Life is a series of tests, Alexandra’s sister once told her. Though she heeded the words, she could never escape her sibling’s shadow. Ceres was thin and coordinated, all the things Alexandra was not. But when she closed her hand into a fist, her true talents emerged.
Now, after years as a mercenary, Alexandra has locked her heart behind a gate, insulating her from the horrors of war. Learning her sister has been kidnapped by a hostile nation, she springs into action.
Abandoned by the rest of the world, Vistonya has fallen into a civil war between two monstrous entities: the Corrosion King, who controls the gothic land with his ravenous soldiers, and the Ruids, a cult-like sect seeking to usurp the king. Taking Alexandra’s sister, they ignite a fury even they have yet to endure. Merciless monsters that have never known fear? You’re gonna learn today.
But it won’t be that easy. Four barriers stand between her and her sister, each protected by an increasingly brutal Gatekeeper, the king’s chief enforcers. She must claim their armor to unlock the final gate.
Adding to this, Alexandra must watch her own temperature, gauged by her glowing pink-and-black gloves. Due to a genetic defect, if she overheats, she burns out, rendering her vulnerable to attacks.
As Alexandra traverses the barriers, her own walls crumble, exposing her fragile heart. She didn’t come to liberate the country but can’t ignore the plight of the people. This rallies unexpected allies who help her unravel Vistonya’s mysteries, as well as her own troubled past, which are more connected than she could have ever imagined.
At 89,000 words, Alexandra Bliss is a fast-paced story that blends action, sci-fi, and horror in a unique way, similar to Shroud by Adrian Tchaikovsky, Michael McBride’s Chimera, and Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir. Or simply put, Jack Reacher meets gothic horror as a cyberpunk girl fights her way through a county of medieval monsters to save her sister.
Chapter 20 Excerpt
The Sunflower Sea
It was then the woman glanced at her. No … she was looking through her, to the north. The wind. It now blew south, against them.
Menacing clouds closed on their position, igniting her protective instincts. Don’t worry, I’ll stop it. Live your life. This is mine …
Alexandra stormed into the flowers toward the disturbance. Whatever lay ahead was big. Ominous. She remembered the closet that had frightened her as a child. You will bend to me, now. Once more, the spike burned in her chest.
Rain poured down as she burst from the sunflowers. The sight before her made little sense. A host of ghouls—reminiscent of both the soldiers and Ruids—marched toward her. Eerie torches illuminated the army behind them. At their center, an old tank had been converted into a grim chariot. Atop it sat a nightmarish woman, fused to her throne by the both the Corrosion and the Black Root. Taking note of Alexandra, she raised her hand.
The horde came to a halt. Missiles streaked across the sky, illuminating a legion of winged creatures. Earth-shattering cannons answered the airstrike, their tread grinding everything in their path.
Spikes ripped from the ground like malevolent thorns, while cephalopods similar to A-O slithered in the shadows. It was an apocalyptic vision if Alexandra had ever seen one.
Their thunderous drums ceased as the woman rose, the Corrosion and Black Root burning away from her body. Her silver and crimson armor included a steel armband, a large belt, a shimmering amulet, and a helmet of horns. The four sigils of the Gatekeepers.
Spikes protruded from her shoulders, while a massive bandolier glowed across her chest like a radiant spine. Unlike the residual scorch of Alexandra’s ammo strap, the conqueror’s burning scar did not fade.
She descended the steps to an impish figure piloting the chariot. He bowed and handed over his reins, which she took with a single hand.
Her eyes sent chills through Alexandra. Grim, unforgiving. The skin around them was singed and cracked, as if she burned from within. Her helmet concealed the rest. Alexandra remembered the family behind her.
“You’re not getting through.” She would fight with her dying breath to stop them from invading that place. It was an unwinnable scenario, but what choice did she have? She would at least die for something. For a world that wasn’t this.
The woman’s jagged gloves radiated for several grim seconds. They were similar to Alexandra’s, but much, much larger.
“You were so naive.” The words whispered a regret Alexandra did not know yet. “Kill her.”
A thousand beasts roared in unison. Winged creatures plunged at her, darkening the sky like an insidious swarm. Drums shook the ground she stood on. The woman snapped her reins and commenced her ill campaign. With nothing but the spike to fuel her, Alexandra ran at the horde with her own battle cry. The rain turned to fire, singeing her clothes and flesh. Still she pushed on, her neon gloves burning hotter than before. The conqueror raised a thorny hand, blinding her in nuclear pink. Still she pressed on. Choke on my ashes.
Red Husted 
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