A Silver Moon prequel novella.
First love.
First kiss.
First . . . werewolf bite?
Five hundred years ago, brothers Alaric and Ulric worked tirelessly on their father’s farm to keep mouths fed and sell remaining crops for scanty wages. With a rebellion stirring in northern England and a country at war over the throne, the heavy gloom felt for so long by Alaric and Ulric finally dissipates when a new family settles into town.
Daciana’s parents uproot her from London to begin a new life in Colchester. Here, she won’t be whisked off to decorative parties and elegant balls; she’ll have to put forth effort into back-breaking labor. But her thoughts of eloping from the quaint town subside when she meets Ulric. Together, it’s as if they’re exactly where they should be.
During a late-night hunt for a wolf, Ulric and Daciana are attacked. Before their bodies can fully succumb to the wild animal inside, the town witch claims she holds the cure. Instead of healing their wounds, she places a curse on Ulric and Daciana, so they must live with who they truly are. In a town where secrets can’t be kept and betrayal runs thick, Ulric and Daciana are hunted for the monsters they’ve become, even by those they love.
Alpha Moon has been permafree for years (Amazon decided to revert it to $0.99 recently for no reason, but I'm working on that), since it's a prequel novella, meant to attract readers to the Silver Moon series. It's always hovered anywhere between 25,000 and 75,000 in Amazon ranks, and has stayed in at least two top 100 free categories since its publication in 2012.
She knew she would not sleep well tonight. Her muscles were sore from the bumpy ride, and she had too many pressing thoughts. Frida’s words were still fresh, like a cut which had not healed. Though her wound was not physically harming, Daciana could not help but wonder if ’twas meant to be mentally damaging. Frida planted the seeds which sprouted into too many unanswered questions and not nearly enough answers.
Daciana sighed as she treaded to the window. Leaning against the open frame, she allowed the cold night air to swathe her senses, to wake her from this never-ending nightmare which was now her life. What would be different a month from now? What about a year from now? Would she survive on her own, on the hoodlum-riddled streets of England? She was trained in the fine art of being a lady, not how to pickpocket or scrounge for food in days-old trash. And she would never be used to the stench.
Movement against the tree line caught her eye, pulling Daciana out of her profound thoughts. ’Twas late, and men would not be hunting at this hour. She guessed drunken fools staggered about the forests at night, but that seemed unlikely. The person stepped to the edge of the wood, not clearly enough for Daciana to see a face, but enough that she could see an outline. Only, ’twas not a person; ’twas a creature of Hell itself. Daciana covered her mouth, swallowing a scream. The creature had not noticed her watchful eye, but it seemed to be searching for something, or someone. Its black snout lifted toward the moon, as if to catch a particular scent on the icy breeze. Breath puffed out of its nostrils in short, white billows.
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Italian
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Already translated.
Translated by Carla Altieri
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Author review: Carla was wonderful to work with! Fast transcription. Would definitely recommend to other authors. |
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Portuguese
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Already translated.
Translated by Bel Nigri
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Author review: Isabel was wonderful to work with and translated my manuscript quickly. I'd definitely work with her again. |
