And now for the details I promised a few days ago:
Our second book will be a darkly romantic fantasy, a debut novel by Suzanne Jackson (our very own crystal haven).
I've received a number of submissions, and some of them I had to think about long and hard before I rejected them. With this one, however, by the time I had read through the sample chapters I was already fairly sure I wanted it, and by the time I had requested and read the full manuscript there was no doubt in my mind.
Rebecca Vasteer has a dangerous secret: she's a witch.
Witches like Rebecca fear Rangers — men with an ability to repel their magic — because Rangers capture witches and hang them. At least, that's the law. But not all those convicted of witchcraft end up on the gallows. Traders secretly sell them. Rangers take others to be drained of their magic — a slow and painful death for the witch.
Betrayed by her own brother, Rebecca flees the village . . . only to fall into the hands of Traders. Instead of taking her back to face the gallows, as she expects, they spirit her away to Tarmain, a luxurious estate in the country.
Nicholas Jarrett —Trader, failed Ranger — insists that Rebecca remain there as his guest. But Rebecca knows better: she is his prisoner, and Nicholas her gaoler. He intends to train her in a magic more powerful, less easy to detect. His reasons, however, are hardly altruistic. Rebecca will be sold: profit for himself and money for the Rangers.
But will his growing attraction to Rebecca, and hers to him, destroy them both?
Our second book will be a darkly romantic fantasy, a debut novel by Suzanne Jackson (our very own crystal haven).
I've received a number of submissions, and some of them I had to think about long and hard before I rejected them. With this one, however, by the time I had read through the sample chapters I was already fairly sure I wanted it, and by the time I had requested and read the full manuscript there was no doubt in my mind.
Rebecca Vasteer has a dangerous secret: she's a witch.
Witches like Rebecca fear Rangers — men with an ability to repel their magic — because Rangers capture witches and hang them. At least, that's the law. But not all those convicted of witchcraft end up on the gallows. Traders secretly sell them. Rangers take others to be drained of their magic — a slow and painful death for the witch.
Betrayed by her own brother, Rebecca flees the village . . . only to fall into the hands of Traders. Instead of taking her back to face the gallows, as she expects, they spirit her away to Tarmain, a luxurious estate in the country.
Nicholas Jarrett —Trader, failed Ranger — insists that Rebecca remain there as his guest. But Rebecca knows better: she is his prisoner, and Nicholas her gaoler. He intends to train her in a magic more powerful, less easy to detect. His reasons, however, are hardly altruistic. Rebecca will be sold: profit for himself and money for the Rangers.
But will his growing attraction to Rebecca, and hers to him, destroy them both?
