An Outcast and an Ally by Caitlin Lochner - Book Tour + Giveaway
An Outcast and an Ally
Caitlin Lochner
(A Soldier and a Liar #2)
Published by: Swoon Reads
Publication date: April 21st 2020
Genres: Dystopian, Science Fiction, Young Adult
Dark secrets and conflicting loyalties abound as four superpowered teens are torn apart by war in Caitlin Lochner’s An Outcast and an Ally, the epic YA sequel to A Soldier and a Liar.Lai, Jay, Al, and Erik are on the run after the military accuses them of being traitors. Tensions between everyone are high, but they have to stick together if they want to survive. And somehow stop the war that’s now in full swing.But when Erik returns to the rebels to find answers about his past, Lai, Al, and Jay have no choice but to go to the Order―a peace coalition bent on stopping the rebels and dissolving the enmity between gifted and ungifted. However, the longer the war drags on, the more Lai’s long-kept secrets threaten to destroy everything she’s ever worked for. Sparks fly as the team constantly questions whether they can trust one another and everyone tries to navigate a war that will change everything.Filled with the same high-stakes superpowered action and complex relationships as A Soldier and A Liar, Caitlin’s first book, An Outcast and an Ally brings this story to a dramatic and satisfying close.
Excerpt
AL
It’s a game of cat and mouse for a while. We both
lunge and evade, but I can tell she gets tired of that real fast—just like me.
Our swings become heavier and less controlled, and even though I know I’m
flagging, I can’t make myself focus enough to recover. Get your shit together, Al. You’re going to lose if you
keep this up.
And I would rather face an army of rebels alone than
lose to Lai right now.
“You really care that much if you lose to me?” Lai
asks as she blocks another of my punches. “It didn’t used to matter which of us
won or lost.”
“That was before I wanted to beat the shit out of
you.”
She falters and my next hit does land, sending her stumbling back
across the rough stone floor.
If it was the normal Lai, the girl who could keep her
cool in a fight and was never so easily pushed off balance, it wouldn’t have
made any difference. But this angry, tired, reckless Lai? I’m able to land a
fist on her stomach before she can recover.
I hear all the air leave her lungs in a rush as she
gasps, trying to breathe. “You have no idea how
much I’ve wanted to do that,” I snarl as I land a kick on her ribcage, sending
her staggering back. “How much I’ve wanted to wipe that conceited look off your
face for the last three weeks. You always think you’re right—that you know
best, that whoever’s trust you step on along the way is simply collateral
damage. You never think about anyone
but yourself.”
She doesn’t fall, just stands there clutching her
stomach. Her dark eyes burn into me with a fire that’s been smothered for a
long, long time. Longer than we’ve known each other.
“You don’t know anything,”
she hisses. Even though she’s still struggling to catch her breath, she rushes
at me with a series of quick punches. I block them, but they keep coming. “You
think because
we’ve been friends for a couple months, I should trust you with everything
about me? Even the things that could put the people I care about in danger? If
you really trusted me like you say you did, you would’ve waited until I was
ready to tell you about everything and been understanding—you would’ve been a real friend.”
Author Bio:I’m a nerd, traveler, and architecture enthusiast who worked as an assistant English teacher in Tokyo for three years before pursuing my MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Central Florida. I love reading and writing anything with magic, adventure, and complex found-family relationships. I can typically be found absorbed in books, games, or manga, or else obsessing over said books, games, and manga.
2 Comments
Thanks for being on the tour! :)
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome! :)
DeletePlease try not to spam posts with the same comments over and over again. Authors like seeing thoughtful comments about their books, not the same old, "I like the cover" or "sounds good" comments. While that is nice, putting some real thought and effort in is appreciated. Thank you.