Banewolf
Dark Siren Series
Book Two
Eden Ashley
Genre: paranormal romance, young adult
ISBN: 9780989963237
ASIN: B00GTT3RDI
Number of pages: 395
Word Count: 90,000
Cover Artist: Nathalia Suellen
Book Description:
New enemies are made.
New allies must be forged.
Kali is beginning to regain her memories. In doing so, she discovers old secrets and betrayals that threaten to unravel her present and shake the foundation for Rhane’s belief in her innocence. While her maturing abilities present unique challenges, a bigger problem arises when Kali learns her ex-boyfriend has made a misguided deal with the enemy in order to win her back—a decision that may ultimately cost him his humanity.
Keeping Kali safe has become a full time job for Rhane. And struggling to gain control of the immortal Banewolf isn’t making that task any easier. The power to eliminate the growing threat against Kali lies at Rhane’s fingertips, but using it means risking his friends to the insatiable blood lust of a monster. So Rhane is forced to forge a shaky alliance with creatures he has sworn to destroy. Despite these new allies, the danger pressing on their borders intensifies, culminating in a heartbreaking and shocking finale.
The strength of the bond between young and ancient lovers will be tested…and if Kali and Rhane are to survive, they must find a way to be unbreakable.
Excerpt from Banewolf
I Want You to Remember…
After seeing the Cal who wasn’t Cal, Kali’s mind was far too harried to focus on class. Skipping the last block of the day, she went to the swimming pool and sat at the bottom for a long time. Her eyes were closed. Her body was motionless. The pressure of the water became a loving caress, helping to relax everything except her mind. Those anxious thoughts just wouldn’t let go. Even with all Rhane had revealed, the past remained hidden like it had never existed.
But you didn’t forget.
That was right. An entire lifetime…taken. And it wasn’t just her life with Rhane. Kali had lived well over a dozen lives in stolen human bodies. Yet she couldn’t remember a single one of them. Each of those little girls had been stripped from the arms of a family who loved them, only to be replaced by a soul-sucking, fire-setting siren. And for what reason? If Rhane knew, he wasn’t telling. Why won’t he talk to me? I’ve proven my trust.
Well, she amended the thought. I did push him away at first, but only for like fifteen minutes. Then Gabriel showed up and started ripping more of my life to pieces.
Kali took a breath and then another, but not with her lungs. Her skin absorbed oxygen from the water and exchanged it for carbon dioxide waste in her blood. The process didn’t come automatically. It took a lot of focus to make underwater breathing happen. In her two weeks on the lam, she’d discovered this new talent. And it had proven very useful, practically allowing her to live in the water. Holding her breath was certainly easier, but that came with time limits. After twenty minutes, she had to surface.
She was determined to master underwater breathing. Concentrating on the task left her brain severely limited in the number of other things it could worry about. And that was a plus.
Feeling the faintest tremble in the water, she opened her eyes. The lights were flickering. After a few cycles of an ebbing and surging glow, they went out completely. She tried not to panic in the darkness, expecting the underwater lighting to illuminate soon. But instead, there came a muted thud. All of the lights suddenly flooded the pool arena. And Kali screamed.
Bodies were everywhere. Hundreds of them littered the swimming pool floor. Parts of their skin were burned. Charred chunks broke apart from decaying flesh. Tentacles of black liquid snaked into the water. The body of a child rose up, a bloated mass set adrift in a nonexistent current. Kali stared into the film of the corpse’s dead eyes with absolute horror. Black hair floated around his head in a dark halo of death. Even with blanched, greying and puckered skin, Kali saw in the child a startling resemblance to Rhane. Bubbles spurted from her mouth as she screamed again.
She kicked hard, trying to get as far away from the corpse as fast as she could. When her back slammed into solid concrete, she turned to scramble up the pool wall. Fingers slipping on the wet ledge, she finally managed to pull herself out and flop onto her stomach. Trembling with a dozen more screams welled up inside, Kali shook with the effort of not releasing them.
Pushing to her feet, she looked down into the water, needing desperately to believe she was not going crazy. There were no dead people. There was no dead boy. The pool was empty.
#
Icy water pounded from the showerhead, streaming into her eyes as it washed the chlorine from her body. All Kali could see was the boy. His lifeless face floating before hers, dark and grey and distorted in death. It took both hands to smother her sobs. She couldn’t understand what was happening. Was it possible that the vision was a real memory like the nightmares of the horseman had been real memories?
The lights in the shower room flickered and went out just as they had in the pool auditorium. Her breath caught in her chest as she waited for what would happen next. She didn’t have to wait long.
“Kalista,” a male voice sighed into the darkness.
She backed away. She was naked and blind. And in the shower was a stranger who probably meant her harm. The vulnerable state made Kali’s movements very clumsy.
“Darkesong.”
This time the voice was closer. So close, she could feel the whisper against her skin. She knew it was the thing pretending to be Cal. Kali bit her lip. She was too frightened to scream. But screaming wouldn’t have helped anyway.
At first, his touch was light. Kali reacted, flinching away violently. Then “Cal” grabbed her. He was an irresistible force shoving her against the wet shower wall. His hard body pressed against hers. The heat from him completely dispelled the cold that fell around them.
Kali felt his face against her skin. His hot breath steamed next to her cheek.
“Don’t,” she whispered.
Strong fingers slipped around her throat, but their hold was gentle. The lights partially returned, and she could see him. Physically, everything was the same…except for the eyes. Gone was the shocking blue of Cal’s stormy stare. In its place were two red orbs that reflected abnormally in the dim light. She would have recognized those eyes anywhere.
“Gabriel.”
He nodded. His body still had her pinned. His right hand grasped her throat, while the other rested idly against the wall. She waited for him to say or do something, but he didn’t. Nothing happened. Open malice and rage emanated from Gabriel’s still form, but Kali wasn’t entirely sure those emotions were aimed at her.
She inhaled a shaky breath. The action squashed her breasts against his chest. “What did you do to Cal?”
Another unnerving smile slashed his face. “He’s still here.”
“What do you want?”
Pressing his nose into the curve of her neck, Gabriel inhaled a dramatic whiff of her scent. Trembling, Kali tried to push away, wedging her body painfully into the wall. When Gabriel’s left hand moved, she went rigid. But the hand never touched her. It hovered next to her head, holding a tiny yellow stone.
“I want to help you remember.”
The events that followed would remain a blur of varying shades of grey darkness for some time. When Kali came to, she was standing in the rain, completely drenched. Rhane stood in front of her, lips moving soundlessly as he shouted, the words swept away by an unforgiving wind. She had never seen his eyes so black or so deadly focused as he leveled a gun directly over her heart.
Dark Siren
Dark Siren Series
Book One
Eden Ashley
My Review for BaneWolf
I totally love this series! This is a wonderful sequel. I love the new characters introduced and how things are playing out!! Kali is relearning things, and opening up to her memory that she thought she lost. Her abilities are blooming, and though she can't control them well, she knows she needs to learn how. She is turning into a wonderful heroine.
Rhane has some secrets we get to learn. We are now learning a lot about him, his past, and his journey to refinding Kali. He's so awesome. I could just swoon over him. :) There's still mystery, but this one is a little more romance related because Kali and Rhane are reconnecting. I want Kali and Rhane to work out so bad. I feel like they both went through way too much to not have this one good thing.
My only complaint was with Kali's memory flash scenes. It was a little jumpy and unclear at first, but it's not something that will throw you from the book. The thrill of the mysteries and pasts being unravelled along with new characters and new events will keep you glued to the pages anyways. I loved the twists, and I have come to love the characters, even the ones like River that you just aren't sure of. I absolutely love York. There's too many good things here. I can't wait for book three!! I need more :) 5 WOLFY PAWS!!
My Review for Dark Siren
Well, I loved this one! It's this author's debut but it was so well done. I couldn't put it down and I know I will be jumping into the sequel ASAP!
Kalista, aka Kali, is in high school, except she doesn't know that she's had a previous life with previous memories, and she's been reborn for a reason. You see, she doesn't remember anything of that. All she knows is her life right now. She doesn't even remember her childhood well. And Kali hungers, except it's not for your normal hamburger. Though she likes food, she can't help herself. Without sustenance she gets real sick, but that sustenance is coming from making out with boys that aren't her boyfriend. She's eating a piece of their souls. Cal is her boyfriend, but it doesn't take long for her to realize it's not going to work with him after all. And the she meets Rhane, when he saves her life at the movies. And she feels not just a pull and attraction to Rhane, but she just met him and she feels like she's known him forever.
Rhane has been alive for far longer than should be possible. He remember everything Kali doesn't. His marriage, their past, her death. He's also trying to get over the fact that Kali is a 17 year old high school senior. Not a hundreds of year old woman whom he was married to. Things are getting real complicated. And since she doesn't know anything, including who and what he is, Banewolf, he has to treat her with completely fragile kid gloves. She might want him like a woman, but she lives the life of a 17 year old.
So, Kali works at a archaeological artifacts firm, and when a stolen artifact talks to Kali, sings to her, she blacks out, and things get really complicated. And to make matters worse, her boss is very insistent that she must come with him to meet the buyer of this artifact. Things are sticky, and complicated, and there's a lot Kali just isn't comprehending. And then, Rhane shows up to save her on this trip across the world.
Yeah, the writing is fantastic. The mystery kept me turning the pages. The characters had me falling in love with them. I won't give you any spoilers, but let me just say you need to be prepared for the ending. I about lost my mind. It's gunna make your jaw drop and then you'll jump on book two just like I did. There's a little bit of everything that almost anyone can enjoy. And with that, I am jumping into the sequel because I'm dying to know what happened after the fall out!! 5 Wolfy Goddess Paws!
Author Interview
First, tell me a little about your book :)….
Banewolf is the second in a series about a centuries old love that struggles to survive every worst case scenario one couple could possibly endure. The female MC, Kalista—Kali for short—is a powerful creature who accepts what she is but can’t always control it. When she meets Rhane, everything she thought she knew about herself and her world gets tossed out the window. Unfortunately, the arrival of Rhane also becomes the harbinger of evils Kali could have never imagined existed…and a death sentence.
Do you recall how your interest in writing originated or did you always just know?
I’ve loved writing since I could hold crayons.
How do you choose when/which characters die in your books?
Well, this series has a forbidden six. As in my sister threatened bodily harm to me if I caused permanent damage to a certain bunch of wolves. But I’m a writer! I found a way around that…and the key word there was permanent. (Laughs)
Outside of them, I don’t kill anyone unless their death is needed to move the story forward or progress another character emotionally.
Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
It used to be difficult switching from Kali to Rhane’s POV because I just wasn’t used to writing from a male perspective. I mean really, how do men think? Once I got down the basics (Rhane isn’t as descriptive. His thought process is also more calculating and direct.), things became easier. And then I decided to write from York’s POV. Now that is fun! I can just say whatever. That guy has no filter, but he’s a fan favorite. So far readers have forgiven his insensitivity.
What book are you reading now?
I just finished Bitten by Kelley Armstrong. Watching the television series, I enjoyed it but couldn’t help seeing how the book would probably tell a better story. So as soon as I finished the first season, I went to 2ND and Charles (love that store) and bought the book. I read it in a day! The two are different enough to enjoy both without being redundant.
Who designed the cover? And do you help with them?
Nathalia Suellen designed the cover for Banewolf. The concept of the split face was my idea, inspired by some nameless anime drawing I saw while scrolling through Facebook. I spent quite a few hours hunting for the perfectly angry/fearsome wolf. She did everything else. The gal has talent!
Did you learn anything from writing your books and what was it?
Yeah. Humility! (Laughs) But really, you have to be humble during the creative process while working with beta readers and editors to accept and implement changes to a book that has essentially become your baby. It also takes humility to put your work out there to be completely subject to the scrutiny of others, knowing that everyone isn’t going to like the story your heart has been dying to tell for so long.
If you could be one of your characters, who would you chose?
Kali’s powers are pretty badass. If I could have them without the drawback of having to steal the life source of others to stay alive, that would be great. Then again, she gets to feed off a godlike immortal with a body to die for and the face to match! So yeah, I would be Kali.
Are there any books you think some of us should read, just because?
Yep. Check out Thor by Wayne Smith. It’s a werewolf novel written from a German Shepherd Dog’s POV. I was completely surprised by how entertaining that book was.
Do you have anything specific that you want to say to your readers?
Only that you guys are awesome, and I really couldn’t do this without you! I only just really started work on Primed Son (book four of the Dark Siren series) because I couldn’t write it without first knowing that fans were happy with the sequel that preceded it.
About the Author:
Cynic, realist, and hopeless romantic all rolled into one, Eden was born and raised in a small, sunny town in South Carolina, but thunderstorms have inspired her best ideas. There are few things she loves more than curling up with a good book and a cup of coffee on a rainy day, (except maybe chocolate cake. She loves cake.) often reading into the wee hours of morning when something really grabs her attention. She pretty much loves anything with supernatural elements, so writing paranormal romance and fantasy romance seems to be a natural fit.
Tour giveaway
4 Kindle editions of Banewolf and 4 $10 Amazon gift cards
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