Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Giveaway winners

The Kindle Fire giveaway to celebrate the release of Shifting Fate has ended. Congratulations to Cherry, who won the Kindle Fire, and Ileana and Dulce, who won the gift cards.

And thanks to Tressa and Laura at Prism Book Tours for an awesome book blast! Jenn, Alexandru, and Katha were the winners of the gift card and ebook prizes.

There's still a drawing for the signed paperbacks going on at Goodreads, and a few more surprises coming next month with the release of the audio edition, but thanks to everyone who played and shared the giveaways. You guys rock!


Monday, December 9, 2013

Shifting Fate Book Blast

Prism Book Tours is hosting a Book Blast for Shifting Fate - check out all the goodies and giveaways below:

To post this Book Blast (html) and add your Social Media to the Rafflecopter, email Tressa at wishfulendings(at)outlook.com with "Shifting Fate Book Blast" in the subject line!

On Tour with Prism Book Tours

Shifting Fate Book Blast!!
Win a $50 Amazon Gift Card prize pack below.


Shifting Fate (Descendants Series, #2)Shifting Fate
(Descendants #2)
by Melissa Wright
YA/NA Paranormal Romance

Summary

According to prophecy, Brianna Drake was born to save the world. The trouble is, she doesn't have the slightest idea how. Her visions should have given her the answer, but they’re beginning to shift, making the danger too unpredictable, even for a prophet.

If she can just help her sister restore their hidden powers, she might be able to stop what’s coming. But an old enemy returns, and he’s got plans for Brianna and her visions.

What neither of them knows is that fate has given a stranger one chance to find her. He was trained to protect the chosen—but if he fails, the future will crumble.

Shifting Fate is the second book in the Descendants Series (following Bound by Prophecy) and focuses on Brianna and Logan.

There is a teaser posted here and the first chapter posted here, but beware, it's full of spoilers from the first book.

Purchase from Amazon. Will soon be release to to iTunes, Barnes & Noble, and most other eBook vendors.

Excerpt

     I stayed there for a long while, staring at the dark marble countertop, the tiles inlaid with gold, until all of the voices quieted. When I finally came out, Brendan was waiting for me in the bedroom.
     “I’m sorry about this,” he said, indicating the windowless walls around us. “As soon as the security updates are finished, we’ll be moving you to Council.” I could see the idea bothered him more than it should, and the rest of his explanation seemed to be more to convince himself than me. “It’s the best place for you. To keep you safe.”
     I nodded.
     “I had them bring up some lunch. It’s in the sitting room.”
     My stomach turned. “Thanks. I’m not really hungry.”
     He didn’t shift; he hadn’t taken his eyes off me at all. “If you’d like to sleep for a—”
     “No,” I interrupted. “No, I’m not tired.” I was exhausted—my muscles ached, and my hands still shook—but I didn’t want to be alone.
     He held out a hand. “Sit with me then?”
     I walked past him toward the sitting room, and his hand fell to the small of my back. I could have sat in the reading chair, but I didn’t. Instead, I took the center of a small sofa where Brendan could settle beside me. His arm came around me, and I curled my legs up, letting him tuck my back against his side.
     I shouldn’t have. I knew that. But Brendan cared about me, and it felt good to have someone there.
     I stared at the wall across from us, a beautiful Wyeth painting centered over a narrow table. It was probably an original. And yet, I couldn’t bring myself to appreciate it. They had been attacking Council ever since Morgan was taken. We had thought it was in retaliation. We had thought they meant to rescue Morgan. But we were wrong ... because they were after me.
     I closed my eyes, trying to force a vision to come. It didn’t work that way, but I wanted so badly to finally have this over with, to save my sister and myself. To save everyone. I just needed a clue. One small indicator of how, of what I was searching for in Emily, of what to do.
     Brendan’s hand slid down my arm, and I became suddenly aware I’d sunk into him. My elbow rested on his leg, my back against his chest. His cheek brushed my hair, and I went rigid.
     “Brianna,” he started, and I was on my feet, nowhere to go but the table across from us.
     I could almost feel his presence behind me. I picked up a vase, examining the etched glass, and internally cringed. Nice, Brianna, run over to look at glass.
     “Brianna,” he said again, and the hurt in his tone was clear. I had to say something. Do something.
I turned to face him. “I’m sorry.” He was too close. I sat the vase back on the table, stepped one leg behind me. Two would have been too much. Two would have injured him more. I looked into his eyes, so dark they were nearly black, and said, “I like you, Brendan. I do.” Before I could finish, before I could add, “but …” his phone rang.
     He answered it. In the middle of our conversation.
     After a brief exchange, he slid the cell phone back into his pocket. His gaze found me. “I’m sorry, Brianna, but I have to take care of something.” He glanced at his watch. “I hate to leave you alone, but Aern will be here shortly. There are two men at the door, and the alarms are always on.” He reached up to touch my shoulder. “We will talk soon.”
     And then he smiled, clearly only taking the “I like you” from our conversation, before walking out the door.
     I stared at it for several minutes, open as it was, before finally falling onto the couch and throwing an arm over my eyes.
     I had bigger problems, I knew, so I started populating a list in my head for when Aern arrived. I would do everything I could to resolve our issue. I had a lot of work to do before I could figure out where to start.
~Melissa Wright. Shifting Fate (from Chapter 2, Kindle Locations 204-245).



Bound by Prophecy
(Descendants #1)
by Melissa Wright
YA/NA Paranormal Romance
April 15th 2013

Summary

Twenty-two-year-old Aern is done watching his brother destroy the only thing that matters. He never wanted to take Morgan’s place among council, never wanted to rule their hidden world. But when the key to the prophecy is found, a young girl named Brianna whom Morgan will destroy, Aern knows he has to take action.

What he really wants, is for things to go back to normal. But now he’s kidnapped a girl, and his brother’s men are after him. His only hope is to join with the Division, but they have plans of their own, and it’s the last thing Aern is willing to do.

Emily just wants her sister back. She doesn't care about the prophecy, or realize what’s at stake. But when she goes after Aern, the truth of the matter uncoils, and Brianna isn't the only one who’s in danger.

Suddenly, they’re at the center of a secret war, and unless they can work together, they’ll both have a sacrifice too big to make.

You can read an excerpt of Bound by Prophecy here.

Purchase ebook for FREE on Nook and Kindle. Can also purchase from the Book Depository, and in audio at Amazon, iTunes, and Audible.com.





About the Author

Melissa Wright is the author of the Frey Saga and the new Descendants series. Melissa spends her time working on novels, but when not writing she can be found on Goodreads and Pinterest.


Giveaways

1 - $50 Amazon Gift Card and an ebook of Shifting Fate (US & INT)
2 - Paperback copies of Bound by Prophecy and Shifting Fate (US ONLY)
3 - ebook of Shifting Fate (US & INT)

Ends December 15th. Enter via the Rafflecopter below.


There is currently a giveaway going on on Goodreads as well.


Goodreads Book Giveaway

Shifting Fate by Melissa Wright

Shifting Fate

by Melissa Wright

Giveaway ends January 07, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
Enter to win

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Friday, December 6, 2013

Shifting Fate Release

Shifting Fate is available now at Amazon.com, where you can also pick up a copy of Bound by Prophecy at a special price (for a limited time). Check out the first chapter below, but be warned, there are a LOT of spoilers if you haven't read book one. And don't forget to sign up for the giveaways on the Kindle Fire, and Goodreads!


Chapter One
Wounds
 On the eve of my eighteenth birthday, I was stabbed. I had known it was coming, but there could be no other path, and I’d had to accept it. Such was my life.
So I couldn't say I was surprised when the man with the gun appeared in my bedroom.
“Don’t make a sound,” he warned, his voice low, emotionless.
I held up my hands slowly, showing him I meant no harm.
He flicked the barrel of the pistol once, indicating I move toward the dresser. I stepped sideways, never taking my eyes off him. I’d not foreseen this, and I couldn’t help but be annoyed. A little heads-up would have been nice.
I tried to remember what lay on top of my dresser. A decorative bowl, a notepad, a paperback novel my sister had given me during my recovery. Nothing that would help me now.
“Turn around,” the man whispered. I swallowed hard against the lump in my throat. The gun had a silencer. He would be one of Morgan’s men. If I made one wrong move, he’d wound me. Shoot me in the thigh or the shoulder; prevent me from trying to escape.
“I understand you think you have to do this,” I started in as quiet of a tone as I could manage.
He took three swift steps toward me, the barrel of the pistol moving down to aim at my leg.
“No,” I whispered, cringing back as my hands remained palms out.
His eyes narrowed on me and I nodded, slowly turning toward the wall. There has to be a way, I thought. Some way to convince him Morgan’s directions were wrong, that they no longer mattered.
The barrel pressed into my shoulder blade, and the metal seemed unnaturally cold, hard, and round.
“Wrists,” he breathed, and I closed my eyes as I slid my hands behind my back. An instant later, they were zip-tied, the plastic strap cutting painfully into my arms. “Move,” he said, the barrel pressing harder into my shoulder to turn me before he pushed me forward.
The window. He was taking me to the window. Did he have more men outside? Had he killed the Division’s guards?
My eyes flicked to the bedside table, my cell phone lying out of reach. What did I have in my pockets? A note from Emily. She and Aern would be gone for a few hours…
There was nothing I could do.
Suddenly, a red pinpoint light reflected off the glass of the window. It was coming from the small white box above my door. The alarm system. I faltered, almost falling to my knees in relief. They knew he was here. Something had tripped the alarm. Just one more minute, two at the most, and they would find me. They had to find me.
“Go,” he said, shoving the pistol against my back.
I reached forward, fumbling purposefully with the lock, and when metal bit harder into my skin, I slid the window open. The wind took my breath away, and I had to steady myself before carefully raising a foot over the sill. I’d worn flats. Slip-on shoes that would not help me run, that would not be good for climbing. Luckily, I had jeans on. They might protect me some from scuffs if I stumbled. But not if he throws me out of the window. Panic surged at the thought and I tried to force it back. He wouldn’t do that. He’d need me alive. Morgan would have told him to bring me alive.
Decorative railings covered the wall six feet below me, trellises shrouded in ivy and blooms. He couldn’t expect me to jump. Not from the second story. I turned to look at him, one leg over the ledge, one dangling above carpet.
He was snapping a carabiner to his vest. My stomach dropped. Those weren’t holster straps crossing his chest; they were a harness. He was going to grab me and rappel the two stories down. We would be there in seconds. My eyes jumped to his. It was only a few yards to the trees. He had planned carefully. He would make it.
He had found a way to take me.
The sound of the door crashing open was like an explosion in the silence of my room, and my heart quit for the long instant it took Brendan to rush through. His gaze barely brushed mine before settling wholly on his target, the man at my back.
The man spun and Brendan slammed into him, throwing them both hard against the wall beside me. I scrambled to climb back in, but the man’s arm jerked free, swinging the barrel of the gun too close to my perch. I ducked, grasping the ledge with my tied hands, leaning forward onto my leg to keep from falling out the other side. I pressed my right foot to the siding to lever myself as the men struggled beside me, and my shoe slipped, falling noiselessly to the ground below. I couldn’t look, but I could imagine it landing, imagine it cleaner than a landing of my own.
I pushed against the inside wall, finally anchored well enough to find purchase, and the muffled crunch of breaking bone caused me to turn in time to see the man crash down onto the window and me. There was nowhere to go, not enough time to move, and my breath caught as I prepared to fall to my death. But Brendan’s hands were suddenly on my arm and leg, too tight as he fought to pull me up past the prone form between us. My eyes found his, silently pleading he not let go, but I could see the strain the fight had caused.
And then I felt his hand, slick with blood, begin to slide slowly off my arm.
I opened my mouth to scream, but he moved quick, leaning forward and grabbing a handful of shirt to jerk me headlong through the window. My legs dragged over the man on the floor—one bare-footed, both trembling with shock—and Brendan pulled me to him, wrapping his arms around me before realizing I was tied.
Chest heaving, he fumbled anxiously in the pockets of his slacks, grimacing as his gaze fell to the body by the window. My attacker. I heard the muted sound of boots hitting floor down the hallway, and realized Brendan was behind me, using the man’s Bowie knife to cut my hands free. He tossed the weapon aside and rubbed my wrists. I wanted to turn to him, fall into his embrace, and cry … but I didn't.
couldn't.
I closed my eyes tight against the vision, the man fate had chosen for me. Because that man wasn't here.
“Brianna,” my sister gasped from beside me. I opened my eyes to find the room full of men; Division soldiers and the man who had stabbed me.
“I’m fine,” I promised Emily, but my shaking voice betrayed me. She pulled me to her, squeezing tight as she stared over my back. When she drew away, her gaze met Aern's.
“It’s fine,” I said again, hating the look that passed between them. “You couldn't have known. No one could have known.”
Emily’s gaze returned to mine, and I implored her to side with me, to not let him take the blame for one more thing that had gone wrong. She sighed.
“I suppose not,” she murmured, knowing that Aern would understand the implication. I was the prophet, after all.
He stepped forward, regret obvious in his features, but he didn't say he was sorry. Not after I’d threatened him for it the weeks before. “It is our job to know,” Aern said. “And we should have seen this coming.”
Brendan was suddenly beside us, the skin of his cheek and neck red and bruising. “I’ll stand watch over Brianna.”
I swallowed hard, unable to look at any of them.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Aern said. “She’ll need a fulltime guard. You have too many responsibilities.”
Brendan stared at him, but he didn't have much room to argue. He was still running the men of the Division, still managing a dozen houses and multiple businesses. Things would fall back together, all under Aern’s command, but only after this threat was handled.
I glanced down at my hands, puffy and raw, and saw the blood smeared on my torn shirt. “It’s my fault. I should have seen this.” My eyes met Aern's. “I didn't make Morgan remove the sway from everyone. He only did it to the men that were there.”
Aern winced at the reminder of that night, the night he had stabbed me, and I wanted to grab him and shake him. He’d done everything he could to subvert Morgan’s order, and though he couldn't have stopped the action, he had managed to not hit anything important. “It’s not your fault,” I said again. “None of it was your fault.”
He reached up to squeeze my arm. “It won’t happen again, Brianna. I swear to you, you will be safe.”

***

Pick it up now at Amazon through the link below, or coming soon to iTunes, Barnes & Noble, and most other eBook vendors.





Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Shifting Fate Goodreads Giveaway

Enter to win one of four signed copies of Shifting Fate (including a few bookmarks) at Goodreads.com



Goodreads Book Giveaway

Shifting Fate by Melissa Wright

Shifting Fate

by Melissa Wright

Giveaway ends January 07, 2014.
See the giveaway details at Goodreads.
Enter to win

And in case you missed, it, there's still time to enter the Kindle Fire giveaway here.

Due to shipping fees, the paperback giveaway on Goodreads is only open to US, Canada, UK, and Australia. But fear not, the Kindle giveaway is international. Thanks to everyone who has shared the link and spread the word. You guys are awesome!

Good luck!