#RRSciFiMonth YA Weekend: Excerpt of Infinity Lost by S. Harrison + Giveaway!

*** The giveaway is now over, thanks to everyone who entered! ***

To celebrate Sci-fi Month, today we have a giveaway and excerpt to share with you from Infinity Lost, a Young Adult science fiction thriller by S. Harrison! The book was released November 1, 2015 by Skyscape/Amazon Publishing and is available now. First, let’s check out the synopsis:

“In the near future, one corporation, Blackstone Technologies, has changed the world: no disasters, no poverty, and life-altering technology. Blackstone has the impunity to destroy—or create—as it sees fit.

Infinity “Finn” Blackstone is the seventeen-year-old daughter of Blackstone’s reclusive CEO—but she’s never even met him. When disturbing dreams about a past she doesn’t remember begin to torment her, Finn knows there’s only one person who can provide answers: her father.

After Finn and an elite group of peers are invited to Blackstone’s top-secret HQ, Finn realizes she may have a chance to confront her father. But when a highly sophisticated company AI morphs into a killing machine, the trip descends into chaos. Trapped inside shape-shifting walls, Finn and her friends are at the mercy of an all-seeing intelligence that will destroy everything to get to her.

With no hope of help, Finn’s dream-memories may be the only chance of survival. But will she remember in time to save her own life and the lives of those around her?”

Sound like fun? Read on for the excerpt and our giveaway!

* * *

I’m far too excited and way too nervous to let Nanny scare me today. If Father is the king of this castle, then surely that makes me a princess, and a princess needs a proper dress to wear when she stands before the king for the first time—not this worn-out t-shirt and jeans. Mariele, one of our maids, said Father would be here in an hour, so there’s no time to waste. I run down the hall back to my room.

Mariele is there, laying out my dress for me. It’s all frills and lace and beautiful. I’m so bouncy and fidgety with bottled-up energy that it takes ten minutes for Mariele to get me sitting still, let alone clean and ready. When I’m finally dressed, she brushes my long black hair and puts it in red ribbons. Nanny Theresa appears at the door.

“Ready the child for presentation, Mariele.”

Father is early. I’m hastily ushered down the hallway and jostled into position in the marble foyer at the bottom of the main stairs. The servants have gathered, standing side by side in a line like soldiers. I stand nervously at the far end, tightly squeezing Mariele’s hand.

Even though the front door is still a distance away, I can hear the faint crunch of car tires on the gravel in the driveway. Car doors open and close, and my heart jumps into my throat. Through the door, I hear the muffled voice of Nanny Theresa greeting someone important. No. Not just one someone. Lots of people. There are muffled voices everywhere. My stomach is so full of butterflies, I’m afraid that if I sneeze one will fly out of my nose.

Time seems to stand still.

This is worse than waiting up all night to see if Santa Claus will really come down the chimney. Sometimes, being a day away from six years old and having never met your own father makes him seem like he is a magical imaginary creature, like an elf or the bogeyman or, I sud- denly decide, just like Santa, except brave and heroic like Superman. Super Santa!

The voices are coming closer and closer. They’ve been out there for- ever. My heart is beating a million times a second. I feel like I’m going to blast off like a rocket and zoom around the room, my little shoes left sitting smoldering in the exact spot where I was standing.

I look over at the servants, and their eyes are transfixed on the long golden door handles. A second later, so are mine. Finally the handles dip, and the doors swing open.

The first man I see from my child-sized view is Reynolds, the but- ler. I see the familiar pinstripe fabric of his trousers and his cavernous nostrils. A wave of his hand is followed by the deep slow tones of his refined bass voice.

“Right this way, gentlemen.”

There’s a bustle of shoes and legs and ties and beards and nos- trils. Hands clutch briefcases and folders and documents, fat cigars puff thick plumes of smoke, booming voices and laughter echo off the marble of the foyer.

I stare into the group, searching faces, waiting for the moment when they all stand aside and the man from the photograph rushes forward and scoops me up into his arms. He’ll swing me around, kiss me on the cheek, and tell me how wonderful it is that we are finally together. He’ll be so sorry that we’ve been apart for so long. He’ll tell me that he loves me and that he thinks about me all the time, like I do about him. I’m so excited that my nerves get the better of me and I hide behind the safety of Mariele’s skirt.

I spot Jonah out of the corner of my eye. He’s behind us, heading into the hallway under the stairs that lead to the southern wing. He gives me an uncharacteristic look of concern that worsens my nerves, before smiling and disappearing down the darkened passage.

“Welcome, gentlemen,” Reynolds announces to the visitors. “Dr. Blackstone sends his most heartfelt apologies that he is not here to greet you in person, but I assure you that he will address you all via video conference later this evening.”

A few disgruntled grumblings issue from the group. A pang of sor- row grips my little heart and it sinks right through the floor, through the ground, out the other side of the world and into the cold, lonely darkness of space.

“May I present the staff,” Reynolds says, motioning toward the twenty footmen, maids, and servers. They all bow and curtsy accordingly.

The men walk down the line behind Reynolds until eventually they reach the end. “And this is Dr. Blackstone’s daughter.”

I peek out from behind Mariele, tears beginning to pool in my eyes.

All of the men lean in, their eyes glaring scarily at me like I’m an animal at the zoo. They whisper and nudge each other. The ones behind peer over the others’ shoulders. They gawk down at me like they’ve never seen a little girl before.

“There she is,” says one.

“Incredible,” whispers another.

They’re so taken with me that Reynolds has to clear his throat and step in between us to get their attention.

“Gentlemen, the chef is preparing a wonderful, ten-course, gourmet meal for you this evening, but for now, if you would please follow me into the red drawing room, refreshments are being served.”

They all follow Reynolds through the archway like a gaggle of suited geese, muttering and whispering and glaring back at me as they go.

I feel extremely uneasy and, for the first time in my life . . . abandoned. Unsure of what to do, I stand with the servants as Nanny gives them detailed, last-minute reminders of what will be expected of them tonight. She talks about how important our guests are, how their every whim must be catered to. She drones on and on, and before long her voice becomes nothing but a dull warbling in my ears. I stare at the door, broken-hearted. I feel so stupid to have expected so much from a man who has promised me nothing.

“Dismissed,” commands Nanny Theresa. She nods to the servants and they quickly disperse back to their duties. Father is not here. Just like every other day. I decide to slink away to my room. “Come child,” Nanny Theresa barks as her knobbly fingers reach toward my little wrist like five gnarled twigs on a withered old tree.

“The men would like to see you properly.”

* * *

INFINITY LOST GIVEAWAY

We hope you have enjoyed this very special look at an excerpt for Infinity Lost! Interested in winning a copy for yourself? Thanks to the generosity of Skyscape and the wonderful folks at Wunderkind PR, the BiblioSanctum has one print copy of Infinity Lost up for grabs in this Sci-fi Month Giveaway! This giveaway is open to residents of the US only. To enter, all you have to do is send an email to bibliosanctum@gmail.com with your Name and valid Mailing Address using the subject line “INFINITY LOST” by 11:59pm Eastern time on Wednesday, November 25, 2015.

Only one entry per household, please. Entrants must be 18 or older. The winner will be randomly selected when the giveaway ends and then be notified by email. All information will only be used for the purposes of contacting the winner and sending them their prize. Once the giveaway ends all entry emails will be deleted.

So what are you waiting for? Enter to win! Good luck!