by Sharon Shinn
I caught my breath. “I see you,” I whispered. “And you see me.”
He put his fingers under my chin. “That will be my name for you, and I will call you by it so often that soon it will be everybody’s name for you,” he said softly. “Amelista. Because I truly do know you—and you know me.”
“You were the first one,” I said. “To look at me and see me.”
I felt the carriage make a wide, lurching turn in the courtyard before it came to a stop. “Now everyone will see you,” Jordan said in a soft voice. “Are you ready?”
I took a deep breath, but before I could answer, the door was flung open by one of the palace footmen, who was already bowing. I thought of all the hazards that lay ahead of me—a lifetime of lies, of pretense, of delicate, perilous conversations where I could betray myself with a single word.
A lifetime of freedom, of choice, of absolute independence, only my own desires determining where I went and what I did.
A lifetime at Jordan’s side.
I didn’t know how I could be ready for any of it.
“I am,” I said.
Jordan and his echoes exited the carriage first, and then he waved aside the footman so he could be the one to help me out. I took his hand in a firm grip, set my feet on the worn brickwork of the courtyard, and stepped forward into my new life.
If you enjoyed the Uncommon Echoes books, try Sharon Shinn’s Elemental Blessings series, beginning with Troubled Waters.
In a world where everyone is defined by one of five elemental affiliations, Zoe Ardelay is coru, a woman of blood and water. She has lived an obscure life since her father was banished from the king’s court ten years ago, but now she has returned to the royal city to claim her heritage. As she watches queens and courtiers scheme for power and influence, she finds she can trust only one man—the king’s confidante, Darien Serlast, a hunti man of stone and wood. Slowly, she learns secret after secret—why her father was banished, what terrible news the king is hiding, and what kind of power she carries in her own veins.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo by Todd Kneib
Sharon Shinn has been part of the science fiction and fantasy world since 1995, when she published her first novel, The Shape-Changer’s Wife, which won the Crawford Award. In 2010, the Romantic Times Magazine gave Shinn the Career Achievement Award in the Science Fiction/Fantasy category, and in 2012, Publisher’s Weekly magazine named The Shape of Desire one of the best science fiction/fantasy books of the year. Three of her novels have been named to the ALA’s lists of Best Books for Young Adults (now Best Fiction for Young Adults). She has had books translated into Polish, German, Spanish, and Japanese. She can be found at sharonshinn.net and facebook.com/sharonshinnbooks.
ABOUT THE PUBLISHER
This book is published on behalf of the author by the Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency.
https://ethanellenberg.com
Email: [email protected]