Lavender
Fields
Eternal
Journey Series
Book
One
Raegyn
Perry
Genre:
Paranormal Romance
Publisher:
Solstice Publishing/
Summer
Solstice
Date
of Publication: September 20, 2015
ASIN:
B015NC4D8E
Number
of pages: 239
Cover
Artist: Michelle Crocker
Book
Description:
Torrential
rain spikes. A scream pierces the dark night.
Greye
Fields has immersed herself in her literary work. She has a life
she’s happy with. She won’t allow herself the time or the desire
to pursue love.
Until
she meets him.
Connor
Donovan is perfectly content with his bachelor status. Life is good,
teaching middle school English, and being the favorite uncle. He
wants for nothing.
Until
he meets her.
Shattered
glass. A wash of blood.
Is
it a nightmare or a memory?
Can
Connor and Greye overcome the obstacles to the love of all time, or
is tragedy doomed to be repeated?
Book
Trailer: https://youtu.be/TvAsLeNIEQY
Excerpt:
The
Dream
Screams
of outrage and pain crashed against the howling wind. Breaking glass
followed while a crimson ooze covered the wet ground.
A
lingering scent carried on the breeze was swallowed by the night. The
orange glow on the horizon turned an ominous dark and the sky rumbled
with agitation.
Each
time the dream came to her, it was as vivid and profound as before.
Through the fog of this dream appeared a hazy universal image. The
small, obscure wooden marker at the top of the hill marked a
long-forgotten resting place.
Greye
had dozed off on the park bench and the haunting dream had come upon
her again, as it had so many times in years past. She was never able
to understand the nightmare, and it unsettled her still, as an adult.
Set in a faraway place and time, there was always something more just
beneath the surface… hinting at an unknown that should somehow be
familiar.
Greye
couldn’t have known the role this recurring dream would play in her
future.
***
Greye
looked down to begin writing again when a searing pain shot straight
up her leg. She froze in shocked confusion. She grabbed her knee as
her eyes blurred with tears. Then she noticed the bright green
Frisbee that had smashed into her right kneecap.
The
kids were now otherwise occupied, their voices softer and further in
the distance. The man was approaching with the Lab in stride. Greye
could sense he had stopped in front of her. She heard an anxious and
strong, deep voice.
“Oh
God, I’m so sorry. Are you OK? I’m so sorry.”
Clutching
her throbbing knee with one hand, and wiping her eyes with the other,
Greye looked up into his cobalt blues, which were still cringed
looking at where his errant disk had landed. Managing to conceal an
unexpected sigh, she replied, “I’m fine, I think. Just wasn’t
expecting it.”
She
watched as he drew a hand through his dark, short hair. It was a
nervous habit she figured. She also noticed the tousled, shiny waves
that threatened to end in curls if his hair got much longer.
***
Connor
caught an intriguing scent on the wind he thought he remembered, but
couldn’t quite place. “My apologies really. I didn’t expect it
to catch that much air.”
As
if feeling guilty by association, the golden Lab came and rested its
big head on her uninjured leg. When Connor saw the smile she gave his
best friend, a warm feeling began to blossom in his chest.
Scratching
the dog’s ears, she offered, “It’s OK, I’ll live. May never
walk right, but I’ll live.”
The
casual smirk she quickly added had Connor feeling the stricken pallor
of his face blush with heat.
“Well,
it has to be said, there has been considerable advancement in knee
replacement these days. Though I do hope it doesn’t come to that.”
Greye
let a soft laugh escape and she countered with, “I don’t think it
will. I’m tough. I’ll forego the surgery, and wear this limp with
pride.” She gently massaged her red and puffy knee.
This
time Connor had to laugh. He really liked this pretty woman with the
quick and easy comebacks. She appeared to be of mixed race, most
likely black and white, with her flawless honey colored complexion.
It was those expressive green eyes he found he could get easily lost
in. He strongly resisted the urge to touch her soft chin length brown
hair, which he noticed, was lit with auburn highlights as it fell in
loose waves around a diamond shaped face. He noticed a scar than ran
just under her jaw line. Her slender body looked to be in pretty good
shape as well.
With
a cocky grin, and a small bow he said, “A battle wound then I most
humbly take credit for. Then he added, “I couldn’t help but
notice your perfume. It’s really … nice.”
“Thank
you. It’s just hand lotion; honey and—”
“Lavender,”
he finished. That’s her
scent.
She
replied, “It’s honey and lavender, yes.”
About
the Author:
Raegyn
(pronounced Reagan) Perry is thrilled to share her debut novel,
Lavender Fields, with readers. This is the first book in the Eternal
Journey Series. It asks the question, ‘What if love found the right
people, at the wrong time?’
With
the inspiration coming from a true family story, and having found the
uninhibited time to write, a story of unequaled love and desperate
circumstances was born.
When
not writing, Raegyn is perfectly content curled up with a good book,
TV binge watching, or on a fun travel adventure. Also, anyone who
knows her knows she loves to dance (a lot!) wherever and whenever
possible!
How
would she describe Lavender Fields?
It’s
a paranormal romance that centers around reincarnation; so it’s
basically two romances! The story is funny, sexy, dark, and raw while
being twisted, mysterious, and still somehow romantic.
Raegyn
believes readers can connect with her lovers, Connor and Greye, on a
few levels. It has the elements of the classic love story: boy meets
and gets girl, but it also tackles some real and uncomfortable
issues, while introducing characters that anyone can relate to, root
for, or despise altogether! Then, throw some odd clues with a helping
of paranormal in, and you have a unique take on a timeless aspect of
romance. The author hopes so anyway!
For
a love even time can’t deny.
After
Raegyn completes the Eternal Journey Series, she hopes to begin work
on another series, which readers can actually catch a glimpse of
first within the pages of Lavender Fields.
The
beautiful Pacific Northwest state of Washington has been home since
2001. She has one grown son whom she adores. Raegyn is currently
working on the second book in the series, Cypress Groves, and as a
playwright, she will be investigating options to get her full length
stage play produced in the area.
Interview
Where are you from?
I was born in Michigan, but moved to Ohio at around
age 10. I called Ohio home until 2001 when I made the move to the beautiful
Pacific Northwest. I briefly also lived in North Carolina.
Tell us your latest news?
My debut paranormal romance Lavender Fields was
released in eBook on September 20 (my mother’s birthday), and the print version
released on September 25th from Solstice Publishing.
When and why did you begin writing? I started
writing for the joy of it as a young child. I would always want be the teacher,
or create the stories I’d get my friends to then act out. In high school I
wrote for the school paper, but then grown up life and having a family
happened. Around 2003, I seriously sat down and started a couple sci-fi stories
that unfortunately got lost in a move. A few years later, I started the idea
for Lavender Fields, but concentrated on writing a full length play instead.
Finding myself with ample writing time in 2009, I took another year and finally
finished my manuscript. Now six years later, here I am!
When did you first consider yourself a writer?
That’s a great question. I’ll share a short blurb from the first page of a
journal I only recently completed.
Sat.
Dec. 30, 2006
I think I shall be a writer. Regardless if
nothing gets published, I will write stories that I create. I’ll not apologize for its content, format or
size.
What inspired you to write your first book? Lavender
Fields came from a story from my family history. It’s what gave me the initial
spark of inspiration. A white plantation owner’s daughter ran off with a
mulatto slave, and one of their children was my great-grandmother. Such a taboo
and scandalous story had me thinking! What if another two lovers had that dangerous
kind of love, but needed another lifetime to realize their happily ever after?
It took on a life of its own from there, and a story was born.
Do you have a specific writing style? In the
beginning, I would almost always write out (longhand) the entire story. More to
just purge the idea from my brain. Nowadays, I can brain-storm it out in Word!
Truth be known, I still prefer to write out my notes and then transfer them to
a template. I find it is way more work, but I can’t stop buying notebooks and
journals! I have one in my purse, and one in my car. You don’t want to see my
desk, or the boxes I have under it!
How did you come up with the title? I haven’t been
asked this before! I actually wrote out most of the past story first, and the
worked crop there was tobacco. A place of beauty and forbidden romance came in
the form of Lavender on the neighboring property.
Is there a message in your novel that you want
readers to grasp? Love transcends gender, color, race, and in this particular
story, even time.
How much of the book is realistic? I took the
liberty of creating a fictional town, and some other locations, as well as
tweaked a few details to fit. Depending on one’s belief in Cryptomnesia,
(recalled past life memories) the rest of the story is as realistic as I could
make of a fictional work.
Are experiences based on someone you know, or events
in your own life? Yes, some are things that I myself have experienced myself,
or through the shared information from others. A lot are things as I imagined how
they would be. For instance, I included a white-water rafting scene that came
from an actual trip I took. I also spent time at a beach that’s mentioned. The
music and some cultural references are a mix of research and in remembering the
real atmosphere and ambience, then trying to recreate it in the book.
What books have most influenced your life most? Wow,
that list could have us here awhile! I’ll skip the childhood stories, though
they were instrumental in forming my love of reading, and feeding my
imagination. (Blume, Dahl, Milne, Carrol, Travers, etc.) The influence since
actually writing would likely be from some of the masters. As a teen, Oscar
Wilde’s ‘The Picture of Dorian Grey’, freaked me out. I always knew I’d be a
fan of Stephen King, and even Poe. I got a series of Anne Rice books signed
once and meeting her drove home my love of the paranormal world. ‘When the Wind
Blows’ by James Patterson opened me to thinking outside the box of just your
basic sci-fi content. I also have to admit, Harry Potter influenced me not only
for the enjoyment, and opportunity to share them with my son, but for the idea
that I too really wanted to create my own worlds and stories.
If you had to choose, which writer would you
consider a mentor? My Great -Aunt E.
Pauline Myers. She loved sharing her stories of her days working alongside
those who laid the groundwork and foundation for the Civil Rights movement. She
was feisty and funny, and pretty fearless. I like to
think she was also a bit of a romantic in there somewhere too. The life she
led, and the stories she wrote are in my opinion, legend. I wish she were
around to see that although I write fiction, I always wanted to do her proud.
What book are you reading now? I’ve started many
books recently, trying to find the time to get lost. I did just pick up ‘My
Sister’s Grave’ by Robert Dugoni again. Having him sign it was another
highlight moment for me.
Are there any new authors that have grasped your
interest? Oh, another list I could go on and on with! A.b. Funkhauser, Simone
Salmon, Susan Solomon, Heidi Renee Mason, and Vicki-Ann Bush, and that’s just
the tip of the ladies! I have to mention they are all authors with Solstice
Publishing, so it’s been wonderful going on this unfamiliar territory with others
in the same boat.
What are your current projects? I’m getting back to
work on the next story in the Eternal Journey Series, Cypress Groves. I’ve got
a preliminary idea started on a short story, and planning on entering my play
into some local contests.
What would you like my readers to know? I’m truly
proud of my story, Lavender Fields. I hope they take a chance with Connor and
Greye’s story of this timeless aspect of romance. Overall, I hope they just
enjoy the journey!
Tour giveaway 2 prize packs featuring Lavender soaps, candles, teas and a signed copy of printed book 2 eBook copies 1 book logo hat 1 book logo mug
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Thank you for much for the chance to win!
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