In my previous posts here Book One and here Book Two I spoke about the beginnings of the Portal Watchers.
The remaining books have now been published and wow... I loved them. It really is a heart-stopping thrill-seeker, edge of the seat ride from start to finish. Yes they are YA books. No that doesn't mean a grown woman - or man - who loves sci-fi can't read and enjoy them. They have fully rounded characters, with flaws, who mess up like we all do, but don't give up. It's not often something goes straight back into the TBR pile, but these have.
Blurb:
Years have passed since the Vil took Ne-tel’s twin sister, but the the Vil want Ne-tel as well as his twin. The Vil are relentless. No place is safe. Not even with family.
When Ne-tel is forced to flee quickly with his uncle, a secret follower of Tel, Ne-tel avoids one kidnapping only to be pressed into service aboard a ship. The ship master is chasing sea creatures that emerged from a window of light.
Has Tel been guiding Ne-tel all along? Will Ne-tel be able to remain free from the Vil and will he find his twin unharmed?
Excerpt:
Ne-tel awakened with an urge to stretch. His limbs felt tired and tight after the excitement of the day. He tried to move his arms. They wouldn’t budge. Suddenly alert, he glanced around him. Looking down, he saw wide bands of ropes encircling him. His back appeared to be firmly lodged to the tree he slept under.
“What happened?”
He heard his uncle chuckle. “It appears our adventure continues, nephew. Whoever has tied us up, loosed Fire. He should be back in the stable by now if the swelling on my head is any indication of time. I did not go to sleep, as you did. I kept watch. But the culprit who caught us was both quiet and clever.”
“Thank you,” said a voice. A man with a sheathed long sword stepped into Ne-tel’s view. “I would appreciate it if you repeat that compliment to the shipmaster.”
“Shipmaster?”
“Yes. My name is Dral. I am his mate. And now that I have secured a cart with a more docile beast than your own, I will take you to him.”
Having just woke up, none of this made sense to Ne-tel. First, his family sought his sister, then he ran from a Vil, and now he was captive of a polite shipmate. “But why?”
Dral scratched his head with his free hand. “Didn’t I say? You are his crew. We seek the beasts undersea.”
“The day gets better and better, doesn’t it, nephew?”
Ne-tel just groaned and prayed he would soon wake up. Instead, his stomach growled.
“Do we get fed as crew?”
Dral smiled. It wasn’t the friendly smile he’d offered before. “As much ship biscuit as you can stomach.” He poked Ne-tel lightly with the sword. “We’ll work off that extra girth of yours in no time.”
Links:
Pelican book group: https://pelicanbookgroup.com/ec/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=37_61&products_id=1660
Blurb
With the new ability to create portals, Subja's scientists unleash vicious and ravenous beasts on the population of Telba. Bern, Garth, Ne-tel are each given separate tasks to complete on their own.
Bern must convince Telantia to emerge from the safety of the city and fight for the citizens of Telba.
Garth must take technology from Subja's fortress.
Ne-tel must travel to the Gold Coast to raise an army.
All three must succeed if Telba is to have hope for a future, but even Prophet Nevv says these tasks are impossible.
excerpt
Even with what Nevv had told them, the T-Rex was larger than he imagined. He had first guessed ten feet tall, but it might be larger than that. The mighty legs gave it frightening power. They led to wide hips that stabilized the beast. Ne-tel glanced from the creature back to their conveyance several times until he was convinced of a vital piece of information.
“The cart is narrower than that monster is!” Ne-tel shouted. Not far from their position was a place where the road turned and narrowed. He pointed it out to the trader. “See if you can aim for that narrow pass!”
The dinosaur was so close that Ne-tel swore he could count its teeth. He turned his head back to Suey who ran so hard and fast that her back was slicked with white foam. Ne-tel looked back again at the dinosaur. The wheel of the cart caught a large rock. The panicked Suey didn’t slow. The cart bounced behind her, and one barrel of something fell off. The rolling cargo bounced into the legs of the T-rex. It roared in irritation but slowed down the tiniest fraction.
Running at full tilt, Suey turned the cart into the narrow pass and around the corner. The dinosaur pounded against the rocky cliff sides of the trail, but it could not get through.
The trader pulled back on the reins to slow the exhausted horse.
The T-Rex crashed into the mountainside twice more before roaring and turning around to go back the way it came.
“We’ll wait here until I wipe Suey down and let her cool down. Then we’ll head to the stream that is a little farther up the hillside so that all of us can have a drink and a good rest.” He dismounted, shaken and unnerved. “Boy,” said the trader, “I hope you have room on that ship of yours for an extra man and his horse. I’m not going back along this trail until that thing is taken care of.”
Links:
Pelican book group: https://pelicanbookgroup.com/ec/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=37_61&products_id=1661
Blurb
The Portal Watchers are separated...
Trapped in first world, Garth is given a surprising aid which will assist him upon his return to Telba, while Bern and the Telantian army advance on Subja's city. And on the Gold Coast Ne-tel leads a meager regiment against the ravenous beasts that have decimated the region.
All three watchers still follow the will of Tel. Are these tasks too great? Will they learn to rely on help that is outside of space and time?
excerpt
Garth grabbed Nellie under the arms and pulled. The flower, if that indeed was what it was, pulled back. If anything, it pulled harder.
It seemed to want Nellie as a snack.
Garth heaved back as hard as he could, but the thing swallowed more of Nellie’s leg. It did it so suddenly that Garth stumbled a bit and the subverter fell out of his pocket.
The subverter.
Praying he was doing the right thing, Garth let go of Nellie’s leg, picked up the subverter and fired it at the flower.
For a moment, it convulsed. Then, it released Nellie’s leg and began changing. The big bloom exploded and thousands of smaller flowers blew into the sky. The scent was sweet, but not cloying. When the blooms finished dispersing like a flock of colorful birds, the only thing Garth could see where the huge flower had been, was a small, bear-like creature with a single flower coming out of its head. It looked at Garth and Nellie, emitted a nervous whine and ran away.
Someone clapped behind him.
He turned around to see a young man, strong and handsome, his skin a shade between Garth’s darker complexion and Nellie’s fair one. He wore only an animal skin.
“Good one, stranger. I like your version of the flower-mouth much better. It might even make a good pet.” A shadow fell over the man’s face. “Almost reminds me of how it was before.”
Links:
Pelican Book Group https://pelicanbookgroup.com/ec/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=37_61&products_id=1662
Sum of All Expectation
Blurb
Garth, Bern, and Ne-tel are looking for a savior, the prophesied one who will come to free Telba from the grip of the evil one. But in the first world, Garth and Nellie are being tortured, while Ne-tel and Ally have been captured and forced to work as slaves. Bern's group of refugees battle evil and the elements.
Is Telba doomed by the choices of its people? They will need aid that's greater than the sum of all expectation.
excerpt
Ne-tel gawked as the craft they had just escaped reformed. He ran for the helm.
“I saw.” Yom grumbled before Ne-tel could say a word. “Sails at full! I just hope Maeve also saw what we’re dealing with. Maybe she heard more of the legend about the old sailor than I did. I just know he got away and lived to tell the tale. Before his escape, people just assumed a lot of seafarers met with storms…not some horrid demon craft.” He paused, glowering at their pursuer. “Why didn’t any of the legends say the thing reformed?”
Ne-tel simply saluted and turned to help the others make the craft move as fast as possible. He was hauling a line to move one of the sails when his uncle tapped his shoulder.
“Really don’t think that’s the best use of your time.”
“Huh?”
“It’s a demon craft. D-E-M-O-N,” he spelled out. “Muscle, speed, and effort really don’t have much of an effect on things related to demons. Couldn’t you feel the oppressive darkness when we were stuck within it?”
Of course, he could feel the evil and the darkness when it swallowed them. Everyone could. “Yes?”
“Then,” the man responded, “you know physical effort has no effect. You can even see that. We shoved the evil off of our decks and escaped and yet it pursues. What can be done about demons? Can humans do anything at all to fight these evil echoes?”
With the word echoes, Ne-tel remembered the prophecy. He gave a snort because he could imagine the old prophet seeing this exact moment. “Quizon said we had to call down heaven.”
Links
Pelican Book Group https://pelicanbookgroup.com/ec/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=37_61&products_id=1663
Comments
Congratulations. These sound wonderful!