Devices. Jolie’s got tons of them. Coping mechanisms that
ensure she’s not falling victim to the mental illness that’s taken hold of both
her brother and father. Helping the homeless gives Jolie much needed
consistency. But when a stranger struts into her Jersey Shore creperie, writing
cryptic songs on napkins and then disappearing, her world becomes anything but
routine.
Reed can play the soul out of his saxophone, but he’s hiding
something. Why else would he reveal so little about himself, or plan one secluded,
albeit eccentric, date after another? And what’s in that backpack he carries
everywhere? Then again, with her distressed brother missing, an estranged
mother returning home, and a feisty grandmother acting weirder than usual,
Jolie can’t decipher whether her suspicions are valid or dangerous delusions.
When inexplicable slashings of the homeless occur in her
otherwise safe town, Jolie’s devices begin to fail.
Excerpt
Reed’s bag sat on the floor next to me. I wasn’t in the
habit of snooping. I’d never wanted to pry into the life of a guy I was dating
before. Then again, I’d always gone in with my eyes open and my information
gathered.
And no one else had been so intentionally evasive.
I scooted a few inches on the couch toward the bag. It was
zipped shut so I couldn’t even sneak a peek. I’d have to very intentionally
open it. I leaned over, a centimeter at a time, as if someone was recording me
and I was trying to be sly. In my own home. How silly. My hand fell to my side,
closer to the bag. My nail scratched at the couch, creeping its way toward the
zipper. My stomach knotted into itself and my palms got clammy. I wiped one
against the couch. This was very unlike me. Besides, I wasn’t even sure what I
was looking for or if I wanted to know the answer.
Before my hand could make its descent from the couch to the
backpack, the bathroom door opened. My hand flew into my hair and I sat up straight.
Rigid even.
“Forgot my stuff.” Reed strutted toward me, in all his
shirtless glory, with his shorts undone and hanging. He leaned over, scooped
the backpack, and withdrew to the bathroom. He didn’t notice the plank of wood
rammed down my back or the word guilty scribbled across my forehead.
I should have been disappointed. My snooping opportunity had
passed. Instead, a cool ocean breeze seemed to blow through the room. I guess I
didn’t want to know as much as I thought.
K.K. Weil grew up in Queens, but eventually moved to New
York City, the inspiration for many of her stories. Weil, who attended SUNY
Albany as an undergrad and NYU as a graduate student, is also a teacher. She
enjoys writing her own dramas and lives near the beach in New Jersey, where she
is at work on her next novel.
Website: http://kkweil.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/KKWeilAuthor
Twitter: www.twitter.com/KK_Weil
Blog: www.KKWeil.blogspot.com
Amazon: http://amzn.com/B072SZ67NF
Thanks so much for having me today! Wonderful to be here :)
ReplyDeleteGreat excerpt KK - so vivid and real. Good luck with your release.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Charlotte!
DeleteWonderful excerpt! Best of luck with your new release!
ReplyDeleteThanks very much, Tena!
DeleteSounds like a great story! Congratulations. M. S.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, M.S.!
DeleteNow I'm as curious as Jolie about what the heck is in that bag!
ReplyDeleteA complicated (in a good way) and intriguing premise. Wishing you tons of luck with this release. Best, Anni xx
Looking forward to reading this one. Congratulations!
ReplyDelete