Lethal Inheritance
Diamond Peak Series Book #1
By- Tahlia Newland
Genre- YA Fantasy
A scream pierces the night. Ariel jolts awake and watches in horror as demons drag her mother into a hidden realm. She finds help and sets off on a rescue mission. But to defeat the demons, who feed on fear and seek to enslave the human race, she must learn a secret esoteric wisdom to awaken the dormant, but potentially explosive, power of her mind.
Walnut, a quirky old wise man, guides her through treacherous inner and outer landscapes, and Nick, the powerful Warrior who travels with them, proves a dangerous attraction. Can Ariel defeat the sadistic demon lord before he kills her and enslaves her mother?
The stakes are high, death a real possibility. Fail now, and she fails humanity.
This book has been awarded the AIA Seal of Excellence in Fiction and the BRAG Medallion for Outstanding Fiction.
And an Excerpt from Lethal Inheritance
Ariel jolted awake to the brutal sound of splintering wood and a resounding crash at the side door.
'Ariel. Run!' Her mother's scream sliced through the fog in Ariel's brain.
Her eyes flew open. She catapulted out of bed and stumbled towards the door in confusion. A series of thuds came up the hallway, getting closer, as if someone was kicking all the doors open. Ariel grabbed her fleecy Ugg boots, opened the window and jumped out just before her bedroom door crashed open.
She flung herself under a leafy shrub and pushed back against the fence. Bright street light spilled onto the side of her red brick house, but none penetrated her hiding place in the fence's shadow. Even so, her heart pounded and every muscle in her body tensed in fear. She peered through a gap in the leaves and shivered.
Something black and vaguely human-shaped struggled out the window, cursing in a voice as spiky as ice shards. Its skin, hanging in folds like the fabric of a long hooded cloak, rippled as it turned. White flames flicked, like snake tongues, from two slits in its hideous face, and a thin-lipped mouth curled into a sneer. The claws on its long loose arms flexed and unflexed as if warming up for a fight, and it stunk like rotten potatoes.
Ariel froze, eyes wide, struggling to comprehend the creature before her. Nothing like this existed in her world. It had to be a dream. But it felt horribly real.
A chilling voice from down the path raised the hairs on the back of Ariel's neck and the creature swung towards the sound. 'The spawn's run off. I say we take this one and come back for the other.'
The owner of the voice, another creature, came into view, eyes blazing red. Ariel gasped and slapped her hands over her mouth to muffle the sound. But the beast's attention fixed on Ariel's mother, who hung limply in the red-eyed creature's arms, her hands tied behind her back. Something black and shiny gagged her.
Ariel's world began to unravel. This could not be happening, and yet, it was. She stared at the impossible creature and one word only penetrated the numbness of her mind. It rose as if from a long forgotten memory-demon.
'Stand and walk,' the red-eyed demon growled as he set her on her feet, 'or I'll stick you with this.' It raised a clawed index finger in front of Nadima's face and the claw grew into a silvery talon the length of Ariel's forearm. The fiery line of the creature's mouth curled with sadistic pleasure.
Nadima jerked into life and ran, but the white-eyed demon threw a noose over her head. It jolted her to a stop and turned her scream into a choked gurgle.
Ariel pressed her lips together, stifling the urge to cry out.
The red-eyed demon held its gleaming talon to Nadima's throat just above where her white-knuckled hands gripped the noose, her eyes wide and glassy. 'Try that again and we'll forget our meal and send you to hell instead.'
'Feed us,' the white-eyed demon hissed and placed its talon on the side of her neck.
Nadima froze. Her face reddened and tears seeped from her eyes. The tip of Red-Eye's talon caressed her throat and came to rest on the other side of her neck. A rumbling sound emerged from the demons' throats, a kind of demonic purr. Their bodies grew, their eyes flickered more brightly and their satisfied smirks bore a perverse resemblance to bliss.
Ariel's stomach churned. Fear numbed her mind and froze her in place.
Stalking Shadows
Diamond Peak Series Book #2
By- Tahlia Newland
Genre- YA Fantasy
Ariel hopes that the great library at Sheldra holds the key to rescuing her mother. But in order to get there, she must negotiate a forest of evil spirits, escape a mind-numbing city of sparkling towers, travel through the treacherous gullies of Minion Hills, and avoid an attack by a demon lord intent on killing her.
At the same time, a battle rages between her heart and her mind. A relationship with her travelling companion, the enigmatic Nick, is just too tempting, but can they be together without Ariel losing her focus and falling to the demons? Her life is at stake, but also her heart. She risks encasing it in stone and denying herself the very sustenance she needs.
Will they make it to the safe haven of Sheldra, or will Ariel die at the hands of the yellow-eyed demon?
This book has been awarded the AIA Seal of Excellence in Fiction
**On sale everywhere for the entire month of November for just 99 cents!**
And now an Excerpt from Stalking Shadows
The tree trunks in front and beside them shimmered a little, then strips of bark creaked and morphed into things that looked like a cross between huge stick insects and small, burnt trees. They stepped onto the path and blocked the way. Nick stopped. The creatures folded their twig-like arms and stared, their gaze like chilled daggers. Their posture and knotted faces screamed hatred, and Ariel had no doubt that they weren't planning to let the travellers pass. As one, the tree spirits stepped forward, stick legs crackling.
Ariel whipped out her dagger, transforming it instantly into a sword. The spirits hissed and their eyes glowed red.
'Put it away,' Nick said tiredly, as if to a child who should know better.
Her face heated and she slipped her weapon back into its sheath. 'Automatic reaction,' she muttered.
'And, in this case, totally wrong.' He slipped off his pack, sat cross-legged, drew his spine up straight, rested his hands on his knees and stared into the space before him.
Ariel forced herself to follow his lead. Sitting down while dangerous creatures crept up on her went against every urge for self-preservation she had, but Walnut had assured her that fighting wasn't the way. Her heart sped, and she closed her eyes, hoping it'd be easier if she couldn't see their determined blood red eyes and twisted mouths oozing sap through moss-covered needle-sharp teeth.
She'd practiced for this moment, seen drawings, been told about their creepy sound, but she hadn't imagined how terrifying it would feel to have huge insect-like creatures surrounding her, salivating at the prospect of tearing her limbs from her body.
'Now,' Nick said in a commanding tone.
Her eyes flew open. Silvery white light poured from Nick's chest and touched the spirits around him, slowing them down, but they kept moving steadily towards Ariel. She gulped, closed her eyes again, breathed deeply and muttered the incantation to contact her Radiant Power. She felt it warm and swelling in the centre of her chest. The pressure built, and when it felt ready to burst from her chest, she directed it outwards with a sense of release like a deep blissful sigh. Brilliant silvery-white light streamed from her chest in all directions. But she had waited too long, and one sticky, twig claw touched her. She flinched and her flow of light stuttered. The claw grabbed her arm and the light failed. Knowing that if she lashed out, they would become vicious, Ariel clenched her teeth and struggled to control the urge to fight.
More claws! Yuk. She whispered the incantation again, trying to sharpen her focus and deepen her connection with her Radiant Power, but needle sharp teeth pierced her arm, and she stifled a scream. Pain flared from the wound, and anger and fear flared in her mind. It raced into her limbs, readying her to strike, but she retained control and looked directly at the rising fear. It dissolved into the centre of her chest and stoked her Power. She blasted it at the spirits and their jaws released.
Demon's Grip
Diamond Peak Series Book #3
By- Tahlia Newland
Genre- YA Fantasy
Ariel thought she knew her travelling companion, Nick, but she discovers that at the University of Sheldra, he's a respected translator with little time to spare. Now that he isn't at her side all the time, she wishes he was, and when she finally admits her love, powerful emotions sweep her away.
The demon lord Emot takes advantage of her inexperience in matters of the heart and preys on her desire, setting off a struggle with addiction that threatens to break Nick's heart and turn Ariel into the demon's mindless slave. She must reach deep into her soul and find the mystical power she needs to kill the one who promises pleasure but delivers only pain. Fail, and she will lose the one she loves and spend an eternity in the demon's grip.
This book has been awarded the AIA Seal of Excellence in Fiction
And now an Excerpt from Demon's Grip
Nick drew his sword, sidled along the corridor wall and leapt around the corner. A startled, black-clad Magan in a purple cape-one of Kestril's clan-drew his sword and stepped back, his eyes on the tip of Nick's blade pointed at his throat.
Behind the olive-skinned Magan, on the other side of the open double doors, rain fell in silver sheets. Even in the dim light, Nick recognised the black-bearded man. 'Druid,' he said calmly, raising his voice over the sound of the rain. 'Your magic has failed, so tell me who sent you, or this sword will prise the words from your throat.'
Druid's eyes narrowed and his arm muscles tensed ready to strike. 'How do you know my name?'
'I'll tell you that if you tell me who gives you your orders,' Nick replied.
'You know whose side I'm on.'
'But you don't see Rasama directly. He'd eat you up and spit out your bones. Lord Menhir is it?'
'No,' Druid spat, his face distorted with growing rage.
'Kestril then?'
'Him? Pah! Menhir's precious son who whispers soppy words in his ear? Never.'
'Then who? Tell me, or perhaps you'd rather be a corpse.' Nick pressed the tip of his sword into the Magan's throat.
Druid stepped back. 'You wouldn't kill me.'
Nick stepped forward. 'Are you willing to test that hypothesis?'
Druid stood his ground. 'Warriors don't kill men.'
'That's a dangerous assumption.'
'I'll risk it.' The Magan darted away from Nick's blade and struck out with his own.
Nick took a step back, surprised at the ferocity of the Magan's onslaught, but he parried his every blow and stood his ground. They battled solidly, swords flashing in the grey light that spilled into the entrance hall.
'Emot is it? Nearby, is he?' Nick sprang forward, beat down Druid's guard and aimed a blow at his neck.
The Magan blocked the blow, parried another attack and thrust forward only to be parried in turn. 'He's never far away,' Druid gloated as he thrust again. Sweat dripped from his brow.
Once again, Nick's quick reflexes blocked Druid's attack. 'What does he offer you, Druid? Riches? A bounty for Ariel?'
Druid snorted. 'Kill you and I take her for myself.' His top lip curled in a suggestive smirk.
Disgust, fury and a powerful urge to protect Ariel fuelled Nick's determination and he unleashed his full power, forcing Druid backward. 'Whatever it is, he won't pay up. He never does. He'll keep you hoping, always wanting. That's what he feeds on. You're a fool if you think you'll ever get anything he promises you.'
'Enough words,' Druid growled. He stood his ground, maintaining his guard but unable to take the upper hand.
Nick feinted then cut towards Druid's chest. The Magan parried a little too late and the tip of Nick's blade scratched his side.
'Surrender or die,' Nick said as his sword arced towards his opponent again.
'And end up in a cell! I'd rather be dead,' Druid hissed. He blocked Nick's sword with a clang, then feinted and followed with a vicious chest cut.
Nick slammed the Magan's sword out of the way. 'You're already a slave; a Rasa's slave.'
Druid merely hissed in reply. Their swords bound and disengaged, thrust and parried. Druid slowed, struggling under the weight of Nick's superior swordsmanship. Eventually, Nick broke the panting Magan's defence with a well-timed thrust. He stopped with his sword held steady an inch from Druid's throat. 'Drop it or die.'
'Better I die!' Druid took advantage of Nick's pause, mustered his failing strength and knocked the Warrior's sword away.
Nick sprang back. Maybe he shouldn't have given Druid a choice. The Magan probably thought Nick didn't have the will to kill him. A bad assumption for Nick, for Druid was a skilful opponent. A positive outcome was not assured.
'Gutless wonder!' Druid sneered. His fight had a desperate quality now and Nick's second sight revealed a heavy infestation of Serpentine inside him. Grown to overflowing by the Magan's hatred, black slime dripped from the Magan's brow, and the beginnings of a Rasa demon grew from his back. It arose, snarling and spitting, devouring what remained of Druid.
In many ways the Magan was already dead, a puppet of the Serpentine. Fully fledged and unleashed, it used the human to do what it could not do alone-kill Nick. But Nick was a Warrior and he gave the power of his Radiance full rein. He didn't want to kill Druid, but the Magan had chosen his own fate. With the unconfined power of the Radiance racing through it, the Warrior thrust his sword into the Serpentine puppet's heart.
Druid dropped to the floor with a thud, his sword clattering on the hard stone. 'As you wished,' Nick whispered. 'And I pray it's quick.' The Magan's eyes glazed over.
Eternal Destiny
Diamond Peak Series Book #4
By- Tahlia Newland
Genre- YA Fantasy
Ariel and Nick face their deepest fears and their greatest challenge as they search for the Master Demon who holds the key to the future of mankind. Slay him and the world goes free; fail, and it falls irrevocably into violence and chaos.
Guided by a wisdom master of a mystical tradition that uses mind power as the basis of powerful magic, the assault party travels from the ancient granite walls of the Hermitage, up the Steps of Death, and through a labyrinth of shifting gorges to the Palace of Skulls. Even if Nick wins his struggle with the scars of his past and defeats the green-eyed head of the Cogin clan, they still must cross the scree slope, where the bones of Ariel's father lie, to get to the ice caves beneath the summit where the Master Demon awaits.
The journey is extraordinary, the enemies are deadly and the ending is mind-blowing.
This book has been awarded the AIA Seal of Excellence in Fiction
And now an Excerpt from Eternal Destiny
Beneath the very pinnacle of Diamond Peak, a fluid semi-human shape stood, black against a chunk of blue-white glacial ice. The King of the Demons seemed as frozen as the ice, except for the slight curve of his thin lips and the flickering bliss in the dark blue flames of his eyes.
'Yes,' he murmured in a sleazy voice. 'Remember what she did to you … crave her … detest her … punish her … feed me well and she will be your reward.'
A human quivered beside the foul smelling demon, making a faint sound that could have been sobbing or chuckling or both. The demon's talon, as long as a human forearm, rested gently on the side of the human's neck. Occasionally, it stroked the skin, sending shudders through the limp body, and sometimes it pierced the flesh. Then the muscles tensed and the sobbing became a gasp of pain.
As he fed, the demon grew visibly and a hump formed on his back.
'Indulge yourself,' he whispered. 'We are so close, so close, you and I.'
The hump grew even larger and a head took form, followed by demon limbs and body. The new demon pulled away, stretching the fabric between the master and his new creation like a thin rubber band until it tore, separating the two forms. The new demon shook itself free and stepped away from its master's back.
The demon king turned to face the new green-eyed demon, a twisted, triumphant smile upon his face as he noted the intensity in its fiery pits. 'We have done well with you. My fodder is still strong.'
'What am I to do, Master?' the new demon asked.
'Be my eyes,' the demon king replied. 'Find the bearer of the Copper Mark and let me know her whereabouts.'
About the Author-
Tahlia Newland, author of the multi-award-winning Diamond Peak Series, writes heart-warming and inspiring magical realism and contemporary fantasy. She is also an editor, a reviewer, an occasional high school teacher, and a mask-maker who loves creating digital art and sitting on her veranda staring at the rain forest.
Tahlia has studied with top Australian editors and has a Certificate in Editing and Proofreading. Before writing full time, she had over 20 years' experience in scripting and performing as a dancer/mine in Visual Theatre and Theatre in Education. She has had extensive training in meditation and Buddhist philosophy and lives in Australia with a husband, a teenage daughter, and a cheeky Burmese cat called George.
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