The Wrath and the Dawn came out in May 2015, and is being released in paperback in time for the release of book two in the duology, The Rose and the Dagger, on sale May 3. This series is a retelling of A Thousand and One Nights, and was a huge reader favorite:
In a land ruled by a murderous boy-king, each dawn brings heartache to a new family. Khalid, the eighteen-year-old Caliph of Khorasan, is a monster. Each night he takes a new bride only to have a silk cord wrapped around her throat come morning. When sixteen-year-old Shahrzad’s dearest friend falls victim to Khalid, Shahrzad vows vengeance and volunteers to be his next bride. Shahrzad is determined not only to stay alive, but to end the caliph’s reign of terror once and for all.
Night after night, Shahrzad beguiles Khalid, weaving stories that enchant, ensuring her survival, though she knows each dawn could be her last. But something she never expected begins to happen: Khalid is nothing like what she’d imagined him to be. This monster is a boy with a tormented heart. Incredibly, Shahrzad finds herself falling in love. How is this possible? It’s an unforgivable betrayal. Still, Shahrzad has come to understand all is not as it seems in this palace of marble and stone. She resolves to uncover whatever secrets lurk and, despite her love, be ready to take Khalid’s life as retribution for the many lives he’s stolen. Can their love survive this world of stories and secrets?
I’m hesitant to post the summary of book 2 – and as I said, this is a duology so it’s the second and final part of the series – because I don’t want to give any of the sequel away! But! If you’d like to win a paperback of The Wrath and the Dawn and an ARC of The Rose and the Dagger, read on!
Giveaway!
We have a grand prize and four runners up prizes – woo hoo!
- The Grand Prize winner will receive a paperback copy of The Wrath and the Dawn, and a print ARC (Advanced Reader’s Copy) of The Rose and the Dagger.
- Four runners up will win a paperback copy of The Wrath and the Dawn, courtesy of Penguin Young Readers. Yay!
Want to enter the giveaway? There’s a bunch of enabled options below in the Rafflecopter widget to get extra entries via social media, but they’re not required. For one entry, drop your email in the box provided, and for extra, you can tweet about it or visit the author’s Facebook page, too. Your choice! As always, if the widget gives you trouble, please email me and I’ll make sure you’re entered correctly.
Standard disclaimers apply: I’m not being compensated for this giveaway. Open to US residents 18 years of age and over. Void where prohibited. Objects in mirror may be closer than they appear. Do not taunt the dragon or the happy fun ball. Close cover before striking. You’re soaking in it. Giveaway widget will close at midnight, Friday 25 March. Winners will be chosen on Friday 25 March and announced same day.
And now, the fun part:
The Excerpt!
The new novella, The Moth and the Flame, will be on sale this week, but until then, we’re the only place to read it. There’s banter – a whole lot of it – between Jalal, the charming captain of the guard, and Despina, who doesn’t find him at all charming.
So make yourself comfortable, and off we go!
Excerpt from The Moth and the Flame
By Renee Ahdieh
Jalal al-Khoury was bored.
Such boredom did not behoove the beautiful day before him. Did not pay homage to its clear blue sky and the citrus-scented breeze weaving through the open screens of the palace.
He supposed he could seek out Sahar. Or perhaps Nasreen. Both girls were just the kind to take advantage of such a lovely day. Just the kind to put aside their work and get lost in the many shaded corners of the gardens beyond.
The kind to engage in Jalal’s favorite pastime.
Women had always been a weakness for him, much to his father’s chagrin. Aref al-Khoury—the Shahrban of Rey—had been faithful to one woman all his life. Sought comfort in the arms of one woman, and one woman alone. Whereas his son sought comfort in the arms of many women. Women of all sorts. Short, thin, tall, plump—it mattered not to Jalal.
For Jalal al-Khoury loved women and never sought to hide the fact. He’d been called many things as a result. Scoundrel. Rake. Profligate. But he’d never been called boring. And Jalal refused to let such a travesty occur on such a lovely day.
After all, there were far too many fetching young women at the palace.
So Jalal walked through its warren of marbled corridors, on the search for any girl with a smiling face and a moment to flirt.
But—when he turned the corner across from the queen’s chambers—Jalal did not come across a girl with a smiling face.
Instead he came across a girl with a decidedly pensive gaze. A girl with an empty silver tray dangling from one hand. When a ray of afternoon sun struck its surface, the flash of light drew him toward her, like a moth to a flame.
Jalal recognized her in an instant.
It was the same girl from three weeks past. The one with the sharp tongue and the sly expression. An expression rich with emotion. Rich with intelligence.
Rich with secrets.
As with the first time, Jalal was struck by her bearing. It was not the bearing of a servant. No. There was nothing meek or solicitous about her manner. The girl carried herself with calm pomposity. It reminded him greatly of himself.
He slowed his gait to a leisurely stroll and let his eyes run the length of her. Skin the color of cool sand. Eyes the blue of the Aegean. Long, rich curls of light walnut hair wrapped in intricate coils.
Just as lovely as Jalal remembered.
As he drew near, the girl was taken from her reverie.
Just as before, she did not fluster at his arrival. No sign of recognition rippled across her face. Not a trace of becoming blush rose in her cheeks. She did not avert her gaze or bite her lip.
She merely returned his stare. With such steadiness that Jalal instead grew flustered, one hand seeking purchase on the hilt of his scimitar.
“Are you lost, Captain al-Khoury?” the girl asked without pause.
Ordinarily such a question would be nothing short of an overture for Jalal. An overture demanding a flowery response. Or at the very least, a honeyed quip. Something about her eyes—which truly were striking—or perhaps about the shining crown of curls about her head.
Something suggestive.
Something about how he’d like to unravel those curls and watch them fall apart in his fingers.
But his memory recalled more than her striking beauty. It also recalled a biting wit. One that lanced old wounds as it made new ones. Any felicitous overtures on his part would be lost on this girl. She would likely mock him for his efforts.
So instead Jalal cleared his throat and leaned back on his heels.
“Why do you suppose I’m lost?” he began in an airy tone.
“You’re no longer walking with purpose.”
Jalal lifted his shoulders, glib to a fault. “Sometimes it’s rather nice to take a stroll without a destination in mind. Have you never thought of such a thing? Getting lost for a moment and seeing where the day takes you?”
“I can’t say. I’ve never been afforded such a luxury,” she bit out drily, though a trace of humor lit her gaze. “Besides, are you certain it isn’t too early for such pithy ruminations?”
He almost laughed at her boldness. “Is it ever too early for reflection?”
“I don’t know. Is it too early for wine?”
“The sun has not yet begun its descent.” Jalal glanced through the open window nearby. “Propriety would say it is.”
She rolled her eyes. “If it’s too early for wine, then it’s too early for reflection.”
Jalal laughed loudly. Unthinkingly.
It had been a long time since he’d laughed with true abandon. Laughed without a soul to impress or inspire.
“It wasn’t that funny, Captain al-Khoury,” the girl chided.
The laughter lingered in his response. “Don’t.”
“Don’t what?” She inclined her body toward his, the silver tray in her left hand twinkling with merriment.
“Seek compliments.”
For the first time, he saw a hint of annoyance in her features—the slightest dip of her lips. “I’m doing nothing of the sort.”
“Oh?” He drew closer. “Are you not expecting me to tell you it was indeed that funny, and that you might be the most amusing young woman I’ve ever met?”
She cast him an arched glance. “In fact I am not waiting for you to say such a thing. Though I am the most amusing young woman you will ever meet.”
Another hearty round of laughter.
“As you can see, I have no need to seek compliments.”
“Don’t be absurd,” Jalal replied. “All women seek compliments.”
“And all men think they know everything.”
“I never laid claim to such a belief,” Jalal said, his feet taking him one step closer. Still the moth to the flame. “But I do happen to know everything about women . . . what they like, what they dislike”—he moved his hand through the air in an endless circle—“what they mean to say though they refuse to say it.”
The girl snorted with derision. “Further idiocy. With the snap of my fingers, I could ask you a question about women to which you do not know the answer.”
“Are you making a wager with me?” As Jalal bent toward her, a distinctly floral fragrance caught his attention. It hovered about the girl, its scent soothingly sweet, saturating the air in alluring waves.
“Perhaps.” She quirked her chin in teasing fashion.
“And the terms?”
The girl brought the empty tray between them, as though it were a shield. “If I win, you must give me any flower of my choosing.”
“And if I win?” Jalal dropped his voice with deliberate suggestion. “Will you give me whatever I wish?”
“Oh, don’t be an ass.” Her laugh was meant to sound caustic, but Jalal sensed a hint of disquiet behind it. “I’m not foolish enough to make such a reckless promise with a notorious rake.”
He stood toe to toe with her. “But you could be a fool,” he murmured. “Just this once.”
Her breath caught, her eyes glittering like a sea after a storm. “Only in the wildest of your dreams would that ever happen.” The tray lifted higher, pressing the silver against the swell of her chest. “If you win, I will tell you one thing you wish to know about me.”
The decadent sight of the girl before Jalal distracted him. Took him off guard. Rendered him incompetent. “Ask away, my lovely tormenter. Ask and be proven wrong.”
“You claim to know everything about women,” she began. “But tell me, Captain al-Khoury, do you know my name?”
Jalal was at a loss. Her perfume had cloaked his senses. Clouded his judgment.
He hadn’t been expecting such a question.
An easy one. A silly one.
One Jalal could not romance his way through.
Such an occasion happened but once in the lifetime of a profligate such as he. It took every ounce of his self-control not to frown or grumble or kick at nothing, like a bested schoolboy. Infuriated by how easily he’d fallen prey to this cheeky handmaiden’s wit, Jalal took a step back.
He racked his mind for an answer. Any answer that would color him less the fool.
It took him far longer than he wished. But soon Jalal managed to contrive a way to remedy this situation. In his favor. He smiled.
“Meet me to collect your winnings in the first tier of the royal gardens at sunset.”
With that, Jalal spun on a heel and walked away.
Thanks for reading along! If you’re making grabby hands and want to get the novella, The Moth and the Flame ( A | BN | K | G | AB ), sooner than soon, you can order it for $1.99 at all e-retailers, along with The Wrath and the Dawn ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au ), and The Rose and the Dagger ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au ).
You know, these giveaways are not an incentive for me to fall back asleep if I get woken by the dawn bird chorus. I have been interested in this book for a while, and think my niece might like it. So is the comment enough, or should I do more? It will keep me from throwing rocks at happy chickadees.
Also, I don’t tweet or twitter. I know I’m old school, but for me tweets are what those birds are doing outside my window. Which may be an excellent reason to finally get a twitter account….
@shoregirl – my apologies for the widget malfunction. It’s up now, and you should be able to enter your email to enter the giveaway. If you’d like, I can enter you on my end so you don’t have to redo anything. Apologies.
Cute Gollum voice: Silly widgetses.
Well, I tweeted too. Not sure I have any human followers, but maybe the bots will be interested.
I’ve already purchased the pre-ordered but I still entered the giveaway. My impulse control, it is low to non-existent :). SO happy that this excellent book is on sale. Thanks for the excerpt and the giveaway.
Now that I see the widget it does all make sense. Also, I was browsing the internet after being woken at 4 in the morning. The rafflecopter could have landed on my roof, and I still would have been confused. Well, probably even more confused. Thank you and Renee Adhieh for doing this.
I never understand how rafflecopter works. I don’t know if I entetred or not. Or is making a comment here sufficient?
When I was done, I noticed that the number at the top had changed from 0/5 to 1/5 . If I had used facebook in addition to my email, I think I would have had 2/5 entries.
@shoregirl: It should – I’ll make sure it does on the back end. Sorry about that!
@Gloriamarie: It should ask you to log in and enter an email, but if it didn’t, I can enter you on my end – so no worries. it’s done.
@SB Sarah, thank you
These books do sound good!