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Unspoken: Shadow Falls: After Dark Kindle Edition
Unspoken truths will be revealed-and they will change everything--in this dazzling final chapter of the Shadow Falls: After Dark trilogy!
Della Tsang is facing the toughest fight of her life-and the most personal. In her new role as an elite paranormal investigator, she's assigned a twenty year old murder case...and the accused killer is none other than her own father.
Making matters worse, since she was reborn, she's been bound to the mysterious and infuriatingly gorgeous Chase Tallman-a vampire with his own hidden agenda. Della still feels betrayed by all the secrets he's kept from her, but she'll need his help to find out the truth about her father. But what about Steve, the hunky shape-shifter who she can't seem to forget?
The quest for answers will lead them into the darkest, ugliest supernatural gangs in town... and into the scariest reaches of their hearts.
- Reading age12 - 18 years
- LanguageEnglish
- Grade level7 - 9
- Lexile measure540
- PublisherSt. Martin's Griffin
- Publication dateOctober 27, 2015
- ISBN-13978-1250072115
Editorial Reviews
Review
"The phenomenal Shadow Falls: After Dark series concludes in spectacular fashion with Unspoken. I laughed, I cried, and yes, I loved each and every second because C.C. Hunter never fails to deliver one awesomely good but oh-so-gut-wrenching read!" --Fresh Fiction
"In Unspoken, all of our favorite characters are back, with drama, laugh-out-loud-moments and the twisty ending that fans been waiting for. This series has been one of my favorites." --Romantic Times (Top Pick)
“Ms. Hunter handles this series with such deftness, crafting a wonderful tale. I highly recommend this series filled with darkness and light, hope and danger, friendship and romance.” ―Night Owl Reviews (Top Pick)
“Jam-packed with action and romance . . . Hunter's lifelike characters and paranormal creatures populate a plot that will keep you guessing till the very end. A perfect mesh of mystery, thriller, and romance. Vampires, weres and fae, oh my!” ―Romantic Times
“The newest in the super-popular teen paranormal genre, this book is one of the best. This one is going on the keeper shelf!” ―Fresh Fiction
About the Author
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Unspoken
Shadow Falls * After Dark
By C. C. HunterSt. Martin's Press
Copyright © 2015 C. C. HunterAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-250-06709-8
CHAPTER 1
The sound of the door swishing open filled the small space. Before Della Tsang heard the footsteps, the scent filled her nose. Another vampire. But not just any vampire ...
Him.
Chase Tallman. The guy she was regrettably bonded with. The guy who'd given her his blood to ensure she'd survive a rare second turn into vampirism that had made her a Reborn — a stronger kick-ass vampire who attracted ghosts. Not that she'd asked for it, or would have wanted it — especially the ghost part.
His footsteps brought him into the closet-sized room. The door whooshed closed. Her heart thumped against her breastbone.
She'd been to hell and back looking for him. Had even gone to France to find him, with no luck.
And now he just shows up.
Here.
In the ladies' bathroom at Whataburger.
The door in the stall next to hers opened and shut. Surely he wasn't ... He didn't intend to ... The sound of someone stepping on the toilet lid echoed.
He did.
She glared up. He peered down at her over the stall wall. His dark brown hair looked a little longer. His bright green eyes were glowing with humor.
"Fancy meeting you here." He smiled, no doubt at her position — knees bent, locked, her tush hanging two inches above the pot, her jeans down to mid-thigh. Thank goodness her light blue top was long and flared and covered her lady business.
She jerked up and zipped. Never taking her eyes off him, but wishing she had her hands on him. Like her fingers around his throat. He wouldn't be smiling then.
"No paperwork?" he teased.
He thought this was funny? Seriously? Did the guy want to die? Did he not have a clue how much his deceit had hurt her?
If she didn't need information, she'd kill him. And she'd make it slow and painful.
But she needed information, needed to find her uncle, the man who'd killed her aunt and was letting her father go down for the murder. And Chase had that info. Had it from the start, and had lied about it.
She'd recently learned the truth. The man Chase referred to as Eddie, the man who had taken him in when he was fourteen and helped him through his first turn, and bonded with him on the second turn, was Della's uncle.
Who sent you? She'd asked Chase that a thousand times. And a thousand times he'd lied.
As much as she hated admitting it, she understood Chase's loyalty to the man. Not only was Eddie his father figure, but she knew better than anybody how a vampire blood bond could mess with your head and your emotions. But Chase's loyalty to her uncle meant he'd been disloyal to her. He'd made that choice. And she'd be damned if she'd let her own father go to prison for her uncle's sin.
Bolting out of the stall at the same time he did, she cornered all six feet of him. Her pulse raced with fury.
He held his palms up, shoulders tight, but his eyes exhibited no fear. Instead his pools of green still held a touch of tease. Oh, how she wanted to teach him a lesson. She leaned in, putting her face in his, letting him know she wasn't intimidated by him.
A move she instantly regretted. This close, his masculine scent all around her, the lure, the attraction, all of which she blamed on the bond, chipped away at her sanity. She fought it. Didn't want it.
"What are you so happy about?" she growled.
"You," he said. "Being around you makes me happy."
She flattened her palm on his chest, ready to give him a good thump into the wall.
"Wait," he said.
"For what?" she seethed.
His lips twitched into a bigger smile. He pointed to the wall behind his shoulder. "The sign says you need to wash your hands."
That did it. Her canines came out to play. Her eyes stung, a tell-tale sign that her dark brown irises, inherited from her Asian father, were growing brighter.
"I'm not an employee." She stared him dead in the eyes. His disloyalty stung. "How's Feng, my uncle?"
The playfulness vanished and damned if guilt didn't fill those pools of green. "I was going to tell you."
"Sure you were."
"I wouldn't ..." He stopped talking as if the words didn't sound right. It took her about two seconds to realize what he'd been about to say.
"Wouldn't what? Lie to me? All you've ever done is lie."
"Della?" Her name being called from the other side of the door barely registered. The fact that she was in vamp mode hardly concerned her. Or rather, when it did bring on a distress signal, it was too late. The bathroom door swung open.
Chase, in a quick swoop, swapped places with her and used his arm to hide her face from Lilly's view. However, the way he leaned in, his hand on the wall, his lips inches from hers, gave the impression they were making out — swapping spit — in a bathroom. Oh, yeah, like that was something she'd actually do. Everyone knew what kinds of germs hung out in public restrooms.
"What ...? Della?" Lilly, her human former friend, blurted out as if shocked. The girl rose on her tiptoes to see over Chase's shoulder. "Is that ... you?"
Della glanced to the side to hide her eyes and canines. "Yeah."
"Oh, my," Lilly said. "And who are ... you?"
No doubt the question was meant for Chase. Della didn't glance up at his expression, but she knew he'd put on his charm: all smiles and good ol' boy innocent eyes. "I'm a friend." His voice still held on to the tease.
"Looks like you're a good friend," Lilly said in a playful tone. "Are you the notorious Steve?"
Chase's shoulders tightened. His gaze shot to Della, the humor in his eyes fading to hurt, maybe even jealousy.
Not that he had any right to feel it.
Della forced her fangs in, and attempted to calm her inner vamp. "No, he's just someone I know from Shadow Falls."
Feeling under control, she nudged Chase back, giving herself a couple of inches, but no more. Not enough room for him to slide out. She focused on Lilly and motioned to Chase. "We need to talk. Can you give us —"
"No," Chase said. "I just wanted to say hi. I'll swing by your place later."
"No." She cut him a cold glare. He was not getting away. Della grabbed his arm, her grip locked around his bicep. "I'd prefer to chat now." She slapped a smile on her face for Lilly's sake.
"Don't be silly. It's a girls' night out." He gently pried her fingers free with ease.
Then before she knew his intent, he'd planted a quick kiss on her lips. His tongue swiped across her bottom lip, making her knees weak. That taste ... That quick taste of him had her breath hitching. Her body humming. Her heart wanting. And she hated her own weakness.
She inhaled, fighting the bond while at the same time resisting the urge to go full vamp on his ass again. But before she could figure out her next move, he'd moved out the door. Gone.
Lilly, whom Della hadn't even thought about in a year, leaned against the wall. She stared in shock at his quick exit. "Wow, he's fast." Then she giggled and shook her finger at Della. "Now, now, Miss Tsang. I think you're keeping secrets."
Ya think? Della wanted to scream. The first secret was a real doozy. Della was no longer human. Hence the reason she lived at Shadow Falls, a boarding school for supernaturals. If not for the trouble at home, she'd still be at school — with friends who understood and didn't judge her for downing a glass of blood every now and then.
She didn't even understand why Lilly had just shown up tonight. If her mom hadn't overheard Lilly's invite, and insisted Della go, she wouldn't be in this jam. But since her family didn't know her secrets, it was kind of hard to explain why she couldn't maintain old friendships.
"No, no secrets," Della lied. "That wasn't at all what it looked like. He's just ... a guy."
"He didn't look like just a guy."
"Looks can be deceiving." Della walked out. She moved down the hall and inhaled to see if she could still lock on to Chase's scent. She let go of a deep gasp of air. Only the smell of hamburgers and fries scented the air. Still, her gaze shifted left then right, hoping for the off chance he was still around. Nope.
Chase was gone. Why the hell had she let him get away? The answer bumped into her back. Literally. Lilly. If Della had used force to detain him, her old friend would have freaked. Then she might have mentioned it to Della's parents. And with all the crap going on with her dad's murder charge, the last thing she wanted to do was give her parents something else to toss and turn about at night.
She faced Lilly, but someone called her name.
"Della Tsang?"
Della turned and saw Mrs. Chi inching closer. She was an older neighbor who co-owned a small jewelry store with her husband, just a couple of blocks away from Della's house. "I have not seen you in forever, young lady."
"Hi," Della said and noticed her neighbor glance at Lilly. "This is my friend Lilly Shay."
"Hello," Mrs. Chi said. Lilly barely nodded. She hadn't even met the woman's eyes and was already pulling her phone up. Had her mother never taught her manners?
"How is Chester?" Della asked. Before she'd left for Shadow Falls, she'd cared for the Chis' cat when they'd gone on vacations.
"The same. He brought me dead rat yesterday. I call exterminator out and they say I have no rats in my home or the store. Where does that cat go to find them?"
"He gets around," Della said, remembering she'd seen the cat snooping around her dad's shed three nights ago when she'd gone out late to the supernatural blood bar.
Mrs. Chi patted Della's arm. "I will go and grab dinner for Bojing. He is at store ... closing." She glanced at Lilly. "Have good night. Be careful. It is dangerous for two girls to be alone. The neighborhood is not safe as it used to be."
"We will." Della watched the elderly woman move to the counter. Then plastering on what she hoped was a friendly expression — but still irritated by Lilly's rudeness — she faced the blonde. "Did you finish your hamburger?"
"Yeah."
"Then maybe you can drop me back home." She didn't know if Chase had been serious about coming by or if she could add that to his list of lies. Probably a lie, but she should be there, just in case. She wouldn't let him get away this time.
"But we're going over to Susie's to watch a movie."
"Yeah. Sorry, I'm just not up to hanging out. It's that time of the month." She pressed a hand low on her abdomen. It was of course another lie — Aunt Flow had already come and gone. But Mother Nature had plagued women with the monthly curse, and Della figured that meant women had the right to use it as an excuse whenever needed.
Lilly frowned. "But your mom already ..." She shut her mouth and even curled her lips as if wanting to pull the words back in.
"My mom already ... what?" Della asked, sensing Lilly had her own secrets.
The girl rolled her green eyes, and Della remembered she'd never really cared too much for Lilly. Even before she'd gone off to Shadow Falls, she and Lilly had drifted apart. "Spill it," Della snapped.
"Your mom paid me to get you out of the house."
Della stood there, mortified and furious that her mom had paid someone to be her friend. Della had friends. She had the two best friends in the world back at Shadow Falls.
Right then she wanted nothing more than to go home, grab her bags, and get back to where she belonged. Where she didn't feel like a monster.
"It's not like I didn't want to see you or anything. But I wasn't going to turn down twenty bucks."
"Take me home." Leaving the stench of grease and beef behind, Della hurried out of the restaurant, fighting the temptation to fly home herself. When the cold Texas air hit her face, she inhaled and swallowed the tears down her throat. She might be hurting on the inside, but she'd be damned if she'd let Lilly know it.
* * *
Della didn't say another word. When the car stopped in front of her house, Lilly looked at her. To the girl's credit, she looked sorry. "Should I return your mom's money?"
"No. Keep it." Della jumped out and stopped outside her front door to listen. Her sister was staying over at a friend's house. With any luck, Della could sneak upstairs without a confrontation. She didn't hear the television on. Slowly she turned the knob and made a mad dash inside.
The living room was empty — thank God. She got to the bottom of the staircase and had her foot on the first step when she heard a whisper of music from her dad's study. Della recalled when she would have been in that study with him, playing chess, laughing, and solving the world's problems. Or at least solving Della's problems. Whatever was going on in her life, her father had advice.
Now, there was no advice. He barely acknowledged her presence. As he had done every night in the three weeks that she'd been home, he'd already barricaded himself in his room. She wondered if he hid in there to avoid her. Then again, with a murder conviction hanging over his head, he was probably hiding from life. Earlier today she'd heard him tell her mom that he didn't know how long he could continue to work. People were whispering behind his back.
I'm so sorry, Dad. The knot in Della's throat doubled. It was her fault. Her fault that the cold-case file of her aunt, Bao Yu's, murder had been pulled and reopened. Her fault that her father was being falsely accused of murder.
Yes, the blood on the knife used to kill her aunt had been a perfect match to her father's. Only an identical twin could carry the same blood. Too bad Uncle Eddie, her father's identical twin, had already faked his death. Something most teens did when they were turned vampire. Living with a human family and trying to hide your new nature was near impossible. Della knew that all too well.
Right then it hit her. If she'd done it, if she'd faked her own death, walked away, none of this would have happened. Her family wouldn't be suffering now.
She had her foot on the second stair when her mom stuck her head out from the kitchen. "Why are you back so early?"
Don't do it. Don't do it. Make up some shit. She opened her mouth, waiting for some lie to form, to slip out, but damned if the humiliation she'd felt earlier didn't peak again and her temper got the best of her.
"Guess you didn't pay Lilly enough." Della tore off up the stairs. This time she couldn't swallow the tears.
CHAPTER 2Della got to her room and dropped face first on her bed, her chest a big ball of pain. She heard her mom's footsteps and wanted to kick herself, really hard, for not keeping her mouth shut. Her mom already had too much on her plate. But damn, didn't she know how much she'd embarrassed her?
"Della?" Her mom opened the door.
"I'm tired, Mom. I want to sleep," she said into her pillow, praying her voice didn't shake.
The mattress shifted with her mom's weight. "She ... told you?"
Della nodded.
"I ... was trying to help."
She felt her mom's hand on her back. She rolled over and popped up, not wanting her mother to notice her cool body temperature. Every time her mom touched her, Della saw the concern in her eyes.
"I don't need help." Della pulled her knees to her chest and hugged them. "I certainly don't need you paying people to be my friends. I have friends, lots of them, at school."
"But you're not at that school now. It's not like ... I didn't ... She was helping me out with my groceries and I mentioned she should come over and see you. Then I didn't have any change to give her, so I just dropped a twenty in her hands and said she could come by."
"Just forget it, okay?" Della asked.
"Maybe if you enrolled back in your old school you'd get reacquainted with your old friends and you'd be ... happier."
"No. I'm happy. As soon as things ... calm down here, I'll go back to Shadow Falls Academy."
Tears filled her mom's eyes. "Honey, it could be a long time before things ... calm down. The trial could be months away."
"It's not going to trial. They're going to realize it's a mistake and dismiss the charges." At least according to Burnett, one of Shadow Falls's owners and a member of the Fallen Research Unit (FRU), the supernatural equivalent of the FBI, and the half-warlock lawyer he'd sent to assist in her father's defense.
Tears filled her mom's eyes. "I want to believe that, Della, but we have to be realistic."
(Continues...)Excerpted from Unspoken by C. C. Hunter. Copyright © 2015 C. C. Hunter. Excerpted by permission of St. Martin's Press.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Product details
- ASIN : B00R6DRZP2
- Publisher : St. Martin's Griffin; Library edition (October 27, 2015)
- Publication date : October 27, 2015
- Language : English
- File size : 1221 KB
- Text-to-Speech : Enabled
- Screen Reader : Supported
- Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
- X-Ray : Not Enabled
- Word Wise : Not Enabled
- Sticky notes : On Kindle Scribe
- Print length : 417 pages
- Page numbers source ISBN : 125006709X
- Best Sellers Rank: #379,364 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
C.C. Hunter is the author of the new Young Adult Paranormal series Shadow Falls published by St. Martin's Press.
C.C. grew up in Alabama, where she caught lightning bugs, ran barefoot, and regularly rescued potential princes, in the form of Alabama bullfrogs, from her brothers. Today, she's still fascinated with lightning bugs, mostly wears shoes, but has turned her focus to rescuing mammals. She now lives in Texas with her four rescued cats, one dog, and a prince of a husband, who for the record, is so not a frog. When she's not writing, she's reading, spending time with her family, or is shooting things-with a camera, not a gun.
C.C. Hunter is a pseudonym. Her real name is Christie Craig and she also writes humorous romantic suspense romance novels for Grand Central. www.christie-craig.com
C.C. would love to hear from you. Because of deadlines, it may take her a day or so to get back with you, but she will reply. cc@cchunterbooks.com
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Della Tsang never meant for her father to become the prime suspect in the much too personal case she reopened and has yet to solve. But if she can’t find a way to prove his innocence – because he has to be innocent, right? – she’s not sure how she’ll be able to live with the guilt of being responsible for his incarceration and for destroying her family even more than she already has.
With an irate ghost absolutely certain he’s to blame, evidence mounting against him, and time running out, she won’t be able to clear his name on her own. Not without the help of Burnett and the FRU. And not without Chase Tallman, the vampire who she hoped to never see again, who broke her heart and her trust, who claims to have information that could lead to the killer and exonerate her father.
As long as she can ignore their bond and the feelings she may or may not still have for him, she’ll be okay. She has to be. Because with her father all but having given up on his own defense, she’s the only one left capable of fighting for him.
C.C. Hunter does a marvelous job re-immersing readers into the Shadow Falls world and re-connecting them with her story and characters. In the first few pages she will make them laugh, tug at their heartstrings, and ensnare them with a new mystery for Della to investigate.
She allows them to see even more of what’s going on by telling the story from both Della’s and Chase’s point of view. With Della, she gives them a stubborn and determined and headstrong character who is also funny and vulnerable and eager to make things right. With Chase, she reveals someone who is remorseful, desperate for forgiveness but anxious that it won’t ever happen, and who wants to be the vampire that Della needs him to be.
The result is a story that is immediately engaging, positively delightful, edge-of-your-seat suspenseful, laugh-out-loud hilarious, and utterly riveting.
UNSPOKEN is a must for fans of this series, for readers who love their heroines with a bit of an attitude, a touch of snark, the ability to kick some a**, and who guard their heart, for those who enjoy a not-so-easy to solve mystery, for those who love their romances stormy, sizzling, and not instantly decided, and for those readers that insist upon a well-rounded cast of characters, a well-developed world, and truly wonderful writing.
Della Tsang, a vampire at Shadow Falls, knows deep in her heart that her father is innocent of the murder they suspect he committed. Even when all the evidence points to him, her faith in him never waivers. He's mean to her and wants her out of his house but she didn't even think about giving up. Even when she broke down, she never gave up. Della is certainly a great role model for teenaged girls. Her determination is admirable.
Chase, Della's not-quite-boyfriend-because-she's-confused-about-her-feelings, leaves his post at the Vampire Council to join the FRU so he can help Della and prove to her she can trust him. His "Father", which is Della's "dead uncle", wants to step forward and take the fall for the murder Della's dad is a suspect of but Chase swears him he will find the murderer.
Steve, Della's past love interest, helps Della and Chase whenever needed. He helps Della break into somewhere, and when one of them gets hurt, he saves their life. (NOT GIVING AWAY WHO THOUGH) And not to mention, my favorite part, he sits down with Della and lets her talk about her problems and embraces her whenever needed. He's there for her through the entire book. What a sweetheart! (Team Steve all the way!)
Chase and Della (Also with the help of Burnett) race against the clock (the trial date) to find the murderer but the closer they seem to get to answers, the more danger, and secrets they uncover.
The only thing that disappointed me was the fact that most of the other campers weren't in this book as much. C.C Hunter has done a great job keeping in all old characters but not in this one. There are some scenes with Kylie, Miranda, Lucas, and Perry, but not as much as I hoped. But this was only a minor disappointment because the book in itself was wonderful. Definitely worth the wait!
I can't wait for more by C.C Hunter. None of her books have let me down yet. I hear she's writing a book for Miranda, which I'm excited about!!! If you love paranormal, romance, suspense, then this series is for you! I would even recommend this to anyone who enjoys YA!
I wasn't disappointed. This book was an EPIC conclusion to every question I had in the Della story. The mystery was complex and it kept me on the edge of my seat during the whole book. Even though I had a pretty good idea who did what by about halfway in the book, it was still compelling.
I can't say how good the whole Shadow Falls series is. I highly recommend this young adult paranormal romance series to anyone of any age. This installment gets five glittery stars!
Top reviews from other countries
Im zweiten Band musste Della erkennen, dass Chase sie angelogen hat (was alle schon immer vermutet haben) und verständlicherweise ist sie stocksauer.
Das kann ich wirklich verstehen, dennoch ging Della mir in diesem Band gerade zu Beginn etwas auf die Nerven. Chase hat immerhin gute Gründe nicht ganz die Wahrheit gesagt zu haben und das erkennt sie leider überhaupt nicht an. Stattdessen verbeißt die sich in die Theorie, dass Ihr Onkel ihre Tante umgebracht haben muss und (noch schlimmer) in das übliche Selbstmitleid. Sie hadert mit ihrem Vampirismus und der Tatsache, dass ihre Recherchen den alten Mordfall wieder aufgerollt haben und ihr Vater so konkret unter Mordverdacht geriet.
Was ihm keineswegs schadet, wie ich finde!
Hat sich Dellas Vater in allen Shadow falls-Büchern bisher schon nicht mir Ruhm bekleckert, so treibt er sein Verhalten in diesem Band hier auf die Spitze. Zwar löst sich Dellas Familiensituation in diesem Band, aber mir war das nach all den Ereignissen fast etwas zu schnell und problemlos. Überhaupt kam mir die ganze Auflösung am Ende zu schnell und problemlos.
Dieses mal wird die Geschichte aber nicht nur aus Dellas Sicht erzählt, sondern auch Chase kommt Wort. Das tut der Geschichte durchaus gut und bringt etwas mehr Dynamik hinein.
Nach den ersten Bänden war die Liebesgeschichte natürlich mehr als vorhersehbar, dennoch gab es hier ein paar Szenen, die mir gut gefallen haben.
Im Gegensatz zum zweiten Band hatte ich zudem den Eindruck, dass sich die Autorin wieder mehr bemüht hat die Menschen aus dem Camp mit einzubauen. es gibt ein paar nette Szenen mit Kylie, Miranda und natürlich mit Holly und Burnett.
Auch Perry ist wieder aus Frankreich zurück und Della kann ihm ein wenig bei seinen Familienproblemen beistehen. Gerade die Interaktion mit den altbekannten Charakteren macht einem als Fan natürlich besonders viel Spaß.
Fazit: Netter Abschluss der Reihe rund um Della. Am Ende ging mir jedoch alles ein wenig zu schnell und problemlos.