The Bonded: The Allseer Trilogy Book I
Author
Kaitlyn Rouhier
Author Bio
Kaitlyn Rouhier is a fantasy author, born and raised in the beautiful, tree filled land of Southern Oregon. As a child, Kaitlyn always had her nose in a book, willingly choosing to escape reality and explore the fantastical written worlds presented to her. This love of reading grew into a fondness for writing and this passion for writing followed her into adulthood. However, it wasn’t until after a string of random, often times unfulfilling, jobs that she began to realize that writing was her true calling in life. And so, the idea for her first novel was born and over the course of five years, she spent many a long nights crafting a tale worth sharing while working as a cosmetologist during the day.
She is a lover of all things nerdy, an avid gamer, a serial hobbyist, and a frequent enjoyer of food, mostly of the bacon variety. She is on a seemingly endless quest to find the secret to being creative and motivated at the same time. As of now, she has yet to find it.
Her first self-published novel, The Bonded: The Allseer Trilogy Book I, was released in early December 2015. She is currently working on the second book in the trilogy. Kaitlyn can be found on several social media platforms and loves interacting with readers and fellow writers alike!
Description
Hundreds of years ago, a terrible corruption known only as the Darkness swept across the land. The world fell to chaos and the remaining survivors were pushed far North, to the only safe haven they could find. And thus Sanctuary was found, a lush forest of glowing trees and mountains holding the Darkness at bay. These survivors, young men and women gifted with the power of the mind, are known as the Bonded. Only they have the power to push back against the Darkness and reclaim the world for their kind.
It is in this corrupted world that Kirheen finds herself. Born with powers she does not desire and cursed to remain in Sanctuary, she yearns for a life of freedom which may never exist for she is one of the Bonded. From a young age, her every move has been watched, her every thought picked apart until the sixteenth year of her cycle when the Council sees fit to match her with a young man named Garild, a timid boy that is in all ways her opposite. Through the Ritual of Union, they are sworn to dedicate their lives and minds to each other, to strengthen their powers until they can join the fight against the Darkness.
Displeased with the decision and deathly afraid of letting another into her mind, Kirheen must come to terms with her role in the world, with the powers that flow through her veins, and learn to trust. To fail is to spend the rest of her days working in the work camps, a fate seemingly worse than the path she now walks. And to resist is to end up exiled into a corrupted world that she has grown up learning to fear.
With little hope of escaping her fate, Kirheen and her bond mate are placed under the thumb of Herzin, a cruel old woman determined to see them complete their training or die trying. But it is during her training that Kirheen begins to wonder if the Darkness is truly as dangerous as they say, or if it even exists at all.
Book excerpt
The ritual was held in the Temple of Union, inside the vast hollowed heart of a glowing wraith wood tree. The tree itself jutted upwards, jagged spires reaching high into the heavens. In the glow of the moon it shone faintly, its ghastly bark throwing out a whisper of icy blue light.
The inside of the tree was a great hollowed core, forming a large circular room with nothing but dirt for a floor. It had been stripped bare, save for a row of wraith wood chairs at the back of the room. Robed council members sat quietly, waiting for the ritual to begin. They wore cloaks the color of the midnight sky, their faces hidden in shadow but she could feel them watching. Candles were the only light in the room and they formed a circle in which she and another Bondless sat. The faint light flickered and shifted, colliding strangely with the blue glow of the tree.
It was the sixteenth year in their cycle and now it had come to this. Reaching up, the girl tucked her ashen hair behind her ear and stared at the boy across from her. He returned her gaze, his dark eyes wide with fright. He had a full face, a boyish chubbiness to his body that only a growth spurt could take away. His wavy brown hair had been smoothed back and he ran a hand through it nervously, no doubt afraid her gaze picked apart some untidiness he had failed to notice.
Their clothing was customary for the Ritual of Union. Dark blue robes encased them, a silver sash tied tight around the middle. They’d removed the dark leather boots they’d worn before entering and they sat barefoot on the floor, their feet tucked beneath them. The girl tugged impatiently at a loose thread and she couldn’t help but wonder how many Bondless children had worn those very same robes before her.
It was on this day that they would cease to be Bondless. Over the course of their youth, the Council had watched them. They had picked apart their personalities, studied their interests and dissected every action they had taken. It was with this information that they chose one boy and one girl to bond together. After the process, the two would cease to be apart. Their thoughts, minds and hearts would meld. It is said that the Bonded can know each other’s thoughts without speaking, can find each other even if a great distance separates them. To be Bonded was an honor with no equal. To be given that special connection with someone was the greatest gift a Bondless one could be given. Such a bond would grant them the strength to face the Darkness that lurked outside the walls of Sanctuary.
It was also something the girl found completely and utterly pointless. She’d known her entire life that it would come to this moment. Sometimes she had watched the boys she’d been raised around, wondering which one the Council would see fit to match her with. As she’d gotten older, the allure of being permanently bound to someone had lost its shiny luster.
Now it just frightened her. The thought of giving her mind to another wasn’t even something she could fathom. They’d tried to allay her concerns, her mentors assuring her it wouldn’t be as terrible as she thought, but she’d known deep down that they were lying to her. And now she sat, watching the boy she’d be Bonded to with a dissatisfied frown.
