New Release! With Giveaway!

It’s no secret that I have 4 kids, and like any parent, there are days when I love them more than others. Then there are days when I’d like to ‘lend’ them out to couples interested in having a family of their own. I figure it would be great for population control!

However I survived the early years of child rearing and am potentially facing some of my birds flying away this year. Regardless of the stage the kids were and are in, the good or the bad days, the children have always been inspiring. Maybe that’s why I write a lot of really creepy books

Just kidding. I’m blessed and I know it. I also know I would never have ventured into writing about this teenage mindset if it hadn’t been for my daughter and her voracious reading appetite and her discontent with the seemingly endless stream of the same story written in as many different ways as there were authors. This happened about a couple of years ago.

At the time, I said, “No way!”

Only to find my muse kicking up her heels and answering with, “Challenge accepted!”

Since then, there’s been what appeared to be an avalanche of YA ideas pouring from my brain. Oddly enough, the first one I wrote is not the first one I published. I released the second and the third YA books last year, and have just now released the first one.

Why did I hold back? The first two books are paranormal and urban fantasy books and they are the first in a series. This one is…different. It’s an emotional story that will make some readers tear up but they will finish the book with a smile on their face.

I’m not known for these types of stories, (maybe that’s why I released the others first as they are closer to what I write?) although the joy of being a writer in today’s world, means I have the freedom to write what I feel inspired to write. Including my Romantic Comedy with a canine sidekick – It’s a Dog’s Life!

In Cassie’s Corner - was and still is an inspirational story for me. It touches on difficult topics, like drunk driving, death, and recovery from a major loss. I’d like to think I handle the issues well, but I’m certainly aware that not everyone would agree! It is a story that would be hard to read and not be affected – one way or another.

Faith and loyalty are tested as a young girl learns what it is to believe – in herself, in her friends, and in life after death.

Cassie’s best friend, bad boy Todd, is gone. Gone as in dead. Gone as in ghost.

But she doesn’t realize that when he wakes her in her bedroom and begs her not to believe what they say about him. It’s not until the next day when her parents tell her about the accident that she learns the truth…

The police believe Todd was living up to the family name, drinking and driving and coming to a predictable end. It’s up to her to find out the truth and clear his name.

Todd is shocked at his sudden change in circumstances…and angry. He struggles with his new ghostly reality, realizing all he’s lost as he watches his brother build a relationship with Cassie as the two pair up to find out what really happened to him.

The truth isn’t always pretty, and Cassie has to be stronger than ever before. Especially when the whole world seems to be against her.

Oh and the cover?  That’s another collaborative effort with my son, Jason.

To celebrate this new YA, I’m giving away a one free copy (either Kindle or PDF) of In Cassie’s Corner to one person who comments on the best thing they remember about being a teenager!