Coming Soon - Day of Reckoning by Kai Strand

Excerpt from Chapter One when Terra is escorted to the Underworld to 

learn about her destiny as a Natures Spirit and she meets another crazy Underworld critter:

With the trapdoor settled into place, Terra blinked to adjust her eyes to the inky black before continuing down the stairs. Twinkling lights along the earthen ceiling helped her to see the steps. The further she descended the more the lights resembled the stars in the night sky.

“Are those fireflies?” she asked.

Hermie admired the sparkling ceiling as he spoke. “They are akin to the firefly and the main source of light in this section. Watch your step; we are almost to the first level.”

The way Hermie stressed “first” gave Terra the impression there were many more levels. The weight of the earth above her seemed to press on her shoulders, and she remembered her mom saying, “Do not be afraid.” She rubbed her bracelet, gulped, and continued down the stairs.

At the bottom, Terra found herself in a large empty cavern. Dirt floor, dirt walls, and light bugs on the ceiling, now far above their heads, stretched ahead and faded to black.

Terra jumped when Hermie suddenly bellowed, “Molly!”

She looked around, expecting another elf-like creature to appear, but instead a whooshing sound advanced through the darkness. She squinted into the shadows trying to identify the shape, which rocketed toward them. An animal Terra didn’t recognize skidded to a halt at their feet. Blackish-brown fur covered its sturdy body, with a back as flat as a shelf. Beady eyes squinted up at her from either side of a long, pointed snout. The animal stood only a foot off the ground, but its extra-long length was well-supported on five pairs of legs.

Realizing she grimaced at the odd-looking creature, Terra made an effort to relax her expression. “Does it bite?”

Hermie smiled at the creature like they were old friends. “No, of course not. This is a Molly. A cousin to the mole, as you can see by the resemblance. Mollies are a transport animal in the Underworld. There is no better way to travel when you have a long distance ahead of you.”

Having two of them on the Molly proved awkward, but Hermie was obviously used to it. While Terra lay on her stomach, clutching the Molly’s ample midsection, Hermie tucked in behind the creature’s neck, using Terra’s shoulder as his backrest.

“Overlook please, Molly,” Hermie said.

Day of Reckoning, Concord Chronicles Book 1, is a middle grade adventure fantasy.

Twelve-year-old, Terra, not only learns she’s a Nature’s Spirit destined to serve the peaceful underground city of Concord, but she also finds that a prophecy names her as the only one who can thwart the leader of the death tribe.

The Trepidus are the death janitors of the Underworld. They’re responsible for the termination and cleanup of Concord’s beings. When their leader, Blanco, learns Terra is the one who can derail his day of reckoning, he does everything he can to get rid of her. Including dispatch a “Bringer” to complete the ultimate of death janitor duties.

Terra hopes to complete her training and discover her Spirit talents so, Frank, a Spirit of Security, is assigned to protect her. They undertake a secret investigation of how to defeat Blanco. But with the future of Concord and Terra’s very own life at stake, will they find the answer in time?

A version of this book was originally published by MuseItUp Publishing under the title Beware of the White. I've added a few new scenes, gave it a new title, and have a brand new cover. Are you ready to see it?

When I saw this cover, I had to have it for this book. The color scheme--blue ground, rainbow hues--is a perfect representation of the underground city of Concord. The girl is clearly faced with a life threatening adventure. This beautiful cover was made by BRoseDesignz and I am thrilled for it to represent Day of Reckoning.

What do you think? Do you love it as much as I do? Leave your reaction in comments.

The ebook for Day of Reckoning is available for pre-order now.

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo

The book releases September 30th in ebook and in print (Yay it wasn't available in print last time!) Audiobook to follow. :)

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