The Warlock's Curse

by C. B. Oresky

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GENRE: Young Adult Fantasy

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BLURB:

Clara and Angelica Grace have never met ghosts. They’ve never sailed on a tall ship, ridden wild unicorns, or fought with magical weapons. Instead, the teenage twins have a wretched existence, ignored by their troubled parents in a rundown home and tormented by the town’s snobs.

Everything turns topsy-turvy all of a sudden when discovery of an ancestor’s hidden journal with an odd key to an unknown door leads them into an entirely different realm.

The girls go on a thrilling oceanic voyage to search for mysterious whales, train with a seasoned warrior, and are befriended by a wise Master. But all is not a bouquet of lovely lilies…they are hunted by a cunning warlock and must rid themselves of The Warlock’s Curse.

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EXCERPT

 “Help! Please help!” Angelica cried, turning toward the direction the voice had come from.

Veils of darkness greeted her eyes. 

Suddenly, a strange sight seized both girls’ attention. The oddest-looking creature the girls had ever seen emerged from the gloom, waddling along a curved path near the pool’s edge. Its shape gradually came into view. 

The squat creature stood about two feet tall, an amethyst stud adorning its short nose, its long face crowned by a single lock of fair curly hair. In place of normal clothing, a grasshopper-green mossy material covered its small hands and feet, while an amber mesh filament, appearing like thinly braided laces, swathed its arms and back. It eagerly flew toward the girls, appearing like a goldfinch, its smooth, translucent body quivering like firm jelly and glowing as the shimmering sun. The creature’s unforgettably deep eyes were grave and dark and splashed with touches of ocher, like glossy black beetles. 

Clara trembled in her well-worn boots, imagining the approaching creature as a monster in some horror movie. She wrapped her wool cape more tightly about her, wishing it might somehow guard her from harm. 

Angelica also eyed the peculiar-looking being fearfully and staggered back a step. 

The golden creature stopped just short of them.  

 “It smells good…like meadow grass and flowers,” Clara whispered.

 “Hummmmmm, Hummmmm,” its melodious voice buzzed, like bees flitting over flowers. The odd creature licked its rubbery lips. 

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What are your favorite TV shows? I adore the period classics on PBS Masterpiece. Series such as All Creatures Great & Small, Sanditon, Victoria, and Little Women are all so well written. The acting is great; the costumes are incredible.

I also love science fiction series such as Star Trek and Star Trek Next Generation. These series give me hope that perhaps someday the human race can overcome its difficulties and achieve great things in the final frontier of space.

What is your favorite meal? Spaghetti and Meatballs… Need I say more?

If you were to write a series of novels, what would it be about? I would turn my debut novel into a duology. The twins would get older. They would experience their first love, fight evil, continue to practice meditation…and develop special occult skillsets.

Is there a writer you idolize? If so who? I idolize J.R.R. Tolkien, the father of fantasy. I love how Tolkien’s artistry with words, masterfully paints scene after scene about a magical world where creatures talk and everything from the trees to the mountains seem alive. The Oxford English scholar could do it all when it came to world building: he created his own languages, geography, unique races, and relatable characters who fought for justice and those they love. I find myself easily swept away into his ingenious books and totally connected to the characters.

How did you come up for the title of this book? The original title of my book, being a great The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe fan, was The Master, The Captain, The Warlock, and The Warrior (named after the main characters in my book). However, my omniscient editor felt that the title was longer than a trip to the moon. Standing on her pedestal of justice and holding a lamp of truth, she informed me: “Young adults prefer titles to be short and direct.” Because of her wisdom, I listened… I shortened the title to The Warlock’s Curse, as the story is about twin sisters on a perilous adventure to remove an ancient curse.

AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Fascinated by the works of Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, C.B. Oresky began writing her own fantasy novel, The Warlock’s Curse, after dreaming of being whisked off to an alien realm. Besides her debut novel, she has seen four of her short stories published in a small, national literary press: Conceit Magazine. When she’s not writing, she can be found wandering through the  woods, dancing flamenco, or planting flowers in her garden. She currently lives in a small town in Connecticut with her bodybuilder husband, their exceptionally naughty Scottish terrier and Siamese cat, ten chickens, Mr. Tiggy the hedgehog, and a yard filled with majestic flowers.

Website: www.cbOresky.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cboresky/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thewarlockscurse/

Twitter: @cbOresky

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@cboresky

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/c-b-oresky

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/22747540.C_B_Oresky

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