ALYSSA VILLAIRE’s novel The Glittering Edge is a contemporary fantasy with a gothic spin on Romeo and Juliet. Read on for an extract.
ABOUT THE BOOK
The locals of Idlewood whisper of a tragic love story that began a decades long blood feud.
For as long as anyone can remember, the De Luca witches and the wealthy Barrion family have been sworn enemies. Ever since the curse that changed their fates forever. Now, if a Barrion falls in love with you, you’ll die.
But when Penny Emberly’s mother becomes the curse’s latest victim, she must bring together two bitter rivals, Alonso and Corey, in order to save her mum’s life and stop the feud for good.
But as the trio navigates unpredictable magic, the tangled web of their family histories, and complicated attractions, it becomes clear that there’s more than dark secrets at play.
Can Penny find a way to break the curse . . . without losing her heart in the process?
EXTRACT
1
Penny
THE FOURTH OF JULY PARTY IS SURPRISINGLY FUN UNTIL ALONSO DE
Luca shows up.
Penny is the first person to notice him. She’s at her usual post at the perimeter of the crowd, which offers great people-watching. Plus, she doesn’t know how to socialise by dropping herself into a tornado of drunk people. This is one of Corey Barrion’s parties, which means it’s straight out of a 2000s high school comedy: big and loud and peppered with people vomiting into houseplants. Or, since they’re currently in the woods, vomiting into Elkie Lake.
Penny catches sight of Alonso’s blue hair just as she’s taking her first sip of beer, and she gasps mid-swallow. A few people laugh as she coughs violently. You are beauty, you are grace, she tells herself as her eyes water, but she still can’t look away.
Because if Alonso is here, this party is about to take a turn for the worse.
A wave of silence follows Alonso as he cuts through the crowd. Even the music and the crickets go quiet, or maybe that’s because of the blood rushing in Penny’s ears.
‘Naomi!’ Penny whisper-shouts at her best friend.
Naomi is absorbed in a conversation with Kyla McGuinness, her on-again off-again girlfriend. Normally, Penny wouldn’t interrupt them. She takes pride in being a great wing woman, like most best friends with no love life. But this is an emergency.
It takes Penny waving her arms like an air traffic controller for Naomi to finally clock her, and the flirtatious smile disappears from her face. Naomi turns around right as Alonso is stalking by, heading for the keg. Two of his cronies follow close behind, looking bored.
Kyla leaves Naomi stranded as she runs back to her own friends, so Penny glues herself to Naomi’s side. ‘Sorry! I panicked.’
Naomi f licks her sleek ponytail over her shoulder. ‘So did Kyla, apparently. Alonso is on my shit list for ruining an almost romantic moment.’ She grins as she takes in the party’s rising frenzy. ‘I bet 20 bucks Alonso throws the first punch.’
‘What if he just wants free beer?’
Naomi raises a perfectly shaped eyebrow. ‘You really think he showed up at Corey’s party on accident?’
Naomi is right. Idlewood’s centre of gravity is the animosity between the families that produced Alonso and Corey. Without it, their small Indiana town would probably collapse in on itself like a dead star.
Penny’s eyes find Corey in the crowd. He’s absorbed in a conversation, and he hasn’t noticed the entire party looking between him and Alonso like they’re facing off in a tennis match. Corey starts to turn around, and Penny reflexively hides behind her hands. Because in a matter of seconds Corey will realize Alonso has crashed his party.
But to everyone’s surprise, Dylan Mayberry accidentally saves the day. She saunters over to Corey and interlaces her fingers with his, distracting him.
Crisis averted. For now.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alyssa Villaire is a writer of young adult fantasy. While she’s based in Los Angeles, most of her stories harken back to the places where she grew up—from the woods of rural Indiana to the lakeshores of Wisconsin and Michigan. When she’s not writing, Alyssa is probably eating spicy food, watching horror movies, or waiting in a virtual Ticketmaster line.
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