Hey ,
This is the weekly Thursday NL for S.M. McCoy for all things fantastical sci-fi fantasy and paranormal adventures with a splash of romance.
If you are on this NL it is because you joined a giveaway, grabbed a copy of My Abett, Kingdom of Acatalec, or spotted my Divine series around and thought that author seems cool, and I would like to stay in touch!
There is a lot of controversy about the use of prologues in books. Do you love them? Hate them? Don't care?
I used a prologue with my upcoming book Taking Medusa. Tell me your thoughts? For me, I love a prologue if is sets the stage correctly without confusing the reader. I've read prologues before that have WAY too many characters dropped into a scene at once, with a ton of action happening like a battle of ORCS rampaging, and I have no idea what is going on, and really don't remember any of it until I finish reading the book and go back and re-read the "prologue". Soooo, in those instances I hate prologues.
But, if they do what they are supposed to do, and set the stage for backstory the main character may not know about but it filters your own processing of what is happening to them in their journey... then, I'm down with the prologue.
Here is my prologue for my upcoming book, I'd love your thoughts on it. Since the book isn't released yet, anything is possible. DO you think I need this prologue? Do you think I should scrap it? Do you think I should keep it?
Before we get to the prologue:
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OVER 700+ Reviews on the Zon!
I never thought I'd move to New York.
I certainly never expected to live in a mansion, rent free, with five super hot roommates.
But none of those things surprised me as much as discovering the truth about my destiny, the revelation of the ancient power flowing through my veins and how it changes my life.
I am the Raven Queen.
Come meet my guardians.
This is the complete Raven Queen's Harem a reverse harem paranormal romance series all in ONE bundle! No wait! It's all here! Dive in today!
Raven's Mark
Ebony Rising
Black Magic
Obsidian Fire
Onyx Eclipse
Midnight's End
Prologue From the Deep
Eighteen Years Ago
The Kidnapping of Medusa
Taken from her arms centuries ago, Theo knew it wasnât the last sheâd see of her sister. She was too important, too kind, and the fates had known the gods would seek their vengeance on the sea god Poseidon through his weakness, his heart. It was up to her to finish what the fates had put in motion, because she was the only one of her sisters that could undo what was once turned to stone.
Finally, she had everything she needed to revive Medusa, and she felt ashamed that it had taken her so long. Times had changed over the years, and the world wasnât what it used to be. The gods had found more discrete pursuits, choosing to rule more carefully amongst the mortals, being more subtle in their games. That gave her the opening she needed to right the wrongs of the past.
Theo didnât know how long it would take before the gods found out what she had done, or why she had done it, but her sister was the only hope she had of having a normal life and saving the man she loved. This was the prophesy given to her all those years ago that one day she would poison the man she loved, and it would be her sister that could heal him.
It was that fateful day she had poisoned Landon, and she went to find Medusa all those years ago, only to find she had been beheaded in her sleep. Perseus had disappeared, supported by the gods, and Landon turned to stone in wait for Medusaâs return.
Theo had finally found where Athena hid the shield, and removing her sisterâs head was almost too easy. Granted she was one of the very few capable of undoing petrification from the flesh, but the gods had become comfortable with the mortals, believing the gorgons were gone, myth, legend. It had taken a long time for the gods to become unguarded for her to collect what she needed.
Medusaâs head was exactly as she remembered it, unmarred by time. Sheâd done it. Sheâd finally recovered her from Athena. She was sure eventually the goddess would know her aigis was gone, but the shield remained, and unless someone was looking close enough, what reason did Athena have to be taking up arms again. The mortals were perfectly capable of enough wars without her heading the front lines as a rallying cry.
The yellow snakes about her sisterâs head lumbered limply against her skull as she placed it gently in the bag. Against popular belief the power to turn beings to stone was not automatically triggered by gazing into her green eyes. Theo snarled even thinking about what mortals and the gods had used her motherâs children for. Always the monster, never the tool they would insist. Every time her siblings were used by the gods to defend, to betray, to kill they were hunted all for some otherâs sick will.
Not this time, Theo swore.
She was not their monster anymore. Her fiery red hair billowed in the wind of the ship she boarded to reach her final destination. The sea god had slumbered for so long, he would not stop her from plundering his underwater memorial. It was his fault her sister was caught up in this curse to begin with, and this time when Medusa was reborn, he would not know who she was in this new world.
Under the seaâs depths the mountain with Medusaâs body stayed hidden from all those that would try to use her to kill their enemies. Theo plunged into the murky waters, as soon as her skin touched the salty surface scales knitted her legs together, and her tresses turned to red serpents. Slithering deeper than any mortal would dare, so close to the golden castle of Atlantis, King Triton could not venture to this scared place without the trident of Poseidon, and this was after the swell of the seas when the trident was known to leave his hands, waiting for the true ruler of the seas to return. It was now or risk being found by the gods once again.
The waters churned in a torrent around the mountain, reminding her why even Poseidonâs son couldnât enter here without the trident. She couldnât give up now, not when she was so close to her goal. Her mother knew this would happen, and gave her the last shell to have been blessed by Poseidon. It could only be used once, but it carried the oath of Poseidon to calm the waters of the sea with a single purposeful breath.
Theo couldnât hold her lungs under the water indefinitely without passing out. She couldnât die from this, but she couldnât tell where sheâd wash up should it happen. With her final breath she blew into the shell, and a sirenâs song floated around her, parting the waters, and sending her plummeting on the rocky cliff of the mountain below covered in old coral tearing up her scales as she tumbled down. The impact shocked her body, leaving her questioning if she wasnât better off drifting in the seaâs current before the water swallowed the mountain whole again.
Blood streamed through the dark water as she struggled to enter the closest cave opening. Within, a giant squid slept, lulled asleep by the shellâs music. Making it past the defenses set up by Poseidon, Theo surfaced in a pool opening up into a cavern glittering with the lost treasure of Atlantis, at the center stood a plain stone statue missing its head.
The heart of Atlantis, the shrine of Medusa, and Poseidonâs only true love.
Theo only had one shot at this. There was only one drop left of her cure-all blood, the last drop given to the king of Athens, who had mistakenly used the one drop that was deadly poison, then remembering that his mother had been raped to conceive him, he didnât risk the other drop being anything but another chance to murder him or his family should he try to prolong their life with her âgiftâ. The gods were vindictive, her siblings knew this fact intimately, most of them died for their amusement. She had nothing to lose if the king was right about Athenaâs vengeance, and everything to gain if she was telling the truth about one drop being capable of bringing someone back from the dead.
Unstopping the vial, Theo let the single drop of blood, still fresh even after all these years, further proof that this blood was life, not death, fall on the neck of the statue. Then placing the stoic head of her sister atop it, she released her sisterâs body from itâs stone confines. For a moment Medusaâs body stayed solid before she had to catch her, easing her to the ground.
All that was left was hope.
Hope that she wasnât wrong about the blood, and hope her sister wasnât as mortal as myths betrayed.
She stroked the serpents atop her sisterâs head resting on her lap, their venom couldnât harm her so she was not afraid. Her own red snakes uncoiled as she leaned over Medusaâs face. They gently nudged the yellowed pallor of their fallen kinship pleading for their revival. Theo cried over the still-cold corpse lamenting her failure.
The neck was red where the blood had knitted the skin back together in a raw jagged line, all too familiar to Zeusâ lightening. She had been right about the blood being curative, but she had been wrong about bringing her from deathâs grasp. It should have been immediate, yet nothing stirred within the cold husk of her sister.
Her body was healed, the soul was gone.
Did she have to pry her sister from Hadeâs kingdom and force the soul and body together once again? Did she wait too long, too late to save her sister or her love? Was it not enough to steal from two gods that she must steal from another to right their wrongs?
A small red snake coiled up to wipe away some of her tears from her cheek, while a few others nudged Theo to think about where she was. Frozen in place, holding the lifeless corpse she thought about staying here, amongst the lost treasures of the sea. She could turn both of them to stone, and let the quest given to her by the fates end here. In failure. Unable to have her sister or her love, she could give up. The gods could win again.
Another monster defeated in their selfishness.
Her lungs burned, and the scales ripped from her flesh seared from her fall down the coral bringing her back to the present. She didnât heal the same as Medusa, it took excruciatingly long to heal when she was injured. Immortality didnât lessen her pain, and it certainly didnât make waiting for her body to heal at the same speed as a mortal any easier. She had to push through and leave now before the squid woke up, and before the waters were no longer calm, and definitely before she passed out from blood loss. She wouldnât die here, but by the time she recovered sheâd wish she were if she got eaten by a mutant squid or was stuck here forever. Or worse, still here when Poseidon woke to find that she had intended to steal Medusa from his shrine without seeking to tell him about it.
He wasnât dumb, heâd know she was betraying him. She wasnât strong enough to keep her serpent half around her legs, it wasnât her natural state like her mother to be a lamia. Sheâd have to swim to the surface without it, or have the currents drag her away. She didnât have to be conscious for the whole journey, eventually her body would come to again, and sheâd deal with her predicament then.
What would her mother say about defying the gods, she was one after all. The mother of monsters.
Her mother didnât care about all of her children, most of them were forced upon her, and taken from her. It would hurt too much to let herself feel the loss, so there were very few of them that she acknowledged. When Medusa was around Theoâs mother had let herself feel something. Protecting her from the gods by pretending she was mortal, and it was the first time Theo felt love. Many times Theo had thought she should have been jealous, should have been vengeful. So similar to the lessons she had learned from the gods.
But she didnât, not when her mother finally smiled, finally saw her as something other than a tool for the gods, a monster. And that love had grown inside Medusa, known as the protector and the light of the gorgons. Theo smiled, another tear dripping down her chin to land on her sisterâs head. Medusa had shown her love, and she couldnât even save her. Clutching the head to her chest, her red snakes lamented with her, stroking the yellow and green snakes still limp beneath her sobs. With everything she had left in her, she swore under her breath.
The gods canât have her.
If it was the last act of rebellion she could do, she would take her sisterâs body back with her, away from this shrine of trinkets and treasure in her honor. Linking her arms under her she dragged Medusa to the pool of water at the entrance to the cave. Her gifts didnât include extra strength, and she was too spent to transform. Taking a golden chain from the ground she wrapped it around herself, and her sister then dragged them both into the water. With one deep breath she worked her way through the mountain, around the squid, and then watched in horror as the waters stirred, shaking the massive sunken shrine.
She knew then, taking Medusaâs body from her underwater grave had woken Poseidon. Theoâs only hope was that by the time he realized why heâd woken sheâd no longer be in the sea.
**
My prologue is third person, and the rest of the story is first person POV by Medusa, Theo's sister.
**
Chapter One
Superstitious
Eighteen years later
Theo got hurt all the time, but you didnât see mom fussing over every nic, scratch, or bruise on my sister. Even Theo developed momâs strange neurosis for cleaning up every drop of blood, and burning any clothes that she swears detergent wonât solve.
âYou have to be more careful,â mom chided like I was still six years old. And according to her I was still her baby, a miracle that she had to wait lifetimes for. It was an exaggeration, I knew, but I was eighteen now, and they couldnât keep me bound to this small town in the middle of nowhere forever. I had dreams, and one day Iâd get to see the ocean, the sea, and travel to different countries.
âItâs just a scratch,â I insisted. It really was, I hardly even saw a single drop of blood before it clotted. Theo shook her head in sympathy, she at least understood that mom was intense, but she shrugged and smiled in a way that begged for me to let our mom have this moment of caring for me. I knew she meant well, so Iâd put up with it one last time.
Theo promised sheâd come with me wherever I wanted to go, and assured our mom that not once has holding someone prisoner ever worked out well, and it was time. And good glory, sweet sea water it was absolutely time.
Time to live!
âIâm not sure itâs okay for you to leave just yet, maybe we can reschedule this adventure of yours?â Mom pleaded with her doe eyes, and for a moment I could have sworn they vibrated before I blinked the thought away. She could be scary when she was worried, and I could sympathize considering she was told by the doctor when I was a baby that I would be prone to re-injury.
It was a story Iâd been told many times, to remind myself to do my best not to fall, not to get hurt. The umbilical cord wrapped around my neck at birth, and without enough oxygen Iâd almost died, and all of my muscles were weak. I could fall and snap my neck, I could bleed to death if I wasnât careful. Iâd since learned how to look up my condition myself, and knew right away that my mom had been traumatized from almost losing me, and there was no reason I couldnât live a normal life.
Sheâd have to get over it.
âMom,â I tried to bite back my annoyance, âThis is happening. Iâm not a baby anymore, and Iâm completely recovered, I wonât bleed out on the street. Iâve pricked myself with a thumb tact and not a single drop of blood, my clotting platelets are fine.â I scoffed. âMore than fine, Iâm pretty sure Iâm like super human with how fine I am. Even this scratch, look,â I swatted her fingers and cleaning swab away before she could give me a bandage, âNot even a mark.â My mom always did that, insisted I keep a bandage on for weeks when Iâd peeked as to see Iâd already healed.
Mom nodded her head acquiescing, but not without turning her head to Theo for some kind of backup. My sister clutched momâs shoulder warmly, giving it a knowing squeeze. This was hard for her, letting go.
âIâll be with her.â Theo tossed the gauze into the fireplace for momâs benefit. She hated the sight of even a spec of blood. The fire roared to life, sparking reminding me of my sisterâs hair. I was grateful that sheâd be coming with me, but if she tried to smoother me like our mother Iâd ditch her the first chance I got.
Not for long, I did love them both, but long enough to feel normal. To feel free.
I smiled tightly at my mom, trying to keep myself from saying something that would change her mind about me leaving at all. Her only stipulation was to stay away from the sea and all of the sharks that could eat me alive. I begrudgingly agreed, with my fingers crossed in my pocket.
My mom narrowed her brows at Theo, putting all of her expectations on my sister to keep me safe before grabbing both of my hands and making me look her in the eyes. They were round, and full of conflicted emotions. Sheâd let me go, but she didnât like it.
âI know you will change the world,â she saw the eagerness, and the promise of great things to come, my mom was nothing but my biggest cheerleader, âbut,â she paused and I hoped she wasnât reconsidering, âthere are always monsters in the world that will do anything to keep things the way they are.â
âI know mom.â I shook my head, I was a nobody, any changes I made to the world would go mostly unnoticed. But, that was my mom. Overprotective as usual.
I was going to college, not a war zone.
As home disappeared behind us in our red, beat-up pickup, the large plot of wheat fields rolling along the hills, I thought to myself I could finally go to the University of Apollo to become a doctor. I could help families just like mine, make sure parents never have to lose a child if they donât have to. Theo and mom tried to keep it a secret, but I knew in my bones there was something special about me, about my blood.
I could save lives.
I would save lives.
âDoes mom know where weâre going?â I asked nervously, tugging on the seat belt so itâd mimic the tension I felt about going against what I knew my mom would be okay with. She could hardly stand the sight of blood, and as a doctor Iâd be around a lot of it.
âSheâll understand, she just doesnât want you to get hurt.â
âI wonât be the one hurt,â I defended.
Theo sighed, and nodded.
âWhat?â She had something to say, she always did that when she was holding herself back. "Just say it.â
âNot all pain is physical Aless. One day youâll understand that, and youâll find that when you seek to pull souls from the brink of death there will always be others who pull them back.â She paused to let that sink in, a chill ran down my spine on an otherwise warm sunny day. âThere is a reason why mom doesnât wish for you to speak of the godsââ
âSheâs superstitious,â I joked, but the tone in Theoâs voice was anything but jovial.
âItâs because sheâs lost too much to their games. Gaining their attention is a curse, and she doesnât want history to repeat itself.â Theo gripped the steering wheel so tightly her knuckles changed color from pink, to white, to red.
I held my breath holding myself back from asking what neither my mom nor my sister have answered before. She flexed her joints and sighed like a large weight was lifting from her shoulders.
âYou died Aless. It was never an illness. You donât remember your childhood because you died. You caught the eye of a powerful god, and they played with your life. We are nothing but amusement to them. Remember that.â
I sucked on my lower lip, nibbling on it uncomfortable by the conversation, but not wanting to piss off the one person that was helping me. She was my sister, and I loved her, but this was too much. I was alive, if I had died then the doctors revived me, and it had nothing to do with gods.
My sister could always read my expressions, and today was no different. She shook her head, resigned.
âYou donât have to believe me. Itâs better that you donât. Faith is a very powerful thing, that they tend to be attracted to. But,â she turned off the road, with the hazards blinking, she turned to make me promise, âswear to me youâll never use your blood to save someone.â
I gasped, slapping my hands to cover my shock. She knew. Of course she knew. Then why was she helping me?
âIâm not blinded by hope like our mother. I know youâve been experimenting with your blood. A little bit in the dirt to see if the wheat grew thicker. The bird that fell from the tree too soon. Or purposefully hurting yourself to see how fast youâd heal.â
âYou knewâŠâ But, the wheat didnât grow any better, and the bird never recovered.
She shrugged. âI was curious myself. It was exhausting staying up all night to make sure the wheat was the same height as the rest of the crop, and giving the bird a sedative to make sure I could free it in the woods without mom deciding to kill it so you donât gain the attention of the gods.â
âMom would kill it?â I shuddered at the thought of someone as sweet as my mom harming a spider let alone a bird.
âSheâd do it for you,â Theoâs words were weighty as she cupped the side of my face. Fingering my blond hair, she let the strands fall in waves. âItâs our turn to decide our own fates sis. The gods have decided who gets to be heroes and who they turn into monsters for too long. Learn to be a doctor, save lives, but promise me never use your blood. Stay under the radar.â
It was hard to say no to Theo when she believed so strongly that I could be a hero without the extra help. I owed it to her, and my mother to use every other means first, if only to ease their worries. I may not have believed in the gods, but that didnât mean there werenât people out there that could try to use me to save lives. I knew what desperation could do to a person, and Iâd be very careful not to be noticed by gods or otherwise.
This was my life, not theirs.
âIâll be careful,â I promised.
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Indie Kindle Unlimited:
A missing mother. A magical birthright. Can she uncover the secrets of her family legacy before the bloodline runs dry?
My name is Chrystal Dylan, and I was born with the worst super power ever, a lightning rod for supernatural energy that attracts vampires like cat nip to feed from. Nothing like being an all you can eat buffet, until one decided to âsaveâ me from that fate by triggering my transition into the very thing killing me.
Considering that was the least of my problems, I have a Council looking to eliminate all anomalies threatening to expose them to the human world, it just so happens that Iâm one of them, and so is my best friend Victor. I wonât go down without some answers, including what they did with my mom.
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NEW RELEASE Her Alien Prince on KU!
Released May 1st 2023 and already over 60 Reviews with a 4.4 average rating!
"I wasn't expecting it to be perfection, but it practically was. The writing, the depth, the detail, the storyline, the characters...it all was so amazing. Easily near the top of my favorite books of all time. I could re-read this many times. The uniqueness of the characters is fantastic." - Amazon Reviewer
"Alien romances are my favorite genre or romance as of recently and this is going to be added to my âfavoritesâ list. " - Amazon Reviewer
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Support the future books by checking out Kingdom of Acatalec, or even reading through the Divine Series or checking out my new pen name Sky Robert.
Request Kingdom of Acatalec in your library! Or grab from all the places here:
https://books2read.com/u/4Ajr8e
Kingdom of Acatalec is now in the following digital Library systems:
Allen County Public Library
Howard County Library System
Mauney Memorial Library
Kingdom of Acatalec is a fantasy adventure set in a futuristic world with deadly drone races, a kingdom with a mysterious secret that could end both civilizations, and along the way you have two magical dudes that she crushes on, but she's got more important things to do like survive this new world with the skills she's honed through adversity.
https://www.amazon.com/Kingdom-Acatalec-Book-1-ebook/dp/B0B4V9867P/
Magical world of aliens, check.
Lots of secrets, and world building check, and check.
Mystery, murder, and lies... Absolutely!
The romance takes longer to develop, yup.
MC is in a wheelchair, and that doesn't stop her from kicking ass, YESSSS!
It starts off slow, then takes off like a rocket and sucks you into the new world of Acatalec, full of adventure, romance, magic, and a futuristic Seattle with sciencey possibilities like drones as the future of transportation, brain implants like what we see Elon Musk engineering, and contact lenses that connect with it.
Here's what people have been saying about the book so far!
Go start reading/listening to Kingdom of Acatalec . Available in all the places books/stuffage is sold including Kindle, Audible and more! Even request the book at your local library! I would absolutely love it if you did that!
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Don't forget to dig out your free book My Abett and give it a read, you can devour it in under 2 hours for a small reality escape.
You can read My Abett with Kindle Unlimited to help support the universe of Acatalec, or fish it out of your readers from downloading your freesies copy from Bookfunnel đ„°đ
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This book takes place before Kingdom of Acatalec, but I wrote if after, so reading it first does change how you read this book, as information is revealed that isn't known in book one.
~Stevie, author of all things fantasical and otherworldly adventurous, mom of a few humans in training... including my hubby. Overall booknerd, and yes... I am writing this in my pjs. Why not?
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