What do you think of the first page of my novel?
The signal faded to static. Frowning, Ellen Baker leaned across to tweak the tuner on her radio, keeping one eye fixed on the road ahead. It was straight as an arrow, flanked by scrub and mesquite, and the occasional pair of eyes picked out by her headlights.
Taylor Swift’s voice emerged free from the static and Ellen tapped her fingers on the wheel to the beat. She liked Taylor’s songs. The lyrics dwelt on the endless dance of relationships, love lost and found, but there was always a wry twist that showed the lady had a sense of humor, as in they were never, ever – getting back together.
Ellen frowned as once again the song was drowned by a hissing nest of static. “Dammit,” she muttered.
The Honda had seen better days, as people were fond of remarking. They thought a doctor should drive something newer, and lately she’d been thinking that maybe it was time to upgrade. The radio might be just the incentive she needed. The problem wasn’t atmospheric, because the sky was clear. What she ought to do was buy something with a stereo that she could plug her I-pod into. Time to get into the twenty first century.
The static continued, even though she tried fiddling with the tuner again. In the end she gave up and turned the thing off. Maybe there was a storm coming in over the mountains or something, though there was no sign of one. As always, the clarity of the Arizona night took her breath away. The Milky Way stretched overhead – a smear of brilliant light. Ellen peered through the windshield, searching out the constellations. There was Sagittarius, aiming his bow at the dark rift at the galactic core.
Something flashed above the mountains to the east. She wondered if it was a shooting star and pulled over…
…Okay, that’s it. The novel is episode one of my Black Sun series, Arizona Lights. So here’s the thing – Did it grab you? Did you hate it? Love it? Want to read more? Fell asleep and didn’t reach the end? – HEY! Wake up!
Let me know, or like my page on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/stuartharrisonauthor?ref=hl , or even better go to Kindle and get the book for FREE if you’re with prime, or a huge 99c if you’re not.
