FF : King Thrushbeard by Angeline Kace

** Make sure you visit Dark Faerie Tales today for a re-told of The Minotaur fable by author Jennifer Estep, you also win a copy of Touch of Frost & I like it wasn’t enough, she’s also giving away a copy of Supernatural – the anthology **

Angeline Kace, debut author, decided to write an amazing fable base on the Grimm Brothers’ King Thrushbeard story, and let me tell you, you’ll have a ride for your money – or should I say reading time? *winks*

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Brooke is the main character of Descended by Blood, releasing August 26, 2011. She's sixteen with long dark hair and blue eyes. Her mother is human, and her father is a vampire. She doesn't like her vampire side and wishes she had been born as a pure human.

The Vampire Who Was Too Obliging

“Too short,” I said, passing the vampire standing center in line.

My father, the king, demanded me to marry and since I avoided any of his potential suitors, he invited every king, prince, and duke within the region. My resistance of selecting one of his suitors was that they were all vampires. I’d been born half vampire, so I meant no offense to them. They were beautiful, strong, and intelligent, which would explain why my human mother fawned over my father. But I aimed to avoid the quandaries they had faced; lack of unconditional love, patience, and honesty. And everything devoid in their marriage stemmed from my father’s cold vampire nature. I yearned for ardent love with a human prince sweeping me off my feet, as every princess deserved.

“Too tall.” And that he was. Foreboding that I might be crushed by this giant at the altar sent me further down the line.

“Too pale.” Rumors had run amuck that this fellow grew crasser than all the others.

I strolled past more vampires. Some of my suitors sneered at me and some of them salivated, as if they might eat me. The end of the line appeared and my step quickened with glee.

“Too angry, too old, too...” I halted. The vampire before me stood flawless. I closed my jaw in fear that I might stammer. His mahogany locks shimmered gold and copper in the sunlight. A warm summer breeze tousled the strands where they ended above his broad shoulders. His nose pointed at me; prominent and sharp, and his bottom lip enticed me with its full, smooth pout.

“Princess,” he said and bowed. Most men of his stature grasped a lady’s hand, bringing it up to his face, and kissing it. He had shown me a great honor by bowing before me instead. He straightened and his obsidian eyes gleamed beneath his now hooded eyelids.       

I stepped back. “Too obliging.” I turned on my heel and marched toward my chambers, unsettled that the vampire had stirred something within me.

A short span later, my father barged into my quarters. “What is wrong with thee?”      

I gasped. “Pardon?” He had never spoken to me this unkindly.        

“I provide thee with all of the best suitors across the land. I lay them at thy feet for thee to choose the most worthy. How doth thee come away alone and scorned?”        

I jutted my chin. “I shall not settle.”        

“Then I shall hand thee over to the first human boy that asks.”        

I gasped. “You wouldn't.”        

“I shall.” He slammed the heavy wooden door behind him.                                     

*  *  *

“Brooke,” my father boomed, calling me into the throne room.        

I lifted my skirts and hustled toward the grand hall. A young man in worn clothing with dark hair cropped close to his ears stood before my father.        

“Hear his ballad,” my father spoke.        

I curtsied.

The young man opened his mouth and out flowed from his throat a harmony so pure and sweet my heart beat with its tempo.        

Silence drifted in the hall after the last note faded. “Thy song pleases me,” my father said. “What shall be thy reward?”        

“Your daughter to wife.”       

“No,” I cried.        

“Yes,” my father said. “I took an oath to give thee to the first human to ask. She shall be thine now.” And he gave me to the ballad singer.        

The young man led me away, and I went forth with him on foot. We followed the road along the forest’s floor for the span of the whole day, and we made camp when the moon shone overhead.        

“Wife, go fetch wood.”        

I gathered my skirts and trailed away. I collected dry branches and bark, wondering how I ended up with the ballad singer instead of my human prince. Would I have been less tattered had I chosen the vampire prince who was too obliging?        

Twigs snapped in the distance and heavy foot falls pounded along the earth’s surface toward me.        

I dropped the kindle and ran to the safety of my husband.       

A roar vibrated behind me.       

“A bear comes this way,” I said, hiding behind my husband.        

“What do you suppose I do about it?” he asked, eyes alight with terror.       

“Do you surmise that I dispose of it?” My new husband offered me no refuge.        

“You are half vampire, which garners you strength and speed that I do not have.”        

He spoke truths, but my strength and speed were found lacking to that of a full vampire or a bear.        

The bear roared again, closer was the sound.        

I picked up a large branch and held it before me.        

The bear broke through the trees and into the clearing. From the other side, a vampire sped to the bear. He stooped low before he raised up, jumping onto the bear’s back.        

The vampire extended his fangs and bit into the back of the bear’s neck. The bear roared and shook to and fro to release himself from the vampire’s fangs. The bear’s struggle was for naught, for he bled and lamented as he fell to the ground dead—and remained dead.        

The vampire released his fangs from the bear. “I beseech you to traverse a little longer.”

“Thank you, good sir. For had you not come along, we would surely parish.” I followed my husband, assured that had I chosen the vampire who was too obliging I would have been saved had not that vampire come along to rescue us.       

We journeyed through night until we came upon my husband’s home where we made rest. We lay down without a fire or supper.

Upon the sun’s rise, my husband spoke, “You must go unto market and offer these pots for sale.”      

I obeyed my husband and people bought my wares. Some people spoke to me with kind words, but most spoke to me with pride and mocked me. Where was the gentle nature that these humans were sure to have? Clearly, they were not any more kind to me than were the vampires.

My husband bought many more pots for me to sell, so I seated myself at market for many more days. On the third day, a kind, withered man spoke to me about his life as a widow.

Life is short for humans and my mind pondered on my time spent alone after my human husband would pass. Had I chosen to marry the vampire who was too obliging, we could have lived long together, but because I had done wrong and felt a vampire not worthy, I would live a long life lonely and glum.        

I wept bitterly.       

“Do not be sad,” said a man, and when I looked up, it was my husband. “Do you not know me, my wife?” And his pale skin was absorbed with tanned, butterscotch, and his eyes darkened to a twinkling obsidian. “I am both the ballad singer and the vampire who was too obliging. For love of you, I disguised myself with vampire magic to bring down your prejudices against vampires and elevate your benevolence for us.”        

“I am not worthy to be your wife.”        

He came to me where I stood. “Take courage, for you have changed.”        

I wiped my eyes and the vampire who was too obliging kissed me.        

I pulled away. “But your hair did not grow back.”        

“I cut it.”       

“Grow it back. I liked it,” I said, tickling my fingers with the short strands.        

“Are you sure that if I do, I will not be too obliging?”        

I smiled and he kissed me.

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About Descended by Blood:

Brooke Keller is a high school junior who has never spent much time living in one place. She is finally in a town long enough to almost snag the boy of her dreams, until her life is threatened after killing a fanged man in his attempt to kidnap her. Brooke begins a dangerous journey in an effort to find out who is after her and how to stop them. Thrown into a world with powerful and prejudiced vampires, Brooke must tap into the side of her that she never knew existed at the risk of losing her life in order to save it.

Coming August 26, 2011 by Accendo Press

Read an excerpt

 

 

Angeline would like to offer one of you a kindle skin of Descended by Blood (which I’m totally jealous about because they are gorgeous!) and bookmarks!

• This giveaway is open US & Canada Only

• To enter, just leave a comment sharing a story about a time you misjudged someone or a situation

You can to earn an extra entry by spreading the word, please provide link in a second comment

Tweet: #FantasticFables @angeline_kace 's take on King Trushbread | Win a Kindle Skin! | http://www.tyngasreviews.com/2011/08/ff-king-thrushbeard-by-angeline-kace.html |  #Giveaway Plz RT

Ends September 7th, 2011.

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Angeline is a Scorpio living in the Rocky Mountains with her husband and two dogs. She loathed dogs and their "stick to me everywhere" hair until she fell for a pit bull.

She works full time at CPA firm and is going to school to get her Accounting degree. While she's slaving away, trying to figure out why accounts aren't balancing, she's dreaming about books.

She started reading seriously- staying up all night to finish a book and buying every new release she could afford- after finishing Twilight. Say what you want about the series, but it got a lot of people reading, so it's brought more to this world than just sparkly vampires.  She loves all things paranormal, but her favorites are vampires, werewolves, and zombies. In that order.

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Posted by Tynga at 09:32

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Tynga is a 32 years old mom of two, from Montreal, working as a lab technician in an hospital specialized in heart disease. In her free time, she enjoys reading all things Paranormal and photography.

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