A
Gift Freely Given
by
J. Ellen Ross
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Leisha’s
father, the king of Tahaerin, bartered away her childhood with his
failed invasion of a neighboring kingdom. She grew up a hostage, a
guarantee of the king’s good behavior. At sixteen, she returns to a
land and a throne she knows almost nothing about.
Her
powerful and ruthless uncle plans to force her into a marriage or
take her crown by violence. The nobles of her kingdom all expect her
to fail spectacularly and are eager to fight over the scraps. But,
Leisha has no intention of going along quietly with any of their
plans.
As
a boy, Zaraki watched as slavers butchered his family. Orphaned and
starving, he was taken from the streets, trained to spy and kill. He
finds a position with the new queen when he is forced to flee the
only home he remembers. But the job is far larger than he anticipated
and Leisha’s life is threatened from all sides.
Leisha
will fight to hold her crown and her throne with the help of an
unknown and unproven spy. Zaraki will try keep her alive and to keep
the oaths he took - to be loyal to her, to keep her secrets and
never, ever fall in love with her.
Excerpt
Above
the noise and tumult of the parade, Leisha heard whispers in her
mind, like someone saying her name in a crowded room. Someone was
thinking about her, thinking dangerous thoughts. She felt malice and
violence. Instinctively, her legs tightened around the pommel of the
saddle and then someone shouted above the throng. The horse’s
handler turned towards her and raised his arm. He whipped her horse
across the face with the end of the lead rope and then dropped it,
stepping away.
The
stallion drew back in terror. Blinded and panicked, he tried to back
away, only to run into the horses behind them. Neighing wildly, he
found no escape, no place to get away from danger in front of him.
Time
seemed to stretch out slowly before her. Leisha felt the horse shift
his weight to his hindquarters and begin to rear up. Lean into it,
lean into it, she chanted, remembering passages on horseback riding
she read as a child. As the stallion rose onto his hind legs, she
leaned forward and to one side of his neck. The horse hit the ground
and made to bolt. Still hemmed in on all sides, he reared again, this
time lashing out at the people around him with his hooves. The
handler was nowhere to be seen.
Leisha
clung to the horse’s neck. People were backing away now, clearing a
path for the animal to run wild. That would be far worse.
AUTHOR
Bio and Links:
J. Ellen
Ross lives in Texas with her husband and their four rescue dogs. She
works in high tech, which has nothing to do with fantasy, romance or
writing.
When
she’s not busy chasing dogs around or rushing someone to the vet,
she loves to read and play video games. She has a hobby of having
hobbies, so she’s also been known to do sculpting, beadwork, and
painting.
Website:
www.jellenross.com
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/jellenross
Smashwords:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/494065
Thanks for hosting!
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