Buried— Shinobi 7 Series Fiction #2

Author's Note: 

Heyo everyone! Here's another exclusive Shinobi 7 fiction.This blog is where readers and fans of the S7 Series can read more in-depth stories and behind-the-scenes fictions that happen in the universe of my books. You'll get to know the characters more and find out certain events that happen in the book series that wasn't told or gone into detail. These fictions are like the missing puzzle pieces, like a cherry on top. 

This prompt once again returns to the characters Master Kitsune and Akira Miyamoto. There is a strong bond that these characters share, both good and bad. The books introduce the kinetic between them, and this prompt will give a little more thought to them. 

As the readers have discovered in the series, Master Kitsune disappeared from the world for twenty-three long years, all without a trace. This was after the vicious battle with Blackthorn. Everything was chaotic. When Master Kitsune disappeared, the weight of running the clan fell on Akira's shoulders. 

How did it feel for Akira to suddenly take charge after her master went missing? Especially after suffering the loss of many other students from Blackthorn's attack. What toll did this responsibility take on Akira, even though Master Kitsune returned to her?

The fiction below explores this. Please enjoy.
...
...
...

She wanted nothing more than to be with him.

For twenty-three long years, Master Kitsune was out of her world and disappeared without a trace. Akira couldn't show how much she was affected by his absence to Shinichi and Zuko. They were her teammates, yes, and they too felt the same pang of loss. But Master Kitsune's disappearance brought on more than just sadness.

It brought deeply embedded abandonment.

Like a father leaving his child, Akira felt like Master Kitsune abandoned her to fend for herself. She needed him. Didn't he know that? She needed his presence, his approval, and his watchful eye. She needed him. Most of all, she needed him to tell her right from wrong, because there were times when Akira felt those lines blur.

She buried these harsh feelings inside of herself. This was done for two reasons.

One, because she didn't want to be associated with the little girl she used to be. She was not the fourteen year old child who joined the Kitsune Clan completely untrained. The little girl who used to be afraid and cry when things didn't go her way. That image was long tarnished, as far as Akira was concerned.

Two, because telling Master Kitsune that he abandoned her wouldn't help anything. The damage had already been done, he left and now he has returned.

Akira felt like she needed answers from him. She felt like he owed her answers, actually, as if she had some sort of entitlement to know where he had been and why. Master Kitsune owed her some sort of answer, didn't he?

No. The answer was no.

Because Master Kitsune was not her father. She was not his daughter. They shared no blood between them. Her role never changed from when he left or when he returned— she was his student. Akira may have been given the position of second-in-command of the Kitsune Clan, but she would always be Master Kitsune's student.

 

As his student, it was not her place to ask where he had been, what he had been doing, anything at all. Her job was to follow his orders and give orders of her own. That was that.

 

So, Akira sunk down against her red-colored couch inside of the privacy of her home. She willed her heart to slow its beating, but it would not listen. In her moments alone, Akira was able to be weak. She could wonder about the “what ifs.” She could complain, whine, scream, shout... anything.

 

But at some point she would have to get off her couch, tighten her hair's bun, and get back out there. Master Kitsune, her teammates, and her students were waiting for her. It wasn't the weak woman they were waiting on, either. It was the strong soldier who was always in control of herself.

 

With that said, Akira made quick work of burying her feelings even deeper. 

 

Thank you for reading! I'm also very excited to announce that I will be a guest at the upcoming 38th annual Coast Convention, being held in Biloxi MS on March 20-22nd! I'll be selling my Shinobi 7 Series books. 

Read all about the convention HERE and if you wanna see my picture and bio, scroll to the veeeeeery bottom of the page. Check out the whole site!

To gear up for this event, I'll post updates on my con preparations, more S7 fictions, and a buncha random stuff that I don't even know about. We'll all find out together, I guess XD

~Arigato!  

My Review: Looking Over Your Shoulder by P.D. Workman

Hello there! I'm happy to have another book review ready for you readers. This is review is Looking Over Your Shoulder, the suspense novel by P.D. Workman.

Book Synopsis:

Just because you're paranoid, that doesn't mean someone isn't out to get you.

Things were going well for Abe. Despite all of his past struggles with mental illness, he was happily married, had three wonderful children, a nice home, and a fantastic consulting business that satisfied his creativity and brought in a good income.

But you can never get too comfortable. When Abe becomes a prime suspect in a jewel heist - one of the largest successful jewel heists in history - his schizophrenia becomes unmanageable and everything begins to spiral out of control. Abe's own investigation into the heist has the jewel thieves hot on his tail... but are they really, or is he just losing the battle against his inner demons?

My Review:

I enjoyed this book very much. It was a short read for me, only 215 pages from the PDF file's length, but the book had a great pace to it. Everything flowed smoothly. The best thing about this book was the family kinetic between Abe, his wife Ursula, their daughter Jeanu, and the other two children. Clearly there's a crisis going on in the family, Abe is being accused of being a part of a jewel heist! 

One unique thing I found about this book was that the whole family was involved in this struggle. Now, I have not read many suspense novels, I'm sure there are others out there where the whole family is has to fight. But that doesn't change that Workman did a great job with the family relationships and how it wove into the suspense. 

Another great thing about this book was the main character, Abe. He was a likeable star, at least in my opinion. He has playful banters with his children, and the schizophrenia part of his character was done very well. I would say that is the strongest suit of Workman's book: Abe's schizophrenia. There was no part of the book where it felt ridiculous or unbelievable. Kudos to the author!

All in all, this novel is a fun read and I enjoyed it very much. 

For more information on P.D. Workman and her novels, here's some awesome links for you to follow. Also, she recently won a book award for her novel, "Ruby, Between the Cracks" that is being featured in Wattpad. I'll link you there, too.  

Ruby, Between the Cracks: HERE
P.D. Workman's Amazon Profile: HERE
Looking Over Your Shoulder's Goodreads page: HERE

Thank you for reading :) And thank you to the author, who gave me a free copy of the book in exchange for a review!

Things I fail at: Updating My Blog

OHAIIIIIIIIII! 

Well, it's certainly been awhile since I've blogged. I've been "getting around to it" for about a week now, and I've finally felt so guilty that I've updated. 

Reader: So in other words, you're just posting out of guilt, you don't actually have anything to say. 

Me: No! No, no, no! I have plenty to say!

Reader: I meant anything of significant importance...

Me: Oh. Yeah, none of that...

Haha :D Just having fun there, just having fun. I do have some news, and since this is a blog about me and my writings, it's very appropriate for me to go on about my life. I have nearly a whole month to update you guys on! 

January 24th: I went to the Mississippi Karate Association's banquet and was awarded with a triple state championship and competitor of the year.

Reader: WOW, so right off the bat you're going to brag about yourself, good job. 

Me: I'm sorry! It's true though, all that did happen...

Anyway, it was a really fun event. It was my first year in the black belt women's division and I'm very honored with what I received. I worked hard all tournament season of 2014 and it was a really big deal for me. I went with two very dear friends/classmates of mine. The only thing that was better than the banquet was the friends that I enjoyed it with :D PLUS they served banana split pudding and AAAAMMMGGG it was so good. 

Reader: Incredible. 

Moving on! 

January 25th: Literally the day after the banquet was my one year anniversary for being a black belt. I don't remember what I actually did on this day, but that was a big deal for me. The day I had my black belt rank test is not one I'll forget anytime soon. It's definitely a memory I'll have for the rest of my life. So, here's a throwback picture of me when I just got through with my test and had my black belt on for the first time! Remember, I just endured like 4-5 hours of testing and I was extremely tired. My hair, though. 

February 5th: That day was a fantastic day! I had a book signing at my local library! It was my first book event of the new year and also the very first event where I sold Poisoned Battleground. It felt like a much bigger deal than it actually was because it was held locally. The idea that I'm like a local superstar is extremely intimidating to me, yet at the same time, why not me? I wrote some books, I'm putting myself out there. I'm here at a signing and if people are curious about my work, I'm here to answer questions! 

Well, I ended up selling a record number of books. There were people who came to the event just to say hi to me. I felt very lucky and lurved. The library was extremely accommodating and even put my event in the local paper. It really was a great signing. Here's a picture! The one next to me is my wonderfully swag cousin, Summer. She got some of her friends to come along and one of them bought us milkshakes. Like, who does that? Who just randomly shows up like "I got milkshakes!" There are no words XD

Quick note: I really do love my cousin Summer. She's like a shaken up can of soda and when you open her up she's like "HIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!" and there's happiness all up in your face.

Okay. Well, I think I'm all up to date on all of the things that I've been up to. This feels good. Think of this blog post as a little filler, a quick up-to-date that serves as an excuse of why I fail at so many things. Haha :D 

I will be updating regularly! I have more news the Shinobi 7 Series and book reviews coming soon! Thank you for reading, dear reader. I hope you actually enjoyed reading about my life. 

Reader: I just wasted five minutes I'll never get back.

Me: Well, that's just life, isn't it?

Arigato!

~Lily

Shinobi 7 Character Insight: Hanran Nigaru

Heyo, readers! I hope you're all doing fantastic. The first month of the new year is almost at its end and hopefully you have gotten one step closer to your resolution. Or you can be like me, who was like "My resolution is to do nothing" and then you went off and did nothing, thus completing your resolution. 

Lol. 

Actually my resolution was to be a better me. A better daughter, sister, student, author, and ninja. So there are some feels for ya. Revel in them feels. 

I'm pleased to present my first character insight in the Shinobi 7 Series. Fans of the S7 Series, get ready, because I'm starting off with one of my most popular characters. The silent, skilled, and apathetic Hanran Nigaru! 

The feedback on Hanran's character is really amazing to hear. Thank you to every fan who has gone out of their way to tell me your favorite characters and give me feedback, it's truly appreciated.

In the initial conception of Hanran, I wanted to create a character that emulated the stereotype ninja. A character that was quiet, observant, and very deadly with a weapon. Hanran is the ninja with the mental focus and heightened senses, even if he's still considered a student and not yet acknowledged as a full shinobi. Although, Hanran is the type of guy who wouldn't care if he were recognized as a full shinobi or a fresh meat student. So long as he is stronger than his enemies, he is content. He is a character that is not easily distracted with details. He always focuses on the bottom line.

Hanran (反乱) means "rebellion", "revolt". Nigaru means (苦る) "to feel bitter", "to scowl".

As skilled as he is, it was also important for me to emphasize the void that he has emotionally. Why is he so guarded? Why does he always feel like he must have his weapon on him? What is the true reason he trains as hard as he does?

Most importantly, who is he training to fight? 

I've never really felt safe, I've never really felt at ease. I know that we're in a time of war, and I've immersed myself as a soldier in battle. There is no safety, there is no peace. There's just war.

Chaos.

~Hanran's POV, Shinobi 7: Trials of a Warrior (book #1) 

One important note about him is that he absolutely-positively-undeniably-without-question wants to be alone. Which is great, yeah, except for the fact that Hanran Nigaru is on Sector 7 with five other teammates, three of them being younger children, the team leader a complete ego-maniac, and a girl who's bound and determined to talk to him, no matter how awkward she is. The disgruntled lone wolf now has a pack. Whether he likes it or not, he must learn how to work with his new teammates. 

“H-hi I’m Teruko Cassie."

“I never asked for an introduction."

~Cassie and Hanran, their first meeting 

The reader will get to know more of Hanran's character as the Shinobi 7 Series goes on. They'll understand his struggles and motivations. His character will grow with his teammates as he learns that he is a vital part of the Sector 7 team. They rely on him as much as he relies on them. 

And yes, Hanran will have to learn how to deal with his teammate, Luna. 

Get Shinobi 7: Trials of a Warrior (Book #1) on paperback and on Kindle for $2.99. If you've read the first book, the sequel Poisoned Battleground is also available in print and Kindle editions HERE 

My Review-- The Mayonnaise Murders Part One by Keith A. Owens

Hello readers! I'm happy to share my review of The Mayonnaise Murders by Keith A. Owens. 

Synopsis:

Whoever killed Johnny Beardy ruined a perfectly good sandwich in the process. I was hungry when I found him, so that's the first thing came to my mind. For the record, my name is Vid. It's short for a name you don't wanna bother trying to pronounce if you're from Earth. Anyway, I solve problems. It's not what I always did, but things change and here I am. Stuck up to my gills in other critters' problems on good ole Planet 10. Once again, if you're an Earthling reading this, I meant that literally. You folks have a habit of making up cute little sayings and whatnot. Working your tail off. Sweatin’ like a pig. Up to your neck in. This ain't one of those. I have gills. Deal with it. On Planet 10, pork is fine but mayonnaise is illegal. Used as an essential ingredient in the highly addictive drug MayoMadd, mayonnaise has long been banned for the safety of the colonies which has been free of the MayoMadd craze for years. So then where did the mayonnaise come from? And who has enough pull to get it delivered to Planet 10? Or is somebody manufacturing it, and if so where are they getting the ingredients? Is sandwich spread really that important to a critter, and where does a dead rock star fit into all this? That’s what Vid has to find out, with more than a little help from Vee, a shapely news reporter with no shortage of attitude and an arsenal of quick comebacks wrapped in as much barbed wire as humor. What they eventually uncover is the biggest story of Vee’s career, but it could also pose one of the biggest threats to Earth’s teenagers – especially those with a taste for chemical thrills. The whole twisted affair could turn both Vid and Vee into wanted criminals just for playing too close to the fire.

My review:

This sci-fi adventure was a fun ride to strap on for. It was insane, filled with great quotes, wacky characters, and a plotline that kept getting better and better. 
 
The author Owens has his own voice and writing style that is very definable and enjoyable for me. He wrote to entertain and he succeeded.The book is fast-paced and the main character, Vid, was a well-developed lead to guide the reader through the plot. I saw some similarities in Owens writing as I did my own. To me, it seems that Mr. Owens writes to the beat of his own drum. This book may not be for everyone, but whoever wants to be entertained by a sci-fi novel should definitely have this book on their bookshelf.

Oh, and it's a detective/crime novel too. There's also that element of mystery. The character kinetics are great. 

All in all, this was a fantastically zany book and I look forward to reading more. 

Follow these links so you can get a copy of the Mayonnaise Murders for yourself! 

Goodreads 
Amazon 
Author's Goodreads Profile 

No Harm Will Come— Shinobi 7 Series Fiction #1

Author's Note: 

Heyo everyone! This is the first exclusive Shinobi 7 fiction for this blog. There will be many more to come. This blog is where readers and fans of the S7 Series can read more in-depth stories and behind-the-scenes fictions that happen in the universe of my books. You'll get to know the characters more and find out certain events that happen in the book series that wasn't told or gone into detail. These fictions are like the missing puzzle pieces, like a cherry on top. 

For this first fiction, I wrote about the two strong leaders of the Kitsune Clan. The grandmaster himself, Master Kitsune, and his right-hand-woman and second-in-command, Akira Miyamoto. Both characters are in Trials of a Warrior, Clash of the Clans, and Poisoned Battleground. 

Master Kitsune is one of the oldest and most powerful shinobi warriors. It was his call to open the school doors to accept new students, which is how Sector 7 came together. Akira Miyamoto is one of the teachers of the school and a very hardened woman. She did not agree with the decision to allow new students to train, no matter how outnumbered the Kitsune Clan is in the time of war. 

Just like the members of Sector 7, Akira had her start in the shinobi clan as a student, nothing more than a fresh meat member. How did she make her climb from a student to a full-fledged shinobi? How did she first meet the great grandmaster? The answer is uncovered below...


She lay there in a crumpled heap, with her limbs strewn across the dying grass field. An unsteady flow of crimson blood guzzled out of her side, for there was a sharp tanto blade buried inside of her flesh. Her unfocused eyes stared out into a nothing that only those on the brink of death would see. Her lips were slightly parted, with her chest heaving up and down in forced breaths. She had survived the attack on her village, but the life inside of her body was dissipating.
 
A tall man closed in on her. He moved silently through the long uncut grass. He approached her languidly, as if she were an old friend that he was visiting on a whim. There was no urgency in his actions, that is, until he saw the darkened grass that was stained with her blood.
 
He stopped in his tracks and looked down at the fallen girl before him. The tanto that was heartlessly left inside of her was no lighthearted matter. He squatted down and examined the intricate design of the deadly instrument. “Bandits,” he uttered in gruff tone of voice.
 
It was when the man spoke that the girl's jade-colored eyes found his own golden pair. The young girl stared at the man for only moment, but the connection that passed between them seemed three times as long.
 
“Augh!”

A pained shriek tore from her lips when he pulled the steel right out of her side. He did so without warning, and with precision she was too disoriented to comprehend.

 
The man threw the weapon away. He reached into a hidden compartment of his gi top sleeve and took out a small bottle, uncapped the lid, and poured it on her raw wound. She screamed once more with what strength was left in her body.
 
"It's alright," he assured. "No harm will come." He put the cap back on the bottle and stood up, never breaking his gaze on her. The sun rays reflected tear stains on her cheeks. Whether she cried from loss or pain, it was a mystery. It was probably both. "It'd go against my conscious to leave you here to die, young lady," he stated, to more himself than her.
 
With that said, he scooped the girl up so her head was rested against his chest, and he held her like a baby while her arms and legs dangled.
 
She was delirious, slipping out of her last grip of consciousness. But before her world went completely black, she managed to murmur in the softest whisper, "Thank you."
 
So concluded the first meeting between the shinobi clan master Kitsune Golden Tail, and his future second-in-command, Akira Miyamoto.

Thank you for reading! For the full line up of the Shinobi 7 Series books, please check out my Amazon page HERE. Trials of a Warrior (Book #1) and Poisoned Battleground (Book #2) are available on Kindle for only $2.99.  

P.S. I hope you like the drawing I did! Not my best, but I like the red color splash :)

Merry Christmas, yo!

Hello! Merry Christmas, everybody! 

Wow, I love the month of December. It's the month of my birthday, my grandma's birthday, Christmas, and the month I can wear all of my awful/amazing sweaters. Fun fact, I love wearing sweaters. The more ridiculous they are, the more I love them. I'm wearing one now as I type up this blog post. 

This has also been the month of releases! Shinobi 7's official sequel Poisoned Battleground is now available and I'm very pleased to see it set on my bookshelf. All three of my books are now available on Kindle and I plan to have some Kindle Countdown and promotional deals reaaaaaally soon! 

Poisoned Battleground's Kindle 
Shinobi 7's Kindle

I'd like to take the time to tell you, dear reader, that I am very blessed to be where I'm at today. I'm a writer, a daughter, a sister, and a friend and I'm happy if I'm a friend to you. I'm very grateful to anyone who has picked up my book or skimmed the free preview online. The support that I've been given is wonderful. And I'm only going to get better! I always strive to work harder and improve. There has been definite improvement already, in my writing and in the way I carry myself. 

The plan for this author ninja (me, I'm referring to myself) is to spend Christmas with the family and friends, try not to trip on things, and still find time for myself. I've got a holiday themed story for Shinobi 7 that I'll have posted (hopefully!) soon. Procrastination. It's all year round, baby. >:D

As an update on my month so far, I've had two book signings and one Christmas party. I was at the Main Street Books Author Extravaganza signing on December 1st. I met some new authors and caught up with some friend I had met before. These writers include Janet Taylor-Perry, the author of the Raiford Chronicles, Marie Castle, the author of the Dark Mirror Series, Wynne Huddleston, author of From the Depths of Red Bluff, and Amber Mills, author of Of Lonely Hearts. Here's a few pictures of me and these awesomesauce ladies! :D

The links to these writers' pages will be listed at the bottom. Also as an update, here's my current reading/reviewing list for those requesting reviews. I'm currently on the book The Mayonnaise Murders Part One by Keith A. Owens. I'm sorry for the wait, all I can say is that I will get to these books when I can and I will let you know before as well! :) 


The Mayonnaise Murders Part One by Keith A. Owens
Looking Over Your Shoulder By P. Workman
Song of the Sea by Jade Varden
Water Like Crimson Sorrow by Amanda M. Lyons
The Mayonnaise Murders Part Two by Keith A. Owens.

In other words.... asdfghjkl; I have a lot to read. But hey, I'm an author! It's the business. It's my business to be in the business. Know what I'm saying? Ya gotta be in the know to know, ya know? No? Well that's why you don't know. 

Haha :D

As my final part to this blog post, let me tell you a funny story about my Christmas party. It was the Xmas party for my karate class and there was a total of twenty-one of us playing Dirty Santa. I was #4 and the first gift I got was a remote controlled helicopter. Which is cool, I suppose, if you're into remote controlled things. I'm not, personally. Luckily, a little six-year-old boy took my gift. I was like, "YESSSS. THANK YOU." 

So, now I was without a gift, and I walked up to the table to take another one. I could have stolen a gift from the others but I was interested in opening a new gift. I pick up a small present wrapped in puppy dog wrapping paper. I tear it open quickly. Low and behold... my gift... was.... A SWAG BELT.

"Eat your heart out, Audrey!" I say to my classmate, a thirteen-year-old girl who constantly says swag. I happily put on the belt and latch the swag in place. I was overjoyed and amused. I, Lily Benitez, just opened up the swag. 

"I'm stealing that," my friend Tyler tells me. By all means, he's free to take the belt because this is Dirty Santa and anything goes. 

"You're gonna have to take it from me!" I yell back at him.

"In other words, he'll have to take your pants off?" another classmate of mine asked in amusement. 

I remembered that I had put the swag belt on and it was looped through my jeans. "Er, that's not what I meant," I answer with embarrassment. 

As the night went on, several of my classmates threatened to take my swag because they knew how much I loved my belt. However, at the end of the night, when all was said and done.......

MY SWAG MAINTAINED!!!

 And that was something to be happy about :D Because if someone really did want to try and take my swag, I really would have fought them for it. Heh heh heh. 

Anyway, that concludes this rambling blog post! Thank you, reader, for doing what you do best. Which is reading. Hence why you're the reader. That's how this works ;) 

Some links I encourage you to follow! Some great writers to check out!

Janet Taylor-Perry: Amazon
Marie Castle: Amazon (Also check out her website where she's got a 10% holiday discount on her books, promo code HHOLIDAY14 click HERE)
Wynne Huddleston: Amazon 
Amber Mills: Amazon

My Shinobi 7: Holiday Story will be posted later this week. Hopefully the day before/after/on/around/near Christmas. There. 

~Lily