FLICKERS OF FORTUNE
by S.R.
Cronin
GENRE: Sci
Fi Fantasy
BLURB:
Seeing the future is a nuisance. Ariel does her best to shut it
out, until she stumbles on a group of clairvoyants using their talents to get
extremely rich. They have her attention. Then she meets a second bunch obsessed
with surviving an upcoming near extinction event.
Both factions seem dangerous and, to be honest, a little crazy.
They don’t get along. As they learn more about her, however, each group decides
Ariel’s particular abilities are hard to find and exactly what they need.
There is no possible way to help them both. Aligning with either
may be a bad idea, but staying out of this mess is no longer an option.
Excerpt:
While they were waiting for the
luggage, Ariel wandered off, looking for a bathroom. She turned into an office
and noticed a man’s legs sticking out from under a desk.
“Are you okay?” She felt like she
should say something.
She heard him chuckle. “No, I’m in
serious need of somebody to grab the other end of this wire. One man doing a
two man job.” Ariel saw that he was trying to get a computer cable to go
through a small hole in top of the desk.
“Let me help.” She came over, pulled
the cord through and plugged it into the monitor where it was clearly intended
to go.
“Thanks,” he said as he wriggled out
from under the desk. He noticed she’d connected the cable. “A helpful tourist
and one that knows how to connect hardware.”
“I can manage more than plugging in
a monitor.” She laughed. “IT training here, though I don’t use it enough these
days. I’m Ariel and I’m looking for a ladies’ room.”
“You came all the way to the arctic
to find a place to pee?”
She rolled her eyes and when he held
out his hand she took it without thinking.
“Siarnaq,” he said and Ariel saw a
small spark in the air before their hands touched.
Then for a few seconds, neither of
them could have said a word if they had wanted to.
Ariel saw the flickers of the
distant future going wild in the corners of her brain, like far off flashing
lights. He let go of her hand.
“You’re a seer.” He said it like it
was fact. He studied her red hair, fair skin and blue eyes. She wasn’t of the
People, or at least if she had Inuit ancestors they were few indeed. Had he
ever met a seer who wasn’t mostly Inuit? He didn’t think so.
“You get visions of the future,
too?” Ariel’s heart was beating harder. She’d never expected to be asking this
question.
The Inuit man laughed. “The world is
full of seers.”
I had no idea that would be so good
to know.
“You have a lot to learn about your
gift. You’re with the tour group?” She nodded, not trusting herself to speak.
“Today, they give you time to shop and sightsee. Let’s go get a cup of coffee.”
My Review:
Ariel is clairvoyant which as we know means she can see the
future when she has contact when another person. Being clairvoyant has lead
Ariel to a quiet and probably a sort of lonely life as she doesn’t like
touching people and seeing their future.
Ariel doesn’t think she should use the knowledge that she has
been given. Ariel as a lot of other people do as well believe that if you
change just one small part of the future then it could be catastrophic.
If that is true then why was she given such a gift if it was
not to help people you know to save someone’s life or to keep them from making
a mistake that could cost lives? I mean otherwise it has no purpose, right?
Ariel is offered a new job in finance at first she is not
sure that she should take the job but soon learns that it would probably be in
her best interest. On her new job some of the people she meets are clairvoyant
like her but their gift is different in that they each see into the future at
different timelines or different time spans or periods.
There are two groups of clairvoyants and each group wants
Ariel on their side and working for them. One group wants Ariel to use her
abilities to help them get rich and the other group wants Ariel to use her
abilities to help them stop the extinction of the human race.
Which group will Ariel help? Will she help both groups? Can
she help both groups? Or will she have to choose one or the other? Will she
help one group get rich? Or will she save the human race from extinction? Is it
wrong for Ariel to use her abilities to help someone? If she uses her abilities
will it change the future for the good or the bad? Why was she given these
special abilities?
While Flickers of Fortune is part of a series it can be read
as a standalone but it is so much better if they are read in order this way you
already have knowledge of people from past books. Flickers of Fortune is a fast
paced read that kept me glued to the pages and with all the twists and turns
they kept the pages turning to see what the future held. I liked getting to see
the points of view from more than one character. I like knowing how each
character’s story fits as we go along and trying to figure out how they all
connect in the end.
I highly recommend Flickers of Fortune to all fans of
science fiction and anyone who likes reading about people who can see the
future. I highly recommend every book in the 46. Ascending series.
AUTHOR Bio
and Links:
Sherrie Roth grew up in Western Kansas thinking there was no place
in the universe more fascinating than outer space. After her mother vetoed
astronaut as a career ambition, she went on to study journalism and physics in
hopes of becoming a science writer.
She published her first science fiction short story and then
waited a lot of tables while she looked for inspiration for the next tale. When
it finally came, it declared to her it had to be a whole book, nothing less.
One night, while digesting this disturbing piece of news, she drank way too
many shots of ouzo with her boyfriend. She woke up thirty-one years later
demanding to know what was going on.
The boyfriend, who she had apparently long since married, asked
her to calm down. He explained that, in a fit of practicality, she had gone
back to school and gotten a degree in geophysics and had spent the last 28
years interpreting seismic data in the oil industry. The good news, according
to Mr. Cronin, was she found it at least mildly entertaining and ridiculously
well-paying. The bad news was the two of them had still managed to spend almost
all of the money.
Apparently she was now Mrs. Cronin, and the further good news was
they had produced three wonderful children whom they loved dearly, even though
to be honest that is where a lot of the money had gone. Even better news was
that Mr. Cronin turned out to be a warm-hearted, encouraging sort who was happy
to see her awake and ready to write. "It's about time," were his
exact words.
Sherrie Cronin discovered that over the ensuing decades Sally Ride
had already managed to become the first woman in space and done a fine job of
it. No one, however, had written the book that had been in Sherrie's head for
decades. The only problem was the book informed her it had grown into a six
book collection. Sherrie decided she better start writing before it got any
longer. She's been wide awake ever since, and writing away.
Author
Social Media Links:
Blogs:
Giveaway:
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8 comments:
Are any of the characters in your book based on real people?
Thanks so much for hosting me today and for reviewing my book.
Thanks for commenting, James. I appreciate the question Bernie. One of my daughters provided the initial inspiration for main character Ariel, although of course Ariel developed into her own person as I wrote.
What was one of your favorite scenes to write for this book?
How long after you finish a book do you start writing your next book?
thank you for sharing this book with us
Thanks for the review.
Good blurb and excerpt - looks iteresting.
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