Snippet Sunday : Akane

Akane : Last of the Orions
By G. Clark Hellery
YA novel. 

‘I was chased by the police, then I had a run-in with the Shadows.’ I kick off my shoes and drop my bag as I walk across the room, ignoring the glare from the ever-neat Raulla. She waits a moment, then quickly snatches my shoes and places them by the door before picking up my bag and placing it on the counter. I struggle to hide my eye-roll but Raulla is determined to ignore me. Gon enters and gestures to me, ‘Yes, please, a drink would be great, thanks Gon.’
I flop onto the threadbare couch. Raulla scowls slightly when she sees my dirty clothes rubbing the cloth, but I’m too tired to care. ‘It’s getting more and more difficult to do it. I don’t know how they found me, but I barely got the last of the group through the doorway when I heard the Monodrone. I had to forget the proper closing rites. I just had to run. I’m totally exhausted.’
‘At least those people are now safe from the Shadows,’ says Gon as he hands me a steaming mug and looks around the dilapidated apartment.
‘And you did well to get away,’ adds Raulla, staring at the large locket hanging around my neck. I unconsciously rub the necklace, comforted by its familiarity. I close my eyes and realise how close I had come to losing the necklace and my freedom. An Orion without her necklace, well, it was unthinkable! My mother had given me the silver locket, as her mother had given to her and so on, going back generations. It now hung from a leather cord which was soft from wear, the original chain lost to the generations. The cover was carved with symbols, faded with age, leaving only the vague impression of swirls. Inside the locket was the blood red gem, which continually moved to reflect the mood of the demon contained within.

 

Are you ready to join us in the Fairy Fort?

It’s here! All of us here at the Fennec Den are so excited to announce the publication of ‘The Girl in the Fort’ by Tracy Fahey, with the beautiful cover by Jacob Stack. 

Set in rural Ireland of the 1980s, The Girl In The Fort is a novel about fables, friendship, family and fairy forts. After her father takes a job abroad, eleven year old Vivian is sent from Dublin to stay with her grandparents in their ramshackle family home in the countryside. At first she fiercely resents abandoning city life and her friends – her grandparents don’t even have TV, just hundreds of books. However, she reluctantly finds herself becoming attracted to the strange fairy fort in a nearby field, and the odd secrets it holds. But spending too much time in the fort can be a dangerous thing, as Vivian and her new friends Katie and Tommy find out. As the long, hot summer unfolds, Vivian sees her grandmother’s folk tales come to life, experiences the complicated joys of witnessing the past, and forges new relationships with her family.

You can buy your copy now through Amazon or Aunty Fox will have copies at SledgeLit where Tracy is a guest speaker. 

We’ve all really enjoyed joining Vivian on her adventure and hope you do to. 

A Special Christmas Offer

It’s nearly Christmas and Billy’s Monsters are here!

In a moment of Christmas Spirit (no Aunty Fox has not been at the sherry) we have decided that if you have bought or buy the paperback of Billy’s Monsters this December we will give you the ebook and send it to a kindle address of your choice.

All you need to do to claim is send your proof of purchase to adele@(NOSPAM)foxspirit.co.uk (remove the (NOSPAM) along with the kindle address you want the book sending to. Please title your email ‘Billy’s Offer’.

If you or the person you want to gift the ebook to are not kindle owners, not to worry, we can send an epub or mobi file to an email address.

 

billys monsters - front coversmall

 

Monster Giveaway!

Tweet the link to an amazon review of a Fox Spirit title posted by you anytime in Oct or Nov 2014 using the #eumonsters along with retweeting the link to this giveaway to be added to a draw for the chance to win your choice of YA novel ‘Billy’s Monsters’ and amazing horror anthology ‘European Monsters’ both in paperback.

Breaking that down

To be included you need to retweet this post on twitter, post an amazon review (any country) of a Fox Spirit title and tweet the link using the hashtag #eumonsters

We will check the hashtag at the end of November and add you all to a prize draw where five names will be selected at random. Please make sure you are following us so we can reach you. @foxspiritbooks

There are five paperback copies up for grabs and winners get to choose between Billy’s Monsters and European Monsters

If you also have a blog we will be happy to provide review copies of available titles as ebooks including Drag Noir and Wicked Women as soon as they are available. Please contact adele@foxpsirit.co.uk if you would like a review copy of any of our titles, include a link to your blog and title your email ‘Review Copy’ so I can find it easily.

Art 3_Kieran_to Vikja story
art by Keiran Walsh for European Monsters

Billy’s Monsters

billys monsters - front coversmall

Billy’s Monsters by Vincent Holland-Keen
Cover Art by Vincent Holland-Keen

Billy would be an ordinary sixteen your old boy if his best friends in life weren’t monster from under his bed.1 - hester poster (1)

Scarlett wants to be an ordinary sixteen year old girl, but her life is on hold thanks to her younger sister, Hester.2 - scarlett poster

Hester is special. She doesn’t know why. She doesn’t know she’s part of a sinisterconspiracy centred around theexclusive Elderigh College. She only knows that if she doesn’t keep quiet, the monsters will find her….

3 - billy poster

 

Buy this book

Reviews

Tony Lane : here is something about this book that makes me think of Dirk Gently but I can’t quite work out why.  This book is all about the spaces in-between. On one level it was about the gaps between worlds but on another it was about the readers imagination filling in the shape and scale of the monsters. This was an important point for me. The fear in this book came from what I carried in my head and that was directly reflected in the story. Simple yet clever.

Cover Reveal for Warrior Stone

At the end of this month Fox Spirit will be releasing it’s first YA title.

Warrior Stone: Underland by Robert Harkess

Cover art is by Linzi Goldstone and the layout by Vincent Holland-Keen

Please contact adele@ foxspirit.co.uk or use the contact form if you are interested in reviewing the title.

Warrior Stone Underland - with layout

 

 

The Jan Xu novels

Jan Xu series by Joyce Chng writing as Joyce Damask
Cover Art by S.L.Johnson

The Jan Xu series features a werewolf in Singapore, trying to balance family life, clan issues and her own past. Fox Spirit Books is delighted to be the UK publisher for these titles, working cooperatively with a small press in Singapore to get the Jan Xu novels out in their local market. As such they are not available in all territories from Fox Spirit. If you can’t get hold of them where you are please contact us. 

Wolf at the Door web

Wolf at the Door #1

Being an ex-teen vigilante comes with its own set of problems.

Housewife, ex-teen vigilante…and shape-shifting wolf…Jan Xu has enough problems without adding her sister’s to the mix. Marianne is returning to Singapore and she’s filled with strange ideas. She’s also not alone. She’s coming home with a new boyfriend who has a dark agenda of his own.

With sibling rivalry threatening the inevitable: a battle-to-the-death with fang and claw, Jan and Marianne must overcome their issues if they’re ever going to find peace within their troubled relationship.

Buy this book

Obsidian Moon Obsidian Eyeweb

 

Obsidian Moon, Obsidian Eye #2

The world turns and the dragon catches its own tail.

Jan Xu, now alpha and leader of the Xu clan, faces more challenges when a past misadventure rears its head and threatens to tear her life apart. Added to this is a revelation about her role in her pack, which can make or break her, or potentially help her defeat an old foe, if she managed to hold onto her sanity.

Desperate to protect her family as her world turns obsidian, Jan is thrust in the midst of conflict between vampire, wolf, dragon and Singapore’s Myriad. What can one do when the past won’t let go?

 

Buy this book

WEBHeartofFire

 

Heart of Fire #3

Jan Xu, wolf and pack leader, faces more dangers when she saves a foreign male wolf in love with one of her ancient enemies, a jiang shi, a Chinese vampire. Throw in a love-struck drake—and Jan finds her situation suddenly precarious, with her reputation and health at stake. How much is a wolf going to take when everything is out of control again and her world thrown into disarray? How is she going to navigate the complexities of Myriad politics while keeping her pack and family intact without losing her mind? The third book of the Jan Xu Adventures will see Jan Xu’s continual fight as pack leader, her clan’s Eye (seer) and mother of three young children. Her mettle, courage and love for her family will be tested to her utmost limit

Buy this book

Reviews
Joanne Hall : Damask has an elegant writing style, simple but poetic, and she weaves an intricate story that takes in various legends, immerses them in Singaporean culture, and gives them a clever urban twist, so Fae and kitsune rub shoulders with werewolves and vampires in the magical green spaces hidden in the urban sprawl.