Somewhere on this blog hop, I’ve hidden a bunch of goodies from The Faerie Song Saga, and the cover and map for an upcoming Special Hardcover Edition of Fire & Ice, releasing this fall! And YOU will be the very first to see it!
On this hunt, you not only get access to exclusive content from each participating YA author, you also get a secret number. Add up the numbers, and enter it for a chance to win a major prize–one lucky winner will receive at least one book from each author on my team in the hunt! But play fast. This contest (and all the exclusive bonus material) will only be online until noon PST on Sunday, October 8th!
There are SEVEN contests going on simultaneously as well as a bonus contest and you can enter one or all! I am a part of the GREEN TEAM but there is also a RED TEAM, BLUE TEAM, PURPLE TEAM, GOLD TEAM, ORANGE TEAM & PINK TEAM! Check out each team for a chance to win SIX different sets of signed books!
Now that all the technical stuff is out of the way, I’ll introduce the fabulous author I am hosting on this hunt...
Katie French is an Amazon best-selling author in Young Adult dystopian romance. Her book, The Breeders, has had nearly 100,000 downloads and counting and was a semi-finalist in the 2014 Kindle Book Awards. Find out more at
"Riley is one of the world's last free girls. When Riley was born, her mother escaped the Breeders, the group of doctors using cruel experiments to bolster the dwindling human race. Her parents do everything possible to keep her from their clutches, but the Breeders control everything.
And they're hunting Riley.
When the local Sheriff abducts the other members of her family, Riley and her brother Ethan are left to starve. Then Clay arrives, the handsome gunslinger who seems determined to make up for past sins. But Clay can't know she's female, or he might sell her to the very people she's trying to avoid.
As Riley's affection for Clay grows she wonders can she trust him with her secret? She's worth a lifetime's wages. How could anyone, even someone she's growing to love, give up an opportunity like that?"
BONUS MATERIAL!!!
Here's an exclusive a new chapter from her upcoming book, The Night Road!
The Night Road
A Breeders Universe Series
By
Katie French
CHAPTER ONE
Once, long ago, the world nearly died. Or, rather, the human race nearly died, snuffed out by the very innovations they were using to bolster it. Poisons infect the water and soil and then humans’ bodies. Female babies weren’t born, only males or gender-neutral people called benders. Women grew scarce. Men grew desperate.
So, a group of doctors was formed to try to bring back the female population. The Breeders were ruthless, collecting women like trinkets to use in their evil experiments. Freedom died. Women languished in tall, gilded cages while, outside, lawlessness reigned.
Then, our founders took the Breeders on and brought them to their knees. Riley and Clay, with others by their side, claimed Shiprock, our mountain fortress for their home. They fought off marauders, thieves, and thugs. They reclaimed the land and brought order back.
And, slowly, girls were born again. The Earth began to heal.
Four generations later, our town is thriving. Despite the desert heat and ruthless conditions. Despite the lack of water and technology. We keep it safe with the laws of the gunslinger’s creed.
The good guys have guns. And we know how to use them.
Which is where I come in. My name is Meg and I’m an apprentice gunslinger. Tonight, I keep watch while the city sleeps. And right now, I’ve found something pretty interesting creeping up our mountainside.
The intruder’s approach is easy to mark with my goggles, despite how dark the night is. There isn’t much movement on the walls, so any draws my attention and this fool is doing his climbing out in the open like he thinks we don’t pay attention. Fool.
He must think everyone is inside, getting ready for bed. And most are. Behind me, candlelight and gas lamps begin to flicker to life, warming the carved stone landmass. Shiprock angles up out of the ground like an eagle’s wing, a beacon of hope and light in the otherwise barren wasteland. Sitting in the North West corner of what used to be called New Mexico, it’s one of the only cities for miles and miles. It’s also one of the only things you can spot from a far off distance, like a lighthouse in a sea of sand.
And it’s also a homing signal for any crazy bastard that wants to take advantage of what we have.
But most people around know about our security force. They know we’re the best trained, most supplied gunslingers in history. Only someone profoundly ignorant would try to sneak in.
And, lucky me, it seems I have one of those in my sights.
Heartbeat starting to flutter, I mark his progress as I check my weapon. As an apprentice, I have one gun, a boring silver revolver manufactured by our friends at Merrick Guns and Ammo. Our partnership with them is what allows us to defend what’s ours. Weapons, you see, are the world’s most sought after commodity. We get ours at a discount and the people at Merrick enjoy our livestock and free lodging at our secure facility for their shipments to other colonies.
At my hip, my gun is ready and loaded with their stock. Hopefully, it won’t come to that.
Gunslinger Rule #5 – Don’t shoot unless you damn well have to.
When he starts to scale the sheer rock wall, I gotta hand it to the guy. He’s got guts. A fall from that height will mean severe injury and death. The problem is we don’t allow unlawful entry, but we do have a process to enter legally. And if someone is deciding the illegal route is better than the legal one, their intentions are likely not healthy for our community.
I tuck my goggles into my jacket pocket and take off at a run to intercept him before he makes it to a ledge and disappears.
The spot where I perch for watch leads to a path of smooth stone, curving around the south side of the mountain. I take the path around, skimming past apartments that throw out delicious smells of cooked dinner and sounds of family gatherings. The apartments aren’t much, usually two rooms of stone, with hand-hewn furniture, cramped but clean. Chiseled out of rock, everything is the same hue of desert brown, but our architecture is what gives my home its charm. Some owners have chiseled sayings above their door. Some have painted archways or carved vines wrapping around windows. The artistry is something I should pay better attention to if I weren’t chasing down a criminal.
Through the tunnels and down the stairs, flickering with torchlight, I hike It across to the other side of the landform.
When I get to the other side, I’m out of breath, but invigorated. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a good chase. As I draw my pistol, pure excitement tingles down to my fingers. Then I drop low and slip quietly to the edge of the overhang.
The drop is sheer. At least a hundred feet down, the rocks below wait to claim anyone who gets too cocky. Luckily, we’re born up here and used to the heights, but my climbing friend is not. He clings to the rock’s face as the wind buffets him. Even in the moonlight, I can see the terror on his face as he realizes his arms are too tired to go up and too weak to go down. He’s stuck. Only gravity will help change his position now. And gravity is a bitch.
“How’s it hanging?” I call down, amusing myself with the joke.
He isn’t amused. He nearly falls off the ledge before spotting me above him. “Help! I’m about to fall.” His arms strain, fingers clinging to rock like his life depended on it.
I regard him, making no move to help. “I see you’re having trouble. It makes me wonder, what in the world were you thinking coming up that way, friend?”
“I… uh… I seek sanctuary.” His watery eyes plead with me.
“Oh, yeah, that,” I lean back on my elbow, examining my nails. “That only applies to fools who do not try to break in first. Any crime automatically negates sanctuary and breaking into my town at night is a crime, amigo.”
He grumbles, shifting as rocks clatter down the wall. “Please,” he begs. “I’m going to fall.”
“A fall is likely. Maybe you should’ve thought of that before climbing up.”
But I’m not heartless. I pull the rope off of my belt, and, using the anchor screw set, I start to drill the bit into the rock. It chews in slowly, spiraling down deeper into soft rock. No way I’m just using my body and letting some fool pull me into the void.
“Hurry!” He shifts, arms trembling as more rocks cascade to the ground.
“Hey, guy, I’m doing my best, but really your mother should’ve taught you better manners than to rush someone who’s clearly doing her best.” I crank the handle of the screw, turning it slowly as it grinds downward. Finally, when it’s secure, I hook the carabiner through my rope loop and the anchor’s handle and give it a tug.
“Ready?” I call down, peering at him.
Terrified eyes stare up at me. Veins stand out on his neck as he holds on with his last ounce of strength. “Please.”
I toss the rope over. It pools on his shoulder before cascading down his back. One of his grimy hands grabs and clings.
“Tie it around yourself,” I say, hoping he knows how to knot rope. If not, heaven help him.
He lashes the rope around his waist with trembling fingers. When I give it a tug, he oomps, but the knot holds.
Then I spend an hour of my evening hauling his marauding ass up the mountain. Sweating, straining, I stop and wipe my brow. This is not exactly what I pictured security detail to be when I was a kid.
Hand over hand, I inch him upwards.
When he finally breaches the top and falls to his face on the ledge, we’re both sweaty and exhausted. He lies face down, panting.
“Ah, God. I thought I was done for.” He glances up at me, a crooked smile on his face. He’s thin and lean, with all appearances of a man just barely surviving on whatever they can scrounge up. And, from what I understand, it’s rough out there. Not that I’d know what it’s like outside of Shiprock. Not that anyone will let me find out.
“Next time try the front door,” I say, slowing my breathing down and letting the night air dry the sweat on my brow. I’d remove my hat, but then my hair is a dead giveaway. Most people assume I’m male in this job and I don’t really want to go tipping them off.
Even though females aren’t bought and sold anymore, they’re still considered the weaker sex which is so ridiculous. I’ve seen Kace, my brother-in-law cry more times than I can count and Shannon, my sister, has never once shed a tear. Weaker sex, my left butt cheek.
But when I lean back and my jacket falls open, his eyebrows raise. “A girl? Huh. Never woulda taken you for female.”
He sits up. “You know, you and me could scoot outta here. I got a car on the road a mile back. Real nice.”
I watch him carefully, noting the greedy gleam in his eyes. He doesn’t have a car. And he isn’t trying to be my friend. When he looks at me, he sees dollar signs. He’d have me hogtied, gagged, and shipped out to some sex slave farm in a hot second.
“Well, now, doesn’t that sound like a nice offer,” I respond dryly.
When his hand goes for his knife, I’m not surprised.
Springing up, I’ve pinned him with my boot before he can get the blade out of his pocket. I press down hard as his face grinds into the gravel. “And just when I thought you and me were getting along.”
“Gerroff,” he mumbles, struggling.
Dropping to my knees, I sit on him as I wrestle his arms behind his back and cuff them. The click of the metal handcuffs is satisfying.
Yeah, I may have made the cuffs too tight. Sue me.
“Let’s go.” I haul him to his feet.
“You bitch.” He spits as I lead him to the stairs.
“The name’s Meg, buddy,” I say, tweaking his arm a little harder than I have to. “And be sure to tell your friends it was a bitch who saved your life.”
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Don't Forget....
Enter the contest for a chance to win a ton of signed books by me and many more! Just check out all these books on team GREEN
REMEMBER: To enter, you need to write down my favorite number:
11
and find all the other numbers on TEAM GREEN, add them up, and you’ll have the secret code to enter for the grand prize!
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WANT MORE GOODIES TO WIN?
While you’re here don’t forget to enter the
Rafflecopter Bonus Contest I am running exclusively during the YA Scavenger Hunt!!!
One lucky winner will receive a digital copy of MELT (Faerie Song Saga 4) and a $5.00 Amazon Gift Card! Good luck everyone!
Enter the rafflecopter below for a chance to win:
MELT (Faerie Song Saga 4) & a $5.00 Amazon Gift Card
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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ONE MORE THING!
Whew!!! You made it through, it's been so great hanging out with you, now head on over to
MEG KASSEL'S post for the next stop on the
YA Scavenger Hunt!
And that's it! Thank you so much for visiting, have fun and GOOD LUCK on the hunt!
xo
Michele
