By Laura Howard
Finding Bliss Publishing, 117 pages
30th April, 2013
Purchase: Amazon
Allison O'Malley's plan is to go to grad school so she can get a good job and take care of her schizophrenic mother. She has carefully closed herself off from everything else, including a relationship with Ethan, who she's been in love with for as long as she can remember.
What is definitely not part of the plan is the return of her long-lost father, who claims he can bring Allison's mother back from the dark place her mind has gone. Allison doesn't trust her father, so why would she believe his stories about a long forgotten Irish people, the Tuatha de Danaan? But truths have a way of revealing themselves. Secrets will eventually surface. And Allison must learn to set aside her plan and work with her father if there is even a small chance it could restore her mother's sanity.
- goodreads.com description
Excerpt
After he flipped his light switch on, he paused and turned to look at
me. His face was scrunched in concern.
“What is it, Al?”
“Nothing. I was just thinking about something Rachel said to my cousin
the other day.”
“Are you going to tell me what it was?” he asked.
“Um, no. I don’t think I will,” I whispered. I tried to keep my voice
from cracking as he moved closer to me
“Well,” he said, his gaze moving down to my lips. “How am I supposed
to make you feel better if you don’t tell me what upset you?”
I inhaled sharply as he kept moving forward. I took two steps backward
before I bumped into the wall.
“She might have said something about you only being interested in me
because I’m ‘no-man’s land’,” I managed to squeak out.
Ethan chuckled, and I could feel it vibrate through me. “No-man’s
land, huh?”
“That’s right. And she said I’m probably a lesbian, anyway.”
His face was inches from mine now. “You’re not a lesbian, are you Al?”
he teased, trying to meet my eyes.
“I don’t really have much to base my opinion on,” I said, the words
just barely audible above the beating of my heart. “I’ll have to get back to
you on that.”
“For the sake of your own peace of mind,” he whispered, leaning in so
that I could feel his breath on my lips. “I’d be willing to help you figure it
out.”
My pulse spiked, and I willed it to slow down so that I could form a
witty reply.
But, he didn’t give me a chance. His lips just brushed against mine,
soft as a feather.
He brought his hands up and cradled the back of my head, so gentle.
His lips moved against mine – not taking, only asking.
The trailing of his fingertips down my arms made me shiver. I pulled
back, needing to breath. He didn’t let go of my arms though.
“We should go back outside, before we ruin this by fighting.” His
smile was genuine, if the slightest bit wistful.
I blushed, knowing he was probably right.
Laura Howard lives in New Hampshire with her husband and four children. Her obsession with books began at the age of 6 when she got her first library card. Nancy Drew, Sweet Valley High and other girly novels were routinely devoured in single sittings. Books took a backseat to diapers when she had her first child. It wasn’t until the release of a little novel called Twilight, 8 years later, that she rediscovered her love of fiction. Soon after, her own characters began to make themselves known. The Forgotten Ones is her first published novel.
Official Site | Twitter | Facebook
a Rafflecopter giveaway
