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An Outcast and an Ally
Caitlin Lochner
(A Soldier and a Liar #2)
Published by: Swoon Reads
Publication date: April 21st 2020
Genres: Dystopian, Science Fiction, Young Adult

Dark secrets and conflicting loyalties abound as four superpowered teens are torn apart by war in Caitlin Lochner’s An Outcast and an Ally, the epic YA sequel to A Soldier and a Liar.

Lai, Jay, Al, and Erik are on the run after the military accuses them of being traitors. Tensions between everyone are high, but they have to stick together if they want to survive. And somehow stop the war that’s now in full swing.

But when Erik returns to the rebels to find answers about his past, Lai, Al, and Jay have no choice but to go to the Order―a peace coalition bent on stopping the rebels and dissolving the enmity between gifted and ungifted. However, the longer the war drags on, the more Lai’s long-kept secrets threaten to destroy everything she’s ever worked for. Sparks fly as the team constantly questions whether they can trust one another and everyone tries to navigate a war that will change everything.

Filled with the same high-stakes superpowered action and complex relationships as A Soldier and A Liar, Caitlin’s first book, An Outcast and an Ally brings this story to a dramatic and satisfying close.

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EXCERPT

LAI 

Of the three rebels coming to meet us, Al dispatches the first easily with her halberd and keeps running to take care of those in front. She makes it look so effortless, so graceful, I’m almost jealous. She doesn’t even need her flames to dominate a battle. Jay and I tag-team the second rebel while the third goes for Peter.

Our opponent is thick with muscle and armed with a spear. She swings low, trying to trip up our footwork, but Jay throws one of his knives at her chest and she has to sidestep quickly to dodge it. I come in from her other side. She swings again, this time aiming for my stomach, and I fall back. Jay throws another knife, and she deflects it with her spear shaft. But he’d already started running at her as soon as he’d thrown it. He gets in close and thrusts one of his knives just under her rib cage. When she lifts her spear to try to plunge it into his back, I run my spear through her heart. She chokes and falls to her knees with a muffled sob.

I hope her death was as painless as possible. My stomach still turns every time I kill someone, especially after hearing so much about the rebels from Erik. But I can’t afford to hesitate. It could cost my friends’ lives. At least there’s no one Erik is close with on this raid.

I turn back to make sure Peter’s okay—just in time to see the third rebel’s sword narrowly miss his chest. Peter fumbles with his daggers. The rebel thrusts again. This time, he hits Peter’s arm. Deep. Blood immediately falls as Peter drops one of his daggers with a gasp.

I’m behind the rebel before he can attack again. He spins around to block my spear, but I caught him off guard. He doesn’t put enough strength behind it. My spear twists around his blade and sends it flying out of his grip before one of Jay’s knives finds its mark in his throat.

“Jay, give Al some backup,” I say. The words snap off my tongue. “I’ll stay with Peter.”

Author Bio:

I’m a nerd, traveler, and architecture enthusiast who worked as an assistant English teacher in Tokyo for three years before pursuing my MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Central Florida. I love reading and writing anything with magic, adventure, and complex found-family relationships. I can typically be found absorbed in books, games, or manga, or else obsessing over said books, games, and manga.

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