EXCERPT and GIVEAWAY
Homecoming
(The Sterling Wood Series Book 1)
(The Sterling Wood Series Book 1)
by Charlene Johnson
Homecoming by Charlene Johnson is currently on tour with Silver Dagger Book Tours. The tour stops here today for an excerpt and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.
Description
Lily Sommers reluctantly returns to Sterling Wood to attend her Uncle Jimmy's funeral - a town she left years ago.
Sterling Wood holds painful memories she’s tried to forget. One, in particular, is still raw and every time she returns pulls the scab off a wound that will not heal - Luc Pearson, the handsome high school sweetheart who betrayed her.
Seeing Luc again isn't the only problem she has to face in Sterling Wood. Someone is trying to kill her, and she doesn't know why.
She soon learns shocking revelations that could change the course of her life as a ruthless killer stalks her. Will the people closest to her be able to save her?
Things like that weren’t supposed to happen in Sterling Wood.
Book Video
Excerpt
Lily Sommers sat impatiently on the crowded flight, dreading the moment when the pilot would come on the intercom and announce it was time to prepare for landing. She wasn’t looking forward to this trip. Not when the drive from the airport would end up in Sterling Wood. Whenever she went home, it was stepping back in time from the fast, hectic pace of her life in California. Nothing changed in Sterling Wood. Ever. If Jesse Watson, the Sterling Wood Police Chief, had not called her day before yesterday and told her that her uncle, Jimmy Richardson, was dead, she would not have returned so soon. The unexpected late-night phone call changed that.
Uncle Jimmy was her mother’s brother. He lived in a rundown house a few miles down the road from where she grew up. He loved his privacy and only came up to their house for dinner, when his sister shamed him into it. He never stayed long afterward. He was a recluse much of the time. The one thing she remembered about her uncle was he always had a ready smile for everyone. There wasn’t anyone in town who didn’t like her uncle.
Lily admitted she wasn’t close to him. When she was growing up, he was always on the road transporting industrial machinery to various locations in the continental United States and Canada for Xavier Metal Works, a large local company in the area. After his road trips, he spent much of his time in McHenry’s Pub or looking for General Braddock’s Gold, a futile quest her father believed her uncle was obsessed with.
As her father told it, for more than a hundred years, fortune hunters had been trying to find the gold General Braddock and his men buried along the Allegheny River while on their way to fight the Indians during the French and Indian War. What General Braddock didn’t know, was the riverbank where they supposedly buried the gold was the Youghiogheny River, not the Allegheny River which was the intended burial site. That location was thought to be the most likely burial, although there were others in Maryland and Virginia. The gold was never found, and the story of the treasure became an urban legend.
But not to her uncle. He extensively studied the legend and kept a journal of his activities. Each failed attempt ended with him drowning his sorrows at McHenry’s Pub, a local watering hole, where Jesse would find him and bring him home.
Her father used to tell her about Jimmy’s exploits every time she came home. He complained that Jimmy was seeking a treasure that would never be found, and he should be doing more productive things with his time. Despite it all, her father loved Jimmy and they were close.
First thing tomorrow morning, Lily planned to go to Sullivan’s Funeral Home and get all of the arrangements made. She wanted to get the service over with as soon as possible. She hated funerals and all the hoopla that went with them. The endless condolences, the casseroles, and cakes she’d never eat. Not to mention, the lofty sermons and mournful songs that tore at her soul. She wanted none of it, but tradition dictated that she grin and bear it.
[Want more? Click below to read a longer excerpt.]
Praise for the Book
“This story has many twists and turns which can be confusing however those twists keep you wondering what is coming next. I really enjoyed reading this book and look forward to another story.” ~ Alicia Stone-Jackson
“This was my first book by this author and she hooked me! This book had some of everything ... second chances, lies and hidden secrets, to suspense and danger. Such a great read!” ~ phager
“This story has heart, heat, intrigue and was a true delight for this readers heart to read! The characters make you love them, want to smack them, hug them and pay for all their therapy! It is truly magical that as you read you get lifted up and tossed around emotionally and really aren't sure who you can trust and who is untrustworthy.” ~ Debra P.
“Couldn't put it down. The characters were so well thought out, and the ending I could of stood up and applauded. Looking for more of her writing.” ~ B. A. Williams
About the Author
Charlene is a Waynesburg, Pennsylvania native. She went to Waynesburg High School and graduated Cum Laude from Waynesburg College with a Bachelor’s Degree in Liberal Arts. Currently lives in Sacramento, California where she spent the last 33 years working at Northrop Grumman.
Books have always been her passion. She started reading at an early age and progressed to full-length books by age nine. The first supernatural book series she read was Dark Shadows, and it sparked her interest in all things paranormal, with a spicy touch of romance mixed in for good measure. She also started writing poetry in grade school and continues to do so today.
Being an avid reader, the consummate daydreamer and an incurable romantic with a Cinderella complex, she started creating her own characters and story lines because she realized she had her own stories to tell.
She is married to John, who believes she can do anything. She has a son, Ty; a daughter, Danika; and four beautiful grandchildren, Aries, Victoria, Maya, and Tobias.
Besides reading and writing, she also enjoys photography, travel, music, and great movies.
Giveaway
Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win one of four $10 Amazon gift cards.
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