Monday, February 29, 2016

"Ready For Flynn" by K. L. Shandwick

NEW RELEASE
Ready For Flynn,
Part 1
by K. L. Shandwick


The latest release by K. L. Shandwick is live! Ready For Flynn, Part 1 is a contemporary rock star romance with a difference ...


For more books by this author, please check out my blog post on Gibson's Legacy and my blog post on Everything Is Yours.

Description
At fifteen years old, Valerie Darsin, was loved and cherished by her brothers and boyfriend. Her small town world was happy and secure until a sudden betrayal forced her to flee. Returning home, Valerie found support in Flynn Docherty-a guy who left her with unfamiliar feelings when he disappeared from her life. Valerie learned to move on, until a life-changing event brought Flynn back, but was she ready?
Has she ever been ready for Flynn?


Praise for the Book
"The story weaves around both their lives incredibly well, taking you with them through the highs and lows. I loved it and definitely didn't want it to end there ... luckily this is just part one ... " ~ A Book Lovers Emporium
"Ready for Flynn is a beautiful story that captures your heart and soul." ~ Ann
"There are some emotional parts to this, a couple of twists that you don't expect and lots of HOT scenes! The story had me gripped and I loved it! Flynn is definitely another one to add to the BBF list!!" ~ Sarah
"Omg what can I say about this book ... It's awesome!!!! This is such a heart wrenching story keep the tissues handy." ~ Marilyn
"I absolutely loved the story and it took a turn that I was not expecting, it took me by surprise." ~ Louise


About the Author
K. L. Shandwick lives on the outskirts of London. She started writing after a challenge by a friend when she commented on a book she read. The result of this was The Everything Trilogy. Her background has been mainly in the health and social care sector in the UK. She is still currently a freelance or self- employed professional in this field. Her books tend to focus on the relationships of the main characters. Writing is a form of escapism for her and she is just as excited to find out where her characters take her as she is when she reads another author's work.

Links

Sunday, February 28, 2016

"Possessed" by Delilah Packet

NEW RELEASE and EXCERPT
Possessed:
A Medieval Tale of Sex and Horror
by Delilah Packet


Possessed is the debut novel by author Delilah Packet. Delilah joins me today to share an excerpt from the book.

Description
Don't mess with this evil witch - run-of-the-mill medieval horrors are kindergarten games to her.
Love, Sex, Romance. But all these things will lead you to Medieval Horror. Can you cope with it? Not for the faint-hearted.
Edwina moves into a five hundred year old cottage and inadvertently enters a time warp, which takes her back to Medieval England, where she meets Edward, her former self from a previous incarnation.
Edward is a man who firmly believes he is evolving at a spiritual level; however, he also believes that his need for sexual gratification may hold him back. Being submissive and enjoying being chastised, he hopes that his deep thoughts about this do not lead him to being chastised in a severe manner.
Whilst working for Queen Anne of Scotland, Edward realises that his sexual thoughts about being chastised in a moderate way, are now manifesting in an unbearable continuous series of events which are played out by him being restrained naked in a medieval pillory.
He eventually understands that thoughts are real forces, and forces that eventually lead him to the Scottish Maiden, the Scottish name for Guillotine.
Discovering more about herself than she could have ever thought possible, Edwina unknowingly draws an evil entity back into the Twenty First Century, which she finds virtually impossible to eradicate from her body.
The entity, named The Tigress, wants to take her place and marry Jack, Edwina's fiancé and has the magic to make it happen, so she sends Edwina's consciousness into a dimension that is void of matter. Edwina tries to get back home, but that may prove hard without a body or sentient thought. In the meantime the Tigress forces Jack to be her sex slave.


Excerpt


Reviews
There are no reviews as yet for this NEW RELEASE. Why not be the first to leave a review?

About the Author
Reading extensively about the horrors of Medieval England, Delilah Packet realised very quickly that the respect we had in this period for our fellow men was virtually nil. Torture chambers of numerous types were to be seen everywhere. There were public hangings and floggings, and also implements that were designed to inflict the worst pain possible, such as people being sawn in half, and hung, drawn and quartered whilst still alive.
In addition to the torture that people were forced to endure, Delilah became aware that Medieval England was known to be very raunchy. Henry the VIII, King of England, even demanded that commoners must send their wives to sleep with him, and if they objected, they would suffer some horrible fate.
Knowing all of these things, Delilah became aware that not many people these days knew of these facts, and that many think that this period was really not much different to modern-day England. Consequently she decided to enlighten people by way of this novel, which takes the reader to the edge of their seats and to a nail-biting climax.

Links

Quote of the Week by Ray Bradbury

Quote of the Week
by Ray Bradbury



Saturday, February 27, 2016

"What You Don't Know Now" by Marci Diehl

INTERVIEW and GIVEAWAY
What You Don't Know Now
by Marci Diehl


What You Don't Know Now is currently on tour with Merge Publishing. The tour stops here today for my interview with author Marci Diehl, an excerpt, and a giveaway. Please be sure to join the Facebook event to follow the tour. Best of all, the book is ON SALE for only $0.99 (save $5.00) to 28 February. So get in quick!

Description
It’s the summer of 1967, and 18-year-old American Bridey McKenna is in Europe for the first time. It’s supposed to be the ultimate mother-daughter vacation, but nothing about it is working out that way. Chances for adventure, romance and enlightenment look slim-to-none until Bridey arrives in Umbria and meets Alessandro - someone who could change everything about her future. Alessandro is no ordinary singing waiter, and he’s the last person on earth Bridey’s mother wants in her daughter’s life. 

Bridey’s only hope is to connect in Rome with her worldly aunt and uncle - a man who holds a position at the British embassy in Jordan that no one ever quite defines. When an emergency takes Bridey off the tour, on to Athens, and further into her aunt and uncle’s world than Bridey ever dreamed, the complex terrain of family, love and womanhood holds a surprising itinerary.


Book Video


Excerpt


Praise for the Book
"Against the backdrop of Germany, Italy, and Greece, Bridey McKenna’s summer adventure plays out in ways she could have never imagined. Marci Diehl’s magical storytelling invites us to smell the sea, bask in the Mediterranean sunshine and join Bridey on an emotional journey that is an intricate blend of intrigue, sexual awakening, romance and self-discovery." ~ Kathy Johncox, author of What a Kiss Can Do
"My mouth was literally agape as I read certain sections of this fun and engrossing story." ~ Cynthia Kolko, author of Fruit of the Vine
"Reawaken your sense of adventure! Have you ever read a book that gave you the feeling of packing your bags and just going where your feet will take you? What You Don’t Know Now is definitely a book to read this summer." ~ Goodreads review by Scribes23


Interview With the Author
Author Marci Diehl joins me today to discuss her book, What You Don’t Know Now.
Marci, what genre is your book?
What You Don’t Know Now is a coming-of-age novel. This is women’s fiction (a commercial novel with a female on the brink of life change and personal growth, and includes a hopeful/upbeat ending to her romantic relationship). It also crosses into a new genre – New Adult (a genre of fiction with protagonists in the 18-25 age bracket, with a focus on issues such as leaving home, developing sexuality, and negotiating education and career choices).
Please describe the main character, Bridey McKenna.
Overprotected, raised to follow the rules, and longing for even a hint of adventure to experience, Bridey McKenna is an 18-year-old American touring Europe in the summer of 1967 with her mother, aunt and 14-year-old cousin on a 21-day, 7-country bus tour. The tour is loaded with nuns, widows, a priest and an elderly man, and worse, is inauspiciously named the Summer Vacation Pilgrimage. Smart, flippant, and self-absorbed, Bridey is a ‘60s girl with her long hair, mini dresses, and Twiggy eye makeup but she’s no hippie. She’s just graduated from an all-girls school, college-bound for Georgetown University. "She wasn’t about to follow some priest around all day. She planned on finding enlightenment in other ways."
Bridey comes from a small town in western New York State where her father is a carpenter and her mother stays at home, raising Bridey and her two brothers. But Bridey has an aunt and uncle who have lived most of her life in Pakistan, Lebanon and Jordan. Bridey idolizes her glamorous, worldly Aunt Maura while feeling intimidated by her mysterious and distant Uncle Hugh, who has a job with the British government no one talks about. Bridey’s journey causes her to question old rules and roles, and stirs her rebellion, her blossoming sexuality, and her awakened sense of miraculous possibility in life and the world around her.
What made you write this story?
When I was 18, I took a similar trip in Europe and kept a travel journal. Turning 18 is a threshold for girls – a step into early womanhood, and most 18-year-olds think they know all they need to at that stage. I think I certainly felt that way. The tour I took was so terrible I knew it would make a great (possibly funny) book someday. It wasn’t until I was grown and re-read the journal that I saw myself as an 18-year-old complaining endlessly about the misadventures of the tour, not appreciating what was before me. I did see how much I loved my family for keeping their sense of humor and bond despite separation.
I imagined a different story unfolding. It was a story about the love between mothers and daughters, aunts who were like "second mothers", and the bond of sisters. I also wanted to write about the idea of the lightning-strike of love during a summer holiday, and the question of whether you fall in love with someone because of his charisma and talent. The push-pull of love.
Our trip also included dumping that tour and heading to Athens, where my aunt, uncle and cousins were staying after being evacuated out of Jordan during wartime. The uncle character in the novel is based upon my own uncle, who was a spy for the U.S. – but I had no idea as a teen that he was an important intelligence officer. I thought the idea of writing about the "normal" side of a spy’s family life was intriguing and lent an unusual element to Bridey’s story.
Who should read your book?
It’s definitely for adults at least over 18, due to the sexual content of a couple of scenes. Who should read it? Mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts, cousins, grandmothers, nieces; women who lived through the 1960’s; anyone who took a trip to Italy or Europe and found a romance (there are more women out there that did than you may imagine!). People who are interested in history, travel, operatic tenors and their incubation, Italy, the Vietnam War era, life in the 1960’s, or Greece. Or anyone who has faced the choice of giving up what you most want to keep.
Thanks for stopping by today, Marci. Enjoy the rest of your book tour!


About the Author
Marci Diehl has been a writer ever since she was the geek who got excited when her grammar school class had to write paragraphs for English. She kept a "log" of her experiences as an 18 year old on an ill-fated bus tour of Europe. That trip became the basis for her debut novel What You Don’t Know Now.
She spent 10 years traversing the nation as a PGA Tour Wife, from the East Coast all the way to Hawaii, Jamaica and Japan. As a traveling mother of four, she wrote for national and regional magazines - Golf Digest, Golf Magazine, Success Magazine, SCORE (Canada), Jacksonville Today (Florida) on lifestyle, golf, travel, humor, and business. Behind the scenes of writing non-fiction for a living, Diehl always has a short story or novel in progress.
She's been an avid reader her entire life. When she isn't walking her dog or going to the movies for the popcorn, she is a writer, editor and producer for multi-media and marketing. She lives in the Finger Lakes area of New York State.

Giveaway
Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win some great prizes: an ebook of What You Don't Know Now (international), an autographed softcover of What You Don't Know Now (US only), or an mp3 download (international) or CD (US only) copy of "Love Songs from Italy".

Links

Friday, February 26, 2016

"In the Dark" by Chris Patchell

REVIEW and GIVEAWAY
In the Dark
by Chris Patchell


Chris Patchell's In the Dark is currently on tour with Partners in Crime Virtual Book Tours. The tour stops here today for my review, an excerpt, and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.


For another book by this author, please check out my blog post on Deadly Lies.

Description
When the worst happens and her daughter goes missing, a mother will do anything to find her …
Marissa Rooney’s daughter, Brooke, has been missing for days. Her roommate hasn’t seen her since that night in the bar. Standing in the middle of her daughter’s dorm room with a half-used vial of insulin clenched in her hand, Marissa comes to the terrifying realization that if she has Brooke’s insulin, it means that Brooke does not.
The missing person’s investigation takes a sudden and deadly turn when the police discover the body of another college student who went missing a week before Brooke. Desperate to find her daughter, Marissa fears time is running out.
But she isn’t alone in her terror. A phantom from Marissa’s past is lurking in the shadows, waiting in the night, and holding her family captive … In the dark.

Excerpt
Prologue
The heavy gate groaned shut. After engaging the lock, he pulled the backpack out of his Jeep and slung it over his shoulder. It was a rare fall day in the Pacific Northwest, and he planned to take full advantage of the good weather.
He had work to do.
He walked a quarter of a mile along the fence line and stopped. Then he pulled a “No Trespassing” sign from the pack and propped it against the fence. With a few sure strokes of a hammer, he nailed it to the post. The dull blows echoed in the quiet woods.
Branches and fallen leaves popped and crackled beneath his feet as he worked his way methodically along the ridge, checking the barbed wire fence for gaps. The cinnamon smell of the turning leaves was a sure sign that hunting season would soon begin, and he couldn’t afford to have strangers stumbling onto his property.
He nailed the last sign to the post.
There. That should keep the bastards out.
He turned and started down the rugged trail carved into the steep hillside. A couple of hundred feet below, the valley floor glimmered like an emerald in the late-day sun. Three cabins stood in the clearing beside the Tolt River. A half dozen more were scattered along the upper ridge, overlooking Lake Langlois.
The place had been a youth camp once, before the drowning of a teenage girl had destroyed its reputation. Afterward the camp had closed and the cabins had fallen into disrepair.
It was a shame, really. He had fond memories of the place. While his father had spent the summer basking in an alcoholic haze, he’d spent it exploring the woods, far away from his father’s violent mood swings. By any measure it was a win-win.
Dappled sunlight shone through the thick canopy of branches overhead. He loved days like this. Alone in the woods, he felt at peace with the world.
A scream rent the air, shattering the stillness of the afternoon.
It was shrill. Human.
Crows fled the safety of the trees, a torrent of black wings flooding the blue sky. Heart racing, he started to run. The uneven ground slid beneath his boots. Branches slapped at his face, and he ran faster, driven on by her panicked cries.
The valley floor was muddy after the long weeks of rain. The spongy earth slowed his pace as he raced toward the river.
Another scream. Louder.
“Help me. Oh God. Please.”
It was coming from the cabin farthest from the water’s edge.
His boots pounded up the wooden steps. Hinges squawked in protest as he crashed through the door.
The stench hit him hard—stale sweat and human waste. His stomach churned.
At first he could see nothing, his eyes blinded in the dim light. Then her slender form materialized out of the darkness—a slip of a girl, barely more than a hundred pounds. She was standing near the center of the room, her hands bound behind her back. A soiled University of Washington T-shirt hanging from her skinny frame. Pink panties. And nothing else.
The relief on her face froze the instant she spotted him. A small sob escaped her lips. She stepped back, retreating into the shadows.
As if she could hide.
“Now, Kim,” he said. “What was the rule?”
Her jaw worked, but no sound emerged. She took another pitiful step back, her wide eyes brimming with fear.
“What was the rule?”
His voice boomed in the small cabin. She flinched like a beaten dog.
“No calling out,” she mumbled.
“I can’t hear you. What’s the rule?”
“No calling out.”
“No calling out,” he repeated, smiling thinly. “That’s right. You leave me no choice.”
“Please,” she said, voice trembling, tears leaking from her eyes. “I’ll do better, I promise. I promise…”
He stepped toward her, his tread echoing on the bare plank floor. She shrank back, trembling, and stumbled over the bucket. Without her hands to stop her, she crashed to the floor.
He stopped. His six-foot frame loomed above her. She averted her gaze, looking anywhere but at him.
This will not do.
He hunkered down and gripped her narrow chin, forcing her gaze to meet his.
“Please,” she whispered.
Her mouth trembled.
“Aw, princess,” he said, running his thumb slowly across her swollen bottom lip. “I’m afraid it’s too late for that.”
He reached down and unbuckled his belt.

Chapter 1
There was something seriously fucked up about turning a mortuary into a bar, Drew Matthews thought as he walked through the heavy oak doors of the Chapel. While much of the original architecture of the 1920s building remained intact, the interior displayed the tumors of decades of evolving taste. There were a few recent growths, like the U-shaped bar in the center of the former embalming room. Lit up like a runway at Sea-Tac International Airport, it guided him in.
The drink menu read like the King James Bible, with parables about sins and martinis.
Arm propped against the bar, he ordered the Bruce Lee, a fast, tawny drink that howled like a banshee with fists of fury. It was named after the famous Seattle martial artist whose embalming had reportedly taken place in this very bar.
But there was nothing dead about the place now. Swarming schools of urban hipsters out for their Saturday-night fix swelled like dividing cells. So many desperate souls crowding the bar, looking for that elusive thing missing from their lives. Attention. Sex. Connection. Drew felt the pulsing need, so palpable he could almost taste it.
Tension rippled across his shoulders, into the base of his brain. If ever there was a night he’d felt like getting good and truly shitfaced, this was it. He knew he couldn’t give in to the impulse though. Meeting the friends was a rite of passage he must endure for his relationship with Alicia Wright to progress. And he had every intention of taking their relationship to the next level.
He’d already picked out a sparkly new ring.
A hand ran up his back and he turned. Alicia had dressed well for her starring role. A fitted white blouse hugged her athletic curves, the plunging neckline low enough to reveal a delectable view of her cleavage. A tight black miniskirt rode up her well-toned thighs. In highheeled boots, she was almost at eye level with Drew. He found the accumulated effect arousing.
Alicia leaned in close. He caught a whiff of her perfume. Dark. Floral. Orchids. Her ruby lips brushed his ear, sending sparks jangling along his taut nerve endings.
“Hey, look who finally decided to show up,” she said in a sexy, throaty murmur.
“Sorry, I had to work a little late. Came straight here.”
“Well, grab your drink and let’s go. Gretchen’s waiting.”
Drew raised a finger and drained his glass in a long swallow. Alicia raised her eyebrows.
“You okay?”
“I’ve got some catching up to do.”
So what if he was a little nervous? Who wouldn’t be? Alicia and her pack of prep-school friends had grown up in a different world. While their nannies had dropped them off at private schools and playdates, he’d watched cancer devour his mother and his father fall to pieces. What could they possibly know about being hungry enough to steal food, or hiding in the woods all night, afraid to come home because your father was a mean drunk? Or being left behind, abandoned by your evil stepmother?
Alicia grasped his hand and tugged him away from the bar. Drew followed her up a narrow staircase to a wide balcony overlooking the main floor. The speakers blared and the upper deck swarmed with life.
He definitely needed another drink.
Alicia threaded her way to the front of the platform, where she stopped. Her back to the railing, she looped an arm around the shoulders of a chubby girl.
“Drew, this is Gretchen Lange. We’ve been friends since we were kids.”
“What she means to say is that we’ve been BFFs since third grade,” Gretchen tittered.
Bright-blue eyes sparkled in her doughy white face. A ridiculous mass of strawberry blonde curls bounced and jiggled when she laughed.
Drew stretched out his hand.
“Gretchen, at last. Alicia’s told me so much about you.”
“Not too much, I hope.”
“She didn’t tell me you were so lovely,” he said.
She wasn’t really. Clad in a skintight floral dress, she looked like a gaudy pink hibiscus.
Smelled like one too. Up close, her perfume made his eyes water. But he knew the comment would score points with both women, so he said it anyway.
“Shame on you, Alicia, for keeping this one all to yourself.”
“She was afraid I’d embarrass her,” Drew said.
“You? Looking all James Bond? Not likely.”
“James Bond?” Drew asked, his lips stretching into a grin.
“Careful, Gretchen,” Alicia said. “You’ll only feed his ego, which is enormous, by the way.”
Drew’s mouth dropped open in mock incredulity.
“Don’t you believe a word of it,” he said, splaying a hand across his chest. “I’m the very embodiment of modesty.”
“Oh, I can see that,” Gretchen cried. “Modest and charming. A killer combination.”
Gretchen wasn’t very bright, but watching her was fun—in a train-wreck kind of way.
Alicia shook back the dark curtain of her glossy hair and leaned into him. The warm press of her body had him thinking more about the after-party than the festivities at hand, and he wished he could push the fast-forward button on the evening. Get to the part where she was his alone.
Glancing around, he spied the waitress on the other side of the platform. Raising his hand, he caught her eye. She hustled over and he ordered another drink—a nod to the serial killer Ted Bundy this time.
Moments later more of Alicia’s friends arrived. Amid a flurry of hugs and kisses, Alicia made the introductions.
“Tracy, Madison, and Liam,” she said, her bright eyes glittering.
The anorexic spandex twins could have passed for sisters with their long blonde hair and skintight dresses. The guy was tall, with a swimmer’s build and a bored, pouty look that said exactly what he thought: they were all beneath him. Ice-blue eyes stared at Drew through a fringe of wispy blond bangs in a messy, chin-length cut that could easily have cost a couple of hundred bucks.
Liam’s hand wedged into the small of Alicia’s back, his little finger inches above the curve of her ass. Eyeing Drew with the clinical stare of a scientist assessing his subject, Liam smiled. The bastard was baiting him. Wondering just how far he could push before Drew lost his shit.
He wanted to plow the prick in the face. Instead he grasped his ring and twisted it around his finger. The bloodstone ring glimmered red in the light. He remembered his father’s fist lashing out, how the ring had gashed his cheek. But he was no longer that boy. Now he knew there was more than one way to win a fight.
Drew tore his gaze away from Liam and scanned the upper deck.
Where the fuck is the waitress?
Apparently the universe heard him because just then the beer wench appeared, hefting a tray of jewel-colored cocktails. Like a frat boy at a freshman party, Drew inhaled half of his in a single swallow. Vodka burned a fiery path down his throat, and he realized with regret that he should have ordered a double.
“Drew, is it? Tell us how you met Alicia,” Liam shouted over the throbbing house music.
“We met at the investment firm where she works. I was meeting with my financial advisor when she walked in. She took pity on me when I asked for her number.”
Alicia smiled. “Pity had nothing to do with it. He asked me out for dinner, and the rest is history.”
“Investments, eh? Tell me about your portfolio,” Liam said, swirling an electric-blue drink around in his glass with his free hand.
“Why? Do you have some wisdom to share?” Alicia asked.
“Not likely,” Gretchen scoffed. “You see, Drew, Liam here is Seattle royalty. His father founded one of the first successful dot-coms and sold before the bubble burst. Unlike the rest of us working stiffs, he doesn’t worry about petty things like money.”
“I like to dabble in stocks.” Liam shrugged, sipping his drink.
“That’s sweet,” Gretchen quipped with a small, sour look that made Drew smile.
“Don’t you have people to do that for you?” Drew asked.
“Sure, but everyone needs a hobby.”
“A hobby? Now that’s funny,” Gretchen snorted, sloshing her drink onto her dress.
Cheeks flushing red, she glanced around for a napkin. Drew handed his over. Dabbing at her dress, Gretchen scowled at Liam.
“See what you made me do?”
“Not me, Gretch. You always were a sloppy drunk.”
“Liam!” Alicia said.
“It’s true. Don’t you remember the time we all went to dinner at that place?” Liam said, snapping his fingers like he was trying to recall. “You remember, Alicia, the posh little place in Madison Park.”
“Crush?”
“Yeah, that’s it, Crush. Gretchen got so wasted, the maître d’ hauled her out of there…”
“Escorted her, you mean,” Alicia said.
Liam waved a hand. “Whatever. The whole way out of the restaurant, she’s yelling at him, calling him names…”
“Until she threw up on his shoes,” Alicia blurted, before slapping her hand across her mouth like she’d just spilled a secret.
“Sweetheart,” Liam said. He paused and turned his affectionate gaze on Alicia. “You stripped down to your panties and danced in the fountain.”
“That’s right,” Gretchen said, her flaming-red face breaking into a smile.
“It was epic,” Liam roared, and the whole group erupted in laughter.
They spent the next half hour reliving highlights from their glory days—like the time Liam and Alicia took his father’s private jet to Paris for the weekend—while Drew stood at the edge of the group and looked on. An outsider. He laughed at the right moments. Feigned interest.
Checked his watch. The minutes crawled by.
By eleven thirty the party was in full swing, but he was done. Alicia turned to him, as if suddenly recalling his presence.
“Get me another drink?”
It came out sounding more like a command than a request, and Drew bristled. Liam shot him a condescending smile and smoothed his hand over Alicia’s ass.
A hot burst of anger surged through Drew.
“Sure,” he said.
He grabbed Alicia by the hand and tugged her toward him. His eyes boring deep into hers, he leaned down and kissed her hard. Through the thin fabric of her shirt, he felt her stiffen, resist. So he deepened the kiss. His tongue probed the depths of her mouth.
All conversation stopped. The throbbing beat of the house music pulsed, and Alicia’s face glowed bright red as she pulled away.
Drew released her and winked at Liam on his way by. Last call. He had to get out of here before he did something stupid. But first he needed another drink.
And then what?
Then he’d do the smart thing. He’d go home and cool off. He’d deal with Alicia later.
After all, she wouldn’t have any trouble finding a ride home.

Praise for the Book
"An edge-of-your-seat suspense novel. It scared the hell out of me. Read it with the lights on!" ~ Robert Dugoni, Amazon #1 and New York Times bestselling author of My Sister’s Grave
"As with Chris Patchell's other book, Deadly Lies I expected to be engaged in her second book. I was completely wrong: I was absolutely riveted. Patchell has grown as a writer in this book and it shows. She is becoming a force to be reckoned with. The characters develop throughout the book and the storyline has a lot of suspense. You simply don't know what is coming next ... which is why I had so many rough mornings because I was up reading In the Dark late the night before. Highly recommend Patchell's books!" ~ Giovanna Daldassarre
"I won't lie - this story is scary. But it's also a rich drama woven around complex characters that pull you into their world. From the first page, I couldn't put it down, and the pace continues to build, along with the suspense, until the very end. I won't ruin the surprising twists and turns of the plot by enumerating them here. Just read it, and enjoy. Kudos to Patchell for a wonderfully-written second novel." ~ KAS
"What an amazing book! It was a real page-turner and once I'd started reading it, I resented any interruption [...] I could see this book as the start of a new series. I would certainly enjoy learning more about Marissa and her family. If you are looking for a great plot and edge-of-your seat, nail-biting suspense, In the Dark is definitely the book for you." ~ Jackie Roche
"If you're looking for a spine-tingling thriller with a strong cast of characters look no further. Chris Patchell's masterful weaving of this dark and intriguing tale kept me hooked all the way to the climactic end. I can definitely see this as the beginning of a series, or maybe I just don't want to say goodbye to Marissa Rooney, a vulnerable yet tough-as-nails mom, and Seth Crawford, a conflicted Seattle police detective." ~ RJB

My Review


By Lynda Dickson
When her diabetic daughter Brooke goes missing, Marissa knows that it is critical to find her as soon as possible. While the police don't take her concerns seriously, Marissa receives help from an unexpected source. Brooke is being kept in the dark, both literally and figuratively, but with a growing pool of likely suspects, will Detective Seth Crawford find her in time?
The book begins with a chilling scene featuring our anonymous villain. The ensuing short chapters are told from at least six different points-of-view. We are introduced to a lot of characters, and we have to piece together how their stories intersect. I could see the plot going in several different directions, but the suspense is lost once the kidnapper's identity is revealed to the reader; I would have preferred the villain to remain anonymous for a bit longer.
There are a couple of minor editing errors, an overuse of similes, too much lip pursing, the annoying use of full names anytime anyone is introduced, and way too many coincidences. And it seems that Jesse Morgan is the only bartender in Seattle. Nevertheless, the action is non-stop, especially towards the end and, because our villain is so unpredictable, you never know what will happen next. The pace alone will keep you reading.
Warnings: coarse language, sexual references, sex scene, graphic violence.

About the Author
When Chris Patchell isn't hiking in the Cascade Mountains or hanging out with family and friends, she is working at her hi-tech job or writing gritty suspense novels. Writing has been a lifelong passion for Chris. She fell in love with storytelling in the third grade when her half-page creative writing assignment turned into a five-page story on vampires. Even back then Chris had a gift for writing intricate plots that were so good her father refused to believe she didn't steal them from comic books.
Years later, Chris spent long afternoons managing her own independent record store and writing romance novels. After closing the record store and going to college, Chris launched a successful career in hi-tech. She married, had kids but amid all the madness, the itch to write never really went away. So she started writing again. Not romance this time - suspense filled with drama, and angst, speckled with a little bit of blood.
Why suspense? Chris blames her obsession with the dark on two things: watching Stephen King movies as a kid and spending ridiculous amounts of time commuting in Seattle traffic. "My stories are based on scenarios I see every day, distorted through the fictional lens. And my stories come with the added bonus of not having to be restrained by socially acceptable behavior."
Recipient of the 2015 Indie Reader Discovery Award for Deadly Lies.

Giveaway
Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win one of five paperback copies of In the Dark by Chris Patchell (US only).

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