Now that I'm done with The Soul of the Witch, I was able to take a few days and finish up an amazing book. A little over a month ago, I picked up The Line by J.D. Horn and this is one you really need to give a chance.

Blurb:
Savannah is considered a Southern treasure, a city of beauty with a rich, colorful past. Some might even call it magical…

To the uninitiated, Savannah shows only her bright face and genteel manner. Those who know her well, though, can see beyond her colonial trappings and small-city charm to a world where witchcraft is respected, Hoodoo is feared, and spirits linger. Mercy Taylor is all too familiar with the supernatural side of Savannah, being a member of the most powerful family of witches in the South.

Despite being powerless herself, of course.

Having grown up without magic of her own, in the shadow of her talented and charismatic twin sister, Mercy has always thought herself content. But when a series of mishaps—culminating in the death of the Taylor matriarch—leaves a vacuum in the mystical underpinnings of Savannah, she finds herself thrust into a mystery that could shake her family apart…and unleash a darkness the line of Taylor witches has been keeping at bay for generations.

In The Line, the first book of the Witching Savannah series, J.D. Horn weaves magic, romance, and betrayal into a captivating Southern Gothic fantasy with a contemporary flare.

Review:
A five star read...Haunting, Exciting, and Super Dark!

It's no secret that I'm in love with all things dark and creepy and the idea of witches and spells is no exception, but J.D. Horn takes it almost to an Anne Rice level (the ultimate compliment coming from me). The Line is a lighter read than Rice's work, but evokes just as powerful use of setting, history, and characterization.

I don't want to give too much away, but I will say that if you liked Beautiful Creatures, but want something with a little more action and a little more "older" then this would be the series for you. I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the series. 

Purchase at Amazon

Okay, I've finally made a dent in the emails and messages I've gotten over the past two days. I've loved reading how some of you stayed up all night to finish the book and how others have already started reading it for a second time. I've also loved all the questions from readers and boy, did you all have a lot of questions! So since I saw a few of the same questions over and over, I thought I'd just go ahead and make a blog post featuring some Frequently Asked Questions.

I went to the bookstore/Wal-Mart/Target to buy your book and they didn't carry it. Where can I buy The Soul of the Witch?
Welcome to the world of the indie author! Most of your local retail stores refuse to carry paperback copies of my books because of my indie author status, but that's okay. You can order the paperback edition of my book at Amazon.com (Prime members get Free Two Day Shipping) or you can order it for your e-reader from your favorite e book retailer such as Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or Smashwords.

Can I get The Soul of the Witch from my library?
Possibly. I never know if a library has ordered my books or not, but I do know that if your library uses the Overdrive e book catalog, my books are available.

How long will the release price last?
I was going to place the book back at regular price ($4.99) Sunday, but because of a few promotions that won't meet the deadline, I'll be extending it through the first part of August.

When will the audio book version be released?
I'm getting ready to start auditioning narrators for The Soul of the Witch audio book. I hope it will be available by Spring 2015.

Will there be a sequel to The Soul of the Witch?
At the moment, I am not planning a sequel. I've been toying with the idea of possibly a few novellas written from the point of view of the witches from the files, but I haven't decided for certain yet.

Is this a true story or based on real events?
There are certain scenes in the book which are, in fact, based on real events, but for the most part this is a work of fiction.

What's up with that dedication? Are you Devan/Janesa?
The Soul of the Witch is basically a story about two best friends. I dedicated this book to my best friend...I leave you to figure out the rest.

What's next/When is the next book coming out?
Wow! Not sick of me yet? Okay, I have a few ideas that I'm turning over in my brain, but nothing in the works just yet.

How can I get updates?
You can sign up for my newsletter and stay up to date on my current projects and get exclusive offers only available to my mailing list.

These were the most popular questions and I love you guys for taking the time to send them to me! I'm still answering emails as they come in, so you can always contact me with more questions or even just comment below and I'll answer. 

I am overwhelmed by all the emails I'm getting about the upcoming release. You guys are just amazing the way you keep sharing these emails with your friends and family! My emails list has doubled in just the past few days!

So, I've given you a peek at the first four chapters, then Chapter Eleven, then back to Chapter Seven...And now another teaser with Chapter Six.

We're just five days away! I'll be counting down on Facebook with a few more posts before release day and I'll be making a limited time discount so stay tuned.

Be sure to stop by Facebook or comment here and let me know how you liked the teasers.

The night held no relief from the heat of the day. Nick Cayne walked along the railroad tracks, kicking at the gravel. Just ahead, to the right, was Devan and Janesa’s apartment building.

It was unfortunate that most of their windows faced the back of the building. Because of that, he was forced to park one street over and come up from the tracks to avoid being seen. He jumped the shallow ditch and crouched down in the overgrown shrubs.

He was sweltering in the still, summer night. No breeze could reach him as he settled down into his hiding spot.

It’s like a damn sauna out here...This wasn’t what I signed up for...

Nick slapped at a mosquito on his arm and waved away the gnats that hovered among the leaves that were trying to fly into his eyes. Only a few feet away from where he sat was another drainage ditch of some sort, filled with what looked like black water and mossy slime. The rank smell of it seemed to be attracting the swarms of insects that were pestering him before buzzing over to their putrid oasis only to come back at him again.

He could hear bits and pieces of conversations from the other units, one woman talking on the phone about her boyfriend’s mother calling her a whore, on the other side of her an elderly couple argued over a television show, but all Nick cared about were the drunken giggles coming from Janesa and Devan’s apartment.

How could they be so casual about the whole thing? What happened at the bar was no accident. Don’t they understand this is only the beginning?

He wished he could tell them everything that he knew. He wished he could stop hiding and just go around to the front and knock on the door. After all, what was the worst that could happen?

A car door slammed around the front of the building. Nick eased further back into the shadows. He knew that no one could see him, but he could not take any chances. After all, how could he explain himself?

Don’t mind me...Just your friendly neighborhood stalker...

He adjusted his position, trying to relieve the numbing sensation in his feet and the ache in his knees. A small orange and white kitten trotted up from across the ditch, circling his legs and meowing at him in a begging tone. It backed away every time Nick tried to pet it, only to come back and circle his legs again. He wished he had something to give it, but all he could do was sit completely still and let the little creature sniff at his shoes.

He looked back up at the window as the girls laughed again, seeming amused by the expression on the girls face when her magazine went up in flames.

Didn’t that prove it? Didn’t that show that they were careless? That they were dangerous? At the very least, did it not prove how evil they were?

Evil...

He thought of every description of evil he had ever heard in his life. The lessons he learned as a boy in church about the devil and his power over mankind, the political evils of terrorism born in the black hearts of men, the cold blooded murderers, unrepentant rapists...And then these two beautiful, laughing girls.

I just don’t see it...

Thanks for all the emails about yesterday's teaser. If you didn't get to read it, you still can over at this post.

Just for fun, I thought I would give you another sneak peek of The Soul of the Witch.

Be sure to watch for more teasers coming this week as I count down to the release! Also please comment on this post or on Facebook and let me know what you think about the teasers!

Now just for fun...

Janesa screamed and sat up in the bed. She gasped for air as her chest tightened and a sticky sweat broke out on her forehead.

Air...I can’t breathe...

She clutched at the blankets and tried to calm herself. She was safe. Her eyes darted around at her familiar room with the clothes scattered over the floor and an empty tequila bottle on the nightstand. She was safe. There was no car. There was no water.

It was just a dream...Just a dream...I’m okay...It’s all okay...

There were hurried footsteps in the hall and a pounding at her bedroom door.

“You okay?” Devan called from the other side.

“Yeah,” she said though her throat ached with the effort.

Devan opened the door and peeked her tousled head inside, “Are you sure?”

“It was just a nightmare,” she whispered hoarsely as she ran her hands through her hair. “I didn’t mean to wake you up.”

Devan opened the door wider, she wore almost the same shorts and tank as Janesa. She didn’t wait for an invitation, crossing the darkened room and taking a seat at the foot of the bed. She pulled her legs up and crossed them under herself.

“It must be the night for it,” Devan said with a sigh. “I was having one too. I woke up just before you screamed.”

“It’s probably the tequila.” Janesa mumbled as she crossed her arms, thinking again about the dream and feeling her chest tighten and the urge to fight for air.

For a moment neither of them spoke, they simply sat there silent and waiting. Down the hall, from the kitchen, came the hum of the refrigerator and a rushing sound as the icemaker filled with water. Janesa wondered why everything always seemed louder at night and even more so just after a nightmare.

Even though Janesa knew it was just a dream, she was grateful to have Devan there for company while she tried to shake off the effects of it.

It just seemed so real...

“They always do,” Devan said as if Janesa had spoken.

Devan rubbed at her eyes with long fingers and yawned.

“I’ll tell you mine, if you tell me yours.” She suggested, with a stretch of her arms.

Janesa hesitated. It was just a nightmare, but she almost felt as if talking about it and saying aloud would make it seem even more real than it already did. Maybe she would be better off just trying to go back to sleep.

“You know that never works,” Devan said.

“What?”

“Trying to go back to sleep.”

Janesa felt a chill go up her spine, “I didn’t say anything.”

Devan paled. “Oh...Sorry.”

“The weird just keeps coming, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah,” Devan agreed with a shaky laugh. “It does.”

Janesa shivered again. “Still want to hear about my dream?”

Devan nodded.

“Well,” Janesa sighed. “I was in this car, but I wasn’t exactly me.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean I was me, but I was different. I was like this other me.”

Devan nodded, “Okay a you that’s not you, but it’s still you. It makes perfect sense.”

“Do you want to hear about it or not?”

“Sorry.”

Janesa looked down and smoothed the rumpled covers, “Okay, so I’m driving this old time car and I was going really fast. I mean I could see the steering wheel and the weird old dash. I’m driving and then there were these lights and--”

“You crashed.”

She looked up at Devan then and saw the almost terrified expression her friend’s face. She felt a tingle running up her arms, “How did you know that?”

Devan didn’t answer her. Instead, she just kept the odd expression on her face. “And there was water.”

“Yes.”

“And you couldn’t breathe.”

Janesa nodded, “I was so cold and then...”

“And then you were just gone.”

“Exactly! How did you know that?”

Devan shrugged, “I don’t know. You started talking and then it was like I could just see it or something.”

“What do you think it means?”

Devan got up and went to the door, reaching out and picking up the empty bottle from the nightstand.

“It probably means we shouldn’t drink so much tequila right before bed.”

Janesa smiled and let out a relieved sigh. “You’re probably right.”

“Are you going to be okay?”

“Yeah.”

Devan closed the door and Janesa lay back in her bed and starred up at the ceiling. What the hell was happening to them?

Wow! First off, thanks to everyone that took my survey. The response was just amazing and I'm thrilled to see that The Soul of the Witch avoided readers pet peeves about horror novels!

Now to the fun stuff! It's a dreary old rainy day here and I know I always like something fun to read on gloomy days, so here's another sneak peek from The Soul of the Witch. 

Devan pulled into a vacant space at the apartment building and shut off the car engine. Her headache had faded to a dull throb. She rested her head on the steering wheel and took a few deep breathes.

Why do I do this to myself...Every weekend I drink too much and then swear I’ll never do it again...And here I am...

She lifted her head slowly, feeling the muscles in her neck quiver in argument. Gathering her things, she got out of the car and began walking toward her front door. After just a few steps, her phone began to ring and vibrate from inside her purse.

Struggling to dig for it, she dropped her purse and the contents spilled out into the parking lot. She bent down onto her knees and retrieved the buzzing phone first.

“Hello?” She huffed as she held the phone to her ear with one hand and gathered the few things that were in reach.

“Devan?” Her boss’s rough voice came to her over the line, “Why aren’t you at work today?”

“Didn’t you get the voicemail I left?”

“I did.”

“Well, like I said on the message, I don’t feel good,” she said as she crawled along picking up lip-gloss and tampons. “I’m sick.”

“You’ve been sick every Saturday for the past month and a half.” He argued, “How do you explain that?”

“Weak immune system?”

“No. I think it’s more likely that you’re just hungover.”

“So?” Devan said as she struggled to retrieve her wallet from under a car, doing her best to keep her voice civil. “What I do on my time is my business.”

“Yes, but when it interferes with your job that makes it my business.”

“So what are you saying?”

“I’m saying that I’m going to have to let you go.”

Devan sat back on her heels, feeling the weight of responsibility crushing down on her. She thought of the bills sitting on the kitchen table and the dim prospect of looking for another job. She felt her headache returning as the hot tears burned behind her eyes.

“Whatever,” she snapped and ended the call before she could start to cry.

She could feel the hot sun beating down on the top of her head. Her mind raced with the thought of how disappointed her Dad would be, he got her that job and now she lost it just like she lost all the others. She could almost hear his “responsibility speech” again, the one where she had to grow up and do something with her life other than just float along and how he couldn’t keep asking for favors from people and getting her jobs only to have her piss it all away.

“You need some way of supporting yourself and the world is going to get tired of giving you second chances.” Her dad warned last time they spoke, “It’s time you grew up Devan.”

She felt even more defeated at just the thought of having to sit through that again.

I need a drink...

Devan abandoned the other escaped items from her purse, got up, and went on to her apartment. She let herself in, closed the door behind herself, and leaned back against it. Immediately she saw Janesa sitting on the couch with a bottle of beer in hand.

Tossing her purse to the floor, Devan walked over and sat down beside her. “I take it your mom called?”

“Yep.”

Devan took the bottle from her hand and took a long drink.

“Yep,” she said with a nod. Janesa watched her and then nodded, “I take it you got fired?”

She looked over at Janesa. “Do you want to talk about what happened at the bar last night?”

“Nope.”

Janesa took the beer back, took a drink, and leaned back. They passed the bottle of beer back and forth between them without a word. Janesa rested her head on the back of the couch and Devan did the same. They sat there for the longest time, just staring at the shadows playing across the ceiling.

“Janesa?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you think we’ll ever be normal?”

Janesa took the bottle one last time and drank the last of it. She set it aside and looked back up at the ceiling. “No. It’s too late for that.”

As we count down to the release of The Soul of the Witch on July 22, I'll be releasing more sneak peeks. Look for another chapter from Janesa's point of view tomorrow! 

Did you like this teaser? Be sure to leave a comment either here or on Facebook! 

The Soul of the Witch Excerpt #2

As she watched, Janesa brushed her lips across his cheek. Devan saw the way his eyes closed and his breath caught. He believed it. He believed all of it.

What are we doing?

The kiss drew Laura Martin’s attention too. She elbowed her friends and then pointed to Janesa.

“Don’t you wonder where her mouth has been?”

 Janesa pushed the guy away and glared at Laura. For a moment, Devan thought for sure that Janesa was going to hit her. She saw Janesa’s hands clench into fists and the way she crossed the floor in two strides.

In the blink of an eye, Janesa was at the table, reaching across to grab two handfuls of Laura’s hair and pulling her over to her. Janesa brought her lips down to cover the girl’s mouth. The kiss was brief with pursed lips, almost like something out of a cartoon.

Janesa pushed the girl away when she was finished and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

“Think about that the next time you wonder where my mouth has been,” she hissed as she walked back toward the bar.


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