A Dream Within A Dream: Carlyle Labuschagne

Welcome to my stop on the Evanescent blog tour! Today I have an exclusive excerpt from the book to share with you and don't forget to enter the giveaway at the end of the post! To follow along with the rest of the tour, click on the banner above!

Evanescent (Broken #2)

Author: Carlyle Labuschagne

Genre: YA Fantasy/Dystopia

Release Date: November 2013

Description:

Her fall has just begun. Only his touch can save her from the shift that could destroy it all.
Within my blood runs a thing our kind calls the Shadowing Disease. It shadows over, and bends everything to its will. When the first blood- shift came, it tore through flesh and blood, threatening to bend me, break bone, shatter my mind and entrap my heart with its honeyed, seductive poison. It came with vicious intent, moving my thoughts and altering me forever. The shift has caused a rift within me. No one was safe when it entrapped me in its claws of foul lust. But I have the only antidote against the evil that becomes me – his touch alone has the power to release the spurs of sweet darkness that clung on for dear life. I knew what I had to do; the desperation pulled my mind with the deep determination of a hungry predator. By the time the revelation raised me from the dark dungeon of my bounds – it might have been too late.

Fire Side

Zenith is what they call the point of singularity, where everything comes together in one single moment. It’s that one kiss you will never, ever forget. It’s like having a volcano of pleasure erupt in your mouth. Nothing has ever mattered, but that moment. Your entire life has existed for that one kiss. The heat, and the impenetrable hunger that will never be satisfied until it digs up your entire soul. It’s in the way he holds you like he will never, ever let you go. It awakens all your senses. You have never been so weak to his touch. A kiss that ignites your soul, giving it life. His scent, taste and touch is infuriatingly, irresistibly, and irrevocably – edible, consumable and daring. The fire burns right through you, melting you into him. It’s a language that uses everything inside of you to communicate. It’s a prayer only your bodies and souls will ever know. His lips become your life force. It’s that kiss you never walk away from. This is who I will be for the rest of my life. Addicted to that kiss, the ultimate high with infinite, sweet poisons. It corrupts me, turns me inside out, leaves me shaking and invigorated. That is the moment I feel the most alive – ever.

He is my fire side.

Carlyle Labuschagne is a South African Debut Author working her way into the hearts of international readers with her First Young Adult Dystopian Novel “The Broken Destiny. She is not only an author but works as a Sales Rep and Marketing Manager by day. She holds a diploma in creative writing through the writing school at Collage SA. Loves to swim, fights for the trees, food lover who is driven by her passion for life. Carlyle writes for IU e-magazine India, an inspirational non-profit magazine that aims at inspiring the world through words. The drive behind her author career is healing through words. Carlyle is also the founder of the first annual book drive – Help build a library in Africa project.

“My goal as an Author is to touch people’s lives and help others love their differences and one another.”

A firm believer in – YA saves!

Website

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Welcome to my stop on The Broken Destiny official blog tour! Today I have my review of the book and don't forget to scroll to the bottom of the post to enter the tour wide giveaway!

The Broken Destiny (Broken #1)

Author: Carlyle Labuschagne

Genre: YA Science Fiction/Fantasy

Release Date: August 13, 2012

Description:

Ava knows much more, and feels much more than she is allowed to. When she starts questioning her origins and the destruction of Earth, things go horribly wrong for her. She is saved by a Minoan boy from an attempted kidnapping on her life – the perpetrators are evil Zulus and their dark ancient magic. Humans and Minoans are forbidden to interact with each other, and as she is taken back to their village she finds out why – they know of her, her kind and her destiny to save a dying race. Ava must rid them from the Council’s ruling and free the galaxy of The Shadow. Her destiny is to rise above the fall, because within her soul is the key to an archaic weapon that has been missing in the mix of a genetic code since the time of the ancients. As the prophecy unfolds she learns of her bloodline – a bloodline that makes her less human than she could ever have imagined. She alone has the power to destroy or save, but the mind-shift is a horrible thing. Ava will become what she hates to save the ones she loves. Beaten, poisoned, possessed and betrayed by her own emotions, she has no choice but to rise above it all… for that is her Destiny.

Prologue
All my life, I had searched for something, something I thought I ought to be. I felt like I was living someone else’s life, waiting for the awakening of my own. I felt like an empty shell burning for life. That was, until the day I lay dying in the prince’s chambers. I could no longer feel the pain from the tear in my gut. The only sensation left was a hollowed-out feeling that I had made a huge mistake in assuming that taking my own life, would have stopped the ancestors’ spirit from raging out. I had given up. I didn’t want to see myself killing the ones I loved. I was the Chosen one, but I threw it all away for what I thought would save a life. Could you end a life to save a life? I did, and I have regretted it ever since. I realized then that things like me are not meant to exist. What had been missing my whole life? It was I. To find myself, I had to lose myself in the worst possible way. The consequences of my actions became the legend of The Broken.

The Broken Destiny is the first book in a young adult science fiction fantasy that centers around the people known as The Broken. Ava, our main character, is one of The Broken - she's actually the granddaughter of the founder of their civilization on the planet Poseidon. Ava feels like there's something missing from her life, missing from herself - and she soon discovers that she's right. After being rescued from a kidnapping attempt one night, Ava is taken to the Minoans' village - which is strictly forbidden. She finds out the reason why her people aren't supposed to interact with the Minoans - they know all about her race and her destiny to save a dying race of people. Ava learns of a prophecy that speaks of a Chosen One who must rise above the fall and defeat those who would stand in her way. This Chosen One has a secret weapon hidden in her soul that will fix the Broken Ones' genetic code - and only she has the power to overcome all the obstacles set before her and save her race.

I found this book to be a really fascinating science fiction/fantasy novel with tons of world building and detailed history. Throughout the book we get to learn of the Broken Ones and their history, along with the Minoans, the Zulus, the prophecy of the Chosen One, and the history of the ancients. I loved learning about all of the back stories behind the characters and the history of everything and everyone - the author did a fantastic job of creating detailed descriptions and vivid world building throughout the book. Ava was a great main character. She's the typical teenager - unsure of herself, shy, wanting acceptance from her peers, getting bullied at school. But underneath all of that she feels a hollowness that goes far beyond anything normal. I liked watching Ava's character grow and change and she discovers the prophecy and her destiny as the Chosen One. She has to mature and gain strength and courage for her role as the Chosen One. The plot was very intricate and multi-layered with several smaller story lines happening alongside the main one. The writing was well done, although it didn't seem to flow as naturally as it should and it kept me from getting fully immersed in the book and in Ava's world. The ending gave lots of possibilities for the next installment in the series and I'm interested in seeing what will happen next. Recommended for fans of science fiction and fantasy novels.