Giveaway and Excerpt: Dying Light ~ by D. Scott Meek

More Vamps?  ~ Yes but with a futuristic sci fi twist and they’re perfect for Halloween!

We have an excerpt, and a giveaway for Dying Light. Labeled as a “post dystopian”  it is set in the 24th century.

Below is a taste of D. Scott Meek’s writing in an excerpt from the book.

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Excerpt “The Alley”  ~  from Dying Light

The alley was dark and quiet. This far down, at the street level, under the various sky bridges, awnings, balconies and architectural anomalies, there was very little rain – only a steady mist. But it soaked her clothes, and the synthetic fabrics clung to her small form. She pulled at them to free herself, but with each step down the alley, they clung more tightly. Perhaps the mist held them close – perhaps the raw fear that gripped her even now was pervasive and had worked its way into the very fibers of her clothing.

Looking back, the entrance to the alleyway and the street beyond seemed to retreat of their own accord. And looking forward, the alley seemed to extend into the distance and shadow, unending and daunting. There was no way to know what was ahead, what was lurking in the darkness there, but she was sure that turning back was not the answer. Back there, somewhere, she’d seen them – the shimmering blue eyes in the distance staring at her.

Turning the corner had been the only reasonable thing to do, and she knew that to keep moving was to stay alive. And that meant continuing down the alley to who knew where and who knew what. The blue eyes would find her soon enough. There was no way around it. And there was nowhere else she could have gone. The alley was the only choice she’d had; only now she wasn’t so sure it had been a good choice.

The blue eyes would peak around that very corner soon, and they would be fixed on her because they knew. They knew who she was and what she wanted. They knew what she had done and what she would do given the chance. But finally, it seemed, they had her right where they wanted her – exposed, vulnerable, alone. Soon they would round that corner, and then what?

She spun back around and ambled forward, clawing at her robes, the way her dress tangled up her legs. How could she get away if her own damned clothes were conspiring against her? And yet, there was nothing she could do. The mist was heavy, and her heartbeat was heavier, thudding in her chest as she scrambled ahead. Behind her, there was only the emptiness of the street, but soon, she thought, soon those eyes would be there, peering around the corner, searching.
The cobblestones were slick, and she almost fell twice within a few steps. Looking down, she navigated around the pile of trash threatening to block the alley. Stepping over the boxes and refuse, she avoided the jagged metal beams and broken glass. But only then did she realize that her feet were bare……..and bleeding!

A gasp escaped from her throat before she could stifle it, and her hands clamped over her mouth, as she spun and slammed up against the wall, her back pressing reassuringly against the cold metal. Could the eyes hear that? She couldn’t take a chance. She couldn’t make a noise. Looking back again, she searched for them, but they were nowhere to be found. Not yet, she thought, not yet.

No eyes, but suddenly she could see there was something far worse. Blood. A trail of bloody, misshapen footprints, extending from the street down the alley, leading directly, imminently, accusingly to her. The footprints literally glowed in the dark, a brilliant illuminating crimson, a nearly neon trace of her passing, each step a condemnation of her existence.

She swallowed and gasped for air as her eyes traced the steps down the alley. She stared in disbelief, her mouth open now trying to pull in air, and she took in each bloody print until they stopped inches away. And there, below her, the warm blood pooled, oozing from the slashes and tears in her skin where the brutal cobblestones and shattered glass had assaulted her.

There was nothing to do now, she thought – nothing. The eyes would find her easily now. They would come upon the alley and see the bloody footprints leading right to her. There was no way around it, and nowhere left to run.

Still staring in disbelief at her mutilated feet, she slowly slid down the wall, huddling in the cool mist, her arms wrapping around her knees for warmth and comfort, what little there was to be had. It was only a matter of time now. And there was nowhere to go when she would only be leaving a trail to any hiding place. It was too dark and too cold and all just too much. It was hopeless. It was over. The eyes would come, and they would find her, and they would take what they wanted. And she could do nothing about it.

It was only a matter of………..she froze in mid-thought. Down at the entrance to the alley, the eyes stared back at her. Hovering there in the mist and darkness, they waited, watching.

She tried to turn away, to turn and stand, to scramble away, but she was frozen. She could only stare back at the eyes. They had her now, and there was nowhere to run, nowhere to hide. Inching forward, they seemed to pause and hover over each of her bloody steps, to savor the crimson feast that lay pooling between the cobblestones. As they moved forward, each of the bloody footsteps disappeared, fading away into the darkness that held sway just behind the electric blue of the oncoming eyes.

She was mesmerized, falling into the cool blue pools. As they gradually drew nearer, she could see them more and more clearly, discern the detailed outline of each orb – a hint of cobalt fire where there should be eyelashes, a raging sea where there should be an iris. And with each step, she could feel the power of the eyes, feel her heart slowing, feel the cold seeping into her toes from the cobblestones, mixing with the warm blood there. The numbness crept slowly, gradually into her body, past her feet now and into her legs, paralyzing her muscles and drawing out goosebumps across her skin. She tightened her grip, pulling her knees in closer, but there was no warmth to be found. The cold creeping sensation was flooding her body now, spreading steadily through her abdomen and into her torso, threatening and then engulfing her arms. Her fingers tingled as the sensation slipped away, and the eyes came on, until they were inches away.

She opened her mouth to scream, but she couldn’t breathe. Her lungs were frozen. Her chest was numb. There was only the oh-so-faint hint of a heartbeat, and it continued to slow until she could no longer feel it. Fixed on the blue eyes only a hair’s breath away, she wanted to scream out, to cry, to push them away, to flee, but she was helpless.

The eyes stared back unmoving and yet growing larger before her. Her mind broke free of their spell for a second, and the words poured forth in her mind: ‘Who are you and what do you want’?

The answer thundered in her head, shaking her entire body. ‘You know who I am.’
Then suddenly the eyes shrunk, fell away into rounded sockets, blue pools part of a worn and weathered face, dark, grayed hair falling over them, a gaunt body draped in flowing robes kneeling only a breath away. The small mouth opened, and fangs gleamed in the darkness. “I want what you want,” said the husky voice, whispering as it leaned closer, it’s warm, acrid breath falling on her cold, frozen neck. And suddenly she knew the face, knew the voice, knew exactly what and who it was that had her there. And she screamed as the fangs bit deeply, clamping down on her exposed neck. She could feel the blood flow again, leaving her body, feel the last beat of her heart, and her final thought, as the crimson darkness engulfed her, drifted through her mind: the face she had seen with the shimmering blue eyes was her own.

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Author Bio:   Baltimore resident, D. Scott Meek spent the first 18 years of life growing up in the Deep South and the next 20 years being educated by the world as a member of the U.S. Navy. After a childhood spent writing adventure stores, he moved on to Navy cryptology and deployed to the Persian Gulf 12 times in 20 years. Meek currently teaches at the National Security Agency. Dying Light is his first novel.  For information link to Meek’s blog, his Goodreads author page, and twitter.

About ~ Dying Light:   In the near future, a new world order society mercilessly eradicates the last victims of the Blood Virus. "Vampyres", constantly in fear of discovery and persecution, live and walk among humans as ordinary people with an extraordinary reality and a haunting past; a deal to save the last vampyres is struck, but intrigue and betrayal ensure that while the sun will rise tomorrow, no one knows who will live to see it.

Dying Light is the first in the new sub-genre of science fiction entitled "post-dystopia". Author Scott Meek deals with the science of stem cell research and blood borne diseases, the future as it might have been, and takes the reader into the realm of a new society.

• Paperback: 236 pages
• Publisher: Canonbridge LLC (July 1, 2010)

Amazon purchasing links for US/UK/Canada. 

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The Giveaway: 

Since the book will be sent by the publisher - you do not need to be a “reader” for this giveaway. Anyone can enter, but the book is only available for mailing inside the US and Canada. US and Canada

Contest Info:

To enter you must:

• comment
• include in the post your email so that I can contact you

For optional extra points you can do any, or all of the below for 1 entry point each: (All entries may be included in one single comment.)

1. Be a subscriber of Layers of Thought – google or facebook. (I need to be able to see you – to get updates in facebook feed and add me as a friend otherwise it does not count.)
2. Blog it - side bars are great - please provide links
3. Tweet it – provide links please
4. Friend on Twitter
5. Friend on Goodreads
6. Friend on Book Blogs
7. Friend on Glue  - new to glue? have questions? let me know.

As stated above, this giveaway is for the US and Canada only.

Contest ends Sunday November 21, 2010 at 12 pm US Pacific time. Winner will be posted and notified on Friday November 26, 2010.

Please note unlike other posts we do not respond to comments for giveaways. If you have a question or concern (like a typo or bad link) please email me via my profile – Shellie.

In case you cannot wait to win this book here are the links to purchase this début novel - Amazon purchasing links for US/UK/Canada. 

Thanks for entering!