Today we are super excited to have Alexandria Warwick back on the blog. She visited a few months ago with her novel The Demon Race and today she is hear with her latest novel Below, the first in a dark YA fantasy series inspired by Inuit mythology.
EXCERPT TIME!
*Drum roll*
He stopped only a few feet away. In a voice of pure midnight rippling along her skin, he said, “Hello.”
That voice—that was a dangerous voice indeed.
Apaay dropped her eyes and fought to settle the nausea currently sloshing through her stomach. Standing within arm’s reach of him in the cavern, she felt the feathered edges of his power teasing along her body. Bravado failed her. Why should he not snatch her face too? She would not be able to stop it. “You’re the Face Stealer?”
He arched one eyebrow. “Were you expecting someone else?”
An animal. A twisted malformation of grotesqueness. Instead, here was perfection—cold, untouchable beauty. But this was not a man. This was a demon. This was her enemy.
The Face Stealer circled her shivering form, hands clasped behind his back. Apaay lifted her chin. “I’ve come for my sister’s face,” she said when he stopped in front of her, having finished his perusal. Her tongue felt swollen to twice its normal size.
“I see.” He rubbed a palm along his jaw. “Which one was she? I tend to forget what they look like. There are so many, you see.”
“I very much doubt that,” Apaay murmured. Behind him, the young girl watched their exchange keenly. “She’s fourteen years old. Thin eyebrows. A scar on her left temple. One of her top teeth is chipped.” When he didn’t respond, she continued. “She has a small mouth, but her lips are full. Stubborn chin.” And now she could go no further, for the emotion threatened to choke her. “Does that sound familiar at all?” she asked through gritted teeth.
The Face Stealer studied her, one hand on his chin. The ease of his posture reminded her of the wide, slow band of a river, right before the rapids came. “Now that you mention it, the face you described does sound like one I have in my collection.”
Just how many identities, Apaay wondered, had he snatched? How many years’ worth of faces did he have in his possession? She could not pin his age. He was both young and old and unknowable.
That voice—that was a dangerous voice indeed.
Apaay dropped her eyes and fought to settle the nausea currently sloshing through her stomach. Standing within arm’s reach of him in the cavern, she felt the feathered edges of his power teasing along her body. Bravado failed her. Why should he not snatch her face too? She would not be able to stop it. “You’re the Face Stealer?”
He arched one eyebrow. “Were you expecting someone else?”
An animal. A twisted malformation of grotesqueness. Instead, here was perfection—cold, untouchable beauty. But this was not a man. This was a demon. This was her enemy.
The Face Stealer circled her shivering form, hands clasped behind his back. Apaay lifted her chin. “I’ve come for my sister’s face,” she said when he stopped in front of her, having finished his perusal. Her tongue felt swollen to twice its normal size.
“I see.” He rubbed a palm along his jaw. “Which one was she? I tend to forget what they look like. There are so many, you see.”
“I very much doubt that,” Apaay murmured. Behind him, the young girl watched their exchange keenly. “She’s fourteen years old. Thin eyebrows. A scar on her left temple. One of her top teeth is chipped.” When he didn’t respond, she continued. “She has a small mouth, but her lips are full. Stubborn chin.” And now she could go no further, for the emotion threatened to choke her. “Does that sound familiar at all?” she asked through gritted teeth.
The Face Stealer studied her, one hand on his chin. The ease of his posture reminded her of the wide, slow band of a river, right before the rapids came. “Now that you mention it, the face you described does sound like one I have in my collection.”
Just how many identities, Apaay wondered, had he snatched? How many years’ worth of faces did he have in his possession? She could not pin his age. He was both young and old and unknowable.
Once again, the demon circled her, keeping his distance, though it still felt too close. She took a step back, toward the plane of thin ice. Fear could weaken, or it could make one feel powerful and alive. Eska—she was here for Eska. She grabbed hold of that thought and made it searingly bright in her mind.
“Well?” she snapped when another minute had passed. Water from the icicles above dripped onto her shoulders.
The skin around his eyes crinkled in what may have been amusement. “If you insist.” He presented her his back. “Tell me. Does it look like this one?”
He turned, and Apaay screamed and stumbled back. His face was not his face. The bone structure, the iris color, the mouth—it had changed into this monstrous clashing of femininity and masculinity, loveliness and brawn. This face was not Eska’s, and it was not anyone she knew, but it had been ripped from a girl all the same. Somewhere out there was someone’s daughter left to a world without color and taste.
His words slid from the girl’s pretty mouth, deep and melodic. “Is this what you were looking for?”
Beneath her furs, Apaay’s chest heaved. “No,” she said, unable to prevent her voice from trembling. “It’s not.”
About Below!
Title: Below (The North Series #1)
Author: Alexandria Warwick
Publisher: Wolf Publishing
Release date: February 4, 2020
Summary: In the heart of the frigid North, there lives a demon known as the Face Stealer. Eyes, nose, mouth—nothing and no one is safe. Once he returns to his lair, or wherever it is he dwells, no one ever sees those faces again. When tragedy strikes, Apaay embarks on a perilous journey to find her sister's face—yet becomes trapped in a labyrinth ruled by a sinister girl named Yuki. The girl offers Apaay a deal: find her sister's face hidden within the labyrinth, and she will be set free. But the labyrinth, and those who inhabit it, is not as it seems. Especially Numiak: darkly beautiful, powerful, whose motives are not yet clear. With time slipping, Apaay is determined to escape the deadly labyrinth with her sister's face in hand. But in Yuki's harsh world, Apaay will need all her strength to survive. Yuki only plays the games she wins.
About Alexandria!
Alexandria Warwick is the #1 fan of Avatar: The Last Airbender. She is the author of THE DEMON RACE and the upcoming North series, the first book, BELOW, of which will release next year.
Aren't you guys excited for Below!? Make sure to mark your calendars for February 2020 because this is a book you are not going to want to miss! Thank you Alexandria for stopping by today! 😊💗
No comments
Please note that if your comment doesn’t appear right away, it’s because we have to approve it. Make sure to click the Notify Me box so you can check back once your comment has been approved! ❤️