Hope and Honor
by Marilee
Brothers
GENRE: Romantic
suspense with a touch of fantasy
BLURB:
Life
is becoming more complicated for soul reader Honor Melanie “Mel” Sullivan. Her
boss needs help with his rebellious teen daughter who believes rules are made
to be broken and Mel’s current boyfriend, Homeland Security agent Mick Petrov,
is becoming an absentee lover, dropping hints about a major decision he faces.
To make it worse, Mel’s ex, 3 Peaks detective “Billy the Kid” McCarty wants her
back. And those aren’t the only challenges. When a paramilitary group called
New Dawn wants her soul-reading skills, Mel meets five-year-old twins who steal
her heart. Unwilling to abandon the motherless children, she strikes a deal
with the compound’s charismatic leader. Drawn deeper and deeper into New Dawn’s
twisted agenda, Mel must figure out a way to save the twins and herself before
it’s too late.
Excerpt:
My peripheral vision catches sight
of a sudden movement. I walk down the steps and turn right until I reach the
edge of the building. I peek around the corner and see a little girl pressed
against the rough siding. Her dark hair is braided. Her jeans and jacket are
too big and look like boy clothes. Her gaze is fixed on the ground. Her thumb
is in her mouth. She’s clutching a stuffed rabbit.
I take a step toward her and smile.
“Hi. Are you waiting for your dad?”
She nods.
I take a step closer, trying not to
spook her. “I’m Mel. What’s your name?”
Without removing her thumb, she
mumbles something unintelligible. I take a step close and squat down until
we’re eye level.
“I didn’t quite get your name. Maybe
if you take your thumb out of your mouth it will work better.”
She lifts her head and I’m looking
into eyes identical to those of the little blond boy. Bright and blue. My heart
breaks when I look into her soul. Streaked with pale blue accents, it’s a soft
shade of pink and bisected with a jagged black line. This little girl has
experienced severe trauma.
“I think I saw your dad and brother
go into the hall. Am I right?”
She nods. The thumb comes out of her
mouth. “Papa and Gunner.”
“Can you tell me your name again,
sweetie?”
“I’m Kimber.”
“Do people call you Kim?”
She shakes her head. “Nope. People
call me Kimber, ‘cause that’s my name.”
“Got it,” I say. “How about you keep
me company until the meeting is over. I’ve got nobody to talk to and I’m
lonesome. We could go sit on the stairs and wait together.”
“Not there. No females. We can sit
on the bench, though.”
She takes my hand and leads me to a
rickety bench a few yards in front of the porch railing. We sit in
companionable silence for a few minutes. I’m dying to know more about Kimber,
but don’t want to bombard her with questions.
“This is Blossom Bunny,” she offers,
thrusting the stuffed rabbit in front of my face.
Blossom Bunny is not attractive. Her
fur is dull gray and splotchy. Her long, floppy ears droop down to her skinny
legs. Black, beady eyes peer straight ahead atop a little pink nose.
“Very nice,” I lie.
“I love Blossom Bunny. She has
zippers in her ears. I keep important stuff there.”
She lays the bunny across her lap,
lifts one of the floppy ears and points out the zipper.
“Very cool. It’s good to have a
place to keep important stuff.”
She nods solemnly, unzips one of the
ears and pulls out stubby pencil, a little rubber ball and a hair ribbon.
Seeing her sparse array of treasures makes me sad.
Interview with Marilee Brothers
Can you tell us a little bit about the characters in Hope and Honor?
My protagonist, Honor Melanie Sullivan (Mel), had a
twin sister named Hope who died in an accident when the girls were in
kindergarten. Shortly after, Mel developed the ability to look into a person’s
eyes and see the contents of his/her soul. As a young child, this was
frightening. In book 1, Affliction, Mel learns how to deal with her soul
reading ability. She comes to realize it is a gift, not an affliction. Book 2,
Allegiance, finds Mel embroiled in a new mystery. In Hope and Honor, she has
two men vying for her affection, William Henry McCarty (Billy the Kid) and Mick
Petrov, a Homeland Security agent.
Uncle Paco and Mel’s best friend Kendra appear in all three books. In Hope and Honor, a pair of
five-year-old twins, Kimber and Gunner, steal Mel’s heart.
Can you tell us a little bit about your next books or what you have
planned for the future?
I’ve started writing a mystery set
on a golf course named Fairway to Heaven. When a man’s body is found sprawled
on the fairway, Libby Montgomery, manager of the pro shop, gets involved.
How long would you say it takes you to write a book?
Usually around nine months, like a
pregnancy. Instead of a baby, I get a brand new book.
What is your favorite childhood
book?
The Secret Garden and Heidi
If you could spend the day with
one of the characters from Hope and Honor. Tell us why you chose this
particular character, where you would go and what you would do.
Definitely Uncle Paco, Mel’s gangbanger uncle who is devoted to her.
Uncle Paco is a huge Mexican man, the head of a motorcycle gang called Los Habaneros
and involved in a don’t ask, don’t tell business. He and I would go to Nick’s
Pub, sip a cerveza and shoot the
breeze.
What was the hardest scene from Hope and
Honor to write?
Without
a doubt, the epilogue. Since this is the last book in the series, my goal was
to tie in the twin theme along with a happily ever after conclusion. I’ve heard
from readers who love the ending, so hopefully, I succeeded.
What made you want to become a
writer?
Like the title of your blog, I come from a family of avid readers. Our
family outing was a trip to the library. I dabbled in poetry and short stories
while working full time and raising three sons. My first book was published in
2008 and I’ve written one book a year since then. Hope and Honor is my tenth
book
Just for fun
(a
Favorite song: - Unknown Legend by Neil Young
(b
Favorite book: The Glass Castle by Janette Walls
(c
Favorite movie: Recently saw Wonder and loved it.
(d
Favorite tv show: Homeland
(e
Favorite Food: - popcorn
(f
Favorite drink: white wine
(g
Favorite website: Yours, of course!
Thanks
so much for visiting with us today!
Thank you for hosting me.
AUTHOR Bio
and Links:
Marilee
Brothers is a former teacher, coach, counselor and the author of ten books.
Marilee and her husband are the parents of three grown sons and live in central
Washington State. After writing six young adult books, Marilee is once again
writing romantic suspense for the adult market. She loves hearing from people who
have read her books. Feel free to contact her Website and sign up for her newsletter The Obsessive Page Turner.
Her
author page on Facebook and she
occasionally tweets on Twitter. Check out Marilee’s Amazon page.
Marilee’s
blog is Book Blather, where she features
aspiring and published authors as well as some tidbits of her own.
Giveaway:
$10 Amazon or B/N GC
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1 comments:
Great excerpt and interview!
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