As a member of V Mafia, I get an early peek at new content from author Victoria Scott. So what should find its way into my Inbox but the first excerpt of her upcoming YA novel, Fire & Flood! But this story doesn't end there - Boss Victoria has given me permission to share this excerpt with you, my lovely Followers! So, for our enjoyment, I present the First Excerpt Reveal (set in the first 30 pages of the book) of Fire & Flood:
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Scholastic, February 2014
First Excerpt Reveal
I drove across the US of A, left my
family without an explanation, and now I’m either too late or there was never
anything here to begin with. F my life. Rearing back, I kick the door as hard
as I can. Then I wrap both hands around the door handles and release a noise
like a wild banshee as I pull back.
The doors swing open.
I’m not sure whether to celebrate or
freak out. I decide to do neither and slip inside. As I walk around the inside
of the museum, listening to the sound of my footsteps echo off the walls, I
imagine I am moments from death. It’s sad, I think, that this is all it takes
to break my sanity.
Two curling flights of stairs bow out
from the first-floor lobby, and red and white tiles cover
the floors. There are gilded picture frames everywhere. So many that I think
the placement of the frames — and not their contents — is the real art.
Everything, absolutely everything, smells like wax. I mosey up to an abandoned
reception desk and leaf through the glossy pamphlets littering the surface. I
hold one of the pamphlets up to my nose. Yep, wax.
I glance around, having no idea what to
look for. Will there be a sign like at school registration? Students with last
names A–K this way?
On my left, I notice a long hallway
dotted with doors on either side. Nothing looks particularly unusual. But when
I glance to my right, I spot something. There’s a door at the end of the
corridor that has a sliver of light glowing beneath it. I’m sure it’s just an
administration office, one where someone forgot to flip the switch. But I’ve
got nothing better to go on, so I head toward it.
I pause outside the door, wondering if
I’m about to get busted for B&E. Then I turn the handle and find myself at
the top of another winding staircase.
You’ve
got to be kidding me. What is this, Dracula’s bachelor pad?
I’ve watched a lot of scary movies, and
I’ve learned nothing good is ever at the bottom of a winding staircase. Pulling
in a breath and preparing myself to be eaten alive, I head down. My shoes are
loud against the steps. So loud, I imagine they are intentionally trying to get
me killed.
When I reach the final few stairs, I
ready myself to look around the bend. My heart is racing, and I secretly pray
the worst I encounter is an angry janitor with a wax addiction. I turn the bend
— and my eyes nearly pop from my skull.
The enormous room is perfectly circular,
dotted with candles to light the space. Surrounding the walls are rows and rows
of dark, rich mahogany bookshelves. A large round table stands in the center of
the red-and-white-tiled floor. The room is spectacular, but what it holds is so
jarring, my ears ring.
Across every shelf, every spot on the
table, every tile on the floor — are small sculptures of hands. And in a few of
those hands — the ones still performing their duty — are eggs. There are only
nine eggs left, it seems. For a moment, I imagine how amazing it would have
been to see each hand holding an egg, but it’s enough just to see these nine.
The eggs seem to dance in the candle
flame, and as I move closer, I realize why. The surfaces of the eggs are almost
iridescent, their colors changing depending on how you look at them. They are
different sizes, too; some as big as a basketball, others as small as a peach.
I don’t need the device in my pocket to
tell me what my gut already knows.
This is the Pandora Selection Process.
----- ----- -----
Title: Fire & Flood
Author: Victoria Scott
Release Date: February 25, 2014
Publisher: Scholastic
Find It On: Goodreads
Summary:
A modern day thrill ride, where a teen girl and her animal companion must participate in a breathtaking race to save her brother's life—and her own.
Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.
Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.
The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?
So there you have it! Epically awesome, yes? I hope you are now as excited for this book as I am! If you haven't already, be sure to add it to your Goodreads lists here!
And just to add awesomesauce frosting to the epic reveal cake, Boss Victoria is doing a giveaway! Enter below for the chance to win a copy of The Dark Unwinding (US winner), The Killing Woods (UK winner), or signed Fire & Flood bookmarks (US & UK winners). Good luck!
Release Date: February 25, 2014
Publisher: Scholastic
Find It On: Goodreads
Summary:
A modern day thrill ride, where a teen girl and her animal companion must participate in a breathtaking race to save her brother's life—and her own.
Tella Holloway is losing it. Her brother is sick, and when a dozen doctors can't determine what's wrong, her parents decide to move to Montana for the fresh air. She's lost her friends, her parents are driving her crazy, her brother is dying—and she's helpless to change anything.
Until she receives mysterious instructions on how to become a Contender in the Brimstone Bleed. It's an epic race across jungle, desert, ocean, and mountain that could win her the prize she desperately desires: the Cure for her brother's illness. But all the Contenders are after the Cure for people they love, and there's no guarantee that Tella (or any of them) will survive the race.
The jungle is terrifying, the clock is ticking, and Tella knows she can't trust the allies she makes. And one big question emerges: Why have so many fallen sick in the first place?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
So there you have it! Epically awesome, yes? I hope you are now as excited for this book as I am! If you haven't already, be sure to add it to your Goodreads lists here!
And just to add awesomesauce frosting to the epic reveal cake, Boss Victoria is doing a giveaway! Enter below for the chance to win a copy of The Dark Unwinding (US winner), The Killing Woods (UK winner), or signed Fire & Flood bookmarks (US & UK winners). Good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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