This week is an Urban Fantasy novel by Tricia Owens. Descended From Dragons is book 1 in the Moonlight Dragon series, and I just love the cover. Read on for the blurb, excerpt and a chance to win a $75 gift card.
Blurb
Beneath
the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas lies another city. A secret city in plain
sight, full of warlocks and demons, shape-shifters and golems. A city that
feeds off the chance magick that is generated by gamblers and which is ruled by
mysterious beings called the Oddsmakers.
It is in
this strange underbelly of the occult that Anne Moody runs a cursed pawn shop
for the desperate, the curious, and the magickally inclined. Though the job is
boring, it keeps her under the radar. None of her customers have any inkling
that she is a dragon sorceress with a power that's been feared throughout
history. However dragons are no help when a stone statue ends up in her shop
that is more than it appears. The statue is a gargoyle named Vale, who is
shrouded in mystery and secrets. When she learns that Vale is possessed, and
that the person responsible for cursing him plans to take over Las Vegas with a
horde of demons from Hell, Anne realizes it is up to her to defy the Oddsmakers
and save the city, and possibly the world.
Excerpt
After silently parting the bead curtain I paused just at the
threshold, listening. The shop was spooky enough without the lights on thanks
to all the strange silhouettes, but knowing that half the objects were also
cursed gave me another reason to shiver as I panned my gaze over the place.
Tick tick tick
I sent Lucky toward the sound. My dragon flew a loose circle
around the left side of the room. That narrowed it down a bit, not that I felt
comfortable putting my back to everything that was on the other side of the
room. I displayed a few katanas and items that could be used as weapons there,
but thankfully none of them were cursed with movement. At least, I hoped not. I
guess I'd find out for certain when a spear pierced my back.
A fluttering sound, like the flapping of thick canvas, made me
instinctively drop into a crouch. Lucky reared up, ready to attack. But nothing
flew overhead. Breathing shallowly, I crawled toward the counter. I'd feel
safer behind it and with the wall at my back.
As I rounded the counter, I realized I knew what had had made
the noise. The only new thing in my inventory was the gargoyle statue. When I
raised my eyes above the countertop, the gargoyle was gone from where it had
sat. The cameos were quick to offer their opinions.
"You met the love of your life
today…"
"…he'll try to kill you, Anne
Moody."
"The cursed shall pay, Anne
Moody!"
Yep, the damn gargoyle statue had come to life and was flying
around Moonlight. Definitely a way to
make me remember you, Christian.
Giveaway