Guest Post - The Keeper by Natalie Star
The Keeper, by Natalie Star on sale for .99 cents at Amazon Click here - http://bit.ly/TheKeeperNatalieStar
The Keeper (Young Adult/ParanormalRomance/heat level 2), by Natalie Star
Blurb:
The morning of her sixteenth birthday, Billie feels blessed despite thereoccurring nightmare that wakes her. Loving parents, a caring boyfriend, andgreat friends surround her until an heirloom necklace throws her into a worldshe never imagined.
“Gifted” with supernatural powers andan unexpected destiny as the Keeper, Billie and a mysterious boy from her pastmust work together to find answers. But, as they begin to discover feelings forone another, he disappears leaving her to fight evil alone. Her life spiralsout of control. She breaks up with her boyfriend, Tony, and alienates her bestfriends Arianna and Jocelyn to protect them from the truth.
As dark forces pursue her, Billielongs to run away from it all, yet a need to do what’s right compels her toface the future as the keeper of more than her own fortune.
“Gifted” with supernatural powers andan unexpected destiny as the Keeper, Billie and a mysterious boy from her pastmust work together to find answers. But, as they begin to discover feelings forone another, he disappears leaving her to fight evil alone. Her life spiralsout of control. She breaks up with her boyfriend, Tony, and alienates her bestfriends Arianna and Jocelyn to protect them from the truth.
As dark forces pursue her, Billielongs to run away from it all, yet a need to do what’s right compels her toface the future as the keeper of more than her own fortune.
Excerpt One:
“I have something special for you. Sit, I’ll go getit.” And before I knew it, she rushed down the hall.
“Hurry, Mom, I have to get to school!” I yelledafter her. She was back in a flash. “Here, honey.” She handed me a long narrowvelvet jewelry box, maroon in color, the coloring faded from age and use. Iflipped back the lid and saw a gold chain with a charm hanging from it.Definitely nothing I would have handpicked, nice enough I guess, but it lookedolder than dirt itself. There was a yellowish gemstone, citrine I think, nolarger than a nickel and it was set on top of a golden sunburst. She explained,“It’s been in our family for years. It’s been handed down from generation togeneration on the sixteenth birthday.”
“Um, thank you. How old is it, and where did it comefrom?” I questioned because it even smelled old.
“No one in recent memory knows the answer to eitherquestion. We do know it is an honor to receive it, and you have to wear it foryour whole birthday, no matter what,” Mom explained.
“Or what, I will have seven years bad luck?” Ididn’t know what else to say.
“No, worse, a whole life of bad luck.” Mom said itso seriously.
“Well, if that isn’t convincing enough, put it onme!” I was not superstitious but why take chances?
I lifted my flat ironed hair out of the way, and Momplaced the chain around my neck. The second I heard it click into place, I feltfunny, and I swear the jewelry’s temperature rose. I stood up in a state of apanic as it warmed and the heat spread from my neck throughout my body.Everything went white, and then pulled out.
“Billie!”Mom screamed.
Excerpt Two:
“Do I want to know?” he asked uneasy.
“Probably not, so if you want to call it quits and go on with your life I wouldtotally understand because all of what I have to tell you is unsettling andwill be life changing. If you want out, now’s the time.” I waited.
I didn’t know I held my breath until Ty stopped walking. He kept his stare onthe ground. “If you don’t tell me now, I will always wonder and probably regretnot knowing because it seems important.”
“You need to be absolutely sure you want to know before I tell you. So thinkabout it for a few minutes.” I had an awful feeling in the pit of my stomachfor him.
He nodded, and we followed the overgrown trail for a while through curves andswitchbacks. The path led through all kinds of trees and wild growth. Neverhave I seen such beauty in autumn. I could see yellows, oranges, and reds allaround us. It would have been silent if it weren’t for the fluttering leavesand nuts falling from the trees, and our feet crunching over the deadvegetation on the ground. I stomped my feet, and I liked the noise it made.Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. I put my arms out and spun in a circle while crunching.I felt giddy. I almost forgot where I was and why. Ty regarded me as if I’dlost my mind, which I probably had.
“What?” I asked as I spun past him.
“Just watching you.” He continued to watch with smiling eyes.
“It’s fun. You should try it.” I grabbed his hands because he wouldn’t comewillingly, and we spun and spun until we were dizzy. We fell to the ground andlay there for a minute to catch our breath and get our heads straight.
I watched him. He seemed genuinely happy, and I felt genuinely crappy. Could Ireally take away his happy life and innocence? That’s exactly what I was aboutto do by unleashing the truth. I sat up.
He too sat up and looked toward me. “You okay?” He twirled a strand of my hair.I knew which bit of hair, too; the one that always curled away on its own.
I shook my head. “Not really. I don’t want to tell you. I thought I did, butnow I’m not sure.”
“I don’t want you to tell me…not yet. First let’s have a few more minutes ofnormal.” He reached for my chin and tilted it toward him and pressed his lipsto mine. We lay back in the leaves holding and kissing one another. We wereconsumed in each other’s sweet perfect kisses.
I pushed away from him and lay my head on his chest. He stroked my hair as welistened to the sounds of Mother Nature. I could hear his heartbeat, and it wascalm and soothing. It didn’t match mine.
I jumped to my feet in a split second. I was on total alert. My heart poundedso loud I felt it in my ears.
“What’s going on?” Ty asked. Still on the ground where I was a second ago, heswiveled his head around.
“We’re done with normal.” I reached for my gem. Yep, cold but I didn’t need tofeel it, I actually sensed it beforehand. I dropped a hand to help him up. Hestared at it. “Ty, come on we don’t have time for this. I am stronger than you,much stronger, so this is why you need to get out of here.”
He took my hand. I pulled him to his feet. He gasped. With a peck on his cheek,I told him, “Go. Run.” But he stood there not moving. I saw and heard nothing.I closed my eyes and went into my mind to see what might come in the nearfuture, and it wasn’t pretty.
“I might need to take my own advice and run.” I took Ty’s arm and dragged himalong with me. It was too little, too late. We were surrounded.
“What can I do?” His voice crackled in fear. His head whipped around lookingfrom one monster to the next. The creatures completely surrounded us. There wasno way out, and they were hungry, hungry with a desire to kill. I could hearthem in my head: kill.
“Try to stay alive,” I said. I felt sick to my stomach because I knew hewouldn’t make it through this.
“Probably not, so if you want to call it quits and go on with your life I wouldtotally understand because all of what I have to tell you is unsettling andwill be life changing. If you want out, now’s the time.” I waited.
I didn’t know I held my breath until Ty stopped walking. He kept his stare onthe ground. “If you don’t tell me now, I will always wonder and probably regretnot knowing because it seems important.”
“You need to be absolutely sure you want to know before I tell you. So thinkabout it for a few minutes.” I had an awful feeling in the pit of my stomachfor him.
He nodded, and we followed the overgrown trail for a while through curves andswitchbacks. The path led through all kinds of trees and wild growth. Neverhave I seen such beauty in autumn. I could see yellows, oranges, and reds allaround us. It would have been silent if it weren’t for the fluttering leavesand nuts falling from the trees, and our feet crunching over the deadvegetation on the ground. I stomped my feet, and I liked the noise it made.Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. I put my arms out and spun in a circle while crunching.I felt giddy. I almost forgot where I was and why. Ty regarded me as if I’dlost my mind, which I probably had.
“What?” I asked as I spun past him.
“Just watching you.” He continued to watch with smiling eyes.
“It’s fun. You should try it.” I grabbed his hands because he wouldn’t comewillingly, and we spun and spun until we were dizzy. We fell to the ground andlay there for a minute to catch our breath and get our heads straight.
I watched him. He seemed genuinely happy, and I felt genuinely crappy. Could Ireally take away his happy life and innocence? That’s exactly what I was aboutto do by unleashing the truth. I sat up.
He too sat up and looked toward me. “You okay?” He twirled a strand of my hair.I knew which bit of hair, too; the one that always curled away on its own.
I shook my head. “Not really. I don’t want to tell you. I thought I did, butnow I’m not sure.”
“I don’t want you to tell me…not yet. First let’s have a few more minutes ofnormal.” He reached for my chin and tilted it toward him and pressed his lipsto mine. We lay back in the leaves holding and kissing one another. We wereconsumed in each other’s sweet perfect kisses.
I pushed away from him and lay my head on his chest. He stroked my hair as welistened to the sounds of Mother Nature. I could hear his heartbeat, and it wascalm and soothing. It didn’t match mine.
I jumped to my feet in a split second. I was on total alert. My heart poundedso loud I felt it in my ears.
“What’s going on?” Ty asked. Still on the ground where I was a second ago, heswiveled his head around.
“We’re done with normal.” I reached for my gem. Yep, cold but I didn’t need tofeel it, I actually sensed it beforehand. I dropped a hand to help him up. Hestared at it. “Ty, come on we don’t have time for this. I am stronger than you,much stronger, so this is why you need to get out of here.”
He took my hand. I pulled him to his feet. He gasped. With a peck on his cheek,I told him, “Go. Run.” But he stood there not moving. I saw and heard nothing.I closed my eyes and went into my mind to see what might come in the nearfuture, and it wasn’t pretty.
“I might need to take my own advice and run.” I took Ty’s arm and dragged himalong with me. It was too little, too late. We were surrounded.
“What can I do?” His voice crackled in fear. His head whipped around lookingfrom one monster to the next. The creatures completely surrounded us. There wasno way out, and they were hungry, hungry with a desire to kill. I could hearthem in my head: kill.
“Try to stay alive,” I said. I felt sick to my stomach because I knew hewouldn’t make it through this.
Links:
Book Trailer on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8x0K05MHWA
Author Bio: Up until four years ago - Natalie hated reading and neverwanted to be an author, yet here she is. A little thing called Twilight camealong and changed things. After reading the sparkly vamp series, she continuedto read more, consuming one vampire story after the next. Then one day she hada dream. One that she couldn't shake. Four days later she typed the dream out,and that became the start of her YA paranormal romance novel, The Keeper.When Natalie's not reading or writing, she can be found with her husbandsupporting their two children on the soccer fields. Or maybe running aroundwith her camera taking photos while camping and/or hiking. Or lastly, and mostprobable - She's watching TV while simultaneously perusing her social mediasites.
Their family resides in the state of Virginia along with anold-unintelligent-diabetic cat named Lucky.
The Keeper, by Natalie Star on sale for .99 cents at Amazon Click here - http://bit.ly/TheKeeperNatalieStar
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