KRATISTOS
by Niki
In a near-drowning experience, an eight-ray sun mark appears on the nape of young LEXIE's neck. Years later, Alexander the Great calls her on an adventure to find him.
As she turns eighteen, Greek American Lexie and her Asian princess friend are studying for a college assignment on greatness at the New York Public Library. A strange earthquake reveals a mysterious black bookmarked with an eight-rayed sun on the cover. Inside, they find information and maps pointing to the tomb of Alexander the Great. DAMON, a powerful politician and leader of the Sphinx Organisation, wants the book to claim Alexander's gold and the ultimate power to rule the world. However, an Egyptian cult leader steals the book, believing it holds the key to a prophecy that will resurrect Alexander. Damon kills most of the cult members and recovers the book and the necessary artefacts for a spring resurrection ceremony. Knowing that Lexie can interpret the book and unlock Alexander's treasures, Damon takes her parents hostage and forces Lexie to travel to Greece.
In Vergina, Alexander's birthplace, Lexie encounters a British archaeologist working for Damon. Soon after, Sphinx soldiers imprison her in a nearby camp, where she learns her parents are also being held. Lexie attempts to free them, but Damon straps her parents with bombs, insisting the sacred ceremony must take place at sunrise. With the archaeologist's help, Lexie unexpectedly discovers Alexander's sarcophagus and treasure, but not all the essential artefacts are there. A series of events lead Lexie to a dark well, where she confronts her fear of drowning. She uncovers the crypt containing Alexander's mummy, throne, and a powerful golden wreath in Alexandria, Egypt. Damon is revealed to be her cousin, and Lexie learns she is Alexander's last living descendant. Damon proposes they rule the world together, but Lexie refuses, sparking a fight over Alexander's wreath and its power.
Damon wins the fight and, along with his army, transforms into powerful creatures. Now, Lexie must master her newfound powers to save her parents and the world.
More books by Niki
FREEYAH
The Race of Life
After her father's death, Freeyah, a 13-year-old girl and gold medal runner, lives with her mother. She loses her job and can't support Freeyah. Freeyah discovers that a Banga, a new kind of monster that attaches itself to humans, has taken over her. She runs away following her father's golden memory thread. But she falls into a secret web of abandoned London tube tunnels to Cosima Hills, an incredible multimodal underworld built by children's dreams, fears and sorrows, woven around the Prime Meridian under Greenwich. Freeyah finds two unexpected co-travellers, her neighbour Wan Wei, who used to be her biggest running fan, and Laurie, a Banga monster who is a runaway. She also discovers her Cosima Hills dream home.
Princess Cendra var der Mean has banned running in Cosima City despite the fact she is a gold medalist as with Freeyah. Aiming to conquer All Lands, Cendra and Bangas' Leader, Max Banga who is also Laurie's father, have created a passage to Cosima City from Northern Downs and to Gaea's homes, specifically targeting London homes. Being the most dangerous monster of All Lands, only Max Banga does know where the Isu Thunder Key and the 4 Necessities with their sister, Cosima, are located. Freeyah and her friends must find the Four Sisters to bring her father back from the dead and keep her memories.
Freeyah opposes Cendra and Max Banga. With the help of Wan Wei and Laurie, she gets the Isu Thunder Key, finds the 4 Necessities and Cosima, and attempts to seal the passage. However, Cendra snatches the key and, with Max Banga, they destroy the central memory cord of all humanity, causing Freeyah to forget her mission, and completely lose her memories, as with Wan Wei and Laurie. The Four Necessities advise Freeyah to visit her dream home in Cosima Hills. When Freeyah gets there, she confronts her worst memories that have survived, forcing her to meet her dad and discover who she really is. Freeyah opposes Cendra and Max Banga as All Lands collapse. She creates an internal symbolic connection with her father, adapting his skills to fight to get her life back.
In the final conflict, Freeyah redefines her world, breaks her family's old patterns, and has one shot to run for her life and everyone else's before the entire realm collapses. Ultimately, Freeyah meets her father, saves humanity's memories and the world, and gets her life back with her mother.