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Crow Moon by Suzie Aspley#Extract #Giveaway #AMarthaStrangewaysInvestigationBook1

  I am delighted to introduce the first in a new series by debut writer, Suzie Aspley . The atmospheric thriller, Crow Moon was published by Orenda on March 14th. Today I have an extract for you to read and the chance to win a print copy of Crow Moon . Details on how to enter are at the foot of this post. When the crow moon rises, the darkness is unleashed… Martha Strangeways is struggling to find purpose in her life, after giving up her career as an investigative reporter when her young twins died in a house fire. Overwhelmed by guilt and grief, her life changes when she stumbles across the body of a missing teenager – a tragedy that turns even more sinister when a poem about crows is discovered inked onto his back... When another teenager goes missing in the remote landscape, Martha is drawn into the investigation, teaming up with DI Derek Summers, as malevolent rumours begin to spread and paranoia grows. As darkness descends on the village of Strathbran, it soon becomes

The Christmas Miracle by Stephanie Wood #Extract #ChristmasOnTheCloseno6

 

Here is some festive reading for you- an extract from The Christmas Miracle by Stephanie Wood


You are invited to spend CHRISTMAS ON THE CLOSE where each of the neighbours are celebrating in their own special way.

Diane always enjoys baking special festive treats, which she happily delivers to her friendly neighbours on The Close as Christmas approaches.

When she decides to seek closure with a romantic matter from her past, she unexpectedly finds herself on an emotional journey she isn’t prepared for. 

Her granddaughter, Emma, has all the technical know-how to assist in the search for answers, but is distracted by an intense - and highly unsuitable - romance of her own.

The two women must deal with unsettling issues as they begin to face the reality of their situations, but their familial bond helps to provide the security and support they need to answer the questions they face. 

The sixth standalone episode of ‘Christmas on The Close’ reveals how it may be easier to allow the head to make all the decisions, but the heart will never stop fighting for what it really wants.

 Extract

Diane is reminiscing over a day trip she enjoyed as a teenager with her friend Joe, which had marked a definite change in their developing relationship…

When she was around fourteen, they had started to travel further afield and they had taken the bus to the seaside which was about thirty miles away. She would have been in huge trouble if her parents had known, but luckily they never really queried where she was or what she was doing; as long as she was in the right place at the right time, no one wondered what she did for the rest of the day and that suited her perfectly.

They spent a lot of the time on the beach, only venturing into the nearby floral gardens at lunchtime to eat the sandwiches they had made secretly before anyone else got up and had brought along with them to enjoy together. Diane had also brought an apple, but Joe had brought half a bar of chocolate which was a huge treat and they split their goodies to share half each.

They didn’t have any money to spend on seaside treats as the bus ticket had taken most of their pocket money, which had been saved from doing odd jobs around the neighbourhood, so they decided to walk along the promenade and say what jobs they would have if they worked in each of the shops they passed.

Diane had been a cleaner in the bank (because what other job would she be able to do in there?), a change giver in the amusement arcade, a dog trainer at the pet shop and a baker at the bakery. Obviously.

Joe had been a window cleaner in the bank (because his dad seemed to enjoy it as his job), a bingo caller in the amusement arcade, a snake-charmer at the pet shop and a taste-tester at the bakery. Obviously.

When it was time to catch the bus home, they took a short cut through an arcade and passed a photo booth with an external mirror. Diane caught sight of herself and realised she had a red nose from spending time out in the sun that morning. Joe said it was cute and she’d had a sudden thump in her chest as though someone had punched her. She was quite winded for a second but when she looked to Joe for answers, she found him checking his change and was equally confused when he bundled her inside and fed the money into the machine. She had no time to ask how he had enough cash to pay for the photos as the warning light was already on, so she simply enjoyed the few moments it took to pull a couple of funny faces and then cuddle up for a happy memento of their wonderful day.

That had been just one day of many which they had enjoyed together, but it had been the first day that Joe had reached for her hand, as they exited the photo booth and walked to the bus stop. She felt like she was floating on air but, at the same time, it felt completely natural and not like there had been any big change in their relationship. They were still Joe and Diane, as they always had been, but now she realised this was the way it would always be. Forever.

About the Author


Stephanie Wood writes contemporary fiction in the form of novels, novellas and short stories and you can find the running order of her titles on the first page of any book.

She published the AEGEAN SUN series of books as a fly-on-the-wall vision of life in a Greek resort during the summer season, using her extensive experience as a holiday rep to bring some unusual incidents to life on the page. The series began as an exploration of the various ways in which tourists make the most of their holidays and how they interact with the locals while they are visiting. The later books in the series have taken a closer look at the locals themselves and show how their lives and relationships are sometimes changed by the regular influx of seasonal visitors.

The CHRISTMAS ON THE CLOSE series is set in a British suburban cul-de-sac over the festive period and visits each house individually to discover how the neighbours who live there celebrate the season in their own special way.

Stephanie lives in Lancashire where, apart from reading and writing, she loves gardening and cycling and is a huge fan of the soaps Emmerdale and Neighbours.

You can follow Stephanie here: Website  |  Twitter-Stephanie Wood 

                                              |  Twitter The Close series  |   Facebook

Book links:  Amazon UK  |   Amazon US

Thanks to Stephanie Wood and Rachel of Rachel's Random Resources for the extract and a place on the tour.

 


 

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