~NEW RELEASE with GIVEAWAY! ~ Blackwell by Alexandrea Weis
Title:
Blackwell
Author: Alexandrea Weis with Lucas
Astor
Genre: Paranormal
thriller
Publisher: Vesuvian
Books
Hosted
by: Lady Amber's
PR
Blurb: Hell has a new
master
In the late 1800s,
handsome, wealthy New Englander, Magnus Blackwell, is the envy of
all.
When Magnus meets
Jacob O’Conner—a Harvard student from the working class—an unlikely friendship
is forged. But their close bond is soon challenged by a captivating woman; a
woman Magnus wants, but Jacob
gets.
Devastated, Magnus
seeks solace in a trip to New Orleans. After a chance meeting with Oscar Wilde,
he becomes immersed in a world of depravity and brutality, inevitably becoming
the inspiration for Dorian Gray. Armed with the forbidden magic of voodoo, he
sets his sights on winning back the woman Jacob stole from
him.
Amid the trappings
of Victorian society, two men, bent on revenge, will lay the foundation for a
curse that will forever alter their
destinies.
From New Orleans,
Alexandrea Weis was raised in the motion picture industry and began writing
stories at the age of eight. In college she studied nursing and went on to
teach at a local university. After several years in the medical field, she
decided to pick up the pen once again and began her first novel, To My Senses.
Since that time she has published many novels. Infusing the rich tapestry of
her hometown into her award-winning books, she believes that creating vivid
characters makes a story memorable.
Alexandrea Weis is
also a certified/permitted wildlife rehabber with the La. Wildlife and
Fisheries. When she is not writing, she rescues orphaned and injured wildlife.
She is married; they live in New
Orleans.
Author
Links:
Webpage:
http://www.alexandreaweis.com/
Twitter:
https://twitter.com/alexandreaweis
Amazon:
http://amzn.to/21jfcqO
Goodreads:
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1211671.Alexandrea_Weis
Fan Club:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/216096988549209/?fref=nf
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/alexandreaweis/
Pinterest:
https://www.pinterest.com/apwrncs/
Buy Links: Amazon: http://amzn.to/2iyNipp
Leaving the
firelight, he headed toward the water, eager to learn more about the woman.
Beyond the glare of the bonfire, his eyes were better able to take in her
figure. Her nightdress was torn in places and had dark splotches on it in
others. She stood at the water’s edge, her feet hidden below the surface of the
bayou. As he drew closer, Magnus got a better view of her exquisite face. Her
pale, snowy skin glowed in the darkness, and her features were perfect except
for a scar above her right lip. He ached to help her, to guide her from the
water and back to the warmth of the
fire.
“Are you all
right?”
She titled her
head to the side as she examined him. Then without saying anything, she held
out her hand to him.
Magnus could hear
a woman’s voice saying, Magnus, come with me, in his head, but her lips never
moved. He was entranced, drawn to her, and just as he was raising his hand to
take hers, another hand clamped down on his wrist.
“Magnus, no, don’t
touch her,” Madam Simone called out.
The spell was
broken, and the woman in the water faded away.
Magnus gawked at
the water. “What?”
“I told you to
stay close to the fire,” she
admonished.
He pointed to the
water. “You saw her? Who was
that?”
Madam Simone let
go of his arm. “You mean what was that, don’t
you?”
“I don’t
understand.”
She waved her long
stick out over the water. “That was a spirit called by the ceremony. She often
appears when we perform our rituals on the
bayou.”
“You know her?”
The shock was evident in his
voice.
“She’s the spirit
of one who sacrificed herself for love many years ago. She was the quadroon
mistress of a wealthy white man who spurned her and her unborn
child.”
Magnus removed his
hat and wiped his hand over his brow, feeling shaky. “So you are telling me I
just saw a ghost?”
Madam Simone
chuckled at his reaction. “The world is not everything you see, Magnus. Ghosts
are as real as you or I. They are the impression left behind by a life ended in
misery, pain, or confusion. The spirits trapped or bound to earth are the ones
who haunt. The ones who have found peace are the ones who
leave.”
“Where do they
go?”
She gave him a sad
smile. “That all depends on what you believe. Heaven, hell, paradise—take your
pick. We have more names for the world that comes after than we do for the one
we currently inhabit. I think that speaks volumes about our capacity for
hope.”
Magnus took an
unsteady breath as his eyes returned to the water. “What about her? The girl in
the water? Will she ever find peace and move
on?”
“No.” Madam Simone
shook her head and, gathering up her skirt, took a step away from the shore.
“She has chosen to remain
here.”
“Chosen?” he
shouted. “Are you telling me she had a
choice?”
“We all choose in
life and in death, Magnus.” She glanced back at him. “That is why we have
souls—to make that choice.”
Magnus could
still hear the voice of the spirit calling to him in his head. “I think she
spoke to me. She knew my name.”
“Spirits often
bring messages from the dead. Do you know anyone who has recently
died?”
He shook his
head. “No, no one.”
Madam Simone
motioned ahead to the bonfire. “Let’s get back to the
fire.”
Returning his hat
to his head, Magnus followed her up the bank. “I’m not sure what I witnessed,
Madam Simone, but I no longer think I’m a
skeptic.”
She grinned as
they walked along. “Good. Then the ceremony served its
purpose.”
“What
purpose?”
Madam Simone kept
her eyes focused on the firelight. “To prepare your soul for what is to
come.”
Thank you!
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! I'm glad Amber introduced me to it! ;-)
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