In the first book of a heart-pounding new YA fantasy series, an orphaned teen is thrust into a divine war—and must decide whether awakening his true powers is worth risking his soul.
Intrigued? Read on to discover the synopsis and an excerpt from May a Divine Awaken by Michael A. Tinsley, which releases on November 3rd 2026.
For sixteen-year-old Marcus Azure, the unusual blemishes on his skin have always made him feel insecure and unwanted. Orphaned at a young age, stares and whispers incite rumors of him being cursed. But all Marcus wants is to gain respect as a worthy soldier and a protector for his land.
Hoping to gain acceptance and silence the rumors, Marcus competes for a coveted spot in the Land of Aypha’s elite military. Before Marcus can earn his place, a mysterious group of assassins incinerate his village, destroying all he knew. On his own once again, Marcus’s quest for answers takes him on a journey across new lands where he discovers his world is ruled by Divines—powerful warriors with abilities to manipulate metals, harness the wind, and control the shape of water. As Marcus plunges deeper into the Divine world, he encounters the former Queen of the Aminas, Sinclair Bonet. She reveals the attack on his land is tied to something far worse. A war across the eight Divine Lands of Pyris is coming. If Marcus and others are to survive, he’ll need to awaken a secret yet volatile power within him.
As the battle rages closer and secrets unravel, Marcus must confront the truth of whether the blemishes he was shunned for are truly a curse or a sign of something greater.
EXCERPT
When I wave to my squad mates, their laughter halts and they groan at my presence.
“Are you guys ready for Trials? I hear we’re up first this year,” I say.
“Ah, relax, Patches. It’s not like we can get further demoted,” says my squad leader, Bamboo. A ten-year vet, Bamboo is by far the oldest and most out of shape soldier within Squad 50. For whatever reason, Bamboo glorifies complacency and apparently has been this way ever since being removed from Squad 20 for conduct infractions.
“Trials is pointless, Patches. None of us are even competing to enter a new squad. Last place is perfectly fine.” Because of the skin blemishes around my right eye and hands, Bamboo and the others call me Patches. Between that and Sun Cursed, I’m not sure which is worse, but I know how it makes me feel, and how it dims my small ember of joy.
I roll my eyes in disgust and decide to break the news to them.
“Well, you guys will have to lose without me. Today I’m declaring my intention to compete for a spot in the Lion Guard. This is the last time I’ll see you.”
A chuckle breaks out among the squad before they erupt into complete laughter. Bamboo slings his thick arm around my shoulder. “You’re right. It is the last time we’ll see you, because you’re going to
die. Take my advice, Marcus, the Lion Guard is not worth risking your life for.” Bamboo squeezes my lean arm. “Besides, it’s not like you have what it takes to become one of them.”
While Trials is a competition between fifty squads, competing for the Lion Guard is far more rewarding but risky. I’ve heard the rumors of soldiers dying but this is the only way I can prove myself.
Feeling his grin settling over me, I push away from Bamboo. He thinks I’m like him—lazy and complacent—but he’s wrong. And soon, I’ll prove it.
A loud bell rings as an announcer declares registration is now open.
“I’m heading over to register. Good luck, guys,” I say.
Bamboo sneers. “Wish you the same, but you’ll either be dead or back here with us. Same crappy duties, same crappy squad,” he says while the rest of my squad mates chuckle.
They’re idiots.
I make my way through the crowd of sweaty soldiers and head straight to one of the registration tents.
I find Asher as well as my other friend, Darius, waiting outside. I salute Darius by placing my fist over my chest, which is protocol when in the presence of a Divine.
Darius waves off the salute. “Relax, Marcus. You don’t have to be so formal around me, at least not right now.” Darius has close-shaven hair and wears a long-sleeve black tunic with a gold lion crest on the heart side of his chest.
Like Asher and me, Darius grew up in Eden, a vast village that lies between the Great Lands of Aypha and Amina. Separated by gender, males live in Aypha, while females reside in Amina. Only in Eden are both genders allowed to live together. But at thirteen, boys and girls of Divine blood are ripped from Eden and sent to defend their respective lands. As Norms—that is, those without Divine blood—Asher and I had nothing to worry about. We could have stayed in Eden for the rest of our lives. While many children of Divine blood feared being taken away, I loved the thought of it. To me, becoming a soldier meant becoming something worthy of life. A soldier has purpose—to protect and ensure their homeland has peace. When I discovered I could join the Aypha military without being a Divine, I quickly jumped at the chance, as did Asher. It wasn’t till after joining that we learned that interactions between Divines and Norms aren’t common—with one exception.
“You do understand what this means if you become soldiers of the Lion Guard?” Darius asks. “You will be accompanying Divines on real missions.”
“Yes, we get it,” Asher says, annoyed. “Still doesn’t make you better than us.”
There’s always been a friendly rivalry among the three of us. But no one is more competitive than Asher.
“You just won’t let it go, will you?” says Darius. He smiles and extends his hand to Asher. “You’re just as talented as me. Just because I’m a Divine, I would never think I was better than you.” Darius turns to me, and the corners of his lips turn upward.
“Now, did Asher put you up to this? I can see why he would want to join the Guard, but I was surprised to hear that you do as well.”
“It was actually my idea. I’m tired of being at the bottom. Tired of—”
I cut my words short, bottling up how I feel.
Darius nods in understanding. “Well, I’m glad both of you are competing, and once you make it in the Guard, there’s so much I want to show you. Being back with my dad, there’s so many things he’s taught me that I just didn’t get in Eden.” Darius cuts his smile back, not wanting to offend me. “Hey, if you all are ready, let’s go ahead and proceed.”
Darius holds back the threaded beads of the tent entrance to let us pass through. His gesture is something a Divine would normally never do for a Norm.
Inside the tent, there’s already a long line of soldiers waiting to register. When we reach the front, we find an older man with salt-and-pepper hair sitting at a long wooden table. On both sides of him are stacks of papyrus paper and he yawns when we approach.
“Name and current squad,” the registrar says bluntly, his eyes never looking up.
“Marcus Azure, Squad Fifty.”
“Asher Bomani, Squad Fifty.”
The man grabs a stack of papers and rummages through them until he finds our profile information. He takes a reed pen and dips it into a bowl of ink. “Which squad are you competing to enter?”
“The Lion Guard,” I say.
A wave of wrinkles appears along the man’s forehead. The black ink at the tip of his pen spills and stains my profile sheet.
“You can’t be serious,” the man says.
“Very serious,” I respond.
“But you need a Divine to authorize your participation.”
“That would be me,” says Darius, approaching the table.
The registrar looks up and upon seeing the gold lion emblem on Darius’s tunic, he rises to his feet and salutes.
“At ease,” Darius says.
The man returns to his seat, disbelief still lingering on his face. “My apologies but this is the first time we’ve had anyone from such low-ranking squads compete. There’s a high chance they could be—”
“We know the consequences,” I snap, my sharp tone catches everyone off guard, including me.
There’s a long pause from the registrar before he finally concedes and pulls two dark gray training suits from under the table. “You two will need to hurry up and change,” he says.
A confused look appears on Asher’s face. “And why’s that? Trials isn’t until tomorrow.”
The registrar looks to Darius, as do we.
“Trials is tomorrow for everyone who wants to be in a better squad,” Darius says. “But for those who want to be part of something great, to be part of a command filled with Divines, the competition begins now.”
Excerpted from May a Divine Awaken by Michael A. Tinsley. Copyright © 2026 by Michael A. Tinsley. Published in the United States by Storehouse Voices, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC.
