Half-demon Shadow Roth thought she was normal until the arrival of the father she never wanted and the prophecy that turned her life on its head.

Prologue

Stones scattered under my feet as I scrambled up the mountain. They were getting closer now, closer than ever. The hooves of their mounts clattered on the rocky surface as they leapt after me. My skirt tangled around my legs, slowing me down. I tore the material with my claws, tossing it to the side, running in the leggings I wore underneath. My breath came in ragged pants. No matter how much magic I used to aid my race, no matter how fast I ran, the City Guards were gaining on me. I turned sharply, hoping to throw them off. No such luck.

I broke out of the forest onto the summit of the mountain itself, skidding to a halt on the edge of the cliff, looking down, my chest heaving. The edge of the dimension. The only thing down there was the void. An expanse of nothing that claimed the souls nof the dead, isolating them for eternity. Arellan was down there somewhere. I could only hope that Karthragan was there as well. Glancing back over my shoulder, I could see the City Guard getting closer, their mounts slowing a little to negotiate the tricky terrain, stopping just on the edge of the trees.

‘Halt there, Shadow! You are under arrest!’ called out one of the guards.

‘Not in your life,’ I muttered, taking another step towards the edge of the cliff. They wouldn’t come this far out to get me, no matter how much High Priestess Arias wanted me caught. The fragile ground beneath my feet began to crumble a little. I narrowed my eyes at the guards. If I decided to jump, would they try to catch me? If I let them catch me, what would my future hold? Either way, I lost. Either I died, or I died. Well, screw that! Closing my eyes, I took another step back, a step into nothingness, and started falling.

* * *

I wasn’t always called Shadow. I was born as Alexai Roth, Angel’s Blood, in the language of my home. And my home was Synairn, another dimension to this one. I remember

Out February 28th!  http://www.ourstreet-books.com/books/shadows-tale

About the Author

An ex-pat Scot living in the French Alpes, Jennifer Hanlon is an 18-year-old student studying for a bilingual and bicultural diploma called the Option Internationale du Baccalauréat.  Writing is an outlet for an overactive imagination and one she couldn't do without since she started at the age of 11. While she participates in cooperative story-writing with friends as well as online, her favourite escape is writing novels aimed at her own age group. When not writing, Jennifer can be found either cuddling up to her favourite horse at the local riding stables or reading anything she can find about vets and veterinary practise to prepare for what she hopes to be a future career, serving with the Royal Army Veterinary Corps.

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