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About the Book
(Deamhan Chronicles #1)
Isaiyan Morrison
Trade Paperback, 218 pages
Rainbow Press, August 12, 2013
Paranormal Romance, Urban Fantasy
Amazon Synopsis: Her soft golden skin, her warm smile...these are the only images Veronica Austin has left of her mother who disappeared without a trace twenty years ago on the streets of Minneapolis while researching the Ramanga, the Lamia, the Metusba, and the Lugat. Known only as the Deamhan, they are a different breed from the modern bloodsucking vampire. A stranger to this world, Veronica s search for the truth about her mother s unexplained disappearance takes her into their sinister and precarious world. She gains the trust of the only other human familiar with the Deamhan lifestyle. With his help she finds not only can the Deamhan not be trusted but it is her own father, president of a ruthful organization of researchers, who has diabolically maintained that distrust.
Chapter One Excerpt
Veronica Austin stood in line behind a tall woman with long black hair, her blonde roots clearly visible in the streetlight brightening the corner. A circular tribal tattoo of jagged black lines decorated the base of the woman's neck between her broad shoulders.
Dad never liked tattoos.
He didn't like the idea of Veronica returning to Minneapolis after twenty years either, but that didn't stop her.
A large neon sign hanging above the entrance glared "Dark Sepulcher", with the "L" blinking in rapid succession. Black paint peeled from the brick walls, now discolored from years of treacherous Minnesota winters. Posters of upcoming concerts and events lined the wall. Veronica wasn't interested. At a glance, you'd mistake the building for an old factory, but Veronica knew better. She'd been told that the building housed secrets -- dark secrets -- and she planned to discover each one. This was the starting point in the search for her mother.
She cleared her throat and the woman glanced back, giving her a half-smile. Instead of real eyebrows, the woman had drawn severe black swathes with an eyeliner pencil, and she'd colored her lipstick line above her upper lip, giving her mouth a full, yet abstract look.
Two bouncers stood at the front entrance dressed in black T-shirts with "Security" printed in white letters. Veronica handed the taller bounder her California driver's license and waited while he studied it under the glare of his bright flashlight. She sucked in breath, preparing herself for questions about why she'd come and what she wanted with Dark Sepulcher. Instead, the bouncer flicked the license back to her and motioned for her to enter.
Veronica slid a five under the steel bars of the cashier's window, who snapped up the bill without a glance as she bobbed her head to the beat from her earphones. Veronica thought she recognized the chorus of "Devil Went Down to Georgia" by Charlie Daniels escape from the girl's earphones, but it drowned under the bass coming from behind a thick, black curtain blocking the venue's entrance. She stepped forward sucked in another deep breath, and pulled the curtain back.
She wondered how her mother felt, walking into this same mysterious environment nearly twenty years ago. The question repeated in her head like a broken record. She needed an answer. Her mother had always been a quiet and loyal wife. What could drive the woman to go against her husband's wishes and visit Dark Sepulcher? Could it be the same force now thrusting Veronica to follow in her mother's footsteps?
No one in her father's bastardized organization -- The Brotherhood -- had the balls to question her mother's disappearance. No one except for Veronica. Her father buried all photographs and mementos of her mother and he sent Veronica to San Diego to live under the care of The Brotherhood. His actions had since festered inside Veronica's wounded heart. He's sold family heirlooms, pawned his wedding ring. He'd destroyed family pictures -- the frozen moments that captured family outings, picnics, and celebrations.
Now, Veronica remembered only picture of her and her mother standing in front of a rollercoaster on a hot Saturday. Her mother wore white shorts with a black fanny pack, white sandals, and a pink, short-sleeved shirt. Veronica wore her favorite white dress decorated with butterflies and flowers. Though she'd been only five at the time, she remembered the moment as if it happened yesterday. They'd stood in line at the water park, waiting for their turn on the "Wet Excursion". They'd just finished a bag of sugar doughnuts. Her father could throw away the photo, but nothing he could do would fade the memory of that day.
She'd become a threat to her father, who now had the title: President of the Midwest Division. The Brotherhood had split America into three divisions long ago, with each division answering to the Head Master -- the overall leader of the organization. During the time of her mother's disappearance, her father held the title of Region Leader, a step below President, and his duties included handing out orders to the researchers under his control, one being his own wife, Veronica's mother.
Veronica trusted The Brotherhood (humans who studied and documented the Deamhan from afar) as much as she trusted words from a politician's mouth. They were known throughout the Deamhan world as humans who watched but never interfered. But something happened during the time of her mother's disappearance. Somehow they had intruded on the Deamhan, and for this, the President of the Midwest Division was killed. The Minnesota chapter disbanded, her father was promoted, and the researchers scattered to the Eastern and Western Divisions, leaving Minnesota. Afterwards, the Deamhan grew stronger in numbers, and without the eyes of any human on them, they also grew more violent.
When her father heard she planned on moving back to Minnesota, he warned her to not reopen her mother's case. In the past, Veronica had believed whatever Daddy said to be the honest-to-God truth. If he'd told her the earth was flat, she'd have thrown out her globe. Parents never lie. Her daddy never lied.
Not until her mother disappeared.
Now, Veronica had no clue what she might encounter in Dark Sepulcher. As she pulled back the heavy curtain, her eyes jumped frantically back and forth as they tried to adjust to the darkness. Life-sized macramé figures hung ceiling. White smoke spewed from fog machines and drifted ghostlike toward the crowded dance floor. Writhing bodies moved in trance-like motion to throbbing music blasting from massive speakers surrounding the floor. Veronica felt an unexplainable euphoric vibe circling the club with the fog. It enthralled her.
This wasn't the scary Dark Sepulcher from the story told to children at bedtime to frighten them from misbehaving. "If you act up, the scary Deamhan will get you!"
No, this is party central.
Or so she thought.
***WARNING***
This novel is for mature readers.
The excerpt above does not
include the explicit scenes that
prompted this warning.
Purchase Links
Isaiyan Morrison
About the Author
An avid gamer, writer, and lover of history, Isaiyan Morrison was born and raised in Minnesota. She moved to San Diego, California, while in the Navy. After surviving four years of active duty, she moved to Los Angeles.
After a few years, she moved back to Minnesota, where she started to pursue her dream to be an author.
Besides writing, she also likes to read, surf the Internet, watch movies, and play video games. She likes warm drinks, pico de gallo, and her love for cilantro is legendary.
At one point, she was sponsored to participate in video game tournaments. During that time, she traveled to Canada, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, Florida, Iowa, Oklahoma, and the Caribbean.
Her novel Deamhan, the first book in the Deamhan series, was accepted for publication by Rainstorm Press for release in mid-2013. She's currently in talks to have the second book, Sensual Appetite, published by the same company.
Other novels the author has completed are The Carriers (Sphere, Episode One), The Bond (Sphere, Episode Two), and Old Farmer's Road, to name a few.
She's currently writing the third Deamhan book, titled Revelation, and Maris: The Brotherhood Files.
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Sounds like a great book and I am looking forward to reading it. Thanks for sharing the great excerpt and the giveaway. evamillien at gmail dot com
ReplyDeleteHi, Eva!
DeleteFrom what I've read so far, it sure looks exciting! However, there are some parts that are definitely for more mature readers, so be careful!
You're very welcome for the excerpt! The giveaway is being held by Bewitching Book Tours, but you're welcome for it!
Thank you so much for visiting and commenting!! : )
Thank you for having me on your blog!
DeleteYes, there are some parts in the book that are for mature readers. I hope that those who are interested and who might purchase the book know about this.
Thanks again.
Hi, Isaiyan!
DeleteYou're very welcome!
I decided to put up the warning after reading Chapter One. So yes, I'm sure those who might be interested are fully aware of this.
You have very interesting world-building, by the way!
Thanks for visiting and commenting!! : )