Center
of Gravity
by
Laura McNeill
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Her
whole life, Ava Carson has been sure of one thing: she doesn’t
measure up to her mother’s expectations. So when Mitchell Carson
sweeps into her life with his adorable son, the ready-made family
seems like a dream come true.
In
the blink of an eye, she’s married, has a new baby, and life is
grand.
Or
is it?
When
her picture-perfect marriage begins unraveling at the seams, Ava
convinces herself she can fix it. It's temporary. It’s the stress.
It’s Mitchell’s tragic history of loss.
If
only Ava could believe her own excuses.
Mitchell
is no longer the charming, thoughtful man she married. He grows more
controlling by the day, revealing a violent jealous streak. His
behavior is recklessly erratic, and the unanswered questions about
his past now hint at something far more sinister than Ava can
stomach. Before she can fit the pieces together, Mitchell files for
divorce and demands full custody of their boys.
Fueled
by fierce love for her children and aided by Graham Thomas, a new
attorney in town —Ava takes matters into her own hands, digging
deep into the past. But will finding the truth be enough to beat
Mitchell at his own game?
Center
of Gravity weaves a chilling tale, revealing the unfailing and
dangerous truth that things—and people—are not always what they
seem.
EXCERPT;
When
your children are stolen, the pain swallows you whole. Logic fades,
reason retreats. Desperation permeates the tiniest crevices of your
mind. Nothing soothes the ache in your wounded soul.
Right in
front of me, my sweet, charmed life fell to pieces. Everything
destroyed; a hailstorm’s wrath on a field of wildflowers. All I’d
known—gone. Foolish me, I’d believed in magic, clung tight to
false promises. The lies, spoken from tender lips, haunt me now,
follow me, and whisper into my ear like a scorned lover.
What’s
left is emptiness.
Give
up, a voice urges. Let
go.
No! I
argue back. My children aren’t gone. Not yet. Precious and
delicate, tiny fossils, they exist in glass-boxed isolation. Hidden.
Protected.
And so
tonight, I run. Blood pulses through my legs, my muscles protest; my
lungs scream for more oxygen. Thick storm clouds brew in the
distance. The rain falls in blinding sheets. The force of it pricks
my skin like needles, but the pain only makes me push harder.
I will
rescue them.
Lightning
flashes across the wet driveway. The bulk of his truck looms large in
the black night. I skid to a stop and catch my breath, pressing a
hand to my heaving chest.
They’re
here. My children are here.
Thunder
booms and crashes, nearer now, the wind whips my hair. A gust tosses
tree branches to the ground. Birds cry and flutter to safety. An
escaped sandbox bucket spins, clattering on the blacktop.
I grasp
the railing and pull myself up the steps. At the top, the door’s
shiny-slick with water and humidity. Mother Nature howls and drowns
out my knocking.
“Hello!
Can you hear me?” With my palm open wide, I slap at the barrier,
willing it to open. I will rescue my children. I will rescue them . .
. or I will die trying.
Paste
first excerpt here
AUTHOR
Bio and Links:
After
six years behind the anchor desk at two CBS affiliates, Laura moved
to the Alabama Gulf Coast to raise her family. Her accolades in
broadcasting include awards from the Associated Press, including Best
News Anchor and Best Specialized Reporter.
Laura
works at Spring Hill College as the school’s web content and social
media manager and is active in her community—participating in
fundraisers for the American Cancer Society, Ronald McDonald House,
and Providence Hospital’s Festival of Flowers.
Laura
was recently awarded a 2-book deal with Thomas Nelson Publishing, a
division of HarperCollins. Her novel, Center of Gravity, set in
Mobile, Ala., will be published in July of 2015. Laura is represented
by Elizabeth Winick Rubenstein, president of McIntosh and Otis
literary agency in New York. Her writing awards include those from
William Faulkner-Wisdom Creative Writing Competition, Writer’s
Digest, RWA, and the Eric Hoffer competition.
She
holds a master’s degree in journalism from The Ohio State
University and a bachelor’s degree in English from Clarion
University of Pennsylvania. She is currently pursuing a second
master’s degree in interactive technology from the University of
Alabama. She is a native of Upstate New York and currently resides
near the Alabama Gulf Coast with her two children.
Laura
McNeill will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn
winner via rafflecopter
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteDear Debra - Thank you so much for hosting Center of Gravity on this Release Day! I'm so glad that you decided to take part in the book blast!!! xx, Laura
ReplyDeleteThank you Patrick! Glad you enjoyed it! ~ Laura
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading the excerpt. I will totally have to add it to my "to-read" list.
ReplyDelete