Please help me welcome Chelsea Fine, author of Anew: The Archers of AvalonShe’s here today as part of her InkSlinger Blog Tour.

Anew by Chelsea Fine

Two years ago, Scarlet awoke in a forest alone, afraid, and with no memory. Lost and confused, her past was a complete mystery…until she met Gabriel Archer. Intrigued by his voice and its familiarity, Scarlet immerses herself in his life only to stumble on a secret. Gabriel has a brother. Once Scarlet meets Tristan Archer, her life becomes even more muddled. She’s instinctively drawn to both of them and confused out of her mind. She can’t figure out why Gabriel feels so familiar or why she’s so attracted to Tristan. But the Archer brothers have more than just one secret and they know a lot about Scarlet that she doesn’t—including the fact that she’s cursed. They all are.

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Excerpt from Anew by Chelsea Fine

With the phone still in her hands, Scarlet smacked at the wall beside her until she found the light switch. Flicking it on, she saw Tristan hurry to the base of the stairs and look at her with wild eyes. “Scarlet, get out of here!”

She noticed a deep gash on his forehead bleeding down the side of his face. Several gashes marked up his arms and chest, coating his shirt in blood.

Words tumbled over themselves as Scarlet quickly pushed them through her mouth, “What happ—? Are you ok—? Who was—?”

She was shaking and her lungs were tight with fear.

Tristan sharply motioned to the front door with a bloody hand. “Get outside.” His green eyes bore into her without mercy, without debate. “Now!”

Scarlet blinked once before rushing out of her house, Tristan right behind her.

“Get to my car.” Tristan commanded, his hot breath brushing against the back of her neck as they ran across her front lawn.

Without question, Scarlet headed to Tristan’s black car.

He hated her.

He didn’t want her around.

But, for whatever reason, Scarlet trusted him implicitly. If he told her to get in the car, she would get in the car.

Scarlet’s breathing became tight and rapid.

Tristan barked out orders like, “Keep your head down,” and “Don’t look back!” but Scarlet barely heard him above the roar of her pounding heart and the shallow air squeezing through her chest.

With burning eyes, she ran through the darkness and let herself into Tristan’s car. He followed suit, jumping into the driver’s seat, and immediately peeled out of the neighborhood.

It wasn’t until they were speeding away from her very small and, usually, very safe Avalon neighborhood that Scarlet was able to catch her breath. “What…what just happened?”

Tristan kept his eyes on the road. “I don’t know.” He was out of breath, too.

He seemed…angry.

And scared.

Panic darted through Scarlet’s body. “Is someone following us?”

“No.” He cursed. “I don’t know.”

Scarlet turned around in her seat to look out the back window.

“What are you doing? Turn around and keep your head down!” Tristan’s eyes shot to Scarlet with a dangerous gleam.

She twisted back around, faced forward, and shrank down in her seat.

She was terrified.

Not because Tristan was yelling at her like she was a disobedient puppy, but because Tristan was scared. And if he was afraid, then there was something to be afraid of.

Several minutes went by in silence, the only noise the growling of the car engine.

“Are you okay?” Tristan asked in a rough voice, not looking at her. “Are you hurt?”

Scarlet shook her head and looked out at the road, her body shaking again. “Who was that guy in my house? Was he a thief? What did he want?”

“I don’t know,” Tristan said shifting in his seat. He winced in pain as he reached into his back pocket. He threw a knife, wet with blood, on the dashboard.

Scarlet’s eyes widened.

Then he held up an unfamiliar object. “Have you ever seen anything like this before?”

It looked like a wide headband. It was black, made of plastic, and lined with wires. And on one side of the band was what looked like a tiny, sharp crystal.

Scarlet eyed it, her confusion growing. “No. What is it?”

Tristan shook his head. “I have no idea.”

Scarlet blinked. “What do you think he wanted?” she asked again, because she was scared. And nervous. And confused.

“I don’t know,” Tristan snapped, anger in his voice, like Scarlet’s questions were annoying him.

Scarlet raised a brow. “Well, what were you doing in my house?” If Tristan wanted to be snotty, she could be snotty. “I certainly didn’t invite you in.”

Tristan let out a frustrated sigh and checked the rearview mirror without answering.

“What were you doing in my house, Tristan? Did Gabriel send you?”

Tristan’s flexed his jaw. “No.”

Scarlet shifted in her seat to look at him. “Then what? You were just hanging out upstairs while I slept? That’s creepy.”

Tristan shook his head. “I was outside of your house when I saw that guy walk in your front door.”

Scarlet blinked. “You saw him come inside?”

Tristan nodded. “I thought it was weird that some stranger was entering your house in the middle of the night while your guardian was out of town, so I followed him in. Turns out he was a bad guy. Big surprise.”

“What do you think he wanted?”

Tristan said, “I’m not sure. But he knew you were inside and he was willing to kill me to get to you.”

Scarlet shuddered. “We need to call the police.”

“Nope.”

“What?” Scarlet looked at him incredulously. “Someone just broke into my house and tried to kill me…or something. We need to call the cops.”

Tristan shook his head. “Uh-uh.”

“You’re insane.” Scarlet pulled out her phone to dial 9-1-1 for the second time that night.

Tristan snatched the phone from her hands and, with one swift movement, rolled down his window and threw it into the heavily wooded area on the side of the road.

Scarlet stared at him in disbelief. “What the hell, Tristan?”

“You don’t get to make phone calls right now. You need to listen to me, closely.” Tristan looked at her briefly, his eyes connecting with hers in a way that comforted her and scared the crap out of her at the same time.

“That guy back there wasn’t your normal, everyday burglar. He was after you specifically and he had this,” Tristan held up the headband thingy again as he looked back at the road, “ready to use on you. So, you don’t get to pretend like you have a normal teenage life right now. You are different, Scarlet. Somebody came after you tonight. You could have died. Or worse.”

A few tense moments passed, silent but for the car engine and Scarlet’s drumming heart.

She puckered her lips. “Still. Did you really have to throw my phone out? Couldn’t you just have asked me to put it down and talked to me like a grown up?”

“Nope.”

“You suck.”

“Okay.”

Chelsea FineAbout the author:
Chelsea lives in Phoenix, AZ where she spends most of her time writing young adult fiction, painting murals, and avoiding housework at all costs.  Her obsessions include: superheroes, coffee, sleeping-in, and crazy socks.  She lives with her husband and two children, who graciously tolerate her inability to resist teenage drama on TV and her complete lack of skill in the kitchen.

Author Links: Website | Twitter | Facebook | Goodreads

Many thanks to Chelsea for stopping by today, and for offering an ebook copy to give away to one lucky reader! Enter the Rafflecopter below for a chance to win an ebook copy of Anew for yourself!

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20 Responses to Excerpt & Giveaway: Anew by Chelsea Fine

  1. Evie says:

    I love them 🙂
    Thanks for the giveaway!

  2. Jenea Whittington
    Twitter: jeneaw0716
    says:

    I love the excerpt… I definitely need to check this out. Thanks for sharing it.
    Jenea Whittington recently posted..Cover Reveal: Abandon (Possession, #3) by Elana JohnsonMy Profile

  3. Carlyle says:

    Oh gosh gripping stuff!!! I want I want I want!

  4. Michelle Greer says:

    I would say that I’m generally a fan of the love triangle. However, it seems like it’s in every YA book. As long as it brings something new, I’m OK with it!

  5. Love the excerpt!!!! Can’t wait to read the rest of it!!

  6. Lindy Gomez says:

    Yes, I enjoy love triangles. I think that it’s good for the main character to have options when it comes to her or his love life. Also, I like to root for my favorite! Thanks for the giveaway! I loved the excerpt!!!!

  7. Chelsea Fine says:

    It was so fun to be part of your blog today! Thanks so much! 🙂

  8. Laura McLendon says:

    Not a fan of love triangles!!

  9. Jackie Hauver says:

    I love them! I can’t wait to read this book. Thanks for the giveaway!

  10. Kathy Schoenherr says:

    I don’t like love triangles. Someoen always has to lose.

  11. Liz Parker says:

    What did I think of the excerpt? I think I need to read more!

  12. kimbacaffeinate
    Twitter: kimbacaffeinate
    says:

    Eep not another love triangle. Great excerpt and thanks for sharing it.
    kimbacaffeinate recently posted..Yesterday by C.K. Kelly Martin ~review and giveawayMy Profile

  13. Tammy says:

    I am not crazy about love triangles. I like a good straight-forward story. The Twilight Saga makes me want to pull my hair out. Thanks for the giveaway!

  14. Nuzaifa
    Twitter: twitter.com/nbookaholic
    says:

    I love em but sometimes they REALLY are frustrating!
    Great excerpt can’t wait to read it!Thanks for the giveaway! 🙂

  15. Ashley L says:

    I LOVE LOVE LOVE love triangles!!! They are so fun to read and i like how the girl (or boy) has to choose but before she chooses they all go through something. Like in anew there’s this curse they have to break before scarlet can pick tristen (totally team tristen btw) and live happily ever after. 🙂

  16. Tabitha Williams says:

    I absolutely hate love triangles. I usually get so irritated at a stupid girl who strings two guys along because she can’t make up her mind when deep down, she always knows who she’ll pick. Some novels manage to rise above that, but many make me wanna die a little inside.

  17. bn100 says:

    Hate love triangles. Nice excerpt.

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