TITLE: Eidolon
GENRE: YA gaslamp fantasy
WORD
COUNT: 95,500
NAME: Cathryn Martyn-Dow-Jensen
EMAIL: JaenelleEbony@aol.com
QUERY: In the Victorian-esque principality of Thule,
crown princess Madeline Usher has committed suicide. Janine Fortunata is a
young noble, the heir of her House, groomed since early childhood to one day
take the family seat on the Council of the Eight Noble Houses. She was also the
late princess's best friend and a member of the Raven Society, a secret
vigilante team of nobles organized by Madeline before her death. When a letter
proves Madeline's death was no suicide, Janine must uncover a centuries-old
conspiracy of dark magic, murder, and the ravenous specter of a long-dead
monarch who once ruled all of Thule with an infamous lust for blood and no
mercy. A woman whose name was once spoken only in frightened whispers—Ligeia.
In a corrupt city where the police
are as cruel as the crime lords, and plagued by strange hallucinations that
make her question everything she knows, Janine will need all the help she can
get. But the only people she can trust are her cousin and Roderick Montresor:
fellow Raven, the sworn enemy of Janine's family, and the man she's secretly
loved for years. With fealty and forbidden love on her side, the Raven Society
at her back, and a bloodthirsty killer calling themself Red Jack stalking her
and her friends, Janine will have to uncover the truth behind what really
happened to Princess Madeline and save the people she loves from the ancient
shadow of Ligeia's vengeance.
FIRST 255:
Janine
couldn't cry here. Her grandfather would kill her.
The
Lillias Infernum Masquerade was the beginning of the grandest event of the
season, the first in a series of winter masquerades ending on the solstice. At
a month shy of eighteen years old, Janine was expected to act the part of a
proper Eidolon noble, at least at social events. She didn't dare break down
here.
Even
if it was rather tacky to host the traditional masquerades with the country’s
sovereign dead. Even if Madeline had…even if her best friend had…
Princess
Morella Prospero, newly ascended to the Midnight Throne of the principality of
Thule, had made it very clear—the Midwinter Masquerades would continue, even
while the country mourned her predecessor. So Janine, heir apparent of the
House of Fortunata, had no choice but to attend. Refusing would insult the host
and irritate the new princess. On any other night, Janine would’ve loved it
all—the dancing, the music, the food—but not tonight.
Tonight,
she'd received word that Princess Madeline Usher, her best friend since they
were little girls, hadn't just died. She'd committed suicide.
The
purple silk and silver filigree mask felt cold under Janine's fingertips as she
leaned against the stone wall. Her wig felt inexplicably heavy, threatening to
crush her skull, and the ball gown's exposed corset felt like any moment it
would snap her spine like a twig. Pain pulsed through her temples, matching the
hitching staccato of her heart. Her eyes burned with the threat of fresh tears.
