Congratulations to author Carol Oates on the release of her latest book, Something Wicked.
Summary
Infected by the vampire virus on the streets of Dublin in 1886, the search for a cure brought Henry Clayton to London and to the brink of madness. Salvation and friendship arrived in the form of Dougal, an immortal Highlander with a devilish sense of humor and a love of life. Amidst turmoil in vampire society, Henry returns to modern day Dublin. The Circle, a cult determined to awaken their Celtic blood god, the first vampire, is once again active.When Henry meets a young American woman who sees past his human pretense, he fears exposure. However, his fear is overshadowed by curiosity. What is the source of the strange energy between them? Why are vampires stalking her? Determined to find answers, Henry takes Ari into his home and under his protection. As their connection grows, Henry begins to suspect Ari isn’t what she claims to be. Their shared history may hold the answers to his uncontrollable bouts of rage and thirst. Perhaps, even a cure for his wicked blood.
Happy New Year! It looks like 2015 is off to a great start for so many of our favorite authors, including Carol Oates, whose next book is due to be released on January 20th, but in the meantime, today we get to show you its cover! We’ll be sharing a couple of book teasers before its release!
Enjoy!
From OmniFicPublishing a New Adult Novel
Historical/Contemporary Supernatural
Releasing January 20, 2015
Summary
Infected by the vampire virus on the streets of Dublin in 1886, the search for a cure brought Henry Clayton to London and to the brink of madness. Salvation and friendship arrived in the form of Dougal, an immortal Highlander with a devilish sense of humor and a love of life.Amidst turmoil in vampire society, Henry returns to modern day Dublin. The Circle, a cult determined to awaken their Celtic blood god, the first vampire, is once again active.When Henry meets a young American woman who sees past his human pretense, he fears exposure. However, his fear is overshadowed by curiosity. What is the source of the strange energy between them? Why are vampires stalking her? Determined to find answers, Henry takes Ari into his home and under his protection.As their connection grows, Henry begins to suspect Ari isn’t what she claims to be. Their shared history may hold the answers to his uncontrollable bouts of rage and thirst. Perhaps, even a cure for his wicked blood.
Carol Oates came into the world on Christmas morning, in an elevator. Raised just across the street from the childhood home of Bram Stoker, author of Dracula, it was only a matter of time before Carol’s love of all things supernatural would emerge.
She began experimenting with fiction at school and keeps the notebook containing her first unpublished novel in her desk drawer. Over three decades later, all her stories still begin life scrawled on paper. When not writing, Carol can be found exploring history, old buildings, castles, and tombs.
The adventurous journey of Kaye and Samuel continues! Congratulations to our friend, Sarah Latchaw on the release of her 2nd novel, Skygods, which happens to be the sequel to Hydraulic Level 5!
Synopsis
Kaye Trilby and her ex-husband, world-famous author Samuel Cabral, vowed to fight for their rekindled love in rain or shine. They didn’t realize they’d be caught in a deluge so quickly.
A near-fatal skydiving accident shows Kaye how her reckless behavior affects the ones she loves. But while she knows Samuel is afraid to lose her again, she isn’t ready to give up the thrill of the wild backcountry.
Something darker is slipping into Samuel’s mind, though. Just as all of Hollywood is bracing for his blockbuster book-to-movie adaptation, his polish seems to be deteriorating. When he appears on Kaye’s doorstep late one night in a rumpled tuxedo, erratic and agitated, it seems that romance with her ex might be her biggest leap yet. A string of failed relationships has pushed Samuel to the brink, the fall-out leaving him in a dark place—a place where Kaye is powerless to help him. She is reluctantly drawn back into Samuel’s glittering and backbiting world of celebrity, all the while clinging to the steadfast peaks of home.
Can Kaye risk her heart with Samuel a second time? Will they ever find their blue skies?
Wishing author, Sarah Latchaw, the best of luck with her newest book! And wishing YOU luck if you decide to enter this awesome giveaway contest! It’s chock full of great prizes!!!
You can download your Kindle copy of Skygods via Amazon TODAY and, if you’ve yet to read Hydraulic Level 5, HOT TIP, get it on it now, while it is only 99 cents!
May you be in the throes of a hot summer romance (novel)!
You’re not? Then may we suggest one for you?
I meant to do this review sooner, like back with the blog tour in May sooner, because I had read the book back then but certain members of my household had other ideas about how I should spend my time. Tea parties. Vacation. Water parks. Puppy training. Swimming. Gardening.
And then I couldn’t quite get my hands on my book. A member of my family decided to commandeer it and challenge me about trying to steal her boy away from her.
Oh Ansel, you sweet, filthy boy…You really are the cat’s meow! Purrrr!
Sweet, Filthy Boy by Christina Lauren
Summary:
One-night stands are supposed to be with someone convenient, or wickedly persuasive, or regrettable. They aren’t supposed to be with someone like him.
But after a crazy Vegas weekend celebrating her college graduation—and terrified of the future path she knows is a cop-out—Mia Holland makes the wildest decision of her life: follow Ansel Guillaume—her sweet, filthy fling—to France for the summer and just…play.
When feelings begin to develop behind the provocative roles they take on, and their temporary masquerade adventures begin to feel real, Mia will have to decide if she belongs in the life she left because it was all wrong, or in the strange new one that seems worlds away.
Spoiler Free Review:
Loved it!!!
I guess it had been awhile since I had read the summary as to what this book was about when I dived in and started reading it because when I got to the point when Mia had left Las Vegas (where she met Ansel) and suddenly was faced with the choice of leaving for Paris for the summer, I honestly did not know if she would go or not.
Not a spoiler alert:She goes! Wait, that is not the right way to say it. Officially, she makes the choice to accept his offer and escapes to Paris.
My own summer has been pretty great so far, and yet even so, I want to escape to Paris with Ansel for the summer! I have no idea why Mia hesitated.
(We’re going with Ansel as Theo James. Is anyone opposed to this? No? Good!)
In the beginning of the story, we learn that Mia grew up dancing. It’s been her passion in life wanting to dance professionally someday, but she has gotten a bit derailed from dancing, and she’s at the point where everyone around her age is making choices about what to do — or at least what to do next — with their lives. She knows her parents are expecting her to make big choices about her life, too, which is something that is weighing heavy on her mind.
With her two best girlfriends, she heads to Las Vegas for a girls’ weekend. Three best girlfriends end up meeting 3 best guy friends, but they’re in Vegas, and despite what they say, there are a few things that can be done in Vegas that don’t have stay in Vegas, like getting married, which Mia does.
But let’s back up and talk about something this book does so well, something I like to call, the bait and pitch.
The bait–It’s that first encounter between a potential couple. The girls are in a bar, and as Mia’s eyes scan the room, she meets the eyes of Ansel. Eye contact across the room turns into two strangers mouthing the word “hi” to each other.
and–Despite Mia describing her insides as melting at the site of Ansel as a first impression, the two don’t find their way to one another. Mia and her friends have since left the bar, and as a reader, the anticipation is building for the pitch, the point in which these two will find each other again. Will they bump into each other? Will one seek the other out? Will they happen to ride the same elevator together? We don’t know yet. We do know it’s Vegas and anything can bring these two together and at this point, we are dying for them to meet!
pitch–After a night of dancing and having fun, the girls are back in their room, only Mia can’t seem to sleep. This is when the encounter happens! I’m not going to ruin it for you if you haven’t read it yet. I’m just going to reassure you that these two “officially meeting” happens quickly. Oh, and Ansel is shirtless.
(Oh G-d, the name of that tumblr acct! *I die*)
It’s a pretty fun & fabulous bait and pitch in this story!! I was hooked and ready for more Mia and Ansel!
After a one-night stand, they’re married in Vegas with Ansel offering Mia to come back to Paris with him to live there for the summer, which as I stated earlier, she goes! She just got married on a drunk whim, and was supposed to just get an annulment. And yet going to Paris means delaying having to make any real-life decisions for a bit. (Decisions that she has to give a lot of thought to, while she isn’t drunk, that is.) Going means she can escape her fractured world. Going she can go be just Mia without the attachment of her past expectations of what her life would or should look like at this point.
Once in Paris, Mia can’t help but feel a bit out of place and somewhat guilty, as her new “let’s give it a go” groom must go to work every day while she is left on her own to do as she chooses. Inspired by her ability to pretend while on stage dancing, she ends up choosing to do pretend in order to better get to know her new husband. Ironically, pretending is what eventually helps Mia figure out what she is capable of doing, both in a relationship and for a career. There are a few bumps along the way, that Mia has to learn and grow from too. It’s a very satisfying end to a fun story! You’ll understand Mia’s yearning to run away and you’ll fall for Ansel. He’s self-assured, but doesn’t take everything so seriously. He’s risky but sweet and playful. He’s hot and sensual. Most of all, he’s willing to fall in love with a girl he laid eyes on across a crowded room, and that’s always sexy!
It’s still summer, and YOU deserve a quick escape to Paris for the summer in the form of this fun, light, and wonderful summer read! Get in on it now because it is the first in a new series called Wild Seasons by Christina Lauren! Their next book, Dirty Rowdy Thing is due out November 4th and will tell the story of Mia’s friend, Harlow, and her hook-up with Ansel’s friend, Finn, from the same Vegas trip. I can’t wait to see how that all played out and have the chance to revisit with Mia and Ansel.
Here’s the girls! Thanks for another great book Christina and Lo! The writing style of these two girls is well-defined by this 4th book, and there’s no telling where the collaborative efforts start and stop. Possibly they’re sharing a brain now (in addition to shoes!). We are looking forward to the continuation of Wild Seasonsnot to mention an upcoming opportunity to meet Max Stella’s little brother. 😉 For more great information on all of their books, check out www.ChristinaLaurenBooks.com
Sign up for their site so you can read an exclusive Outtake of Will and Hanna from Beautiful Player. You can read our previous review of Beautiful Player and interview with Christina Lauren, here.
Thanks as always to Nina Bocci & Kristen Dwyer for reaching out to us!
From SR who brought us the Gabriel Series, we now have a new book to look forward to.
Synopsis
From the New York Times best selling author of the Gabriel Series comes a dark, sensual tale of romance shrouded in mystery…
Raven Wood spends her days at Florence’s Uffizi Gallery restoring fine works of Renaissance art. But an innocent walk home after an evening with friends changes her life forever. When she intervenes in the senseless beating of a homeless man, his attackers turn on her, dragging her into an alley. Raven is only semi-conscious when their assault is interrupted by a cacophony of growls followed by her attacker’s screams. Mercifully, she blacks out, but not before catching a glimpse of a shadowy figure who whispers to her…
Cassita vulneratus.
When Raven awakes, she is inexplicably changed. She returns to the Uffizi, but no one recognizes her and more disturbingly, she discovers that she’s been absent an entire week. With no recollection of the events leading up to her disappearance, Raven also learns that her absence coincides with one of the largest robberies in Uffizi history – the theft of a set of priceless Botticelli illustrations. When the baffled police force identifies her as its prime suspect, Raven is desperate to clear her name. She seeks out one of Florence’s wealthiest and elusive men in an attempt to uncover the truth about her disappearance. Their encounter leads Raven to a dark underworld whose inhabitants kill to keep their secrets…
Author Bio
I’m interested in the way literature can help us explore aspects of the human condition – particularly suffering, sex, love, faith, and redemption. My favourite stories are those in which a character takes a journey, either a physical journey to a new and exciting place, or a personal journey in which he or she learns something about himself/herself.
I’m also interested in how aesthetic elements such as art, architecture, and music can be used to tell a story or to illuminate the traits of a particular character. In my writing, I combine all of these elements with the themes of redemption, forgiveness, and the transformative power of goodness.
I try to use my platform as an author to raise awareness about the following charities: Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep Foundation, WorldVision, Alex’s Lemonade Stand, and Covenant House. For more information, see my Twitter account.
Wow, we are just zipping through May, and that means so many of our favorite authors have books and sequels that we’ve heard so much about, finally being released!
Available today is Inked Armor, by Helena Hunting! Happy Reading!
Synopsis: In this follow-up to Clipped Wings, the emotional love story continues between Hayden and Tenley; two young people who desperately want to love and be loved but are afraid to completely let go of their pasts.
In the wake of losing Tenley Page, tattooist Hayden Stryker’s tumultuous past is haunting him. Plagued by nightmares about the murder of his parents, Hayden reaches out again to Tenley. Having run from the man she doesn’t believe she deserves, Tenley finally lays her guilt to rest. Despite their intense physical attraction, Hayden and Tenley struggle to repair their fragile emotional connection. As Hayden gets closer to the truth, he must find a way to reconcile his guilt over his parents’ death in order to keep the woman who finally cracked his armor, and found her way into his heart.
You’ve read Clipped Wings. And its prequel Cupcakes & Ink.
You’re so close to getting the sequel Inked Armor on its upcoming May 13th release day that you can almost taste the cupcake icing.
You’ve pre-ordered your copy of Cracks in the Armor due out June 23, 2014, and put it at the top of you ‘Beach Reading’ list.
And today we are happy to help spread the word that author Helena Hunting now has a new novella called Between the Cracks available to help bridge the wait! Wow, she’s been busy!
The cover falls in line perfectly with Helena’s other covers, so we know right away that the novella will have some basis in her first two books and include characters we’ve already come to love along with some new!
Synopsis:
Tattooist Chris Zelter doesn’t always make the best decisions when it comes to the people he cares about, or the women he gets involved with. Things have changed recently, though. Chris has lost interest in casual flings as he finds himself wrapped up in Sarah Adamson, a waitress at the local strip club he frequents. It takes months of persistent attention before she finally agrees to date him, and he’s determined not to mess it up.
Just as things are finally going his way, Chris receives a troubled phone call in the middle of the night from Hayden Stryker, his best friend and business partner. Unexpected revelations and the sudden departure of his girlfriend, Tenley, has nearly sent Hayden over the edge. Add in a speeding ticket and an impounded car, and Hayden is balanced on the precipice of a total meltdown. Worried about his friend, Chris sets out on a rescue road trip, first to get Hayden, and then to bring back Tenley. The two men run into unforeseen roadblocks, proving even the best intentions don’t guarantee results.
Chris and Hayden return to Chicago empty handed, and Chris is left feeling as if he’s let down all the people who matter, especially Sarah. But Chris discovers that sometimes the best way to deal with failure is to find a way to forget about it. And losing himself in Sarah is the perfect way to do just that.
****BONUS: You’ll be able to get it for free through iTune/iBookstore and Kobo! Check Helena’s website for the link! Or, it’s currently 99 cents on Amazon! Don’t let this one slip between the cracks--get it today!
A Chick Kitt Confession: I see this cover…and I start singing Taylor Swift ….”I knew you were trouble when you walked in…”
Because one look at this perfectly-poised man with the suggestion of his guitar and his rock star crowd and I already know that like the female protagonist in this story, Holliday Hughes, I’m in “trouble, trouble, trouble…”
The writing is on the wall, (look closely), Jack Dalton is going to be one book boyfriend that will be hard to resist! Why even try?
Synopsis
You don’t choose when.
You don’t choose where.
And you don’t get to choose who you fall in love with.
The minute he opened his sexy mouth, Holliday Hughes should have known Jack Dalton was trouble. His smooth pickup lines, broad shoulders, and ridiculously handsome face charmed her right out of her clothes. She gave into her desires, the instant attraction blinding her to the obvious.
One night. That was all it took for Holliday’s world to be flipped on its axis. Jack Dalton was cocky. Smug. Volatile. Demanding. He ignited something deep inside her like no other, but there was something more to this brooding bad boy. There was a dark side to him she couldn’t help but be drawn to.
Torn between what she knew about him and a mysterious side he tried to hide, could she walk away or was he simply too hard to resist?
We’ve got our copies! With the release of the book only a couple of days ago, its Kindle version remains 99 cents through Amazon! What chick can resist that price? We are glad to see our friend, S.L. Scott, has published yet another book! Congratulations to her! Amazing cover & best of luck!
We hope you caught the radio interview Helena Hunting, author of Clipped Wings, did with Lori Ness, host of Northwest Prime and guest co-host, Chick Lisa. Helena was very sincere about her characters’ roots, humble about her experience leading up to publishing, honest about her covers, and grateful to the support of fans like you! Helena is genuine and gave an amazing interview!
On the side, after the interview, we made one more inquiry out of Helena, which she graciously answered.
If you could hand pick an artist to be involved in writing music inspired by the love story of Hayden & Tenley, whom would you choose?
“Prior to the show I would have picked either Christina Perri or The Neighbourhood, but Lori introduced me to a new band called Ninth Floor Mannequin and their music, along with the story behind their lead singer Jarrod amazes me and I love their sound. So if I could pic any band to write a soundtrack for the book, it’d be them for sure.”
Here are some links to catch up on more information/interviews with Helena:
The sequel, Inked Armor, will be released on May 13th! Look for the F2F chicks to be participating in that blog tour! And, if you are heading to the upcoming RT Convention in New Orleans, Helena wants you to stop by and say hello to her!
Today we are participating in the Blog Tour for the new novel by Carol Oates, Shades of Avalon. It’s prequel, Shades of Atlantis, took the reader from Maine, where brother and sister Triona and Ben Pryor grew up, to England and then eventually to the author’s native country, Ireland. Shades of Avalon taps into the popular Celtic tales of Excalibur, King Arthur, Merlin, Camelot, and Guinevere. The author enjoys her Irish heritage and exploring the history of Ireland, so her readers are fortunate to benefit from this and have so much of Ireland’s countryside and Irish myth weaved into her books.
Here’s a little history of Ireland in Hollywood that Carol wishes to share today!
Excalibur Drive and the Powerscourt Estate served as inspiration for a backdrop during the final chapters of Shades of Avalon. A journey took in some of the route, passed through the village ofEnniskerry and ended at Powerscourt. As hard as I tried, I doubt I did the scenery justice. (A/N: Looks amazing to us!)
The island of Ireland has a thriving film industry. One place in particular has proven extremely popular and adaptable for the screen. From granite peaks reaching 2,500 feet, to untouched blog lands, to beautiful beaches, quaint villages, waterfalls, lakes, forests, valleys, wildlife, and enchanting estates, Wicklow, known as “The Garden of Ireland,” has it all.
Also, with two film studios, it’s not at all surprising filmmakers have been coming to Wicklow from all over the world since the early days of film. Everyone who’s anyone has filmed here, including Fred Astaire, Richard Burton, Katherine Hepburn, James Cagney, Meryl Streep, Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Liam Nelson…even this year’s Best Actor—MatthewMcConaughey. But he’s not the only Oscar winner. Dozens of Academy Award winners and nominees have come from Wicklow productions. Ten years before The Godfather, Francis Ford Coppola directed his first movie in Wicklow.
Productions filmed in Ireland include:
A Game of Thrones (Belfast)
Saving Private Ryan (Wexford)
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (Clare)
The Princess Bride (Clare)
Moby Dick (Cork)
Hellboy 2 (Antrim)
Dracula Untold (2014) (Belfast)
Productions filmed in Wicklow include:
The Crying Game
A Lion in Winter
The Spy Who Came in From the Cold
The Count of Monte Cristo
Braveheart
Becoming Jane
King Arthur
Vikings
The Tudors
Camelot
That’s just a fraction. And, of course, there’s the 1981 epic production of Excalibur, which brings us to Excalibur Drive, a 42 mile round trip that takes in dramatic cliffs, valleys, and loughs.
highest village in Ireland (Roundwood)
tallest waterfall at Powerscourt
19th century Italian gardens at Powerscourt
oldest established seaside town at Bray
A/N: We’re hoping there’s one more series to be filmed in Ireland in the near future…
Wow! This would make a fab movie poster! j/s
Chick Kitt’s Review with Limited Spoilers
Because I loved Shades of Atlantis,I have always been thrilled about Carol’s forthcoming sequel. I wanted to stay longer in the world from this book! When it ended, I felt like I had just ‘met’ so many interesting characters and hated to say goodbye without getting to know them fully. But finding out that the POV was switching from Triona to her younger brother Ben’s POV for Shades of Avalon made me a little hesitant. I had enjoyed the love story between Triona and Caleb and diving into this world Carol created where the fringes of magic, myth, and legend had met and tied together for an engaging story. As a female reading a female protagonist, I was able to feel the love story a certain way, claim the experience. With the POV switched to Ben, a 19-year-old guy, in Shades of Avalon, I guess I wasn’t sure I would get the same amount of emotion and plot from the book.
When I began to read Shades of Atlantis, I was hooked immediately, knowing I was driven by my own heart’s desire to see the love story through and reach some kind of HEA for the female protagonist. In reading the sequel through Ben’s eyes, I found myself driven more so by a sense of adventure–the journey, thrill, and excitement! And that’s what you’ll find in this book–a fantastic journey of magical beings, Arthurian legend, a well-developed plot, and surprising interaction between all the characters, all the while, with the underlying simplistic tenderness of the bonds of love–old, new, and renewed.
The next chapter in the Shades series begins with an elaborate act of revenge against Triona that results in Caleb being captured. Triona’s immediate and “extended family” is brought together to plan how to get Caleb back, even if it comes to a battle. I say ‘extended family’ because characters, old and new, are added along the way, each with their own specific skill set or knowledge playing a part in the planning. So why is the story told from Ben’s POV? Because ultimately, he has the most to learn and discover about himself, and everyone within his family has something to teach him. He’s like an older Percy Jackson but with Celtic roots. He’s a Celtic Luke Skywalker who must learn to use the force to prepare for the battle between good and evil. Ben’s self-discoveries are not limited to what he can do as a Guardian. He seems to inherently struggle with his new life as both a husband and Guardian, constantly protesting the extra effort and sacrifices it requires from him. It’s only when he is finally willing to accept his new life on Destiny’s terms rather than his own, that he is able to fully embrace all that he can do and claim his important role within his growing family.
And make no mistake, this book is about a family forged from lineage, sacrifice, strength, support, teaching and love. And at the heart of that family is the relationship between Triona and Caleb–soul mates who form a magical super couple. Though Caleb has been captured at the beginning of this book, later on Caleb and Ben share a very interesting scene that results in this:
*swoon, swoon* So love Caleb!
There are plenty of twists, drama and deeper levels of the relationships explored along the way that make Shades of Avalon such a fun and fantastic read! And with Carol’s beautiful writing, it’s a book that can be appreciated by all ages. Here is a small passage, no doubt inspired by the pictures Carol shared above, that shows just how pleasing her words are to read:
The sky had turned dark blue with dots of white light speckled across it. The sun dipped over the horizon, leaving only a pale streak of light behind. The surrounding countryside reflected off the still lake as though the liquid was black glass. Another time the setting would have been idyllic, an old English country mansion set into a picturesque valley, the fabricated attempting to dominate nature and coming up short. Right now none of us were in the frame of mind to appreciate it. In the absence of rain clouds, we created our own. The atmosphere around us sucked the life out of the air, leaving it stale and lifeless.
There is so much going on in this story with both a buildup to a mysterious final showdown and a continuus unraveling of details right until the very end! I’m certain you’ll love this book and that it will leave you hungry for the third one!
Bookmark this post, because you’ll want to come back later and read this …
EXCLUSIVE OUTTAKE from Shades of Avalon
(Triona Returns to London)
The door of the coffee shop creaked when I pushed it open. It probably wasn’t loud enough for humans to notice but the high pitched squeak made my teeth ache.
“I’m sorry. I was just closing up,” the young girl behind the counter said, annunciating each word in a smooth British accent. I wasn’t inclined to narrow the origin further.
The place was empty, but just how I remembered it. My eyes darted to the table I’d been sitting at the day I’d been convinced I saw Caleb across the street. The attractive man at the next table had noticed my distress and chased me outside. It turned out John wasn’t a customer; he owned the coffeeshop.
Rain drizzled over London and had soaked my hair and chilled me to the bone during the walk from the Underground station. I hadn’t slept on the flight and it gave me time to reconsider. Perhaps Ben had a point and seeing John—allowing him to see me—was a bad idea. I couldn’t be sure what effect it would have on his memories.
I raked sodden hair from my face with both hands and bit my lip when another wave of anguish threatened to well up. The painful lump in my chest wouldn’t dislodge, but I ignored it as best I could. I refuse to relinquish control of this situation to some random Guardian watchdog. I’dexposed John to my world and he was my responsibility.
“I could make you some tea?” the girl offered, her ruby lips twisting up on one side. “Are you okay?”
A panicked laugh escaped before I could stop it. She came out from behind the counter. The shock of red slicing through her short black hair caught the light and gleamed. Fake eyelashes batted like butterflies fluttering their wings.
Some part of me must have thought something of Caleb would be here. Maybe that I could feel him here like I had that day. But I didn’t, and the hollow left behind by his absence caused a fissure to open in my heart.
“Do you need some help?”
“No, I can handle it.”I turned to leave. I had John’s address, although I’d never been to his home. It’d been one means of keeping him at a distance, of not allowing him to insert me into his life.
“That’s what everyone says…until they can’t,” she said and closed the door, smiling up at me. “Let me make you that tea.”
I nodded, but flinched when she touched my arm. The girl drew back and pointed over to a table. My entire body was a live wire, a bundle of nerves stretched as tightly as guitar strings.
The chairs were turned upside down on the tables and I spotted a mop and bucket in the corner. Obviously I’d disturbed her, but tea and a moment to gather myself sounded good. I pulled a chair down and sat while the girl busied herself behind the counter. A few moments later she placed a steaming mug of black tea in front of me and handed over a wad of paper towel.
“To dry off…” A dark eyebrow arched in question.
“Triona.”
Her expression shifted to surprise so fleetingly that I almost missed it. Her brown eyes narrowed as she stood back, her gaze passing over me carefully. She huffed, as though unimpressed with what she saw, before returning to the counter. “Emma,” she said, hoisting herself up to sit with her legs dangling. Thick-soled boots knocked against the wood.
“You’re John’s sister.” It wasn’t a question. Now she’d given me a name, I knew I’d seen those brown eyes before. Although painted in black and green make-up, they were John’s eyes. Her hair had been the same golden as his in the picture he’d shown to me. She’d been a few years younger too. It seemed she also shared his kindness to strangers.
“And you’re the girl who broke my brother’s heart.” There was more than a note of a challenge in her voice and I rose to it.
“I don’t think I did that.”
She laughed with a mocking smile and leaned back on her hands. “Oh come on, just us girls here now. No need to come over all coy. He pretends like he hardly knew you. Like it’s too painful to acknowledge all that time you spent together.”
I looked down to the wisps of stream rising from the mug and recalled the dark mist descending on the Hill of Tara. He didn’t want to be a part of that world.
“What, you thought I didn’t know about you. I was in boarding school in France, not on Mars.” Emma sighed. “I should warn you. He’s not what you remember.”
My head shot up. “What do you mean?”
Her nose scrunched and a ruby piercing on one side glistened. “You’ll see.” She paused and her brow crinkled. “That is what you’re here for isn’t it? You came to see Johnny?”
I nodded and she clucked her tongue, hopping down with a quiet thump. Emma dipped her head to one side. “Why do I get the feeling trouble is about to get very real around here?”
As always, we wish to thank both Carol Oates and Traci from Omnific Publishing for giving us the opportunity to help promote this series!
Don’t miss out on your chance to win tons of fabulous prizes in this giveaway hosted by Carol and Omnific.
Fics2Flicks 