Giant Slayers
by Jeff Altabef & Ken Altabef
Genre: YA Historical Fiction/Fantasy
Release Date: September 20th 2016


Summary from Goodreads:


The Kingdom or the Girl?


Demons attack him.
Spirits protect him.
A seer foretells his shocking destiny.


In a primitive land filled with magic, witches and giants, a sixteen-year-old musician named David is summoned to chase away the nightmares haunting the King each night. But more than bad dreams trouble the King. Demons torment him, and David will need more than music to break the curse.


Demons are only the first sign of a deeper and darker evil that plagues the countryside. Bent on revenge and an insatiable thirst for power, the Witch of Endor and a giant named Goliath lead an invading force against the kingdom. King Saul’s army is crumbling and only a champion can save them, but who would be fool enough to face the giant?


Princess Michal is frustrated by the constraints of palace life, but David’s arrival makes things infinitely more interesting. She finds herself drawn to him, but the King strictly forbids her from having a romance with a poor musician. Only by defying her father’s wishes and risking her freedom do they have a chance to be together.


Armed with just his sling and his love for Michal, David must prove his worth by defeating Goliath against impossible odds. Worst of all, he must choose between saving the kingdom or being with the girl of his dreams. He can’t do both.

 

 

 

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EXCERPT:

Look closely at a woman’s face and you can read her entire life story. It’s all there in the crevices and contours, the tiny expressions and doubts. Such little things, but they combine to give away her secrets. Men’s faces, however, were still mysteries to Michal. She’d spent so little time with men that their lines seemed written in a foreign language, unique and indecipherable.

           
In Hadi’s face, Michal saw rivers flowing down cheeks rich with experience. The canyons carved into her forehead spoke of a tough life, one without the blessing of children, where she had served as a house servant for as long as anyone could remember. The old woman’s walnut eyes sparkled with a hint of summer wheat, still sharp and bright and full of mischief, and the wrinkles creeping from the corners of those eyes had been etched by laughter.

           
Michal frowned at the way Hadi’s tunic drooped over her shoulders and hung low on her thin frame. She had lost weight in the past month, and her back seemed more sharply stooped than it had been only a few weeks ago. She must be ill, thought Michal. But whenever I try to summon a priest for help, she shrugs me
off.

           
Hadi slid close to Michal. Her whisper sounded coarse, as if age had stolen its smoothness.  “This is too dangerous. I should never have told you about the staircase.”

           
“It’s too late for that. You know I’ve been waiting my whole life to see the Ark.”

           
“Your whole life,” Hadi chuckled. “You’re just fifteen. Barely a babe. Only yesterday, you were toddling around learning your first prayers.”

           
“That was a long time ago. Tonight’s my only chance to see the Ark before everything gets turned upside down for the festival. Who knows how long I’ll have to wait if I don’t go tonight?”

 

  

 

Ken Altabef – As a Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America member, my short fiction has frequently appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. I also had stories in Interzone, Buzzymag, Abyss & Apex, Unsettling Wonder and Ominous Realities. 
ALAANA’S WAY, my 5-part series of epic fantasy novels is published by Cat’s Cradle Press. Described as “cutting-edge fantasy from the top of the world” the arctic setting and unique characters will bring something new to even the most jaded fantasy enthusiast. You can preview this work and others at my website www.KenAltabef.com

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