Michelle L. Levigne's Blog, page 3

Excerpt: SHRUNK: THE EXILE OF MAURICE, Neighborlee, Ohio, Book 8

 Make a wish. Ken fought a snortof skepticism. That attitude didn't belong at Divine's. He walked up to thetree. When he picked his ornament, he glanced up at the angel.

It winked at him.

He flinched. Iwish… I need a date for the company Christmas party. Someone classy. A reallady. Someone wonderful, who'll stick around forever. After all, if he wasgoing to take a chance on wishes, why not go for broke? And if Allistairshows his true colors in front of the boss, that'd be great, too.

He watched Jo whilethe rest of the decorating party made their wishes. Some aloud, others silent.Ken remembered when he had been part of the laughing and teasing, thecomplaints about the crowds at the malls, comparing plans for holidaycelebrations. It felt like a lifetime ago.

Jo didn't join in theteasing, which reinforced Ken's suspicion the kid was new in town and didn'tknow many people. Poor kid, looking for work while he was still in school. Hewondered if Jo was from the orphanage. Angela mentored the kids who livedthere, finding jobs for them in her shop or other shops in town.

If you want goodthings to happen in your life, his mother used to say, you should makegood things happen for other people.

"I swear,"Diane, one of Angela's clerks said, laughing, "you get a bigger tree everyyear, but it's never a problem."

"We don'tbelieve in problems at Divine's Emporium." Angela looked positively primin her smugness. "You've worked for me long enough to know that."

"Just solutionsand miracles," Jo said. "Christmas is the right time of year formiracles, that's for sure." He smiled, but there was something wistful inhis expression, and that decided Ken.

"Hey, Jo."Ken dug in his wallet for a business card. He held it out to the boy, whoseeyes were bright blue among the dust from lugging boxes of decorations up fromAngela's cellar. "Go see the Human Resources director at Myerhausen.She'll find you a job."

Jo's eyes widened andhis long, delicate fingers twitched as he took the card. "Thanks -- uh,"he glanced at the card, "Ken. That's really nice of you."

"That's one wishalready come true," Angela said.

"I haven't evenapplied yet." The boy laughed.

"Oh ye of littlefaith. Where's your Christmas spirit?" She wrapped an arm around Ken'sshoulder for a brief hug. "I think I can guarantee your wish will cometrue."

"I didn't do itto make my wish work," Ken muttered. He hated it when his face got so hot.Brittney had always teased him about being able to use his face for a warningbeacon.

"That's exactly why it'll work." Angelawinked and walked on past to talk to Jane Wilson.

Excerpt: SHRUNK: THE EXILE OF MAURICE, Neighborlee, Ohio, Book 8

 "Make awish?" Jo's voice cracked with a cold. The kid hopped down off the counterand stepped over to the Wishing Ball. The rainbow metallic ball in its stylizeddragon stand seemed to glow with a light of its own.

"Notthere." Angela gestured at the tree. "Here. Hold an ornament in bothyour hands and make a wish."

"That'seasy." Jo wiped his hands on the seat of his jeans and reached for anornament. "I wish I had a job. Better than my paper route." Hegrinned over his shoulder at Angela. "Better hours, and indoors,please."

Ken could have swornhe saw the Christmas tree angel lean down and shake glitter on the boy'sbaseball cap.

Shaking his head, hewondered if he had been working too hard. Now he was hallucinating, from fatigueand the shifting lights in the shop. Maybe instead of worrying about his datefor the company Christmas party, he should just ask for the entire month offand go to some place quiet and restful.

"Oh, no youdon't," Angela said, when Jo made a move to put the ornament back on thetree. "How can your wish come true if you don't take it home withyou?"

"I don't have atree."

"It's stillthree weeks until Christmas." She closed the boy's hands around theornament again. "Something might happen between now and then." Shemet Jo's eyes until the boy gave in and tucked the ornament into the frontpocket of his sweatshirt. Angela nodded, and looked around the room."Ken?" She winked at him when he startled. "Your turnnext."

"But --"

"You don't haveto say your wish out loud. It won't negate what you wish for." She glancedat Jo. 

The boy stuck his tongue out. Under the smears of dustand strands of cobweb hanging from the brim of his ball cap, his face lookeddelicate. Ken couldn't remember seeing him in the shop before. Maybe he was newto town? Sickly?

QUIZ TIME!

 

Time for the quiz to earn points toward FREE books in the Neighborlee, Ohio fantasy series.

How do you play?

Listen to Chapter 1 of SHRUNK: THE EXILE OF MAURICE either on the Ye Olde Dragon’s Library storytelling podcast page at www.YeOldeDragonBooks.com, or on your favorite podcast app.Answer the questions.Send the answers to 2OldeDragons@gmail.com

Points add up to get a free ebook or audiobook or print book in the Neighborlee series.

All month, the featured book is at a discounted price, if you need to fill in the holes in your collection. I mean, there are 13 books altogether. If you have all 13 already, THANK YOU!! But chances are good you don’t have all of them. Yet.

This is your chance to get more and catch up on the weirdness that is Neighborlee, Ohio.

What was the name of Maurice's curiosity shop?Who was Maurice's target, and who was that person abusing?What was the illusion that wrapped around the people of the town of Sunrise?What illusion did Maurice use to prepare his trap?What did Maurice say that he didn't mean to say?Maurice was allergic to iron enough for what to happen?What color robes did Asmondius Pickle wear?What color robes did Strictus Hooper wear?What did the stand look like that held the iridescent globe? What gems were its eyes?Who was his probation officer?

Excerpt: SHRUNK: THE EXILE OF MAURICE, Neighborlee, Ohio, Book 8

 All he wanted forChristmas was a date to the company party. A girl to make Brittney jealousenough to dive headfirst into a vat of ice cream and not come out until she hadlost her uber-slim super-model look. He especially wanted a girl with thebrains and good taste to laugh in Allistair's face when he made a play for her.Because he would make a play for her, just because Ken had her.

He had consideredasking Lanie Zephyr to pretend to be his girlfriend. He thought she was great.If he didn't have a raw wound where his heart used to be, he might pursue heras a girlfriend someday. However, that wheelchair got in the way. Even if Laniewere pretty enough to elicit jealousy from Brittney, his soon-to-be-ex-wife wastoo shallow to see the woman inside the wheelchair. She would only see thehandicap and wouldn't be jealous. The whole point of finding someone new andwonderful was to make her jealous. On a positive note, Allistair thoughtanybody in a wheelchair had a communicable disease, so he would never try totake Lanie from Ken. Although it would certainly be fun to see her shredAllistair with her sharp, lunatic sense of humor.

"Perfect,"Angela sighed as she stepped back from the tree. "Thank you, everyone. Idon't know how I would have done it without your help." She turned, herlong, gleaming golden hair swirling out from around her like a satin cape.

"You don't needanyone's help, Angela." The speaker was a kid in baggy jeans, ball cap,and oversized gray sweatshirt, sitting on the front counter. "If we hadn'tstopped in to help, you would have just called the elves, and they would havedecorated."

His remark earnedlaughter from the others around the tree. Ken laughed along with them. The boywas right. Angela always managed to work miracles, and Divine's Emporium seemedto be a source of never-ending strange and wonderful things and occurrences. Angelaalways had advice and something to suit everyone's need, so when she neededhelp, there was always someone ready and willing.

Metallic,rainbow-streaked balls, miniatures of the Wishing Ball hung on the tree. Kenadmired the ornaments and longed for the ability to believe in magic and make awish. But if magic was real, then belief was the key ingredient in making itwork. If he couldn't believe, no matter how strong and real the magic was, itwouldn't work for him.

"Just for that,Jo," Angela said, "you get the first wish."

Ken caught his breath. Wishes? He laughedsilently at himself. Even if there was no more magic left in the world for him,that didn't mean other people couldn't believe and enjoy.

PENELOPE'S TALE

 

I'm starting a new project and YOU can be part of the process.

Many, many moons ago, I wrote a book about Penelope's side of THE ODYSSEY. That book is currently out of print, but I want to re-release it. First I need to decide on a new title. Feedback, please! Go with a former title -- see above -- or call it something new? I'm leaning toward simplicity: just call it PENELOPE. What do you think? Leave comments, please!

Then, I need new cover art. I'll display some ideas for that in the next few weeks. I'll want feedback from you here, too!

Please leave comments and be part of the process, and maybe get your name in the thank you section of the book! Join me on this EPIC adventure.

Speaking of EPIC .... yes, EPIC: THE MUSICAL. Have you seen it? What do you think? For those who haven't heard of it (and I was one of you just a week ago) it's the story of THE ODYSSEY, put to music. Gotta find it, because I love THE ODYSSEY.

And this is why I'm re-releasing my Penelope book!

Excerpt: SHRUNK: THE EXILE OF MAURICE, Neighborlee, Ohio, Book 8

Christmas at Divine'sEmporium was a study in merry chaos. Ken Jenkins retreated to the sidelines andwatched a dozen people help Angela decorate the tree and string pine garlandfrom room to room. He had done his part, bringing the granddaddy pine tree tothe shop and manhandling the monster in through the side door. A side door thatonly seemed to appear at Christmastime.

The ceiling seemedhigher than usual, too. Things always seemed to work out just the way Angelaneeded them to, inside her shop. Sometimes it seemed like the walls adjusted tocomfortably fit everything she put inside the store. Too bad the rest of theworld didn't reshape itself to accommodate Angela's friends.

Ken snorted softly athis flight of fancy. He had given up on magic long ago. Not that he wouldn'tappreciate a bit now. This first Christmas without Brittney was one of those grityour teeth and face it like a man situations, since this should have beenhis first Christmas with Brittney.

It would be a loteasier if he wouldn't see her traipsing around the company Christmas party intwo weeks, on the arm of Allistair Somerville.

Ever since nurseryschool, Allistair believed whatever Ken had was his to take. If he couldn'tsteal it from Ken, he lied or whined until someone gave it to him to shut himup. All through school, no matter how big or small, whatever Ken prized orneeded, Allistair went after. Then used up, destroyed or discarded it a day ora month or a year later. Ken's rubber ball. His tricycle. His basketball. HisBMX bike. His homework. His prom date. His expected promotion to junior vicepresident at Myerhausen.

Allistair had mostly ignoredBrittney, who had come close to drooling after him, Ken realized in retrospect.When she finally gave up and started dating Ken, Allistair saw the light andwent after her in a big way. Big gifts. Derailing Ken's plans for dates. Tryingto get him transferred out of state.

Ken wished nowAllistair had worked faster, or Brittney had given in sooner. Like between theengagement ring and the wedding. They had barely been married four months whenshe met Allistair for lunch. Two of Ken's buddies from college had seen themand told him. Brittney lied when he asked, and Ken chose to believe her. Hethought she had better taste. Until she dumped him at their ten-monthanniversary.

Merry Christmas? Ken didn't think so.
 

Firsty Freebie: HOMESPUN, prequel to BEHIND THE SCENES

 

TheFirsty Freebie story for August 1 is HOMESPUN, a Tabor Heightsstory before the stories.

HowJoel Randolph and Emily Keeler met in summer stock and planted the seeds of acommunity theater called Homespun.

Ebook: https://dl.bookfunnel.com/346u1w24fc

Audiobook:https://dl.bookfunnel.com/mpllip5ojl

This isalso the prequel to the next Tabor Heights release, coming August 15 fromMtZionRidgePress.com: BEHIND THE SCENES.

Tony andMax are best friends. Writing partners. People swear he doesn't know she's agirl and she doesn't know he's a boy. When Tony goes away for a few months as ateacher, he realizes that empty place inside is Max-shaped. His revelationisn't something he can tell her over the phone. Every idea to tell her how hefeels sounds like the plot for a book they would never write.

ThenMax's parents are nearly killed in an accident. Tony drops everything to comehome and be there for her and her brothers. He'll just have to wait untilthings calm down before he confesses his love. The only problem is, between theaccident and the usual chaos of running a community theater and the worldsuddenly "discovering" where Max's mother, actress Emily Keeler hasbeen "hiding" for the last twenty-five years, things might never calmdown.

AllTony can do is prove his love by being her rock, drop lots of hints, and lookfor the best opportunity to make his case. Before the new guy in the tech crewmakes his move. He's certainly been paying a lot more attention to Max thanTony is comfortable with.

Max hastried for a long time now not to want more, and closer, than what she and Tonyhave. With all the chaos of holding together Homespun Theater, staging a newproduction, and dealing with the paparazzi invasion, she shouldn't have timefor useless wishing and dreams that can only get her into trouble. And yet …

 

NEIGHBORLEE VISITORS GUIDE: Book for August, SHRUNK: THE EXILE OF MAURICE

 

Welcome to theVisitors Guide to Neighborlee, Ohio.

 The most importantthing you need to understand: Neighborlee is magic. Some peoplesay the town is alive. It exists to protect the weird and wonderful (andsometimes a little bit scary) from the cold, practical, material world.

More important,Neighborlee protects the outside world from the weird and wonderful that cometo visit … and sometimes come to stay.

Come in and explore.Meet the people who guard Neighborlee. Share their adventures of magic andwonder, danger and sacrifice. You never know who or what you’ll run into as youwalk the streets and listen to the stories of their lives.

 Each month of 2025,we're focusing on 1 book in the Neighborlee series. You'll hear the firstchapter of the featured book here. Please visit Ye Olde Dragon Books to findout more, read excerpts, and even play games to earn points toward free books.

 Ready to get a tasteof this month's featured book? Here we go!

 

AUGUST's BOOK:

SHRUNK: THE EXILE OFMAURICE

Maurice used his Faemagic to help the downtrodden and abused. But when he went too far, thePowers-That-Be decided he needed to learn humility, self-restraint, and mercy.They took away most of his magic, shrunk him down to five inches, and slappedwings on his back that no self-respecting Fae would be caught dead in. Thenthey exiled him to the Human realms, to work out his sentence helpingHumans. 

His destination:Divine's Emporium, a curiosity shop touched with magic, on the edge of the oddtown of Neighborlee, Ohio. 

His parole officer:Angela, the proprietress of Divine's Emporium, touched with magic and a shadowypast of her own. 

His sentence: Helpthe Humans who come into Divine's to find answers, freedom, their own magic,and true love. Not necessarily in that order. 

His problem: How doesa five-inch-tall Fae, invisible to most Humans, win the heart of the uglyduckling who has caught his interest, his sympathy, and then his heart -- whenshe can't see or hear him?

Check back for excerpts all month, and a quiz to earn points toward free books!

Excerpt: BRIDE OF THE LIVING PROOF, Neighborlee, Ohio, Book 7

 

"Justgive the word," Harrison continued. "I'll flip the switch and letyour Romeo know you're there, and send you on over his vital stats. Hey, I'm afirm believer in women having the right to make the first move." Hisgreasy chuckle brought up a handful of college memories I would rather hadstayed lost in forgetfulness.

Tobe fair, Harrison wasn't really a greasy character. He wasn't really thatunethical or manipulative, either. He was just kind of thoughtless, and when hegot his sights focused on a prize, it was hard to stop him from going for it.He tripped over a lot of people and got his toes stomped on. I really had tofeel sorry for the guy, because he meant well. He just couldn't figure outthings like proper procedures and privacy and personal space.

"Pretendyou never got the message," Conrad said, when I reached up to my phone andended the playback.

AfterHarrison gave me his phone and email, and then a condensed version of hisspiel, then the phone and email again. Like I could forget, with shivers ofhorror trickling down my back and ruining the really good lunch I had justeaten?

"What,blame the equipment?" I turned my chair around to face him. Conrad wasslouched into one of the chairs the trio had used on Monday to report onAthena's faked attack.

"It'sconvenient. Which is why I keep saying no to the new owner, who wants toupgrade all our equipment." He shrugged and gave me a  thin sort of smile. "If you call the guyback, even if it's to say no, you will never hear the last of him. He screwedup big-time, using your information, and he's scrambling to keep from gettingin trouble. No," he hurried to say, when I reached for the button to openup the voicemail controls. "You want that message to use against him ifthings get out of hand." 

"Like what?" Ishook my head and waved my hand to stop him when he opened his mouth torespond. "Don't even say it. Saying it aloud makes it possible. I canthink of a dozen awful things that could happen. I'll transfer the message tomy email and send it home, then delete it from here."

Excerpt: BRIDE OF THE LIVING PROOF, Neighborlee, Ohio, Book 7

 Istill couldn't remember Harrison or his project.

"Youwere part of my testing group."

Iwas in a lot of testing groups. If we weren't theorizing and setting upexperiments, then we earned our credits by being tested, usually by filling outreams of questionnaires or watching videos with electrodes attached to ourheads.

"Ithink you'll be very interested to know that I parlayed my relationshipanalysis program --"

Oh,dang. Him. Mr. Computers-will-do-all-the-dirty-work-and-let-you-get-to-know-someone-twice-as-quickly-with-half-the-fuss.

"-- into a matchmaking program. I've been in business a couple years now, anddoing very well, if I do say so myself." He gave the name of his company. Eventhough I had heard of it, serving the higher economic bracket of the East Side,I hadn't heard much of anything about the company, good or bad.

"Anyway,"he continued after a short pause. Like maybe he expected me to pick up, allexcited about his programming genius and financial success? Was this guyexpecting me to be all gaga for him? (Maybe gag-gag.) "Just for grins andgiggles --"

Yeah,I remembered him now. What a stupid line!

"--I still had your profile from that class project. Heck, I have everybody'sprofile. I put them all into the program, just to see what or who would popout. Hey, Lanie, I found your perfect match. Now, as a favor to an old collegepal, normally I'd charge two big ones for the basic level service."

Icertainly hoped that when he said "big ones" he meant hundred, andnot thousand. Because if he did, and if he expected to get paid for something Ididn't ask for, I was going to break every vow of ethics controlling thesuperheroes in all those comic books I read growing up. I would sabotage allthose computers he loved so much. And that was just for starters.

"Butfor you, it's free."

"Betterbelieve it's free, considering he put your private information into his systemwithout your permission," Conrad growled, from about five feet behind me. 

Yes, I jumped about fourinches straight up out of my chair. The guy had snuck up on me. Just how oftendid that happen? I usually could tell when someone was watching me, trying toeavesdrop on me, or just plain sneak up on me.