Now Underway: Willow in the Desert

With The Willow and the Stone set to come out this month, I decided it was time to start writing the sequel that's been nagging at my brain for ages:  Willow in the Desert.  I don't want to give too much away at this point since The Willow and the Stone still hasn't seen the light of day, but it's impossible to completely contain my excitement as I move along on this work-in-progress.

The alien menace returns in a new and more deadly form, and humans face their greatest challenge yet.  Returning characters and new ones take center stage as mankind fights to survive a greater foe than ever before.  I'm through the first draft of this story, and I hope to have it completed by autumn.

In the meantime, I thought I'd share an excerpt from The Willow and the Stone, slated for release March 16.   Enjoy!

Only minutes after the dark descended, the sound of alien chittering buzzed through the fog.  All three prisoners lunged to their feet and clutched frantic hands.  Quiet returned for a moment.  Carli's rasping breath roared in her ears.  She pressed against the bars as far as she could get from the door she couldn’t see in the fog.
The cage rattled.  The sound that haunted her nightmares exploded in her ears from all around.
Chittering.  Chirping.
Renee screamed.  Her dim form jerked away into the mist.  Adam thrashed then he too disappeared, his hand torn from Carli's grip.  Mute with terror, she crouched on the ground, shaking her head in silent negation.
Something caressed her cheek with a bristled touch.  A quick pain stabbed her neck.  She found her voice.  "No!  No!"  Sobbing denials, she slapped at the face of the thing that pulled her close.  Her limbs swung heavy, useless.  Her eyes thudded shut.  The wild thumping of her heart slowed.