A Gift of Emerald Drums
(2027)Twelve Drummers Drumming
(The first book in the Twelve Gifts of Christmas series)
A novel by Barbara Hartzler
I just want one normal night.
My friends are heading to the Winterfall parade, and for once, I want to go too, never mind that my parents would say no if I asked. So I don't ask. I just go.
I don't expect a stranger to catch my eye in the crowd, or follow him to an old man who says he knew my father. I don't expect him to press a sparkling emerald drum into my hands, and I definitely don't expect it to transform into jewelry that hums with a kind of magic I've never felt before, magic that feels like it's always been mine, waiting.
Before I can ask what's happening, guards start closing in on the crowd, and the old man vanishes.
Now I'm wearing something I don't understand, hiding a secret I didn't even know I had an hour ago, in a city that's suddenly hunting people exactly like whatever I'm becoming.
A Gift of Emerald Drums is a standalone festive story, with tropes like hidden magic, a secret identity, a touch of romance, and a found-family twist. It is part of The Twelve Gifts of Christmas series, a collection of twelve clean novelettes inspired by The Twelve Days of Christmas. Each book is written by a different author, so the series can be enjoyed in any order.
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy
My friends are heading to the Winterfall parade, and for once, I want to go too, never mind that my parents would say no if I asked. So I don't ask. I just go.
I don't expect a stranger to catch my eye in the crowd, or follow him to an old man who says he knew my father. I don't expect him to press a sparkling emerald drum into my hands, and I definitely don't expect it to transform into jewelry that hums with a kind of magic I've never felt before, magic that feels like it's always been mine, waiting.
Before I can ask what's happening, guards start closing in on the crowd, and the old man vanishes.
Now I'm wearing something I don't understand, hiding a secret I didn't even know I had an hour ago, in a city that's suddenly hunting people exactly like whatever I'm becoming.
A Gift of Emerald Drums is a standalone festive story, with tropes like hidden magic, a secret identity, a touch of romance, and a found-family twist. It is part of The Twelve Gifts of Christmas series, a collection of twelve clean novelettes inspired by The Twelve Days of Christmas. Each book is written by a different author, so the series can be enjoyed in any order.
Genre: Young Adult Fantasy