Title: Demon
(Dark Musicals Trilogy, 2)
Author: Laura
DeLuca
Genre: Young
Adult, Thriller
Tour Host: Lady
Amber's Tours
Book Description:
When Justyn and Rebecca set off for the New York School of
Performing Arts, they think their dreams are about to come true. To their
dismay, they aren’t in high school anymore, and the competition is steep.
Rebecca must compete against accomplished singers for a role in the production
of Demon Barber, including a stunning Gothic diva with her sights set on Justyn
It doesn't help that things keep disappearing from their
apartment or that Rebecca's father refuses to accept that Justyn is an
essential part of her life. Yet, all this seems minimal in comparison to the
serial rapist terrorizing the campus.
Consumed by fear and obsessed with revenge, Rebecca and
Justyn start living the story of Sweeney Todd—both on and off the stage.
Excerpt
“What the hell are you looking at?”
Livy demanded.
At first Rebecca just ignored her
hostility. She walked back to her cubbyhole and opened it to stowaway her bags
until practice was over. She was going to forget the whole stupid idea and just
walk away. But Livy was still standing there, leaning against the lockers,
looking just as sad as she did angry. Rebecca couldn’t help but feel sorry for
her. She was reminded of how horribly everyone had treated Justyn during the
production of Phantom and thought perhaps Livy was just as misunderstood.
“Livy,” she started, “can we talk
for a minute?”
The Goth just gave her a dirty
look. “I don’t know what we could possibly have to say to each other.”
“I just wanted to apologize about
what happened at the party,” Rebecca spoke with as much sincerity as she could
muster. “No matter how we feel about each other, I never meant to … to
embarrass you the way I did.”
Rebecca had never seen the cliché
of flashing eyes come to life like it did at that moment. “Don’t you dare!”
Livy spat. “Don’t you dare pity me!”
“That’s not what I meant,” Rebecca
tried to explain, though she knew she was fighting a losing battle. “I just
regret—”
“Do you want to know what I
regret?” Livy interrupted and actually shoved Rebecca against her locker. “I
regret not ripping every strand of hair out of that pretty little head of yours
when I had the chance. This isn’t high school, Becca! We aren’t going to be friends.
And I’m not going to stop until Justyn is mine and you run back to New Jersey
with your tail between your legs. Is that clear enough for you, deary? Don’t
try to make nice with me again.”
Livy stomped away, and Rebecca just
stood there, feeling shocked and a little stung. She couldn’t believe how
vicious Livy could be. So much for olive branches. Instead of trying to hand
her one, Rebecca should have shoved it straight up her….
“Wow.” Frankie came up beside her,
shaking his head. “It’s girls like that who give PMS a bad rep. I seriously
think the next play she should star in is the Taming of the Shrew.”
“There’s no taming that one,”
Rebecca replied, still shaking her head.
Author Bio:
Laura “Luna” DeLuca lives at the beautiful Jersey shore with
her husband and four children. She loves writing in the young adult genre
because it keeps her young at heart. In
addition to writing fiction, Laura is also the editor of a popular review blog
called New Age Mama. She is an active member of her local pagan community, and
has been studying Wicca for close to eight years. Her current works include Destiny, Destiny
Unveiled, Phantom, Morrigan, Player, and Demon.
Links:
Demon, Book Two in the Dark Musicals Trilogy, inspired by
Sweeney Todd is available now in both PRINT and eBook!
Purchase
Title: Phantom
(Dark Musicals Trilogy, 1)
Author: Laura
DeLuca
Genre: Young
Adult, Thriller
Tour Host: Lady
Amber's Tours
Book Description:
The “Phantom” was a musical phenomenon that Rebecca had
always found enchanting. She had no idea that her life was about to mirror the
play that was her obsession. When her high school drama club chooses “Phantom”
as their annual production, Rebecca finds herself in the middle of an unlikely
love triangle and the target of a sadistic stalker who uses the lines from the
play as their calling card.
Rebecca lands the lead role of Christine, the opera diva, and like her character, she is torn between her two co-stars—Tom the surfer and basketball star who plays the lovable hero, and Justyn, the strangely appealing Goth who is more than realistic in the role of the tortured artist.
Almost immediately after casting, strange things start to happen both on and off the stage. Curtains fall. Mirrors are shattered. People are hurt in true phantom style. They all seem like accidents until Rebecca receives notes and phone calls that hint at something more sinister. Is Justyn bringing to life the twisted character of the phantom? Or in real life are the roles of the hero and the villain reversed? Rebecca doesn’t know who to trust, but she knows she’s running out of time as she gets closer and closer to opening night. Only when the mask is stripped away, will the twenty first century phantom finally be revealed.
Rebecca lands the lead role of Christine, the opera diva, and like her character, she is torn between her two co-stars—Tom the surfer and basketball star who plays the lovable hero, and Justyn, the strangely appealing Goth who is more than realistic in the role of the tortured artist.
Almost immediately after casting, strange things start to happen both on and off the stage. Curtains fall. Mirrors are shattered. People are hurt in true phantom style. They all seem like accidents until Rebecca receives notes and phone calls that hint at something more sinister. Is Justyn bringing to life the twisted character of the phantom? Or in real life are the roles of the hero and the villain reversed? Rebecca doesn’t know who to trust, but she knows she’s running out of time as she gets closer and closer to opening night. Only when the mask is stripped away, will the twenty first century phantom finally be revealed.
Excerpt:
The orchestra tuned for its virtuoso, and Justyn stood
ready. But no one else was ready for the magical performance he began. Beside
her, Carmen was rambling on about something mundane. Rebecca elbowed her to
silence so she could listen to the perfectly thrilling tenor. As she listened
to the song unfold, the world around her started to slip away. Gone was the
high school auditorium. Gone were the rowdy teenagers. The Gothic stranger on
the stage had become the embodiment of Erik, and Rebecca watched him in all his
dark glory, belting out his tormented love through the words of his song. And
she was as breathless with wonder as Christine herself must have been when the
masked stranger serenaded her in the candlelit labyrinth of the opera house. In
that moment, Justyn wasn’t just portraying the phantom. Justyn was the phantom.
“Let the music touch your soul.
Let the darkness make you whole.
Do not fear what is unknown.
Your true path has now been shown.
Listen to the words I sing.
Embrace
the peace that night will bring.”
As he continued
to sing in his deep but somehow angelic voice, Rebecca found that she couldn’t
tear her eyes away from him. With every line, her heart began to beat faster. She truly felt the arms of night wrapping her
in a warm embrace. She could almost feel the hands of the phantom glide along
her body as the words poured forth. The music caressed her. It possessed
her—mind, body and soul. Each word left her longing, yearning for more.
She was gawking
so obviously, it was hardly surprising when Justyn felt her eyes on him and
steadily met her gaze. She realized her mouth was hanging open in stunned awe,
and she quickly snapped it shut. His lips moved into just a small hint of a
smile. He never took his eyes off her while he sang the final verse, making her
cheeks flush to the point that she felt almost feverish. But it wasn’t
embarrassment but excitement, arousal even, which was sending her mind spinning
in so many directions.
When the song
was over, and Rebecca had recovered just a hint of her composure, she couldn’t
help but burst into a healthy round of applause. A few scattered people joined
in, including Debbie and Carmen after she nudged them in the ribs. But only
Miss King seemed to truly appreciate the brilliance of his talent as much as
Rebecca did.
“That was
amazing, Justyn!” the teacher gushed.
“Lord Justyn,”
he corrected as he stepped down from the stage.
A few others
complimented him as well, but he took in all in stride. In fact, his serious
expression never faltered as he stepped down from the stage. He seemed almost
bored, like it was all he could do to hold back a yawn, despite the smiles and
words of encouragement.
But not everyone in the crowd was pleased as
Justyn glided down the aisle, so ethereal in his dark garments that he still
resonated the spirit of the Opera Ghost. Miss King might have been excited
about the newest male addition to her cast after being limited for many years,
but Tom and his group of boisterous companions glared at him as he passed them
by. Jay sneered and tossed a balled up
piece of paper in Justyn’s direction, but the Goth was quick, and caught it in
his hand without missing a beat.
“I think you dropped something,” he said.
His speaking voice
was no less melodic than his singing voice, but something about his tone made
Rebecca shiver. He tossed the paper back at Jay, who was nowhere near as
coordinated as Justyn. He practically fell off his seat in his efforts to catch
it.
“Hey vampire,”
Tom called when Justyn went to walk away. “Are you sure you can handle the
competition?”
Justyn smiled, a
cool, sarcastic half-smile, and crossed his arms over his chest. “Are you?”
Miss King didn’t
notice the short confrontation, and Justyn vanished from the auditorium as
quickly and mysteriously as he had appeared. Only Rebecca had noticed the very
real tension between the two boys. She wondered if it was a bad omen for them to
start off the production with hard feelings and envy. That could only lead to
trouble. The kind of trouble that could end with someone getting hurt. The kind of trouble that Rebecca would do
whatever it took to avoid.
Author Bio:
Laura “Luna” DeLuca lives at the beautiful Jersey shore with
her husband and four children. She loves writing in the young adult genre
because it keeps her young at heart. In
addition to writing fiction, Laura is also the editor of a popular review blog
called New Age Mama. She is an active member of her local pagan community, and
has been studying Wicca for close to eight years. Her current works include Destiny, Destiny
Unveiled, Phantom, Morrigan, Player, and Demon.
Links:
If you haven't read the
first book in the series, now is a great time to get your copy. To celebrate
the release of Demon, Phantom is now on sale for only $1.99 exclusively
on Amazon!
Purchase
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