About the Book
Title: Light Runner
Author: Philip Brown
Genre: YA Contemporary Fantasy
When a powerful healing armband—the Jyotisha—falls into the hands of a
teenage girl, she’s thrust into a dangerous search for her father, the reasons
behind her mother’s mysterious death, and the truth about herself.
Sixteen-year-old Dara Adengard would rather read graphic novels than do
her homework and prefers the freedom of skateboarding to the restrictions of
life with her military father. Stung by the recent death of her mother, Dara
conceals her mom’s picture under a square of grip tape on her skateboard. But
no matter how much Dara tries to keep a foothold on the past, she can’t ride
away from her own destiny.
One evening, she discovers a silver and gold armlet with mysterious
powers in the shadowy water of the swimming pool. Forged from an ancient
meteorite metal, it possesses the power to heal or wound. When Dara holds it,
it emits a light that seems to have been ignited by a star’s ray. Moments
later, she is stunned to find that someone’s broken into her apartment, her
father has vanished, and a dead body lies sprawled in the courtyard.
Evading the police, Dara escapes on a perilous quest for her father,
begins to uncover her mother’s hidden past, and starts to realize the shocking
truth about herself. Accompanied by a stray dog, Dara soars to sudden fame on
the wings of a YouTube video that shows her using the Jyotisha to heal the
handsome Diego of a gunshot wound. When the video goes viral, a famous TV talk
show personality connects with her, and Dara is propelled from homeless runaway
to worldwide sensation.
Author Bio
Philip Brown is the author of the YA
contemporary fantasy novel, Light Runner. He previously wrote two
astrology books, Cosmic Trends (published by Llewellyn Worldwide
Publications and a finalist for the Coalition of Visionary Resources Award) and
On the Cusp: Astrological Reflections from the Threshold. He also wrote
for Dell Horoscope and The Mountain Astrologer. Light Runner,
published by Strange Fictions Press (an imprint of Vagabondage Press), is his
first novel.
Philip studied to become a Shakespearean
actor in London, but a love of books and writing led him to become a high
school English teacher.
He received his Master of Arts degree in
English from California State University Los Angeles and lives in Southern
California. He is a member of the International Society of Children's Book
Writers and Illustrators.
Excerpt
Something darted past the corner of her vision, like the flit of an insect, followed by a soft plop next to her in the water. At first, she thought the sound was her own leg kick breaking the surface. She was breathing hard now, and her arms churned the water behind her head. One hand brushed the end of the pool, and she turned to push off with the good leg. Her shoulders ached, and she swam freestyle again, face down in the water.
She turned her head to breathe in—and that’s when she saw it. Next to her, below the surface of the water, something shimmered. Distorted by the water’s light, it seemed to flutter.
Gold and silver metal sparkled, and blended with the light of the pool. Dara stopped, reached out to grasp it—and felt a vibration, like a faint electric shock. She yanked her hand away, and then stared at what appeared to be a wide bracelet.
It drifted closer, suspended in the water.
Get out of the pool, she thought—it could be electrical, some battery-powered toy. Water plus electricity. Not good.
