As members of the Phoenix, Jeric and Leni are thrust into their new lives, expected to lead Earth’s guardians. But Leni struggles with trusting her own soul, and Jeric is more concerned about keeping Leni safe than meeting others’ demands. When Darkness swarms Lake Haven, they embark on their first mission with little preparation and no idea which soul the Dark hunts.
Born and raised in Lake Haven, Bex hopes to escape her small-town life, ideally in the arms of her soul mate. She knows he exists, and her heart aches with the need to find him. When her long-lost mama calls to announce she's knockin' on death's door, Bex reluctantly makes the trip to see the uncaring bitch (bless her heart), only to be knocked off her feet by the sexy and charming Dr. Mason Hayes. Is he really The One?
Leni’s soul felt an instant connection to Bex, but if Bex found her soul mate, she isn’t their mission. So who is, and why does Leni instinctively feel drawn to her? Can Leni even trust her intuition? And will Jeric step up and lead when the time comes or continue to hold them back?
If they don't learn to trust themselves and each other quickly, Darkness will claim them all…along with the rest of Earth’s souls.
I couldn't be more excited to be a part of this great blog tour for this fantastic sequel to Kristie Cook's Book of Phoenix series, The Space Beyond. After reading Cook's first series installment, The Space Between, falling in love with her characters was easy so it was a no-brainer that I would want to share an excerpt with all of you from Jeric's point of view. Enjoy.....and go grab your own copy of the second installment today!
From Jeric, in The
Space Beyond:
[Leni] paused for a moment, staring at her hands as her
fingers tapped a rhythm on the blanket, and I already knew her next thought. I
had to control myself from clamping my hand over her mouth to keep her from
saying it, as though that would prevent the thought from already being a
reality. Because remembering our pasts was kind of fun, like solving a weird
mystery, but what she was thinking took us to a whole different level. One I
wasn’t ready for.
“I have this strong feeling the guy in the Gate who’d
sounded so desperate was Nathayden,” she said. “And I think … saving
Rebethannah is our first mission.”
She lifted her head to look at us. I turned mine to stare at
the wall, my jaw clenching. She already knew my feelings on this theory.
“What do you guys think?” she asked when nobody said
anything.
My eyes cut to Brock and Asia, who shared another look, but
they didn’t hold back this time. Asia reached out and laid her hand on Leni’s
knee.
“You tell us,” she said to my other half. “We remembered
last night that this has always been your thing, like your super power—you lead
us to the souls we’re supposed to help.”
The hair on the back of my neck rose, and I jumped to my
feet as though the bed itself had caused the feeling. But what I felt came from
inside, and no matter how much I wanted to deny it, to make it go away, to
pretend it didn’t exist, I couldn’t. The truth is the truth, and what Asia just
said was no doubt a truth. I knew it in my gut, or in my soul, as everyone else
would say. Leni was our light, showing us the way. Theo and Mira had emphasized
this when we’d been Forged at the Gate. Not just mine, but everybody’s. I
hadn’t fully understood what that meant at the time, but it was starting to
make more sense.
Didn’t mean I liked it.
“No,” I said, unable to form the words I wanted to say. “Just
… no. Not yet.”
“Jeric—” Leni started, and I spun on her.
“Can you really say you feel ready to do this?” I demanded,
leaning over her on the bed. “Do you even know what you’re doing?”
Leni stared at me for a moment, opening her mouth then
closing it like a carp as she considered my question.
“Yes,” she finally said, and when I lifted my brow and
sucked in a breath to argue, she held a hand up. “It’s not knowledge to be
gained, Jeric. I don’t have to learn this. It’s intuition. Instinct. My soul
talking to me. I know how that sounds, but look at our lives now. Look at what
we do know and tell me that relying
on our instinct, on our souls that
have existed for eons compared to our measly human brains, isn’t what we’re
supposed to do. That’s the lesson
we’re supposed to learn more than any others. Am I right?”
She turned back to Brock and Asia, who both nodded.
“So we’re just supposed to cut off our brains and all
logic?” I snapped.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Asia said with a sigh. “You just have
to let your brain catch up to what you already know in your soul.”
I glared at each of them in turn, not sure why this bothered
me so much. I’d practically vowed to trust Leni and her intuition, to accept
her as our light to lead the way. And I knew deep down that she’d be right—that
her soul would know exactly what we’re supposed to do. The “normal” side of me,
the Jeric I’d been for the last twenty-three years, however, bristled at the
thought of going out and being some kind of supernatural-like ninja, helping
people who probably didn’t even know they needed to be helped. How were we
supposed to do that anyway?
“So you think your soul
will lead us right to whoever Rebethannah is now?” I demanded. “And you really
think that’s our mission?”
Leni pressed her lips together and dropped her gaze to the
blanket again. “I don’t know yet,” she nearly whispered, but then she lifted
her eyes to me and raised her voice. “But it’s time to find out.”
