An Improbable Dream by Violetta Antcliff

NEW RELEASE NOVEMBER 1, 2014!

An Improbable Dream by Violetta Antcliff

#gypsyshadow #gay #romance #novelette                                

http://www.amazon.com/Improbable-Dream-Violetta-Antcliff-ebook/dp/B00P4CBLRU

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/an-improbable-dream-violetta-antcliff/112067339

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/489646                       

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Violetta.html#Improbable                               

Adrian had a choice to make: his boyfriend, or a girl he had just bumped into . . . An Improbable Dream by Violetta Antcliff. Available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Violetta.html#Improbable

                               

Adrian had never doubted his sexuality, he had a live-in partner, and now the law had changed they planned to get married. First however, he had to break the news to the family; therein lay the problem. His mother refused to accept the fact her son was homosexual and Liam O’Donall his Irish Catholic grandfather put it down to a phase he was going through.

A chance meeting with a beautiful, flirtatious girl gave him pause for thought; who was right, them or him? Was finding that special someone and marrying for love, no more than an improbable dream? It was up to him to find out.

Word Count: 10100

Pages to Print: 39

Price: $ 3.99

EXCERPT:

“Iron it yourself, can’t you? Who do you think I am, your bloody mother?” Adrian’s handsome face was contorted with rage. He loosened his tie, kicked off his shoes and plonked himself down angrily on the settee.

He’d had a long hard day at the office and the last thing he wanted was to come home to a domestic.

He gently massaged his temples with his fingertips and closed his eyes, hoping the headache that had just started would go away without him having to resort to taking pills.

“Do you really need a clean shirt? I thought we’d decided to stay in tonight, order a take-away.”

“You can stay in if you like, I’m going to the club,” his partner retorted angrily. “And whilst you’re asking, no I don’t think you’re my bloody mother. If you had been, I’d at least have had a clean shirt to put on.”

Adrian heard the front door bang to, and he knew any chance he’d had of making it up was now out of the question. He felt guilty. He knew Toby was right, it was his fault there were no clean shirts in the cupboard, or clean anything else, as far as that went. He’d been that busy at the office he hadn’t had time to think about domestic chores, let alone tend to them.

He sighed, dragged himself up from the settee, and made his way through to the kitchen to make himself something to eat; but the cupboard was bare: no milk, no butter, zilch. He slammed the fridge door to. He’d started to calm down, but now his anger was back with a vengeance. He wasn’t the only one who’d been shirking his duties. It was Toby’s job to do the food shopping; they’d sat at the kitchen table less than a week ago and drawn up a list of whose own job it would be to do what.

He returned to the lounge and sat, tight as a wound up spring, back down on the settee.

It was starting to get dark outside, but he made no attempt to pull the drapes to or turn the light on.

Eventually however, his anger drained away and his thoughts turned once again back to basics. What take-away should he order, Chinese or Indian? He was hungry.

-#-

He washed the Tika masala down with a can of Coke. Feeling much better now he had a full stomach, he settled down in front of the television to watch a game of football.

-#-

It was past twelve o’clock before he decided to retire for the night, and past one o’clock before he heard the key grate in the front door lock and Toby creeping up the stairs.

He felt the duvet being pulled back and feigned sleep, the last thing he wanted was another row.

He could smell alcohol on Toby’s breath and wondered if he’d risked driving home the worse for drink, or if he’d done the sensible thing and hired a taxi, he hoped it was the latter.

-#-

The next morning, Adrian killed the alarm before it had time to go off; he guessed Toby would prefer an extra hour in bed to a jog round the park.

It was a beautiful morning, the grass was heavy with early dew and the birds were in full chorus. Adrian felt at peace with the world; he had a wedding and a honeymoon to plan, and at that precise moment he couldn’t have been happier. He jogged along in a euphoric mood, oblivious of where he was going.

A friendly, “Morning,” followed by, “Look where you’re going,” brought him back to earth with a jolt. A girl stood in front of him, rubbing her shoulder and grimacing in pain.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t see you,” he said, hoping an apology would suffice and he’d be able to continue with his run.

“That’s bloody obvious,” the girl said, exercising her shoulder gingerly, face twisted in agony.

Adrian couldn’t make up his mind if she was genuinely in pain, or if she was putting it on for his benefit.

“If I’ve hurt you, I’m truly sorry,” he said. “Look, allow me to run you to A and E, just to make sure no serious damage has been done.”

The girl sniggered. “What, we jog along to A and E together, or are you weighing me up to see if it’s possible to piggy back me there?”

Adrian could see the girl was making fun of him. “I have a car,” he said tight-lipped. “If you would like to sit down over there—” he pointed to a park bench “—I’ll go and fetch it.”

The girl stood looking up at him, a smile quirking the corner of her mouth. He noticed for the first time how pretty she was. Her eyes were blue and full of mischief, and her hair, even though half-covered with a sweatband and dragged back in a ponytail, was the colour of spun gold.

Until she coughed to attract his attention, Adrian hadn’t realised he’d been stood staring at her. “Look, I can only repeat I’m sorry. If there’s anything I can do, please just tell me,” he said, flustered.

The Diamond Man by Michael J. Molloy

NEW IN PRINT July 1, 2014!

The Diamond Man by Michael J. Molloy

#gypsyshadow #baseball #romance

http://www.amazon.com/The-Diamond-Man-Michael-Molloy/dp/1619502283 (Print)

http://www.amazon.com/The-Diamond-Man-ebook/dp/B00DDA2T4E

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-diamond-man-michael-j-molloy/1115633112

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/325672

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/MichaelJMolloy.html#DiamondM

Baseball announcer gets big league job, steals a woman’s heart, and wins back his problematic daughter. The Diamond Man by Michael J. Molloy. Available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/MichaelJMolloy.html#DiamondM

An act of bravery can elevate one to superhero status. But it will not erase a troubled past.

Career minor league baseball announcer Jim Monahan saves an elderly man from potentially drowning. His local media story goes viral on the internet and is snatched up by national television. It catches the eyes and ears of his New York-based agent, who convinces Jim that the courageous act could put him front and center for a major league announcing opening. Yet despite his heroics, Jim still can’t wash away a painful divorce caused by his unfaithful ex-wife, and repair his strained relationship with his wayward daughter, Madison. Jim grows despondent. But then an attractive and kind-hearted woman named Anne Finley walks into his life. She restores Jim's faith in love and aids him in reconnecting with Madison.

Word Count: 84750
Pages to Print: 289 
Price: $5.99 

EXCERPT:

Chapter One

Hours after the late August game and its broadcast, Diamond Jim Monahan maneuvered his Honda Civic through Richmond’s waterlogged streets. The spirits of the play-by-play announcer of the Richmond Flying Squirrels had been flattened like a pancake. After all, the team had kowtowed to the hated rival Bowie Baysox, 6-5—thanks to the play where the visitors’ Lamont McGill uncoiled like a cobra in the top of the ninth inning and jacked the pill until it was a blip off the radar past the left field fence. The loss eliminated the Squirrels from postseason consideration, thus rendering the team’s upcoming season-ending series that weekend in Reading moot. The severe thunderstorm the forecasters had predicted was a fitting end to the evening’s proceedings. Mother Nature was venting her anger as she wept profusely for the saddened city.

The rain, which began shortly before the conclusion of Jim’s post-game radio show, came down in sheets. The upcoming trip to Reading was the farthest thing from Jim’s mind. Making it home through the torrential downpour became a struggle for survival. As fast as the windshield wipers swept away a collection of water, another waterfall soon followed. Jim might as well have been driving blindfolded. He wanted nothing less than to curl up in his bed at his apartment.

Inching along Jennie Scher Road, Jim suddenly noticed the rear lights of another vehicle off the side of the road below street-level. His initial reaction was to press past and head for home. But something peculiar about these rear lights peaked his curiosity. Had a fellow motorist’s vehicle swerved off the slick road into Gillies Creek? Compelled by his own burning desire to know, Jim opted to forego the need to sleep.

“Oh, my God. I wonder if anyone is hurt down there.”

Parking his Civic in a safe spot, Jim cautiously made his way down the incline. The rain continued to pelt him unmercifully, a thousand needles stinging his face. He wasn’t the least bit concerned about getting drenched. Someone was in dire need of assistance, and that was all that mattered.

He stopped in his tracks when he saw the vehicle, a late model Ford Explorer sport utility vehicle, its front wheels almost totally submerged in the rising waters of the creek. The rest of the vehicle would soon fall in. If someone were still alive in the Explorer, he’d have to act fast.

The driving rain made it difficult for him to see. Through squinted eyes, Jim noticed a figure in the driver’s seat. He tapped the window with his knuckles to get the attention of the individual, but there was no response. He tried to open the driver’s side door, but soon discovered it was locked. There was only one thing left to do: he had to break the window.

Time was critical; he frantically looked around for a sizable rock. He spotted one the size of a football and hoisted it. But before he struck the window, Jim yelled, “Hey in there! I’m going to smash the window! See if you can move away or at least turn your head away!”

The shadowy figure nodded and moved his head to the side.

With adrenalin pumping throughout his body, Jim heaved the heavy stone. The impact cracked the glass in the pattern of a spider’s web. Jim hit again and again, before the window shattered and he could reach inside to unlock the door. The third attempt was the charm.

He extended his left arm through the narrow middle opening of the broken pane. As he did, he nicked his forearm on one of the jagged edges. Ouch! He winced in pain, but pressed on in search of the button. Five seconds later he fingered what he believed was the door lock. When he pressed it, a sudden click sounded. Relief enveloped him, but the task was far from over.

After delicately pulling out his arm to avoid another cut, Jim opened the door from the outside. Just then he heard an eerie noise from the SUV, signaling it was another step closer to being totally submerged. The clock was ticking.

Jim focused on the object of the task: an elderly man, incoherent save for a few moans. The man slowly moved his head side to side. His wailing grew louder, almost ear-splitting.

“Hey, mister!” Jim yelled. “C’mon! You’ve got to get of here! This truck’s about to fall into the creek!”

“I can’t move,” the man groaned. “I think I broke my leg.”

“You can’t stay here! I’ve got to get you out!”

“No! No! Leave me alone! I’ll be all right.”

“Like hell you will!”

Jim quickly released the man’s seatbelt. The baseball announcer was about to position his arms around the back and behind the knees of the man when he heard another creak. The vehicle was yet another inch closer to slipping into the waterway.

Water rapidly filled the floor of the vehicle. There was no room for error. Jim instructed the old man to grab him around the neck. Jim fought to lift the man out. After he succeeded in doing so, he struggled up the embankment with the man in his arms. He managed to go only six steps before he heard a very loud sound behind him. He turned his head and saw the Ford Explorer sinking completely into the creek. Seconds later, only the top of the vehicle stood above the water. Diamond Jim Monahan had saved the old man’s life—but there was no time for celebration. Jim continued to transport the old man until both of them managed to reach street-level.

The announcer safely guided the injured man into the backseat of his Civic. Seconds were precious. Despite the teeming rain, he used his cell phone to contact 911 and request an ambulance. When he was finished on the phone, he noticed the old man reaching for him with his right hand. Jim clasped it as a handshake, as if he were greeting an old friend. Still writhing in pain, the old man looked at Jim through tired but grateful eyes.

“Thank you,” the man quietly told Jim.

Jim smiled softly in reply. He shut the door so that the man would be out of the torrential downpour, got into the driver’s seat and closed the door behind him to shelter himself from the rain. His clothes were soaked, but Jim wanted only to relax all of his taut muscles and be swallowed up by the bucket seat. The wait was now on for the emergency vehicle’s arrival.

Do Over by G. E. Stills

NEW RELEASE JULY 1, 2014!

Do Over by G. E. Stills

#gypsyshadow #romance #timetravel

http://www.amazon.com/Do-Over-G-E-Stills-ebook/dp/B00LG6FMWS

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/do-over-g-e-stills/1119886250

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/453878

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/GEStills.html#DoOver

If you went to sleep one night and woke up the next day in your past, what would you do? Do Over by G. E. Stills. Available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/GEStills.html#DoOver

Have you ever wished you could go back in your life and change things? Would the changes made turn out for the better? If you remembered your future, you could correct your mistakes, but would you make others? Gene took a wrong turn in life. He lives on the wrong side of the law, but he gets a chance that we never get. He gets a Do Over in his life.

Word Count: 22640

Pages to Print: 80

Price: $3.99

EXCERPT:

****

. . . Gene got out of bed, stretched, then took a shower and performed his other bathroom duties. He dressed in fresh clothes, put on his holster and then grabbed the backpack and his overnight case. After a final look around, he stepped into the hall, and a momentary vertigo hit him. He stumbled and braced himself against the wall to keep from falling. The dizziness went away and his vision cleared.

Stress, it has to be stress.

He glanced around in confusion and sensed something was different. The hall seemed newer—fresher somehow. Funny I didn’t notice it yesterday. I must have been too lost in thought.

He rode the elevator down to the lobby and took a seat in the restaurant. I really must have been lost in thought. Everything about the hotel seems different. They must have remodeled since I was here last. They did a good job. Reminds me of how this place used to look.

He charged his breakfast to the room before leaving the restaurant, not paying attention to the price, and left a generous tip for the waitress. He leaned into the registration desk. “I’m in room 536. I need to check out,” he told the clerk.

The clerk searched through his files. “I’m sorry sir. Your name?”

“Gene Cardone.”

“Hmm. I’m sorry Mr. Cardone there seems to be some type of mix up. I have no record of you.”

“I checked in yesterday.”

“I don’t doubt your word. I’m just saying I show no record.”

The clerk typed in the information he provided and gave him the price, which included the breakfast he informed the man about. “That’s all?” Gene asked.

“Yes sir.”

He peeled off some cash to settle his bill, still wondering at the low price. Flipping open his cell to call a cab he noticed to his surprise there was no signal. Moving around in the lobby didn’t help. There was no signal anywhere Maybe they’re just having a coverage issue here in the Hotel. Finally, he went to the registration desk and had the clerk there summon a cab.

Gene stepped out in front of the hotel to wait. Again he flipped open his phone to call Felix. He frowned in confusion when the no signal message came up on the phone.

The cab that pulled up was a vintage car that he remembered from his youth. Talk about retro. He got in the back. Where to?” the driver asked.

“Coronado Airport.”

“Where? I’m not familiar with that airport.”

Surely you jest. You’re a cab driver and you don’t even know where Coronado is?

“It’s located on I-25 north toward Santa Fe.”

“Uh Sir, there’s no airport out there that I’m aware of.”

Gene glanced at his watch. Time was ticking away. I’ll call another cab. This guy is obviously new to town and doesn’t know shit.

“I just remembered something I forgot to do. Here, this should cover you for your trip.” He handed the cab driver some money and left the car. After watching the cab pull away, he shrugged on the pack, picked up his bag and stepped out of the hotel drive to the sidewalk. He glanced around. Nothing looked right in the surroundings. It was familiar and yet completely different from what he’d noticed the day before.

What the fuck is going on?

While heading back into the hotel lobby he glanced down at a newspaper vending machine. He halted and stared in shock at the date on the paper. July, 15th, He couldn’t believe his eyes when the year jumped out at him. 1973! What the hell?

Inside the lobby once more, Gene saw that as the morning had progressed guests had filtered into it. In amazement, he noticed that every one of them wore fashions terribly outdated. Passing a floor to ceiling decorative mirror, he glanced at himself and halted dead in his tracks. The man staring back at him was not him. Well it is me, he admitted. “The way I looked fifteen years ago. What the fuck is going on here? I must be still asleep. I must be dreaming,” he mumbled beneath his breath.

Can’t go back to the room. I’ve already checked out even if this is a dream. I’ll go for a walk, get my thoughts together. He laughed out loud. I’ll probably wake up naked as the day in some public place or some similar embarrassing situation.

He left the front doors and strolled down the street deep in thought and yet aware of things around him. Wouldn’t do to be taken by surprise. Not with three million dollars in this backpack. He felt the gun nestled under his arm. “Not that I need to worry much about being mugged.”

He was astounded at the cars passing by on the street beside him. None of them was newer than early seventy vintage, and many were older. Slowly he concluded that something, he didn’t know what, had happened overnight. Gene halted abruptly and stared in disbelief at the rental car lot next to him. The lot was filled with 1973 dodge cars. Among them, he spotted a row of Challengers. An idea surged to life, and he marched into the rental office.

Gene never used his charge card while on business. While his wallet was open, he quickly counted the bills. Several hundred dollars should be enough for the time being. “Here’s my card, but don’t run it I’ll be paying the rental fee in cash.”

“Very good sir.” The agent slid forms across the counter for him to fill out and turned away to make a copy of the card.

Gene drove off the lot and spent the rest of the day driving around town. The first place he drove to was Coronado Airport, at least the location where it should have been. There was no airport there.

By evening, he was more confused than ever. He couldn’t argue the facts. They were everywhere around him. Somehow, he’d been transported back from the year 2000 to 1973. With the exceptions of a few minor changes, Albuquerque was the same as when he’d gone to school here in the sixties. Early in the evening, he treated himself to a burger and fries, then pulled into one of the motels on Central Avenue and rented a room. The bar next door looked very inviting. He slipped the backpack in the trunk then going around the corner entered the bar. All night long, he remained deep in thought, trying to figure out what had happened.

The Will and the Way by Hendrik van Oordt

NEW RELEASE MARCH 7, 2014!

The Will and the Way by Hendrik van Oordt

#gypsyshadow #romance #contemporary

http://www.amazon.com/The-Will-Way-Hendrik-Oordt-ebook/dp/B00IUTGZXO

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-will-and-the-way-hendrik-van-oordt/1118882178

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/416623

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/HendrikvanOordt.html#WillWay

Torn between wild-cat oil operator Will Evans and current lover yaughtsman John Dunesne, cellist Kim Chalmers puts her future happiness on the line. The Will and the Way by Hendrik van Oordt. Available at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/HendrikvanOordt.html#WillWay

Cellist Kim Chalmers is in Paris preparing for a world tour when her fiancé, yaughtsman John Dunesne, is caught in a storm and reported missing. Haunted by John's loss and a failed childhood love for which she still feels responsible, Kim gets deeply depressed and ready to give up a promising career.

Agent and friend Anne Moorecroft discovers the whereabouts of Kim's childhood love, Will Evans, now a wild-cat oil operator in the Sahara, and tries to rekindle the fire between Kim and Will. Just then John Dunesne is found alive on the Irish coast. Kim's heart is in a turmoil. She is faced with a terrible choice. Will she make the right decision?

Word Count: 59400
Pages to Print: 211
Price: $4.99

EXCERPT:

“You didn’t bring any bedding?” Will Evans sounded almost sympathetic in his perplexity. “What did you expect to find here? A hotel?”

A smile briefly lit up his face, and Anne could once again feel the powerful attraction exuded by this man. But he didn’t explain the reason for his smile and it was gone in an instant, leaving the same handsome mask as before. He had probably been laughing at her.

“I’ll give you my tent for the night.”

Anne didn’t argue. She was a modern woman who valued her gender equality, but she was far too scared of what was happening to protest that she could sleep under the stars as well as any man. She had never camped out in her life and she had already come to the conclusion that she would never ever do so again. Something was rustling somewhere, and something else was calling to the moon. Away to the right she could make out the silhouettes of the men talking quietly among themselves. Meekly she followed Will Evans to her quarters, a triangular tent so low you had to crouch to get in.

“No extra blankets, I’m afraid. You better keep your clothes on. The tent is insulated, but it’s a lot colder out here than at Fort Khaldun.”

He took out his bedroll, which he dumped right in front of the shelter.

“This is where I’ll be sleeping. If you need to go to the bathroom, it’s back there.” He pointed beyond a hillock and looked at her with an amused air. “Just don’t expect a bathroom.”

Prologue

“It’s a good thing your parents don’t know I’m here.” The girl laughed breathlessly.

The boy and the girl were running through the orchard by Hardwood River. Ahead rose the old boathouse, derelict and abandoned since the construction of the new shed near the manor.

It was raining heavily. Both adolescents were drenched. The boy’s heart ached at the sight of the running girl in her bedraggled summer dress, clinging wet to her skin as though it never wanted to let go. It was the way he wanted to hold onto her.

When they reached the door, she turned and smiled through the wet strands of hair plastered against her cheeks and forehead. She took the boy’s face in her hands and kissed him.

“You look so serious,” she whispered. “I want you to tell me your problems. But first I want you to make love to me. That’s all I want from life. Happiness. You.”

“No!” The boy tore himself away, staring wide-eyed at her. “No,” he said again. He was crying soundlessly. “Laetitia knows and is threatening to tell Mom.”

The girl sagged to the ground against the building. “Aunt Mary will kill you,” she said, “if she finds out.”

He shrugged, unable to express himself. How could he explain that he wouldn’t mind whatever punishment his mother had in store for him as long as he could have her?

“I’m leaving home,” he said softly.

The girl looked up sharply. After a moment she laid a hand on his knee. “And me?”

He shook his head in silence. She scrambled to her feet.

“I’m coming with you.”

“No.”

“You can’t stop me.”

No, but society can, he thought sadly. “You’re seventeen, without a passport, and you’re my cousin. If we ran off together, Laetitia would be sure to tell Mom what was going on between us and the police would haul us back in no time. Your life would no longer be worth living. And if I stayed, we’d try to continue what we’re doing. We wouldn’t be able to stop ourselves.”

He stood looking at her for a long time, unable to tear his eyes away from her face.

“I love you, Kim,” he said at last. “I’ve loved you forever, it seems.”

She took his face again in her hands and whispered, “Make love to me.”

He closed his eyes against her searching look. She was scanning his face as if she wanted to reach inside his mind for an argument that would convince him to stay. She bit his ear and put one of his hands on her breast. “Make love to me,” she said again.

He took her hand in his and kissed it long and desperately.

“I’ve signed up on an oil rig for the season. I’m flying out tonight. I’ll be stationed in Greenland. I’ll write.”
The girl began to cry, burying her face in his chest.

One

The neighborhood had that old-world charm you find in so many European cities, with deep courtyards, alleys at odd angles, old and rather dusty shops, bars and restaurants everywhere, and far too much traffic for the narrow streets.

It was a beautiful day in Paris, and Kim Chalmers stood lazily watching a couple of teenagers from her second-floor apartment window, enjoying the heat of the late summer sun on her face and upper body. The two kids in the street below were flirting heavily, laughing and showing each other pictures on their cell phones, with just enough body distance to suggest that they might not yet be together. It wouldn’t be long before they found each other, she thought. They would make a cute item. If John were here, he would have concluded cynically that they were negotiating a temporary truce between the sexes. But that was John, and she loved him for what he was, macho warts and all. For all his outward display of cynicism, she knew him for a softy who could not get enough of her and who would stand by her come hell or high water. Literally. John had seen enough rough weather and human misery while sailing around the world on his yacht to be ready to fight for the true things in life, and for reasons she could only marvel at, he thought she was the truest thing in his life.

She thought they would soon be married, if his parents had anything to do with it. His people were the type to keep pushing and arranging until everything was boxed tidily and prettily where it belonged, with the lid on and a neat label, ready for sailing on the great ship of life. Kim and John definitely belonged in the box labeled marriage. John’s mother kept saying so, and Kim had to admit they made a handsome couple. If she had qualms about the freckles on the bridge of her nose and a constant fear of growing fat, she had no doubts at all about John’s physique. He was easily one of the best-looking men she had ever seen, with the sort of carefree walk that made him stand out from the crowd wherever he went; dark, with untamed eyes that made any woman’s heart race faster, and a smile that opened all doors for him.

The sun had dipped behind the buildings across the street, and the kids below her window had moved on, absorbed by the shadows and their own private world. She turned toward the room, wondering what life was all about anyway. All day long she had been feeling strangely nostalgic and rebellious. She loathed anything smacking of self-pity and nostalgia, and yet she was feeling homesick for a past that was utterly irrelevant to her life and future. Perhaps it was the two kids with their cell phones or the burnished copper of the setting sun, reminding her of an Indian summer just like this when she had passionately loved and lost. More likely, the growing pressure on the part of John’s mother highlighted her own doubt that marriage was what she wanted right now with her career taking off. But wherever she looked, things seemed to be throwing up memories of years gone by.

She sighed and looked at her reflection in the mirror and at the comfortable room behind, with its pleasant clutter and spacious dimensions. Even if she did not share John’s unbridled admiration for her looks, the mirror told her she was good-looking by any standard, while her apartment spoke of a life without financial worries. In the words of the magazines, she had it all—talent, beauty and, if not wealth, enough money to lead an independent life. She had no reason to feel sorry for herself. She was twenty-seven and engaged to a dashing adventurer, a once-in-a-lifetime man who was also a gentleman in this graceless day and age, with a circle of friends that was equally glamorous and wild. A man who paid the daily compliment of telling her she was the most beautiful woman in the world and who backed it up with endless gifts. She had no right to indulge in that sort of nonsense.

Resolutely, she turned on the light, took her cello from its stand and placed it between her knees. With just three months to go before a series of concerts that would take her to major concert halls around the world, on the verge of an international breakthrough, this was not the moment to pretend a mid-life crisis. Besides, it was extremely unfair to John. The past was over and done with. She had cried enough to fill a bathtub after Will’s departure and it hadn’t brought him back. For years she had thought she would never forget him and now, when she had finally forgotten, a red sunset and a few rose-colored memories were going to bring him back and spoil the party? Teenage love. Never again, thank you very much. Look at the puppy love of those kids passing below her window. Think of the tears they would shed, only to go off and make an entirely different life with someone else, all promises forgotten.

Angrily she tightened the bow of her instrument, snapping several horsehairs.

“Stupid girl,” she muttered, anxiously eying the wood for cracks. Her bow was a beautiful example from a 19th-century maker, a gift from her teacher when she graduated with honors from the conservatory, and she’d never forgive herself if she damaged it. “No man is worth your ruination, you hear?” she crooned as she loosened the screw. “Not John, not Will, not any man.”

She played old folk tunes of the kind that wailed about broken promises and impossible loves, until the professional in her took over and she settled down to playing scales. She had been at it for over an hour, almost satisfied with the blur of her fingers as they slid, stopped and vibrated across the fingerboard, when the doorbell rang. She wondered who it could be. She did not encourage unannounced callers when practicing.

Coming March 1, 2014!

The Will and the Way by Hendrik van Oordt

#gypsyshadow #romance #contemporary

Torn between wild-cat oil operator Will Evans and current lover yaughtsman John Dunesne, cellist Kim Chalmers puts her future happiness on the line. Coming soon to Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/HendrikvanOordt.html#top

Cellist Kim Chalmers is in Paris preparing for a world tour when her fiancé, yaughtsman John Dunesne, is caught in a storm and reported missing. Haunted by John's loss and a failed childhood love for which she still feels responsible, Kim gets deeply depressed and ready to give up a promising career.

Agent and friend Anne Willink discovers the whereabouts of Kim's childhood love, Will Evans, now a wild-cat oil operator in the Sahara, and tries to rekindle the fire between Kim and Will. Just then John Dunesne is found alive on the Irish coast. Kim's heart is in a turmoil. She is faced with a terrible choice. Will she make the right decision?

Word Count: 59400

Pages to Print: 211

Price: $4.99

EXCERPT

“You didn’t bring any bedding?” Will Evans sounded almost sympathetic in his perplexity. “What did you expect to find here? A hotel?”

A smile briefly lit up his face, and Anne could once again feel the powerful attraction exuded by this man. But he didn’t explain the reason for his smile and it was gone in an instant, leaving the same handsome mask as before. He had probably been laughing at her.

“I’ll give you my tent for the night.”

Anne didn’t argue. She was a modern woman who valued her gender equality, but she was far too scared of what was happening to protest that she could sleep under the stars as well as any man. She had never camped out in her life and she had already come to the conclusion that she would never ever do so again. Something was rustling somewhere, and something else was calling to the moon. Away to the right she could make out the silhouettes of the men talking quietly among themselves. Meekly she followed Will Evans to her quarters, a triangular tent so low you had to crouch to get in.

“No extra blankets, I’m afraid. You better keep your clothes on. The tent is insulated, but it’s a lot colder out here than at Fort Khaldun.”

He took out his bedroll, which he dumped right in front of the shelter.

“This is where I’ll be sleeping. If you need to go to the bathroom, it’s back there.” He pointed beyond a hillock and looked at her with an amused air. “Just don’t expect a bathroom.”

 

Prologue

“It’s a good thing your parents don’t know I’m here.” The girl laughed breathlessly.

The boy and the girl were running through the orchard by Hardwood River. Ahead rose the old boathouse, derelict and abandoned since the construction of the new shed near the manor.

It was raining heavily. Both adolescents were drenched. The boy’s heart ached at the sight of the running girl in her bedraggled summer dress, clinging wet to her skin as though it never wanted to let go. It was the way he wanted to hold onto her.

When they reached the door, she turned and smiled through the wet strands of hair plastered against her cheeks and forehead. She took the boy’s face in her hands and kissed him.

“You look so serious,” she whispered. “I want you to tell me your problems. But first I want you to make love to me. That’s all I want from life. Happiness. You.”

“No!” The boy tore himself away, staring wide-eyed at her. “No,” he said again. He was crying soundlessly. “Laetitia knows and is threatening to tell Mom.”

The girl sagged to the ground against the building. “Aunt Mary will kill you,” she said, “if she finds out.”

He shrugged, unable to express himself. How could he explain that he wouldn’t mind whatever punishment his mother had in store for him as long as he could have her?

“I’m leaving home,” he said softly.

The girl looked up sharply. After a moment she laid a hand on his knee. “And me?”

He shook his head in silence. She scrambled to her feet.

“I’m coming with you.”

“No.”

“You can’t stop me.”

No, but society can, he thought sadly. “You’re seventeen, without a passport, and you’re my cousin. If we ran off together, Laetitia would be sure to tell Mom what was going on between us and the police would haul us back in no time. Your life would no longer be worth living. And if I stayed, we’d try to continue what we’re doing. We wouldn’t be able to stop ourselves.”

He stood looking at her for a long time, unable to tear his eyes away from her face.

“I love you, Kim,” he said at last. “I’ve loved you forever, it seems.”

She took his face again in her hands and whispered, “Make love to me.”

He closed his eyes against her searching look. She was scanning his face as if she wanted to reach inside his mind for an argument that would convince him to stay. She bit his ear and put one of his hands on her breast. “Make love to me,” she said again.

He took her hand in his and kissed it long and desperately.

“I’ve signed up on an oil rig for the season. I’m flying out tonight. I’ll be stationed in Greenland. I’ll write.”

The girl began to cry, burying her face in his chest.

One

The neighborhood had that old-world charm you find in so many European cities, with deep courtyards, alleys at odd angles, old and rather dusty shops, bars and restaurants everywhere, and far too much traffic for the narrow streets.

It was a beautiful day in Paris, and Kim Chalmers stood lazily watching a couple of teenagers from her second-floor apartment window, enjoying the heat of the late summer sun on her face and upper body. The two kids in the street below were flirting heavily, laughing and showing each other pictures on their cell phones, with just enough body distance to suggest that they might not yet be together. It wouldn’t be long before they found each other, she thought. They would make a cute item. If John were here, he would have concluded cynically that they were negotiating a temporary truce between the sexes. But that was John, and she loved him for what he was, macho warts and all. For all his outward display of cynicism, she knew him for a softy who could not get enough of her and who would stand by her come hell or high water. Literally. John had seen enough rough weather and human misery while sailing around the world on his yacht to be ready to fight for the true things in life, and for reasons she could only marvel at, he thought she was the truest thing in his life.

She thought they would soon be married, if his parents had anything to do with it. His people were the type to keep pushing and arranging until everything was boxed tidily and prettily where it belonged, with the lid on and a neat label, ready for sailing on the great ship of life. Kim and John definitely belonged in the box labeled marriage. John’s mother kept saying so, and Kim had to admit they made a handsome couple. If she had qualms about the freckles on the bridge of her nose and a constant fear of growing fat, she had no doubts at all about John’s physique. He was easily one of the best-looking men she had ever seen, with the sort of carefree walk that made him stand out from the crowd wherever he went; dark, with untamed eyes that made any woman’s heart race faster, and a smile that opened all doors for him.

The sun had dipped behind the buildings across the street, and the kids below her window had moved on, absorbed by the shadows and their own private world. She turned toward the room, wondering what life was all about anyway. All day long she had been feeling strangely nostalgic and rebellious. She loathed anything smacking of self-pity and nostalgia, and yet she was feeling homesick for a past that was utterly irrelevant to her life and future. Perhaps it was the two kids with their cell phones or the burnished copper of the setting sun, reminding her of an Indian summer just like this when she had passionately loved and lost. More likely, the growing pressure on the part of John’s mother highlighted her own doubt that marriage was what she wanted right now with her career taking off. But wherever she looked, things seemed to be throwing up memories of years gone by.

She sighed and looked at her reflection in the mirror and at the comfortable room behind, with its pleasant clutter and spacious dimensions. Even if she did not share John’s unbridled admiration for her looks, the mirror told her she was good-looking by any standard, while her apartment spoke of a life without financial worries. In the words of the magazines, she had it all—talent, beauty and, if not wealth, enough money to lead an independent life. She had no reason to feel sorry for herself. She was twenty-seven and engaged to a dashing adventurer, a once-in-a-lifetime man who was also a gentleman in this graceless day and age, with a circle of friends that was equally glamorous and wild. A man who paid the daily compliment of telling her she was the most beautiful woman in the world and who backed it up with endless gifts. She had no right to indulge in that sort of nonsense.

Resolutely, she turned on the light, took her cello from its stand and placed it between her knees. With just three months to go before a series of concerts that would take her to major concert halls around the world, on the verge of an international breakthrough, this was not the moment to pretend a mid-life crisis. Besides, it was extremely unfair to John. The past was over and done with. She had cried enough to fill a bathtub after Will’s departure and it hadn’t brought him back. For years she had thought she would never forget him and now, when she had finally forgotten, a red sunset and a few rose-colored memories were going to bring him back and spoil the party? Teenage love. Never again, thank you very much. Look at the puppy love of those kids passing below her window. Think of the tears they would shed, only to go off and make an entirely different life with someone else, all promises forgotten.

Angrily she tightened the bow of her instrument, snapping several horsehairs.

“Stupid girl,” she muttered, anxiously eying the wood for cracks. Her bow was a beautiful example from a 19th-century maker, a gift from her teacher when she graduated with honors from the conservatory, and she’d never forgive herself if she damaged it. “No man is worth your ruination, you hear?” she crooned as she loosened the screw. “Not John, not Will, not any man.”

She played old folk tunes of the kind that wailed about broken promises and impossible loves, until the professional in her took over and she settled down to playing scales. She had been at it for over an hour, almost satisfied with the blur of her fingers as they slid, stopped and vibrated across the fingerboard, when the doorbell rang. She wondered who it could be. She did not encourage unannounced callers when practicing.

GSP's Last 13 Books of 2013 Alphabetically, #1

A Man Named Klaus by Violetta Antcliff

#gypsyshadow #paranormal #romance

Chrystal is both delighted and confused when she finds herself the winner of a competition she never entered. First prize: a long weekend away, all expenses paid, to the beautiful town of Hamelin West Germany. She decides to accept the prize, no questions asked, she has a sneaking suspicion she knows who's behind it all.

Getting lost in a strange country and spending the night in a shack with a total stranger, isn't something she bargained for. Klaus Stromberg, arrogant and maddeningly handsome, is a man of mystery, Chrystal can't decide if he's genuine or an accomplished liar.

Word Count: 10310

Pages to Print: 37

Price: $3.99

http://www.amazon.com/Man-Named-Klaus-Violetta-Antcliff-ebook/dp/B00G2KROEW
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-man-named-klaus-violetta-antcliff/1117204617
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/369705
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Violetta.html#Klaus

Fraternizing with the enemy in war time is a crime, but love is no respecter of rules. A Man Named Klaus, a short story by Violetta Antcliff. Available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Violetta.html#Klaus

GSP's Book of the Day December 10

Wishes and Promises by Charlotte Holley

#gypsyshadow #christmas #novellette

Steven Carmichael is missing in action in Afghanistan, and it's almost Christmas. How can his wife Janie tell their five-year-old daughter Kaitlin that her daddy is presumed dead? Both she and Kaity have been having dreams about Steve for a few weeks, but whose dreams are real? Kaity "dream-visits" her dad in his hospital bed and he promises her he'll be home Christmas Day, so little Kaity is convinced Steve is alive. Janie's dreams, however, have convinced her Steve has to be dead, though she can't admit it even to herself. What will happen Christmas Day if Steve doesn't keep his promise to Kaitlin?

Word Count: 10,500

Pages to Print: 43 

Price: $2.99 (Available at Smashwords for $ .99!)

http://www.amazon.com/Wishes-and-Promises-ebook/dp/B009WWF106/
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/wishes-and-promises-charlotte-holley/1113629786
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/248483
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Charlotte.html#WishesP

Short Christmas Read. When Steve Carmichael is reported missing in action in Afghanistan, his five-year-old daughter Kaitlin clings to his promise to be home for Christmas, even though everyone else believes he's dead. Wishes and Promises by Charlotte Holley. Available from Amazon, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Charlotte.html#WishesP

GSP's Book of the Day December 5

Voice of the Forest by T. M. Hobbs

#gypsyshadow #fairytale #shortstory

Elissa seeks sanctuary among the forest veil from a cruel stepmother, until she finds herself lost and alone. The shadows stretch long and ominous around her. She finds comfort in a stranger's voice; the voice of a man who sought shelter from the world in that same forest.

The days pass and a friendship develops that blossoms into something much deeper. Elissa, however, has never seen her friend's face and quite possibly never will. Charles has hidden in the forest for good reason, and even though his feelings have grown for Elissa, he fears they can never be together.

Word Count: 4100

Pages to Print: 17 

Price: 2.99

http://www.amazon.com/Voice-Forest-Voices-Abound-ebook/dp/B006GKARBK
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/voice-of-the-forest-t-m-hobbs/1107830871
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/109778
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/TMHobbs.html#VForest

Hidden, the forest his protection, Charles remains alone. Elissa seeks sanctuary there, drawn to his voice. He watches over, guides her and comes to loves her. Voice of the Forest, a short story by T. M. Hobbs. Available from Amazon, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/TMHobbs.html#VForest

GSP's Book of the Day December 1

Toys, Lights and Trinkets by Jim Woods

#gypsyshadow #shortstories #christmas

The stories in this eclectic trilogy are unrelated, except for their setting at the end of year holiday season. The first must be saddled with the based on true events disclaimer; the next is related just the way it really happened; and the last story is pure fantasy.

Word Count: 8000

Pages to Print: 31 

Price: 3.99

http://www.amazon.com/Toys-Lights-and-Trinkets-ebook/dp/B00A9K869S
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/toys-lights-and-trinkets-jim-woods/1113818662
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/256424
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/JimWoods.html#ToysLights

Christmas Short Stories. Three short reads for the season. Toys, Lights and Trinkets by Jim Woods. Available from Amazon, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/JimWoods.html#ToysLights

GSP's Book of the Day November 10

The Perfect Christmas by Dawn Colclasure

#gypsyshadow #christmas #shortstory

Lynn Johnson’s sister, Patty, visits for Christmas and all seems to go well until memories of an abusive childhood from the sisters’ past threaten the holiday cheer. Will the sisters be able to come together in the spirit of the holiday season in order to find the power to forgive and move forward in life?

Word Count: 4000

Pages to Print: 18  

Price: 2.99

http://www.amazon.com/The-Perfect-Christmas-ebook/dp/B00A9N2EKW

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-perfect-christmas-dawn-colclasure/1113818502

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/256419

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/DawnColclasure.html#PChristmas

The spirit of Christmas helps two sisters make peace with an abusive past. The Perfect Christmas, a short story by Dawn Colclasure-Wilson. Available from Amazon, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/DawnColclasure.html#PChristmas

GSP's Book of the Day November 9

The Pebble by Amanda Tucker

#gypsyshadow #youngsdule #shortstory

Somewhere, somehow, I had become submerged in darkness with seemingly no way out. No way out. I should have lost hope, but there was one memory that saved me, kept me going when nothing else mattered. You were my hope. As long as I remembered you, I would fight.

Word Count: 5507

Pages to Print: 20 

Price: 2.99

http://www.amazon.com/The-Pebble-ebook/dp/B005NWRKIK
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-pebble-amanda-tucker/1105794086
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/89797
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/AmandaTucker.html#Pebble

I should have given up—there was no way out of my prison—but there was one thing that kept me going, and that was you. The Pebble, a short story by Amanda Tucker. Available from Amazon, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/AmandaTucker.html#Pebble

GSP's Book of the Day October 13

The Diamond Man by Michael J. Molloy

#gypsyshadow #baseball #romance

An act of bravery can elevate one to superhero status. But it will not erase a troubled past.

Career minor league baseball announcer Jim Monahan saves an elderly man from potentially drowning. His local media story goes viral on the internet and is snatched up by national television. It catches the eyes and ears of his New York-based agent, who convinces Jim that the courageous act could put him front and center for a major league announcing opening. Yet despite his heroics, Jim still can’t wash away a painful divorce caused by his unfaithful ex-wife, and repair his strained relationship with his wayward daughter, Madison. Jim grows despondent. But then an attractive and kind-hearted woman named Anne Finley walks into his life. She restores Jim's faith in love and aids him in reconnecting with Madison.

Word Count: 84750

Pages to Print: 289 

Price: $5.99

http://www.amazon.com/The-Diamond-Man-ebook/dp/B00DDA2T4E
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-diamond-man-michael-j-molloy/1115633112
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/325672
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/MichaelJMolloy.html#DiamondM

Baseball announcer gets big league job, steals a woman’s heart, and wins back his problematic daughter. The Diamond Man by Michael J. Molloy. Available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/MichaelJMolloy.html#DiamondM

GSP's Book of the Day October 2

The Birth of Races by Katalin Nagy

#gypsyshadow #sciencefiction #romance

Many centuries in the past, a fraction of humanity left the Solar System to settle in their new home forming a united empire, the Federation.  The accidental finding, by Firl and his friends, of an alien digging on one of the Federation settlements, led to the discovery of altered human genetic material in a number of people visiting the site.

 

Soon Federation is torn apart by political and personal turmoil caused by the friction arising between the affected and the non-affected. The affected split to form the Elites, eager to find out about their alien heritage; and the Morphiks, keen to embark on their own evolution. Eventually Federation breaks up and in its place three separate empires form, populated by the three races.

Word Count: 84000

Pages to Print: 284 

Price: $4.99

 

http://www.amazon.com/The-Birth-of-Races-ebook/dp/B0090R3HH2

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-birth-of-races-katalin-nagy/1112582121

http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/217417

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/KatalinNagy.html#Races

“It’s ironic,” she reflected, “how humans have longed to meet another intelligent race, not realizing their potential to evolve into one.” The Birth of Races by Katalin Nagy. Available from Amazon, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/KatalinNagy.html#Races

                           

GSP's Book of the Day September 23

Sword's Call by C. A. Szarek

#gypsyshadow #checkeditout #fantasy

For generations, the Ryhans, ruling family of the Province of Greenwald, have been keepers of a sword rumored to possess enough magic to defeat kings. Lord Varthan, a former archduke and betrayer of the king, covets the sword and invades Greenwald. Lady Ceralda Ryhan, daughter of the murdered duke, gains the sword and flees, trusting only her white wolf, Trikser—magically bonded to her. Cera needs nothing more to aid in her fight.

Jorrin Aldern, half elfin and half human, left his home in the mountains of Aramour to find his human father who disappeared twenty turns before, but finds Cera with Varthan and his shades on her tail instead. His dual heritage and empathic magic will tempt Cera in ways she never thought she’d desire. But can he convince her trust and love can pave the path to redemption—or will the epic battle end in tragedy, and evil conquer them all?

Word Count: 94400

Pages to Print: 329 (Also available in Print!)

Price: $5.99

http://www.amazon.com/Swords-Call-Kings-Riders-ebook/dp/B00BJALXJC
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/swords-call-c-a-szarek/1046083558?ean=2940016230467
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/288263
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/C.A.Szarek.html#SwordsCall

Magic sword coveted by evil . . . Cera is on the run with her wolf when she collides with half-elfin Jorrin. Can their love conquer all? Sword's Call, Book 1 of The King's Riders by C. A. Szarek. Available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/C.A.Szarek.html#SwordsCall

GSP's Book of the Day August 7

Only Something in me Understands by Steve Olley

#gypsyshadow #checkeditout #romance #novella

When journalist, John Brooks, hears of a young woman haunted by visions of an earlier life lived in Egypt, who has an uncanny understanding of hieroglyphics, he must meet her. And so begins a lifelong friendship that would take each of them to the brink, balancing at the edge of reason, in this heart-wrenching tale of enduring love. Based on the true life story of Dorothy Eady, who believed herself to be the reincarnation of an Egyptian priestess, who took her own life 3,000 years before. The first woman to carve out a career as an archaeologist in Egypt, she made predictions that led to discoveries that would astound her colleagues. But only her closest friends knew her deepest secret. The conviction that fuelled this remarkable and romantic life, that drove her passion for Egypt, and the love affair that was so strong, even death could not end it.

Word Count: 13,500

Pages to Print: 50

Price: $3.99

http://www.amazon.com/Only-Something-Me-Understands-ebook/dp/B0043XXF0W
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/only-something-in-me-understands-steve-olley/1103106862
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/22427
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/SteveOlley.html#Something

Based on the true life story of Dorothy Eady, who believed herself to be the reincarnation of an Egyptian priestess, who took her own life . . . Only Something in me Understands, a novella by Steve Olley. Available from Amazon, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/SteveOlley.html#Something

GSP's Book of the Day July 31

Nancy by Charlotte Holley

->#GypsyShadow #checkeditout #youngadult #ya #shortstory

 Gail is an average teenager with problems and a really big inferiority complex, trying to ignore the world so everyone will just leave her alone. The last thing she wants is to be singled out by the popular, ever-smiling and beautiful Nancy, but some things we don't want are exactly what we need.
 
 When Gail finally becomes friends with Nancy, she learns life isn't always what it seems and the beautiful, popular teen she has tried so hard to avoid has as many problems as she does . . . maybe even more . . . 

Word Count: 3990
Pages to Print: 20
Price: $2.99 NOW on SALE at Smashwords ONLY for 99 Cents! Limited time only.

http://www.amazon.com/Nancy-ebook/dp/B0043XXD0Y
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/nancy-charlotte-holley/1017483329
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/4522
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Charlotte.html#Nancy

When Gail finally becomes friends with Nancy, she learns life isn't always what it seems and the beautiful, popular teen she has tried so hard to avoid has as many problems as she does . . . maybe even more . . . Nancy, a short story by Charlotte Holley. Available from Amazon, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Charlotte.html#Nancy

GSP's Book of the Day July 15

Love's Trust by Lee-Ann Graff Vinson

Daphne Lambert left the comforts of home to spend three months living a soldier’s life in Iraq. A reporter for the Boston Globe, Daphne patrolled alongside some of the Army’s finest. When their troop triggered a planted IED, Daphne never expected to find true love in the arms of her savior. a man who she would later find out, was the intended target of the bomb.

Sergeant John Ramos was a well-respected leader of his platoon. A routine search for IEDs ended up in the death of two good soldiers, and the loss of a leg for John. One year later, John finds himself the target of a court martial and the only person he can turn to for help is the woman he saved, the woman he loves.

Word Count: 10500
Pages to Print: 35
Price: $3.99

http://www.amazon.com/Loves-Trust-ebook/dp/B004UN6AJI
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/loves-trust-lee-ann-graff-vinson/1029271677
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/32942
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Lee-AnnGraffVinson.html#LovesTrust

Daphne was shaking and unable to move. Her hands trembled from the tight grasp on her weapon still aimed in the direction of the lifeless body . . . Love's Trust, a short story by Lee-Ann Graff Vinson. Available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Smashwords, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/Lee-AnnGraffVinson.html#LovesTrust

GSP's Book of the Day July 14

Love is Like a Rainbow by Dawn Colclasure

Love is...
...a reminder there is still hope in this world.
...a gentle whisper to guide you and give you strength in hard times.
...a neverending bond that transcends death.
...a promise of forever when two people become one.
...a brand new day after life's most turbulent storm.
Love, romance and eternal devotion come to life and restrengthen a bond through the power of verse. With words written from the heart and speaking to the soul, Love is Like a Rainbow contains love poems to remind readers to "let love come in."

Word Count: 9970
Pages to Print: 76
Price: $3.99

http://www.amazon.com/Love-Like-Rainbow-ebook/dp/B00433TB32
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/love-is-like-a-rainbow-dawn-colclasure/1022443423
http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/11319
http://www.gypsyshadow.com/DawnColclasure.html#LoveRainbow

Love is a reminder there is still hope in the world . . . Love is Like a Rainbow, a poetry anthology by Dawn Colclasure. Available from Amazon, other fine eBook vendors and Gypsy Shadow Publishing at:

http://www.gypsyshadow.com/DawnColclasure.html#LoveRainbow