Post your book excerpt & get featured for free!

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Great. I have noted it. Could you please send this as a message to me, else the information may be lost in the pages in a years time...

[E.S.]

From Witchcraft, Premonitions & the Emerald Globe Caper

May 14th, 1765

“Mummy, I had a dream,” whispered six-year-old Celeste Skyward, as she tugged on her drowsing mother’s arm.
“What was it about?” Esmeralda asked, as she pulled her daughter up onto her lap.
“There was an evil witch named Winter with long black curly hair and bright blue eyes riding on a black horse toward our house,” replied the small girl, while she rubbed the sleep from her green eyes. “A vulture was flying above her. They both were hiding in the fog so she could sneak up on us and steal your chest and book that you keep hidden under the stone by the fireplace.”
“How did you know about my hiding place?” interrupted her mother, who was no longer drowsy. She quickly glanced at her husband, Blake, who was now leaning forward, waiting for his daughter’s answer. Even the family’s pet falcon, wolf and raven had turned their attention toward the little girl.
“I saw you take both the chest and the book out and then walk behind the fire through the secret opening at the back of the fireplace with me, father, Victoria, Cameron and Echo so we can escape the evil witch,” said the young girl as she hugged her mother. “We take a ship called the Blue Whale to someplace called America. We leave tonight. Grandma Sybil told me to convince you to disappear and conceal our whereabouts by using an emerald green globe.”
Esmeralda stared in horror at her husband. They both realized that their daughter had the same gift as her ancient ancestor, Sybil Hazard and that this was no dream, but instead, a premonition. Esmeralda immediately sprung out of her chair and carried Celeste into her bedroom. She then hurriedly dressed the girl and grabbed some clothes for their journey. Esmeralda then removed the stone from in front of the fireplace and extracted both a small wooden chest and a leather-bound manuscript. Blake quickly replaced the stone, grabbed the lantern that was on the table next to his chair and then turned toward the fireplace and nervously recited,

Hidden door.
Listen to this lore.
I command thee to the fore.
I implore ye door.
Swing open to explore.

Then part of the fireplace back wall silently slid open so the three Skywards could walk into a passageway that led underground.
As the family entered the tunnel Celeste cried out, “Cameron, Victoria and Echo must come too. They help us escape from Winter and her vulture.”
Blake quickly called his wolf and retrieved his falcon and raven. He and Celeste entered the passageway and waited while Esmeralda planted a surprise for Winter by reciting another curse,

Web we weave.
Please achieve.
Enemy stuck and out of luck.
And not allowed to run amok.

Then she hurried into the secret passageway behind the fireplace. Just as the secret entrance closed behind her, Esmeralda heard a loud crack as the front door of the farmhouse was being broken into.

Enjoy!

E.S. Hazard

[Beatrice]

Thanks for sharing that wonderful fairytale ES.

[E.S.]

Beatrice wrote: "Thanks for sharing that wonderful fairytale ES."

You're welcome. I am glad you enjoyed it,

E.S. Hazard

[Elie]

This book is for all the people who found themselves unable to share their emotional burdens with the people they care about.
To the people that weren’t able to give justice to their feelings, and to the fire running through their veins.
To the ones that got so insecure, that the words of those around them became the bricks of the walls they built around themselves.
I hope my book will make anyone who reads it feel less alone, less isolated and okay that they are unable to set free the chaos going inside of them so it won’t cause any destruction to them, or to the other person.
It is okay if our feelings didn’t set foot where we want them to.
Don’t let anyone dim your light. Remember that what you are and who you are makes you beautiful.

Scribbles of the mind

"We push away people who bring back old feelings
light up fires we wanted to keep extinguished
bring down walls we wanted to keep so high.
We do it out of fear love despair.
We do it because we know how sweet love is
but how bitter it can become.
We do it because we don’t want another face to become a memory
another voice to become a melody
another song to become a remedy"

Thought I'd share with you one of my favorite poems from my book "Scribbles of the mind"

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Thanks for sharing your poem with us Elie. Always glad to have a poet in our midst. Would you care for a free feature on our group in June 2022?Please message me with your book details.

[Elie]

Grasshopper wrote: "Thanks for sharing your poem with us Elie. Always glad to have a poet in our midst. Would you care for a free feature on our group in June 2022?Please message me with your book details."
yes of course, It'd be an honor.

[Elie]

They clapped for her
For the way she made them smile
They dressed her the finest dresses and clothing lines
They loved her
For the emotions her melody brought into them
But they didn’t know that
While they clapped
She was dying in front of them
While they dressed her
They covered her so many scars
And while they loved her melody
Her voice ached

This is the last poem in my book "Scribbles of the mind", it is one of my favorite poems. I wrote it after having watched the movie "Dalida".

If you think about it. we tend to be shallow. We fall, admire, and idolize perceptions of strength, people who give us a sense of safe haven, people who put into words the feelings we can't give justice to. We do that forgetting that they are as vulnerable as us, so we only believe what our eyes see. We get afraid of digging deep, only to find out the ugly truth. We idolize them because, just like anesthesia, they make us forget about the things we tried so hard to burry inside of us.

I'd love to know your say about this topic, and please give the post I shared on my blog a go and let me know what you think.

Have a happy and a safe Tuesday everyone xo

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Very deep thoughts Elie. Beautifully conveyed in your poem. Not familiar with 'Dalida' though.

[Elie]

Grasshopper wrote: "Very deep thoughts Elie. Beautifully conveyed in your poem. Not familiar with 'Dalida' though."

Thank you so much, I'm flattered that you like it. Well, watch the story of her life, she's a very interesting woman, and her songs are beautiful. Let me know what you think in case you do!

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Sure

[Kim]

I should have known it was too good to be true, a guy liking only me for me.
I thought I was so in love with him back then that I put up with a lot of bullshit.
We had so many problems, I stopped keeping count.

He tried to come back around and tell me how it was just a big mistake. At that point, I realized it wasn’t a mistake for him, but a pattern he refused to fix.

Now, he’s back in my life and engaged to my sister ?

Title: It Was Good Until It Wasn’t

Here's the link for Part 1:
https://rebrand.ly/iwguiw

Here's the link for Part 2: https://rebrand.ly/iwguiw2

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Woah! Scary reality to deal with it. Thanks for sharing your book with us Kim. Would you like a free feature on our site in July 2022? Please message me with your book details.

[Elie]

Kim wrote: "I should have known it was too good to be true, a guy liking only me for me.
I thought I was so in love with him back then that I put up with a lot of bullshit.
We had so many problems, I stopped..."

This seems so interesting, specially that I know someone who had the same experience.

[Kim]

Yes! thanks!
Title: It Was Good Until It Wasn’t
Author: Kim K

The link to this roller coaster ride is here: https://rebrand.ly/iwguiw


Nadine Parker has lived a fairly low-key, successful life while trying to stay away from the drama and focus on herself. However, life has a funny way of tossing in some of the most unpredictable curve balls that comes in the form of her ex-boyfriend Quintin.                                 
                              
Quinton is now engaged to Nadine’s estranged sister Natalie, a shocker to say the least. Nadine has the task of a lifetime and that is to get through this so-called blissful wedding with her family. She starts by recruiting her handsome friend McKay to help her along the way. 
                               
Secrets are exposed, emotions are entangled, and things get very messy. Will this wedding happen against all odds? Or, will Nadine find herself in an unimaginable situation that’s much easier to get in than out of?

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

A link to your book on Goodreads. Please send this in a direct message to me for the record

[Silenus]

Hi! My name is Silenus and this is an excerpt from my poetry collection book Finding Identity:

MOON
Chiffon and silk
Grey and white
Who will ever put a scarf
On this cold body of stone

Candlelit dream
Myriad thoughts
Whose light is shining on me
Feeling so warm

Sultry look
Velvety skin
As I draw your vapors
See me in the dark

The emptiness aches
The crave drives
We are now destined
Always parallel

Recess and retreat
Resume and revive
Time only proceed when we coalesce
A sliver of you made me salubrious

Push and pull
Tidal waves
Here come lives
Between what were once a single entity

Me and You
Smashed asunder
Once upon the Meteor
Replaced me and be one with you

Miles of nothingness, here I am
Look skyward and see me
I’ll be a signal for the desperate
A concrete on your vast firmament

Results of our attraction
I will veil them a sheeny vesture
For who would else know
I was once you


Finding Identity

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Thanks for sharing that beautiful writing. Took me miles away across time. Would you like to be featured on our site in August 2022? Please message me with your book details in a separate message.

[Ian]

Here's an excerpt from my soon to be released novel, Hælend's Ballad. It depicts the assassination of a mentally instable king (Albern) by a group of rebels.
______________________

Galvin glanced to the side. From the stable, Clive slowly made his way to the block. The black hood did a good job in hiding his face. Galvin wondered how he could even see through the tiny eye holes. Albern was led by two men, who positioned him before the crowd. With hands bound in rope and trembling bent legs, the king practically leaned against one of the men as his glazed eyes wandered behind his greasy hair.

“Good people,” he barely mumbled. “I’ve come hitherto . . .” His balance wavered, and he stumbled backward. He kept mumbling something, but Galvin couldn’t understand any of it. The crowd remained silent. Almost breathless.

Giving him no more time to speak, the two guards blindfolded the king and dragged him to the block. Galvin winced. In the old days, an official would announce the king’s execution at this point, along with a list of the crimes he had committed. Galvin had prepared something, but he couldn’t bring himself to speak.

With the king’s neck in place, Clive gripped the ax handle and made eye contact with Galvin. Galvin simply gave the nod. Clive's arms visibly shook. The man had felled trees for over thirty years, and yet he kept repositioning his grip as if he’d never held an ax before. When he, at last, lifted the blade above his head, several in the crowd turned away.

The ax swung forward, but Clive had missed the neck as the blade hacked into Albern’s shoulder. The king howled. The crowd moaned, and several cried out in disgust. Galvin hid his face in embarrassment.

“Dispatch him quickly!” Porter hollered.

Clive pulled at the ax while another man held Albern down. The old king twitched but otherwise made no more noise. The ax swung down again. This time, Clive's aim was true, but it took another two blows to completely sever the head. The straw soaked up the blood which ran down the block, and one of the men held up Albern’s head by his hair.

The crowd gasped, and Galvin lost his own breath when the king’s lips continued to move. He knew this happened at times, but he couldn’t help but wonder if the king was somehow speaking a curse over the people for their deed.

“Theos, save the House of Burgess!” shouted the man holding his head, and the crowd echoed his call.

Hælend's Ballad
Ian V. Conrey

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Thanks for sharing your book with us. You win a free feature on our page in September 2022.

[Alfred]

King Ragnan in a battle of war, friendship, love, loyalty and betrayal during the Uberian Age
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B099DP...

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Hi Alfred. We need a 1000 word excerpt please.

[Saurabh]

Money Gone

Business tycoon Hardik Seth and his family have been under the scanner of the Income Tax Commissioner, Rakesh Bisht, for the longest time. His efforts to nab Seth for accumulation of wealth that is definitely not kosher have hit legal hurdles. Meanwhile, Seth’s son, Rohan, meets the enchanting Eli in London and the mysterious Mr. Maduro in the British Virgin Islands, who introduce him to the business of money laundering in its newest form.
With the advent of crypto-currency and blockchain technology it has become a herculean task for the authorities to trace, gather evidence and institute legal proceedings against the culprits.
Bisht, his trusted deputy, Ajit Pandey, and rookie lawyer Saket Sharma are hot on the Seths’ trail. It’s almost impossible to track the elusive crypto-currency … and the Seths, who are always a step ahead. Or are they …?

My debut thriller novel is now live on Amazon globally as a print book as well as an eBook. Please buy your copy today and share the links with your friends and family members. Thank you for your support and encouragement. Happy Reading!

Amazon Paperback - https://www.amazon.in/dp/8195235964/
Amazon Kindle - https://www.amazon.in/dp/B098NKSLHM

Also available on Flipkart.

International print editions available on Amazon.com (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B098GV13P2) and Amazon UK (https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B098GV13P2) as well.

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Thanks for sharing the excerpt Saurabh. Crypto currency is the in thing isn't it? Will mark your book to read. Congratulations on making it to our Goodreads feature in November 2022.

[Saralyn]

This excerpt is from BAD BLOOD SISTERS, to be released in March, 2022.

Quinn lay on her back, eyes closed, imagining a sort-of prayer for her brother. Jack was still young, just 34, and she would soon be 30. Too young to have to deal with kidney failure and organ transplants.
Not for the first time, Quinn considered how time seemed to speed by these days. If Jack’s life, or even hers, were to end now, what imprint would each of them have left on the world? Neither of them married, no children, and except for working in death services, what had either of them accomplished?
Quinn had told her second grade teacher she was going to be a doctor. Even at age seven, she’d wanted to work on the living side of things. What had changed her mind, she wondered now? How had all her aspirations evaporated into the salty Gulf Coast air?
Quinn’s thoughts drifted into the past, colorful threads of memories. Her last thought before she fell into a troubled sleep was of the summer of ’05. Now she remembered how she’d gone off-course. That was the summer she’d been totally absorbed by Ana French.

[Saurabh]

Grasshopper wrote: "Thanks for sharing the excerpt Saurabh. Crypto currency is the in thing isn't it? Will mark your book to read. Congratulations on making it to our Goodreads feature in November 2022."

Yes definitely. The book involves offshore money laundering, dark-web, crypto-currency and a challenging pursuit by taxman and his rookie lawyer.
Thanks a ton for marking my book as to read !!! and Nov 2022 -- quite a queue I must say :)

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Thanks for sharing this excerpt Saralyn. You are free to promote your books in your old folder anytime.

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Thanks for sharing Saurabh

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Thanks for sharing TL or should we say EL of the group? Congratulations you have made it to the December 2022 feature.

[Vikas]

Thanks for the opportunity, I am Vikas Khair, I am posting an excerpt from my latest book that is a collection of short stories called Moments - Few Tales in Time

Escape
-----------------------------

He was heartbroken, he was defeated. He had no one in his life now - no motive, no goal, no chance for success. Why it was only yesterday when he was sure that he will be promoted to the Assistant Manager position in his company but even that went to his junior.

He earnestly believed that he deserved that position after all, who would not, after dedicating their life to the company and the work. He used to invest 14-16 hours a day for the last 5 years in the office because he wanted to work his best and reach where he wanted to by sheer hard work, but he was defeated by office politics.

Broken he decided it was time to pull the plug from this soap opera called Life. After thinking for some time, he decided to hang himself as all the other ways were too messy and he did not want to cause much trouble to other strangers as some children may see him. So, after all the deliberation he started with the preparations.

Along came the rope from a long-forgotten corner of his tiny room, and there it went around the fan so that it could handle his weight and wouldn't come down not his head making all the more mess and would even leave him dead just some nasty injury.

Well, all the funny bits ahead he was in different states, sobbing one minute and chuckling the next, he was almost like a madman but in this case, he was IIM bred MBA Madman.

With very heavy feet he worked his way towards the rope to finish his story. Just as he put the deadly rope around his neck, bloody mobile rang disturbing the Zen-like state of his room. Although his first instinct was to let go of the call and complete the journey to the next world. But then he thought that there is no harm in looking at who the call is from. Tentatively he got down from the chair and walked to his cell phone still blaring 'Unbreak my heart, the call was from his company's HR department.

Now he was very angry but controlling his instincts to throw and break the mobile phone into hundreds of small pieces, he pressed the call accept button - Hello he said slowly.

'Congratulations' came the reply from the other side.

Read the rest in the book - Moments - Few Tales in Time

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Very interesting yet grim picture painted about work pressure. Curious to know how it all ends. We have a free feature slot available for January 2022. Do let us know if interested.

[Vikas]

yes

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Please send a direct message with your Goodreads book link

[Paityn]

Thank you for this opportunity! My name is Paityn Parque, and I've published my first novel called Madness. It's a dystopian, sci-fi thriller about a girl named Ezra Adkins trapped in an endless game of kill or be killed, where players can die an infinite amount of times. *Content contains violence and blood*
Here's an excerpt from chapter 13:

Ezra armored up and left at midnight. Zag had already gone to sneak into his old team’s base.

When she pushed aside the barrier, she was greeted with cold air, and the breeze tugged at her hair as she bounded off into the moonlight. She unsheathed her daggers and wrapped her chains around her bindings.

Ezra raced through the forest, leaping around trees, her eyes constantly scanning the area for danger.

No, not danger. Victims, she corrected herself. She would be the hunter of the hunters. She would become the apex predator in this game.

Her boots crunched earth as her ears finally picked up a scream. And it came from somewhere closer than she expected.

She moved into action like a bloodhound.

As she got closer to the source of the scream, she heard the clash of metal and people yelling.

It was her time to shine.

Ezra crouched behind a large oak and peeked around the trunk to scan the vicinity.

There. Several dark figures were locked in a battle, about seven in total.

In the shining moonlight, she could plainly see that most of them were a team, all wearing matching brown clothes. They surrounded their few scrappy opponents.

Ezra dove into action. Whipping out her chains without thought, she sliced her first victim across the back. Then she lunged forward and finished the player off.

She pounced upon her second victim and ended him with her daggers. Then she turned to see a girl advancing towards her. She got to her feet and waited for the attack. The girl took her bait and blindly tried to tackle her. It was a fatal mistake.

Ezra sidestepped and yanked her opponent by the hair to expose her throat to the moonlight. She took the opportunity to end her efficiently.

The last Wolf was battling the last survivor.

Ezra was too far away, so she hurled a knife at the Wolf. Her first throw missed. Her second hit him in the shoulder, and she finished him with a third, which plunged deeply into the nape of his neck.

The survivor didn’t acknowledge his savior before running off into the night.

Ezra wrapped her bloody chains around her guards and quietly left the scene to find another team.

Not long after, she stumbled upon a Hoarder team. They were carrying bodies over their shoulders like sandbags. One of their victims was still moving, thrashing and groaning with a gag over their mouth. The six players, and each carrying a body, were about ten meters away.

Ezra had packed ten throwing knives with her. Considering they were easy targets, she could take down two or three before they realized where she was.

Piece of cake.

She took two knives from her belt and hurled one, hitting one of her targets in the back. She immediately threw another. Two people fell, enough to blow her cover.

She sprinted towards the team as they whirled to face their attacker. The nearest person was too slow to throw the thrashing body on the ground, and Ezra advanced on him and slashed his throat.

Yelling broke out, as the team had been cut to half their number in an instant.

One teammate dropped his body and advanced with two swords. Ezra backpedaled and twirled away from his slash and kick. Then she whipped her chain at his face. The man stumbled backwards with a cry of pain, but then her other two opponents advanced.

One of them landed a punch to her stomach as the other, a girl, swung at her with a knife.

Ezra leaped back but tripped on an exposed root. Thankfully, her knife-wielding foe had terrible aim and slashed her arm, scraping bone.

Ezra roared in pain as she stumbled forwards. She couldn’t lose to a Hoarder team. She couldn’t.

She recovered her footing and immediately attacked with her chains, slashing the girl’s ribs strong enough to break them like twigs, shredding her stomach.

The girl screamed and fell to her knees, and then Ezra turned to kill the remaining Hoarder.

After, she finished off the girl and the forest became a semi-quiet place again. The guy she had hit in the face was gone; he had run off.
Good.

Ezra tasted copper as she bent down to untie the first unconscious person. When she finally got to the gagged person, she sighed. He was white with fear, bleeding from a cut on his face, and unable to get up because his leg was twisted crudely. As she approached, he let out a muffled scream.
She put her bloody, gloved hands up in the air.

“Shh. I’m not going to hurt you.” She came closer, and the boy tried to crawl away. “Shh. You don’t want to attract others, do you?”

Ezra removed the boy’s gag. He looked to be Zag’s age.

“What’s your name?” she asked as she untied his bindings.

“Sam,” the boy replied in a quavering voice.

“Sam…that’s a nice name. How long have you been here?”
He had to control his racking sobs to answer her. “I hope I’m dreaming.” He sniffled.

“So, you’re a new fish? I’ve always been a new fish until now… Feels weird.” Ezra nodded at his leg. “Your leg is broken. Are you bleeding anywhere else?”

“I don’t know! I don’t know!” he sobbed. It was a useless answer.

He’s just scared. He was once like you, Ezra.

“Well, Sam, I’m Ezra. Not the warmest welcome here, but welcome to the Battles. You were lucky I saved you, but an injury like that without any healing Feats is a no-go. You’re as good as dead. So, I’ll give you a choice. I can kill you now or leave you to rot here and get infections from God knows what.”

“I don’t want to suffer anymore,” Sam moaned as tears streamed down his cheeks.

“Maybe I’ll see you another time. Remember me, Sam, when you wake up.”

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Thanks for sharing the book here Paityn please contact me directly with your Goodreads book link if interested in a free February book feature on our Goodreads site

[Kirsten]

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5...

Andrew Millen opened the Barcelona hotel room door, excitement shining in his hazel eyes. That knock signalled the arrival of a champagne breakfast for him and Kayleigh.

An oddly familiar English voice called from outside. "Mr Millen, Miss Greenwood?" Andrew thought of how the couple would be Mr and Mrs Millen on their next foreign hotel stay.

However, it was another tall, dark haired man standing in the corridor. Gavin Westbrook.

"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" both men asked each other.

"Yes, Andrew - what the hell are you doing here?" demanded Kayleigh. She'd got up from the bed, her long black hair cascading over the red silk bathrobe. "You know this room's for me and Gavin. Go to the honeymoon suite in Mexico - you'll have a bigger mini bar all to yourself there..."

The knocking was actually on Andrew's front door and came from his best friend Michael Curtis. Michael's girlfriend Maxine Duncan peered through the front window to see Andrew slumped across the sofa.

"I said he'd have been on the booze all night, didn't I?" she said in disgust. "Lots of Spanish cervezas just to make himself feel even more tragic!"

"No - those new Invisible beers!" Andrew and Michael's In The Market colleague Lynsey Bretnall glared at Maxine. "Do you see any bottles or cans in that sitting room?"

The emotional dynamo within this petite, delicate featured ash blonde always amazed people. The willowy Maxine regained her composure by looking down on Lynsey with steely dark blue eyes. She then remarked perhaps there was a bottle of whisky behind the sofa.

"One from Scotland because of the imprisoned and dead relatives up there nobody else has,” she added. She tossed her fair, wavy locks with the same disdain.

"Maxine - you don't have to be here!" snapped Michael, as ruffled as his windswept light brown hair. The smoky grey eyes beneath blazed with a rare anger.

"I do if I'm to see anything of you before tonight!" retorted Maxine.

"You expect me to make the whole of next weekend about your friend!" said Michael. "Your friend who's also going through a bad time because of something that happened in the Alps!"

Michael and Maxine were heading for London after work on Friday night. They'd be staying with Maxine's friend Cassie and helping with her party. This was to celebrate recovery from serious injuries sustained on a French ski holiday two months back. Around the same time and place where Andrew's cousin Robbie had taken his fateful ski-ing holiday...

"Shut up, both of you!" said Lynsey, nodding towards the window. Andrew was now beginning to stir. "Today's meant to be about Andy and reminding him what he's still got here! If it's just people forgetting what he needs he'll have no reason to stay!"

Andrew had ruled out the return to Edinburgh suggested by his family. Nonetheless, South Cambridgeshire wasn't feeling like a happy home, either. Perhaps he should make a completely fresh start somewhere with no back history.

Everybody agreed staying in the house he'd shared with Kayleigh wasn't a good idea. However, nor was Andrew removing himself from a support network's range. Holmesbridge could offer a new beginning among the old friends best placed to guide him there.

Andrew didn't see them when he first woke up in what he realised was his living room. So Kayleigh was spending her birthday with another man in Barcelona, after all. Like she'd just told him, there really wouldn't be any July wedding or honeymoon.

Lynsey's calling of his name outside the house brought Andrew back to reality. His friends were here offering more help through the weekend. So time he returned the favour and started helping himself make the best of it as well.

Andrew opened the window with profuse apologies and almost a concussion to Lynsey. He must have dropped off after Match Of The Day. He'd a lot of sleep to catch up on what with - one thing and another. Maxine held back from suggesting two bottles of brandy at bedtime rather than just the one.

She couldn't stop herself from remarking upon the Baileys coffee in Caffe Bellissimo, though.

"They've a Baileys cheesecake as well, Andrew!" she observed drily.

"Well, the Tesco opposite has got whole bottles of Baileys!" said Andrew, mimicking Maxine's excited tone. "You'll get a serious sugar rush, though - why not run it off with Keiran's dog Bailey? Just don't try to walk him in a straight line ..."

An A grade response to an A grade bitch, thought Lynsey with a grin. Annoyed at seeing this and hearing nothing from Michael in her defence, Maxine launched a stealthy attack.

"What I'd like," continued Maxine, "is the hazelnut or pecan latte. Which do you prefer, Lynsey - or didn't you try them before you went to The Coffee Cup instead?"

The duty manager raised his blond mopped head from cutting a huge red velvet cake. His gaze then pulled Maxine into the depths of his dark brown eyes.

"Well, I can make one recommendation - this cake with totally natural colouring," he said. "We use the blood of people foolish enough to think it's a free market economy."

Maxine went as red as the sponge to a chorus of sniggers down the queue.

The pecan latte with a comforting crown of cream soon erased the painful memory. Unfortunately one was now coming back to Andrew before his very eyes.

"It's a text from Natasha," he declared sadly. "Hoping I'm OK because she knows it's a difficult day for me."

Robbie had also been due to marry in the summer. Natasha's selflessness in the worst of times showed just why she'd given him his best. Not to mention why Andrew shouldn't be throwing himself a pity party.

[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Thanks for sharing Kirsten. We have a free feature slot open in March 2022. Please message me your book details if interested

[Kirsten]

Here is Chapter 1 of my debut novel The Enemies Within. Let me know what you think and I'll let you know where you can buy it to find out what happens next!

Andrew Millen opened the Barcelona hotel room door, excitement shining in his hazel eyes. That knock signalled the arrival of a champagne breakfast for him and Kayleigh.

An oddly familiar English voice called from outside. "Mr Millen, Miss Greenwood?" Andrew thought of how the couple would be Mr and Mrs Millen on their next foreign hotel stay.

However, it was another tall, dark haired man standing in the corridor. Gavin Westbrook.

"What the bloody hell are you doing here?" both men asked each other.

"Yes, Andrew - what the hell are you doing here?" demanded Kayleigh. She'd got up from the bed, her long black hair cascading over the red silk bathrobe. "You know this room's for me and Gavin. Go to the honeymoon suite in Mexico - you'll have a bigger mini bar all to yourself there..."

The knocking was actually on Andrew's front door and came from his best friend Michael Curtis. Michael's girlfriend Maxine Duncan peered through the front window to see Andrew slumped across the sofa.

"I said he'd have been on the booze all night, didn't I?" she said in disgust. "Lots of Spanish cervezas just to make himself feel even more tragic!"

"No - those new Invisible beers!" Andrew and Michael's In The Market colleague Lynsey Bretnall glared at Maxine. "Do you see any bottles or cans in that sitting room?"

The emotional dynamo within this petite, delicate featured ash blonde always amazed people. The willowy Maxine regained her composure by looking down on Lynsey with steely dark blue eyes. She then remarked perhaps there was a bottle of whisky behind the sofa.

"One from Scotland because of the imprisoned and dead relatives up there nobody else has,” she added. She tossed her fair, wavy locks with the same disdain.

"Maxine - you don't have to be here!" snapped Michael, as ruffled as his windswept light brown hair. The smoky grey eyes beneath blazed with a rare anger.

"I do if I'm to see anything of you before tonight!" retorted Maxine.

"You expect me to make the whole of next weekend about your friend!" said Michael. "Your friend who's also going through a bad time because of something that happened in the Alps!"

Michael and Maxine were heading for London after work on Friday night. They'd be staying with Maxine's friend Cassie and helping with her party. This was to celebrate recovery from serious injuries sustained on a French ski holiday two months back. Around the same time and place where Andrew's cousin Robbie had taken his fateful ski-ing holiday...

"Shut up, both of you!" said Lynsey, nodding towards the window. Andrew was now beginning to stir. "Today's meant to be about Andy and reminding him what he's still got here! If it's just people forgetting what he needs he'll have no reason to stay!"

Andrew had ruled out the return to Edinburgh suggested by his family. Nonetheless, South Cambridgeshire wasn't feeling like a happy home, either. Perhaps he should make a completely fresh start somewhere with no back history.

Everybody agreed staying in the house he'd shared with Kayleigh wasn't a good idea. However, nor was Andrew removing himself from a support network's range. Holmesbridge could offer a new beginning among the old friends best placed to guide him there.

Andrew didn't see them when he first woke up in what he realised was his living room. So Kayleigh was spending her birthday with another man in Barcelona, after all. Like she'd just told him, there really wouldn't be any July wedding or honeymoon.

Lynsey's calling of his name outside the house brought Andrew back to reality. His friends were here offering more help through the weekend. So time he returned the favour and started helping himself make the best of it as well.

Andrew opened the window with profuse apologies and almost a concussion to Lynsey. He must have dropped off after Match Of The Day. He'd a lot of sleep to catch up on what with - one thing and another. Maxine held back from suggesting two bottles of brandy at bedtime rather than just the one.

She couldn't stop herself from remarking upon the Baileys coffee in Caffe Bellissimo, though.

"They've a Baileys cheesecake as well, Andrew!" she observed drily.

"Well, the Tesco opposite has got whole bottles of Baileys!" said Andrew, mimicking Maxine's excited tone. "You'll get a serious sugar rush, though - why not run it off with Keiran's dog Bailey? Just don't try to walk him in a straight line ..."

An A grade response to an A grade bitch, thought Lynsey with a grin. Annoyed at seeing this and hearing nothing from Michael in her defence, Maxine launched a stealthy attack.

"What I'd like," continued Maxine, "is the hazelnut or pecan latte. Which do you prefer, Lynsey - or didn't you try them before you went to The Coffee Cup instead?"

The duty manager raised his blond mopped head from cutting a huge red velvet cake. His gaze then pulled Maxine into the depths of his dark brown eyes.

"Well, I can make one recommendation - this cake with totally natural colouring," he said. "We use the blood of people foolish enough to think it's a free market economy."

Maxine went as red as the sponge to a chorus of sniggers down the queue.

The pecan latte with a comforting crown of cream soon erased the painful memory. Unfortunately one was now coming back to Andrew before his very eyes.

"It's a text from Natasha," he declared sadly. "Hoping I'm OK because she knows it's a difficult day for me."

Robbie had also been due to marry in the summer. Natasha's selflessness in the worst of times showed just why she'd given him his best. Not to mention why Andrew shouldn't be throwing himself a pity party.

No, you shouldn't, thought Maxine grimly. She knew Gavin and she knew Kayleigh was a damn sight better off with him. She also knew reverse psychology when she saw it.

Andrew wanted everybody to give him the OK for throwing the king of pity parties. Of course his way too soft bezzy would fall headlong into that trap.

"Would you have told me not to mourn the end of my marriage because Zoe didn't die?" Michael then answered his own question. "Unless you wanted to reach the middle of next week early by getting knocked there, no! You recognised it was a loss the same as the two you're grieving for - Robbie was like the brother you never had!"

"No - he was one of my three brothers," said Andrew, clasping Michael's shoulder. "I've still got you and Leon. I've got a second sister in Lynsey. So I've got every reason to honestly tell Natasha I'll be having a wonderful day with wonderful people."

Maxine doubted this included her but really didn't care. It wouldn't end up meaning much to anyone after Andrew had drunk half the beer cellar.

However, he didn't wash down the roast lamb dinner and apple crumble with a drop of alcohol. His friends had fortified him enough - to the point where he felt he could manage without them. They'd given up enough of their days for him already.

"I'll be watching the Hibs with my boys on the sofa and folk on social media," he grinned. By the boys he meant his two silver tabbies, Logan and Fyvie. The brothers were named after Hibs players. "Then I'll be off to the cinema - as a frugal Scot I don't want to waste my advance booking money!"

"I love seeing the action from Easter Road too, remember?" said Michael. The pair had gone to quite a few Hibs games with Andrew's younger sister Kirsty and her partner Leon. With Kayleigh and Robbie, too, Michael then remembered.

He was about to kick himself for issuing the reminder when Andrew thanked him. All but two of his visits back home had been for happy reasons. Wouldn't Robbie want him to start living it up among his living family again? Andrew was Skyping Kirsty and Leon after today's match. How about Mikey chatted with them too and they all arranged another Edinburgh get together?

Lynsey wasn't keen on football but she wanted to see more of Andrew at his bubbling best. A play date with Logan and Fyvie was a bit overdue as well. This gave her a mischievous idea ...

"Why don't we stop off quick at ASDA on the way to Andy's?" Lynsey suggested merrily. "Then I can get the cats a replacement for that ball with the bell."

Toys from Aunty Lynsey - round about a tenner. The look of horror on Maxine's face - priceless.

After curtly requesting a puzzle book, Maxine put herself in silent solitary confinement at the dining room table. In a less comfy chair than the sitting room ones and nearer the back garden cat games. Well, God forbid she should actually enjoy one minute here, thought Michael in fierce resentment.

Maxine barely heard a peal of either toy's bell amid shouts of encouragement and cheers of celebration. Lynsey wanted to share in them, too. The Andrew she knew and loved was back.

It seemed somebody up there could read Lynsey's mind as five minutes later the heavens opened. She went inside to enjoy the Hibs victory like it was an England World Cup win. In fact she asked to join Andrew and Michael at the Skype post match party.

Kirsty was delighted by the prospect of Andrew's first homecoming since their cousin's funeral. She recommended following up the football with a meal at the new Italian restaurant in town. It was a firm favourite of hers and Leon's already - Andrew would see why when Kirsty messaged over its menu.

"That's a point!" said Lynsey. "I need to look at The Gondola's desserts again so I can decide what to have for my main!" She and her boyfriend Declan were going out for a meal on his birthday.

Maxine looked up from the puzzle pages submerged under the waves of her hair. "I'm feeling like a gooseberry fool myself," she announced. Her dark blue eyes looked pointedly at Michael.

He decided to make the point that actually he did prefer his friends' company right now. After coming off Skype, Michael suggested Andrew kept the laptop on for some Hibs match clips.

Maxine was first out of the door after bidding Andrew the coolest of farewells. She'd got halfway down the path before realising Michael was still in Andrew's hall. The two friends shared a warm embrace before agreeing the morning's lift arrangements. While Andrew's car got MOTed, he was sharing Michael's for work journeys.

Maxine seemed in a much better mood for getting Michael to herself again. She smiled at him before drawling seductively.

"Maybe you can be here for quarter past eight tomorrow without having to get up early." Maxine only lived two roads away from Andy and Michael was driving to hers later. So this sounded like an invitation to stay overnight.

Maxine made her intentions even clearer as she went on. "You could have a longer night and longer in bed than usual, if you get my drift .." Taking the lapels of Michael's shirt, she snarled ferociously: "Just go back in and stay - you know you want to!"

She shoved him away before flouncing off. To Splitsville, most probably, Andrew thought. Hoped as well, part of him had to admit.

[Keith]

Walking into the BMT waiting room was like walking into a room of gloom. The room was full of my fellow cancer patients. Everyone had a dour expression on their face, behind the masks we were required to wear. We all sat around waiting to be called for our blood work and you could just about hear a pin drop.
It was a privilege to provide some comic relief, albeit unintentionally. You see I had lost another 30 pounds and my clothes were getting very baggy. I heard my name called and jumped right up. As I went up my d$m shorts went down and everyone doubled over with laughter. I quickly pulled them up but the damage was done! Susan said it truly was hysterical - yours truly not so much. Fortunately there wasn't enough time for anyone to pull out their phone and film this faux pas. When I went back, the nurse said my BP was extremely high and she asked if there was a reason for that. I explained what had happened and she did her very best not to laugh. But I'm certain that at the next coffee or lunch break she told this story to all her fellow doctors and nurses and they had a good chuckle.
After slinking embarrassingly out of the office, I went back to the hotel where we were staying to find my belt.
Suffice to say, I have worn it every day since.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08QRB3H3G
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[Grasshopper, Administrator]

Hi Keith. Thanks for sharing your book here. You are free to keep posting any new books you offer in your folder from May 2021.