Madison tried to ask. Her mouth
moved, her lips forming the question, but no sound emerged.
She didn't think he would answer; he couldn't even
have heard the question, but to her surprise he only hesitated a moment before
saying, “Your soul.”
My Thoughts - 5 out of 5
Unicorns - I loved it!!!
***Received the ebook for free for an
honest review
The
cover is awesome and scary all at the same time. It is very beautiful :)
I
truly loved the Cassie Scot series and was very sad when it ended, so I jumped
at the chance to read this companion novel.
This book has Madison, Scott, and Evan in it…sadly no Cassie, but I live
with it was it was just an awesome story and grabbed my attention and held on
until the end. I think there is some
magic in the words that Christine puts into her stories because it is definitely
always magical and all the scenes fill my mind as I read, and I never have a problem
picturing it. Madison and Scott’s story
is terrifying, exciting, and action packed.
I
really hope there is more of this world because it is such a magical and
wonderful place that Christine has created.
If you loved the Cassie Scot series, then you do NOT want to miss
reading this book.
I
highly recommend this series to Christine’s fans of the Cassie Scot series and
to anyone who loves magic and thinks werewolves should be a bit more savage
than some books portray.
Don’t
forget to enter the giveaway at the end!!!
Interested in reading???
See
my reviews of Cassie Scot series!!!
Cassie Scot (Book 1)
Secrets and Lies (Book 2)
Mind Games (Book 3)
Stolen
Dreams (Book 4)
Interested in reading???
The Cassie Scot Series
Cassie Scot: ParaNormal Detective
(Cassie Scot #1)
Secrets and Lies (Cassie Scot #2)
Mind Games (Cassie Scot #3)
Stolen Dreams (Cassie Scot #4)
Enter the Giveaway for a
$100 Amazon Gift Card
Thank you so much for the awesome review and for hosting my book tour!
ReplyDeleteThe pleasure was all mine :) I loved reading it :)
DeleteThe first question isn't too personal I just can't think of anything lol... so I'll answer the second question: Paranormal romance is so great to read because anything goes. Fairies, vampires, trolls, there are absolutely no limits and I love that!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the great question :)
Paranormal romance gives you the chance to experience love from the eyes of a different creature/species. Thanks.
ReplyDelete