Imagine if you were a pretty average young woman, working in a college town, Missoula, Montana, late for work because some cop you dated once had your car towed. Then imagine you find a glass slipper on the sidewalk, and your best friend dares you to try it on. Would you?
Jelani Marsh does.
In the Clan Elves of the Bitterroot series, Jelani undergoes a transformation from a regular young woman to a powerful leader of a woodland people she didn’t even know existed. It’s not an easy road. She faces prejudice, her pride is shredded, her son abducted–she nearly gives up. Finally, she gets her courage together and comes back in book three, THE ELF MAGE, to face those who rejected her:
But Jelani wasn’t the only one who had changed during their time apart. The aging she’d seen in Djana was rampant through the rest of the Elders, their hair gray and matted, clothing in dirty layers on their frail bodies, even their thin fingers curled like claws as they nattered at each another. They were a pitiful bunch. Coming in on her cloud of vitality, Jelani felt superior for the first time. She took a deep breath and stepped inside, her head held high.
The immediate silence that greeted her arrival was a little eerie, as were the stares of the Circle Elders as she entered. They’d left some seats open on the tree trunks they used as chairs, particularly in the back. She would have gladly taken one of those in the before times, when she’d been insecure and timid about her place in the clan. No longer. She marched up front, standing where she could pin each one of them with a glance.
No more Mr. Nice Guy.
Here’s the book trailer for THE ELF QUEEN: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ASCJ8H5wO4
Jelani’s story continues into THE ELF CHILD, THE ELF MAGE (just released), and continuing next year with THE ELF GUARDIAN. Reviews and books are available at the DFP site, at Amazon.com, Barnes and Noble.com and many other bookselling locations, and may be ordered by your local indie bookseller.
For all the background, art, updates and details about the series, see the rest of the Clan Elves of the Bitterroot page, or the author’s page at http://lyndialexander.wordpress.com.
Check out more exciting snippets at the Science Fiction Fantasy Saturday page!
13 Comments
Great Snippet. I love strong female characters like Jelani Marsh. I’m excited to see where you will take this. Thanks for sharing! The name you chose is great, too. It just rolls off the tongue.
Nice snippet.
Love the final line…definitely gets the character across to the reader.
Now I want to know what she says to them! Good job.
I really like the strength she exudes in this snippet. I have always been drawn to strong, independent women, and Jelani certainly seems to fit the bill. Well done!
Very nice. Wondering what happens next, especially after that last line. ;P
Great description of what she faces.
So is the shift in how fast time goes by, usually faster in the mortal world, reversed here?
I like how she positions herself so she can pin each one with a glance. She feels powerful!
Thanks, everyone!
Sue Ann, the time flow for the elves is much more attuned to seasons, etc., than a clock. But, for example, their children grow faster– by the age of one, Elliun is walking, running, talking, much like a three-or four year old human. Jelani, being a child of both worlds, often struggles with her understanding and expectations.
Sue Ann, as I read over the snippet again, I thought, too, that the local earth energy, when focused and balanced properly among the Circle, the mages and the leader, keeps everyone healthy and young-ish. Because the Circle has thrown things out of balance, they don’t get the advantage of the earth energy, and they begin to wither.
Sounds like her time has come. :)
I love seeing a character come into her own. This is such an empowering snippet. I love it.