Today is the release day for my friend J.L. Mbewe’s debut fantasy novel, Secrets Kept. As part of her release, I am offering a sneak preview. But before that, here is a quick blurb:
With a curse, she will build an army.
With the dagger, she will undo the last sacrifice.
But first the sorceress must find the secret keeper.
Torn from her homeland and thrust into a betrothal against her wishes, Ayianna learns her family has a deadly secret that now has her on the run. She joins forces with Kael, an embittered half-elf, and Saeed, an elderly High Guardian, to seek answers to her father’s death, the destruction of Dagmar, and the plains people’s bizarre behavior.
Ayianna discovers there is more at stake here than just her mother’s disappearance and her familial duty to her betrothed. The sorceress has cursed the plains people, and it is a race against time to release them before the sorceress resurrects an ancient evil.
Betrothals, sorceresses, secrets. Sounds like a great speculative novel! And now for the preview:
Leaves rustled, and the bush’s slender limbs shuddered. Shadows veiled the intruder; the light of the lantern unable to penetrate the layers of dry leaves and stems. Ayianna peered closer, and a dark mass burst out of the bush toward her face. She flung her arms up. The milk pail slammed into her head, and its warm contents splashed down her face, neck, and clothes. The lantern rocked on its hinge, the flame flashing and flickering wildly. The intruder screeched and a rush of wings brushed against her skin.
Ayianna lowered her arms. A large bird ruffled its dark feathers and made to settle its wings, but one hung at an odd angle. Its round, ebony eyes ogled her.
Could it be?
“Fero?” she asked. “Is brother home already?” She glanced around, but her eyes failed her in the half-light. Her wet clothes clung to her skin, and the breeze grew colder. She shivered and glared at the bird. “Brother or not, look what you made me do? Now, I’ve got no milk, and I’m all wet.”
Fero jerked his wayward wing back and hissed.
“Are you hurt?” Ayianna lifted the lantern, and its glow poured over the falcon, revealing dark stains on his ribbed underbelly. She reached out to touch him, but he gnashed his curved beak at her. The branch shifted, and the bird thrashed about trying to regain his perch, but then he broke free and soared haphazardly into the red-tinged sky.
Atop the bush, a strip of cloth fluttered where Fero had sat. She tore it free. The fabric was damp, soiled, and stunk of decay. It stained her fingertips red. Blood?
J. L. Mbewe is running a giveaway for Secrets Kept. To enter, click on the link: A Rafflecopter Giveaway
To find out more about Secrets Kept, head on over to Amazon and Goodsreads. Or just click on the links below 🙂
October 16th
J. L. Mbewe: Release Day Kick-Off
The Writer’s Window: Meet the Characters Part 1
Sitting on the Porch with Lynn: Interview
In Darkness, There is Light: Excerpt
October 17th
The Wonderings of One Person: Meet the Villains
Lightly Salted: Guest Post
Aaron DeMott: Excerpt
Writing without Compromise, Clare Davidson: Top Ten favorite YA novels
October 18th
J. L. Mbewe: Top Secret Project Reveal
Anne Elisabeth Stengl: Meet the Characters part 2
Emerald Barnes’ Dreaming Awake Blog: Interview
Pauline Creeden: Dream Cast
Sheila Hollinghead’s Rise, Write, Shine: Review of Dragon Thief
Writing as J. L. Mbewe, Jennette is an author, artist, mother, wife, but not always in that order. Born and raised in Minnesota, she now braves the heat of Texas, but pines for the Northern Lights and the lakes of home every autumn. She loves trying to capture the abstract and make it concrete. She has two short stories published in The Clockwork Dragon anthology, and is busily creating worlds inhabited by all sorts of fantasy creatures and characters, all questing about and discovering true love amid lots of peril. Her debut novel Secrets Kept and her short stories set in the world of Nälu: Desert Rose, Dragon Thief, and Indestructible are now available. She is currently living her second childhood with a wonderful husband and two precious children who don’t seem to mind her eclectic collections of rocks, shells, and books, among other things.
For more information about her journey as a writer mama and all things creative please visit her at http://www.jlmbewe.com/
Connect with Jennette!
Google+ (But I’m still learning the ropes here!)
Morgan L. Busse 
Thanks for participating on the tour!
Thanks so much for such a cool giveaway! I love fantasy, and this looks like a great book!
Question: Why did you decide to write in Fantasy?
Humm, I have so many favorite charcters…. I love Lucy in the Chronicles of Narnia, and so many others! I like to see “good” dragons in stories also ( Donita K. Paul’s books have awesome dragons!). Thanks so much for sharing your book!
Thank you Paige!
And such a good question! I could and probably should write a post on that. Ha! But I love fantasy as a reader, and so it was only natural for me to want to write it. I love the flexibility it gives. I don’t have to have all the historical facts correct, but I use them to ground the elements that are fantastical.
By the way, I love Donita K. Paul’s dragons. 🙂