![\"\"](\"http:\/\/2.bp.blogspot.com\/-QYv95aGiljo\/UZPUoOxBBMI\/AAAAAAAAANo\/5YrAUrftRRg\/s1600\/Assassins_Gambit_final_cover.jpg\")
<\/a>\nVitala Salonius, champion of the warlike game of Caturanga, is as deadly as she is beautiful. She\u2019s a trained assassin for the resistance, and her true play is for ultimate power. Using her charm and wit, she plans to seduce her way into the emperor\u2019s bed and deal him one final, fatal blow, sparking a battle of succession that could change the face of the empire.<\/p>\n
As the ruler of a country on the brink of war and the son of a deposed emperor, Lucien must constantly be wary of an attempt on his life. But he\u2019s drawn to the stunning Caturanga player visiting the palace. Vitala may be able to distract him from his woes for a while\u2014and fulfill other needs, as well.<\/p>\n
Lucien\u2019s quick mind and considerable skills awaken unexpected desires in Vitala, weakening her resolve to finish her mission. An assassin cannot fall for her prey, but Vitala\u2019s gut is telling her to protect this sexy, sensitive man. Now she must decide where her heart and loyalties lie and navigate the dangerous war of politics before her gambit causes her to lose both Lucien and her heart for good.<\/p>\n
An Excerpt<\/h4>\n
Vitala was not her given name. When she was born dark-haired, Papa named her Kolta: \u201cblackbird.\u201d<\/p>\n
She was eight years old when the stranger arrived. Mama and Papa took him into the bedroom to speak \u00a0with him. They shut her out, but she pressed her ear against the door to listen.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve completed the testing,\u201d said the stranger, \u201cand your daughter is exactly what we\u2019re looking for. Highly intelligent, physically strong, and coordinated. And, of course, she\u2019s black-haired.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mama said something she couldn\u2019t quite make out.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn the village, perhaps,\u201d replied the stranger. \u201cBut in the Circle, dark hair is an asset. She can pass for Kjallan. It will allow her to move in areas where others cannot.\u201d<\/p>\n
More mumbling from Mama.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Circle is prepared to offer you compensation. Four hundred tetrals.\u201d<\/p>\n
Papa gasped.<\/p>\n
Mama raised her voice. \u201cI\u2019m not selling my daughter!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course not,\u201d soothed the stranger. \u201cBut Kolta will never reach her potential here in the village\u2014not with the prejudice against girls like her. Why subject her to harassment and ostracism, when among the Circle she will be valued and revered? The money is our gift to you. A token of our thanks for aiding Riorca in its time of need.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mama began to sob.<\/p>\n
\u201cTreva, he\u2019s right,\u201d said Papa. \u201cIt would be selfish to keep Kolta here. A half-Kjallan bastard will never be accepted\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou hate her!\u201d cried Mama. \u201cYou want to be rid of her!\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMadam,\u201d said the stranger, \u201cconsider the advantages to Kolta in joining the Circle. She will receive a thorough education, far better than anything she could get here. And she will be among her own kind. We have other half-breeds like her, dark-haired girls who know what it\u2019s like to be Riorcan but look Kjallan. For the first time in her life, she will have friends.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mama continued to sob.<\/p>\n
\u201cTreva, think of it,\u201d said Papa. \u201cFour hundred tetrals! You know what that money would mean for us. This man is right. The Circle can do far better for Kolta than we can.\u201d<\/p>\n
Something unintelligible from Mama.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo,\u201d said the stranger. \u201cIt must be now. She must begin her language training immediately, or she\u2019ll never speak with the proper accent.\u201d<\/p>\n
A long silence followed, broken only by Mama\u2019s sobbing. There were soft words that Kolta could not make out.<\/p>\n
The stranger was saying, \u201cWe find it\u2019s best if there are no good-byes.\u201d<\/p>\n
The door opened, and the stranger stepped out. Terrified, Kolta hid in the corner between the wall and the door. But the door moved away, revealing her. The stranger stared down at her in surprise. \u201cWere you listening, Kolta?\u201d<\/p>\n
She shook her head.<\/p>\n
He knelt, bringing himself to her eye level. \u201cTell me the truth, and you will not be in trouble. Were you listening?\u201d<\/p>\n
She hesitated a moment, but nodded.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd yet you do not cry.\u201d His mouth twisted as he lifted her chin with his finger. \u201cMy name is Bayard. I\u2019m going to be your friend, Kolta. Would you like that?\u201d<\/p>\n
She was silent.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people here don\u2019t treat you very well, do they? They don\u2019t like dark-haired girls. But I\u2019m going to take you somewhere else. Somewhere you\u2019ll be loved, Kolta. Do you want to be loved?\u201d<\/p>\n
Her chin began to tremble.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course you do.\u201d He folded her into his arms, and she began to cry. \u201cIt\u2019s what we all want.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amy Raby<\/a> is literally a product of the U.S. space program, since her parents met working for NASA on the Apollo missions. After earning her Bachelor\u2019s in Computer Science from the University of Washington, Amy settled in the Pacific Northwest with her family, where she\u2019s always looking for life\u2019s next adventure, whether it\u2019s capsizing tiny sailboats in Lake Washington or riding dressage horses. Amy is a 2011 Golden Heart\u00ae finalist and a 2012 Daphne du Maurier winner.<\/p>\n You can buy Assassin’s Gambit in paperback or ebook at Amazon<\/a>, Barnes and Noble<\/a> and Kobo<\/a> (ebook only).<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Last month my friend Amy Raby released her latest fantasy romance, Assassin’s Gambit from The Hearts and Thrones and Series. Here’s a bit about the book: Vitala Salonius, champion of the warlike game of Caturanga, is as deadly as she is beautiful. She\u2019s a trained assassin for the resistance, and her true play is for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,146,177,179,292,434],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-158","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-amy-raby","category-ebook","category-fantasy","category-fantasy-novel","category-kindle","category-romance"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/taramayastales.com\/bestfantasynovel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/taramayastales.com\/bestfantasynovel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/taramayastales.com\/bestfantasynovel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/taramayastales.com\/bestfantasynovel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/taramayastales.com\/bestfantasynovel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=158"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/taramayastales.com\/bestfantasynovel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/taramayastales.com\/bestfantasynovel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=158"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/taramayastales.com\/bestfantasynovel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=158"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/taramayastales.com\/bestfantasynovel\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=158"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}