Blog Tour: Luminosity by Stephanie Thomas - Book Spotlight and Excerpt

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BOOKSPOTLIGHT

ABOUT THE BOOK:

Title: LUMINOSITY (The Raven Chronicles #1)

Author: Stephanie Thomas

Release Date: November 13rd 2012

Publisher: Entangled Teen

Pages: 296

Genre: Young Adult, Sci-Fi, Dystopian

My name is Beatrice. When I was born, I was blessed with the Sight. I was immediately removed from my parents and enrolled in the Institution. At the age of twelve, I had my first true vision, earning my raven’s wings. And when I turned seventeen, one of my visions came true. Things haven’t been the same since.

The Institution depends on me to keep the City safe from our enemy, the Dreamcatchers, but I’m finding it harder to do while keeping a secret from everyone, including my best friend Gabe. It is a secret that could put us all in danger. A secret that could kill me and everyone close to me.

But the enemy has been coming to me in my dreams, and I think I’m falling in love with him. He says they’re coming. He says they’re angry. And I think I’ve already helped them win.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Stephanie Thomas has been writing ever since she could put letters together to form words. When she was a small child, she would present her mother and father with self-made newspapers filled up with make believe stories and pictures. Her love for writing followed her all throughout her schooling, where she entered and won writing contests of all sorts. Stephanie decided to become an English teacher and completed her B.A. at The Pennsylvania State University. While teaching, she later went on to get her Master’s in writing from The Johns Hopkins University. She completed her very first manuscript during her graduate studies, and by the end of the program, she had completed two more.

Stephanie is quick to tell anyone that she’s a born and raised Philadelphian, and her heart will always belong there. She moved to Baltimore with her husband, and they’ve been living there for the last five years with their doggie, Sailor, and their rabbit, Buns (aka “T Sizzle).

LUMINOSITYEXCERPTfromCHAPTER1

At night, my room illuminates with an indescribable brilliance. The
glow of a million City lights pours into the small space officially
referred to as Bunk 34A. It’s not a large bunk by any means—just
enough space to harbor a twin bed tucked under an overhead
compartment of drawers where I keep my jumpsuits and robes.
Stacked in squares of black, it is hard to tell which article of clothing
is which without touching them. Sometimes, it feels the same way
in the Institution—you don’t know one thing from the other, no
matter how long you try to figure it out. The Institution is all about
uniformity. Nothing has changed here in years.
I have a small desk where I finish my class work. Stacked books
form little towers on the surface, mimicking the tall buildings just
outside my window. Some books are about learning to survive in
conditions that aren’t ideal. Some are about our enemy, and others
are about the history of the Seers and our gift. There’s always
something to be learned here.
My reflection stares back at me, and I try to peer through it and
the tinted glass panel. I trace the image of the black raven’s wings,
one tattooed over each of my eyes. The wings are spread and ready
for flight. These mark the maturation of my Visions. They are a rite
of passage, a signal to everyone that I am truly gifted with the Sight.
Most of us earn our raven’s wings by the time we are teenagers,
but there are still those who take a little longer to understand the
images that come to us. It’s not easy to decipher or pick out what is
truth inside our minds.
Just outside my window, patrol helicopters hover high above the
ground, their searchlights bright and unforgiving. If you are caught
in one of those beams, there is no escaping. The Watch are beyond
vigilant since the first sighting. They take no chances in the City, or
in the Institution. Especially not since the Dreamcatchers came.
The Keeper mandated a curfew, demanding that every Seer
be in their bunks by nine in the evening. The Dreamcatchers are
double the threat to us. They are able to reach into the minds of
normal humans—Citizens—through dreams or touch. From what
I’ve been told, a Dreamcatcher can shatter a person’s mind with
just one touch. I once saw a picture of one of the unfortunate souls
who was Caught. His eyes turned white, mouth open…gone. Like
an oyster shell without any meat inside.
The Seers are trained to prevent this, to protect the Citizens at
all costs. At seventeen years old, I am arguably the most revered
Seer because my Vision is the clearest, next to that of the Keeper.
I didn’t understand the importance of that at the time. I had the
Vision that would change everything. But we all do now.
A knock jars me out of my thoughts. “Who is it?”
The door slides open with a hiss and then disappears into the
wall. Gabriel stands in the doorway, his uniform a black and grey
one-piece jumpsuit with the lavender eye of the Seer sewn above
the right breast pocket. It matches our eyes, all of which are the
same hue of purple, the mark of a Seer. His combat boots are tied
tightly and shined to perfection. Gabriel is always perfect. Always.
“Just me, Bea. It’s my turn to make the rounds tonight. I can’t stay
long here, though. Gotta keep moving.”
I smile as I lie down in my bunk. “Okay, okay. I’ll go to bed.” It’s
not going to be easy to sleep tonight, though. Not with the thought
of the Dreamcatcher girl on my mind. They arrested her yesterday
after I saw her in a Vision. She looked so young…so innocent.
Gabe grins and steps back from the door, allowing it to slide
into place. With a click, it locks from inside. I flick the lights off,
and I’m left in the dark to think about how it will be now that the
Dreamcatchers have actually made their appearance in the City.
Already, the change in security is overwhelming, and I’m sure it
won’t be long until the Keeper is back at my door, ready to record
my latest Vision.