It’s Sunday: time for Weekend Writing Warriors (click the logo above) and snippet Sunday (click the logo below) blog hops at allow authors to share up to 8 sentences of their work, from draft to published. I’m posting again from Tourist Trap, my second published book. Blurb below. Last week Roi managed to pull off and drop his mitten, in order to be able to open the catch on the power pack compartment of his misbehaving glider.
Again Roi reached for the catch.
He had to adjust constantly for the changing wind resistance of his asymmetrical body position, and when the cover popped off the power pack compartment, changing the shape of the streamlined upright, the wing tried again to escape his one-handed control. He thrust his fingers desperately into the power pack cavity, jerking the pack clear of the wiring.
The sudden silence in his head was deafening. Carefully he opened his mental shields, feeling for the nearest thermal. There, ahead and to the left, a small one, but rising faster than the glider’s sink rate. He nosed down, shifted his weight left and pulled up, feeling and seeing the glider turn into the thermal and begin to rise. He didn’t think he could climb enough on this little sprat of a thermal to make the cabin, but with luck he could make it out of the broken land.
Whew. (Wipes sweat from forehead.) But he’s not on the ground yet. And while he’s pretty sure who’s behind the sabotage, he still doesn’t know how it happened.
Blurb:
A vacation with his three best friends from slavery and a manhood challenge: Roi is given the graduation present he has dreamed of. Dogsledding, hang gliding, a chance to see Pleistocene animals transplanted to a Terraformed vacation world, horseback riding, sailing … all the sports he has returned to with his recovery from paralysis, and a few new ones to learn.
They’re prepared for danger from weather, wild animals and extreme sports. But none of them realize that Roi’s half brother Zhaim, determined to recover his old position as Lai’s heir, intends to kill them if he can—and he’s decided that the dangers of the trip will make a perfect cover for his schemes.
How long will it take them to realize that the “accidents” they keep running into are more than just accidents?
Tourist Trap, the second novel of the Jarnian Confederation, won first place in science fiction and fiction book of the year in the 2011 Reader Views contest.
Reviewers say:
“Fans of Sue Ann Bowling’s novel Homecoming will not be disappointed with its sequel. Tourist Trap returns the reader to the world of the Jarnian Confederation—to Roi, Lai, Marna, and all of their friends and relations. The author does a stellar job of bringing these characters to life, allowing the reader to not only see their actions but to understand the culture and politics that motivate them. (ForeWord Clarion review)
“Tourist Trap” is a great read for anyone that wants motivation and feeling to accompany the action in their sci-fi adventure. Alien beings and super powers are an integral part of Roi’s story but what makes this novel really shine is the heart. Nobody is good or evil just because that’s their assigned role. Just like in real life, everyone has their own motivations and desires, and Bowling does a great job of letting the reader see what it would be like to walk in the shoes of Roi, Xazhar, and even madman Zhaim. (ReaderViews review)
Tourist Trap (iUniverse, 2011) is available from:
iUniverse http://bookstore.iuniverse.com/Products/SKU-000188494/Tourist-Trap.aspx
Barnes and Noble http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/tourist-trap-sue-ann-bowling/1104199464
Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Tourist-Trap-Sue-Ann-Bowling/dp/1462029582/
in dust jacket, trade paper, and e-book formats.
Buy Homecoming from iUniverse
'Homecoming' Blog 
What a breathtaking ride. It’s one continuous calamity Roi must recover from. Amazing creativity, Sue ann.
Love the excitement of the snippet–great job!
Whew! What a ride! Roi is a likable character, good descriptions.
Hope he’ll make it down without crashing! I think about this during the week, you know. Roi’s too nice to have something awful happen to him.
Oh, he’ll have worse things happen. What’s an author for?
Thank goodness for small thermals! Enjoyed the excerpt as always – I’m sure more problems lie ahead for Roi though. Great snippet!
And a good thing Roi can sense where they are.
Glad he’s found a slight reprieve…looking forward to seeing how he finally makes it down.
Slight reprieve is right.
I almost cheered out loud. I definitely started breathing again.
He’s back in control for the moment.
Phew! That silence was deafening. I didn’t even realize I was holding my breath…
I suspect that’s about the way Roi felt.
Logically, I know Roi will make it, but I’ve still been on the edge of my seat for weeks with this scene!
And now he has to land . . .
You’r right; I’m not going to let him off that easily.
Great sense of ongoing danger…one hurdle down but not in the clear yet!
Yes.
Your description of his descent and fight for control is breathtaking – of course I will begin breathing normally again when Roi is SAFELY on the ground. Great 8.
You’ll have to wait a while.
You do a stellar job of writing and maintaining tension in a story, and this snippet is a prime example of that! Another good snippet, Sue Ann. I will read and review this book. I’m still watching the price on Amazon. I don’t know if the iUniverse files play nice with my Kindle text to speech, so I hesitate to purchase from there. I do a great deal of my reading via text to speech while I’m at work.
Would PDF go text to speech? (It’s not all tension; they have some relaxed moments on the trail.)
I’ll load a PDF to it and see if it works. 🙂
Whew indeed! I was really worried the saboteur was going to get him, now you’ve given us a little ray of hope to cling to.
What, lose my MC that early?
Very good description, Sue Ann. I was riding along with him.
The Murders of Polly Frisch
I did quite a bit of research on hang gliders when I was first writing this.
You continue to maintain a high level of intensity in this snippet. Great stuff.
Glad you like it.
What a wonderful descriptions!
I try to feel what I’m writing.
Whew boy, the tension builds! Great 8!
Actually, this is the point you should feel a sense of (false) relief.