Beautiful Curse
by Jen McConnel
Release Date: December 2014
Swoon Romance
Summary from Goodreads:
Sixteen-year-old Mya Jones is cursed.
She is, hands down, the most beautiful creature on earth. But beauty can wound, and Mya finds herself reviled and shunned by her peers. If there is even a chance that she could start over, Mya longs to take it, no matter the risks.
So when the strange Mr. Merk offers her a new life away from home, Mya is hesitant but hopeful. Only she didn't count on the mysterious Ross, or her feelings for him.
BEAUTIFUL CURSE is a contemporary retelling of the myth of Psyche and Cupid.
She is, hands down, the most beautiful creature on earth. But beauty can wound, and Mya finds herself reviled and shunned by her peers. If there is even a chance that she could start over, Mya longs to take it, no matter the risks.
So when the strange Mr. Merk offers her a new life away from home, Mya is hesitant but hopeful. Only she didn't count on the mysterious Ross, or her feelings for him.
BEAUTIFUL CURSE is a contemporary retelling of the myth of Psyche and Cupid.
Excerpt;
Dumping my bag in the half-painted
kitchen, I pulled out my cell phone. Elaina had been really cold to
me at lunch, and we didn’t have any classes together; maybe I
should text her to see if she wanted to come over. I stared at the
phone for a moment, considering, but then I shook my head. She’s
probably just having a bad first day. Trying not to think about her,
I rummaged through the fridge, hoping I could find something with
either copious amounts of chocolate or salt, but all I came up with
was an apple. I sat down at the kitchen table and sighed before
biting into the red skin.
“Mya, is that you?” Mom called from
upstairs, and I swallowed the bite of apple.
“Yeah.” I sort of hoped she
wouldn’t come down. I didn’t really want to re-hash the awful
day, but I heard her soft steps on the stairs.
She came around the corner and looked
at me expectantly. “Well, how was it?”
I sighed. “Okay, I guess. Elaina and
I had a fight.”
“About?”
I took another bite of my apple. “I’m
not sure,” I lied. I didn’t want to tell Mom that we’d fought
about my looks. It seemed like a ridiculous reason to argue, and I
hoped Elaina would get over whatever was bothering her by tomorrow.
Mom squinted at me. “What did you do
to your face?”
I stopped chewing. “What do you
mean?” I reached for my cell phone to check my reflection in the
screen, but Mom’s next words stopped me.
“You look different. Fake, somehow.
Are you wearing new makeup?”
I shook my head. “You know I hate
wearing makeup.”
Mom cocked her head to one side.
“Still, something’s different about you.”
I slumped into my seat. Desperate to
change the subject, I gestured at the kitchen. “Are we out of
paint?”
She nodded, but her eyes studied my
face for a moment before shifting to look at the half-finished walls.
“Yes. I was
going to run out and get some more,
but—“ She cleared her throat. “I guess I got distracted
upstairs.”
“I can get it.”
“Don’t you have homework?”
I shrugged. “It’s not a far walk.”
Mom hesitated, glancing at the door,
but then she nodded. “Okay.” She leaned forward and kissed my
forehead. “Thank you.”
I hopped up and tossed my apple core in
the compost bin on the counter. “Another gallon?”
She nodded, and then she pulled me into
a tight hug.
Confused, I looked up at her. “You
okay?”
“Yes.” Mom pulled away and pursed
her lips. “Are you sure you don’t want to wash off whatever’s
on your face first?”
I sighed, exasperated. “I told you,
Mom, it’s just me.”
She laughed, but it sounded forced. “No
one looks that good when they’re sixteen, sweetie.”
About the Author
Jen McConnel first began writing poetry as a child. Since then, her words have appeared in a variety of magazines and journals, including Sagewoman, PanGaia, and The Storyteller (where she won the people’s choice 3rd place award for her poem, “Luna”).
She is also a former reviewer for Voices of Youth Advocates (VOYA), and proud member of SCBWI, NCWN, and SCWW.
A Michigander by birth, she now lives and writes in the beautiful state of North Carolina. A graduate of Western Michigan University, she also holds a MS in Library Science from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. When she isn't crafting worlds of fiction, she teaches college writing composition and yoga.
A Michigander by birth, she now lives and writes in the beautiful state of North Carolina. A graduate of Western Michigan University, she also holds a MS in Library Science from Clarion University of Pennsylvania. When she isn't crafting worlds of fiction, she teaches college writing composition and yoga.
Once upon a time, she was a middle school teacher, a librarian, and a bookseller, but those are stories for another time.
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ReplyDeleteBeing cursed by beauty, that is an interesting concept. Can't wait to read the rest of the story.
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