EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT: Ruling Destiny by Alyson Noël

Stealing Infinity is one of those books that you just keep going back to, desperate for the next chapter. We have the best news! The sequel, Ruling Destiny, releases June 6–and we have an exclusive excerpt to keep you on your toes!

For a handful of seconds, it feels so empowering to act like that, talk like that.

But that doesn’t mean I get what I want.

Because the blue-eyed man takes one look at my dagger and another at me, then breaks into a fit of unrestrained laughter.

Seriously, he stands right there before me and laughs in my face.

So, I do the only thing I can think of—I lunge.

Here, before the rows of dour-faced nobles encased in gilt frames—before the towering bookshelves overflowing with Captain Cooks, Jane Austens, and Sir Walter Scotts—I aim the lethal tip of my dagger straight for my enemy’s heart.

Only to be confronted by the gleaming blade of his much larger sword—a broadsword, it turns out—that I’d failed to notice until now.

“Seems you’re not as well trained, nor as well prepared, as you think,” he says, voice edged with the conviction of one who has all the proof that he needs.

My arm is stretched as far as it will extend, and still, there’s a notable gap between my blade and his chest.

While his own arm is casually, comfortably bent, his hand secured in the basket hilt, as the tip of his double-edged blade comes perilously close to piercing my throat.

I’ve made a terrible mistake. All this time, I’ve been worried about Mason when it’s clearly me who needs saving.

I stand before my nameless opponent, knees shaking as I force down the scream building at the back of my throat, knowing I need to keep quiet, keep a clear head. I can’t afford to let on just how terrified I really am.

If you’re going to pull your dagger, you must be willing to use it, Braxton once said.

Well, I was willing to use it. Still am, now more than ever. But seeing as how I can’t even reach my target, it’s become glaringly apparent that’s no longer an option.

So, I try another approach.

Dropping all pretense, I say, “So this is it? You slash my neck and leave me for dead in the study?”

His face breaks into a grin. But, more importantly, his blade remains pressed to my skin. “There it is,” he says. “Your true face. Tell me, Time Jumper. What year are you from?”

“I’m from 1813,” I say. “Just like you.”

“Lies,” he growls, prodding his blade deeper, poking a small hole in my flesh.

“What makes you say that?” I choke out the words, knowing I’m taking a risk by calling his bluff, but the more I can convince him to talk, the more time I’ll have to plan my next move.

“You don’t fit, you don’t blend, and you clearly don’t belong in this century,” he says.

Before I have a chance to respond, his eyes spark on mine as the tip of his blade slides clean across my throat.

Interested in seeing more? Keep an eye out for a second sneak peak at the anticipated sequel!

The second I stepped through the doors of Gray Wolf Academy, my world disintegrated. Here, time is malleable. It can be manipulated, shifted. Changed. And for those of us who Trip—or travel through time—the possibilities are infinite and perilous.

Now my life is caught in the secrets of everyone around me. Arthur, the eccentric billionaire who rules this school. Killian, who could be the only honest person here…or the biggest liar. And Braxton, magnetic, gorgeous, and unfathomable. The only thing I trust about him is our electric connection.

Whether we’re Tripping through Renaissance Italy or thieving from a ball in Regency England, my life’s become a web of lies and strange truths. And beneath the surface is an elaborate puzzle, filled with cryptic symbols and priceless treasures scattered across history—all somehow connected to my strange ability to see through time.

But Arthur has a dangerously ambitious agenda. And if what my dad taught me is true, I’m not just a threat to everyone at Gray Wolf.

…I’m a threat to time itself.

RULING DESTINY by Alyson Noël releases June 6, 2023! Find out where to preorder it here.

Alyson Noël is the #1 NYT best-selling author of many award-winning and critically acclaimed novels for readers of all ages. With 9 NYT bestsellers and over 8 million copies in print, her books have been translated into 36 languages, sold in over 200 countries, have made the NYT, USA Today, LA Times, Publisher’s Weekly, Wall Street Journal, NCIBA, and Walmart Bestsellers lists, as well as several international bestsellers lists. Born and raised in Orange County, California, she’s lived in both Mykonos and Manhattan and is now settled back in Southern California. You can learn more about her books at www.alysonnoel.com.