Thursday, February 19, 2009

Thursday's Special Is...Eternal!

ETERNAL by Cynthia Leitich Smith


Buy ETERNAL from Amazon


At last Miranda is the life of the party: all she had to do was die. Elevated and adopted by none other than the reigning King of the Mantle of Dracul, Miranda goes from high-school theatre wannabe to glamorous royal fiend overnight. Her reckless and adoring guardian angel, meanwhile—fighting in guise as the princess’s personal assistant—has his work cut out for him with the Master’s Death Day gala fast approaching. Can Zachary save his girl’s soul and redeem himself before all hell arrives, quite literally, on their doorstep? Here, with diabolical wit, Cynthia Leitich Smith revisits the deliciously dark parallel world of her novel TANTALIZE, this time with a breathtaking new cast.








Excerpt from ETERNAL:


/Zachary’s point of view /

I’m Miranda’s guardian angel (GA for short). A newbie created after the first atomic blast in 1945. Miranda is my second assignment and my reason for being. Not that she has clue one. She can’t even see me. Nobody can unless I choose to show myself. That’s a no- no.


We GAs have our limits. Sure, we help out when we can, but not in any way that’s clearly detectable . . . or at least traceable (I’m known to push the limits now and then).

Night after night, I watch her sleep. She’s restless. Always restless. I’m forever rearranging the sheets so her legs don’t get tangled. Otherwise, she’ll wake up.

She doesn’t get enough rest as it is. She worries about little mistakes. Or what she frets are mistakes. What other people think of her. What will happen next. All humans do. I wish they could glimpse infinity. It would make glitches like a C in algebra or a nitpicking parent or being ignored by The Guy feel a whole lot less fatal.

I would love to talk to Miranda. To tell her that.


*****


/Miranda’s point of view /


I debate telling Lucy that my dad is in Alaska (or at least floating on a boat around it) with some mysterious woman who’s forging his postcards, that my mom is in the midst of one of her trademark needy phases because of it, and that she may sign off on sending me to a shrink after I tell her about today’s audition.

“My beanbag is possessed,” I reply instead.

“Interesting.” At HORROR, Lucy holds up The Grudge. “What do you think?”

We’ve seen it before. That said, I love movies. Lucy and I have been watching films and munching popcorn — with real butter — on her L-shaped sectional almost every weekend for as long as I can remember, and last summer, my job was working concession at the mall multiplex. “I think —”

“Can I help you ladies fi nd something spooky?” It’s Lucy’s crush, “Kurt,” a fact we deduced early on due to the helpful plastic name tag on his red polo- style shirt.

He’s tall, taller than Lucy — which, for her, is key — a sandy blond, and looks a couple of years older than us. Despite the safety pin stuck through his right nostril, he’s remarkably cute for a DVD rental guy.
****************************************

Answer the following question for a chance to win a free copy of ETERNAL, or pop in and chat with Cynthia! Ask questions, talk books...

Monster Day Death Gala may be one name for your high school prom. Give us another name.

34 comments:

Chris Eldin said...

Good Morning Everyone!

This week is flying by waaayyy too fast, with so many terrific authors!

Welcome, Cynthia!

Cynthia is a veteran blogger with a wealth of information collected over the years... Go check it out!

http://cynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com/

Then get your coffee and come stay a while...
:-)

laughingwolf said...

welcome cynthia :)

thx for the cuppa, chris

for a prom night banner i might go with:

BUSH/CHENEY TEXAS SHOTGUN-CHAINSAW REVIVAL :O lol

ooooooooo did i say that? hee hee

Charles Gramlich said...

Great titles for these.

Cynthia Leitich Smith said...

Thanks so much for your hospitality! I'm happy to be here today and will check back regularly!

Chris Eldin said...

Morning Cynthia!
Hi LW and Charles! Thanks for popping in!!
:-)

laughingwolf said...

sounds like a great read, cyn... even for a ol wuffster ;) lol

bookboy28 said...

I read TANTALIZE last year. Can't wait to get my hands on ETERNAL.

bookboy28 said...

As far as a name for the prom, how about "Have a great SUCKING time at the Prom?"

Anonymous said...

Hey Cynthia!

Can't wait to read Eternal--already have my signed book plate (thanks).

Prom name (cynical for Miss Cyn)

From Beer to Maternity

Coll

Elana Johnson said...

I ordered this book and can't wait for it to come! I love the present tense-ness of it. Woot!

Chris Eldin said...

LOL! Keep them coming in!

And if you have any prom stories to share...
;-)

Cynthia Leitich Smith said...

I'm *loving* these entries. Thanks to ElanaJ for ordering the book and to all for your enthusiasm. Let me know if you have any q's I can answer!

Barrie said...

Love the excerpt! The nickname for my high school prom: I Lost My Contact Lens On The Dance Floor. Which really happened to me, I might add!!!

Erika Powell said...

My prom should be renamed
"Boyfriends a no-show, dances with soccer coach while best friend wins Prom Queen."
I can't wait to read this book!

Katterley said...

"Under the Bloody Sea." it's almost the name for the prom that was, back in the day...

Ooh, how 'bout this: "The Prom that Was."

donnas said...

Eternal sounds great. Cant wait for the chance to read it.

Prom title - Night of the Living Undead.

Cynthia Leitich Smith said...

Hugely creative. I'm almost positive that there's a series in this concept. We've already got the titles.

CindaChima said...

My after-prom was held at the Montrose Drive-In. So we could call it Attack of the Body Snatchers or Full Frontal Snogging.

Cinda Chima
Congrats on the release!! Looking forward to the read. There's one more book in the series, right?

McKoala said...

I just love the first line of that pitch!

Scottish. No prom. Year 6 dance, though. Sweaty Paws.

Jackie B. said...

Great excerpt! I would love to read this book. Sounds funny yet spooky!
My prom should have been called the Deadsville Hop! It was so boring! Not much boo-gieing going on. Mostly just a bunch of wallflowers. LOL.We stayed long enough to take picturesand hauled but to the after parties. They should have been called the Moster Smash!

Liviania said...

*don't enter me*

My junior prom was "Safari Night" - a theme I always found lame. It could have been called "What do you mean carcasses aren't atmospheric?"

sweetmelissa818 said...

My prom was 8 years ago, and I didn't go! It might have been called "work it out", because it was in the tiny little gym.

Stephanie said...

Hi Cynthia! I just got the Eternal bookmark in the mail the other day, thank you. ( Although at first I did wonder who I knew with that return address, and was a little reluctant to open it) So. Prom. Must we?

Sadly, our theme was Endless Love. Should have been A Night We Will All Repress For the Rest of our Lives!

Cynthia Leitich Smith said...

Hugely fun (hugs to those having horrific flashbacks)!

Anonymous said...

How about a sock hop theme and the name is... "Rock Your Socks Off" haha

Chris Eldin said...

Hi again Everyone! Some really fun prom titles so far!! Two more hours to get your guesses in....this looks like a really cool book!!!!
:-)

Brooke Reviews said...

I wish my prom would have had a cool theme! It seems if I recall correctly mine was "Under the Sea" blah. lol

Something more dark and romantic would be cool. I've always wanted to do a grand ball or something! Masquerade Ball!

Chris Eldin said...

Thank you to everyone who stopped by!!

The contest is closed, but everyone is most welcome to drop by and chat...

Many special thanks to Cynthia for spending time with us!! Her book looks like a wonderful read!

Cynthia will be by at any time to announce the winner of a free copy of her book....

Thanks again, all!!
:-)

Dorothy said...

How about this for the alternative to Monster Day Death Gala?

Fearless Fiends' Death Festival

I'm a longtime fan of Cynsations.

darbyscloset said...

How about the name "Carrie" for a prom.....that would be a red prom!
Or even better "Redrum"!!!!!!
You know "murder" spelled backwards.
Thanks so much
Darby
darbyscloset at yahoo dot com

Cynthia Leitich Smith said...

The winner is: Fearless Fiends' Death Festival by Dorothy!

Congratulations! Thanks to all who entered or surfed by!

Also, Cinda asked if there was another book! I'm working on Blessed now, which will crossover the casts of Eternal and Tantalize, picking up where Tantalize left off.

Chris Eldin said...

Congratulations Dorothy! You can get in touch with Cynthia via her website and make arrangements from there....
:-)

Thanks again, all!
:-)

laughingwolf said...

grats dorothy, and thx cyn :D

Barbara Martin said...

Interesting premise about using an angel.