YA Paranormal/Fantasy Romance
Interracial/Multicultural
Publisher: Iconic Publishing
Heat Level:
Sweet
Word Count:
82,000
Buy Links
Publisher: Iconic Publishing
Heat Level:
Sweet
Word Count:
82,000
Buy Links
Amazon:
http://www.amazon.com/The-Claiming-Words-ebook/dp/B009LXGE3E/
B&N:
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-claiming-words-tricia-drammeh/1112392611Blurb
The Alexanders have always kept their secrets hidden…
When sixteen-year-old
Jace Alexander moves to the small town of Oaktree, Georgia, he attracts the
attention of every girl in school. Shy, introverted Alisa Cole immediately
casts Jace in the leading role of her latest fantasy, but she assumes he’ll
never return her interest. After she saves Jace from a Hunter, everything
changes. Her accidental discovery of Jace’s secret propels her into a world of
magic and danger. Alisa’s newfound courage is put to the test when Jace
introduces her to his intimidating older brother, Bryce, and she decides she
would rather battle a Hunter than endure another moment under Bryce’s intense scrutiny.
Jace and Bryce aren’t the only ones with secrets…
Rachel Stevens
is the girl who has it all. She’s beautiful, popular, and in possession of an
ancient power which endangers not only her, but those sent to protect her. Jace
is drawn to Rachel—and he isn’t the only one. The Demon Re’Vel will do anything
to claim her—even if it means waging a war with the entire Alexander family. As
layers of secrets are peeled away, revealing the truth of her heritage and her
family’s betrayal, Rachel struggles to resist an immortal suitor who stalks her
in her dreams. With the Alexanders fighting to protect her, can Rachel escape
the power of the Demon and his Claiming Words?
EXCERPT
The temperatures during the second week of school reached record highs, and the walk home was beyond miserable. I’d been too apathetic to take my driver’s test; consequently, I was practically the only junior in my high-school forced to either take the bus or hoof it. I cut through a field behind the school to get home faster. The hot sun beat down on my short, dark hair, and I felt a line of sweat slither down my back.
I noticed two figures just ahead of me, and nearly turned back. Most of my fellow classmates despised me, and since the feeling was mutual, I tried to avoid contact with them whenever possible. When I recognized Jace, I cursed the fact that I had no social skills to speak of. He seemed different from the people I’d grown up with, and might have stopped to speak to me. He’d managed to resist Becky, after all.
Jace wasn’t the only person who’d resisted my cousin; I could only hope he would be able to hold out longer than the last guy. Back in middle school, Becky and I both liked the same boy, but when he expressed interest in me instead of her, my popular cousin retaliated by spreading vicious rumors about me. Too shy to fight back, I remained silent while the whole school turned against me. Long after the boy moved away, long after Becky fell in love with someone else, the repercussions of that ill-fated crush continued to haunt me.
I thought about Jace and how I might be willing to go through the whole love-triangle drama all over again on the off-chance that he might return my interest. Walking slowly through the field, a vague fantasy began to form inside my head: Jace asking me out, our whirlwind courtship, eventual proposal, and elopement to Vegas.
I squinted and peered into the distance, but couldn’t identify the person who stood just a few feet away from Jace. Oaktree, Georgia was a small town and I knew almost everyone, but I didn’t recognize this guy. They circled each other, and at first, I thought the two guys were messing around. Cautiously, I drew closer and realized I’d misinterpreted the situation. Jace leapt to the side as the large man lunged at him. I let out a startled shriek.
Jace looked over his shoulder and shouted, “Don’t come any closer!” I staggered back a step and almost tripped over my own feet.
The attacker took advantage of Jace’s brief distraction. He flew toward my classmate and pinned him to the ground, clenching one hand around Jace’s throat. Jace struggled for about a minute, and then stopped. I found it odd the attacker paid absolutely no attention to me. Generally, psychos went for defenseless females, or so I’d thought.
I briefly considered calling 911; the attacker didn’t seem to care what I did. Jace, however, seemed to need more immediate help. Without considering the consequences of my actions, I sprinted forward and swung my heavy book bag at the man’s face. I hit him dead on, and he turned his attention to me for a second or two. His blood-red eyes bore into mine, and I recoiled in horror.
Apparently, I’d distracted the red-eyed man enough to cause him to release his death grip on my classmate. Jace scrambled away from his attacker, and leapt to his feet. They faced off once again. Jace, face screwed up in concentration, crouched low and sprang toward his enemy in a crouching roll. The attacker bared his teeth and leapt out of the way effortlessly. Red-eyes certainly seemed to have the advantage in the battle. In fear and disbelief, I watched as he formed a ball of fire in the palm of his hand and hurled it at Jace. My classmate put his hands up, palms facing outward, and the fireball sizzled into nothing.
Jace disappeared and abruptly reappeared in a spot behind the attacker. With supernatural speed, he jumped at the man and hooked his arm around his neck. He wrenched the man’s head to the side, and Red-eyes slumped to the ground. Jace wiped at the sweat on his face with the back of his hand, and then kicked the man viciously in the ribs. He reared back to kick again, but stopped when he saw me.
We stared at each other for a moment. Jace walked over to me and asked, “Are you okay?” I nodded. “We need to get out of here in case there are more of them,” he said, gesturing toward the lifeless body on the ground a few feet away from us. I flinched. Jace walked back and forth through the tall grass, scrutinizing the area closely. He bent down and picked up a textbook.
I contemplated running back toward the school and screaming for help, but I couldn’t seem to propel myself forward. I stood rooted to the spot, my legs trembling, as I fought back a bout of nausea.
“Let’s go,” Jace said in my direction. When I didn’t move, he walked over to me and took my hand. I pulled it away. “Come on, Alisa. You’re safe with me. I promise. Let’s go back to my house, and I’ll explain everything to you when we get there.” Through my haze of shock, I felt a brief sense of elation that he even knew my name. He lifted my book bag from the ground and began walking away.
Staring at my book bag dangling from his shoulder, I irrationally wondered whether or not it was a crime weapon and if my limited participation made me an accomplice to a murder. I questioned the wisdom of not having called the police.
“Should I call 911?” I asked stupidly. “I’m sure you won’t be in trouble. He attacked you first. I’m a witness.”
He turned back to look at me. “Alisa, that thing back there isn’t dead. You can’t kill a Hunter that easily. He’s just stunned. There could be more of them, so we should really get out of here.” My choice was follow Jace, this guy I didn’t really know, or stay in the field with the dangerous red-eyed man. I followed Jace.
The temperatures during the second week of school reached record highs, and the walk home was beyond miserable. I’d been too apathetic to take my driver’s test; consequently, I was practically the only junior in my high-school forced to either take the bus or hoof it. I cut through a field behind the school to get home faster. The hot sun beat down on my short, dark hair, and I felt a line of sweat slither down my back.
I noticed two figures just ahead of me, and nearly turned back. Most of my fellow classmates despised me, and since the feeling was mutual, I tried to avoid contact with them whenever possible. When I recognized Jace, I cursed the fact that I had no social skills to speak of. He seemed different from the people I’d grown up with, and might have stopped to speak to me. He’d managed to resist Becky, after all.
Jace wasn’t the only person who’d resisted my cousin; I could only hope he would be able to hold out longer than the last guy. Back in middle school, Becky and I both liked the same boy, but when he expressed interest in me instead of her, my popular cousin retaliated by spreading vicious rumors about me. Too shy to fight back, I remained silent while the whole school turned against me. Long after the boy moved away, long after Becky fell in love with someone else, the repercussions of that ill-fated crush continued to haunt me.
I thought about Jace and how I might be willing to go through the whole love-triangle drama all over again on the off-chance that he might return my interest. Walking slowly through the field, a vague fantasy began to form inside my head: Jace asking me out, our whirlwind courtship, eventual proposal, and elopement to Vegas.
I squinted and peered into the distance, but couldn’t identify the person who stood just a few feet away from Jace. Oaktree, Georgia was a small town and I knew almost everyone, but I didn’t recognize this guy. They circled each other, and at first, I thought the two guys were messing around. Cautiously, I drew closer and realized I’d misinterpreted the situation. Jace leapt to the side as the large man lunged at him. I let out a startled shriek.
Jace looked over his shoulder and shouted, “Don’t come any closer!” I staggered back a step and almost tripped over my own feet.
The attacker took advantage of Jace’s brief distraction. He flew toward my classmate and pinned him to the ground, clenching one hand around Jace’s throat. Jace struggled for about a minute, and then stopped. I found it odd the attacker paid absolutely no attention to me. Generally, psychos went for defenseless females, or so I’d thought.
I briefly considered calling 911; the attacker didn’t seem to care what I did. Jace, however, seemed to need more immediate help. Without considering the consequences of my actions, I sprinted forward and swung my heavy book bag at the man’s face. I hit him dead on, and he turned his attention to me for a second or two. His blood-red eyes bore into mine, and I recoiled in horror.
Apparently, I’d distracted the red-eyed man enough to cause him to release his death grip on my classmate. Jace scrambled away from his attacker, and leapt to his feet. They faced off once again. Jace, face screwed up in concentration, crouched low and sprang toward his enemy in a crouching roll. The attacker bared his teeth and leapt out of the way effortlessly. Red-eyes certainly seemed to have the advantage in the battle. In fear and disbelief, I watched as he formed a ball of fire in the palm of his hand and hurled it at Jace. My classmate put his hands up, palms facing outward, and the fireball sizzled into nothing.
Jace disappeared and abruptly reappeared in a spot behind the attacker. With supernatural speed, he jumped at the man and hooked his arm around his neck. He wrenched the man’s head to the side, and Red-eyes slumped to the ground. Jace wiped at the sweat on his face with the back of his hand, and then kicked the man viciously in the ribs. He reared back to kick again, but stopped when he saw me.
We stared at each other for a moment. Jace walked over to me and asked, “Are you okay?” I nodded. “We need to get out of here in case there are more of them,” he said, gesturing toward the lifeless body on the ground a few feet away from us. I flinched. Jace walked back and forth through the tall grass, scrutinizing the area closely. He bent down and picked up a textbook.
I contemplated running back toward the school and screaming for help, but I couldn’t seem to propel myself forward. I stood rooted to the spot, my legs trembling, as I fought back a bout of nausea.
“Let’s go,” Jace said in my direction. When I didn’t move, he walked over to me and took my hand. I pulled it away. “Come on, Alisa. You’re safe with me. I promise. Let’s go back to my house, and I’ll explain everything to you when we get there.” Through my haze of shock, I felt a brief sense of elation that he even knew my name. He lifted my book bag from the ground and began walking away.
Staring at my book bag dangling from his shoulder, I irrationally wondered whether or not it was a crime weapon and if my limited participation made me an accomplice to a murder. I questioned the wisdom of not having called the police.
“Should I call 911?” I asked stupidly. “I’m sure you won’t be in trouble. He attacked you first. I’m a witness.”
He turned back to look at me. “Alisa, that thing back there isn’t dead. You can’t kill a Hunter that easily. He’s just stunned. There could be more of them, so we should really get out of here.” My choice was follow Jace, this guy I didn’t really know, or stay in the field with the dangerous red-eyed man. I followed Jace.
About the Author
Tricia Drammeh
is a wife and a mother of four children. Although she currently lives in
Missouri, she has called many places home, including Georgia, Ohio, and California.
She’s worked in retail, customer service, sales, and accounting, but writing
has always been her dream career. When she isn’t writing, she enjoys reading,
drinking vast amounts of coffee, and spending time with her family and the
multitude of animals who have taken over her home. Tricia is currently working
on her sixth novel.
Connect
with Tricia Drammeh
The
Book’s Site: http://theclaimingwords.com/
Author’s
Website: http://www.triciadrammeh.com/
Author’s
Blog: http://blog.triciadrammeh.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Tricia-Drammeh-Author/453408644723825
Schedule:
April 16, 2013Fae Books
The Broke Book Bank
The YA Café
April 17, 2013abookandalattee (Review)
Aspired Writer (Review)
Books, Authors, Blogs
Dawn's Reading Nook
Hywela Lyn - Romance That's 'Out Of This World'
Immortal Books
Le'BookSquirrel (Review)
The Broke Book Bank
The YA Café
April 17, 2013abookandalattee (Review)
Aspired Writer (Review)
Books, Authors, Blogs
Dawn's Reading Nook
Hywela Lyn - Romance That's 'Out Of This World'
Immortal Books
Le'BookSquirrel (Review)
'STARQUEST' 'CHILDREN OF THE MIST' (The sequel to Starquest) Dancing With Fate 'Freeread':'A BARGAIN WITH DEATH
Also available on Kindle
