{"id":15046,"date":"2021-10-19T05:00:27","date_gmt":"2021-10-19T09:00:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/?p=15046"},"modified":"2021-10-18T10:04:28","modified_gmt":"2021-10-18T14:04:28","slug":"blog-tour-the-bear-house-by-meaghan-mcisaac-excerpt-giveaway","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/blog-tour-the-bear-house-by-meaghan-mcisaac-excerpt-giveaway\/","title":{"rendered":"Blog Tour: The Bear House by Meaghan McIsaac (Excerpt + Giveaway!)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"ubb-blog-tour-banner\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rockstarbooktours.com\" target=\"_blank\"><img src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/THE-BEAR-HOUSE.jpg\" alt=\"Blog Tour: The Bear House by Meaghan McIsaac (Excerpt + Giveaway!)\"><\/a><\/p><p>Happy Tuesday and welcome to my stop on the blog tour for THE BEAR HOUSE by Meaghan McIsaac! I&#8217;m so excited because today I have an excerpt of the book to share with you! This book is truly amazing and I&#8217;m so excited to for you to find out more about it, PLUS enter for a chance to win a print copy!<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13897\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"645\" height=\"50\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png 645w, https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider-300x23.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 645px) 100vw, 645px\" \/><\/p>\n<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/the-bear-house-cover.png\" alt=\"Blog Tour: The Bear House by Meaghan McIsaac (Excerpt + Giveaway!)\" title=\"Blog Tour: The Bear House by Meaghan McIsaac (Excerpt + Giveaway!)\" class=\"ubb-cover-image alignleft\"><strong>The Bear House<\/strong> by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/reviews\/authors\/meaghan-mcisaac\/\">Meaghan McIsaac<\/a> <br><strong>Series:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/reviews\/series\/the-bear-house\/\">The Bear House #1<\/a> <br><strong>Published on<\/strong>  October 5, 2021 by <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/reviews\/publishers\/holiday-house\/\">Holiday House<\/a> <br><strong>Genres:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/reviews\/genres\/fantasy\/\">Fantasy<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/reviews\/genres\/middle-grade\/\">Middle Grade<\/a> <br><strong>Pages:<\/strong> 368 <br><strong>Add to <\/strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/56378341-the-bear-house\" target=\"_blank\">Goodreads<\/a> <br><strong>Author Links:<\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/meaghanmcisaac.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Website<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/meaghanmcisaac\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Twitter<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/author\/show\/6914215.Meaghan_McIsaac\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Goodreads<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3DBHG7E\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Amazon<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/meaghanmcisaacwrites\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Instagram<\/a> <br><blockquote class=\"ubb-synopsis\"><p>Moody Aster and her spoiled sister Ursula are the daughters of Jasper Lourdes, Major of Bears and lord of all the realm. Rivals, both girls dream of becoming the Bear queen someday, although neither really deserve to, having no particular talent in... well, anything.<br \/>\nBut when their Uncle Bram murders their father in a bid for the crown, the girls are forced onto the run, along with lowly Dev the Bearkeeper and the Lourdes's half-grown grizzly Alcor, symbol of their house. As a bitter struggle for the throne consumes the kingdom in civil war, the sisters must rely on Dev, the bear cub, and each other to survive--and find wells of courage, cunning, and skill they never knew they had.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\t\t<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n{\n\t\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\n\t\"@type\":\"Review\",\n\t\"datePublished\": \"2021-10-19T09:00:27+00:00\",\n\t\"description\": \"Happy Tuesday and welcome to my stop on the blog tour for THE BEAR HOUSE by Meaghan McIsaac! I'm so excited because today I have an excerpt of the book to share with you! This book is truly amazi\",\n\t\"publisher\": {\n\t\t\"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t\t\"name\": \"Kait Plus Books\"\t},\n\t\"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\\\/books\\\/blog-tour-the-bear-house-by-meaghan-mcisaac-excerpt-giveaway\\\/\",\n\t\"itemReviewed\": {\n\t\t\"@type\": \"Book\",\n\t\t\"name\": \"The Bear House\",\n\t\t\"author\": {\n\t\t\t\"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t\t\t\"name\": \"Meaghan McIsaac\",\n\t\t\t\"sameAs\": \"https:\\\/\\\/meaghanmcisaac.com\\\/\"\t\t},\n\t\t\"isbn\": \"0823446603\"\t},\n\t\"author\": {\n\t\t\"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t\t\"name\": \"Kaity\",\n\t\t\"sameAs\": \"https:\\\/\\\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\\\/books\\\/\"\t},\n\t\"reviewRating\": {\n\t\t\"@type\": \"Rating\",\n\t\t\"ratingValue\": false,\n\t\t\"bestRating\": \"5\"\n\t}\n}\n\n\n\n\t\t<\/script>\n\t\t\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13897\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"645\" height=\"50\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png 645w, https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider-300x23.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 645px) 100vw, 645px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13940\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Read-an-Excerpt-Fall-2021.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"200\" \/><\/p>\n<h1><em><b>AT THE START OF ALL THINGS, THERE WERE ONLY THE STARS.<\/b><\/em><\/h1>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many different stars\u2014 light upon light upon light\u2014 but alone, they were not enough.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To cure their loneliness, their light combined, and of them were born the High Beasts, each belonging to their own quadrant of heaven.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To the skies of the South were born the High Fly, the Glimmer Snake, and more. And the stars of the South became known as the Waters.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To the skies of the East and West were born the Dust Ram, the White Bull, the Star Twins, the Prism Scorpion, and more. These traveled together, one after the other, a ring of High Beasts in a never- ending loop.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These stars became the Ring.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To the skies of the North were born the White Bear, the Shadow Dragon, the Starhound, and more. But of them all, the stars loved the firstborn Bear best. And so the northern stars became the stars of the Great Bear.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When from the earth, Man emerged from the darkness, looking to the sky for guidance, the stars stretched out their light and sent these beasts to lead him, bringing them into the flesh.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And Man worshipped the stars, and he worshipped the beasts, and the beasts were sacred to him.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thus, beneath the heavenly sea of the Waters, the Highen of the Waters was born.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Beneath the Ring\u2019s milky skies grew the Highen of the Ring.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And beneath the crisp, dark skies of the Great Bear, the mighty Bear Highen began.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2014 THE WRITINGS OF BERN, On the Founding of Highens: The Fore, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Star Writ<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>PROLOGUE<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Shadow Dragons were screaming. Their cries rose out of the dark, echoing over the peak of Mount Draccus.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Men had come for their eggs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin Wyvern crouched in the shadows of a rocky outcrop, watching the retrieval party approach the nests. The young prince had promised his father he would stay in the castle by his ailing mother\u2019s bedside. An outbreak of firelung had taken hold of the Kingdom of Dracogart, and Mother was just one of many fighting to survive. But that night, when the dragons began wailing, Lady Wyvern had squeezed Quintin\u2019s hand.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cGo,\u201d she told him, her breath ragged from the sickness. \u201cGo and witness their sacrifice.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And so Quintin left her. He had followed hidden paths so as not to be seen, the mountain\u2019s breath thick and fetid and burning his lungs.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">From his vantage point behind an outcrop of obsidian, Quintin saw the lights of the city of Dracogart below, saw the men in impressive armor walking up the main road, their horses sidestepping with nerves.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The mother dragons hissed at their approach, plumes of smoke billowing from their gaping mouths in warning. Only three eggs had been laid that year, each one a precious gift from the stars. They would take a further two years to hatch.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One of them would never get that chance.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There was a chirrup at his back, and Quintin startled. He turned and saw a Shadow Dragon, a juvenile female, crouched on the stones above him. She blinked at him, her yellow eyes anxious.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Umbra.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin pressed a finger to his lips and turned back to watch the soldiers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The mother dragons paced, encircling their nests. The light of the men\u2019s torches danced and glinted off their dark, stony scales.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin knew they would not give up an egg without a fight.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shadow Dragons did not abide the laws of men.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And yet the law demanded an egg all the same. Word had reached Dracogart a week ago from the Major: the Kingdom of the Shadow Dragon must surrender one egg. And that egg would pay for the firelung cure that could only be found in the land of their enemies, the Ring Highen.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe can\u2019t!\u201d his mother had said, fuming, when she had still been well enough to stand. \u201cThere has to be another way!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Chancellor Furia, King Wyvern\u2019s most trusted advisor, had agreed\u2014 even though Furia and Queen Wyvern rarely agreed on anything. \u201cSire, it is too sinful even to think of.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The eggs of the Shadow Dragon were sacred. Blessings from the holy stars themselves. How could Dracogart allow <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">anyone<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to take what had been given by the stars?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThe Major was chosen to be Major because he is favored by the stars,\u201d King Wyvern told them. \u201cIf the Major believes this is the way to save our people, then we must trust that he is right.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Save the people, yes <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. And more importantly now, <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0thought Quintin, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">save Mother. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Her condition was worsening by the hour.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But still, he felt a nervousness in his gut. What if Father was wrong to allow this?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Umbra chirruped again, as if she could read his thoughts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin looked beyond Dracogart\u2019s rocky valley, over which the mountain\u2019s shadow fell\u2014 Father was out there, somewhere, hunting with his mount Draco, the largest dragon alive, the dragon- king of the Shadow Dragons. When the Major\u2019s men had left the castle for the mountain path to retrieve the egg, Father had left with Draco\u2014 the king of dragons would be angry to hear his wives so distressed, he\u2019d said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But Quintin knew the truth. Seeing the Major\u2019s men take an egg from the Shadow Dragons\u2019 nest was too painful for even his father to bear.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There were shouts from the men in armor, and when Quintin looked, one had approached the edge of the nest. The man held a spear, its tip fitted with a fat, dripping hearth weasel\u2014 as if a treat would be enough to trade a dragon for her child.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One of the mother dragons slunk toward him, a threatening hiss venting from her smoking maw. The fins at the edge of her jaw fluttered. She was eager to crunch bone.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cCourage, men!\u201d <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0shouted someone. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHold!\u201d <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0cried another. And still more were roaring orders as the man in armor inched closer to the dragon.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin held his breath. The young soldier stepped across the line on the ground where the rock had been scorched by dragon breath\u2014 the threshold of the nest.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cToo close,\u201d Quintin whispered.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The mother dragons reared up, all of them screaming in unison, black wings flapping. The foremost dragon lunged, her powerful jaws snapping with a thunderous clap just short of the young man\u2019s belly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The dragons\u2019 screams built on one another, the noise folding onto itself, lifting with a ferocious desperation. They were screaming for Draco.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Draco, whose size and power would protect them all.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Draco, their king.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin\u2019s eyes burned with tears. Draco was with his father.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Draco would not save them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And then a roar exploded from somewhere below the mountain.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was so loud and resonant, it was as if the earth itself had opened up.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Draco?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">No. This roar was earthbound. Not of the sky.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin heard Umbra screech and skitter away, scurrying back to her family, back into a nest farther up the mountain. She was only a little dragon, after all, even if she was Draco\u2019s daughter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The mother dragons\u2019 mood shifted, their hissing and smoking replaced by a quiet, nervous chirping, tiny sparks spitting from the sides of their mouths. Quintin had never seen Shadow Dragons look like that\u2014 tails wrapped close to their sides, bellies pressed low to the ground, all huddled close together. They were frightened. Frightened of what was making its way up the mountain road.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A bear.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A bear unlike any Quintin had ever seen before.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The hulking beast stood heads above the horses, her girth so wide it took up the entire path. Her long, grizzled fur looked like fire, a bright amber color that gleamed in the torchlight. Her jaws looked powerful enough to crush iron, her paws big enough to shake the earth. There was no mistaking it\u2014 a Hemoth Bear.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She was Mizar. The mightiest creature in all of the Bear Highen.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And beside her stood a man, just as hulking and grizzled as she.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Bear Major himself: Jasper Lourdes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">They approached the nest, the dragons clustered together in a quaking mass. Mizar the Hemoth chuffed and snorted, her massive footfalls causing the very earth to shake.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin watched as the Major placed a hand on the Hemoth\u2019s flank and the bear stopped. The Major continued to approach and, without hesitation, stepped over the nest\u2019s threshold. The dragons did not make a sound. He picked his way over rocks and boulders until he was standing above an egg, its black shell speckled with pinpricks of warm light.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One of the mothers, the one who had snapped at the soldier, whined with alarm, and the Hemoth roared again, dislodging rock and stone from the mountainside and sending it tumbling down.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin threw his hands over his head to protect himself from the stony shower; dust powdered his shoulders.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the rumble faded to nothing, the dragons were silent again.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Major Jasper Lourdes bent down to the egg and took it gently in his hands.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin longed to know how it felt. Warm, he imagined. Like the stones that lined the hearth fires in the castle.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Finally, delicately, the High King of the Bear Highen fit the egg into the crook of his arm, as if cradling a baby, and bowed to the frightened flock of dragons.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And just as suddenly as they\u2019d arrived, the Major and the Hemoth left, disappearing down the mountain road with the Major\u2019s soldiers following behind.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Quintin was alone with the Shadow Dragons, trembling with his awe of the Hemoth Bear, and with fear and sadness for the egg the men had taken with them\u2014 the Shadow Dragon that would never be.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And the Great Bear Lord Tawn saw inside the heart of the human Dov, and saw in it that which pleased him:\u00a0 courage\u00a0 to face whatever threat might meet him,\u00a0 love\u00a0 for all the On-High\u2019s children, and the\u00a0 honor\u00a0 to uphold the greatness of the stars . . .\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And so it was that the Great Bear Lord Tawn chose the human Dov to be protector of the realm.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And so it was that the Highen had its first Major and its first Hemoth Bear.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2014 THE WRITINGS OF BERN, The Crowning of the First Major: The Age of Tawn, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Star Writ<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>ONE<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bernadine Lourdes was pouting. The only daughter of the House of the White Bear was used to having her own way.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But this was <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Lourdes\u2019s house\u2014 and she\u2019d be damned by Tawn if she let her spoiled cousin dictate the afternoon.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cPout all you want,\u201d Aster snapped, fishing through the drawers of her father\u2019s giant mahogany desk. \u201cI told you, I\u2019ve no interest in board games today.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The girls sat in the high- ceilinged study of Aster\u2019s father, where heavy, deep- red curtains framing the bay windows blocked the sun-shine of another beautiful summer day. Bernadine sulked, a Crowns\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&amp; Stones board across her lap. The periwinkle damask of her petticoat clashed with the rugged coldness of the room.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster loved this room. She loved the dimness; loved the musty smell of the old leather books in the towering shelves; loved the icy chill of the dark tiles under her feet, painted with depictions of Hemoth Bears from history. They reminded her of her family\u2019s importance to the Highen every time she took a step.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For Aster Lourdes was the daughter of the Bear Major, the ruler of all the Bear Highen\u2014 Jasper Lourdes, the Death Chaser.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Her fingers grazed the smooth, familiar handle of the object she was looking for, and she grinned. Her father\u2019s ivory quill knife. She pulled it out and placed it gently on the desktop.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bernadine let out a huff, folding her arms and narrowing her eyes. \u201cAnd <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> have no interest in your silly map.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt\u2019s not silly, and it\u2019s not just any old map.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt\u2019s boring.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt\u2019s <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">not. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0I\u2019m making a <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">war map. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster smoothed the giant map out on the surface of her father\u2019s desk. The parchment was wrinkled and bruised from constant folding and unfolding, its sides and corners fraying. No matter how lovingly she cared for her map, Aster could see she was loving it to death.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Picking up the quill knife, she resolved to be gentler, then set about her work, sharpening and shaping the tip of her quill. \u201cFather and Uncle Bram plan to meet the enemy\u2019s forces near Kishtowel Pass, where the Great Bear River meets the Celestial Sea. I have to draw their route.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou don\u2019t know that that\u2019s where they are. And it\u2019s <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">tool. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhat?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cTool,\u201d <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Bernadine said again. \u201cLook\u201d\u2014 she hopped off the windowsill and stormed over, slamming her finger down on the name under Aster\u2019s quill\u2014\u201cK-i-s-h-t-o-u-l. It\u2019s pronounced Kish- <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0tool. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Not Kish- towel.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster slapped her cousin\u2019s hand away and made a mental note to remember Kish <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">tool.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">do<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> know where they are,\u201d she insisted, hoping the mispronunciation would disappear from conversation.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou know they <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">plan<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to meet the Ring\u2019s forces at the pass, but that\u2019s all. There\u2019s no way to know where they are for certain\u2014 them <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">or<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the Ring. Your map is probably all wrong.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cOf course they\u2019ll be there,\u201d said Aster, gritting her teeth and circling Kishtoul Pass to mark the end of her father\u2019s path.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In truth, she didn\u2019t know for certain. They hadn\u2019t heard from the Bear Highen\u2019s armies in a fortnight.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The day word reached her father that the Ring Highen had declared war, there had been shock and fear. The Major had just traded the Ring the egg of a Shadow Dragon\u2014 a deeply powerful and sacred object\u2014 for the venom of the Prism Scorpion to cure the firelung plaguing Dracogart. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement, one that promised friendship and peace after many centuries of rivalry\u2014 and often war. Two Highens, a sea apart, helping each other into a new age.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Certainly, there were voices that had cautioned against the trade.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bah,\u00a0 her father had said, waving an unconcerned hand, men always have opinions on matters as delicate as this. All will be well.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But now, with the egg delivered and the new alliance made, the Ring had the gall to attack? It was a baffling move, one her father and the other Heads of Houses were completely unprepared for.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Ring had attacked and burned several coastal cities quickly and mercilessly, and Father had had no choice but to answer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jasper Lourdes had mobilized his men. And as Minor of the Highen, first among the lesser kings and the Major\u2019s second, Uncle Bram had moved the White Bear\u2019s armies the very next day to join them. Both Aster\u2019s and Bernadine\u2019s father were at war.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cFine. Do what you want,\u201d said Bernadine. \u201cI\u2019m going to try on some dresses.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhich dresses do you think you\u2019re trying on?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cUrsula\u2019s.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou wouldn\u2019t dare!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bernadine peeked around the open door and looked back at Aster with a wrinkled brow. \u201cWhy wouldn\u2019t I?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cBecause Ursula will <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">kill<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> you if she catches you.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bernadine waved an unconcerned hand. \u201cShe\u2019s outside. She\u2019ll never know.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster looked over to the window, the sunlight of a cloudless day fighting to invade the darkness of her father\u2019s office.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cShe\u2019s harassing your bear boy again.\u201d Bernadine shrugged, slipping out the door. \u201cShe\u2019ll be at it all afternoon.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster winced as the door slammed shut, and, alone in the quiet, she sighed. Ursula, her big sister, had a wardrobe of at least two hundred dresses. Aster wouldn\u2019t see Bernadine again until dinner.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It was funny, really, how much Bernadine had changed since coming to live with the Major\u2019s family four years ago. Uncle Bram had sent her to Tawnshire from Whitlock after her mother, Aunt Gwynlin, became very sick. And when poor Aunt Gwynlin had died, Uncle Bram thought it best that Bernadine remain with her cousins, not only to keep her from the sadness of his empty house, but to have her brought up a proper lady at the Major\u2019s court. Whitlock was a cold wasteland compared to Tawnshire; Aster could still remember the Minor\u2019s little daughter arriving on horseback, wearing weasel furs and coveralls like a peasant. Not even a carriage! Just her own white horse and her father\u2019s soldiers to escort her. She had been a different girl then.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster stared at the handle of the quill blade in her hand: heavy ox bone, honey- stained, carved in the likeness of the Hemoth Bear.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A simple instrument for a Major, humble, with no gemstones or precious metals. And yet the bear had been so carefully carved, with so much detail, that it was ornate in its own quiet way. It was a strange thing for a Major to have\u2014 traditionally, his quills were kept sharp by devoted attendants, and no Major bothered himself with such a small, tedious task. Perhaps that was why she liked it so much\u2014 because it made her father different. Keeper Rizlan had given it to him when he was a boy not much older than her. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To help<\/span><\/i> <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">with my studies, <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0her father had said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Where was Father now? How long until he would send word?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She walked her fingers along the trail her father\u2019s armies had marched for the past month. From Tawnshire . . . southwest along the Great Bear River . . . and through the Wellin Woods, a dangerous forest of dark shadows and hungry wolves\u2014 or so her father always told her. She made a silent vow to see it someday.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Someday, when <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">she<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> would lead the Bear Highen\u2019s armies through the dangers of the Wellin Woods.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It could happen. It wouldn\u2019t, but it could. Ursula was the heir, the one expected to fill the role of Major, but sometimes Aster liked to dream it would be her.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Lourdes had headed the House of the Hemoth Bear for centuries, and her own father was the younger of two brothers, whom no one expected to take the throne. And even though he had been chosen above her uncle by the Hemoth Bear, it had never divided the brothers, as some might expect. The White Bear, the second- most- powerful and &#8211; sacred of High Beasts, chose Uncle Bram, and the Lourdes brothers brought stability and prosperity to the Highen as no Major and his Minor had ever done before. They were a team, united by blood and purpose. If Aster became Major, she liked to imagine that Ursula would be just like Uncle Bram and serve as Minor, the Lourdes legacy continued.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But then, Aster doubted her big sister could even name the eight sacred High Beasts of the Highen, let alone their kingdoms. Aster closed her eyes and ran through them: Dracogart, the Kingdom of the Shadow Dragon; Hundford, the Kingdom of the Hounds; Felis-brook, the Kingdom of the Lynx; Roarque, the Kingdom of the Lion; Twigate, the Kingdom of the Blue Giraffe; H\u00e4rk\u00e4dia, the Kingdom of the Ox. And, of course, Whitlock, the Kingdom of the White Bear, where Bernadine and Uncle Bram reigned. And most importantly, there was Tawnshire, the Kingdom of the Hemoth Bear. Home.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A roar, furious and deep, suddenly shook the windowpane. Ursula\u2019s familiar high- pitched shriek rang out next, and Aster ran to the window.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There was her sister, racing across the front green away from the stables and the Bear Holding. Her usual train of six ladies-in-waiting was absent. What, Aster wondered, had her sister been up to that she had to leave her lady\u2019s maids behind?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cGet it away from me!\u201d <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Ursula screamed, tripping over the front of her rose- colored dress and landing face- first in the grass.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another loud roar\u2014 and then the large, round, shaggy form of Alcor, Mizar\u2019s cub, exploded out of the Bear Holding, his white teeth glinting in a terrifying snarl <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ursula,\u00a0 Aster thought, finally understanding, why can\u2019t you just keep your nose out of the Holding!\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Her big sister had been poking around the Bear Holding all season. Ursula had never shown any interest in Mizar or Alcor before\u2014 in fact, Aster had long suspected she was frightened of the monstrous war bears. It was a strange thing for her vain, cosseted sister to do, and Aster couldn\u2019t quite figure what had started it.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">All she knew was this: it was a bad idea.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cBear boy!\u201d <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Ursula shrieked, Alcor closing the gap between them with raised hackles. The young bear was getting big. Aster couldn\u2019t believe how big. <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cBear boy! Bear boy!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster\u2019s eyes scanned the grounds, her heart beginning to race.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Where were the Hermans, the Manor\u2019s guards?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Just steps away from Ursula, Alcor stretched out his long neck, flabby lips curling over razor teeth, and let out another roar. Aster\u2019s breath caught. She lifted a fist to the glass, about to bang on the pane\u2014\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And then she saw them: three Hermans, racing for Ursula, ready to throw themselves between her and Alcor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But Alcor stopped. Just like that.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The bear sat back on his rump, gargantuan paws folded daintily in front of him. He\u2019d forgotten Ursula completely. There was a sound, Aster noticed now, like a quacking, whining duck.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">She unlatched the glass and leaned her head out the window.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There: it was Devin, the bear boy, standing in the door of the Bear Holding. He was blowing into what Aster knew to be his special kazoo.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The young bear\u2014 now more like a stuffed toy than a monster\u2014\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">leaned his head back as far as he could to see his kazoo- playing servant, then rolled happily in the grass, his fury completely dissolved.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster couldn\u2019t help but wrinkle her nose. She was relieved enough that Ursula was unharmed, but the fact remained\u2014 Alcor was shaping up to be a pretty lousy High Beast for the House of the Hemoth Bear. If it had been Mizar that Ursula had offended, her sister would have been flung in pieces all over the front green, the bear boy\u2019s kazoo only making matters worse.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Hermans rushed to help Ursula to her feet.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cA monster!\u201d she shrieked, pointing at the overgrown cub. \u201cHe\u2019s nothing but a killer!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster rolled her eyes. He certainly was not. Not yet.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThat\u2019s what your father needs me to make him!\u201d the boy bellowed back. Aster sat up. A servant, yelling at a daughter of the Major? That took a lot of nerve . . . or lack of brains.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ursula straightened and stood in that dignified Lady-of-Lourdes pose she saved for visiting princes and dignitaries\u2014 proud and regal, like their father.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster watched as the bear boy\u2019s anger drained into his feet, his stiff, accusing posture dissolving into slumped shoulders and a drooping head.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHow dare you speak to me that way?\u201d Ursula spat. \u201cWhat will my father say when I tell him what an insolent wretch you are?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ursula might have been beautiful, but at just sixteen she had a bite almost as powerful as Mizar\u2019s. \u201cYou are a servant of my house! <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> servant!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI am <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Alcor\u2019s<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> servant!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster watched the bear boy, surprised. He had always lived at the Manor, as far back as her memory would go. He\u2019d grown up here, all thirteen years, just as she had. And in all that time, Aster had barely heard him speak. He was apprenticed to Master Rizlan, the High Keeper of the Hemoth Bears; maybe with all the talking Master Rizlan did around the Manor, there wasn\u2019t much left for the boy to say.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ursula was less amused. \u201cIf you think for one minute that your first loyalties are to that\u2014 that\u2014 that\u2014 <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0animal<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> over there,\u201d she said,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cyou\u2019d best think again! How dare you presume to put me and my family second to that beast?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The boy said nothing, digging his knuckles into his eyes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cJumping Juniper Bears!\u201d Startled, Aster whirled around to see Gatch, her nurse, standing in the door to the study. \u201cAster Lourdes!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You\u2019re in your war formals!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster gripped the leather pleats that made up the skirt of her war formals, twisting it to the side as though she could hide it behind her back. No use\u2014 she\u2019d been caught. In her best dress for the festival season, without a festival in sight.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI laid out your clothes for you this morning!\u201d Gatch wrung her pudgy hands, storming over. \u201cAnd you go and dig out your finest garment, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">again<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">! Ohhhhh, your mother\u2019s gonna have a flying fit if she sees what I\u2019ve let you do!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster frowned, noticing the violet fabric of an evening gown draped across her nurse\u2019s arm. It was a fine frock, but nothing compared to the ornate stitching of her war formals. In the purple dress, she looked like a child. In the war formals, she looked like a queen.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gatch grabbed Aster by the shoulders, turned her away from the window, and began undoing the back lacing of her dress. \u201cI\u2019ve been calling you for an hour! You should be nose- deep in your <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Star Writ<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> studies by now. Not to mention how behind you are on your Roarsh lessons. I might\u2019ve known you were up in this dank space! What in the name of Tawn do you get up to here all day?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster pressed her palms against the dress\u2019s hardened leather breastplate, feeling the ridges of its embossed Hemoth Bear. Gatch was right, of course: her mother would be horrified to see her wearing something so precious outside the festival season. But it only came once a year, which\u2014 to Aster\u2019s mind\u2014 was entirely too infrequent.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cHonestly, Gatch, I do love this dress,\u201d Aster said, ignoring her nurse\u2019s question. \u201cPlease, can\u2019t you just pretend you didn\u2019t find me?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I\u2019ll change before dinner!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cPretend you didn\u2019t find me, she says! Do you know how many stairs I\u2019ve been climbing looking for you?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aster could guess. Gatch\u2019s brow was beaded with sweat and her palms were hot and wet as they lifted Aster\u2019s arms to the sky.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cBesides, yer mum\u2019s quite partial to the purple, as you well know, so\u2019s best to just\u2014\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another bellow from Alcor rattled the windows and cut Gatch off.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhat? What?\u201d Gatch let go of Aster. \u201cStars above! What is Dev doing with that bear now?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIt\u2019s not what the boy is doing.\u201d Aster sighed, watching Gatch wig-gle up onto the bay window seat and peer out at the front green. \u201cIt\u2019s Ursula.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gatch leaned out the window and screamed, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cUrsula Lourdes!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The sound bored a hole through Aster\u2019s eardrums. \u201cYou get yerself back in this house and get to yer studies this instant! Leave the boy alone to do his blessed work, for the love of Tawn!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Peeking over Gatch\u2019s shoulder, Aster could see her big sister, dagger eyes trained on them. She could have sworn Ursula\u2019s skin turned bright red to match her hair\u2014 hair like their father\u2019s. Aster bit back a snigger.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gatch closed the window with a slam, so hard Aster worried she\u2019d cracked the glass.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cArms up,\u201d the woman said, tugging Aster\u2019s bodice up over her head, the leather and metal clinging to her skin, refusing to let go easily. \u201cYou\u2019d think I\u2019ve nothing better to do than chase you around all day. And at your age, no less.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Her age. Thirteen and nearly grown\u2014 this time next year she\u2019d have no nurse, a retinue of lady\u2019s maids tittering behind her instead. What would that be like? Dainty young women who gossiped and whispered behind thin fingers. Not like old Gatch. Her nurse was crude and loud, big and determined and stubborn. Aster was very fond of her. Gatch was the only person besides Aster\u2019s father who could shut Ursula\u2019s mouth with a pointed finger, or silence Bernadine with a snap of her sharp tongue.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The idea of being without her struck Aster with a sudden pang of loss.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThere now,\u201d Gatch said, finishing up the laces on Aster\u2019s purple dress. The nurse gave one final tug. \u201cQuite refined, if I do say so m\u2019self.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now scoot. Yer mum\u2019ll be waiting on you to start supper.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cOh, Gatch, don\u2019t say <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">mum. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gatch let out one of her explosive laughs that always sounded more like a hacking cough. \u201cWell, beg yer pardon, Miss Poppy Propriety.\u201d And with an affectionate tug of her hair, she sent Aster out the door.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is, by my estimation, not the Major who receives the highest blessings from the On-High, nor is it even the mystical Oracle. It is the humble Keeper.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And because of the On-High\u2019s great blessings, it is the Keeper who is doomed to suffer most.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2014 THE WRITINGS OF THUBAN, On the Mysteries of the On-High: The Star Majors, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Star Writ<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>TWO<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The night air nipped at Dev\u2019s skin as he made his way to the back door of the kitchens. He was glad of the chill\u2014 it cooled his boiling blood.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Lourdes girls would be the death of him, he was sure. Spoiled Aster and vain Ursula had been intolerable since the day he began his service at Lourdes Manor. Today had pinched the young Keeper\u2019s last nerve.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cStupid, no-good, pampered princess <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">brats<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">!\u201d he growled to himself.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The young Herman standing guard at the kitchen\u2019s servants\u2019\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">entrance cast a downward glance at him. Dev glared back, flinging open the rickety wooden door. A gust of warm, wet, savory air, the steam of a dozen cooking pots, dampened his face.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cEh!\u201d Gatch, the girls\u2019 nanny- woman, stood over a large wooden table. She held a bowl of oddgob, Chef Ingle\u2019s usual stew of leftovers.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWhat\u2019s all that about, little Dev?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Little Dev<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. He was nearly fourteen, and taller than Gatch to boot. The <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">little<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> she insisted on was another irritating part of life at Lourdes Manor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He ignored her and stormed up to the table\u2014 well, not even really a table. The servants of the Lourdes\u2019 house had no table. It was, in actuality, a counter, one the cooks used for chopping, and dicing, and rolling out dough. Dev always ate his dinner standing at that counter, the occasional piece of onion or carrot flying into his meal.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He slammed his fist down, and Cook Darby looked up from her creamed potatoes with a frown. Dev returned it. He\u2019d dealt with enough attitude for one day.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWell, well,\u201d said Gatch, shoving a spoonful of stew into her mouth. \u201cSomeone\u2019s in a right sour mood this evening.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cChef Ingle,\u201d he barked, \u201ccan I get some oddgob here, or what?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The wiry chef raised an eyebrow and looked at Gatch. Gatch just shook her head. Ingle grunted, but scooped a ladleful of stew into a wooden bowl.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev grabbed the hot bowl, burning both his hands, but he swallowed down the pain.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The crunchy, beady eyes of a particularly ugly crustacean stared up at him from the brown gravy. Binger heads. He <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">hated<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> binger heads.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He slammed his fist on the counter for the second time. \u201cTurds of Tawn!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cJumpin\u2019!\u201d shouted Gatch. \u201cA <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">very<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> sour mood!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev shouldn\u2019t have been so blasphemous, especially as a Keeper.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But he couldn\u2019t hold it in any longer. All he could hear was Ursula\u2019s voice in his head\u2014 her arrogant, nasal voice. \u201cShe called me her <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">servant<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWho did?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cMe!\u201d he shouted. \u201cHer <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0servant<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The kitchen went silent, save for a quiet bubbling. Gatch, Chef Ingle, and Cook Darby stopped what they were doing and stared at him, their old foreheads folded in half with worry. The other kitchen helpers looked anywhere but at Dev.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWho did?\u201d ventured Gatch finally.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev dropped his eyes to his bowl and shoved a crunchy, rubbery binger head into his mouth, his face suddenly red. Chewing would keep him from speaking; he\u2019d already said too much. Keepers were supposed to be mild and forbearing and . . . well, all the things he wasn\u2019t being.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYou serve Alcor,\u201d said Ingle, a confused look on her face. \u201cNo other.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev shook his head.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIs this about Lady Ursula?\u201d Gatch asked quietly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev kept chewing.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cLady Ursula?\u201d said Chef Ingle. \u201cWhat <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">about<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Lady Ursula?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev sighed. He\u2019d opened this door, he might as well go through.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cShe said I was <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0her<\/span><\/i> <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">servant. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0As though I were nothing but a stableboy.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There was a simultaneous gasp from Ingle and Darby, Ingle dropping her soup ladle with a loud clatter onto the floor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev winced. He shouldn\u2019t have spoken. Rizlan would not approve of him venting his frustration to half the Manor like this.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It wasn\u2019t as if Ursula could be changed. Very little about Lourdes Manor could be changed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201c That\u2014 that\u2014 <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">that girl<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">!\u201d The scrawny chef fingered the bear pen-dant around her neck, her face contorted with fury. \u201cBlasphemous!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Disrespectful! Gatch, how <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">dare<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> she speak to a Keeper that way?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here it comes. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Dev hated when Ingle got on about faith\u2014 about the Chosen Keepers and all that. Her piety sometimes embarrassed him. Yes, he had <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0been selected at birth by the stars to be a Keeper of a High Beast\u2014 and not just any High Beast, but the most powerful and beloved of all the stars\u2019 children, the Hemoth Bear\u2014 but it was Master Rizlan, Mizar\u2019s Keeper, who led the faith at Lourdes Manor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev was only an apprentice, and truth be told, he studied scripture less than Riz would like.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gatch nodded understandingly at him, a kind smile on her face.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cLady Ursula can be thoughtless at times.\u201d Dev didn\u2019t answer. \u201cYou have to understand, little Dev\u201d\u2014 he shoved another disgusting binger into his mouth\u2014\u201cthat she hasn\u2019t been raised with the same . . .\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">vigilance to scripture as you.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201c<\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">No<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> vigilance, more like!\u201d growled Ingle. \u201cImagine! A noble demanding service from a Keeper! It\u2019s disgusting! He was chosen!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Chosen! <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0This boy is a servant of the <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hemoth<\/span><\/i> <i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bear<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">! Not of her spoiled behind!\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Exactly, <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Dev thought. He was <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">chosen<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to dedicate his life to Tawn and his descendants. How could Ursula Lourdes not understand that?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Sure, Dev spent his days shoveling bear dung, washing Alcor\u2019s stall, and studying scripture until he fell asleep on his books. But that was his duty. Keepers were not supposed to care for their own wealth and comfort. Keepers cared only for their Beasts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gatch put a hand on Dev\u2019s shoulder. \u201cUrsula doesn\u2019t fully understand that you work for a Higher Power than her father. To her, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">he<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is the Highest Power.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That was ridiculous. A man with more power than the Hemoth Bear? More power than the On-High?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIf that mother of hers spent more time taking care of her spiri-tual well- being instead of indulging her <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">every selfish whim<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u2014\u201d shouted Ingle.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Everyone turned quickly to the kitchen door, terrified that Jasper Lourdes\u2019s wife would suddenly appear to punish them for speaking ill of her older daughter.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With a hand over her mouth, and in a hissing whisper, the chef finished: \u201c\u2014 she wouldn\u2019t be the laughingstock of the Highen. Her <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/i><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> the little one.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev raised an eyebrow. As though the spoiled nature of Ursula and Aster were entirely the fault of Lady Lourdes. Dev knew the Lourdes better than he\u2019d known any family of his own, and this was the truth: Jasper Lourdes adored his daughters. He adored them so much that he indulged them in everything. Oftentimes, that meant letting them neglect their <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Star Writ<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> readings, or forgo a riding lesson, or sleep late\u2014 despite Lady Lourdes\u2019 objections.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And the lack of discipline in the Major\u2019s home was no secret to the Highen, either. Most people had a low opinion of the Major\u2019s daughters. No one believed Alcor would choose Ursula for Major when her father and Mizar came off the post. Not just because she was unprepared, but\u2014 these whispers were increasingly common in Tawnshire Town\u2014 because the On-High would reject her as punishment for Jasper\u2019s decision to hand a holy dragon egg to the Ring Highen, something no Major had ever done before. Did not the On-High entrust the Shadow Dragons to the <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Bear Highen<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and the Bear Highen alone? Was it not sacrilege to trade their young like crops or cattle?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But if the girls weren\u2019t chosen to succeed Jasper, oh, what a disaster it would be. The Hemoth Bear had chosen a Lourdes for a millennium. It was a thing that kept Dev up at night\u2014 if Aster and Ursula proved to be the first Lourdes in a hundred generations to be unworthy of the Hemoth Bear, who <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">would<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Alcor choose? What strange new lord or lady, Dev didn\u2019t like to wonder, would he and Alcor spend their lives alongside?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cCan we stop talking about this?\u201d he grumbled.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He could feel the old women trading concerned looks over his head. Perfect. No doubt Gatch would talk to Master Rizlan about this when he returned from the front. Even if she didn\u2019t, Ingle and Darby were bound to gossip with every servant at the Manor; it was only a matter of time before Dev\u2019s complaint made its way to Lady Lourdes herself. Either way, when his mentor returned from battle, Dev would have to listen to another lesson on the importance of silence.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A wise Keeper uses his words sparingly,\u00a0 Riz always said. Consider words your gold, young apprentice. To keep them behind closed lips is to stay a wealthy man.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If that was true, then Riz was poor indeed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He never chattered or gossiped. But he <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">did<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> lecture Dev nightly about the duties of a Keeper: offering counsel; divining prophecies; fortelling the future; caring for the Highen\u2019s sacred beasts; and recording great events, that his writings might someday be added to the holy <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Star Writ. <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0Most of their evenings lately, though, had been devoted to training Dev to open his mind to visions sent by the stars. Dev had yet to see anything, and he knew that Riz was getting frustrated. He should have seen <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">something<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by now.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At least Dev wouldn\u2019t have to endure a lesson tonight. Though he missed Master Rizlan desperately, he had to admit that he liked having the Keepers\u2019 quarters all to himself.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Eager to enjoy some privacy, Dev lifted the hot stew of binger heads to his mouth and slurped up what was left. No time for chewing\u2014 an evening of peace and quiet was at the bottom of that bowl. With the last drop drunk, he slammed the bowl down and let out a belch.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And noticed everyone staring at him.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Including Lady Lourdes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Major\u2019s beautiful wife stood in the middle of the kitchen, staring down her nose at him. Her fancy gown glittering with precious Ursan amber was almost laughable, it was so out of place in the kitchen.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI trust you enjoyed your meal, young Keeper.\u201d Her voice was rough, like the leathery bottoms of Alcor\u2019s paws. All that Celeste root she smoked had worn it out.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cYes, my lady,\u201d he mumbled, adding a polite bow.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI am pleased to hear it.\u201d She didn\u2019t look pleased. She looked downright disgusted, with frowning crimson-painted lips. Her dark eyes kept him frozen to the spot, afraid to move. He could feel his palms getting slick with sweat.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And then she blinked and turned to Ingle. In an instant, she\u2019d forgotten Dev completely. \u201cThe girls are in low spirits tonight, Chef Ingle. They miss their father, and I fear they\u2019ve grown restless. I\u2019ve decided a change of menu is in order.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ingle curtsied, so low she nearly fell over. \u201cOf course, my lady.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">What did you have in mind?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev fought the urge to shake his head. Ingle spoke the worst of Lady Lourdes, but she always bowed the lowest.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cLamb pies.\u201d The words cracked from Lady Lourdes\u2019 mouth like the snap of a whip. \u201cI don\u2019t care for them, but I do believe my Aster is fond of the ones you make. I should like an assortment of greens on the side, of course.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cOf course, my lady,\u201d said Ingle, already abandoning Darby\u2019s creamed potatoes.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev pursed his lips. He would have preferred those potatoes to Binger heads.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With a curt nod, Lady Lourdes left them, the train of her dress floating behind her, twinkling.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A change of menu, <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev thought. An entire meal tossed aside as though hundreds of Tawnshirians living a few hundred tail- lengths down the hillside in Tawnshire Town wouldn\u2019t have loved just a taste.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It had been a very dry summer, and the yields of good Tawnshirian crops\u2014 lettuce, parsnips, chard, leeks, tomatoes\u2014 were low. The war was not good for business in the city, either. The unwanted potatoes was a true waste.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But creamed potatoes was a rich man\u2019s food, a king\u2019s food, not fit for the low and the humble. So Ingle had tossed it all, as was expected.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev left the counter and pushed open the kitchen door, the cool night meeting him with the refreshing smell of cherry trees from the Manor\u2019s orchards.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ingle grabbed him by the shoulder. \u201cTake this,\u201d she said, smiling and holding up a raw lamb shank wrapped in parchment. \u201cFor the little prince.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As inappropriate as Gatch\u2019s <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">little<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> was for Dev, Ingle\u2019s <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">little<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> was even more ill- fitting for Alcor. Alcor was certainly not <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0little <\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">anymore. But still, Ingle loved to sneak him treats. And Alcor was happy to eat them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Dev nodded and took the shank.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The night\u2019s quiet and the chill of the wind surrounded him as he crossed the Manor\u2019s grounds. He let out a sigh of relief: the day was almost over. A quick stop in to Alcor with the shank, and then the hours were his. He\u2019d curl up in front of the fire and watch the blaze until he fell asleep.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He could think of nothing he\u2019d enjoy more than doing absolutely nothing at all.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13897\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"645\" height=\"50\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png 645w, https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider-300x23.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 645px) 100vw, 645px\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13959\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/About-the-Author-Fall-2021.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"200\" \/><\/p>\n<div class=\"ubb-about-author\"><h3>About Meaghan McIsaac<\/h3><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/meaghan-mcisaac-350x350.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"alignleft ubb-about-author-photo\"><p>Meaghan McIsaac is the author of several books for young readers, including The Boys of Fire and Ash, which was shortlisted for the Manitoba Young Readers\u2019 Choice Award; and Movers, which was a Shining Willow Finalist for the Saskatchewan Young Readers\u2019 Choice Awards. Meaghan lives in Toronto, Ontario with her two dogs.<\/p>\n<p class=\"ubb-author-links\"><a href=\"https:\/\/meaghanmcisaac.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Website<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/meaghanmcisaac\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Twitter<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/author\/show\/6914215.Meaghan_McIsaac\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Goodreads<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3DBHG7E\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Amazon<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/meaghanmcisaacwrites\/\" target=\"_blank\" class=\"\">Instagram<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13897\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"645\" height=\"50\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png 645w, https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider-300x23.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 645px) 100vw, 645px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13957\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Follow-the-Tour-Fall-2021.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"200\" \/><b><\/b><\/p>\n<h2 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong><u>Week One<\/u><\/strong><\/h2>\n<table style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/18\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rockstarbooktours.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=http:\/\/www.rockstarbooktours.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681028000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFO41SpnhWxR-2Xv9-xIsXwPzCCKA\">Rockstar Book Tours<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Kickoff Post<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/18\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/logcabinlibrary.blogspot.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/logcabinlibrary.blogspot.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEUymL3byyM5ZQGKP5CYsa910setQ\">Log Cabin Library<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Excerpt<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/19\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"http:\/\/www.bookhoundsya.net\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=http:\/\/www.bookhoundsya.net\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFn3wNzdSXrv7W5NHtXJ7mWtRiNDA\">BookHounds Ya<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Excerpt<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td><strong>10\/19\/2021<\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong><a href=\"http:\/\/kaitgoodwin.com\/books\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=http:\/\/kaitgoodwin.com\/books&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEy2Vu8hk06sEcMGPAXP7c7stjJjQ\">Kait Plus Books<\/a><\/strong><\/td>\n<td><strong>Excerpt<\/strong><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/20\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/bookreviewvirginialee.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/bookreviewvirginialee.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFycQlvvA0aCqIeoAt__YViHw1OGw\">#BRVL Book Review Virginia Lee Blog<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/20\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/thebookwyrmsden.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/thebookwyrmsden.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGcht77M_q0zVVllwpbzjsd7G4Hxw\">The Bookwyrm&#8217;s Den<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Excerpt<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/21\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.jazzybookreviews.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.jazzybookreviews.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFcCJKZyzz-obSsMIniSvvaVLf5jQ\">Jazzy Book Reviews<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Excerpt<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/21\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"http:\/\/www.twochicksonbooks.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=http:\/\/www.twochicksonbooks.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNENW2Aub1ikkgY3yKBPcUjCOvlr2w\">Two Chicks on Books<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Excerpt<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/22\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/arnoldjaime13.tumblr.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/arnoldjaime13.tumblr.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGmwqK1BGdabbUKcOM8zjo2dp4dcw\">Jaime&#8217;s World<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/22\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/booksaplentybookreviews.blogspot.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/booksaplentybookreviews.blogspot.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFnRDQavTIbSQaAwiaFDj8BOjdyoQ\">Books a Plenty Book Reviews<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<h2 style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong><u>Week Two<\/u><\/strong><\/h2>\n<table style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/25\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/blessedmommysc.blogspot.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/blessedmommysc.blogspot.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFgswDFcHFVqoBD9uGgIJmDZ0NxPg\">Lifestyle of Me<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/25\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/rajivsreviews.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/rajivsreviews.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG8IKi-7wJ9hhcQFSYqeoKXu7eZqg\">Rajiv&#8217;s Reviews<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/26\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/themommaspot.home.blog\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/themommaspot.home.blog\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEg5oSPXSz6nq92NeXXy3QujixJ0Q\">The Momma Spot<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/26\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"http:\/\/littleredreads.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=http:\/\/littleredreads.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEBaGmBqtBqKYXR3HtQQ1bvXx7QvA\">Little Red Reads<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/27\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"http:\/\/am2cents.blogspot.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=http:\/\/am2cents.blogspot.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFEoaIgyRwjJ7O4BG2dtw4E86oO-w\">Two Points of Interest<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/27\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/jypsylynn\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/jypsylynn&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNFY91HgAbtaq5NTda_T1eL21JrKrg\">Books and Zebras<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/28\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/www.elisquared.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.elisquared.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNG7WC5ZzwOI2vuXr7-As_6Fa5Ec7w\">Eli to the nth<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/28\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/thereadingwordsmith.blogspot.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/thereadingwordsmith.blogspot.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNEwNXYpENqw_18frrySjtodVEyCpw\">The Reading Wordsmith<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/29\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"http:\/\/www.historywomanperspective.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=http:\/\/www.historywomanperspective.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNGN5LoKZCAQaqKasnc9uLsv2jSfUg\">History from a Woman\u2019s Perspective<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>10\/29\/2021<\/td>\n<td><a href=\"https:\/\/nonbinaryknight-reads.blogspot.com\/\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/nonbinaryknight-reads.blogspot.com\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1634573681029000&amp;usg=AFQjCNHIljpk2_AlFx4I6nuBkyhrUnz9Gg\">Nonbinary Knight Reads and Reviews<\/a><\/td>\n<td>Review<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13897\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"645\" height=\"50\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png 645w, https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider-300x23.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 645px) 100vw, 645px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13960\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Enter-the-Giveaway-Fall-2021.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"200\" \/><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"http:\/\/www.rafflecopter.com\/rafl\/display\/e2389ba21357\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Enter here for a chance to win a print copy of <em>The Bear House<\/em> by Meaghan McIsaac!<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>(US Only)<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13897\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"645\" height=\"50\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider.png 645w, https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/08\/V3-Fall-2021-divider-300x23.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 645px) 100vw, 645px\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13968\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Questions-and-Answers-Fall-2021-1.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"200\" \/><\/p>\n<p>What do you think about <em>The Bear House<\/em>? Have you added it to your tbr yet? Let me know in the comments and have a splendiferous day!<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13969\" src=\"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/09\/Kait-Plus-Books-Signature-Fall-2021.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"1322\" height=\"881\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Happy Tuesday and welcome to my stop on the blog tour for THE BEAR HOUSE by Meaghan McIsaac! I&#8217;m so excited because today I have an excerpt of the book to share with you! This book is truly amazing and I&#8217;m so excited to for you to find out more about it, PLUS enter for a chance to win a print copy!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":15038,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[484,1001,27],"tags":[537,651,540,462,3576,3367,538,3575],"reading-challenges":[],"class_list":["post-15046","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-tours","category-excerpt","category-giveaways","tag-blog-tour","tag-excerpt","tag-giveaway","tag-kait-plus-books","tag-meaghan-mcisaac","tag-october-2021","tag-rockstar-book-tours","tag-the-bear-house","book-author-meaghan-mcisaac","book-series-the-bear-house","book-publisher-holiday-house","book-genre-fantasy","book-genre-middle-grade"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/The-Bear-House-Featured-Image.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15046","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15046"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15046\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15087,"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15046\/revisions\/15087"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15038"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15046"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15046"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15046"},{"taxonomy":"reading-challenges","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kaitgoodwin.com\/books\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/reading-challenges?post=15046"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}