Today We Do Write is pleased to participate in the blog tour for The Midnight Spell by Kody Boye and Rhiannon Frater with a glimpse into the novel. You can read the spine-tingling excerpt below.
The Midnight Spell by Kody Boye and Rhiannon Frater
Published by: Permuted Press
Publication date: February 28th 2013
Genres: Paranormal, Young Adult
Best friends since kindergarten, Adam and Christy have always been the perpetual outsiders in their small town in Texas. The other kids call Adam gay and Christy a witch.
On both counts the bullies are right.
Their junior year in high school seems destined to be the same old same old until Christy decides to cast a love spell for Adam at the midnight hour. The next day an alluring and mysterious boy enrolls at school and sets hearts aflutter, including Adam’s. Meanwhile, Christy’s mad crush on the handsome football player, Ian, seems to be going nowhere fast and her witch puberty is making her life miserable.
When a great evil arrives in town that threatens everything they hold dear, the best friends realize that finding a boyfriend is the least of their worries. Soon Adam and Christy will have to battle a force of darkness that has killed in their town before, and will again.
EXCERPT
Callie’s low growl woke me from a hazy nightmare. Teeth chattering, I shivered under my comforter as I checked the time. It was a little after three a.m. Rolling over I saw that Callie was at the end of the bed. Her back was arched, her ears lay flat against her head, and she alternated between hissing and growling.
“Callie?” I whispered, unnerved.
The cat gave me one sharp look, her yellow eyes glowing in the darkness. I got the distinct feeling she was warning me to stay still. Clutching my covers to my chin, I stared into the murky darkness of my room. The only light was the dark blue illumination of my alarm clock and it barely pierced the blackness. My cat had a preternatural glow about her, light rippling along her calico coat.
As my mind woke completely, so did my witch senses. I gradually realized there was a presence in the room. It wasn’t just the latest cold front that was making my room feel like the Arctic Circle. There was something in the room drawing the energy from the air and plunging my room’s temperature into North Pole iciness.
“Who’s there?” I called out, my voice breaking.
My eyes slowly adjusted to the dark the longer I peered into it. I could feel my eyes dilating, attempting to drink in what little light was in the room. Out of the gloom, my vanity took shape. The clutter sprawled across its surface were dark lumps beneath the mirror. I quickly averted my eyes, afraid to peer into a mirror in the dark, especially on All Hallow’s Eve.
Again Callie let out a low, warning growl. She edged toward the middle of the bed, her gaze firmly set on the vanity. Nervously, I reached out to turn on the lamp. I opened my mouth to call out for my parents, but my voice refused to obey. With trembling fingers, I turned on the lamp. For a brief moment my room was filled with warm, yellow light. In that split second, I saw that my mirror was completely frosted over and the words “Marek is the Devil!” was etched in the icy surface. Then the light bulb popped, thin shards of glass tinkling to the floor, and the room was filled with the night.
This time the darkness was absolute. I could see nothing, not even my alarm clock. Again I opened my mouth to scream, but the only sound that issued out of my tight throat was a thin, weedy whistle.
Callie yowled right beside my head and sent me tumbling out of the bed in fright. I landed hard on my right hip, gasping at the pain. Seconds later, the window next to my bed exploded, glass raining over my bed. Something landed with a distinct thump on my bed and I heard an angry grunt.
“Where are you?” a low, terrifying voice rumbled.
Callie slipped into my arms, her body tense and ready to fight. Too afraid to move or make a sound, I lay on the floor beneath my comforter, staring at the dark shape dimly illuminated by the moonlight creeping through the broken window. It was crouched on my bed, red eyes glowing, turning slowly as it sought me out.
Even though I was terrified, I realized that either I had hidden myself, or Callie had. Several times I saw the red eyes stare right at me, but it did not acknowledge my presence. I was torn between trying to scream for my parents again and risking the creature detecting me, or cowering in silence hoping it would leave.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Rhiannon:
Rhiannon Frater is the award-winning author of over a dozen books, including the As the World Dies zombie
trilogy (Tor), as well as independent works such as The Last Bastion of the Living (declared the #1 Zombie Release of 2012 by Explorations Fantasy Blog and the #1 Zombie Novel of the Decade by B&N Book Blog), and other horror novels. In 2014, her newest horror novel, The Mesmerized, will be released by Permuted Press. Dead Spots will be published in 2015 by Tor. She was born and raised a Texan and presently lives in Austin, Texas with her husband and furry children (a.k.a pets). She loves scary movies, sci-fi and horror shows, playing video games, cooking, dyeing her hair weird colors, and shopping for Betsey Johnson purses and shoes.
Kody:
Born and raised in Southeastern Idaho, Kody Boye began his writing career with the publication of his story
[A] Prom Queen’s Revenge at the age of fourteen. Published nearly three-dozen times before going independent at eighteen, Boye has authored numerous works—including the short story collection Amorous Things, the novella The Diary of Dakota Hammell, the zombie novel Sunrise and the epic fantasy series The Brotherhood Saga. He is represented by Hannah Brown Gordon of the Foundry Literary + Media Agency.
