Darke London
Uncanny Chronicles, Book 1
Uncanny Chronicles, Book 1
Coleen Kwan
Genre: historical/supernatural
Publisher: Samhain
ISBN: 978-1-61921-557-3
ASIN: B00C870WDS
Number of pages: 157
Word Count: 50,000
Cover Artist: Kanaxa
Book
Description:
The only way to save her life is to resurrect the
dead…
Julian Darke was only a newborn when he was abandoned
on the doorstep of a gentleman doctor. Though raised with love, he is driven to
discover his true origins.
Convinced Sir Thaddeus Ormond knows something,
Julian shadows him one night—and is shocked to see a young woman thrown from
Ormond’s carriage and accosted by a thug. Julian manages to save her life, but
not her face and hands from horrific injuries.
Nellie Barchester doesn’t recognize the scarred,
disfigured stranger in the mirror. Though the gifted doctor and engineer has
done his best to repair the damage, scars ravage her body, and chill her soul
with the realization that her own husband may have plotted her death.
Julian’s tenderness is a balm to her soul, and
Nellie is drawn to the edge of passion by a man not repelled by her deformities.
But as their pursuit of the truth draws them into London’s underbelly, they
cross the path of a ruthless enemy who will stop at nothing to fulfill his
schemes.
Warning: Can
a brilliant but troubled doctor find happiness with a woman scarred both inside
and out? A hint of the supernatural plus a night of passion spice up this
Uncanny Chronicle.
Excerpt:
The man she
was tailing paused outside a mean little gin shop. Nellie stopped behind a tottering
pile of crates filled with rotting cabbages. Now she was nearer she could make
out the man’s fair curls peeping below the brim of his fashionable top hat. He
dithered on the threshold of the shop, then plunged in and emerged a minute
later, shuddering and wiping his mouth after his quick dram. His Savile Row
suit and polished boots attracted a few sidelong glances and mutters, but he
appeared not to notice as he hurried down a side street.
Nellie
skulked after him. This secondary road was darker, quieter, the cacophony of
the night market gradually subsiding to a low hubbub. Fog wreathed the dwellings
and dulled her ears. The heels of her boots clicked on the cobblestones. From
an alleyway, a cat yowled. Up ahead, the man dipped past a hazy pool of
gaslight from a lone streetlamp.
Footsteps
sounded behind her. She glanced over her shoulder. Nothing but wraiths of mist.
It must have been those rats rooting through a rubbish heap she’d heard. She
pushed on. A moment later the footsteps behind her resumed. This time she spun
round, the hairs on her nape standing on end as she scanned the length of road
she’d just crossed. Through the gathering fog, she could make out nothing.
Then, from one of the nearby houses, an enormously fat crone meandered out,
bunched up her skirts and squatted in the gutter to relieve herself.
Nellie
expelled a deep breath and turned around just in time to see the object of her
pursuit enter the last house of a row of terraces. Well, she’d suspected this
was his destination as soon as she’d realised he was heading for Aldgate. This
would be the third visit she’d witnessed; who knew how many times he’d come
before? She edged her way to the shadow of a high, blank wall opposite the
house and settled down to wait. A few minutes ticked by. On the upper floor of
the house, the light shining from the windows faded and remained dim for a
further five minutes. Slowly the windows brightened, and moments later the
young man clattered out of the house.
As he
approached her, Nellie’s heart beat faster. He was so close! She had just to
step out of the shadows and call out his name. Pip. It was so easy, so tempting. Pip, I’m still alive. I’m not dead.
About the Author:
Coleen Kwan has
been a bookworm all her life. At school English was her favorite subject, but
for some reason she decided on a career in IT. After many years of programming,
she wondered what else there was in life — and discovered writing. She loves
writing contemporary romance and steampunk romance.
Coleen lives in
Sydney, Australia with her partner and two children. When she isn’t writing she
enjoys avoiding housework, eating chocolate, and watching The Office.
Website: www.coleenkwan.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/ColeenKwan
Facebook: www.facebook.com/coleenkwan.authorpage
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