Welcome to my stop on the tour for From Brick & Darkness, a gritty YA novel steeped in Djinn mythology. Read on for an exclusive excerpt and a chance to win a signed copy!
This is the first time I’ve read a modern take on Aladdin, and it’s so far been a fun, thrilling ride. We know wishes are always a bad idea in fantasy, yet you just can’t help but feel for Bax, even as he stumbles and makes a mess out of things. His friends and companions are delightful too; some in the quirky kind of way. And there’s a whole lot of djinn lore to be engrossed over, admittedly an aspect of mythology I haven’t paid too much attention to.
The long weekend had pushed back my reading some so I’m a little behind schedule, but I’m looking forward to finishing this in a few days and dropping a full review! 🧞♀️
Bax always fantasized something remarkable would happen in his life. So when a decrepit man with glowing purple eyes offers him a ring intended for his estranged father, Bax accepts.
The ring speaks to Bax in a dream, tempting him with a vision of a powerful djinn. Desperate to make his fantasies a reality, Bax unleashes a creature called Ifrit, but soon learns this djinn isn’t what the ring led him to believe. Feeding off the depths of his subconscious, the sinister demon fulfills what he thinks Bax wants by manipulating, threatening, and murdering. With everyone he loves in danger and a trail of crimes pointing back at him, Bax must scramble to solve the puzzle that will banish Ifrit forever.
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GENRE: Young Adult / Modern Fantasy / Retelling
PUBLICATION DATE: 16 May 2022
PUBLISHER: Wild Rose Press
PURCHASE LINKS: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
Excerpt
Neck bones popped as his head rotated toward me, his face eclipsing the rays of the streetlight. His irises were dull purple, glazed over with a foggy film, and deep-set wrinkles radiated from the corners of his eyes like arrows drawing attention to them.
A shudder caused the keys to slip from my hand and clank on the ground. My face burned with shame that the poor man’s appearance had startled me. My rudeness would have disappointed Mom.
“I’m sorry, but really—” I snagged my keys.
His hand slithered out of the brick-colored sleeve as his arm rose, trembling as he strained to hold the weight of his own limb. Gloved in loose, veiny skin, his skeleton hand had yellowed fingernails so overgrown they grew in on themselves like curly birthday ribbons. As his fingers unfurled, he revealed a ring nestled in his palm.
It was large. Too large. The ring resembled the toy jewelry Jason’s sister played with or something from a Halloween costume. Grimy gold with a single dull purplish jewel that matched his eyes.
His hand trembled under the heaviness of the ring. “Take it.”
Shifting my backpack to my other shoulder, I took it. “What is this?” The corners of his thin lips curled into a grin as a gust of warm, dry wind cut through the chilly October night and swirled around me.
About the Author
J.L. Sullivan writes young adult stories inspired by gritty urban environments and the tales that percolate within abandoned buildings and desolate alleys. He lives in St. Louis with his wife, two daughters, and a dog named Princess Penelope Picklesworth.
J.L. Sullivan | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook | Goodreads
Giveaway
Click the link below to enter for a chance to win a signed copy (US only)
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Book Tour Organized By R&R Book Tours
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Marie Sinadjan 
A new take on Aladdin? That sounds wonderful. Best wishes to the author.
Thanks, Marie.
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