Shadow Rising
Authors: Yasmine Galenorn
PRAISE FOR THE OTHERWORLD NOVELS
“Spectacularly hot and supernaturally breathtaking.”
—Alyssa Day,
New York Times
bestselling author
“Erotic and darkly bewitching…a mix of magic and passion.”
—Jeaniene Frost,
New York Times
bestselling author
“Simmers with fun and magic.”
—Mary Jo Putney,
New York Times
bestselling author
“Yasmine Galenorn’s imagination is a beautiful thing.”
—
Fresh Fiction
“Galenorn’s gallery of rogues is an imaginative delight.”
—
Publishers Weekly
“Otherworld is one truly exceptional series.”
—
RT Book Reviews
“It’s not too many authors who can write a series as long-lived as this one and make every book come out just as interesting and intriguing as the last, but Yasmine Galenorn is certainly one of them…Her books are always enchanting, full of life and emotion as well as twists and turns that keep you reading long into the night.”
—
Romance Reviews Today
“Explore this fascinating world.”
—
TwoLips Reviews
Titles by Yasmine Galenorn
The Otherworld Series
WITCHLING
CHANGELING
DARKLING
DRAGON WYTCH
NIGHT HUNTRESS
DEMON MISTRESS
BONE MAGIC
HARVEST HUNTING
BLOOD WYNE
COURTING DARKNESS
SHADED VISION
SHADOW RISING
The Indigo Court Series
NIGHT MYST
NIGHT VEIL
NIGHT SEEKER
Anthologies
INKED
NEVER AFTER
HEXED
Berkley Prime Crime titles by Yasmine Galenorn
GHOST OF A CHANCE
LEGEND OF THE JADE DRAGON
MURDER UNDER A MYSTIC MOON
A HARVEST OF BONES
ONE HEX OF A WEDDING
Yasmine Galenorn writing as India Ink
SCENT TO HER GRAVE
A BLUSH WITH DEATH
GLOSSED AND FOUND
Shadow
Rising
An Otherworld Novel
YASMINE GALENORN
JOVE BOOKS, NEW YORK
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
Published by the Penguin Group
Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA
Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.) • Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England • Penguin Group Ireland, 25 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.) • Penguin Group (Australia), 250 Camberwell Road, Camberwell, Victoria 3124, Australia (a division of Pearson Australia Group Pty. Ltd.) • Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi—110 017, India • Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.) • Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue, Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa
Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices: 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have control over and does not have any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
SHADOW RISING
A Jove Book / published by arrangement with the author
PUBLISHING HISTORY
Jove mass-market edition / November 2012
Copyright © 2012 by Yasmine Galenorn.
Excerpt from
Haunted Moon
copyright © 2012 by Yasmine Galenorn.
Cover art by Tony Mauro.
Cover design by Rita Frangie.
Map by Andrew Marshall, copyright © 2012 by Yasmine Galenorn.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
For information, address: The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
ISBN: 978-1-101-61209-5
JOVE
®
Jove Books are published by The Berkley Publishing Group,
a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.,
375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
JOVE
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is a registered trademark of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
The “J” design is a trademark of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”
ALWAYS LEARNING
PEARSON
Dedicated to:
My readers.
Because without you, these books wouldn’t be a success.
Thank you to my beloved Samwise—my biggest, strongest, and sexiest fan.
As always, huge thanks to my agent, Meredith Bernstein, and to my editor, Kate Seaver—thank you both for helping me stretch my wings and fly. A salute to Tony Mauro, cover artist extraordinaire. Thanks go to my assistant, Andria Holley; Scotty Talley, my Otherworld wiki organizer; and to Jenn Price, who answers my fan mail. Love to my furry little “Galenorn Gurlz,” LOLcats in their own right, who keep me company during the long, isolated hours of writing. As always, most reverent devotion to Ukko, Rauni, Mielikki, and Tapio, my spiritual guardians.
And the biggest thank-you of all—to my readers, both old and new. Your support helps keep the series going. You can find me on the net at Galenorn En/Visions: www.galenorn.com. For links to social networking sites where you can find me, see my website. If you write to me snail mail (see website for address or write via my publisher), please enclose a self-addressed stamped envelope with your letter if you would like a reply. Promo goodies are available—see my site for info.
The Painted Panther
Yasmine Galenorn
February 2012
By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes.
—SHAKESPEARE,
MACBETH
Life is neither a good nor an evil, it is a field for good and evil.
—SENECA, ROMAN PHILOSOPHER
Table of ContentsChapter 1
I hadn’t been home to Otherworld in a while—not for any length of time. As we stepped through the portal into the barrows near Elqaneve, the Elfin City, the brilliance of the night sky hit me, untainted by the light pollution running rampant in Earthside cities. Over there, even in the country, the stars sparkled more faintly, muted and dim. But here…I stared up at the heavens, stunned.
Had I really been away long enough for me to forget how beautiful my home world was? And yet…and yet…the Earthside city lights that watched over the nighttime landscape called to me. The hustle and bustle of Seattle had worked its way under my skin, and I wasn’t so sure I wanted to return home for good, even should we be offered the chance.