Witch Bound

by Eleri Stone

Overview

Book two of Twilight of the Gods

Raquel Lindgren knows what her future holds. An arranged marriage. A new home in Ragnarok, Iowa, with another clan of refugees from Asgard. She should be happy. But there's a mental block preventing her from tapping in to her true abilities as a witch. And she's more attracted to the best man than she is to the groom…

Fen can't believe he's falling for his best friend's future wife. As a hound, a wolf shifter, his duty lies with the pack. He's seen too many hounds destroyed by love, and he's sworn never to take a mate, never to have children of his own. He can't deny his desire for Raquel, but she deserves more than he can offer her.

Raquel's been raised to trust in magic, her clan and her destiny. But when a vengeful demon threatens to break out of Asgard and destroy the clan, Raquel learns she must trust in love if she is to take the future into her own hands.

For more tales of modern-day Vikings, check out Demon Crossings.

73,000 words

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781426895678
Publisher:	Carina Press
Publication date:	06/24/2013
Series:	Twilight of the Gods , #2
Sold by:	HARLEQUIN
Format:	eBook
Pages:	284
Sales rank:	572,779
File size:	312 KB

Read an Excerpt

Standing in the backyard of her childhood home with her family gathered around her, Raquel tried to ignore the doubts swirling inside her head. Relief, excitement, hope and fear all blending into a toxic concoction that made her stomach churn and her palms sweat. This is the reason the elders consider it taboo for the partners in a contracted marriage to meet prematurely.

No time to plot an escape.

Her father, the clan Odin, rested a hand upon her shoulder as Kathy, their witch, made her final preparations to open the portal. Raquel shoved her bare hands into the pockets of her wool coat as the first caress of magic brushed against her senses. It started out as a light sensation like fine mist, but soon surrounded them, saturating the air.

The tide passing through the nearby ley lines still ran high from the new moon, making it dangerous to open the portal directly above the fault. Too easy to swamp the wards. Even here, several miles away, Kathy's slender body trembled as she struggled to contain all that wild energy.

Kathy stretched out her arms, drawing power into herself, forcing it down into the earth to serve as an anchor. The mountains here were old and very strong. Raquel could feel the exact moment they latched onto the power to pull it deeper. Kathy extended her right hand in front of her, fingers splayed as she drew the next thread, braiding it through the anchor and then forcing it out, piercing the fabric of space and reaching toward the witch on the other side.

Within seconds, that small tear expanded from the size of a quarter to the size of a bowling ball. Not much to look at really—a shimmer in the air, a distortion that warped light so subtly it couldn't be detected unless viewed from exactly the right angle. On an overcast day like this, it was even more difficult to see. Visible or not, any Æsir would know it was there. The unmistakable charge to the air, a vibration, lower than the human ear could detect, that bypassed consciousness and spoke directly to the part of the brain that governed instinct. For a witch like Raquel, the effect was stronger, calling to her like a siren's song, making her skin feel hot, itchy and tight.

Her father squeezed her shoulder. He wasn't a particularly demonstrative man, and the reflexive movement caused her eyes to prick with tears. Clearing his throat, he bent his head. "Raquel?" She tore her gaze from the nearly stable portal to look into his concerned eyes. "He's a fine man. It's a good match. You've nothing to worry about."

Trust in family, in the clan magic, in the gods. She'd built her life upon those tenets. And she'd been looking forward to this moment for years. These were just...last-minute jitters.

"I'm ready for you," Kathy called over her shoulder.

"Hurry up, sweetheart." Her mother bounced on the balls of her feet. "She can't hold it forever."

Her father lifted her off the ground, squeezing the breath from her lungs in a bear hug before dropping her back to her feet. "Two weeks and I'll be there. Call if you need me sooner." His big hand on her back steadied her as he turned her to face the portal. "Good crossing, then."

Right. Get this over and done with and on with the rest of her life. Her throat constricted, but she forced herself to take the first step and then another. The closer she got, the steadier the pressure against her mind.

Editorial Reviews

Raquel and Christian have always known that they would end up together. After all, their clans made a binding contract when they were children. Little did they know how they would feel about each other when they finally met. Christian sees it as a matter of honor to fulfill the promise, but Raquel is having trouble with her budding feelings for Fen. Unfortunately, Fen brings with him the complication of being a Hound, not to mention that he is Christian’s best friend. Meanwhile, the demons are pushing at the fault line and the only witch strong enough to stop the incursion is the untested and unsure Raquel.

Verdict This epic saga from Stone (Demon Crossing) is more about relationships than demon-fighting. Still, the characters are compelling and will keep readers interested to the end.—Emily Thompson, SUNY at Oswego
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