Shadow of Flame
Page 37
Dragons. Freaking dragons. “Impossible,” she whispered.
As one, the people around the fire sprang into motion. Ashem leaped over a log and charged up the hill. Darkness deeper than night coalesced around him then burst forth like a negative image of the sun. Where there had been a man, a sixty-foot dragon, black as pitch, roared a challenge to the star-encrusted sky.
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SOUL OF SMOKE by Caitlyn McFarland.
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Copyright ©2015 by Caitlyn McFarland
Author Note
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the story. It’s the first book I’ve ever had to write on a deadline, and as the mother of three small kids, it was a challenge to finish.
This note is partially a repeat of what I said at the end of book one. I wanted the dragons’ diversity to reflect the real world, but I haven’t had much opportunity to experience other cultures firsthand. I did my best, but I’m sure that I’ve glossed over, missed out on or misinterpreted elements of each of my dragons’ originating cultures. I take full responsibility and apologize for any offense given.
For a guide on how to pronounce the characters’ names and other words, please visit my website, www.caitlynmcfarland.com.
Acknowledgments
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed the story. It’s the first book I’ve ever had to write on a deadline, and as the mother of Every time I sit down to write a book, I think I’ve figured out how to do it by myself. And every time I’m wrong. First, as always, I have to thank my family. All of you. You made me who I am. You support me every day. Thank you.
Enormous thanks to my editors, Angela James and Libby Murphy, who—as far as I know—didn’t panic when they read the original draft of this book. If this book is any good, it’s because of you.
Thank you, also, to my agent, Marlene Stringer. Not only for pulling the first book of this trilogy from the slush, but for all the time and advice. You’re awesome!
Thank you Charlie, Erin, Kim, Laura, Rae, and The Future Bestselling Author’s List. I never would have gotten anywhere without you guys.
Thank you Huw Llewellyn Thomas, for translating the Welsh in this book, and to Sage for teaching me about climbing and climbers. Another thanks to Erin for helping me with the Hawaiian. Any mistakes in the book are mine, not theirs.
As always, thank you to my readers. If you picked up this book, it’s probably because you stuck with me through book one, and I can’t express how grateful I am.
Also available in the Dragonsworn series
from Caitlyn McFarland
and Carina Press
Soul of Smoke
Coming soon:
Truth of Embers
About the Author
Originally from the Midwest, Caitlyn McFarland currently lives in Utah with her husband and three young daughters. She has a bachelor’s degree in linguistics from Brigham Young University. When she’s not writing about dragons or running around after her daughters, she can be found hunched over a sewing machine making elaborate princess costumes. You can find Caitlyn online in the following places:
Website: www.caitlynmcfarland.com
Twitter: @CHMcFarland
Facebook: Facebook.com/caitlynhmcfarland
Instagram: caitlynmcfarland
Pinterest (including a board for the Dragonsworn trilogy): Pinterest.com/caitlynhmcfarla
Discover the roots of Dragonsworn in SOUL OF SMOKE—available now!
SOUL OF SMOKE
Dragonsworn, book one
On a hike deep in the Rockies, Kai Monahan watches as a dozen dragons—actual freaking dragons—battle beneath a fat white moon. When one crashes nearly dead at her feet and transforms into a man, Kai does the only thing a decent person could: she grabs the nearest sword and saves his life.
As the dragon/man, Rhys, recovers from the attack, a chance brush of skin against skin binds him inextricably to Kai. Becoming heartsworn to a human is the last thing Rhys wants. But with an ancient enemy gathering to pit dragons against humanity and his strength nearly depleted, Kai has just become the one thing Rhys needs. A complete bond will give him the strength to fight; a denied bond means certain death.
Kai is terrified at the thought of allowing any dragon into her mind...or her heart. Accepting the heartswearing and staying with the dragons means sacrificing everything, and Kai must decide if her freedom is worth risking Rhys’s life—a life more crucial to the fate of humanity than she could possibly know.
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Escape into a world ruled by dragons!
Discover Lorenda Christensen’s Never Deal with Dragons series—available now!
NEVER DEAL WITH DRAGONS
Never Deal with Dragons, book one
Winner, 2012 Romance Writers of America® Golden Heart Award, Paranormal Romance
Consoling a sobbing dragon and serving pig buffets are just part of the job for Myrna Banks. Working for a mediation firm, it’s her job to get humans compensated for damages caused by the dragons who now rule. But her “typical” day is interrupted by Trian Chobardan, an old flame who sneaked out of her bed two years ago, taking her heart and a handful of classified documents with him. Myrna would love to show him the door, but he’s been sent by North America’s reigning dragon lord for help negotiating a truce with a powerful rival to avert war.
DANCING WITH DRAGONS
Never Deal with Dragons, book two
If Carol Jenski knows anything, it’s fashion—and it’s not in fashion to consort with dragons, even though they’ve coexisted with humans since World War III. Still, she would never have agreed to take part in a plot against them. Now a dragon lord has called for her head, her boyfriend is MIA and she’s been abandoned in a foreign country.
’til DRAGONS DO US PART
Never Deal with Dragons, book three
Savannah Cavenaugh became a top art thief thanks to a secret ability—a dragonmorph, she can literally fly away from the scene of the crime. Next up: stealing a priceless painting out from under the snout of Lord Relobu, North America’s fearsome dragon ruler. True, she’s never had to work in the midst of Earth’s most polarizing nuptials before. Keeping her identity hidden will demand she get creative, to say the least.
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ISBN-13: 9781459290129
Shadow of Flame
Copyright © 2015 by Caitlyn McFarland
Edited by: Angela James and Libby Murphy
All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 225 Duncan Mill Road, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada M3B 3K9.
All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
This edition published by arrangement with Harlequin Books S.A.
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