Title: Tales
of Ever
(Volumes
1-6)
Author: By
Jen Wylie
Published: Jan 10 2014
Genre:
Fantasy/Paranormal, YA 10+
Length: 84 000+
words, 250pages
ASIN: B00HSCHK3I
~Tales
of Ever is suitable for readers 10 and up. Originally written as a novella
series, it has been reworked and is now available as a complete novel.
A
few months ago, I was a normal girl. Life sucked, and just like everyone else,
I took the simple things for granted. At least until I got this new power, a
"gift" mom called it. Apparently, I'm a firestarter. I didn't
want to be. I didn't ask to be. It would be cool if it wasn't so dangerous and
I knew how to control it. When an uncle I'd never heard of showed up to
take care of me after my mom died, I should have been grateful. As it turned
out, my whole family isn't normal and more than a little bit crazy. I
thought things couldn't get any worse. I was wrong.
They
banished me to Ever.
* * * * *
Welcome
to Ever.
Ever;
a deadly realm where feared, powerful, and dangerous magical beings are
banished. It's not a world, but a magically created prison you can never break
out of. Who, or what, made Ever? I've no idea. They were powerful, and cruel.
That is all I can tell you.
Ever
is like, and unlike, every other world. Nothing is safe. Safety is a dream.
Ever is a nightmare. Few survive their first day. Nothing is what it seems. If
something appears safe, it isn't. If something appears dangerous, well it is,
but probably more than you think.
Ever
has no sun, no moon, and no stars at night. Time is told by the ever changing
color of the sky where portals open, dropping new inhabitants or new terrors.
Time does pass. Don't worry, you won't get old. You won't live that long.
The
landscape changes without reason from desert to jungle. The flora isn't safe at
any time. There is food, if you can find it without getting eaten yourself.
Most plants and animals are poisonous. So is the water.
Are
you afraid? You should be. This is the end. It gets worse of course. Remember
the portals? Do you think angels come through? Innocent people rarely do.
Mostly, it is evil people, people too powerful to kill. Their magic works here.
The creatures are worse.
Do
you understand? Well, you will eventually, or you'll die. There is no escaping
Ever.
Ever.
Jen Wylie resides
in rural Ontario, Canada with her two boys, Australian shepherd and a
disagreeable amount of wildlife. In a cosmic twist of fate she dislikes the
snow and cold.
Before settling
down to raise a family, she attained a BA from Queens University and worked in
retail and sales.
Thanks to her
mother she acquired a love of books at an early age and began writing in public
school. She constantly has stories floating around in her head, and finds it
amazing most people don’t. Jennifer writes various forms of fantasy, both
novels and short stories.
Twitter:
@jen_wylie
Fire.
I see it everywhere.
It started a year ago, maybe more. I don't remember. Images of fire appear more now than they did before.
Flames always dance just out of sight. They flicker on school lockers,
in windows, anywhere. Everywhere.
Now they hover over the road as I run.
If I didn't know better, I'd think they were only
mirages from the heat. They aren't real. They never are. Nothing burns, there
is no heat. I hate seeing them. Every time they appear, I wonder if I'm
crazy.
Glaring at my watch, I round the block. School sucked today,
as usual. I've run farther and faster than I normally
do, trying to push all my stupid problems away while trying to ignore the fire.
The last year
I've been unsettled. Sometimes I get uncomfortable hot flashes.
I don't understand why. Mom gets them sometimes, too. She says not to worry about it. I wish I could, but I know I'm too
young for such things and they have been coming more often.
I can't tell her about seeing the fire, or about the dreams. She wouldn't believe me and I don't want to
put more stress on her.
We
do Yoga and that helps. So does running.
I've done a lot of both as the months pass and things only get
worse.
It hasn't been the best year. Mom lost one of her jobs. She found another, but it doesn't pay as much. Lack of money really
stresses her out.
I hope she'll
let me get a decent
job soon. Something other than yard work and babysitting. I want to help. Mom looks so tired lately. She's really starting to worry me.
In a few months, I'll be sixteen.
I haven't asked about getting my driver's license. I'm sure Mom won't bring it up
either. We don't have money for a car, anyway. We don't even have money for lessons or the stupid license test.
What would I do if
something happened to Mom?
I have no idea. We don't have any really close friends.
A few people we sort of talk to, like our old neighbor,
Mrs. Green. No family
either, at least none that Mom ever talks about.
I don't have any friends at school. Even though I go to a public school,
most of the kids there have money. We don't, and it shows. People
can be so fickle.
Of course, I don't really
try
to make friends. I fall into the quiet and shy group. Years ago I gave up trying. Too many times I thought I'd found
a friend and then got stabbed
in the back.
Of course seeing fire sets me apart, too. The fear of someone finding out how
weird I am forces me to keep my distance. I know
normal people don't see fire like I do, but some seem obsessed
with it. I watch them play with matches and lighters
outside at school and I
only shake my head.
I'm not obsessed. What I see scares me. If I could, I'd choose to never see
the flames again.
