giovedì 31 ottobre 2013

Book Blitz: Layers di Sigal Ehrlich + giveaway

Eccoci ad un nuovo book blitz, ideato come sempre da Giselle di Xpresso Book Tours; oggi vi presento un contemporaneo per adulti, spero possa piacervi :) Non perdete il ricco giveaway alla fine del post ;)



Titolo: Layers
Autore: Sigal Ehrlich
Genere: Adult contemporaneo, romance
Trama: According to Hayley love is a subject of ridicule, a myth created by hopeless romantics.
When Hayley makes a resolution to declare her loose lifestyle era R.I.P, it’s all good in theory…
That is until she meets Daniel Stark, a well-respected, mid-thirties business man who is known for his short temper, lack of steady relationships as well as his strict preserve of his private life.
Opinionated, sharp tongued Hayley accidently steps into his office leaving Daniel resolved to put Hayley in her place and have her in his bed.
Both Hayley and Daniel can’t avoid the immediate instigation of the attraction between them.
In a unanimously agreed upon verdict by Hayley and her two best friends, Ian the gay self-absorb, aspiring model and Natasha the witty, borderline neurotic soul mate, Daniel Stark is to be Hayley’s pure physical attraction, emotions aside era closure.
Will it indeed be a closure, or a beginning to something neither Hayley nor Daniel ever bargained for…


Sigal Ehrlich By teen age, Sigal already lived in three different continents where she had the luck to experience and visit varied places, meet unique people, which only helped fuel her overly developed imagination. Currently, Sigal calls Estonia home where she lives with her husband and three kids. 
Not exactly sure where they will end up next… 
When she is not hiding in her office, writing, she enjoys music, reading and taking care of her little clan. 
With a great believe in "don’t wait for things to happen - make them happen," she enjoys anything exciting life has to offer.

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Book Blitz: Scarred love di M.S. Brannon + giveaway

Buongiorno ^^ Eccoci ad un nuovo book blitz, ideato come sempre da Giselle di Xpresso Book Tours; oggi vi presento un new adult contemporaneo adatto ai maggiori di 17 a causa del linguaggio usato e dei contenuti espliciti, spero possa piacervi :) 



Titolo: Scarred love
Autore: M.S. Brannon
Genere: New adult contemporaneo, romance
Trama: “I am certain, without any doubt, she was meant to be in my life. We belong to each other. I spent too much of my time consumed with what everyone else thinks of my feelings for Darcie, but the truth is, it was always supposed to be this way.” ~Reggie Evans
Darcie Claiborne spent several years of her young life living with a monster, always fearing what he would do next. Clasping onto her last ounce of hope, Darcie releases a scream. It’s her final attempt to live; to survive the villain of her reality. Sweeping her up in his arms, Darcie’s knight in shining armor rescues her from the hell she’s been living; from the stepfather she’s feared for all those years.
Reggie Evans has been forced to grow up before he’s ready when his mother dies of an overdose, leaving him responsible to raise his younger brothers. One fateful night, Reggie jogs by an old, run down house and discovers a young girl clinging to life as she screams for help.
Three years later, Darcie is healing and always protected by the man who saved her, but now she’s fighting with something she isn’t prepared to face. The growing love for the man who saved her life three years ago, the same man who’s nine years older. All the while, Reggie fights to protect Darcie from the demons of her past and new ones of her present.


M.S. Brannon was born and raised in the Midwest. She still resides there today with her wonderful husband and son. When she is not writing or reading, M.S. Brannon spends time with her family, watching movies, and discovering new music. She writes romance because she believes love and heartache is the rawest emotion one can experience.


ESTRATTI

#1


Darcie ~ Age 12
“Darcie, your stepfather does these things because you refuse to listen to anything I tell you,” my mom says while swallowing a handful of pills with her glass of red wine. “Just stay out of his way, be in your room when he’s home and it will give him less of a reason to punish you.”
I’ve been putting up with Robert’s punishments for eight years and I’ve come to the conclusion that I will never escape them until I leave. My mom takes pills and drinks from her bottle of wine several times a day. When she’s not drinking or downing pills, she’s sleeping.
I despise my mother. She’s weak and I fucking hate her.

She tells me I deserve punishments and she’s probably right, but what she’s neglected to tell me is why she allows him to do it. I barely remember what our life was like before Robert Stein, but I know it was never this horrible. We managed to have fun and I never lived in fear. Why did she let Robert change her? Isn’t a mother supposed to protect their child? Once a child is born, isn’t their mother expected to possess this sixth sense, that same kind of sense that can allow women to lift cars off their children? My thoughts fade as soon as she squeezes the ointment on her finger and rubs it onto the fresh cigar burns on my back and thighs. Robert never gave me a reason why he did it other than he couldn’t find his ashtray.

#2

Darcie
Suddenly, I am transported back in time to three years ago. The feeling of being pinned down by my arms and legs, the feeling of a man’s weight restraining me and the inability to breathe flashes into my mind. I start to violently shake my head from side to side. My breathing gets short and fast. Without even realizing it, I start to scream; just like I did the night he planned to touch me.
Jake freaks out and quickly releases my body from under his. “Shit, Darcie, I’m sorry. I forgot how you get.”
I’m still screaming, unable to move. I’m frozen to the carpet. I’m still in that house. Lying on that urine soaked bed.
Salvation arrives.
Reggie appears out of the nowhere. He kneels down beside me. His hands are wiping the anger away from my face as he whispers into my ear, “Shhh, Darcie. It’s okay. I won’t let him hurt you again, never again. As long as there’s breathe left in my body, he will never harm you again.” His voice is all I need to hear. My eyes begin to focus. My brain begins to register the only true protector I’ve had in my life.

#3

Darcie
It’s about one in the morning when we pull into the driveway and park next to Reggie’s Camaro. I am wasted. Unable to walk, shitfaced, wasted. I can’t form a single thought and my lips are numb. All the guys are pissed at me. Apparently, I was running my mouth to Vanessa during the entire race and ended up chucking my empty tequila bottle at her head. I can’t remember if it hit her or who won the race for that matter.
Jeremy runs around to the passenger seat and hoists me out of the car. I climb onto his back and he carries me up the back steps into the kitchen. I’m attempting to sing “Creep” by Radiohead, but butchering the song with every syllable when Jeremy sits me down on the counter. Jake avoids me as he makes his way down to the basement. Screw it! I could care less right now. I achieved my goal; I’m drunk as hell and it’s amazing!
I swing my feet back and forth while singing the lyrics to “Creep.” “I wish I was special. So fuckin’ special...”—a little louder now—“…but I’m a creep!” Jeremy’s hand comes across my mouth, quieting me. I jerk my head back smacking it on the cupboard and shout, “Hey! I’m singing, Jer!”
Jeremy hands me a glass of water and a couple of Advil. I swallow the pills and let out a loud burp. He rolls his eyes, trying to hide the smile across his face.
“Do you want me to help you to bed, Darcie?” he asks.
“Ahh, Jer. That’s so sweet. Where’s Presley? She can help me. It might be weird seeing your sis in her underwear.” I laugh obnoxiously at my strange comment. God, I’m wasted.
Jeremy blushes. “She’s with Drake and I’m not going in there. If you need help, then I’ll help you.”
To Jeremy’s relief, Reggie walks around the corner, glaring at both of us. He looks sexy as hell, wearing only a pair of black basketball shorts that are slung low on his hips. I’m practically drooling as I look at the slight trail of blonde hair below his belly button and the defined V of his abdomen. His hair is loose and tousled from sleep. Oh shit. There go my hormones again. I want to rip his clothes off and suck on his…lips? I let out a small giggle followed by a hiccup from my dirty thoughts.
Jeremy’s angry as he looks over at me. “She’s fucking wasted, Reg. She drank a pint of tequila and started running her mouth to that girl she beat up at school. Everyone else bailed on me. I’m trying to get her to bed.”
Reggie rolls his eyes and shakes his head in disgust. “I’ll put her to bed.”
Relief passes over Jeremy’s face. He smiles then sprints out of the kitchen and flies down the stairs, heading for the basement. Man, I didn’t think I was that much of a pain in the ass.
Reggie walks over to me and puts his hands on either side of my thighs. My breath hitches at our closeness and flashes of last night play in my mind.
I press my forehead to his and whisper, “Always my knight in shining armor.”
“Always.” His lips stay close and I’m hoping he will crash them into mine, but he doesn’t.
“I’ve had a bad day.”
He lets out a small sigh and says, “Yeah… I know.”
Reggie slides his hands behind my butt pushing my core against his waist. Butterflies are swarming in my stomach as I wrap my legs and arms around him. I plant my face in the crook of his neck and that familiar smell of salvation engulfs me. It’s divine, a combination of soap and Reggie. Lifting me off the counter, he walks down the hall toward my bedroom. I look into his eyes where I find fierce, ocean blue pools, drowning me in desire. My body is warming with pleasure as I feel his hard muscles constrict with every movement.
Reggie kneels on the bed hovering over me. I let go of my grip and push myself to the top, lying on my pillow. He lifts one of my legs and pulls off my leather boot. It drops to the floor and he repeats with the other. He’s sitting up on his knees between my legs and my body is rushing with excitement. His hands slowly slide down the zipper of my jacket. I can’t believe this is going to happen. I don’t want anything more than to give him the innocent part of me. Now, I wish I was a little more sober.
“Sit up.,” Reggie demands, never taking his eyes off mine.
I comply. His hands skim over my shoulders, moving my jacket down and the heat from his touch is sending me over the edge. Reggie tosses my jacket to the floor and then he leans down and puts a faint kiss to the cigar burn on my left shoulder. My breath hitches from his gesture and I wish he could take all of it away. Using a gentle touch, his hands guide me to lie down. I’m panting with want. All the familiar feelings of our storage room make-out floods my body. Moving off the bed, Reggie pulls the comforter over my body then leans down and places a gentle kiss on my forehead.
“Goodnight, Darcie.”
Wait. What? He’s leaving me?
The door clicks shut. Embarrassed and rejected, I roll over onto my side and cry for the second time in twenty-four hours.

#4

Reggie
I make my way from behind the bar and spot their table. Drake, Presley, Grady and Darcie are sitting around, laughing and sipping their drinks when I approach. She really looks happy with this douche; it makes my heart sink further. I release the frustrated breath I was holding and walk right up to their table.
“Hey, Reg, it’s fucking crazy in here tonight,” Drake says.
“Yeah, that’s why I’m here. You guys should leave. It’s way too packed and I can’t keep an eye on you and everyone else,” I say, looking straight at Darcie.
Grady instantly recognizes I’m addressing Darcie and stands to challenge me. “I don’t know who you think you are, but I can take care of her myself. Back the fuck off.”
“You’re in my Goddamn bar and if I want you to leave, then you’ll leave. So get the fuck out before I toss you out on your ass,” I seethe with anger. It’s been a month in the making and I’m ready to lay this fucker flat.
I ball up my fist and roll my head from side to side, loosening up my muscles. Grady moves around Darcie, getting dangerously close. He stands a few inches shorter than me and breathes his beer laced breath in my face. The corner of my mouth lifts slightly as I get this gratifying urge to punch the guy’s face.
Jake and Jeremy come from the pool tables to stand behind me. Jake is bouncing like he’s on a pogo stick. His excitement is impossible to contain because he knows I’m about to kill this dude. “I’ve been waiting for a fucking month for this to happen. Knock his bitch ass out, Reggie!”
Drake protectively moves Presley behind him, but places his hand on my shoulder. I jerk my arm forward. No one is going to stop me from destroying this douche bag. “Lay off, Drake. You aren’t stopping this.”Drake steps back and joins Jeremy and Jake a few feet behind me. They have witnessed my murderous rage before and know I am beyond the point of no return. I square my shoulders and roll them back. Clenching my fists open and closed, I glare down Grady, careful to never break our gaze. The bar turns deathly quiet as a crowd forms around us. Here we go. I’m ready to knock this useless piece of garbage on his ass. My feet turn as I ready myself to punch Grady in the face then I see her.
Darcie moves from behind Grady and stands beside him. “Reggie, please. Don’t do this. We’ll leave okay. Just…don’t do this.” Her face is pleading. The anger starts to slowly dissolve. Darcie has the uncanny ability to convince me of anything. The boys often take advantage of it because they know I can’t say no to anything she asks. I start to relax, settling my tense muscles. I can’t hurt her. Not again.
Jake shouts from behind me, “Darcie! He disrespected Reggie in his own bar and deserves to get his ass handed to him. I remember a day when you would be on our side. Now you’re a fucking traitor!”
“Fuck you, piss ant!” Grady shouts back to Jake.
This situation is spiraling out of control quickly. Darcie’s face falls as she looks like Jake slapped her across the face. “Jake! Shut up! Don’t say that to her!” I shout back to him.
Grady’s glare turns deadly when he steps within inches from my face. “You know…you’re really starting to piss me off. She’s not your girl! She’s mine!”
I’m ready to blow. She’s not his! She will never be his! Darcie is mine, forever! I clench my fists again and ready myself to destroy Grady once again when Darcie moves between us. Her hands are on my chest, pushing back against me. The smell of vanilla perfumes the air as Darcie wedges herself between Grady and me.
I break my gaze from Grady and meet her pleading, jade colored eyes. She’s my solace. When I look at Darcie, I find peace in a world filled with shit. I relax my fists and bring my hands to the side of her face, just like I’ve done so many times before, but this time, like the few times before, is different. This time, I want nothing more than to press my lips to hers. As we look into each other’s eyes, time stands still. Everyone else disappears. It’s just us. For a split second, she glances at my lips then back to my eyes. Her head nods slightly and before I can make my move to kiss her, Grady pushes against the back of Darcie and tries to cheap shot me in the jaw. 
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mercoledì 30 ottobre 2013

Le ultime novità per Fanucci, Leggereditore, TimeCRIME

Titolo: Nel segreto dei codici
Autore: Barbara Goldstein
Editore: TimeCRIME
Pagine: 608
Prezzo: 12,90€
Trama: Abbazia di Mont Saint-Michel, 1449. È mezzanotte, Alessandra d’Ascoli viene bruscamente svegliata da un monaco. Uno dei confratelli è stato assassinato. Alessandra è figlia illegittima di un inquisitore, grande erudita e contessa del Patrimonium Petri. Confidente e fiduciaria del papa, è stata inviata da lui al monastero con il compito di trovare il testamento di Satana, una reliquia che i monaci stanno cercando in ogni modo di nascondere. Eppure acume, cultura e coraggio non le impediscono di diventare un capro espiatorio perfetto per la violenza che si sta scatenando tra quelle mura. Ma gli omicidi non si fermano, e intorno ai corpi ogni volta si scorgono misteriosi segni tracciati con il sangue. Sono vittime di una maledizione del passato? Non appena l’abbazia viene separata dal resto del mondo da una violenta tempesta, comincia una lotta drammatica che sembra obbedire a un’unica legge: chiunque cerchi il testamento di Satana deve morire.

Titolo: La colpa
Autore: Jonathan Kellerman
Editore: TimeCRIME
Pagine: 512
Prezzo: 12,90€
Trama: Una serie di eventi terrificanti si verificano in rapida successione in un quartiere di lusso di Los Angeles. La ristrutturazione di un cortile porta alla luce il corpo di un bambino, sepolto sessant’anni prima. Subito dopo, un’altra macabra scoperta di ossa vicino al corpo di una donna uccisa spinge il detective Milo Sturgis a richiedere l’aiuto dello psicologo Alex Delaware. Ma sembra che neanche la sua vasta esperienza sia sufficiente a disseppellire la disturbante verità legata ai ritrovamenti. L’indagine dovrà scavare nel passato, nella storia d’amore tra un’infermiera e un medico in un ospedale dalla cattiva fama. Ma non solo. Arriverà a irrompere nel mondo privilegiato e protetto delle celebrità hollywoodiane, che sotto la sua superficie scintillante e frivola nasconde riti violenti e sinistri. Alex e Milo stanno per confrontarsi con una delle menti più depravate e pericolose con cui abbiano mai avuto a che fare, in una storia di morte e follia, sognatori e predatori, innocenza assoluta e colpa profonda.

Titolo: Rosso veneziano
Autore: Guido Sgardoli
Editore: TimeCRIME
Pagine: 336
Prezzo: 10€
Trama: Venezia, 1509: Zorzo Cigna, detto Giorgione, trascorre il suo tempo creando quadri e affreschi in preda a un’euforia causata dalla dipendenza dall’oppio. Nutre un amore segreto per Cecilia, la tenutaria del più apprezzato bordello veneziano, che incontra di notte in gran segreto. Durante il Carnevale, viene svegliato in piena notte da una triste notizia: il suo amico fra’ Placidio è rimasto vittima delle fiamme che hanno colpito l’ospeal del bersaglio vicino alla chiesa dei Santi Giovanni e Paolo. Accorre sul luogo dell’incendio e qualcosa non gli torna; potrebbe trattarsi di un atto doloso e fra’ Placidio potrebbe essere stato deliberatamente ucciso. E un uomo lì presente, che sembra guardarlo con interesse, non promette nulla di buono… Zorzo Cigna comincia a indagare e quando una serie di incendi colpisce la città e lui stesso si trova minacciato, capirà che la verità potrebbe cambiare per sempre il destino della Serenissima. Una Venezia rinascimentale inedita, violenta e segreta, fa da sfondo a una vicenda dai risvolti cupi, dove nulla e nessuno è mai come appare.

Titolo: Noi siamo qui
Autore: Michael Marshall
Editore: TimeCRIME
Pagine: 528
Prezzo: 12,90€
Trama: C’è qualcuno lì, tra le ombre. Li abbiamo dimenticati, ma loro ci guardano, ci ascoltano, ci aspettano. E David e John stanno per scoprirlo. David, scrittore esordiente, si trova a New York con la moglie per discutere della pubblicazione del suo primo romanzo con un editore. Alla stazione, un uomo misterioso gli sussurra all’orecchio ‘Ricordati di me’, aprendo una breccia in un passato che sembrava sepolto per sempre. Contemporaneamente John, un ex avvocato, si impegna a far luce su uno stalker che sembrerebbe pedinare Catherine, un’amica della sua compagna. Sinistri messaggi e figure ambigue cominciano a perseguitarlo, in una ricerca che lo porta ad avvicinarsi a verità insospettabili. Le stesse verità che riemergono dal passato di David e che si intrecciano con i piani di una società segreta, formata da adepti desiderosi di lasciare un segno incancellabile nelle vite di chi li aveva relegati nell’oblio.

Titolo: Il canto di sangue
Autore: Anthony Ryan
Editore: Fanucci
Collana: Tif Extra
Pagine: 768
Prezzo: 14,00€
Trama: Pochi mesi dopo la morte della madre, l’undicenne Vaelin Al Sorna viene portato da suo padre alla Casa del Sesto Ordine, una confraternita di guerrieri devoti alla Fede, che diventerà la sua nuova famiglia. Sulle prime il ragazzo si sente tradito dal proprio genitore, ma la sua tempra forte lo aiuta ad affrontare l’addestramento severo e le terribili prove a cui tutti i membri dell’Ordine vengono sottoposti. Ma per Vaelin e i suoi fratelli, diventati temibili guerrieri, il futuro ha in serbo molte battaglie in un Regno dilaniato da dissidi e il cui sovrano nutre mire di espansione. E tra segreti e complotti, il giovane dovrà fare i conti con la sua voce interiore, un canto misterioso che lo guida, lo avverte del pericolo, lo rende immune alla fatica, sensibile alle voci della foresta. Il canto è un dono del Buio, può ardere o spegnersi, non proviene da nessuna parte e non può essere insegnato: solo occorre affinarne il controllo, esercitarlo, perfezionarlo. Il canto è Vaelin stesso, il suo bisogno, la sua caccia. E presto gli rivelerà che la verità può tagliare più a fondo di ogni spada.

Titolo: Il legame del drago
Autore: Thea Harrison
Editore: Fanucci
Collana: Tif Extra
Pagine: 400
Prezzo: 12,00€
Trama: Mezza umana e mezza wyr, l’antica e potentissima razza dei draghi, Pia ha sempre cercato di nascondere a tutti le sue origini. Ma un giorno il suo ex fidanzato scopre la sua capacità innata di aprire qualsiasi serratura e la costringe a commettere un furto. Non si tratta di un furto qualsiasi: le chiede di derubare un drago multimiliardario. Pia riesce nella sua missione e ruba un penny dai suoi tesori, senza sapere che da quel momento in poi il suo sangue wyr tornerà a reclamare la sua parte. Prima ancora però, sarà il derubato a reclamare indietro la sua moneta, insieme alla ladra che ha osato sottrargliela. Lui è Dragos Cuelebre, nato insieme al sistema solare, predatore tra i predatori, il più temuto dei wyr. Ma quando riuscirà a catturare Pia, scoprirà segreti ed emozioni nuove, che lo uniranno a lei irreparabilmente, come una forza ancestrale. Insieme affronteranno la minaccia dei fae oscuri e le difficoltà della trasformazione che sta avvenendo in Pia, che ora è pronta ad accettare la sua natura wyr. Un’esplosiva miscela di magia e romanticismo tra le fortezze dell’Altra Terra e i grattacieli di New York, un mondo popolato di creature maestose e affascinanti, in cui sarà un piacere perdersi.

Titolo: Immortal rules – Regole di sangue
Autore: Julie Kagawa
Editore: Fanucci
Collana: Tif Extra
Pagine: 480
Prezzo: 10,00€
Trama: In un mondo postapocalittico governato dai vampiri, gli umani sopravvissuti all’epidemia del Polmone Rosso hanno il destino segnato: arrendersi ai dominatori ed essere schedati e allevati in cambio del proprio sangue. Decidere di non sottoporsi alla registrazione significa mendicare ai margini della società, cercando di sfuggire ai continui attacchi di mutanti famelici originati dagli esperimenti per debellare il virus. È questa la realtà in cui Allison Sekemoto lotta per la sopravvivenza come una Non Registrata: i vampiri le hanno portato via la famiglia e tutti i suoi sogni e darebbe qualsiasi cosa per poterli sconfiggere. Ma il giorno in cui tocca a lei essere in pericolo di vita, è proprio un vampiro a darle una possibilità di scelta: morire come un’umana o diventare ciò che più odia per l’eternità. Allie sceglie di trasformarsi e non sarà facile difendere quel poco di umanità che le è rimasto. Soprattutto quando incontrerà qualcuno capace di vedere oltre il mostro che è diventata…

Titolo: Il cavaliere solitario
Autore: Larissa Ione
Editore: Fanucci
Collana: Tif Extra
Pagine: 352
Prezzo: 9,90€
Trama: Sono qui. Cavalcano insieme. Possono fermare l’Apocalisse o lasciare che si scateni. Arriva il quarto, emozionante capitolo dei Cavalieri della Libertà. Le profezie, rimaste inascoltate, stanno per avverarsi. Jillian Cardiff si è rifugiata in un luogo isolato sulle Montagne Rocciose per dimenticare l’attacco del demone che l’aveva quasi uccisa. Ma la sua pace viene presto interrotta al ritrovamento di un affascinante sconosciuto, un uomo senza memoria che lei salva dal congelamento. Bello, dolce e protettivo, Reseph ricorda solo il suo nome e sembra proprio il tipo di cui ci si possa fidare. Reseph non ha idea del perché sia comparso nella vita di Jillian, sa solo che vuole restarci. Non sa ancora che ha portato con sé una scia di violenza, soprannaturale e feroce. Quando scoprirà di essere Pestilenza, il Cavaliere della devastazione, lui e Jillian dovranno affrontare la sfida più grande di tutte: sconfiggere gli orrori del passato per riscattare un futuro che entrambi profondamente desiderano.

Titolo: Elantris
Autore: Brandon Sanderson
Editore: Fanucci
Collana: Tif Extra
Pagine: 704
Prezzo: 30,00€
Trama: Elantris, la città degli dèi. Abitata da creature di una bellezza splendente, è un luogo di fulgore e magia. Un luogo di felicità eterna. Ma all’improvviso quell’eternità ha fine. Elantris diventa un luogo di tetra disperazione: i suoi abitanti, colpiti da un’orrenda maledizione, diventano misere creature i cui corpi hanno dimenticato di essere morti e la città diventa la loro tomba. E quella maledizione può colpire chiunque: anche Raoden, il principe ereditario del regno di Arelon. All’insaputa di tutti, il giovane viene rinchiuso tra le mura di Elantris, dove sarà costretto a fare i conti con una civiltà imbarbarita. Agli occhi del mondo lui è morto, anche per Sarene, la principessa che si preparava a diventare sua sposa, sperando, dopo una lunga corrispondenza, di trovare l’amore oltre le ragioni di Stato. Dovrà affrontare da sola gli intrighi di corte di Arelon e una nuova minaccia rappresentata da Hrathen, un alto sacerdote giunto dal regno ostile di Fjorden: è venuto per redimere Arelon o per distruggerla? Né Sarene né Hrathen sanno la verità su Raoden, ma forse sarà proprio lui a svelare il segreto dietro la maledizione di Elantris e a dare un nuovo futuro al suo regno. Un’opera ispirata e originale che ha rivelato Brandon Sanderson come una delle maggiori promesse della letteratura fantasy contemporanea.

Titolo: Estasi infinita
Autore: Maya Banks
Editore: Leggereditore
Pagine: 224
Prezzo: 10,00€
Trama: Il principe Alexander vive in esilio su una splendida isola caraibica, circondato dal lusso più raffinato e da tutto ciò che desidera. Da anni aspetta però una sola donna: stregato dalla sua bellezza quando era ancora troppo giovane, ha atteso che crescesse per averla finalmente con sé. Talia, ancora vergine, non può neppure immaginare cosa succederà mentre raggiunge l’isola sul jet privato del principe. Ma con dolcezza e maestria sarà introdotta in un mondo di piaceri proibiti dove ogni volere viene soddisfatto e ogni fantasia realizzata fin nei minimi dettagli. Quando il principe viene richiamato a compiere il suo dovere verso il suo paese in guerra, Talia si risveglia dal sogno per tornare fin troppo velocemente alla realtà. Riprende la sua vita precedente col cuore in pezzi, convinta di essere stata solo il capriccio passeggero di un sovrano annoiato e dei suoi uomini più fidati. Fino al giorno in cui si presentano alla sua porta, determinati a riaverla con loro…

Titolo: Appuntamento con l’amore
Autore: Jules Stanbridge
Editore: Leggereditore
Pagine: 352
Prezzo: 10,00€
Trama: Arrivata alla soglia dei trent’anni, Harriet Peel sa sicuramente il fatto suo quando scrive di cose in o out sulla rubrica della rivista per cui lavora, ma la sua vita sociale è un autentico disastro: il fidanzato l’ha lasciata, il capo vuole rimpiazzarla con una novellina tutto pepe e le è persino arrivato l’invito al matrimonio dell’ultima amica non ancora sposata, dove incontrerà il suo ex, Jason, con la nuova ragazza! È il momento di darci un taglio.
Determinata a dare una svolta alla sua vita, si iscrive a un sito di incontri e riempie l’agenda di appuntamenti con candidati di tutti i tipi, nella speranza di trovarne uno così sexy e affascinante da far ingelosire Jason. Ma invece di serate romantiche non fa che accumulare un episodio esilarante dopo l’altro… Tutto ottimo materiale per un blog, che diventa subito di straordinario successo! Adesso che è una star della rete, sarà più facile trovare l’uomo giusto o le toccherà ancora presentarsi al matrimonio tutta sola?

Titolo: Il gioco dell’inganno
Autore: Adele Vieri Castellano
Editore: Leggereditore
Pagine: 480
Prezzo: 10,00€
Trama: Venezia, 1796. Lorenza, la giovane figlia del barone Marianin, sa che la attende un matrimonio senza amore e vuole concedersi un’ultima giornata di libertà tra le calli invase dalla folla colorata e festante del Carnevale. Bellissima e spavalda, non sa che la frenesia e la confusione nascondono grandi pericoli per una ragazza sola e sta per essere vittima della violenza di due uomini mascherati. Ma in suo soccorso arriva la più fosca e sinistra delle maschere: la baùta. Chiunque si nasconda dietro quel volto di cartapesta, ha negli occhi e nella voce il fascino della notte che è insieme rifugio dei briganti e covo delle stelle. Aristocratico o spia, la baùta non vuole rivelare il suo nome, trincerandosi dietro la sua fermezza elegante e decisa. Lorenza sa che non riuscirà a dimenticarlo, senza immaginare che poco tempo la separa dall’incontrarlo di nuovo… L’uomo misterioso è un’ombra tra le ombre che si muovono nella fitta rete di inganni della politica veneziana, in cui Lorenza sarà presto coinvolta in un crescendo di rivelazioni fatali e infuocata passione.

Titolo: Le coincidenze dell’amore
Autore: Colleen Hoover
Editore: Leggereditore
Pagine: 384
Prezzo: 12,00€
Trama: Meglio una verità che lascia senza speranza o continuare a credere nelle bugie? Sky non ha mai provato il vero amore: ogni volta che ha baciato qualcuno, ha solo sentito il desiderio di annullarsi, nessuna emozione, nessuna dolcezza. Ma quando Sky incontra Holder, ne è subito affascinata e spaventata insieme. C’è qualcosa in lui che fa riemergere quello che lei aveva spinto nel profondo della sua anima, il ricordo di un passato doloroso che torna a turbarla. Sebbene sia determinata a starne lontano, il modo in cui Holder riesce a toccare corde del suo cuore, corde che nessuno riesce neppure a sfiorare, fa crollare le difese di Sky. Il loro legame diventa sempre più intenso, ma anche Holder nasconde un segreto, che una volta rivelato cambierà la vita di Sky per sempre. Soltanto affrontando coraggiosamente la verità, senza rinunciare all’amore e alla fiducia che provano l’uno per l’altra, Holder e Sky possono sperare di curare le loro ferite emotive e vivere fino in fondo il loro rapporto. Un romanzo toccante e intenso come solo il primo amore può essere.

Titolo: Il mistero del lago
Autore: Nora Roberts
Editore: Leggereditore
Pagine: 544
Prezzo: 10,00€
Trama: Nelle lande selvagge del Wyoming, una storia di amore, crimine e follia: un romanzo appassionato e coinvolgente.Reece Gilmore è l’unica sopravvissuta a una terribile strage, e ha impiegato anni per lasciarsi alle spalle quella vicenda. Si stabilisce nell’Angel’s Fist, nel Wyoming, per cominciare una vita normale. Una sera, sulle rive del lago Snake River, mentre osserva il panorama col suo binocolo nota una coppia che discute sempre più animatamente; poi, in un attimo, l’uomo aggredisce la donna, e la strangola. Reece chiede aiuto alla prima persona che incontra, il solitario e scontroso Brody, ma quando torna con lui sulla scena del delitto, non c’è nulla che possa testimoniare quanto è accaduto. E nonostante nessuno – o quasi – le creda, lei è certa di quanto ha visto, e non avrà pace finché non sarà riuscita a trovare l’assassino potendo contare solo sull’amore di Reece che le farà scoprire un mondo di erotismo e sensualità da tempo dimenticato.

Titolo: Due vite in gioco
Autore: Nora Roberts
Editore: Leggereditore
Pagine: 544
Prezzo: 10,00€
Trama: La vita di Phoebe MacNamara, tenente della polizia di Savannah, è stata segnata per sempre quando, da bambina, è stata minacciata per ore da un folle sequestratore. Oggi è la migliore tra i negoziatori in caso di sequestro di ostaggi, e mette in gioco la propria vita ogni giorno per sventare situazioni esplosive e salvare vite umane in pericolo. Phoebe sa quando è il momento di attendere e quando occorre entrare in azione, anche rischiando il tutto per tutto. È proprio la combinazione tra sensibilità e coraggio ad affascinare Duncan Swift. Dopo averla vista salvare uno dei suoi impiegati che stava per tentare il suicidio, Duncan vuole a tutti i costi portare nella propria vita quella donna così attraente e decisa. Phoebe è abituata a stare da sola, eppure nessuna delle sue abilità di mediazione riesce ad allontanarlo da lei… L’emozionante storia di una donna capace di lanciarsi senza paura nel pericolo… ma che dovrà mettere da parte il coraggio per far entrare l’amore nella sua vita.

Titolo: Passione nelle tenebre
Autore: Roberta Ciuffi
Editore: Leggereditore
Pagine: 363
Prezzo: 10,00€
Trama: Una carrozza postale è assalita da un gruppo di briganti. Due ragazze riescono a fuggire, Dalila Reis e sua cognata Agata. Il capitano Roman Coulter incrocia la loro fuga e, turbato dal fascino di Dalila, si mette sulle tracce dei malviventi. Ma Roman non è solo un ufficiale del Regio Esercito italiano: nei suoi occhi fiammeggianti si legge un altro richiamo, quello al suo sangue lykaon, nobile, potente e selvaggio. Presto scoprirà che nell’incidente sono coinvolti altri lykaon della zona, di cui ignorava l’esistenza: vissuti separati dagli altri gruppi, sono convinti della superiorità della loro razza e sono un pericolo per la popolazione.
Roman non può più dividere la sua fedeltà tra l’esercito e i suoi fratelli di sangue, deve compiere una scelta. Ma il dilemma più straziante è quello della passione per Dalila, l’unica donna che gli sia mai interessata davvero e che ancora non conosce la sua vera natura. Una natura che trascinerà entrambi nelle tenebre della passione e farà vibrare i loro cuori, più liberi e temerari che mai.

Book Blitz: The unseen di J.L. Bryan + giveaway

Anche oggi chiudiamo la giornata con un nuovo book blitz, ideato come sempre da Giselle di Xpresso Book Tours; in questo caso vista la vicinanza di Halloween vi presento un horror, spero possa piacervi :) 



Titolo: The unseen
Autore: J.L. Bryan
Genere: Horror
Trama: Cassidy is a young tattoo artist living in the Little Five Points neighborhood of Atlanta. She’s always suffered terrible nightmares, and sometimes the hideous creatures seem to follow her out of her dreams and into her waking life, though she’s the only one who can see them. Drugs and alcohol can blot them out, but never entirely chase them away.
When a demonic cult begins to take control of the people in her life, including her younger brother, Cassidy discovers that the unseen world of monsters is very real. She can no longer avoid it. To protect those she loves, she must accept her own hidden supernatural talents and face the forces of evil before the sinister cult achieves its twisted goals and casts the world into darkness.


J.L. Bryan studied English literature at the University of Georgia and at Oxford, with a focus on the English Renaissance and the Romantic period. He also studied screenwriting at UCLA. He enjoys remixing elements of paranormal, supernatural, fantasy, horror and science fiction into new kinds of stories.
He is the author of The Paranormals series (starting with Jenny Pox), The Songs of Magic series, Nomad, and other books. He lives in Atlanta with his wife Christina, his son John, and some dogs and cats.


ESTRATTO

Capitolo 1


Years later, Cassidy would remember the night of the party as her first encounter with the unseen world.  It began with broken glass, blood, and a homemade Ouija board.
The day after Cassidy’s seventeenth birthday, her mother was away at work for the night, inadvertently giving Cassidy the best possible present: a Saturday night alone at the apartment.  Her younger brother Kieran was staying at a friend’s house for the weekend.  Cassidy’s mother had forbidden her to have any guests except for her best friend, Barb.  Boys, as always, were doubly forbidden while Cassidy’s mother was working the night shift at the hotel.  Her mother called her on the land line to make sure she was home—never Cassidy’s cell, always the land line.
The night started out calmly, with no sign of the horror to come.
Cassidy and Barb stood in the narrow kitchen, spreading sauce and mozzarella on a pre-made Boboli crust. Cassidy opened a jar of olives.
“Seriously?” Barb asked. “Why you are always trying to sneak olives into everything?  You’ve got an olive fetish.”
“Olives are awesome on pizza,” Cassidy said. “Way better than one of your Hawaiian-style travesties.”
“I like things that follow a theme.”
“Even though pineapples and ham actually taste terrible and ruin it?” Cassidy scattered olives on one half of the pizza. “There.  I’m saving you from any olive deliciousness.  Tamila and I can eat this half.”
“You really invited Tamila?” Barb frowned.
“I told you I was.”
“I thought you were kidding.” Barb had never particularly liked Tamila Evans, who was Cassidy’s “old” best friend from middle school. 
Barb was the sort of sixteen-year-old girl who dressed in black lace, corpse-white face powder, purple lipstick, and hair dyed “Black Death,” just one of the colors offered by Barb’s beloved Horror Girl Cosmetics.
Cassidy’s old friend Tamila, by contrast, played trombone in the marching band and had joined groups like Math League to pump up her college application, while Cassidy and Barb spent the football games getting high or drunk under the bleachers.  Cassidy and Barb also struggled to pass Science and Society, a boring remedial class better known as Science for Slackers. 
Cassidy had tried for a couple of years to create a friendship between Tamila and Barb, but neither girl had any real interest in the other.  Cassidy had found herself drifting away from Tamila and closer to Barb, and having both girls to her apartment at the same time could get awkward.
“Reese said she’s coming, too,” Barb said.
“Ugh,” Cassidy said.
“I’m telling you, you’d like her if you just give her a little bit of a chance.”
“What’s to like about Reese?”
“She’s fun,” Barb said.
“Let’s not confuse loud with fun,” Cassidy replied, shaking her head. 
Cassidy couldn’t stand Reese Warwick, but the skinny blond girl was Barb’s latest girl-crush.  Barb was always hunting for a third girl to link into her and Cassidy’s friendship so they’d be a “clique” instead of “just a couple of losers.”
Barb had been hopeful about Reese as a third Musketeer because she was pretty and had a salty tongue, able to cut down the lame preppy kids with a few choice words.  Cassidy thought Reese was a big fake—her blond pageboy-type hair, the golden ring in her nose, the skimpy tops and ultra-short skirts she wore, as though being pretty wasn’t enough and she just had to snag the attention of every male in the room at all times.
Barb herself was chunky, with a low build a bit reminiscent of a bulldog.  Cassidy was tall and gangly, with a hideous number of freckles and long, unmanageable red hair.  Cassidy was five foot eleven and holding, hoping each day she didn’t grow another inch and cross over into six-foot territory.  She already towered over her mom and her brother.
Cassidy’s unusual height had led to her being recruited for the girls’ basketball team as a freshman.  She had sucked at basketball and quit after one season—Cassidy liked the Art Club, she liked painting backdrops for school plays, and she liked getting high in the woods behind the gym.  She did not like chasing a ball and putting it through a hoop like some kind of trained hamster.
Cassidy thought Barb just wanted a hot girl like Reese around to make their small group look more attractive.
The doorbell rang.  Cassidy opened it and hugged Tamila, who gave her an uncertain smile that said everything about the deteriorating state of their friendship.  Tamila was devolving toward a gross preppy look, too.  She wore a blue and white Abercrombie dress with two matching bows in her long, soft black hair.
Tamila’s smile, weak enough to begin with, faltered more when she saw Barb.
“Hi, Barb.” Tamila waved.  Tamila was a shapely, dark-skinned black girl who had grown out of middle-school gawkiness to become a real beauty with large, deep brown eyes.  If Barb wanted a cute girl for their group of friends, Tamila should have been a top pick, but she was too bookish and not wild enough for Barb.
“Tamila!” Barb said with fake friendliness, then turned her attention to sliding the pizza into the hot oven.
“Want some wine?” Cassidy offered.
“Is it a merlot?” Tamila asked.
“It’s a...pinot noir.” Cassidy read the words off the label, pronouncing them peanut no-wire, since she had no idea how else to say it.
“Just a little, thanks. I don’t want to get dizzy,” Tamila said.
“This should be fun, right?” Cassidy asked them, handing Tamila her wine.
“Sure.” Barb refilled her own glass, avoiding eye contact.
The evening was quiet and awkward until Reese arrived, at which point it became loud and awkward.  Barb let Reese in the door while Cassidy and Tamila sliced the finished pizza in the kitchen.
“What’s up, bitches?” Reese announced as she entered, waving a tall vodka bottle like a trophy.  The blond girl staggered into the room, dressed in a transparent mesh shirt with a skimpy bra top underneath, her tight low-rider denim shorts strategically slashed in several places. “So you call this a party, huh?”
“Want some pizza?” Barb offered.
“Um, do I look like I want a giant ass?” Reese unscrewed the vodka bottle and swigged. “So can we have some fucking music up in here?”
 The group moved back to Cassidy’s room to blast Cassidy’s stereo.  Cassidy sat on her daybed, which was lined with cushions, between Tamila and Barb.  Reese was left with the sagging armchair in the corner.
“So what’s for entertainment tonight, ladies?” Reese asked.
“I brought a pack of Uno cards...” Tamila reached into her purse.
“Uno?  Because we’re a bunch of kindergarteners?” Reese snorted. “Let’s play ‘Hot or Not.’”
“What’s that?” Cassidy asked.
“Where we judge the boys at school like the pieces of meat they are,” Reese said. “I’ll start:  Hot or not?  Dexter McKenna.”
“Ew, not,” Tamila said, frowning.
“How is he not?” Reese scowled.
“Because he’s a dick.” Tamila sipped her glass of wine. 
“You don’t like dicks?  You’re a chick-licker, aren’t you?” Reese laughed and stuck out her tongue, pierced with a stud that looked like a black pearl. “A preppy little dyke.”
“I am not!” Tamila snapped.  She gave Cassidy a desperate look, her eyes pleading for rescue.
“Come on, leave her alone.” Cassidy held out her glass to Barb, who had the open wine bottle. “Let’s drink more.”
“What do you think, Cassidy?” Barb poured until Cassidy’s wine glass was dangerously full. “Is Dex hot or not?”
“He’s kind of cute, but Tami’s right.  He’s a dick.” Cassidy drank her wine and fought down the urge to grimace at the bite of the alcohol.  She had a feeling Reese would make fun of her for it.
“I think he’s hot,” Barb said.
“Thank you, Barb!” Reese said. “All guys are dicks, people.  You just have to pick the hot ones.”
“Wisdom from Reese.” Barb toasted her and drank.
“I’m full of it.” Reese lit a Parliament.
“You really are,” Tamila said softly.
“What was that?”
“I’m going to let the smoke out.  It’s getting hard to breathe in here.” Tamila stood and opened the glass door to the balcony, letting in a warm, damp April breeze from the night outside.
Cassidy’s apartment was crappy and small.  The air conditioner smelled like sour rust, the plumbing was unreliable, and she could hear her neighbor’s dog barking day and night on the balcony below hers.  She and her brother shared a small hallway and a bathroom.  Their mother had the master bedroom, all the way across the living room.  The only good things about her apartment were that it was on the top floor of the three-story building and it had the little corner balcony.  Doors opened onto the balcony from both the living room and Cassidy’s room. 
“Does my smoke bother you?” Reese asked, blowing a thick plume toward Tamila.
“It bothers anyone who doesn’t smoke,” Tamila said.
“Can I have a Parliament?” Barb asked.
“Oh, sure!” Reese stuck a cigarette in Barb’s mouth, then held out the open pack to Cassidy. “And you, ma’am?”
“Let’s go outside.” Cassidy took one and led the way out.
The balcony wasn’t large, but Cassidy and her mother had decorated it with outdoor shelves full of small, blooming plants.  It overlooked a broken concrete walkway next to a chain link fence.  Past the fence lay a big sinkhole thick with pine brush and kudzu.  Tires, beer cans, and an old boxspring had accumulated in the weedy sinkhole over the years despite the high fence around it.
“Oh, yeah, we wouldn’t want to bother all the non-smokers here.” Reese just happened to blow a big cloud of smoke into Tamila’s face on her way out. 
Tamila hung back, standing inside Cassidy’s room and watching the three girls stand at the wooden railing.  The railing’s blue paint was faded and peeling, neglected for years by the apartment complex’s cheapskate management.
Cassidy wondered what Reese was secretly thinking about her tiny apartment.  She’d been to Reese’s house for a party once.  Reese had a big princess bed, a flower garden and swimming pool in her back yard, and a pool table and a bar in her finished basement.
“Full moon tonight,” Barb said. “The werewolves will be out.”
“So, Dex McKenna...?” Reese said.
“We already did him,” Cassidy replied.
“I haven’t done him,” Reese snickered. “But I will.  I know he’s kind of a douche, but...so hot.  So, so hot.”
“I’m not sure he deserves the double ‘so hot,’” Barb said. “A single one, maybe.”
“That’s why I invited him over tonight,” Reese told them.
“What?” Cassidy asked.
“It’s cool, he’ll bring some goodies if he comes.” Reese touched the side of her nose. “I was going to let it be a surprise, but...”
“A surprise?  Like a present?” Cassidy asked. “Isn’t a present supposed to be something you actually want?”
“I told him he could bring Kyle Bowers, too.  Kyle’s totally up for grabs.  Who’s calling him?  Barb?  Cassidy?”
“I made out with Kyle at Jerry Krazinksi’s party freshman year.” Barb shuddered. “He tasted like bologna.  It was like sticking my tongue up Oscar Meyer’s crack.”
“I don’t want those guys in my house,” Cassidy said. “Reese, you should have asked me.”
“First of all—‘apartment,’ not ‘house.’  Let’s not mangle the English language.  Second, I’ve been after this guy forever, for like four weeks.  It’s cool if we use your mom’s bed, right?” Reese asked.
“Gross.  Use my little brother’s bed,” Cassidy told her.
“Um, even grosser?  I am not hooking up with Dex on your brother’s snotty-caked little Star Wars sheets.”
“Then go somewhere else.”
“Fine.  The living room couch?”
“Like somewhere not in my apartment,” Cassidy said. “I’m not cleaning up those stains.”
“We’ll use a towel!” Reese offered.
Cassidy shook her head. “I can’t believe you invited them without asking me.”
“They probably won’t even come, okay?” Reese said. “Dex said he was busy.  It was just my fantasy that he would show up anyway, and take me right to the...couch...Cassidy, does your mom’s bathroom have a Jacuzzi tub?”
“Nope,” Cassidy said. “So those boys are not coming?  Right?”
“Almost definitely not.  But maybe.”  Reese shrugged and flicked her cigarette out into the sinkhole, where it landed among dry weeds and brush.
“Watch out!  You could start a fire.” Tamila leaned out to see where it had gone.
“Don’t be such a panty-pisser.  Your friend is boring me, Cassidy.” Reese nudged Tamila aside with her elbow as she returned inside Cassidy’s room.  Tamila gave Cassidy a look of disbelief and shook her head.  She mouthed the word bitch, and Cassidy laughed.
“What’s funny?” Reese looked back, frowning.
“Nothing,” Cassidy said.  She stepped inside and grabbed the vodka bottle from her dresser.  Barb followed her in and closed the balcony door behind them.
When they sat down, Reese stole Tamila’s previous spot at the head of the daybed and Barb sat beside her, leaving Cassidy to sit at the foot of her own bed.  Tamila rolled her eyes and dropped into the sagging old armchair instead.
“So, yeah, probably no boys,” Reese said. “What do we do instead?”
“Vodka shots.  Everybody empty your glass,” Cassidy said.  All four girls turned their glasses up and drained the wine.  Reese poured vodka.
“That’s too much!” Tamila gaped at her wineglass, filled to the lip with clear liquor.
“If you get drunk, maybe you’ll be more fun!” Reese gave her a chipper smile, and Barb laughed. Reese raised her glass. “Here’s to me hooking up with Dex, and to whatever you bitches want for yourselves.”
“Cheers!” Barb replied, clinking her glass against Reese’s.  Vodka sloshed over her fingers. Barb turned to Cassidy and held up her glass. “To whatever us bitches want for ourselves.”
“Cheers.” Cassidy clinked her glass against Barb’s, then leaned and stretched toward Tamila, but it was too far to reach, and neither of them made the effort to stand up and cross the room.
Cassidy, Barb, and Reese downed her entire drinks, but Tamila took a small sip, wrinkled her nose, and coughed.  She waved her hand in front of her mouth and set her mostly-full glass on Cassidy’s dresser, shaking her head.
“What?  How can you wuss-gag on vodka?  It has no taste,” Reese said. “Who wants seconds?”
“We don’t want to waste all of it right away,” Cassidy said.
“It’s not wasted if we drink it.” Reese winked, and Barb laughed.
“You know what we should do?  A full moon is the best time to contact the dead,” Barb said.
“Why would we want to do that?” Reese asked.
“To see what’s on the Other Side,” Barb replied.
“Isn’t that why the chicken crossed the road?” Tamila asked, but only Cassidy laughed at her joke.
“I’m serious, let’s do it,” Barb said. “Let’s talk to the spirits.”
Cassidy bit her lip.  Barb thought death was dark and romantic, but Cassidy didn’t find it romantic at all.  Her own father had died when she was six years old.
“How do you want to contact the dead, Barb?” Cassidy asked. “A séance?”
“Oh, this is all part of your ‘Look at me, I’m so Gothic and mysterious and weird’ thing,” Reese said to Barb.
“It’s better than your ‘Look at me, I’m wearing a see-through shirt’ thing,” Barb countered.
“Bitch!” Reese replied.
“Slut!”
Reese gasped and slapped playfully at Barb, who tackled her in return.  Cassidy watched them, drunk and friendly on the bed beside her, and still couldn’t think of a single good reason to ever hang out with Reese again.
“Want to do the séance, Tami?” Cassidy asked.
“That’s not funny,” Tamila said. “Let’s talk about something else.”
“Yeah, a séance!” Reese suddenly seemed interested now that Tamila was clearly uncomfortable.
“We used a Ouija board at my cousin’s house during Christmas,” Barb said. “It really does move by itself, it spells out words.  It was creepy.”
“Those are dangerous,” Tamila said. “We did a study unit on them at church.  Ouija boards, Tarot cards, Satan-worshipers, Wiccans—”
“Hey, Wiccans worship nature,” Barb interrupted, sitting up and looking serious. “Not Satan.  Satanists don’t worship Satan, either.  I read the Satanic Bible.  Well, like three pages of it.”
“Then that’s a rip-off,” Cassidy said. “What are people who worship Satan supposed to call themselves if they can’t use the word ‘Satanist’?”
“They need a name,” Barb said. “They should organize.  They need like a devil-pope, and a whole Satanic bureaucracy—”
“Stop it.” Tamila said. “Stop saying ‘Satan.’”
“Are you fucking serious right now?” Reese asked. “Let’s break out that Ouija board, ladies.”
“No!  They can make people crazy.  There’s demonic possession, ghosts...if you really read up on this, Reese, you’d know.  It’s dangerous,” Tamila said.
Reese and Barb looked at each other, then burst out laughing.
“Dangerous?  They’re made by Parker Brothers,” Reese said.
“I don’t have one here, anyway.  I bought one in middle school, but my mom found it and threw it away before I could use it,” Cassidy said.
“Did she throw it in the sinkhole out back?  Like next to the old homeless-person mattress?” Reese asked, and she and Barb broke down laughing again.
Cassidy felt herself blush—part anger, part embarrassment—and she poured herself more wine.
“We can make one!” Barb, who knew Cassidy’s room as well as Cassidy herself, stumbled across the room and opened the door to Cassidy’s tiny closet. 
The closet door was covered in drawings, as were all the walls in Cassidy’s cluttered room.  Her oldest works were approximate drawings of Oscar and Elmo from Sesame Street, in the medium of Crayola, just above the springy doorstop that had fascinated her as a small child.
From there, the drawings had spread up and out, bats and dragons done in colored pencil and marker, then attempts at portraits of people she knew—her mother, her father, her kindergarten teacher, and some preschool friend whose name she’d long forgotten.  Later works included paintings of trees, spiderwebs, and a homeless one-eyed cat who lived in the parking lot.
“You could draw an awesome spirit board, Cassidy!” Barb carried out poster board and a shoebox with markers, glue, scissors, and bottles of glitter, which Cassidy had used to create the colorful, shimmering flowers on her dresser drawers back in middle school.  “It would be so much better than the store-bought ones, anyway.  You know it would.”
“You want me to make it?” Cassidy smiled, a little excited by the idea of creating something new.  Somewhere in the back of her mind, she wondered if they might contact her father’s spirit, wherever it was, but she certainly didn’t say it out loud.
“We’d better not,” Tamila said.
“Come on, Tami, it’s something we can all do together.  What goes on a Ouija board?  Just letters and numbers, right?” Cassidy asked.
“You also need a YES and a NO so the spirits can answer questions, and a GOOD-BYE so they can leave when they’re done,” Barb said. “Use the glow-in-the-dark markers.”
“Good idea!” Cassidy replied.  Barb hopped up to light the three scented candles in Cassidy’s room.  Tamila frowned.
Cassidy carefully wrote out the alphabet in three rows of green letters, then added numbers from zero to nine.  She wrote YES and NO in the upper corners and GOOD-BYE at the bottom.
“And maybe a big FUCK YOU in case they get annoyed,” Reese suggested, and Cassidy snickered and added FUCK YOU between the YES and the NO.
“This isn’t a joke,” Tamila said. “I’m not doing this.”
“Blah, blah, blah.” Reese rolled her eyes.
“Now we just need to decorate it,” Barb said. “There’s usually a sun and a moon...”
“We can do better than that.” Cassidy drew a blue moon, a green clover, a red heart, and a purple horseshoe before realizing she was imitating the ingredients of a Lucky Charms box. “Wait, this is stupid.”
“That’s what I’ve been saying,” Tamila said.
“It looks good!” Barb countered.
“Make it more occult-y,” Reese said, with a sharp grin at Tamila.
Cassidy used the nozzle of her Elmer’s Glue bottle to sketch stars in each corner of the poster board.  She dusted them with red glitter and blew off the excess, leaving four sparkling red pentagrams.
“That seems like a bad idea,” Tamila said. “Just take off the pentagrams, okay?”
“The pentagrams are great!” Barb said.
“Hell, yeah, keep them,” Reese nodded.
“What other occult symbols are there?” Cassidy asked.
“Inverted crosses?” Reese suggested, then smirked at Tamila’s shocked look.
“There’s a symbol for each horoscope sign. I’ll sketch them...” Barb drew the symbols on a scrap of notebook paper, and Cassidy copied them in marker around the edges of the posterboard—blue waves for Aquarius, a red bull pictogram for Taurus.
“The symbol for Cancer is a sixty-nine?” Reese snickered, looking over Barb’s shoulder.
“That’s what Cancers like.  I’m a Cancer, so I know,” Barb replied.
“Here it is—the ultimate Ouija board.” Cassidy held up the colorful, glittering poster board. “We should be able to talk to ghosts from all over the world with this thing.”
“Sweet, international ghosts!  Let’s see how it looks in the dark.” Barb turned out the light, leaving the room in the dim glow of three candles.  The letters and numbers glowed an eerie green.  Outside, the trees rustled in the wind and light rain tapped on the balcony.
“Maybe I should go,” Tamila said quietly.
“Maybe you should!” Reese snatched the newly made board from Cassidy’s hands and tugged Barb down to the carpet with her. “Come on, let’s call up some dead people.”
“What do we use as a pointer?” Cassidy asked.
“You mean a planchette?” Barb drained her wine glass, then placed it upside down in the center of the board.  A few droplets of red wine dribbled down and blurred the glowing letters M and N.  Barb and Reese laid their fingertips on the base of the inverted glass.
“Let’s do this!” Reese said.
Cassidy slid down from her bed and sat across from Reese.  She placed her own fingertips on the glass along with the other two girls.
“One spot left,” Cassidy said to Tamila, who had made no move to leave the chair.
“I’m not doing it.”
“Come on, Tami.  It’ll be fun.  Please?” Cassidy resorted to a begging tone, locking eyes with Tamila.  What she wanted to say was: I am desperately trying to make you part of the group here, so please stop acting like such a tromboner tonight. “As a favor to me?”
“It does work better with four people,” Barb added.
Tamila sighed, looked at the board, and reluctantly left her chair to sit next to Cassidy, while offering a shaky, frightened smile to no one in particular.
“Okay.  Let’s get it over with,” Tamila whispered.  She placed her trembling fingers on the base of the upside-down wine glass. “We should say a prayer first.”
Barb and Reese found this hilarious, and Tamila frowned at their peals of drunken laughter.
“Let’s go,” Barb said.  She closed her eyes. “Are there any spirits—”
“Come talk to us, spirits!” Reese interrupted, closing her eyes and also swaying from side to side.  In her best drama-club voice, she projected, “Speak to us, give us messages from the world of the dead...”
The glass trembled under their fingers, and Cassidy gasped.  Everybody leaned in for a closer look, but the glass became still again.
“You should say only good spirits,” Tamila whispered. “Or we could end up talking to demons, or evil ghosts, or dead murderers...”
“Calling all demons, evil ghosts, and dead murderers!” Reese cried out in a slurred voice, then doubled forward, laughing.
“Be serious, Reese,” Barb said.  In a louder, more formal voice, she asked, “Are there any messages from the Other Side?  Like from our spirit guides or totem animals?”
“Totem animals,” Reese snickered.
“We all have one.  Mine’s a frog,” Barb told her, and Reese laughed and shook her head, tossing her blond hair.
“You look like a frog!” Reese said.
“Sh!  It’s moving,” Cassidy told them.
The wine glass shuddered again, and this time it began to slide over the poster board, the lip scraping and smearing a few of the still-wet letters, gathering glowing paint around its rim.
The glass moved across the alphabet to the word YES in the upper left corner of the poster, scraping up glue and glitter from a sparkly red pentagram along the way. 
“Who’s doing that?  Are you doing that?” Reese asked Tamila, who shook her head, her wide eyes fixed on the board.
“Hello?  Are you a spirit?” Barb asked.
The glass slid half an inch, then right back into place.  YES again.
“Who are you?” Barb asked. “I mean, to whom do we have the pleasure of speaking?”
The wineglass lay still for a moment, then vibrated and hummed as if someone had plinked it with a fingernail.  The glass slid over the alphabet.
Cassidy felt her heart racing.  She hadn’t expected it to work at all, and it was starting to freak her out.  She wished they hadn’t turned off the lights.
The wine glass smeared its way across the board, its entire rim glowing green now.  It stopped at the letter N, and didn’t move again until Barb said the letter aloud.  It stopped again on the I.
“N...I...” Barb said.
“Nipple?” Reese suggested.
The glass continued on to the B, then H...A...and then it stopped on Z.
“N-I-B-H-A-Z,” Barb said.
“It’s just nonsense,” Cassidy said.
The wineglass jerked under their fingers, then flew to the word NO, dragging their fingers with it.
“Who’s doing that?” Reese asked. “Is it you, Cassidy?  Barb?  It’s you, isn’t it, Barb?  You big Goth girl.”
“Sh,” Barb said. “Nib...haz?  Is that right?”
The wineglass zipped over to YES.
“What does that mean?” Cassidy asked.
The wineglass spelled out N...A...M...E.
“Your name is Nibhaz?”
YES.
“Sounds like a demon’s name to me,” Tamila said in a soft voice.
“Pfft, shut up,” Reese told her. “Like you would know.”
“Do you have a message for someone here, Nibhaz?” Barb asked.
YES.
 “For who?” Barb asked.
C...A...S...S...
Cassidy felt her blood turn cold.
“Oh, shit, for Cassidy?” Reese asked.
YES.
“Nibhaz, what is your message for Cassidy?” Barb asked.
The four girls watched as the glass crept back and forth along the top row of text.  D...I...E...
“Die?  It’s telling her to die?” Tamila gasped.
“Sh, it’s not done yet,” Barb told her.
“Yeah, it’s not done yet,” Reese echoed, her eyes fixated on the glass.
Cassidy shivered, trying to think of any non-scary word that started with “die.”
“Diesel?” Cassidy asked in a shaky voice.  She expected someone to laugh at her, but nobody did.
The glass moved back to the letter D.
“Died,” Barb said. “He’s saying he died, I think.  He’s a ghost.”
The glass whipped over to the word NO, then returned to the letter D.
D...I...E..
D...I...E...
D...I...E...
“Does it stand for something?” Cassidy guessed, trying not to sound scared.  Her heart was thundering inside her chest.
“Is it somebody’s initials, Nibhaz?” Barb asked.
NO.
“He’s telling her to die!  Are you people blind?” Tamila snapped.  She took her fingers off the glass and stood. “I’m gone.  Forget this craziness.”
“You can’t let go until the spirit says GOOD-BYE!” Barb yelled at her. “That’s how people get possessed!”
“Oh, now you believe in demons?” Tamila asked, brushing off her knees.
“Please don’t leave me, Tami,” Cassidy whispered.  She was genuinely scared now. “Not until this is done, okay?”
Tamila looked at her a long moment, then sighed and reluctantly sat on the floor again.
“Make it quick.” Tamila returned her fingers to the glass. “I mean it.”
“Nibhaz, is there more to your message?” Barb asked.
YES.
“What?” Cassidy whispered.
The glass flew back to the top row of letters.
D...I...E...
It moved faster, back and forth, never leaving the top row.
DIE
DIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIEDIE
Cassidy watched in horror, spellbound as the glass raced back and forth, smearing the top row of letters into an illegible green streak, but still sliding back and forth, back and forth, touching the spots where the three letters D, I, and E had been.

She wanted to let go and pull away, but her fingertips felt glued to the wine glass.  The glass became icy, burning cold under her fingertips, a crust of smoking frost forming inside the bowl and along the stem.
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