Saturday, October 7, 2017

Man beneath the ice - Snippet from Europa for #WeWriWa #SciFi

Welcome to another Sunday with Weekend Writing Warriors. Meet writers in various genres and read 8-10 sentence snippets of their stories.

I’m posting snippets from my latest novel set on Jupiter’s moon, Europa.

Tag line: What alien creatures lurk under the ice crust of Europa?

I have skipped several pages to give you a glimpse of the hero. Nikki ejected just before her lifepod crashed on Europa. She has fallen into a hole in the ice crust. 
Please excuse any irregular punctuation to fit into 10 sentences.

She scrunched her eyes closed and lay motionless, dazed and light-headed from exhaustion and low oxygen.
Seconds, or maybe hours later, she opened her eyes and bit back a cry of shock. A new face stared up through the transparent layer of ice. A finely chiseled man’s face with green eyes under straight reddish eyebrows, and prominent cheekbones, one bearing a triangular mark.
Nikki stretched her fingers toward him, and his lips curved in a handsome smile. 
She brightened with hope. He would save her life; if he were not merely a dream born of her fuzzy imagination.
She mouthed, “Help!”
The edges of her vision grayed.
Her thoughts flickered, Help…Safe…Dream…Nothing.

 Europa

Blurb
Dr. Nikki Bell’s plan to discover intelligent life in the oceans of Europa hits a rocky start when her spaceship crashes on the icy surface. Seconds before she blacks out, she spies a man’s face in the water beneath the ice. When she wakes on the submarine Station, nobody believes her story. Convinced the mysterious stranger saved her life, Nikki searches for him while she explores the ocean and its alien inhabitants. 
Kiron Arqin Ramis chose exile as a Watcher on a remote outpost to redeem his family’s honor. He never expected to find an attractive Earther woman close to death. He violates the prime policy by rescuing her. Despite suffering the penalty, he strives to warn her about his hostile leaders.
Nikki’s unexpected meeting with Kiron triggers a chain of disasters in Europa’s perilous oceans. Can the daredevil scientist and scarred Watcher forge a new alliance despite their people’s antagonism?  
          Book 1 in a new SciFi series, Taxyon Space.

You can read the first two chapters in your choice of format HERE.

The book is available for Pre-order for only 99c
International: http://authl.it/B0764DFSDM/?d

I am running two other special discounts. 
 Gargoyle Hunt
Gargoyle Hunt, Book 3 of Secret Supers, will be 99c until 22nd
Superheroes at college, snarky animals, living gargoyles and devious aliens living among us.

 Colony

My science fiction story, A Tale of Two Colonies, will be discounted to 99c this month. The giant arachnids make it fit for a Halloween read.
Available at Amazon  iBooks  Kobo  B&N

As always, I’ll be happy to reply to your comments.
Please return to www.wewriwa.com to sample the works of the other writers.

Find a catalog of my published stories HERE.
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24 comments:

  1. Oh I'm very curious who he is. Great snippet, Aurora. :)

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    1. The story has scenes from his perspective as well as hers. She won't meet the mysterious man for a while.

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  2. I don't know if I'd be more afraid or hopeful. Though if he's the hero, it's obviously a good thing for her that he's there. Nice snippet! :)

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    1. She doesn't seem to be afraid, although her mind is fuzzy.

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  3. Nice description, and I love the fade out at the end, with her not sure if he was real or an hallucination.

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    1. She'll be confused about this point for several days. Readers will learn what he does in the next chapter.

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  4. I'm really enjoying the opening of this book, Aurora. It has a different feel than what I've come to expect from you.

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    1. Interesting! This scene is my insight for the story.

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  5. I wonder what and who he is. Is he real or a hallucination?

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    1. She doesn't know either. Don't you love men of mystery?

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  6. I like the sound of this story. Very different.

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    1. Good. Two timelines entwine. Next chapter is his pov.

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  7. I'm really enjoying the snippets from this story - and what a tease at the end!

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  8. OK, WOW, really a great excerpt and I'm wild with curiosity as to what she really saw and what will happen next. This is terrific story telling :)

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    1. The answer, or part of it, is in the next chapter. The first two chapters are in the excerpt on instafreebie - hers and his pov.

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  9. I like this story! Mystery, science, and romance ahead!

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  10. This story has hooked me from the beginning. Loved how you ended this snippet with her not sure what's real and what she's imagining.

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  11. Ah, a new character. Like Diane, I love how she isn't sure what's real and what isn't.

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