In honor of Halloween coming this week, I’m going to my award winning Ghost of the Nile from 2015for today’s excerpt. It’s an unusual ghost story!
Here’s the link to the Weekend Writing Warriors central page, so you can visit all the participants sharing excerpts today…a fun way to sample new books and find new authors! (Also welcome to the Sunday Snippet visitors!)
I’ll switch to my newly released scifi romance Timtur: The Teacher’s Alien Healer (Badari Warriors) next week.
Punctuation may be wonky to comply with our guidelines here. May be edited a bit from published version.
The excerpt – my hero gets bad news in the afterlife from the goddess Ma’at, who is speaking as the excerpt starts:
“I’m also a seeker of justice and balance, one who rights wrongs. I’m the goddess of second chances for the human race,” She raised her elegant eyebrows, “Although such chances are few and far between.”
Despite the warmth of the brightly lit room, a shiver worked its way down Periseneb’s spine, “You wish to right the wrong of my murder? Bring my murderer to account for the crime?”
She shook her head, the golden beads in her wig chiming like little bells, “Your death is done, past, woven into the fabric of life in the upper world these two-hundred years and more.”
He staggered, locking one hand on the edge of the table to steady himself, “So long?”
“Time here and time there run differently, warrior. Only the Nile remains unchanging.” She moved to the black-and-gold chair, seating herself and leaning against the richly decorated back, “Yet, your death is connected in a way to events now.” Ma’at nodded her head as if some decision had been reached, “I need a champion.”
The story:
1550 BCE
Betrayed, murdered, and buried without proper ceremony, Egyptian warrior Periseneb is doomed to roam the gray deserts of the dead as a ghost for all eternity.
But then the goddess of truth offers him a bargain: return to the world of the living as her champion for 30 days. If he completes his mission, he’ll be guaranteed entry into Paradise. Periseneb agrees to the bargain but, when he returns to the living world, two hundred years have passed and nothing is quite as he expected.
Neithamun is a woman fighting to hang onto her family’s estate against an unscrupulous nobleman who desires the land as well as the lady. All seems lost until a mysterious yet appealing ex-soldier, Periseneb, appears out of nowhere to help her fight off the noble’s repeated attacks.
Meanwhile, Periseneb’s thirty days are rushing by, and he’s powerless against the growing attraction between himself and Neithamun. But their love can never be. For his Fate is to return to the Afterlife, and Death cannot wed with Life…
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If a relief to know we have a Godess of second chances watching over us.
Love the same line, “Goddess of second chances watching over us.” Hugs my friend
200 years is a very long time. So many things change in ten years, nevermind 200. A very intriguing snippet!
If she is such a goddess, why does she arrange second chances few and far between? Shesh goddess, give humanity a break!
I love how deep that dialogue is!
A tempting morsel of words for sure. 🙂 I love your choice for this week!
Very intriguing
Thanks for the comments! I figured this story was a nice change of pace before we go back to my scifi romance next week…
I’m sure things have changed in a couple of a hundred years. He’s in for a shock.
Several people have commented on how different the place must be after 200 years but that’s part of what made the concept work so well – in ancient Egypt actually things tended to remain pretty much the same for hundreds of years, not at the Pharaoh level, but at the local, farming village kind of level. It’s not like 200 years in our fast paced, high tech world. I had fun writing the novel and there’s a scene where he connects with the oldest resident of the estate and she shares ‘gossip’ passed on in her family from close to his time because her long lived mother had been a child when the last people he actually knew were alive. Just fun stuff to play with as an author.
Love the idea of second chances–something many of us could use, I’m sure! Excellent dialogue, too! 🙂
Second chances. What a concept. How many times have we wished for a “do over”? Interesting story.
Looks like he’s about to get his second chance. Hopefully that’s a good thing!
Loved this excerpt! So well written and evocative. I like the idea of second chances too.
I love this concept, and the excerpt is well done as well. Who doesn’t like the idea of second chances?
This sounds intriguing! A second chance, what could go wrong? 😉
only the Nile remains unchanged – so true. Great line.
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Well, that’s a bit harsh. 200 years is probably too long to try for justice, though.
Intriguing snippet this week !
Such a rich and powerful scene. LOVE this book!
So intrigued! Love second chances.
Only the NIle remains unchanging.” I really like that line. Great scene!
Well that definitely puts a crimp in his weekend plans. 😀 Great snippet, Veronica.
This sounds like a fabulous story. What a deal! Live again, even if only for 30 days. But I can, of course, see the pitfalls ahead. Can’t wait to read this!