Laylah Le Croix has everything and nothing. Angry at her life, she makes a defiant choice that plunges her into the heart of a conspiracy.
Seventeen-year-old Laylah Le Croix has a rich father, mansion, and servants. Yet she is lonely and neglected. Her father would rather work than speak to her. At the academy she is bullied and mistreated.
When Weres attempt to kidnap Laylah, she is saved by the mysterious Donil Silentshadow. Donil rouses feelings in Laylah that make her question her life and her father's animosity toward her handsome rescuer. Confused by these emotions, she seeks answers from those closest to her and is rebuffed.
She must make a choice. Obey her father's edicts or follow her heart to learn the truth about her past.
Excerpt
Blinded by her tears, Laylah ran. Her side ached and she was forced to slow down. She wiped at her eyes and noticed that she was in the forest behind the house. Laylah didn’t remember coming in this direction, but somehow it felt right. Strangely enough she felt at home in this place, surrounded by trees and birds.
Laylah caught her breath and pondered about what happened. Jacques had hit her! She couldn't believe it. Why had he hit her so hard?
The sting of the slap remained with Laylah as she looked about, trying to figure out how to get back home, or at least find someone to help Jacques. It was starting to get dark and she hated nighttime. She started walking, not sure what direction to take.
The snap of a twig froze Laylah in her tracks. She strained to hear and noticed that the forest was quiet. Her heartbeat sped up and the familiar hand of fear touched her. She took two steps and the air was suddenly filled with menacing animal calls. Stifling a scream, she turned and ran.
Behind her, twigs snapped and the sounds of the pursuing animals grew louder. Laylah glanced over her shoulder to see and tripped over a tree root. Her ankle popped as it twisted the wrong way and she fell to the ground writhing in agony. Hoarsely, she screamed as the pain radiated up her leg. She saw the bone sticking out of her flesh and she almost fainted.
::Get up! You can’t lie there::
The voice in her head frightened her into an amazed and scared silence.
::Get up, now, or they will rip you to pieces!::
“Who are you?” she whispered, her ankle throbbing. She must be going crazy.
::You are not crazy, but you’re going to be very dead if you don’t move that cute body out of harm’s way.::
Cute body? Now she knew she was dreaming, but something about the voice compelled her to her feet. She didn’t want to die, but she was hurt and there was only so much she could do. “Where do I go?”
::Follow my voice. I will get you to safety. Now, run!::
Laylah obeyed, but the pain slowed her down to a fast hobble hopping movement that still managed to jar the injury. There was barely any light left and she was exhausted. The voice continued to urge her on. The sounds of the animals hadn’t gotten closer, but neither had they stopped. She knew that they would close in soon.
::You are almost there. Give it everything you’ve got. Hurry, Beautiful.::
She snorted. “Sweet talking won’t help me move any faster,” she snapped, but the howl of a wolf nearly brought on a panic attack.
"I can’t do this!” she wailed, her strength waning.
::You can and you will. You’re here! Now climb, Beautiful, climb.::
“No way!” Laylah stared in dismay at the hill in front of her. “I’m not going to make it!” Panic set in when the second wolf howled. The setting sun’s dying glow gave her the first glimpse of the animals hunting her. She blinked and gasped. Two wolves, a giant leopard, a horse and one enormous grizzly bear had cleared the forest and were making a beeline for her.
::Climb!:: the voice shouted, startling her into obeying.
Her entire body hurt and the pain in her ankle was excruciating. It had long gone past being tolerable. Laylah slipped when she reached for a handhold, slid down and cut her exposed belly on a protruding rock before catching herself. Panting, she fought exhaustion and continued climbing. She tried to ignore the unhappy and angry noises the animals were making below her. She wanted to be safe.
Finally, her hand touched the top and she reached with the other to anchor herself. She felt fingers wrap around her wrist. “Hey! Let go!” but the words died in her throat as she was hauled upward.
Laylah had one confused moment to catch sight of the person grabbing her — blue eyes, dark brown hair, man — before being tossed behind him. She screamed in agony from the pain that lanced her body as her hurt ankle hit a stick lying on the ground. Tears ran down her face as she fought to manage the throbbing from the injury.
She heard a growl and she wildly jerked her head up. Amazed, she stared at the wolf that stood on the edge. How had it gotten up so fast? It wasn't possible! She'd barely made it up and she had hands! Laylah’s rescuer stood two feet in front of her and she felt afraid for him. He also was blocking her view. She struggled to sit up and the sight that greeted her made her want to hide.
All the animals were on the hilltop with her and the mystery man. Everything was quiet, so still you could hear an eyelash fall. The creatures in front of her rescuer seemed to shimmer before the popping of bones filled the air and the creatures began to change. Features slid away becoming more human as the five animals went to their hind legs and grew until men stood in their place.
“You’re...you’re....” Words failed Laylah. Eyes wide in marvel and terror, she stared, unsure of what her sight was telling her. Wait a minute! They were naked! Her cheeks flamed pink with embarrassment. Laylah averted her gaze and threw her hands up, covering her eyes.
Professional Reviews
Bitten By Books (4 stars)
Reviewed by: Danielle
Werelove: Dusk Conspiracy is a novel that tells the story of a young woman, Laylah LeCroix, who has been kept in the dark about her heritage as a powerful shifter on both sides: werecat on her mother’s side, and werewolf on her father’s side. She lives practically as a prisoner, under her cold, indifferent father’s rule. She is constantly bullied at school, and only has one friend. Her father barely spends time with her, and when he does, it is to criticize everything she does. As a result, her self-esteem is practically non-existent. That was hard for me to read about. Seeing how her father despised her made me very angry and sad. And his persistence in keeping her ignorant about her heritage and the danger that she faces because of who she is made it even worse. For she has an enemy who is rising against her, because of a vendetta against her parents for marrying and creating what her enemy considers an abomination, Laylah. This enemy, Zina, who is the leader of a group of weres determine to overthrow the powerful Were Council so that she can be in power, sends men to capture Laylah, and Laylah is only able to escape by running into the forest. She hears a voice in her head that draws her to safety, meeting the man who has been in her dreams for a while, although she could never see his face.
Donil Silentshadow is the man of Laylah’s dreams, blessed with his gift of Dreamwalking. He is the alpha of the Silentshadow pack, who are cat shifters, and he saves Laylah from her attackers. His family and Laylah’s family are enemies because of how Laylah’s mother was killed thirteen years ago, and Donil’s inadvertent role in that. Yet, Donil feels a connection to Laylah that he cannot deny. He feels she will be his future mate. He played around with a lot of girls, and it wasn’t real with them. His feelings for Laylah are different and very intense. It pains him to see her so lacking in self-love and confidence. It becomes his goal to show her how special she is. The problem is, her father would never allow Laylah to be with him in any capacity. But, this alpha is not one to back down from a challenge, especially when Laylah is so worthwhile to have as his mate.
Werelove: Dusk Conspiracy is written in a straightforward manner that makes it a fast-flowing read. I was drawn in from the first page. I think this is an excellent book for young teens, with its rich story, and a wholesome message. There is quite a bit of violence, but it is not gratuitous and excessive. The underlying messages about believing in yourself, and standing up for yourself are appreciated, and I think they would be very helpful for a young person who is dealing with some of the issues that Laylah is facing.
I enjoyed the futuristic, sci-fi world-building, on a planet that was terraformed, and colonized by human and were-peoples from an overcrowded Earth. There are innovative touches of technology interspersed, to remind the reader that this book is set in the future, but it is not intimidating to a person who is new to science fiction. The focus always stays on the interpersonal relationships, which are well-written. The dialogue was good, and active, although I felt as though the way in which Layla spoke was a bit too mature for a teenager. This could be due to the fact that she was mainly around older adults, so it was not that unbelievable to me.
Readers who like werewolf/shapeshifter stories will appreciate this story. Ms. Spletzer added touches that show the unique aspects of the various weres, and their group dynamics. I see some familiar aspects that I look for in a good werewolf/shapeshifter story, but also some novel touches that make this story stand out to me. I especially liked that the power of the ‘alpha’ was a physically tangible element that affected the members of the were packs. They could almost become ill from the inherent power of an alpha were.
I found several secondary characters very intriguing, such as the Outcast Omega, Stefan, who is related to Laylah and watches out for her; and Jacques, who is a Beta in Henry LaCroix’s pack, and who loves Laylah a lot more than Henry loves his own daughter. I didn’t like Henry very much at all. He’s a cold, mean, self-absorbed, materialistic man. I hope that he gets his reckoning for his behavior soon. Donil will appeal to most readers. He’s a good guy, with a strong sense of honor, but has a playfulness about him that helps to coax Laylah out of her shell of loneliness. He’s very sweet and gentle towards Layla. They had good chemistry together as a couple. The villain, Zina, was completely hateful and depraved. I cheered for her to get her just deserts. Laylah’s only friend, Britta, really shows the qualities of a steadfast friend. I loved her for that. There are other characters that successfully add to the rich landscape of this book, showing the different aspects of were and human nature, and moving the story along. Ms. Spletzer did a fantastic job showing each person’s motivations, and how they affected Laylah.
With Werelove: Dusk Conspiracy, Lakisha Spletzer writes a story here that has a lot of merit. It was exciting and fast-paced. The emotional aspects pulled at me—I found it painful to see Laylah treated so poorly by her father. I wanted Laylah to be stronger and to stand up for herself more, but the climax shows that she is making her way down that road. Ms. Spletzer definitely has me invested to continue this series, and to see Laylah come into her own power, and realize exactly who she is. I would recommend Werelove: Dusk Conspiracy to young readers and adults who enjoy speculative young adult fiction. I think they will enjoy this book very much.
Night Owl Reviews (Top Pick Award)
Reviewed by: DawnColclasure
Laylah Le Croix lives her teen years in the shadow of an unloving and invisible father, Henry Le Croix. Cared for by Jacques, her father's right-hand man, and Naiya, Laylah can only dream what the world is like outside her overprotective and isolated home. Little does she know that her birth resulted in the division of the Weres and the murder of her mother, Helena, who was half-panther. Then her world is turned upside down when the enemy attacks her home, wounding Jacques, and an attempt is made to kidnap her. She is rescued by Donil Silentshadow, who is enamored of her despite his past troubles with Laylah's father. The two fall in love, much to Henry Le Croix's outrage, and this causes something within Laylah to awaken. Something she has never known before yet feels so natural and a part of herself at the same time. Treachery seems to run in the Silentshadow clan, however, and Laylah's life is once again threatened after a new traitor emerges. Will Laylah survive the danger she is in? Will she ever know her heritage and what happened to her mother? Will Henry ever come to love his daughter and restore peace in his home? These are the questions that lingered as I read this novel and the suspense and plot twists held me until the very end.
Werelove: Dusk Conspiracy by Lakisha Spletzer is a story where werewolves are such a large part of a future society on earth. I'm not normally a reader of werewolf stories, but this one caught my interest. While Laylah struck me as a naive, innocent damsel-in-distress type of character who often acted as a typical teenager, she was a very inspiring and courageous young woman struggling to find her place in this world and understand who, or what, she is. It was annoying to read so many characters saying "poor Layalah" because it was as if they could not see her inner strength, but in the end, after surviving what could have been her death, she carries with her a newfound sense of self and strength that others seem to now respect.
The character I disliked the most in all of this was not the antagonist (who was a very worthy opponent!) but Laylah's father, Henry. Not one scene he was in won my appreciation of him, though I did understand him better for why he was the way he was at the moment he breaks down when remembering losing the wife he loved so much. This was his human side revealed. On the other hand, it seemed to me that he didn't realize that the more he pushed Laylah away, only handing out punishment every time he saw her, the more endangered his family became. He seemed to be more focused on his work, money, power and status than on his only child. Every situation he is “forced” into concerning his daughter seems to be one he can’t wait to get away from fast enough. At one point, when Laylah is kidnapped and everybody is frantically worried about her, he takes a few moments to check on his work! He even tells Jacques, “Did you really think I wanted to be saddled with a kid?” Even when Laylah calls him after she is safe from one of the kidnappings, he hands the e-comm to Jacques in irritation and says, “Take care of this.”
A story full of mystery, action and suspense, Werelove: Dusk Conspiracy is a new twist on an old genre that leaves readers with a satisfied adventure to enjoy and remember.
Beautiful Laylah LeCroix has everything a teenager could want. She has a nice house, nice clothes and servants, someone to drive her to school every day and a loving family. Or does she?
The seventeen-year-old is bullied constantly at academy not to mention at home too. Her father is constantly working and never has time for her. He finds all kinds of things to ground her over. So much so, that Laylah has never been to her best friends’ parties! All she can do at home is be obedient and hope that her father won’t find anything to ground her for…again.
One day something goes wrong at school and her father goes ballistic to the point of giving her a smack. Laylah has never been smacked in her life and runs out the back door only to be kidnapped. Or is she? Laylah runs for her life into the forest as she is chased by Zina’s weres. Does she have the smarts to escape the weres?
In WERELOVE: DUSK CONSPIRACY we meet Donil Silentshadow who falls in love with Laylah. He even says that she is his mate in life. There is a problem with Laylah and Donil getting together since Henry hates the whole Silentshadow family! Will Laylah ever be able to return Donil’s love or will Mr. Le Croix find a way to keep them apart?
Meanwhile, while Laylah is falling in love with Donil, Zina McFin is trying to take over the were’s world. In order to do that she has to kill Laylah LeCroix! When she takes the were’s world over, she’ll be ‘the’ alpha but why kill an innocent young woman?
I highly recommend this 384 page science fiction/fantasy. This book is full of the supernatural, romance and action. There is a new twist on every page! Also, at the end of the book is a glossary that explains each term. WERELOVE: DUSK CONSPIRACY will keep you telling yourself, “just one more chapter, just one more.”
Jennifer finally ends up in Apalachia after barely escaping an attack. She soon learns about her destiny and how her actions will 'put a friend in grave danger'. With everyone refusing to tell her more Jennifer must find answers for herself.
Bristlecone Magic is a YA Christian fantasy about family, friends, neighborliness, love, magic and yes, even tragedy. The story takes place in Clinton County in upstate New York.
There is more than one kind of Magic! Contact me if you'd like an au
