I am an incredibly lucky blogger: I met Jo Hogarth on Goodreads, and she agreed to stop by my blog and run an excerpt of her new YA book, The Miska Papers.
Warning:
If you're reading these
pages, than it means you have crossed into dangerous territory. That furtive
movement, that tingle that starts in the base of your spine, something you
can't quite put your finger on. We tell ourselves, it was nothing. But in a tiny
little corner not in our minds but in a spot where logic doesn't reside; we
know it is something, something real, something dangerous. There is no visible
line, no brick wall, no gates separating us; and once you've accepted the
possibility of something not quite normal the common currency changes to blood
and matter and things we don't completely understand. Not because we can't, but
because it's easier not to. In the darkness the cost can be high.
Can you smell it? You're
near one of the birth places of evil and my suggestion to you would be to run
very quickly in the opposite direction, because once you know, there's really
no turning back. Leave now, while you still can. Later, escape won't be
possible. Once it gets into your blood, there is no escape.
If you see these words,
you have of course ignored my good intentioned warning. When you're thigh deep
in regrets, trying to convince yourself you might be crazy, don't say I didn't
try. They say curiosity killed the cat, but in your case it is genetics that
put you on the path, it will be something else entirely that kills you, should
that regrettably happen. I once thought I was mostly invincible too. That's one
of the beautiful qualities of youth, but then you've seen the persistent shadow
of death already, haven't you?
You think you know how
the world works — you don't. The answers are not on CNN or Discovery or even
the History Channel, you'd probably be closer to the truth watching a
combination of MTV and Animal Planet.
There are a few who do
know, but we're not talking, we tend to be a quiet bunch and we're too busy
trying to keep you all alive. The amount of secrets I know could fill a deep
dark lake and then still provide enough runoff to meander into nearby rivers.
This isn't an accident or chance or even bad luck; you were supposed to find
these papers, but I won't get into that now. I'll just say enough that you'll
begin to believe me; I know you've wondered if this is it, shouldn't life mean
something more? I also know that your blood isn't quite right, and I know why,
the cure to your sickness unfortunately lives in my veins and truth be told
you're not really sick. You're just different. It is a long and sordid story.
I wasn't born here, but I
became who I am near the gates of the old castle remains, you can see just
beyond the hill. I left these pages hidden under the stones because it is the
place I always return to and it's part of my history. In fact in many cases
these pages are all that remains of people, entire villages or kind gestures,
now entombed in paragraphs. Written references of things that glimmered very
quickly before the darkness snuffed them out. I did this for you and others who
might join our struggle; I've tried to show exactly how things came to be,
hoping that they'll evolve into what we should be.
Each year I come back
here and add to these pages, the jagged history of my life. In the beginning my
writing is harder to read, we didn't have pens then, just feathers and ink, and
I was new to words, school wasn't really an option for a gypsy girl. Now I can
click my Bic to tell you, but in the beginning everything was a bit of a
struggle. It's still seems odd that more than half of the existence of the
world is hidden to most, a silent orchestra that plays a tune that we all
unknowingly dance to. But I digress, this is not the time or the place for
difficult explanations.
Did you hear that? It
might be something coming closer. They've been waiting for you. We all have,
but some are less well intentioned, so watch your back, your front and your
side, and even the skies. You have to make a decision, either leave the pages
and get on with your life, pretend you never saw them, and let the thing you
thought you saw move in your minds eye disappear to that place in your head which
you put all things that don't feel safe. It's probably the wise thing to do. Or
you can take them, read them, learn and wait for what happens next. Whatever
you do, don't read them here, not near these soiled grounds, it's not safe
enough even with electric lights nearby. Not everything sleeps at night, so
take care.
I had to try one last
time to save you from yourself, and them and perhaps even me. In case you have
any doubts; even in your world of Ipads and shiny bright lights; evil lurks.
Bad, good, naughty, nice, if only it were that simple, but it's part of the
infinite balancing act of existence. With all light comes shadow; there would
be no shining moon without the glare of the sun.
If you choose to read on,
then it is likely our paths will cross, you and I are a team divided by time,
but not for long. This letter could mean the end of you, not to be dramatic but
it's very possible and if I can I will try to save you if the time comes, if
not I'll try to retrieve my writings in the hopes of one day creating a world
where no one has to be scared of the dark.
Dated this day of July
7th 2012. — Miska
***
The 1st Book in the 'Blood Sisters' Series:
Blood sisters, bound by fate and a prophecy that is thousands of years old.
Dagny is a modern girl, cursed by an incurable blood disorder. Stuck on a boring forced 'work holiday' with her geneticist mother, she discovers an old diary of a gypsy girl just outside the castle of Vlad the Impaler. Between the dusty pages, Dagny discovers her true sister; Miska, the first Blood Sister born of Vlad the Impaler.
Miska's diary spins a tale of terror and vampire legends. Her family has been torn apart by the evil of her father and a family battle that has been raging for centuries. Together - through time, they will try to save the world, fight an on-coming plague and discover who they really are, and maybe even meet a boy or two along the way.
The first in the Blood Sister Series - A smart book that blends vampirism, the battle between dark and light, genetic disorders, and self discovery paired with action and adventure all in the face of an impending global disaster.