Elemental Lies by Elle Middaugh (Excerpt & #Giveaway)


Elemental Lies
(Essential Elements #2)
by Elle Middaugh
YA Fantasy, Urban Fantasy
Paperback & ebook, 480 Pages
July 24th 2017

Summary

Valerie Moore is an Elemental, a person who commands one of the classical elements of wind, water, fire, or earth. She’s special, though. She controls two—fire and water—though sometimes it seems like they control her. 

After the accidental exposure of Elementals to humanity, Valerie finds herself—and all of her kind—struggling to attain equality. Three different groups fight to secure leadership, and with all of their hidden agendas, she doesn’t know which side to choose. The balance between peaceful cohabitation and all-out war is precarious, at best. 

When a chance meeting brings Val and earth Elemental Cade Landston back together, everything changes. She realizes what she knew in the beginning—that he’s the one she wants. Her desire to win him over draws her closer to him, and his vengeful mission to hunt down her murderous grandfather brings them both closer to trouble.

From mysterious doppelgangers to reckless rescue missions, scapegoat bombings, and evolving Elemental powers, Valerie strains to keep up. 

All she knows is she must stop her grandfather at all costs. To do so, she has to figure out the truth. But how can she, when almost everyone she knows has been telling lies?

(Affiliate links included - I receive a small kickback if you make a purchase using my links.)



Excerpt

I shivered, suddenly becoming more aware of my surroundings. The crowd of Elementals had gotten closer, tightening the semicircle around us. Cade was on his toes, fingers fidgeting, seconds away from fight or flight. The burnt electrical taste of adrenaline crept onto my tongue and I backed up, blood pressure rising.
Loren laughed. “There’s nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.”
At that, the hole in the cave wall sealed shut—an Earth on Loren’s left had seen to that. His smile was smug, and I wanted to slap it right off his face.
“Just get back in the cage,” she all but sang, “and no one will get hurt.”
Cade, of course, wasn’t having it.
He leapt into the air, his eyes hard like stones, lips set in a thin line, fists clenched tight. It was like a scene from a videogame, slow motion and totally badass, but still unreal. When he landed, the cave floor ripped in half. Loren and her minions scampered backward, knocked off balance. The thunderous vibrations dizzied most of us.
“Jump!” Cade shouted, nearly pushing me into the gorge. Suddenly we were falling. His arms wrapped around my waist and constricted like a snake. I was grateful for the near asphyxiation, though, because even with his tight grip, I nearly slipped from his grasp when we hit the bottom.
“Move!” he cried, clasping my hand as he quickly led the way—to where, I had no idea, nor did I care. My feet stumbled as I trailed after him.
The walls of the gorge must’ve been fifty feet high, and I could barely see a thing. Light shined above like a jagged tear in black fabric, but it didn’t reach the narrow bottom where the shadows shrouded our path. Dust hovered, tickling my nose and throat. Shouting and stomping echoed off the cavern walls, a frazzling reminder that we needed to move swiftly.
Ahead, the path moved uphill. Tree leaves peeked down from above and white winter sunlight became the new backdrop. The ravine reached its end, delivering us back into the thick forestry of Black Walnut State Park.
We weren’t far from the Elitist encampment, not nearly far enough.
The wind picked up, pushing against us until tears streamed from our eyes. Ice spikes flew past our shoulders like spears. Saplings darted past like arrows. Cannonballs of fire exploded around us, spraying dirt and smoke. I’d have been lying if I said I wasn’t scared.
Loren and her minions were hot on our heels. We needed more cover, but I couldn’t ask that of Cade. I was pretty sure that after all he’d already done—concealed himself and me from other Earths, chiseled through the cave walls, smashed a ravine into the rocky floor—his reserves were probably running low. It was my turn to pull some weight.
I glanced around, my white-blonde hair whipping across my face, but saw nothing immediately available to use to help us, no rivers or volcanoes to hide in—because, yeah, what else could a Fire use as cover? I supposed I could make a river by melting the snow…or…I could create an avalanche. There were plenty of mountains around, plenty of snow. It wouldn’t keep the Waters from following us, but stopping three-quarters of our pursuers in their tracks seemed like quite a decent advantage.
I awoke the water within me, quickly stirring it into a hissing whirlpool of ire. Then I set it free. As the power erupted out around me, the forest floor beneath us began to shake. The static rumbling of something large and terrifying filled the air. Loren and her lackeys backed off, cocking their heads to decipher the sounds. I grabbed Cade’s bicep and pulled him on. We would not want to be standing there in another few seconds.
“Avalanche!” an Elitist Water bellowed, and the others scattered wildly.
Not two seconds later, the first tufts of raging white snow breeched the caps of the nearby trees. It sprayed like a heavy wave, snapping branches and whole trunks alike. 

Other Books in the Series

Elemental Secrets
(Essential Elements #1)
by Elle Middaugh
YA Fantasy, Urban Fantasy
Paperback & ebook, 432 Pages
April 21st 2016

Summary

With her mother long deceased and her father recently deployed, Valerie Moore is sent to live with her eccentric aunt in a tiny town nestled in the mountains of Pennsylvania. Being a Navy brat has made her into a bit of a loner, and making friends isn’t high on her list.

Time with her aunt, however, soon convinces her that a life of loneliness really isn’t what she wants. So, she opens up and makes a few friends - friends with secrets.

Her love life quickly becomes a mess. Torn between the conflicted heartbreaker next door, the persistent jock at the top, and the rugged college bad boy, Valerie finds it almost impossible to choose just one guy.

Romance isn’t her only problem, though.

Secrets are revealed about her family, her friends and relationships, and her whole world…

But the biggest secret of all is unveiled when Valerie discovers she has Elemental powers, unleashing a rapid chain of irreversible events.

(Affiliate links included - I receive a small kickback if you make a purchase using my links.)

About the Author


Elle Middaugh lives in the Allegheny Mountains outside of Clearfield, Pennsylvania, with her wonderful husband and three beautiful children. She spends most of her time raising kids, writing stories, playing video games, reading, and attempting to keep a clean house.
She’s a proud Navy wife, a frazzle-brained mother, a fan of health and fitness, a lover of hot tea and iced tea, and a believer in happily ever afters.

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