Sleeping Beauty and the Cursed Code

Book excerpt: If you''re a contestant in SHE the magazines BE BOTH Virtual Pageant you''ve come to the right place. We are so excited to see what you can create using Sleeping Beauty & The Cursed Code as your inspiration. Contest dates: West Virginia: West Virginia 8/4-9/1, Ohio: 9/2-9/15, Kansas: 9/15-9/25, More locations T.B.A. The XL #SHELFIE Ready Limited Edition Praise for Sleeping Beauty & The Cursed Code ★★★★★ "The exact right amount of frog kissing!" ★★★★★ "S.T.E.A.M. educator approved." ★★★★★ "Entertaining, empowering, and funny." ★★★★★ "Sleeping Beauty & The Cursed code is magical and familiar." DESCRIPTION Sleeping Beauty & The Cursed Code is a STEM fantasy (for ages 9-13) set in a world where classical princesses like Snow White and Sleeping Beauty reign as tech powered super heroes. In the book the team faces off against Anathema, the Evil Fairy, as they try to prove that science and technology can defeat dark magic. EXCERPT Chapter 1 The Curse "Please don''t make me watch." "Open your eyes," a honey-sweet voice ordered. I clenched my jaw and used my fingers to pry open my eyelids. I had to watch the curses. I knew I had to. My curse would be the downfall of our kingdom, so I had to learn all I could about curses to know what I was up against. Torn between bravery and cowardice, I watched through squinted eyes. I stood inside a slightly curved world. I knew it wasn''t real because I''d been in similar memories before. I had stepped inside a recording. The pixels sparked at mismatched angles, and the whole world around me was remembered in black and white, like watching the cartoon version of an old television show. The word LUCY crossed the screen, as if it had been typed directly into my vision. This time, Lucy was the victim. She was all alone on a stormy night tossing in her sleep. Her dark hair was knotting with each restless turn. From what I could tell, it was the night''s booming thunder and frequent flashes of lightning tormenting her rest. As more lightning lit the sky, the hockey jersey she was wearing suddenly sparkled. The poster of the handsome teenage prince on her wall told me she was probably not much older than thirteen, just like me. The next crack was even louder. I jumped. It signaled the entrance of Anathema, the evil fairy who torments us. Anathema was but the hint of a shadow on a stormy night. Her dark robes dangled, her hood covered the obscured essence of her face. I shivered, certain that even in the recording, she''d sensed my presence. The fairy drifted towards the helpless girl sleeping in her hockey jersey. "Lucy," the Evil Fairy whispered, "Fair princess. Fairest of them all. May a toad bring about your downfall." In the shadows, Anathema raised a fully draped hand to her gray-scaled lips. She spread her fingers revealing that she was holding a living, breathing toad. It was paralyzed with fear. Anathema scared animals just as much as she scared humans. The fairy exhaled and let out an indecipherable curse that turned the toad into nothing more than shimmering dust, barely visible in the heavy air. The dust began to drift without hurry towards the slumbering girl. I wanted to scream. Wake up, Lucy! Run! Save yourself! I stayed silent, knowing my warning would go unheeded. I couldn''t change the past. No one can change the past. Not even the fairies. For more about the book or the author visit 4Pigs2Fly.com or follow the author on IG @Emma.Jean.Author