Thank you so much for having me today. I hope you and your readers
enjoy learning a little about my latest release, Where Dragonflies Hover, a contemporary story that also features a
WWI story, when Lexi, the main character finds a diary written by a wartime
nurse.
WHERE DRAGONFLIES HOVER Blurb:
Sometimes a glimpse into the past can help make sense
of the future …
Everyone thinks
Lexi is crazy when she falls in love with Hollingsworth House – a crumbling old
Georgian mansion in Yorkshire – and nobody more so than her husband, Dylan. But
there’s something very special about the place, and Lexi can sense it.
Whilst exploring
the grounds she stumbles across an old diary and, within its pages, she meets
Allie – an Australian nurse working in France during the First World War.
Lexi finally
realises her dream of buying Hollingsworth but her obsession with the house
leaves her marriage in tatters. In the lonely nights that follow, Allie’s diary
becomes Lexi’s companion, comforting her in moments of darkness and pain. And
as Lexi reads, the nurse’s scandalous connection to the house is revealed …
WHERE DRAGONFLIES
HOVER Excerpt:
The late sunshine enveloped the house in a golden
glow. Again, it seemed to call to her, begging for attention. A path on the
left of the drive looked inviting as it meandered through a small strand of
poplars. Lexi grabbed her keys, locked the car and took off to explore again.
She had nothing to rush home to now, and if she got caught for trespassing,
then so be it.
The overgrown pathway brought her out on the far side
of the grounds near the end of a small lake. She gazed over the water towards
the back of the house and noticed a paved terrace area. From there the lawn
then sloped down to the water. She’d not been around the back before and fell
even more in love with the property. She could imagine the serenity of sipping
a cool drink on a hot summer’s day and looking out over the lake.
Lexi stepped out along the bank. A lone duck swam by,
its movement serene on the glassy, dark surface. This side of the lake was in
shadow from large pine trees, and she stumbled on fallen pinecones hidden in
the long grass. On the opposite side of the water were some small buildings, a
garage, fruit trees in early blossom, and an overgrown vegetable patch,
complete with a broken, rejected-looking scarecrow.
She wandered over to a narrow shed on her left and
peered through its sole, dirty window. Unable to make out much in the dimness,
she walked around to the front and was surprised when she was able to pull the
bolt back on the door. Why didn’t people lock things? A covered rowboat took up
most of the space inside. She smiled, seeing herself rowing it on the lake.
Growing more excited, Lexi edged around it to peer at the workbenches and the
odd assortment of tools and useless things one found in abandoned sheds. It was
like treasure hunting in an antique shop. She used to love doing that with her
grandfather.
She glanced about and spied a dusty painting leaning
against the wall. The scene was of a child and a brown dog. Behind the canvas
were more paintings, some framed, some not. Lexi flicked through them. The ones
that caught her attention she took out and set aside.
She looked for somewhere to sit and study the
paintings. A small tin trunk wedged under a workbench seemed the only offering.
Thinking it empty, she went to tug it out, but it remained fast.
Using both hands, she heaved it out and was showered
in a puff of dust. Squatting down, she inspected the latch that was held tight
with a small lock. ‘Why are you locked?’ she murmured. The shed was open to
anyone passing by, yet this ugly little chest had a lock on it. The trunk was
nothing special, plain and in parts rusted. No ornament or writing hinted at
its use.
Intrigued, she grabbed a hammer from the workbench,
but then hesitated. She had no right to open someone else’s property. Lexi
closed her eyes momentarily. What was she
thinking of breaking into the trunk? What am I doing? Never had she
broken the law and here she was guilty of trespassing and breaking and entering!
She looked around the rowboat as though expecting someone to jump out and
arrest her.
Something inside urged her on. She knew she couldn’t
stop now. Sucking in a deep breath, she bent and hit the lock hard. The ringing
sound was loud in the quiet serenity of the garden. The metal dented and with
another few solid whacks the lock gave.
Shivers of excitement tingled along her skin. Gently,
she eased up the lid.
WHERE DRAGONFLIES HOVER Buy links:
Also available in Apple ibooks, etc.
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| Annemarie Brear, Author |
Annemarie on the web:
Twitter @annemariebrear
1 comment:
Annemarie, thanks for sharing with readers! Wishing you continued success with your career.
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