Ripley Patton's Blog, page 35

THE PSS CHRONICLES MOVIES

 

I’m a big movie buff. I especially love the big flux of movies that come out over the winter Holidays when I can snuggle into a warm, dry theater and be taken away to other worlds. Going to movies together AND watching them at home was a big part of my Christmas tradition growing up.
And as an author, one of the most common interview questions I’m asked is “Who would you want to have play your main characters in the movie of your books?”
Of course, I love that question. Who doesn’t want to see their book on the big screen, while eating popcorn, surrounded by people oowing and ahhing over YOUR story? Plus, being a movie fan, I did write The PSS Chronicles books with movie sensibility in mind and readers often comment that the books feel like movies to them.
But I also hate that question because I am terrible at casting actors and actresses. First, I can never remember any of their names. Second, I have very specific pictures of my characters in my head, and they aren’t Hollywood-looking people. They’re just your average teenagers. But finally, it is because I don’t want any actors or actresses to play my characters. I want something very different for the movies of my books.
I want them to be produced by Hayao Miyazaki. (Never mind that he just retired this year- I’m dreaming here).
If you don’t know who Miyazaki is, let me tell you. He is simply one of the best movie makers of all times. He is a Japanese artist and film-maker famous for his anime feature films. And his movies are wonderful on so many levels.
First, he almost always has a young, strong, female protagonist in his movies. One of my favorite examples of this is his adaptation of  Howl’s Moving Castle , based on Diana Wynne Jones‘ 1986 fantasy novel of the same name. Because of this, I think he would be the perfect person to make Olivia Black truly come to life on screen.
His films are drawn from Eastern mysticism and spiritualism, and have less of a Western “good versus evil” element to them. They are complex and deep and often involve the environment, spirituality, and balance. Many of these same themes are what inspired The PSS Chronicles series and will play out as the series progresses. I can see Miyasaki really doing justice to the ethereal element and power of PSS and Olivia’s ghost hand.
I love how Miyazaki’s work speaks to both my inner child and the outward adult I am now. His movies are simultaneously deeply, seriously dark and laugh-out-loud funny, a feat I think I accomplished in my books as well.
And of course, fantasy and magic are woven into the tapestry of everything he does, and I can certainly relate to that.
My list of favorites by him includes:
Howl’s Moving Castle
Spirited Away
Princess Mononoke
Kiki’s Delivery Service
Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind
These movies were specifically written, animated, and produced by him. But almost anything by his company, Studio Ghibli, would be a wonderful watch for the Holidays as his movies appeal to such a wide age-range and audience.
So, when I cast the movie for my book, I don’t imagine actors and actresses doing casting calls. Instead, I see Miyazaki bent over his sketch book scratching them to life in intricate, animated, detail.
Probably, that will never happen.
But one can always dream.
Either way, have a wonderful movie-filled Holiday.

GHOST HAND up for a Cybil Award

 

I am thrilled to announce that GHOST HAND has been nominated for the Cybil Awards , the Children’s and Young Adult Blogger Literary Awards, in the Young Adult Speculative Fiction category. I am honored to be among so many great writers.
Thank you so much to Tanita Davis of Finding Wonderland , an amazing blog and blogger, for LOVING GHOST HAND and nominating it.
Finalists will be announced January 1, 2014, so keep you fingers crossed for me.

Enter to Win a Signed Copy of Ghost Hold

Goodreads Book Giveaway


Ghost Hold
by Ripley Patton

Giveaway ends October 30, 2013.

See the giveaway details

at Goodreads.

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Fall Into UtopYA: From Gods

Synopsis:

Did you just see a flash of lightning across the sky on a clear sunny day? It’s not from Mother Nature. It is most likely from Mason Grand, swoon-worthy demigod, one of Zeus’s descendants.
Skylar Rome is supposed to be having the best summer ever before she heads off to college. Little did she know, her whole life was about to change while visiting her cousin. Nearly drowning at the beach due to unknown forces, one of the Grand brothers she’d just met, Mason, saves her life. Cool, collected, mysterious, and dangerously good-looking, Skylar is drawn to him from the start. Though she knows he is the type of guy good girls stayed away from, it seems he is always saving her life, and the attraction was inevitable.
Upon meeting the brothers, strange things begin to happen. When she accidentally kills one of the brothers, it throws her life into turmoil, as they search to find the answers. Implausibly, she gets caught up in a world of the descendants of ancient gods, all who have super powers. Not only is her discovery difficult to accept, evil beings are after her. Running out of time and running for her life, she must unravel a mystery. What do they want from her? Forced into a battle set into motion long before she was born, will she find the answers, or will she die trying?
From Gods purchase links~
Amazon ~ Amazon UK ~ Barnes & Noble ~ Smashwords

TEASER:

“You’re wet. You should take off your clothes.”

What a way to avoid a question! Skylar blinked her eyes in disbelief. Did she hear him correctly? “Excuse me?” Not wanting to assume he was really asking her to strip off her clothes, she didn’t move a muscle, but the way his piercing eyes laid on her, she might as well have already been naked. Then she inwardly gasped when he started to unbutton his shirt. Her eyes shot to the floor, then back to him, and then to the floor, wondering what she was supposed to do in this awkward moment.

“Here. Go change in the restroom. You don’t want to catch a cold.” He placed his shirt in front of her.

She looked up to see him shirtless for the very first time. With all the right curves and tightness, he looked like a statue of a god. He was beautiful and perfectly toned, with satin-like skin, which looked like it would be smooth to the touch. And there was a small tattoo shaped like a lightning bolt on his upper right arm, toward his shoulder. Way too sexy!

As warmth flushed her face, she tried not to stare, but there was no way around it. “Umm…you won’t have a shirt,” Skylar said, thinking that was the most idiotic thing she had said so far, but she couldn’t think when he was half-naked in front of her.

“I’m not cold, but you will be.”

Mason was right. Skylar didn’t realize she was shivering until she placed her hand out to take his shirt. The adrenaline from the initial shock had kept her warm, and now it was wearing away. The blasting air conditioner didn’t help either. “Thanks.”

Just as she pivoted right toward the restroom, even though she was deathly scared to go back, Mason gripped her arm. “Wait. Don’t go in there without me.”

His sudden protectiveness surprised Skylar, but then again, he had saved her.

Bio: Mary Ting resides in Southern California with her husband and two children. She enjoys oil painting and making jewelry. Writing her first novel, Crossroads Saga, happened by chance. It was a way to grieve the death of her beloved grandmother, and inspired by a dream she once had as a young girl. When she started reading new adult novels, she fell in love with the genre. It was the reason she had to write one-Something Great. Why the pen name, M Clarke? She tours with Magic Johnson Foundation to promote literacy and her children’s chapter book-No Bullies Allowed.
Mary’s Social Contact Links:
Facebook ~ Facebook ~ Twitter ~ Website
Blog ~ Goodreads ~Goodreads ~ Pinterest

Enter Mary’s Release Day Giveaway here,
but don’t forget to scroll down and enter
The Fall into UtopYa Party Giveaway too!
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Fall Into UtopYA: Ghost Hold

Featuring Ghost Hold by Ripley Patton :

BUY IT ON AMAZON
AND GET BOOK ONE, GHOST HAND

Olivia Black is back.
Only this time she’s not the one in need of rescue.
Samantha James, rich, popular, and an award-winning composer at age seventeen, is the next target on the CAMFers’ list. In order to convince Samantha to come with them, Olivia and Passion must pose as cousins, blend into the most affluent high school in Indianapolis, and infiltrate a mysterious cult known as The Hold.
Olivia doesn’t expect it to be easy, even with the PSS guys backing them up. But what she discovers over the course of the mission will call into question everything she ever believed about her ghost hand, her family, and especially about Marcus, the guy she is undoubtedly falling in love with.

 

Steamy Excerpt:
Marcus crossed back to the faucet of the now-full tub and turned it off. He bent over and turned on the jets, which kicked up a lot more steam and a lot more noise. I was starting to melt inside my own clothes, and he must have been too, because when he turned back to me he was slipping his t-shirt over his head.
“What are you doing?” I asked, my voice coming out a little strangled.
“You and I need to talk,” he said, letting the shirt drop to the floor.
“Yes,” I said, trying not to gawk at his chest and the way the steam swirled into it, his PSS shining back and coloring the mist a soft blue hue. “But can’t we do that with our clothes on?”
“We need to talk where I’m sure no one can hear us,” he said, his hands going to the snap of his jeans. “They don’t put bugs in bathrooms because the moisture corrodes them.” The snap was undone. The zipper was next. He had on red tartan boxers. “Plus, not many people plot and plan in the john.” He slid the jeans down his legs, turned, slipped off the boxers, and stepped into the tub, sinking down into it with an audible moan.
I stood there stunned. I had just seen Marcus naked. He’d just stripped to his beautiful bare ass right in front of me as if it were nothing. Yes, we’d been sleeping in a tent together for weeks, and making out, but when one of us changed clothes, the other still looked away. Marcus and I had not gotten naked together. We hadn’t even come close, because I always held back. I couldn’t even bring myself to reach my hands inside his shirt. What if my flesh hand accidentally went into his chest and disrupted his PSS? Even worse, what if my ghost hand reached into him and pulled something horrible out? I was pretty sure either of those scenarios would be a serious buzz kill to our intimacy.
“Do you have any idea how long it’s been since I’ve had a bath?” he said, almost a purr, laying his head back on the edge of the tub and closing his eyes.
“I—no—I haven’t had one for like a month,” I stammered, looking down at the tile floor, completely flustered.
“Olivia,” he said softly, and I looked up to find his eyes boring into me, dewy drops captured on those thick dark lashes. “Come here.”
I crossed obediently to the side of the bath, both relieved and a bit disappointed to find that the burbling of the jets obscured most of what was in it. Except his PSS chest. It glowed and pulsed like some half-submerged, cerulean, underwater treasure.
Marcus put his hand out for mine. The invitation was obvious.
This was crazy. There was no way we were going to be able to talk, coherently, in a bathtub together.
“It’s a big tub,” he said, nodding at the other end, “and I promise to be good.”
Yeah, but it wasn’t just him I was worried about. If I got in the tub with Marcus, I would be in the tub with Marcus. “But I—” I looked down at myself. I had on my sleeping tank with no bra underneath, my sweatpants, and underwear.
“You have no idea how relaxing this is,” he said, slipping his hand back into the water and closing his eyes. Either he was taunting me, or giving me a chance to undress without him watching. Probably both.
“You bastard,” I muttered under my breath. I slipped off my shoes and sweatpants and padding barefoot to the far end of the tub. I was not going in completely naked. I wasn’t that much of a fool. I kept my tank and underwear on and stepped into the hot swirling water. As I slid down into it, jets pounding my butt and back, the wet heat rising up and swallowing all my aches and pains in its pure liquid magic, I couldn’t keep the moan from escaping my lips either.
And I didn’t miss the effect that sound had on my bath mate.
One of his lean, muscular legs brushed mine, trembling. And his eyes widened. And his breath came a little faster across the water, far less relaxed then it had been only a moment before.

What are people saying about Ghost Hold?
5 Luminous, Vibrant Stars!

A Thrilling, Wild Adventure with Danger, Intrigue and Excitement. And A Chilling End Sure To Haunt You! – Hazel G from Craves the Angst Reviews
I can promise you, I will read as many books in this series as Ripley can create because it truly is a stand out series with stand out characters. – Ghost Hand and Ghost both chosen as Indie Book of The Week by Ali at My Guilty Obsession.
Ripley Patton is a master storyteller! She creates a world that is not only harsh and unforgiving but most importantly, unforgettable. Jess from Inside the Pages of a Book
“BRAVO. A GREAT book! Better even than the first. I abso-fucking-lutely LOVED IT!” – Former librarian and bookseller extraordinaire, Angie Chute

To find out more about Ripley and The PSS Chronicles, be sure to check her out on

Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Her Website

 

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Fall Into UtopYA: Supernova

Blurb:
On Cleo’s first day at St.

Aloysius Gonzaga Academy, things get pretty weird pretty fast. After being confronted by a strangely hostile boy, she meets two girls and instantly bonds with them. Before long danger threatens the entire student body, in the form of a soul eating possessor fae. When her brother is savagely beaten and left in a coma, the girls decide to use their fae powers to become superheroes and stop the possessions.
They quickly learn things are a lot more complicated than they had ever imagined. A government plot that had begun when they were infants endangers them all, and a demented former soldier bent on revenge is after them. The line between friend and foe has become so blurry, Cleo has no idea who she can trust. Will their superhero plot help them save the day, or just get them killed?



Buy Links
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About the Author:



Elizabeth has a near crippling Facebook addiction, dwarfed

only by her need for Dr. Pepper. A self-proclaimed techno geek, she loves cell phones, computers, tablets and all

things technological. The internet has to be the greatest invention since the

wheel, in her opinion. She lives in a quiet subdivision with her husband,

one-year-old son, three cats, and far too many electronics. It’s quite possible

she has some raccoon in her DNA, because she loves glitter and anything that

sparkles. She enjoys making jewelry and costumes. Halloween is her favorite

holiday since it’s the one day of the year that you can be whatever you want.

But her first love will always be writing. Otherwise, hearing voices in her

head would make her feel schizophrenic.

Website Facebook Twitter Goodreads Email

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Fall into UtopYA: Twisted

***Attention***

This book is recommended for mature readers.

It contains underage drinking, drug use and sexual content.

Synopsis:

Growing up isn’t always easy. But for most teenage girls, they can rely on their best friend to help them get through the process. A BFF is something that is truly treasured and completely irreplaceable. You share all of your secrets, and are loyal and honest with each other, even when you’re acting just a little bit crazy. You have each other’s backs no matter what and you form a bond that is virtually unbreakable.

At least that’s what normal teenage girls experience.

Nat and Mel have been bestie’s since childhood and Nat has followed her blindly ever since. But as Nat’s friendship with Mel begins to lead her down the wrong path, she starts to question the sincerity of their relationship. Nat starts to see Mel’s manipulative, deceitful ways become more focused on her. Will Natalie hold on tight to the friendship she’s had her entire life, no matter what it cost her? Or will she let her heart lead her to a relationship that’s not so twisted.

Add Twisted to your Goodreads shelf.

 

About this author

N.L. Greene, who is 1/2 of the author duo Riana Lucas, has decided to venture outside of the Fantasy world that she and her best friend created with Poppy and The Deadly Flowers Series to write a few books on her own. While she loves working with her best friend, writing solo has allowed her to explore interest that had solely been her own. She spends a lot of time reading her favorite authors which range all over the place and in every genre, but spends just as much time with her husband and two daughters, traveling, shopping, and playing video games. Nichole was born in Pennsylvania but grew up in Florida, where she and her high school sweetheart live with their two children.

Author Contact Links:

Facebook ~ Goodreads ~ Website ~ Twitter ~ Amazon

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Fall into UtopYA: Alchemy

 

Alchemy (Prophecy Breakers: Book 1) by Sheena Boekweg (Author) , Melanie Crouse (Contributor) , Sabrina West (Contributor)

Synopsis:
“Do you want me to be dangerous?” he asked, his voice husky and low.

I gulped, and for a moment I was incapable of speech. But he was quiet, waiting. “No. I don’t.”

“Then I’m not dangerous at all,” he murmured. His gaze moved from my eyes to my mouth. “You’ve never been safer than you are at this moment.” I shivered as his breath tickled my skin. Our lips were mere millimeters apart when the sky shattered in a kaleidoscope of colored light.
We didn’t know how much we had to lose until we were infected with magic. Sam was in love, Juliette was the main caretaker for her siblings, and Ana and her dad planned the best parties in New York. But we lost it all when we were shipped to Chebeague, an exclusive school for newly infected mages.
Everyone knows about the mages, those who survive the infection and end up with magical abilities. We’ve seen the power of magic, the high-paying jobs, and the world fame. But we never saw the cost. We didn’t know we’d be forced to give up everything: sanity, family, even the right to talk on the phone.
We didn’t know mage was just another word for prisoner.
Add Alchemy to your Goodreads shelf.
Alchemy is available on Kobo.com
or
on Amazon.com in ebook or paperback.
About the Authors:
Sabrina West, Sheena Boekweg and Melanie Crouse never dreamed they would actually create a book worth publishing when they started writing together. Alchemy was merely supposed to be an exercise in flexibility. And it has been that, but it is so much more. Friendships that span the American continent have been forged, and unforgettable characters have been created.
Writing this first book in the Prophecy Breakers was a fun-filled adventure, and we hope that reading it is just as fun for you…

Sheena Boekweg (writing as Sam) is the author of the award winning novel, Funny Tragic Crazy Magic. Look for her next novel, Waxling, this January. She is a mom of three living in West Jordan, Utah. facebook.com/SheenaBoekwegYAAuthor @SheenaBoekweg BoekwegBooks.com.
Sheena Boekweg is a staff member at Flash Fiction Online. She has received an Honorable Mention in the Writers of the Future Contest, and The New Era Magazine accepted her work for publication. Sheena is a mom of three living in West Jordan, Utah. Click here for Sheena’s Facebook Author Page, here for Sheena’s Goodreads Author Page and here for Sheena’s Amazon Author Page. Follow Sheena on Twitter.

Melanie Crouse (writing as Ana) lives in the gorgeous state of Maine with her (usually) delightful family. She is the CEO of the craziest household in the Western Hemisphere. Lately, both of those full-time jobs have collided, creating chaos on a colossal scale. Which is just the way she likes it.
In her spare time, Melanie likes to play the piano, swim, hike and teach preschool. Whether she has spare time or not, she manages to read prolifically, which probably explains more than it doesn’t.
She loves her family dearly, and wishes with all her heart that her teenage children weren’t so embarrassed that their mom writes “kissing scenes.”
Look for her next novel Hidden Magic, coming soon. Click here for Melanie’s Facebook Author page. Click here for Melanie’s Goodreads Author Page.

Sabrina West (writing as Juliette) is a writer and wildlife biologist living in San Diego, California. There, she wanders the streets searching for rare shorebirds, quality espresso, and elusive snippets of dialogue and imagery. Her short fiction has appeared in markets such as the Santa Clara Review, Cover of Darkness, and Strange, Weird and Wonderful Magazine. She also has a story upcoming in Kayelle Press’s Night Terrors Anthology. Click here for Sabrina’s Goodreads Author Page.

 

Meet all of us at: http://theprosers.blogspot.com/

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Drowning in Fire Release

“Drowning in Fire” by Arielle Caldwell
Once again, Marya with Strong Image Editing, has done an amazing job with a cover! She had done each one for The Nerita Torlan Trilogy by Arielle. “Drowning in Fire” is book two in the series.
The Nerita Torlan Trilogy, Book Two
Synopses:
Nerita is tortured and put through more pain than she ever imagined could happen. Ahlic has captured her and locked her in a room where there’s no chance of escape on her own. He forces her to watch the murder of a friend. She strikes a deal to try and save lives but Ahlic is not the bargaining type.
After escaping, Ahlic forces her to endure a traumatic loss and haunts her in her dreams. More powers emerge from her, shocking everyone and leaving them slightly afraid. While on her own, a witch shows her the future and tells her grave news. A battle rages in her heart; unsure of how to handle the revelation.
She seeks Ahlic…but not to destroy him. Feelings she can’t control drive her to insanity and lust. Will Nerita give in and fall for what she’s been trying so hard to destroy?

About Arielle:
Arielle Caldwell began writing in grade school but never pursued a career in it until early 2012. She started writing poetry in middle school and progressed to books a few years later. She is a proud Cajun from Louisiana but was raised in Pensacola, Florida. Shortly after graduating high school, she joined the US Navy where she met her husband and became the mother of two wonderfully crazy little boys. After separating from the military, she decided to go to college in Texas. A year later, she moved back to Pensacola when offered a job at the naval base as a civilian contractor. She is currently juggling college, work, family, writing, managing her website, Arc Indie Reviews, and being a columnist for APSS, the new Small Publishers of America newsletter. She loves going to the river with her family and friends or to the water park for a few hours. Her Kindle is overflowing with books, she loves rock music the most, and she loves to sing and dance with her children around the house. Her first series, The Nerita Torlan Trilogy, has two books currently released. “Burning in Water” is her debut book, also being book one in the series with “Drowning in Fire” book two, released as well. Book three is “The Awakening” and in the works. “After-Ending” is her dystopian novel that has a planned release of beginning to mid 2014. She resides in Pensacola with her husband, two kids, and their Great Dane, Scooby.
Contact Arielle:
Facebook: AFCaldwellsBooks
Email: Arielle Caldwell
Twitter: @ArielleCaldwell
Publisher: Nevermore Press
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Fall into UtopYA: Semester Aboard

 

Semester Aboard, the first book in the YA urban fantasy series More than Magic  has a brand new cover! If you haven’t read Semester Aboard yet, here’s a quick summary and a little peek for you!
College student Jen Maddox is a few days into her summer study abroad program and has loved every moment. She just left Mexico and is back on her cruise ship campus, ready to sail to Panama. Everyone tells her that the experience will change her life, but none of them realize just how right they really are.
One night Jen goes out on deck and encounters five other students. She knows Charlie from one of her classes and he’s a funny, friendly, regular guy. Picture-perfect Dani and his gorgeous wife Mariana live right down the hall from Jen. And she has seen TS, who’s built like a truck, around the ship and recognizes the cute, but quiet Thomas as well.
Then Jen sees something that isn’t humanly possible. Jen would have thought that it was all a dream, if not for the fact that Charlie, Dani, Mariana, TS, and Thomas are making every effort to cover it up. Suddenly, the five of them are everything but normal and Jen is determined to figure out what they’re hiding.
When she does, her life really does change. Jen expected to spend her summer studying the cultures of Latin America, she never dreamed she’d learn about a magical culture instead.

But Jen’s childhood fantasy come true is about to turn into a nightmare; there’s something on the ship. Something dangerous. Suddenly, everyone on board is threatened by a creature that Jen never even believed existed. Jen and her new friends might be the only people who can stop it! Now Jen has to learn everything she can about her new world before it kills her. And her friends. And maybe everyone on the entire ship!

The More than Magic series is written by Elizabeth Kirke.

Sneak Peek:

It started raining early in the afternoon and was a bad storm by the time I went to bed. I woke up in the middle of the night and stumbled over to our bathroom, feeling awful. A bit of quality time bent over the toilet didn’t help at all and I decided to try for some fresh air. I pulled a sweater on over my pajamas, hung my ID card strap around my neck, and slipped out of the room. I made my way down the corridor to the door that led outside. For the first time since getting on the ship I had to keep one hand on the railing. The halls were well lit, even though it was the middle of the night, and it was almost disconcerting to step outside into the darkness. But the moment the cool, damp wind hit my face I felt better. I hadn’t been seasick since our first night, but sometimes I felt nauseous if I stayed in our room too long. Being out on the deck always helped.
I had assumed that I’d be the only one crazy enough to go out in the rain in the middle of the night, but to my surprise I wasn’t. There were people on the other side of the deck. It was too dark to see them well, but the lights from the deck above us illuminated them a little. One of them was Charlie. He was standing under the overhang where Deck Five extended out above Deck Four. He was just wearing a t-shirt and jeans and I shivered in sympathy. A guy I recognized, not surprising since we all lived on a ship, was sitting on the bottom steps of the outdoor stairway that led to Deck Five. He was probably a football player back home or something. He had shaggy, dark brown hair and a fairly large nose. I’d heard a few girls giggling about him, but I didn’t think he was that good looking. I wasn’t sure what his name was. Another guy was sitting in a chair, probably pilfered from Deck Five, with his back to me and his feet up on the rails. Mariana was near him, wearing only a bikini top and a short skirt. I couldn’t believe she wasn’t cold.
“I didn’t scream!” she said.
“You totally did! You freaked out!” Dani laughed.
It had been too dark to notice Dani until he spoke. My jaw dropped in shock. Dani was sitting on the railing of the ship. Messing around on the rails was one of the first things they’d told us not to do when we got on board. Even sitting on them in the middle of a calm day was suicidal at best. But to sit there in the middle of a stormy night was nothing short of a death wish.
“I was not!” Mariana cried.
“You were all like, ‘Oh, Danio, save me Danio!’”
“Well, I…I-don’t be such a jerk!”
As Mariana spoke she spun to face Dani and shoved him hard. Dani’s laugh turned into a yell of surprise and he tumbled backward off of the railing! I gasped in horror. Every second now was critical. If someone went overboard we were supposed to immediately throw them a life preserver and then run and tell a crew member. But not a single one of them did anything! The one in the chair uncrossed his legs and recrossed them with a different one on top. The guy on the stairs threw back his head and laughed! Charlie quickly stuck his head over the railing and then pulled back and shivered. It was as if Dani hadn’t gone overboard at all.
“Oh my god!” I gasped. They must have been in shock. That was the only reason they weren’t rushing to save Dani. I ran across the deck, at the very least, I could throw the life preserver in and hope he was still alive to use it.
They all jerked around to look at me. They acted more surprised to see me than they were about Dani falling overboard. Mariana gasped and backed against the rail. Charlie stepped to the edge of the overhang and Football Guy jumped off of the stairs to his feet. The guy in the chair was on his feet in an instant. I hardly even saw him move; one second he was sitting and the next he was up. He stepped in front of the others, almost protectively.
“That’s Jennifer.” Charlie spoke softly like he didn’t want me to hear, but the wind carried his words right to me. “She’s in one of my classes.”
The guy in front smiled. “You’re up late.”
They were acting like nothing had happened! This was insane!
“What’s the matter with you?” I cried. “We have to do something!”
“Do something?” He almost looked genuinely confused. “About what?”
“She just…” I gestured to Mariana. “She just pushed Dani overboard!”
He had the audacity to laugh. “It’s raining, you know. And dark. You’re mistaken.”

Hungry for more? Find the first four chapters on Elizabeth’s blog…

And now, what you came for, the new cover!

In addition to the new cover, courtesy of the amazing Strong Image Editing, a bonus chapter, from a different POV as been added to Semester Aboard, along with a glossary! It has also been edited one more time, just for good measure! It’s available from Amazon and Smashwords!

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