Welcome

Come on and join author Melissa Bradley as she sets off on her latest adventure...

WARNING

If you are not 18, please exit stage left. While there is normally nothing naughty here, I do write and review erotica so there are links to spicy stuff and the occasional heated excerpt.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Celebrating Weighted, Ciara Knight's New Release

It's Tuesday and more importantly, it's a New Release Tuesday and we are celebrating Ciara Knight and her new release, the YA apocalyptic tale, Weighted. Congrats Ciara!

Here's a little bit about Ciara...

Ciara writes to ‘Defy the Dark’ with her fantasy and paranormal books. Her debut novel, The Curse of Gremdon, was released to acclaimed reviews, securing a Night Owl Top Pick and five stars from the Paranormal Romance Guild. Also, book I, Rise From Darkness, from her debut young adult Battle For Souls series, secured glowing reviews and won July Book of the Month from Long and Short Reviews.

Her first love, besides her family, reading, and writing, is travel. She's backpacked through Europe, visited orphanages in China, and landed in a helicopter on a glacier in Alaska.

Ciara is extremely sociable so please feel free to connect with her at her blog, website, Twitter,
Goodreads, or Facebook.

Weighted (Prequel Novelette)

The Great War of 2185 is over, but my nightmare has just begun. I am being held captive in the Queen’s ship awaiting interrogation. My only possible ally is the princess, but I’m unsure if she is really my friend or a trap set by the Queen to fool me into sharing the secret of my gift. A gift I keep hidden even from myself. It swirls inside my body begging for release, but it is the one thing the Queen can never discover. Will I have the strength to keep the secret? I’ll know the answer soon. If the stories are true about the interrogators, I’ll either be dead or a traitor to my people by morning.

Here's a short excerpt from Weighted

Subject: Raeth Arteres
Date: March 8, 2185
Species: Neumarian
Status: Captured

Tick-tock…tick-tock…I clutch the sides of the steel bed in my cell and push up on my elbows. The clock, with its bronze rim, hangs high on the wall, taunting me. The long black arm of the second hand struggles up the side of the enormous disc, ticking away the last few moments of my life.

Tap…tap.

Footsteps, two by two, march to the cell door. Sucking in a long breath, I embrace the rhythmic sounds of the airship, with the occasional interruption of an engine sputtering.

Tap…thump.

The Queen’s unmistakable gait interrupts my dream-like state. It matches the sounds of the ship, as if she is an extension of the heap of metal propelling us across the desert wasteland.

“Open the door.” Her voice echoes down the narrow hall.

Tick…

The hand struggles to reach the twelve. If it doesn’t make it, maybe the door won’t open. It teeters and shakes, then slides straight up in unison with the door.

…Tock.

“Be quick, before the parasite uses her curse on us.” Her raspy, artificial voice sends a quiver to my core.

A guard races in with a handheld device and points it at my neck. I’ve been collared like a dog. I clutch the slick metal ring around my neck, pulling it from my skin, but current zaps through my shoulders and my arm juts out to my side, shaking. Searing pain runs along my veins.

After all these years of my brother hiding me, it was inevitable I’d get caught.
Darkness swirls deep inside, brewing a storm. I can’t remember what it will do if I release it. Is it a gift, as my brother told me, or a curse, as the Queen believes? All I know is that if I unleash it, the Queen will have what she wants, so I push it down deep, keeping it hidden from her.

A man in a grey coat approaches with a syringe in his shaking hand. His left eye has been replaced by a bronze implant that clicks as it grows wide. I concentrate on remaining calm. “I-I see you s-still need me.” It is a struggle to speak against the rising will of the gift trapped inside me.

“Need you? I only need your wretched, cursed body. We must ensure your kind never threatens the world again. When I’m finished, you will serve me, and only me.”

Acid boils up in my throat but I force it down. The beast caged inside me longs for release.

You can purchase Weighted here

Smashwords
Amazon
Barnes & Noble

Upcoming books in The Neumarian Chronicles:
Escapement (Book I) - Early 2013
Pendulum (Book II) - Mid 2013
Balance (Book III) - Early 2014

Other books by Cara Knight:
Battle for Souls Series
Rise From Darkness
Fall From Grace
Ascension of Evil - Coming in October

25 comments:

  1. Congrats to Ciara! Excellent job spreading the word Melissa! Julie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Julie! Ciara's book is going to be huge. :)

      Delete
    2. Hi again, Julie. I've seen you all over the place today.
      Melissa - Thank you so much for participating in the release day blitz!!! You are so sweet to help.

      Delete
  2. Ciara is all over the place today with her new book...She is definately "Weightless" as she floats around in cyberspace. Good luck :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. LOL She sure is floating about cyberspace today. I'll be getting my own copy of Weighted very soon. It sounds really great. :)

      Delete
    2. Siv - LOL, you are so right! I'm floating through the blogosphere.

      Delete
  3. big congrats to our sister Ciarita!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yay!! I know her book is going to be huge. I'm hooked on the excerpt. :)

      Delete
  4. Dezmond - Thanks for all your sweet comments today. It's been nice seeing a friendly face. :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. Congratulations to Ciara on the release - I wish you all the best with it! Melissa - you and the Imaginarium are an author's best friends! Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Craig. Melissa is so great to us all!!

      Delete
  6. Hi, Melissa, Hi Ciara,

    CONGRATS, CONGRATS, CONGRATS!

    Ciara this is one STUNNING book! I can't wait to read it! ALL THE BEST!



    Melissa,

    Not to worry about long comments, I love them! Isn't the weather just awesome! Let's get together soon and have a healthy snack and coffee. lol.

    Looking forward to meeting you. Email me at mculi (at) aol (dot) com. and we can set up a day.

    Michael

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Michael - Your support on the blogs has made me smile. Thank you.

      Delete
  7. Well, I'm hooked by the excerpt. Good luck Ciara and congratulations. Thanks for posting this Melissa, I love finding out about new reads.

    ReplyDelete
  8. This sounds like a really great book. This excerpt really caught my attention.

    www.modernworld4.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gian - Yay, I'm glad it caught your attention.

      Delete
  9. So it has a Steampunk feel to it? Interesting.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. DWei - Yes, it does. I've been told it is a unique blend of genres in a good way. Thanks for your comment.

      Delete
  10. Happy Release Day, Ciara! LOVE the cover, and really enjoyed the excerpt. My kind of book!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Great, Julia. I hope you get a chance to read it.

      Delete

I love, love comments, so please leave your thoughts. I may not always be able to answer directly, but please know that what you say is very important to me.