SILVER
STRIFE
J.A.
Kenney
RELEASE
DAY BLITZ/TOUR PACKAGE
Release Date — June 21, 2014
Tour Dates — June 21 - 27, 2014
Bottom
Drawer Publications is proud to announce the release today of Silver Strife, book one of the sci-fi/fantasy
Immortal Quicksilver series, by J. A. Kenney.
Genre: Sci-fi/Fantasy
Book: Novel
Length: 87,000 words
Formats: ePub, mobi, PDF &
Paperback
Summary
Silver Strife: An Immortal Quicksilver Novel
Quicksilver
is an ancient immortal warrior. One of a group of alien beings that were once
pure energy, living in the void between galaxies, and who have taken mortal
form to influence history.
The
Purists, compelled by a zealot prophet, are immortal extremists who will use
any means at their disposal to wipe out all
mortal life. Qui and her Conservationist brethren have spent millions of years
fighting for their survival.
In
Silver Strife, Quicksilver has been
reincarnated on an Earth devastated by centuries of planet-wide civil war. She
awakens in the body of a human Elite named Lini: one of a race of superhumans,
bred and trained by a Purist-led government to massacre the remnants of
humanity. Quicksilver joins the rebel forces, despite their reluctance to trust
a hated Elite, determined to take down the brutal dictatorship that has
decimated the human race.
From
their first meeting, she is drawn to Captain David Mitchell, the rebel officer
who aided her escape from the Elite's gilded cage. Even after swearing to never
love again when her last mortal lover was killed saving her life, she finds
herself falling for the honorable and driven soldier.
When
Quicksilver crosses the path of an immortal ally on a top-secret mission behind
enemy lines, a decision is forced upon her. She must choose between the fate of
the human rebels, her mortal lover, and fulfilling her Conservationist oath to
protect all mortal life.
Excerpt
C
h a p t e r O n e
R E B I R T H
I
was alive, in a new mortal shell, a different place, and time. If I had
believed in some benevolent supernatural creature that controlled every aspect
of reality, I would have thanked it. Instead, I just felt a sort of ambivalent
relief.
Time was a true fourth dimension.
Ages and epochs made long sweeping circles across the void, and immortals traveled
between those rings like icebreakers smashing through a frozen sea. So we died
just like everyone else, a truth that I thought a glaring irony. However, we
came back, born again into new flesh, and in this new vessel, I could forge
ahead in the eons long war against the Purists—a war that raged across the
whole of space and time.
For years, I caught only brief
glimpses of this life: a stern woman’s face looking down at me as I lay in a
clear plastic bassinet, the pain of a broken wrist, and the unpleasant jab of
tanbark against my spine. Born into this body, my spirit slept in a small
corner of its mind. United and yet separate until the physical form was ready,
for a child’s mind simply could not process eternity.
My thoughts snapped into place,
and I inherited, in excruciating detail, the memories of a lifetime lived. No
immortal knew what happened when our minds achieved synergy, but it felt like
my soul suddenly clicked into alignment with this body’s neurons. The process
was abrupt and shocking even after untold permutations, like a memory dump from
a massive supercomputer. Twenty years of daily events, knowledge, and struggles
were mine in a split second. I knew who I was, where I was, and what I was. A
place, time, and identity that could not have been less to my liking.
My vision cleared. I stood in a
well-lit hall lined with thick metal plates and reinforced doors. A calm yet
commanding voice played in the background—a subtle reminder to cultivate unity
and serve the greater purpose. “Preserve strength. Embody perfection. Maintain
obedience.”
My eyes discreetly explored the
lines and curves of my body. It was petite and feminine, with sufficient curves
to avoid being boyish but a distinct lack of height. The skin on my delicate
long-fingered hands was a dark caramel, the nails neatly manicured, and I ran
one of them through straight waist-length black hair to feel its smooth silky
thickness.
Surrounding me were a plethora of
other young people, all of them disturbingly alike. They all had dark hair,
dark eyes, and honey-toned skin, complemented by bodies that were young,
attractive, and fit. These were the Union Elite. All dressed in uniforms of
white button-down shirts, black slacks or skirts, and shiny polished black
shoes. They looked like bronzes cast from the same mold, and the effect was
eerie, like being surrounded by dozens of identical twins all filing in an
unnatural orderly fashion to their next classes. This compound was built to
house and educate society’s so-called best and brightest, but the hall and
building surrounding it were armored for a reason.
I knew, from this and previous
lives, that there was danger here, and not just to the students’ minds from
blatant indoctrination. Their Civil War was a constant threat, often bleeding
over into these remaining pockets of civilization. The year was three hundred
and fifty-six in the Plebeian calendar, and this was the planet Earth.
The Elites’ university was
situated on the semi-arid high plains that I remembered as the United States of
America. Now this area of windblown and sun-scorched earth was called the North
Western Sector. When the new era was founded centuries ago, the people of the
world had experienced a brief period of renewed hope. The world had been
united, all people were equal, and they would work together to build a better
future for humankind. The newly christened Elites would be benevolent and
altruistic leaders.
The naïveté of those people and
their dream of endless peace had not lasted a decade. Instead, the world had
been plunged into a centuries-long Civil War, and was ruled over by a cruel and
selfish caste of super humans who viewed the rest of humanity as base,
dangerous, animals. All at the whim and design of a single Purist, another
immortal, who had twisted those noble dreams to his purpose. Yet, those events
were now distant history, and I had to live in the here and now.
A bell chimed, and the students
disappeared into their bunker-like classrooms. I stood frozen in place as they
passed me by, still caught in the shock of a new and different existence. A
number of confused glances were thrown my way.
“Lini. Is something wrong?” A soft
touch to my arm preceded the serious expression that drifted into view. The
voice and face were familiar. One of the many Elites who was genetically this
body’s first cousin. She motioned me toward one of the open doors.
“No, nothing is wrong, Saran. I
apologize for my inattention.” I forced myself into motion and trailed after
the line of students filing into their next lecture.
The room was stark, white
cinderblock walls with a half-dozen small wooden desks facing a larger desk and
chalkboard. The lack of windows managed to give it an even more depressing
penal feel. I plopped into an open seat, dropped my light backpack on the floor,
and turned to face the instructor.
“Today, we will be discussing the
foundation of the Union,” said Charles, the history professor. He leaned
against his large wooden desk in a casual pose that portrayed both confidence
and arrogance in spades. Dark hair and eyes, sharp cheekbones, and a toned
body, a model specimen of the Union’s breeding program. In a vain attempt to
delay a long afternoon of monotony and conveniently edited events, I sighed,
and put my hand up.
Charles ignored me.
“Before the founding of the Union,
the world was littered with separate countries. These small powers drove a
nearly constant state of warfare, resulting in widespread poverty, and
humanitarian abuses. Today, I want us to discuss how these governmental,
cultural, social, and economic entities were motivated by greed, racism, and
false prophets to enforce their individual wills on all peoples. Saran, if you
could read the excerpt on page 325, the third paragraph concerning Manifest
Destiny.”
History, or the self-serving
fiction of a victorious reactionary authoritarian regime.
The Union had started out as a
tempting illusion dangled before the people of Earth by a Purist, but it
quickly turned into the malignant nightmare he intended. Millions died in the
ethnic cleansing Petrov instituted, and even more in the unsuccessful wars to
overthrow him. Hundreds of years later, a small group ruled from on high by
virtue of the “superiority” of their birth and technological advancement had
ground to a screeching halt. Meanwhile, the rest of humanity was withering
under the weight of its own impotence.
The distinct crack of submachine
gun fire yanked me back into the present. My senses instantly alert to the
slightest movement. Another shot rang out, and men’s shouts laced with pain
came from the direction of the building’s entrance. The unexpected sounds faded
into a misleading tranquility.
“Raid,” I whispered to shatter the
pregnant silence.
Buy Links
The e-book is available for sale for $5.99 via the BDP
Digital Shop and other online booksellers
Publisher Shop
http://www.bottomdrawerpublications.net/#!silver-strife/cg34
Links for Amazon, Apple, All Romance, Barnes & Noble, Kobo etc
will be provided when the book becomes available for pre-order soon.
Release Giveaway
1st Prize: Paperback copy of “Silver Strife”
2nd Prize: $10 BDP Voucher
3 copies of “Silver Strife” e-book
a Rafflecopter giveaway
About the Author
J.A. KENNEY
J.A. Kenney lives in Aurora, Colorado, with a breathtaking view of the Rocky Mountains—in the winter, when the sky is clear, and if she stands on her tiptoes in exactly the right spot.
Three cats, a Chihuahua mix who thinks she is a Mastiff, and her beloved husband share her humble abode.
She has been writing since she found out that playing alien witches was more fun than tag. Her stories are a blend of science fiction, fantasy, and romance with strong female protagonists and drool worthy heroes.
When she is not writing she reads voraciously, sings, skis, rides her Harley, and grudgingly assists with home improvement projects.
http://jakenney.com/
https://www.facebook.com/jakenneyauthor
https://twitter.com/JennyAKenney
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