A Pirate's Calling by Darren Simon Book Tour and Giveaway :)
The Dangerous Legacy
A
Pirate's Calling Book 1
by
Darren Simon
Genre:
YA Historical Fantasy
Thin,
pale, awkward, bullied, Sam Every is a thirteen-year-old who finds
comfort among his friends and his days at the beach. The ocean
beckons to him. It is where he feels safest. Fitting in no longer
matters when he is near the Pacific’s rolling waves. Gazing toward
the endless blue where it touches the horizon, he imagines the ports
he might someday reach and ponders his future.
Little
does he know an apparition—a hauntingly beautiful girl from the
sea—will lead him farther from his home than he could ever dream,
for destiny has given him a dangerous legacy
Thunder
erupted again in the distance. The splash of a second cannonball,
closer than the first, rocked The Mutineer. But had the cannon fire
come from Fog Island or another vessel? “Who’s after us?” Sam
shouted. The
man who had saved them sprinted to the tiller to take control of the
sloop before he bothered to answer Sam’s question. He pulled
sharply on the tiller. The sloop lurched to the right until the deck
nearly touched water. Sam fell and rolled against a crate. Seawater
spilled into the boat and drenched him. His back tingled again. The
burning blade! Did it call to him? If so, he ignored it. A fire sword
magically embedded in his back would not stop The Mutineer from
capsizing, which the boat was about to do. It didn’t. Instead, the
sloop’s speed doubled as the man brought the craft in line with a
stronger windstream. “Look!”
the man pointed to the right of The Mutineer. Sam, now back on his
feet, stared in the direction he pointed. Through the darkness was
the outline of a large craft three stories high. “The way I see
it,” the man shouted over the crash of water against his ship’s
hull, “if Maximilian Black is after you, you must have angered
Captain Jem Slayer. Slayer is a bloodthirsty pirate with his own
fleet and enough wealth to command an army of pirates; and Black is
Slayer’s right hand.” Sam
held onto the railing for balance and inched closer to Sarah. She
watched the mystery man from the side as if… as if she doesn’t
want to make eye contact. Maybe she doesn’t trust him as much as
she said. Maybe she senses something. Sarah
grasped his hand and gently squeezed. He
nodded to her. “It’s going to be all right,” he lied. The
man continued to shout his explanation. “Since Black failed, I
assume Slayer has sent a warship to do what Black could not. Kill
you!” He looked at the sails of his sloop. “Hang on, young ones!
We are going to race the wind!” One
more explosion cut through the night. A cannonball screamed as it
hurtled toward them. “No!” Sam mouthed moments before the
cannonball splashed into the sea yards from the hull. Water sprayed
onto the deck. “Ha,
you bloody heathens! You shall not catch The Mutineer tonight!” The
man held the tiller with one hand and shook a fist with the other. As
they pushed farther out to sea, the moon emerged from behind a cloud
and revealed the pursuing ship. The glow showed a vessel with three
masts topped with squared sails. Two
rows of dark squares dotted the length of her hull— gunports. So
this is what a warship looks like. We’re dead. A cloud began to
eclipse the moon, but before it did, Sam saw the mark emblazoned on
the flag that soared above the ship— a skull and bones. “Pirates!”
Deadly Waters
A
Pirate's Calling Book 2
Thirteen-year-old
Sam Every has traveled back in time to the Golden Age of Piracy to
face Captain Jem Slayer, master of the dark arts. Deceived into
handing Slayer the ultimate weapon, the Sword of Zel-Kar, Sam has
lost his hands, sliced off in his first clash with the evil
pirate.
But
all is not lost.
Sam’s
friends have found their way back in time, and with the help of the
pirate hunter, Benjamin Hornigold, have rescued him from the island
where Slayer marooned him. Now, aided by a new band of rogues and a
mystery friend, Sam must rise above his injuries and find the
strength to again face Slayer before it is too late—before the
future is forever shattered.
Come
on, you bastard. Show yourself! He’d
had enough of this world pushing him around. Enough of Slayer. Enough
death. Enough of being scared of the next threat. No more! The time
had come to start kicking some ass. Closing his eyes, he concentrated
on the magic within him. He had to figure a way to control his
powers. To command them to life … now.
Think,
Sam! Words flashed though his mind. Ancient words. An incantation.
Atamou Runfora Tananou. He knew what the words meant. Serve me now.
His arms and wrists vibrated. His eyes shot open. A crimson glow
surrounded his stumps. Yes! “Captain,
three points off bow,” a young crewman shouted from the bow. “Looks
like mountains rising from the sea.” “What
say you?” Rackham whipped out his spyglass and held it to his eye.
He climbed atop a railing, grasping a shroud with one hand. “Hell’s
bells. I’ve never seen the like. Devil boy, you best see this. Me
thinks this be our destination.” Sam
joined Rackham at the bow. The glow around his stumps vanished. The
pirate captain leaped from the railing and held the spyglass up to
Sam’s eye. Peering through the telescope, Sam gaped at the
discovery. Actually,
stone pillars— maybe ten in all— towered over the sea, like rows
of skyscrapers along a city block. How was such a thing possible in
the middle of the ocean with no shore— no island— visible in any
direction? The pillars shouldn’t be there, but they were. As if by
magic. “That’s where we have to go.” Sam again thought of the
incantation. His stumps ignited. “Get us there, Captain. Leave the
beast to me.” A
terrible roar bellowed, rocking the ship to the starboard side. Sam
stumbled against a chest. The icy touch of fear rose up his back,
threatening to steal his courage. Men around him grabbed onto lines,
the long guns— anything to keep from falling. When the ship righted
itself, he crossed to the port side. No way was he going to cower. This
showdown was going to happen. “I’m waiting for you.” The
monster rose from the deep off the port side. A massive serpent with
two reptilian heads. A serpentine body, covered with diamond-shaped
scales towered over the ship’s sails. Two necks branched off, each
with a dragon head and snout filled with dagger-length teeth. A line
of spikes stretched from the top of each head like Mohawks. Sam’s
chest burned. His heart beat like a horse’s hooves charging over a
dirt road. “Come on, you filthy snake. You want me. Here I am. Come
and get me.”
Darren Simon is a former longtime newspaper journalist who now works in government affairs on California water issues and teaches college English. In his spare time, he is a freelance magazine writer. Guardian’s Nightmare is his first novel. The second book in the series is also under contract with Divertir Publishing. He resides in California’s desert southwest with his wife, two sons and two crazy dogs.
Follow
the tour HERE
for exclusive content and a giveaway!
Comments
Post a Comment