In an effort to restart my dormant muse, I’m developing a completely new series titled Cerulean Daughters. My mom (after reading my notes) said it sounded like a cross between King Kong and A Handmaid’s Tale. My husband said it had Gorean aspects. Honestly, it is a good bit darker than things I’ve done before, but what better way to step out of the comfort zone! Anyhoo… below is the opening scene for book 1. Enjoy!
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Waves battered the jagged rocks below the seawall, and the resulting cool spray of salty water drenched Lea Arwyd to the bone. She glanced up, hoping to see the outline of a ship on the horizon, but there was nothing except the setting sun. Undeterred, she kept drawing on the flat rock beneath her. She had to finish before nightfall left her with no light. By morning, the art would be gone, and the spell would be set. She had to leave before it took effect. Tristen was her only hope at this point. She trusted no one else.
“Eleanor?”
Cursing under her breath, Lea swiped away hours of work with a wet hand in the blink of an eye. She watched her future wash away.
“There you are! Your mother is looking for you.”
Lea scowled at her cousin. “Stepmother. What does she want?”
Adele shrugged. “I don’t know. She just told me to find you.” She craned her neck and wrinkled her nose. “What are you doing?”
Lea sighed. “Watching the water. Waiting for Tristen’s ship.”
“Why?”
“Is there a reason why I should not wish for my brother’s safe return?”
Adele rolled her eyes. Despite being family, she’d never cared for Tristen – or Lea, for that matter. “Just get home.”
Lea resisted the urge to salute her and shove her off the top of the stone seawall. “I’ll be there soon.”
Katherine Cook 