The Crumbling Pageant cover reveal

I'm excited to share the cover for THIS CRUMBLING PAGEANT, which is Volume One in the Fury Triad series by Patricia Burroughs. This is Epic Fantasy with romance and YA crossover appeal. The book is scheduled to release May 6, 2014 in Hardcover, Trade and Digital by Story Spring Publishing, LLC

About the Book:
Persephone Fury is the Dark daughter, the one they hide.

England, 1811. Few are aware of a hidden magical England, a people not ruled by poor mad George, but the dying King Pellinore of the House of Pendragon.

The Furys are known for their music, their magic, and their historic role as kingmakers. When Fury ambitions demand a political marriage, Persephone is drugged and presented to Society--

Only to be abducted from the man she loves by the man she loathes.

But devious and ruthless, Persephone must defy ancient prophecy, embrace her Dark magic, and seize her own fate.

Be swept away into the first book of a dark fantasy series combining swashbuckling adventure, heart-pounding romance, and plot-twisting suspense.

Excerpt:

[Persephone Fury is the dark daughter, the one they hide from Society. But one night she is abducted and taken away to the most dangerous parts of London. Fierce and clever, she is able to rescue herself, only to collapse before she gets home. Fortunately for her, Sir Robin Fitzwilliam finds her. Even more fortunately for her family’s reputation, he believes her to be the young boy she’s masquerading as.]

Why would a child be out alone in the middle of the night?

Robin slid the slender youth’s body from the expensive saddle and staggered backward, not from the weight, for in truth, the boy weighed little, but from the reek of Shadows.

It was a miracle the gelding hadn’t tossed the stripling to rid himself of the Darkness on its back.

He eased the boy onto the ground.  The boy’s body was limp and his skin was hot and damp with sweat. Robin fumbled with the boy’s heavy jacket and grabbed the lapels to yank it open.

Thin fingers closed around his wrists. With a snarl, the boy heaved himself up and delivered a smart punch to Robin’s jaw, knocking him back on his heels in shock.

“Don’t touch me!” the boy rasped fiercely.

“You’re overheated. Let’s get that coat off—”

Two sharp-knuckled fists smacked into him at the same time, leaving both his cheeks stinging.

“Keep your hands off my coat!” The boy scrambled to his feet and leapt against the horse, attempting to mount.

“Gods damn it,” Robin spat, “you’re drowning in Shadows, boy, we need to—”

A foot caught him in the chest and he staggered back, then hurled himself forward, grabbed the boy by the collar, and yanked.

They both fell tumbling into the dirt. “You’d best pray it’s the Darkness that has driven you mad, boy, because if it’s not, you’ll pay for these bruises with some of your own!” He pinned the boy to the ground with one hand braced on a shoulder and continued, “I’m not going to hurt you. Just calm down and let’s see if we can relieve you.”

The boy relaxed, calming except for his heaving chest as he fought for air.

Robin’s mind raced through his options, coming up blank.

“Cat-mint...” the boy muttered. “Tincture of angelica. Blue chalcedony, jet, bronzite, amber—do you have any on you?”

“No,” Robin said, surprised.

The boy moaned. “Trifolium, then...” The boy’s head fell back into the dirt.

“Trifolium. I don’t know.”

“Clover,” the boy ordered, scorn dripping from his voice. “I’m speaking of clover.”

Robin paced along the road looking for a clump of clover, unsure whether to laugh or snarl.

“Do you at least know your Greek sigils?” the boy muttered weakly. “The banishing sigil performed with clover...”

 “I know sigils,” Robin said, amending silently, if I can remember the Greek ones from the schoolroom. If he got the scamp past this spell of poisoning, he was going to thrash him.

“How long has it been since you were cleansed?”

Impertinent little brat. “My soul is not overburdened.”

“You evaded my question, which is answer enough, may the gods deliver me,” the boy retorted with equal venom.

At the moment, Robin just needed to come up with an acceptable prayer. He held his hands over the boy’s body and called, “Away, away, from your feet and from all your limbs... erm... Shadows and every muscular pain!” he finished with a wince.

“Did you just use the prayer to rid me of gout?” the boy asked incredulously.

“I said Shadows,” Robin muttered.

The boy let out a disgusted sigh. “I’m doomed.”

About author Patricia Burroughs:

Award-winning screenwriter and best selling novelist Patricia Burroughs loves dogs, books, movies, and football. A lifelong Anglophile, she treasures her frequent travels in the British Isles researching The Fury Triad, the epic fantasy that has taken over her life and heart. She and her high school sweetheart husband are living happily ever after in their hometown of Dallas, Texas.

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Persephone (Daughters of Zeus #1)

By Kaitlin Bevis

About Persephone (from Goodreads):
There are worse things than death, worse people too

The “talk” was bad enough, but how many teens get told that they’re a goddess? When her mom tells her, Persephone is sure her mother has lost her mind. It isn’t until Boreas, the god of winter, tries to abduct her that she realizes her mother was telling the truth. Hades rescues her, and in order to safely bring Persephone to the Underworld he marks her as his bride. But Boreas will stop at nothing to get Persephone. Despite her growing feelings for Hades, Persephone wants to return to the living realm. Persephone must find a way to defeat Boreas and reclaim her life.

Review:
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

When I received Persephone, I wasn't able to read it right away. Blog tours and life (ahem, a wreck that totaled my car), had kept me busy. When I was able to breathe again, I began Kaitlin Bevis' story and I was quickly drawn in. I regretted not starting it sooner, but was glad that I was able to give it the attention it deserves.

Basically, Persephone is a modern day twist on that Greek myth. The myth says that Persephone was kidnapped by Hades and forced to be his wife, thus becoming queen of the underworld. So of course you think, "Boo Hades! How dare you kidnap a girl and force her to be with you!" Kailin Bevis, however, took this story and flipped it on its head. Instead of making Hades out as the villan, he actually becomes the hero.

I absolutely love Hades' character. Forget everything you think Hades would and should be. Revis portrays him as a caring a nurturing god who honestly looks after his souls. He's not mad about being king of the underworld, but has embraced his role.

The world that Bevis creates is believable and well planned out. I could easily see the different sections of the underworld including the various rivers. The setting is where a fantasy writer can easily get it wrong and leave the story as a 2-D shell. Bevis got it right though! Her world was created in High-Def 3D.  I actually wanted to take a trip down and visit certain parts.

Although the book is geared to young adults and teens, adults who pick up the book will enjoy it as well.  It is very age appropriate. There isn't a lot of violence and not much romance--although Bevis does a great job of capturing the chemistry between Hades and Persephone. If you like any sort of mythology, then you should pick up this book!

About Persephone's world (quotes from the book):

"Oh, we're very good at misleading. We just can't speak words that aren't true. It could unravel all of creation." --Hades

"Just get him started on what he thinks is best for the souls. He's all about making everyone feel right at home. Oh gods! He reads these stupid psychology books and just spouts off random psych-babble. It's awful!" --Cassandra (talking about Hades)

I'd followed in the footsteps of the dead, befriended a prophet, been attacked by a snowstorm, married the King of the Underworld, found out I was a goddess, and stabbed a guy with a pen all in one afternoon. I was terrified of what tomorrow might bring.  --Persephone

"...Families think they know what's best for you. Your friends let you figure that out for yourself." --Hades

"I'm a god. I don't have to rule through fear or intimidation. That's a mortal weakness." --Hades

About author Kaitlin Bevis:

 I spent my childhood curled up with a book, and a pen. If the ending didn’t agree with me, I rewrote it. I’ve always wanted to be a writer, and I spent high school and college learning everything I could so that one day I could achieve that goal. I graduated college with my BFA in English with a concentration in Creative Writing, and am pursuing my masters at the University of Georgia.

My young adult fiction novel “Persephone,” will be released this summer. I also write for Athens Parent Magazine, and truuconfessions.com. I have also published several short stories, my latest, Siren Song, is available on amazon.com.

Want to find out more? Check out the Persephone book trailer!