Welcome back to Scion... The Mime Order

To celebrate the new paperback release of the incredible The Mime Order, book two in The Bone Season series, today I'll be sharing an excerpt from The Mime Order from the sensational Samantha Shannon. For those of you who are yet to discover The Bone Season, it's an incredible and unique fusion of fantasy, dystopian, science fiction and with an intense and slow burning romance that will surprise and enthrall readers. Stay tuned for my review of book one coming soon.

The Mime Order The Bone Season Book Two
Written by Samantha Shannon
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Paige Mahoney has escaped the brutal prison camp of Sheol I, but her problems have only just begun, many of the survivors are missing and she is the most wanted person in London...

As Scion turns its all seeing eye on the dreamwalker, the mime lords and mime-queens of the city's gangs are invited to a rare meeting of the Unnatural Assembly. Jaxon Hall and his Seven Seals prepare to take centre stage, but there are bitter fault lines running through the clairvoyant community and dark secrets around every corner.

Then the Rephaim begin crawling out from the shadows. But where is Warden? Paige must keep moving, from Seven Dials to Grub Street to the secret catacombs of Camden, until the fate of the underworld can be decided.

THE MIME ORDER EXCERPT

"It’s rare that a story begins at the beginning. In the grand scheme of things, I really turned up at the beginning of the end of this one. After all, the story of the Rephaim and
Scion started almost two hundred years before I was born – and human lives, to Rephaim, are as fleeting as a single heartbeat.
Some revolutions change the world in a day. Others take decades or centuries or more, and others still never come to fruition. Mine began with a moment and a choice. Mine began with the blooming of a flower in a secret city on the border between worlds.
You’ll have to wait and see how it ends. Welcome back to Scion."

LONG STORY

She appeared at 6 A.M. She always did.
My hand snatched a revolver from the table. The theme for ScionEye was playing. A sweeping, theatrical composition, based around the twelve chimes of Big Ben.
I waited.
There she was. Scarlett Burnish, Grand Raconteur of London, white lace frothing from the top of her black dress. She always looked the same, of course – like some hellish automaton – but on occasion, when some poor denizen had been ‘killed’ or ‘assaulted’ by an unnatural, she could exude manufactured distress. Today, however, she was smiling.
‘Good morning, and welcome to another day in Scion London. Good news as the Guild of Vigilance announces an expansion of its Sunlight division, with at least fifty more officers due to be sworn in this Monday. The Chief of Vigilance has stated that the New Year will bring new challenges to the citadel, and that in these perilous times, it remains critical for the denizens of London to pull together and—’
I switched it off.

There was no breaking news. Nothing, I thought, over and over. No faces. No hangings.
The gun clattered back on to the table. I’d been lying on a couch all night, flinching upright at the softest sound. My muscles were stiff and painful; it took some time to manoeuvre into a standing position. Every time the ache began to ebb, a fresh wave would come, surging from a jolted bruise or strain. I should be heading for bed, as was my custom at dawn, but I had to get up, just for a minute. A glint of natural light would do me good.
Once I’d stretched my legs, I switched on the music player in the corner. Billie Holiday’s ‘Guilty’ drifted out. Nick had dropped off a few forbidden records from the den on his way to work, along with the small amount of money he could spare and a pile of books I hadn’t touched. I’d found myself missing Warden’s gramophone. You could get used to being lullabied by the lovelorn crooners of the free world.
It had been three days since the escape. My new home was a dingy doss-house in I-4, tucked away in a warren of Soho back- streets. Most voyant establishments were ramshackle dumps, hardly fit to live in, but the landlord – a cleidomancer, whom I suspected had opened a doss-house just so he could finger keys for a living – had kept this one free of rodents, if not the creeping damp. He didn’t know who I was, only that I had to be kept out of sight, as I’d been beaten badly by a Vigile and he might still be out looking for me.
Until we sorted things with Jaxon, I’d have to keep moving between rented rooms, one every week or so. It was already cost- ing a fortune – I was managing, so far, with money Nick had given me – but it was the only way to know for sure that Scion couldn’t track me.
With the blinds down, not a single ray of light entered the room.
I opened them, just a little. Golden sunshine struck my raw eyes. A pair of amaurotics hurried past on the narrow street below. On the corner, a soothsayer was on the lookout for voyant clients who might fancy a quick reading. If he was desperate, he might risk approaching an amaurotic. Sometimes they got curious; sometimes they were spies. Scion had long since had agents provocateurs on its streets, tempting voyants to give themselves away.
I closed the blinds again. The room turned black. For six months I’d been nocturnal, my sleeping pattern matched to my Rephaite keeper’s; that wouldn’t change in a hurry. I sank on to the couch, reached for the glass of water on the table and gulped it down with two blue Nightcaps.
My dreamscape was still fragile. During our confrontation on the stage – when she’d tried to kill me in front of an audience of Scion emissaries – Nashira’s fallen angels had left hairline fissures there, allowing memory to drip into my sleep. The chapel, where Seb had met his end. The chamber in Magdalen. The filthy, twisting slum of the Rookery and Duckett’s psychomanteum, where my face grew monstrous and misshapen and my jaw snapped off, brittle as old ceramic.
Then Liss, her lips sewn shut with golden thread. Dragged outside to be fed to the Emim, the monsters that had haunted the woods around the colony. Seven bloody cards spun in her wake. I reached for them, straining to see the final card – my future, my conclusion
– but as soon as I touched it, it screamed in a tongue of fire. I jerked awake at dusk, drenched from scalp to toe in sweat. My cheeks were damp and burning hot, and my lips tasted of salt.
Those cards would haunt me for a long time. Liss had predicted my future in six stages: Five of Cups, King of Wands inverted, the Devil, the Lovers, Death inverted, Eight of Swords. But she’d never reached the end of the reading.
I groped my way to the bathroom and washed down another
couple of the painkillers Nick had left for me. I suspected the large grey one was some kind of sedative. Something to ease the tremors, the churning stomach, the need to grip my gun and not let go.
There was a light knock at the door. Slowly, I picked up my gun, checked it for ammo and held it behind my back. With my free hand, I cracked the door open.
The landlord stood in the corridor, fully dressed, with an antique iron key on a chain around his neck. He never took it off.
‘Morning, miss,’ he said.
I managed a smile. ‘Don’t you ever sleep, Lem?’
‘Not often. The guests are up at all hours. There’s a séance upstairs,’ he added, looking weary. ‘Making a right racket with the table. You’re looking much better today, if I may say so.’
‘Thank you. Did my friend call?’
‘He’ll be here at nine tonight. Do give me a bell if you need anything.’
‘Thanks. Have a good day.’
‘And you, miss.’
For a doss-house landlord, he was oddly helpful. I closed the door and locked it.
At once, the gun slipped from my hand. I sank to the floor and buried my face against my knees.
After a few minutes I went back into the tiny, airless bathroom, peeled off my nightshirt and inspected my injuries in the mirror. Most visible were the deep gash above my eye, closed with stitches, and the shallow wound that curved across my cheek. Everything was worn thin, whittled down. My fingernails were flimsy, my skin was sallow and my ribs and hipbones bulged. The landlord had given me a wary look when he’d brought my first tray of food, eyeing my lacerated hands and black eye. He hadn’t recognised me as the Pale Dreamer, mollisher of his section, protégée of the White Binder.
As I stepped into the cubicle and turned the dial, darkness crept into my vision. Hot water poured over my shoulders, softening my muscles.
A door slammed.
My hand swiped a hidden blade from the soap dish. My body pitched itself from the cubicle, straight against the opposite wall. I concealed myself behind the door, buzzing with adrenalin, holding the blade to my heart.
It took a few minutes for my heart to slow down. I peeled myself from the wet tiles, slick with sweat and water. Nothing, it’s nothing. Just the séance table upstairs.
Shaking, I leant on the sink. My hair hung in damp coils around my face, brittle and dull.
I looked my reflection in the eye. My body had been treated as property in the colony, dragged and grabbed and beaten by Rephaim, and red-jackets. I turned my back to the mirror and ran my fingers over the little threads of scar tissue on my shoulder. XX-59-40. That brand would be there for as long as I lived.
But I’d survived. I pulled my shirt over the brand again. I had survived, and the Sargas would know it.

ABOUT SHANNON

Samantha Shannon was born and raised in West London. From 2010 to 2013 she studied English Language and Literature at St Anne's College, Oxford, where she specialised in Emily Dickinson and Principles of Film Criticism. In 2012 she signed a book deal with Bloomsbury Publishing to publish the first three books in a seven book series, beginning with The Bone Season. Film rights to the novel were optioned by Andy Serkis's London based production company The Imaginarium Studios in 2012, and acquired by Twentieth Century Fox and Chernin Studios in October 2013. The Bone Season has been translated into twenty nine languages.


The Mime Order is out now in paperback through Bloomsbury for $19.95 online, or in all good bookstores

GIVEAWAY

23 comments

  1. I think I grabbed the first book awhile ago, but haven't read it yet. I definitely need to do so!

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    1. Oh yes Christy, you certainly do! I've binged read both books and almost finished The Mime Order now and it's blown me away. I love how intricate the world building is, the character voices and Paige is such incredible character. I can't wait for you to start the series.

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  2. I love the new paperback cover! I think the Mime Order was even better than The Bone Season. Thanks for sharing! :)
    Krystianna @ Downright Dystopian

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    1. I'm currently reading it and absolutely loving it. I'm torn, but I think I agree and are enjoying The Mime Order just that little bit more, especially knowing now how intricate the world building is.

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  3. I have not read the first book, but thanks for sharing more about the second one. I was surprised to see the first book in the Adult section of my library. I always thought it was YA. haha Just a random thought there...

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    1. It reads as a young adult, but with Paige being nineteen, I suppose it's classed as new adult. I would say clean, mature young adult. It was incredible! I've read nothing like it and absolutely loved it Lauren. I have my review going up soon.

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  4. Oh gosh. I still need to read my copy! Awesome giveaway. ^.^

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    1. I would have thought this would have been one that you'd already read Joy, it seems like your type of book. Oh, now you'll have to read it soon, I'd love to see what you think of it.

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  5. I keep forgetting to read the fine print: Open to Austrailian Residents Only *sigh* Have I ever told you that I almost visited New South Wales, Australia once to see Marty Sampson sing at Hillsong Church? True story!

    Though I have read mixed reviews on this series, I'm still curious to know what the hype is about. It sounds deliciously dark and gloomy, and you know that is my type of book! ;)

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    1. Halfway across the world just to hear someone sing? That's commitment right there Claudia. I've heard of Hillsong, it makes huge money in Australia and is always on the current affair programs under investigation because of the money they bring in.

      It is deliciously dark and really unique. It's one of those series that keeps you on your toes, you really need to pay attention to the finer details. I'm absolutely loving it! I do hope you grab a copy of book one Claudia, it's incredible.

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    2. Bah ha ha! Mega Churches should rightfully be in the limelight ;) My husband and his posse were once hardcore fans of this legendary Marty Sampson. They seem to be chasing different tails now ;) I'm terrified of flying, I was glad the trip didn't come through! :P

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  6. This reminds me I really need to get on the second book, hopefully I'll be able to dive right back into the world!! If I was gonna visit anyones dreamscape I would try to get into my own just to see what I dream of and remember it. Sometimes I wake up thinking what did I actually dream of last night.

    Thanks for the giveaway!! :)

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    1. I can barely remember mine too Tracey, unless it's something that's upset me strangely.

      I'm reading The Mime Order now and have no doubt that you'll be able to immerse yourself again from the very first page. There are plenty of reminders of The Bone Season to jog your memory too. Good luck with the giveaway!

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  7. I'm SO loving the sound of this one girl! Gracias for putting this one on my radar. I read the excerpt and found myself smack dab in the middle of all the action and wanting to know what the heck was going on. Thanks giirlll! Xoxo

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    1. It's incredible Keionda! Mind blowing actually. It's sassy and intelligent, with an incredible heroine and an aching, intense romance that is similar to A Court of Thorns and Roses. it's one of the best and vividly imagined series I've read since I discovered Throne of Glass actually. I can't praise it enough.

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  8. Glad to hear you enjoyed the first book, I bought it last month and it's next on my TBR. All the terminology makes my head spin a little, but I am excited to get my teeth sunk into another well developed fantasy world.

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    1. It has an index in case you forget, but I found that I didn't need it at all. You just need your wits about you while you're reading, so you don't miss out on any of the finer details. I'm not a big fantasy reader, but absolutely loved it and actually found it pretty easy to follow, so It'll be a breeze for you Aentee. I can't wait to see what you think of it. It's amazing!

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  9. I really enjoyed book 1 but I haven't had the chance to check this one out just yet! I'm excited though because the world sounds fabulous. I have to admit to being slightly afraid of the series length however!

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    1. Only one book longer than the Throne of Glass series, but then you have all the novellas so it probably evens out. I'm absolutely loving it so far Nick. i think because the world building is so intricate and involved, that it'll take seven books just to be able to reach a conclusion. I'm definitely in this one for the long haul. I can't wait for you to read The Mime Order, I'm almost finished and it's even better than The Bone Season.

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  10. Girllll I loveeeeeeed The Bone Season and The Mime Order! The 3rd book should be coming out in January or something like that, and I seriously need to get my hands on an arc! Paige is one of my favorite female protagonists, and come on ARCTURUS is my boooo for life! I can NOT wait to be back in the world of Scion because that cliff-hanger at the end of TMO was crazyyy good. Like ugh damn that traitor! * shakes fist * Shout out to Samantha Shannon for giving me the most epic battle scene ever. I was definitely holding my breath on that one!

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  11. Ahhh, this series is life! I loved it so much, despite how hard it is to retain information of ALL the AMAZING world-building that goes on in both books. The third book cannot come out fast enough <3

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  12. Fantastic excerpt Kelly! I've just finished reading this book and although it was a massive 2 week slog, it was worth it.

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  13. Okay, so, I've had the Bone Season on my pile for ages now and I finally picked it up and started reading it because of this review and it is kind of incredible! I'm really enjoying it.

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