Book Freak: Excerpt Sudden End by H.L. LeRoy

Title: Sudden End
Author: H.L. LeRoy
Series: The Fountain of the Earth Series (Prequel)
Genre: YA Dystopian
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: May 16, 2015
Edition/Formats Available In: eBook
Blurb/Synopsis:
Long before the events depicted in The Fountain of the Earth, the end came. This is how it happened.
Lisa Evans, sixteen, lives with her mom and dad in a cute little town, Rose Vista, California, It's an idyllic life, except when you reside at the bottom of your high school's social ladder. Picked on, laughed at, and embarrassed daily, it's been rough for Lisa. But the next day things are going to change. She has an opportunity to take her life back.
Then catastrophe strikes. In the beginning, everyone thinks that it's a simple power outage and everything will be back to normal in a week or two.
Instead, the entire world has gone dark, cities have burned, and the jails have emptied. There is sickness, starvation and death everywhere, and each day that goes by, the population shrinks even further.

Excerpt

I rubbed my knuckles in my eyes. Every time I blinked, they felt like they had gravel in them. I pulled the curtain aside and looked out. The sun had just started peeking over the eastern foothills, streaks of pink coloring the gray.
No one around, just a few stalled cars in the street. About an hour before, the sound of motorcycles had finally drifted off, disappearing into the distance. Gone, I hoped, for good.
I'd been up with Chrissie all night. The shotgun blast had skimmed her side and peppered her leg with small pellets. I cleaned and dressed it the best I could and finally got her to sleep on the couch with Lily at her feet. I might have felt safe enough to sleep myself if I didn't have other plans.

It had gotten to the point where we had to leave.
But if Dad or Charlie didn't get back, we were stuck.
I looked out the window again. A few cars sat in driveways, mostly new so they wouldn't start. A couple of old ones that probably would start, if we had a key.
I slipped on some dark clothes and slung Dad's shotgun over my shoulder.
"What are you doing?" Chrissie was sitting up a worried expression on her face.
"We've got to figure out a way to get out of here," I said.
She touched her side. "Isn't it safer to wait for your dad or Charlie?"
"There's only dried food left. No running water. Nothing works, and there are bodies rotting outside. It's not healthy."
Grabbing the doorknob, I paused, watching my hand tremble.
Can I even do this?
Now that it had come down to it, I was scared.
I turned the knob.
"Where are you going?"
"To try and get a car."
Chrissie grabbed my hand. "It's not safe."
"I know, but we can't stay here." I stepped out and shut the door. I heard faint sounds far in the distance. A crash or maybe an explosion. Then a couple of gunshots.
Easing my way out to sidewalk, I hid behind a hedge and listened for a few more seconds. Some birds were chirping in the trees but that was about all.
Across the street, was Mrs. Goldman's home, her old blue and white Ford sitting in the driveway. It would start, I thought, and we could take Mrs. Goldman where she'd be safe.
Broken glass crunched under my feet as I walked out to the middle of the street. Several of the houses that had been burned the night before, were still smoking. A dark figure at the end of the block lay crumpled on the sidewalk.
At Mrs. Goldman's, I peeked in the front room window. The house was a mess, like someone had broken in.
I lifted the brass knocker and let it fall. "Mrs. Goldman? It's Lisa. Are you okay?"
Something thumped inside, and I put my ear to the door.
"Do you need help?"
The deadbolt clicked and the doorknob started to turn.
"Thank goodness you're okay."
The door drifted open and a man stood framed by blood splattered across the entryway wall.
He raised a gun and fired at me. I dropped to the ground, rolling behind a planter. Dark blood spattered the concrete in front of me.
He fired again and chips of brick and concrete stung my face. Scrambling backwards, I pointed the shotgun at the door and jerked the trigger.
I felt sick, like I was going throw up, and then I drifted down into darkness.

H. L. (Holly) LeRoy is an American short story writer and novelist, author of the award winning Street Crimes anthology and the novel The Fountain of the Earth (Nov. 22, 2013), first in a series of young adult adventures. Book two, Heralds of Juno, will be released in 2015. Born in San Jose, California, LeRoy currently resides in the Sierra Nevada Mountains with his family.
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