This is my stop during the blog tour for Grimworld by Avery Moray. This blog tour is organized by Lola’s Blog Tours. The blog tour runs from 26 October till 8 November. See the tour schedule here.
Excerpt
They pushed the gate open and, moving from shadow to shadow of the green orbs, approached the front door. Henry quietly tried the handle, but it was locked. Sticking close to the cold, wet exterior, they made their way to the side of the manor. The first floor was lined with windows, their frames flaking black paint. The boys had to stand on their tip-toes to reach the bottom of the windowsills. Whether they were locked or just stuck, the windows wouldn’t budge. Henry tried the last window with little hope, but there was just a hint of give under his palm. He took a deep breath and pushed hard with all his strength, and the window slid with just enough space for the boys to slip through.
“You first,” Lang said.
The taller boy boosted Henry up and through the open window. Henry turned around and grabbed Lang’s arms, pulling him through. They were in a room with a dining table covered by a white tablecloth that rippled from the wind. Henry closed the window and the sudden stillness of the house pressed in on them. They crept into the hallway, leaving a trail of water behind. A few candles flickered light onto suits of armor that lined the edge of the hall. The mansion structure creaked and popped from the wind and cold of the rain.
“What exactly are we looking for?” Henry whispered.
“I don’t know. I think we should go back to his office.”
Henry nodded in agreement and they continued past the rows of armor and up the main staircase. On the third floor, there were even more. “Lang, do you remember seeing these earlier?”
“No. He must have put them up after we left.”
Henry stared into the pitch black helmets, half expecting them to turn and look back.
“Was it here, or straight?” he asked when they came to a fork.
“Straight, I think I remember that portrait.”
The eyes of the paintings watched them sneak by and Henry couldn’t help but look over his shoulder. After several more forks and a bit of backtracking, they arrived at the double doors. Lang opened them a crack and peeked through. “All clear.”
Lang headed to the bookshelves, Henry to Jacoby’s desk. Lightning flashed through the window behind the aquarium, illuminating the lonely Torpedo Shark. Henry searched through folders and drawers with his flashlight and found a list titled To-Do. It read:
-Contact Punge Domestic Agency
-See if Chef Morose is available
-Organize Return Ball
-Bank accounts in order
-Manage assets
-Move everything from basement
-Awaken Ferdinand
-Replenish shark tank
-Tea party?
He flipped through several financial reports and business-type folders until Lang called him over. He held worn, stained sheets of paper.
“What’s that?”
“Grayprints of the mansion, they show all the rooms. I found them folded between some books.”
They studied the intricate drawings – the upper floors, the basement, the office they were in, and finally the first floor. “This is weird.” Lang pointed to a large room at the back of the mansion labeled ‘Conservatory.’ A line was drawn from the conservatory to the page bottom, where another room was labeled ‘Arcanum.’
“It seems like this room is separate from the mansion, but the line might mean there’s a way to get in from the Conservatory.”
Henry’s eyes widened. “A secret room?”
Grimworld
By Avery Moray
Genre: Fantasy
Age category: Middle Grade
Release Date: 1 November 2019
Blurb:
Every day, thirteen year old Henry Bats has his usual bowl of Sugar Slugs, helps tend Cobalt Sidewinders at Frank’s Peculiar Pets, and keeps to himself with his comic book collection. Just your typical day in Grimworld, where the sky is always dark and shadows lurk in the streets. What’s not typical is a suspicious Nightspook luring Henry into a cemetery in the middle of the night with the promise of a prized comic book. The Nightspook steals part of Henry’s lifespan with a pocket watch, which begins counting down to his death. Henry is running out of time, and the pocket watch won’t stop ticking…
You can find Grimworld on Goodreads
You can buy Grimworld here:
– Amazon
– Audible
– Barnes & Noble
– Indigo
– Indiebound
– The Bookdepository
About the Author:
Avery Moray is a storyteller who specializes in middle grade and young adult fantasy. She lives in a land with tall mountains and wide plains with her two furry sidekicks and one non-furry accomplice. She likes sweets, cats, Halloween, and loves creating all kind of things, stories being one of them.
You can find and contact Avery Moray here:
– Website
– Facebook
– Twitter
– Instagram
– Youtube
– Goodreads
– Newsletter
Giveaway
There is a tour wide giveaway for the blog tour of Grimworld. All prizes are US Only. These are the prizes you can win:
– Signed copy of Grimworld
– Signed copy of Grimworld + bookmark, notepad, and pin
– Signed copy of Grimworld + bookmark, notepad, and pin + unreleased chapter art print
For a chance to win, enter the rafflecopter below:
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