About The Book
Title: The Ivory Staff
Author: M. Lachi
Genre: New Adult Fantasy
How was young
Samiyah to know that her simple grace, wit, and beauty—exceptional traits given
her peasant class—would land her in the middle of a chessboard of high-level
political turmoil or that the love that blinds politics, the hate that blinds
brotherhood, and the lust that blinds love would flip that chessboard on its
side? Rife with passionate dialog, edgy suspense, and epic conflict, this Dark
Fairy Tale follows our heroine as she journeys to heal a nation broken by the
internal prejudices of class warfare, armed with nothing but stark
determination.
Author Bio
M. Lachi
is a published author and an award nominated songwriter and composer. Her
resume includes features on Oprah Radio, CBS Radio, The CW, Oxygen, and the E!
and Style Networks among others. M. Lachi lives in New York City and
enjoys reading, composing and catching live performances.
Book Excerpt
During every meal he
stood there watching us, stiff as a post, waiting
to attend to us. Asking him
to sit and join us would go against years of unspoken tradition. But today I
felt bold.
“Saab, join us,” I said loud and clear, pointing
to the empty chair beside me. I think
the word
‘join’ may have been a little too inviting. Low tense murmurs
broke out around the table as most guests shifted
uneasily in their
seats. A junior councilman sitting not too far from me flushed
red and looked
to the senior councilmen to say something. Saab rightly remained
perfectly still.
“How dare you insult your own rank of royalty
like that, boy?” the junior councilman snapped as he rose to his feet. Wait a
minute. Who was this guy? He can’t
talk to me like that,
right? For all intents
and purposes I was part of the royal
family.
“Actually,
I prefer to stand, Master,”
Saab muttered, looking
at the junior councilman apprehensively.
“Sit,” I repeated to Saab in a more commanding
fashion
with a curt nod.
“You will not sit!” ordered the junior
council- man harshly, causing a gasp or two among
the other guests. The situation began to catch Uncle Pan’s attention. His dark
eyes lifted slowly and heavily from his plate.
“Don’t mind him, Saab,”
I chuckled, waving
a
hand
at the junior councilman.
“Don’t mind me?” the
councilman bellowed, his hands now claws facing
his chest and his
narrowed eyes flickering with anger. “You’d better mind me, damn it!” Everyone looked
up at him bewildered, but I wasn’t going to be bullied by some junior
councilman. Saab was going to sit, no matter what. The senior councilman
and the lanky official rested their backs against their chairs. Though they
likely agreed, they were not going to go down with him now that the Mutaro was
obviously paying attention.
“Saab, you deserve to sit with us. It’s your right as
a human being,” I assured
with a nod towards the chair. I
was surprised at how cool and
collected my words came, especially considering that my heart now raced heavily in response to
Uncle’s indecipherable gaze.
“Who are you to talk
about this man’s rights?” the junior councilman asked me
crossly.
“Saab,” I began calmly,
again ignoring the councilman,
irking him all the more.
“Hey!” he yelled,
slamming his fist hard on the table, causing
nearby silverware to bounce in protest. “Are you listening to me, foolish boy?
You don’t know the first thing about—”
“Enough!” interrupted
Uncle in his rotund voice, the type
of voice that commanded a room
without having to be raised. Finally. He spoke with comfortable authority
whenever addressing people that weren’t me. He nodded at the junior councilman to sit, and the
man abruptly obliged with a smirk in my direction. All
eyes flew to the head of the table. The Mutaro kept his eyes on me and
took a long slow sip of his wine,
his brain working mercilessly. After a bite and another slow sip, the Mutaro motioned for Saab to join us at the table,
particularly at the seat I’d
indicated. I beamed. Saab took his seat and began fixing a plate.
The junior
councilman shot up to his
feet again. “I will not dine
at a table with that…that…goat!” He folded his arms again. Uncle curled a brow up
at him.
“Sit down and enjoy
your meal,” Uncle exclaimed with good nature in his voice.
“I will not sit,”
was the councilman’s calculated
response.
Was he insane? Everyone
seemed to look down
at their plates simultaneously. The man overtly disobeyed the Mutaro in front
of honored guests and did not address him properly. Not a smart idea. The King could have had him killed for banging so brutally on the royal furniture.
“Hear me well,” Uncle
began with a strained pleasantness. “Not only will you sit, but you will enjoy
the meal with a smile on your face. Do I make myself
clear?” The councilman remained standing there for a moment longer,
sat down for a minute,
then threw down his napkin and left the room without being excused.
Uncle raised a hand to hush the worried whispers.
“Kiron,” Uncle called to the lanky military official after another
bite.
“Yes,
Your Majesty.”
“Have the dungeon boys
bring me his ears.”
Links
Amazon
Kindle: http://tinyurl.com/na97ur7
GoodReads:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26311689-the-ivory-staff?from_search=true&search_version=service
Website: www.mlachi.com
Twitter: twitter.com/mlachiauthor
Facebook:
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