Pocket Full of Tinder
Noon Onyx #4
Jill Archer
Genre: Fantasy
Publisher: Black Willow, LLC
Date of Publication: Dec 15, 2016
ISBN (ebook) – 978-0997913804
ISBN (print) – 978-0997913811
ASIN: B01MEGPUA4
Cover Artist: Rebecca Frank
Noon Onyx is back! In this long-awaited fourth installment, Jill Archer returns readers to the dangerous world of Halja, where demons, angels,
and humans coexist in an uneasy state of détente. Maegester-in-Training Noon Onyx feels like she’s done it all – mastered fiery magic, become an
adept fighter, learned the law, killed countless demons, and survived having her heart broken by both love and an arrow, but now she’ll face her greatest challenge yet…
Far to the north lies an outpost famous for its unrest – Rockthorn Gorge. The town’s patron has specifically requested Noon’s help. Her assignment? Help the neophyte demon lord build his
fiefdom and keep what’s his. The problem? Lord Aristos – Noon’s new employer – is her erstwhile lover, Ari Carmine, the aforementioned heartbreaker. And the number one thing he wants is her.
When Rockthorn Gorge’s viaduct is destroyed by Displodo, an enigmatic bomber, killing a dozen settlers and wounding scores more, Noon sets off early to aid in the search and rescue. Ari is listed among the missing and the suspects are legion. But Noon’s search is just the beginning.
Her journey forces Noon to confront not only those she loves, but also enemies hell-bent on destroying them.
Pre-Order Links:
Book will also be available on Nook and CreateSpace
on or about the release date.
Excerpt
POCKET FULL OF TINDER
The claw-and-ball had been chewed clean off. It lay on a patch of sunny parquet floor, just to the right of an antique, aubergine wool rug now covered with the
splintered remnants of an eleventh century pedestal table and one very large, ghastly looking, somewhat repentant barghest. Nova’s head rested on her front paws as her gaze shifted warily from me to Miss Bister, Megiddo’s dormater, or house mother. “Megiddo’s lobby is not a kennel, Miss Onyx. That”—she motioned dismissively toward Nova—“beast can no longer be housed here.”
I opened my mouth to respond, but Miss Bister continued speaking, her tone rising only infinitesimally, her back as stiff as Luck’s lance must have been, and her expression just as hard. She pointed toward the previously priceless, three-
footed piece of furniture that was now a worthless, two-footed pile of kindling.
“No amount of money – or magic – can fix that, Nouiomo. It’s beyond repair. I warned you. I made an exception to my ‘no pets’ rule because you never cause trouble. You never forget your key; you promptly pick up your deliveries; you
change your own light bulbs; you double bag your trash. You leave nothing behind in the bathroom; you don’t monopolize the washing machines; you are exceedingly polite to the lift operator; you don’t sing in the shower.”
I suppressed a sigh. After a year and a half of painstaking efforts, harrowing experiences, and endless hours of education, my worth had just been measured by
the fact that I could change a light bulb. I’d mastered fiery magic, become an adept fighter, learned the law, killed countless demons (one regrettably, the others
much less so), freed myriad immortals from an accursed, tortured bondage, and survived having my heart nearly destroyed by both love and an arrow, yet none of
that meant bupkis next to the fact that I double bagged my trash. And yet… I couldn’t really argue with Miss Bister either. Everything she’d said was true.
And who was I to tell her what she should deem important? I respected that she valued domestic order and antiques. I did too, if not nearly as much as I valued
the thing that now threatened our continued access to such. I glared at Nova, who swept one paw over her eyes as if she could hide from me and the evidence of what she’d done.
Barghests are giant hellhounds. They’re bigger than bears, fiercer than rabid raccoons, and uglier than naked mole rats. Their teeth are the size of railroad spikes, their claws as sharp as a sickle, their breath as foul as sewage gas. But
hey are also affectionate, brave, and loyal. What barghests lack in magic, they make up for in devotion. And even though I was plenty mad at Nova for chewing up Miss Bister’s table, I also knew it wasn’t Nova’s fault.
It was mine – for thinking the lobby of a demon law school dormitory would be a good place to keep her.
“Miss Bister, please,” I said. “I’m truly sorry. I know I can’t replace that exact table. But if you would just allow me to—”
“No,” Miss Bister said simply. “Either the beast goes… Or you do.”
I stared at the small, frail, magicless woman in front of me, trying desperately to think of some way to fix this problem. Wasn’t there something I could do, or say,
or offer her that would make amends and convince her not to kick us out? But all I could think of was how useless some of the things our society valued most were. As Miss Bister had pointed out, neither magic nor money would help.
If I was going to repair the table, I’d need to find another way. Which would take time. And that meant I’d need to find somewhere else for us to sleep tonight.
Because if the beast was going… I was too.
“Yes, Miss Bister,” I said. “I understand.”
She narrowed her eyes, slightly suspicious of my now gracious defeat since I’d just spent the last half-hour trying to persuade her to accept various forms of
reparation. But then she nodded, handed me a couple of paper bin bags, and left. I slid one bag inside the other and stooped down to pick up the slobbery remains
of Nova’s mangled chew toy. When I finished, she came over to me and nudged my arm with her head. She let out a woofy whine. Was she sorry? She darn well better be!
I gave her a scratch behind the ears.
“Now that you’ve sharpened your teeth on my former dormater’s furniture, are
you ready to eat some real food for breakfast?”
Jill Archer writes dark, genre-bending fantasy from rural Maryland. Her novels include Dark Light of Day, Fiery Edge of Steel, White Heart of Justice, and Pocket Full of Tinder. She loves cats, coffee, books, movies, day tripping, and outdoor adventuring.
Website: http://www.jillarcher.com/
Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bAzF7n
Twitter: https://twitter.com/archer_jill
Discussion Questions: http://jillarcherauthor.wordpress.com/book-clubs/
Tour giveaway:
Two prize options:
#1 – an Etsy “Book Lover” prize pack (https://www.etsy.com/people/archer48/favorites/pocket-
full-of-tinder-book-lover-prize-pack), which includes a book hoarder dragon poster, a dozen
book page flowers, six book wine charms, and a pair of book earrings. (U.S. Only for Option #1.
If these items are no longer available on Etsy, winner will receive Option #2). Or #2 -- $50 worth
of fantasy books from Book Depository and a $25 Etsy gift certificate.
1 comment:
Appreciate the spotlight, Lisa!
Happy holidays!
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