Remarkable Magic
The Hybrid Magic Chronicles Book 3
by Cristy L. Bowlin
Genre: YA Fantasy
Amid new threats and unsettling discoveries, hope still
perseveres.
Aaron is done letting the Defenders control his
life. He refuses to continue running and hiding. The Defenders claim that
hybrid mages are dangerous abominations, but Aaron and Lilith are determined to
prove otherwise. Meanwhile, Elara and Theo are grappling with formidable new
abilities that they never expected to possess. Striking out on their own, Aaron
and his friends discover another group of hybrid mages living in the desert who
are preparing to fight. New alliances are forged, yet not everyone agrees on
how to confront the Defenders. When more people see what hybrid magic can do,
it could either be revered or feared even more. Aaron and his friends must make
some tough decisions before those choices are taken from them.
Excerpt
Theo was the last to enter the tavern, hanging back as they had agreed. Pipe smoke permeated throughout the open dining area and mingled with the scents of alcohol and sweat. Theo stood next to the wall, trying not to cough, while his friends walked to the bar. Elara bought a drink and sat on a stool. Aaron and Lilith continued walking until they reached a piano in the corner of the room.
Theo furrowed his brow
when Aaron took a seat on the piano bench and started playing. He didn’t
realize Aaron knew how to play an instrument. However, Theo’s jaw nearly
dropped open when Lilith started singing. Her voice was a melodic soprano
reminiscent of birdsong. It shouldn’t have surprised Theo, yet he stood there
awestruck at the performance. He soon realized he wasn’t the only one in awe.
The whole room quieted as people turned their attention to Aaron and Lilith.
This wasn’t part of the plan they discussed, but it would set the stage for
Lilith’s speech.
When Lilith finished
singing, everyone in the room applauded as if they were at a concert hall
rather than a tavern. Lilith dipped into a curtsy as Aaron played the final
chords in the song. Then Lilith stood on top of the piano bench and cleared her
throat. “Thank you all for listening to our song.”
“Play another one!”
someone shouted.
Lilith smiled. “We would
be happy to, but first my friend and I have something to tell you all.”
Elara made eye contact
with Theo across the room. She looked nervous, and Theo imagined he wore a
similar expression on his face. He wanted to be there beside Lilith and Aaron
in case anything bad happened, but they insisted that they had to introduce
themselves first on their own. As the youngest and smallest among them, Lilith
was the least threatening and most likely to garner sympathy. And with Aaron’s
fame, people would quickly recognize his name if not his appearance, so he
would be of the most interest. Elara and Theo could be introduced a bit later
if the crowd reacted positively to the presence of hybrid mages. If not, Elara
and Theo could remain anonymous and cause some type of distraction, allowing
Aaron and Lilith to slip out of the building.
“My name is Lilith
Brouning, and this is my good friend Aaron Ztrong. We are both hybrid mages.”
She paused as people started murmuring amongst themselves, and then she held up
the Defender pamphlet Aaron grabbed earlier. “Some people like to call us dark
mages. I’m sure you are all familiar with the Defenders of the True Four. Maybe
some of you have even read their pamphlets and agreed with some of the things
they had to say. But I’m here to tell you the ugly truth about them. They tried
to kill Aaron, and they succeeded in murdering my parents. They would get rid
of every last hybrid mage if they could.
“I understand why they
have their concerns about us because Florella Jacobsen was a hybrid mage, and
she did unspeakable things during the Jacobsen Conflict. She was responsible
for far more deaths than the Defenders, but now she herself is dead. She will
cause no more harm to any of us, and I can promise you that Aaron and I are
nothing like her.”
Aaron stood up next to
Lilith. He gestured to the piano behind them. “We enjoy the same pastimes as
all of you. We have families we care about deeply. We make mistakes sometimes,
but that’s part of what makes us human. All we want is to be able to live our
lives without constant fear of being hunted down.”
“That’s why we are here
today,” Lilith said. “We’ve been hiding ourselves away for more than a year,
and we simply cannot do it anymore. How free has the Deravine Commonwealth
really become if there are still some mages who can’t be true to themselves?”
A few hisses rose up from
the crowd as people cursed the commonwealth, but twice as many people shushed
the critics. When the room quieted again, Lilith held up her hands in a
placating gesture. “Politics aside, I hope we all can agree that what the
Defenders have been doing is outright persecution. Their crusade must come to
an end. I hope the next time you see one of these pamphlets, you will tear it
down and throw it away.” She crumpled the pamphlet in her hand and threw it on
the ground. Some people clapped, which Theo considered a small victory at
least.
A man and woman abruptly
stood, scraping their chairs across the wood floor. “That’s a nice speech, to
be sure,” the woman said, “but actions speak louder than words. We know you
fought alongside Florella the day she died.”
Lilith scowled. “We were
fighting for our own lives because a group of Defenders attacked us. Florella
happened to be with us because we had captured her.”
“So you say,” the man
mumbled. “Doesn’t mean we can trust your word for it.” He raised both his hands
and threw balls of fire directly at Lilith and Aaron.
Book Links:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Remarkable-Magic-Hybrid-Chronicles-Book-ebook/dp/B0CD5PJVQ3
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/remarkable-magic-the-hybrid-magic-chronicles-book-3-by-cristy-l-bowlin
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/195380250-remarkable-magic
**Don't
miss the other books in the series!**
The
Hybrid Magic Chronicles Book 1
Innovative Magic
The
Hybrid Magic Chronicles Book 2
About
the Author
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Cristy L. Bowlin is an English
professor at Oxnard College and author of The Temple Dancer’s Diary and The
Hybrid Magic Chronicles, set in the fantasy realm of the Deravine Commonwealth.
She currently lives in Southern California with her husband, daughter, and pet
cat. When she isn’t reading or writing, she is most likely dancing, hiking, or
getting invested in (another) TV series.
Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram * Bookbub * Amazon * Goodreads
Author Links
Website: https://bowlincristy.wixsite.com/website
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CristyLBowlin
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CristyLBowlin
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cristylbowlin.books
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/cristy-l-bowlin
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Cristy-L-Bowlin/e/B07VL7DGSL
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19389673.Cristy_L_Bowlin
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