fuonlyknew

~~~~~

Some excerpts to wet your whistle:

Balanced Scales by Laura Greenwood:

“What happens at the end of your version of the story?”
I shrugged. “Much the same as in your version, I guess. She falls in love with the Prince, he with her, they get married and live happily ever after.”
Erickson’s face fell. “That’s not the same as our version,” he responded. “Ours is a lot more sinister. She loses her chance to marry the Prince. When her sisters find out, they barter for a dagger. The mermaid could return to the sea if she stabbed the Prince through the heart with it.”
I shuddered. “That’s horrible. Did she do it?” If she had, then maybe it would explain why humans seemed to be so against the mer.
“No. She turned into sea foam and disappeared into the air. Some versions say she’s taken pity on by some sylphs and became one of them.”
“Sylphs?” I’d never heard of them and had no idea what he meant. They certainly weren’t part of the stories I’d been told as a child.
“I don’t know how to explain them. They’re made of air and hang around in the atmosphere.”
“And what do they do to her?”
“I’m not sure. In our version of the story, mermaids don’t have souls. When they die they turn to sea foam and just cease to exist.”
I laughed lightly as we turned down another street. “I can assure you, that’s not what it’s like.”
“I guessed. You can’t have a soul stolen if you didn’t have one to begin with.”
“Which do you think is the true version of the story?” My words came out barely above a whisper. Part of me didn’t want to ask at all. Especially if it would mean he said he thought his version was the right one. If that was true, then how had my people gotten souls to begin with…
“Neither. I think it’s nothing more than a story. Each side will tell it the way that puts their own people in the best light. Just like with every other legend like that.”
“I suppose…” Though I didn’t like to think of the mermaid I’d heard so much about as nothing more than fiction. She’d been an inspiration to so many young mer who wanted adventure. Not so much on land, but out in the open sea.
“You never know, maybe one day they’ll be telling our story like they do hers,” he said jovially.

From The Little Monster by Jennifer Ellision

“Wait!” The little human lurched forward, a single hand outstretched, the other anchored firmly to the ship’s railing. It swallowed as the little monster raised a brow to her. The hand fell lamely back to her side.
“I… don’t even know your name.”
“Name?”
“What are you called?”
“I don’t understand.” What was she called? She was a predator, a hunter, a Mordgris, a…
“I am a monster,” she said simply.
“You’re all monsters,” the human breathed. “But you’re not quite like the rest. How am I to call you and you alone?”
Her. Alone.
A thrill spiked through the little monster. Why hadn’t she thought of this before? She deserved her own name. She was the best of her kind. There was nothing in the sea that could best her except, perhaps, the sea itself. And that made choosing a name simple.
“You may call me Mara,” she said.
“Mara,” the human repeated slowly. “Mara… for the sea?”
Another thrill surged within her as she nodded, knowing the word belonged only to her. The little human had understood the meaning instantly. In a way that prey was not meant to understand its hunter.
“I am Amista,” she said, lifting her full lower scales to cross the bottoms of her fins and bob on deck. “And it has been a pleasure to meet you, Mara.”
Mara dove back into the cool embrace of the sea, feeling Amista’s eyes on her back as she swam away.
The little monster had become Mara.
The little human had become Amista.
And that was the beginning and end of everything as they knew it.

From Falling by Scarlett Kol

.
Pain exploded across my chest, blunt and hard, forcing me backward to the ground. I opened my eyes as a red wave of Honeycrisp apples spilled across the grass at my feet. Beyond the mess, the thief glanced back with a sneer. He rounded the last row of tents into the parking lot and hopped into the back of a waiting pickup truck. It sped out of the lot, spitting up dust and gravel, then disappeared down the highway.
I slammed my heel into the ground, sending a small burst of pain through my leg, reminding me of my stupid mortality. Why did humans do such awful things to each other? Free will? More like free pass to be sinful. How could I figure out humanity when it made no sense?
“You should really watch where you’re going.”
“What?” I shook my head as a strange deep voice and a dark shadow descended over me.
“I said, watch where you’re going. That way you won’t hurt yourself and bruise all my father’s apples.” The voice stuck his open hand in my face, and I grabbed on as he hoisted me to my feet in one smooth motion.
“Thanks.” I rubbed my hands over my clothes, brushing off the grass and dirt, then looked up. “I was just . . .”
A pair of blue eyes pinned my words to my tongue. Blue like a vast sea on a clear day, the light of the sun reflecting and warming the open air while beneath the surface the currents raged and raced through the fathoms below. A strange balance between tranquil and torrential, drawing me in and threatening to never let me go.
“Trying to run right through me?” He released my hand and took a step back before crouching down to put the pristine red apples I’d knocked to the ground back in their crate. “Hate to tell you, probably not going to work.”
Likely not. From the size of his broad shoulders and the soreness that still burned through my torso from the blunt smack, I questioned whether I had actually hit the crate or maybe just banged into his side. I scrambled to the ground to help him pick up the last few strays, trying not to get caught in his stare again. Instead, I focused on his hands. His thick fingers, still holding the last of a summer tan, wrapped delicately around the fruit as he scooped them up.
“No, I was chasing after a thief. If I hadn’t run into you, he might not have gotten away.”

Excerpt from J.A Armitage’s book Dark Water

.
He tasted like the ocean. Somehow, it didn’t surprise me. He was connected to it in some way; I just didn’t know how. I leaned right into him, turning a light peck on the lips to something so much more. I think I surprised him with the voracity with which I kissed him, but he matched my urgency before eventually pulling away. I might have been mistaken, but there was a slight blush to his cheeks. I hated to think what my cheeks looked like; I could feel them burning with both shock and excitement. He glanced up toward the balcony from which I could still hear the faint strains of music over the sound of the ocean. He took my hand and wrapped his other arm around my waist. Slowly, he began to turn me. I realized he was dancing with me. It was so unlike dancing with Hayden and his “groovy” moves or with my dance teacher, Stephan, whom my mother had brought in specially from Silverwood to teach me how to dance. No, we weren’t dancing at all; we were moving on air. My feet barely touched the ground as he guided me effortlessly around. I’d never known it was possible to move the way he did, or the way I did with him. I closed my eyes and rested my head on his shoulder. He smelled of the ocean too as if he’d just walked out of it

~~~~~

GIVEAWAY

a Rafflecopter giveaway

~~~~~

Thanks so much for visiting fuonlyknew and Good Luck!

For a list of my reviews go HERE.

For a list of free eBooks updated daily go HERE

To see all of my giveaways go HERE

I am an Amazon Affiliate. Product images are linked.