A Chilling Absence
by Shelly Maynard
Published July 6th
2016
Publisher: Churchill
Publishing
Genre: Mystery,
Thriller, Suspense
Blurb:
Lily
Grimes had it all. She was head cheerleader, the girlfriend of the All-American
High School Quarterback, had been accepted to a prestige college near her
hometown and the best family and friends a young woman could ask for. Just
before Christmas 2004, Dr. Jethro “Jet” Manning, the doctor-in-training for the
quaint little town, nearly runs over Lily, who is found unresponsive and icy
cold in the middle of a backroad.
Fast
forward to 2015 - Lily Grimes finally wakes up and has to face the reality of
being in a coma for the past 11 years. Her life has changed but just as she
feels like she is getting into the groove of things, Lily discovers secrets
have been kept, lies have been told and everyone whom she considered a
‘friend’, may not be out for her best interest.
Lily
feels like something is missing - a piece of herself. Is it simply because she
was in a coma for so long or is there literally a piece missing? As she sets
out on a mission to find the answer, Lily discovers that she’s being stalked
and someone is trying to kill her.
Who
can she trust and will she ever find the secret to those eleven missing years?
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Excerpt:
“Well,
I think she deserves to know,” insisted Caroline, “She’s going to have a harder
time accepting it if she discovers it on her own.” Dr. Manning sighed and
looked at the set of desperate parents. “Caroline, please dear, she just woke
up. Being out of it for eleven years is a big enough issue to face,” said Jake
as he wrapped his arm around Caroline’s waist. “Y’all just don’t know the ways
it affects a woman - physically, mentally and emotionally,” said Caroline,
crossing her arms. Jethro ran a hand through his hair and rubbed the scruff on
his chin before he finally said, “As her physician, I think it’s best if we
take revealing news to her slowly. Too much could send her into shock again and
that wreaks havoc on all of her organs.”
“I
agree,” said Jake. Caroline tapped her foot, rolled her eyes and through
gritted teeth, said, “Fine….”. She was a woman who did not like not getting her
way. “For now, we will give her a few days and revisit where she’s at. I’m
going to talk to Dr. Marsden about a therapy plan for when she’s released,”
said Dr. Manning. Caroline narrowed her eyes at the two men to make her
unhappiness clear but finally gave in to a smile when she looked through the
crack of her daughter’s room and saw life in her body. She vowed that she’d
protect her baby girl - at any cost!
A
few minutes later, her parents departed Dr. Manning and he scurried off down
the hall. Lily realized, for the first time that day, she was completely alone.
She thought about turning on the TV but thought it might be a bit much so
instead, she turned on her side and stared at the calendar. 2015, she thought.
That would make me 29! Oh my goodness!! I’m old! Her thoughts were interrupted
by a little boy running through the hallway and screaming, “Mommy is coming
home” at the top of his lungs. She smiled and felt the excitement from the day
catch up to her so Lily closed her eyes and slept.
My
Review:
A young woman wakes up in a hospital room and her mom is
there and she is so happy to see that Lily is awake but something seems off not
quite right and then Lily rolls over and sees a calendar with the year 2015 on
it. Lily does a double take and ask everyone what is with the calendar? Her
mom then proceeds to tell her that she has been in a coma for 11 years.
Lily is upset that she has missed 11 years of her life
and she knows that her mom, dad and everyone else is keeping secrets from her
about the night she went into a coma.
When Lily is finally released from the hospital she is determined
to get on with her life and put the past behind her. It’s not long before she
figures out someone is following her but she doesn’t say anything to anyone and
puts it off on her imagination.
Someone is out to get Lily they want to make sure
whatever happened all those years ago on the night Lily went into a coma stays
a secret and they also want to finish what they started 11 years ago.
After Lily finds out that her family and friends are keeping secrets
from her she is determined to find out what those secrets are and also to
find out who is after her and what they want with her? What happened to Lily on
that long ago night? Is Lily safe? Will she ever be able to put that night
behind her? To find out all the answers and find out what happened to Lily pick
up your copy of A Chilling Absence today.
A Chilling Absence has been an amazing read. Although it
is not my favorite genre I do love a good mystery and am so glad I finally read
it. Now I don’t know why I waited so long. A Chilling Absence is a short read
one that you can read in a few hours it felt as if it was a lot longer with all
the twist and turns of a long story. It gives you the right amount of detail
and background of each character and their stories right when you need it. The
ending was so amazing not what I was expecting at all. I really enjoyed Lily’s
story and loved following along with her on her journey to a new life.
AUTHOR BIO:
July
15, 1984. Shelly Oakley (now Maynard) was born and lived in tiny Ashmore,
Illinois until 1998 when her parents relocated to Manchester, Tennessee.
Starting a new high school and making new friends was hard enough but it was
that point in her life where it came time to make life-changing decisions in
regards to college, careers, etc. Shelly had spent so much time following in
others’ footsteps that she never had a plan for her career. The only dream
she’d ever had was to become an author but that was laughed off by family and
friends. By 2002, Shelly was in college and switched her major from nursing to
teaching and finally business. One year in and she discovered that she was
pregnant with her first son. He joined the world in 2004 and was followed by a
brother in 2006. During the second pregnancy, Shelly fought demons of a bad
marriage and started trying to rebuild her life. She met her (now) husband in
the Fall of 2006 and they’ve been inseparable ever since. Her three guys are
her entire heart, soul, mind and spirit! After searching for several years,
Shelly decided that it was time to find a place to settle in her career. She
started working for a local, family-owned steel fabrication company in 2014 and
was surprised when she found more than a job – she gained an extended family
and friends who provided a tremendous amount of support. Between the support of
her husband, children, family and friends, Shelly started writing again. In
2015, Shelly stumbled upon the opportunity to read Eternal Dawn by Kathi Haacke
Morehead. The book reached down in her soul and opened her eyes to view the
world as she never had before. The writing bug flourished and Shelly knew it
was time to pursue her dreams. Past demons haunted her but she wanted to set an
example for her children and follow her dream through to the end to prove that
hard work, persistence and dedication pays off! Living in Lynchburg, Tennessee,
Shelly Maynard is your typical mom – she enjoys spending time with her family,
friends and for nine of the twelve months per year, you’ll find her at a ball
field watching her children. She enjoys front-porch-sittin’ with a glass of
sweet tea and the occasional margarita. She loves her morning coffee, a good
book and writing for her blog. It’s the simple, “little” things in life that
make life grand!
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