M.L. BLACKBIRD
A WISH TOO DARK AND KIND
Among the immortals that inhabit our world, Arnaud Demeure is known as the man who can fulfill your one true wish or who can also conjure your worst nightmares.
Eight invitations are sent to eight immortals, and when Arnaud Demeure hosts a party, no one refuses his request. Why have they been summoned? Is it for a celebration or does a sinister fate await them? After all, in the ways of magick, a party can also be a ritual to end the world.
As the mystery deepens, the attendees must overcome their personal grudges to unravel the threads of Demeure’s grand plan that has been centuries in the making. But, with one of the guests secretly working with their host to sabotage the group’s every move, it seems impossible to look behind the curtain to learn Demeure’s true intentions.
With each guest hiding dark secrets and darker intentions, will they be able to uncover Demeure’s mysterious motives or will the party prove to be the deadly nightmare that they each fear?
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From the cover flap
Had you walked with us on the roads of Paris in the old days, you’d have heard of many men. And yet the night-crawlers cared only about one: Arnaud Demeure. The one who could fulfill your one true wish.
If walking in the shadows of a dark alley at midnight, you met one of ours and asked, “What news do you bring, brother?” They would respond, “Have you heard of Arnaud Demeure?” And if by the witching hour, while hunting for prey, you talked with those who spy and report, they would tell you, “Arnaud Demeure…” So, when dark gave in to the light, as you rushed to escape the sun, you’d think: what’s my true wish, Arnaud Demeure?
Imagine if that man invited you to his castle. Imagine any wish granted if it is true and you’d understand why that night, when I received his invite, against any logic, I accepted.
From the back cover
When Arnaud Demeure hosts a party, no immortal refuses his invitation. Yet in the ways of Magick, a party can be the ritual to end the world, and seven guests the sacrifices needed to perform it. But they may also be the only ones who can stop it.
Praise
A chilling epic of the occult, with satisfying character depth and a cliffhanger ending. – Booklife by Publishers Weekly
M.L. Blackbird is a genius storyteller. – Readers’ Favorite
The murder mystery dinner party is one of my favorite staples of the detective genre, and to see someone take the format and the style of such a story and instead apply it to a tense urban fantasy tale makes me kick myself for not thinking of such an arrangement earlier. – Readers’ Favorite
M.L. Blackbird has a unique approach. – Readers’ Favorite
A well-written, conceptually dense fantasy that’s demanding in its details. – Kirkus
M.L. Blackbird’s ambitious dark fantasy A WISH TOO DARK AND KIND has a strong voice and a provocative structure. – IndieReader
Note from the author
A Wish Too Dark And Kind is my first novel, and it is a work of passion, love, and hard work. I still remember the long days passed studying the details of the European occult traditions that provide the skeleton to the world-building, and all the work to get that out of my head and into the page. It has been five years of studying for it, writing it, and honing it. While so much has changed, this story has remained a constant.
The novel follows the path of eight party guests who become embroiled in a dangerous battleground of sacrifices, immortality, magic, and deceit. With this novel I wanted to tell two stories, one about connections and the other about isolation, so the book runs along two plotlines. The first, in modern times, is the story of Alex and the other guests trying to understand the meaning behind the party they’ve been invited to and what the intentions of their host, Arnaud Demeure, are. The second is narrated through documents, notes, and letters scattered throughout the book; it tells the story of Demeure, how he came to be who he is, and what binds him and his guests in the circle at the foundation of a sacrificial ritual.
You’ll like if you enjoy dense mythologies, realistic magic systems, mystical/horror atmospheres, raw fights, high pace, and dark gothic settings. As for every book, I don’t think this would appeal to everyone. For example, if you immediately associate Urban Fantasy to Romance, this will not be the book for you. If likeable characters are a must, you might want to avoid this book too, as most of the characters are gray – some downright dark – and you’ll see the good guys do pretty terrible things in here. Finally, the non-linear progression of the plot, the many points of view, and the entanglement of two storylines might annoy some readers.
All in all, I wanted to write a book I’d enjoy reading. I think I did it, but at this point, it might be more important to know what you think about it.
A Wish Too Dark And Kind - Chapter Illustrations
Shoutout to Valentina Ferro (the artist).
A Wish Too Dark And Kind - Characters
Shoutout to illustate_vnzi (the artist).
