The Old Magic thinks that’s quite a bold thing to say, for someone who recently lost his immortality. Ellie must think so too, because she appears at Evander’s side, then plucks a hair from his head. Evander jumps, eyes wide as he examines the hair for any hint of gray. When the King of Dwellen discovers the plucked hair retains its copper hue, and his queen is offering him a mischievous grin, he grabs her by the waist and yanks her onto his lap as she laughs.
“I think I see a wrinkle,” Ellie teases, tracing the corner of Evander’s eye with her forefinger.
The Old Magic decides to ignore them, even if Asha isn’t. Ellie and Evander are much too affectionate in public for the Old Magic’s liking. Though he secretly finds it admirable that Evander gave up his immortality earlier this year to save Cecilia from an illness that came close to taking her life.
The Old Magic notices that Ellie is wearing a set of intricately designed glass slippers.
Eventually, the children gather together, Cecilia and Aysel hobbling over the rest to sit in the front, facing Asha; Kiran and Asha’s oldest child squeezes between them.
Even Amity joins them, herding the younger children like a mother hen before settling down behind them with a cup of hot cocoa.
The Old Magic is glad Amity still joins. He worries every year that this will be the year she’s outgrown story hour.
He suspects Amity has, in fact, outgrown story hour, but that she stays to appease him, which warms his borrowed heart almost as equally.
Once Blaise’s daughter finally shuts up, Asha asks, You ready?
It’s a silly question, of course. The Old Magic has spent the better part of the past year crafting this particular tale. This will be the story to finally teach these impertinent children a lesson, after all.
So Asha opens her mouth, and out from it pours the melodious voice of the Old Magic as he spins a tale, all the while intoxicated on the children’s unbreakable attention.
It’s a tale of bravery and loss, misery and triumph.
It’s the story of a girl whose soul had somehow gotten itself woven into the very Fabric of the Realms. A girl who belongs nowhere and everywhere at once.
It’s the story of a girl who’s never died before.
The story of a girl who bridges Realms.
And the villain who follows her to the ends of them.
It’s the Old Magic’s best work so far, if he does say so himself.
He ends it, of course, on a cliffhanger.
It’s hard to believe this little story I wrote the first chapter of on a plane on the way to Hawaii over two years ago is finally finished. That being said, I know some of y’all are wondering about the future of a few of our favorite side characters. Don’t worry—I haven’t forgotten about them. Fin and Dinah’s story is one that’s been bouncing around in my mind when I’m supposed to be working on other things. (Cheyenne’s too). Right now, I think their stories belong in A Swoony Solstice, my holiday fantasy rom-com series. Because let’s be honest—they’ve been through enough stress already and deserve some coziness in their lives.
Farin and Zora, on the other hand…
Well, they’ve been through a lot of stress too, but why not put them through a little more?
I already have plans for our favorite realm-walking couple, but I’m not telling you when or where (or who) they’ll show up. Because yes, I am mean like that.
Oh! And that holiday fantasy rom-com series I mentioned? The first book in the series is already out, and it’s called Of Tangles and Tinsel, for those of you who want to read about Olwen and Quill’s story.
If you’re wondering what T.A. Lawrence book to read next, check out the blurb for Losing Wendy below!
LOSING WENDY
Sometimes the Shadow whispers.
Sometimes I whisper back.
When Wendy's parents made a bargain with a Fate to save her from a deathly illness as a child, they thought the terms were simple: Marry her off before her twentieth birthday or else deliver her over to the Shadow Keeper.
But when a Mating Mark appears on Wendy's skin, finding a husband becomes a tad more complicated. After all, no one wants a wife mated to another man.
As Wendy's twentieth birthday approaches, and she's yet to find a man who will take her, she and her parents throw a masquerade ball in a last ditch effort to free her from her curse.
But nothing is as it seems, and when disaster strikes, Wendy must choose between running from the shadows and embracing them.
Losing Wendy is a dark fantasy Peter Pan retelling with fated mates, slow-burn enemies to lovers romance, winged fae, and a chilling mystery that will have you guessing at every turn.
Order Losing Wendy today!
FREE PREQUEL NOVELLA
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Get A Face to Slay the Shadows at talawrencebooks.com
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
There are so many things I could thank God for when it comes to these books, but today I’ve settled on thanking the Lord for time. Books are endurance projects—series even more so. This is the first series I’ve completed, and I couldn’t have done it without the God who has chosen to grant me the days and health to do it.
Jacob, thanks for believing in me enough to tell me to go down to part-time in my day job while I was still in the red. Dad, thanks for convincing me that this book needed a glossary. I’m sure my readers are thanking you too. Mom, thanks for all the hours you spent teaching me to read and for your patience with my horrible handwriting.
Rachel Bobo, thanks for constantly lifting me up when I’m drowning in self-doubt.
Alyssa Dorn and Morgan Cari, thanks for bearing with the blank spaces and helping figure out what to put there.
Christine, thank you so much for your attention to detail and for agreeing to take on such an enormous project.
Maci, I hope Blaise and Nox’s conclusion was everything you hoped it would be.
Rachel Broadway, thanks for convincing me to change my outline. Unless readers end up hating that particular sub-plot, in which case, Aimee Turner, I guess I should have listened to you instead.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
T.A. Lawrence is the author of The Severed Realms, a series of fairytale retellings that feature mystery, danger, romance, and, of course, fae. T.A. Lawrence also writes the middle-grade series The Astoria Chronicles, the story of a girl who frequents a fantasy world through a portal in her neighbor’s cotton field. T.A. lives in Alabama with her loving and supportive husband Jacob, who occasionally convinces her to leave the house.
ALSO BY T.A. LAWRENCE
The Severed Realms
A Word so Fitly Spoken
