Mystery
Date Published:1/13/12
Nadine Daniels’ life is a disaster. The security company that she owns is being sued, her mother is coming to visit for a week, and some unpleasant realities about her “charity” work are about to surface. She thought this was as bad as it could get, but she was wrong—dead wrong.
Someone believes she knows a secret – a secret worth killing for. With assassins tracking her every move, Nadine wishes the only thing she had to worry about was her mother pestering her to settle down with her suspected live-in boyfriend, Zeke, but she can’t think about the future when the present might end with her death.
EXCERPT
His frustration was evident. While my situation still sucked, at least it was looking better. If I could just stay alive long enough, I would be saved.
“That would probably be the most interesting thing you’ve said all day.” He sat back down, facing me. I would have preferred him up, pacing the room, clawing at the walls, but I’d take what I could get.
“Actually, it’s not that interesting. I was attacked by a tiger. He got a good chunk of meat from my leg, I had physical therapy for two years and a couple of really nasty scars, but otherwise, it was just like any other day.” Even the attack hadn’t been that extraordinary. He was hungry, I looked like lunch. No harm, no foul. I never hold anything against large predators; they’re just doing what instinct tells them.
His frustration was evident. While my situation still sucked, at least it was looking better. If I could just stay alive long enough, I would be saved.
“That would probably be the most interesting thing you’ve said all day.” He sat back down, facing me. I would have preferred him up, pacing the room, clawing at the walls, but I’d take what I could get.
“Actually, it’s not that interesting. I was attacked by a tiger. He got a good chunk of meat from my leg, I had physical therapy for two years and a couple of really nasty scars, but otherwise, it was just like any other day.” Even the attack hadn’t been that extraordinary. He was hungry, I looked like lunch. No harm, no foul. I never hold anything against large predators; they’re just doing what instinct tells them.
Hadena James began writing at the age of eight. As a teenager, she had several short stories
published in literary magazines. She completed writing her first novel at the age of 17.
Hadena graduated from the University of Missouri with a degree in European History with minors in
German and Russian studies. She has always wanted to be a writer so she also took several classes
in creative writing.
Hadena’s primary literary genre is action/thriller. She currently writes two series, both use action/
thriller. “The Brenna Strachan Series” uses fantasy and the “Dreams & Reality Series” uses murder
mystery as its secondary genre. She continues to explore and expand her writing and hopes to soon
produce a comedic action/thriller.
When she isn’t busy writing or running her business, Hadena enjoys playing in a steel-tip dart
league. She also loves to travel throughout North America and Europe. Her favorite cities are
Chicago, Illinois and Berlin, Germany. She is an avid reader, reading everything from the classics
like Jane Austen to modern writers like Terry Pratchett. One of her all-time favorite books is “Good
Omens” by Neil Gaimen and Terry Pratchett. She writes all of her books while listening to music
and the bands tend to get “honorable mentions” within the pages.
AUTHOR GUEST POST
Authors that have inspired me
There are really five authors that have truly inspired me to hone my craft and follow my passion.
George Sands and Alexander Dumas are probably at the top of the list and not because I’m a huge fan of what they wrote. I actually don’t like anything they wrote, but because they did it despite what everyone thought they should be doing. Both went through serious societal ostracizing for their writing. I admire them for believing that their passion for the art was more important than what society thought of them.
Edgar Allen Poe is on the list for nearly the same reason, although I do like his works. Not only did he buck societal norms and explore the darker side of humanity, but he struggled with his own demons to do it. He also spent most of his life impoverished for following his passion (for both writing and drinking).
The struggles of the three writers mentioned above have inspired me to write because I do not face the same problems. I am free to practice my craft and spread my talent without fear of retribution, because they paved the way for it.
The final two I admire for solely for their talent.
We’ll start with HP Lovecraft. No author has ever terrified me or inspired horror in me like Lovecraft. He was truly a master of his craft. His use of exposition to set-up a tale or describe a scene is awe-inspiring. His short stories had a profound effect on me and while I will never be able to emulate him, he inspires me to write my exposition in such a way that my readers are also able to “see” what I have written.
The final author is Leo Tolstoy. I absolutely hate Tolstoy. I have read dozens of his novels and short stories while working on my degrees and found that there is no author on the planet that I hate as much as Tolstoy. But Tolstoy was a master of understanding his characters. The psychology that goes into his sordid array of tortured souls and damaged psyches is amazing. His characters are robust and full, not the flat characters so often found in novels... Of course, this is part of the reason for the epic lengths of his novels. Still, I find his character creation to be magnificent and it inspires me to create robust characters.
Hadena James began writing at the age of eight. As a teenager, she had several short stories
published in literary magazines. She completed writing her first novel at the age of 17.
Hadena graduated from the University of Missouri with a degree in European History with minors in
German and Russian studies. She has always wanted to be a writer so she also took several classes
in creative writing.
Hadena’s primary literary genre is action/thriller. She currently writes two series, both use action/
thriller. “The Brenna Strachan Series” uses fantasy and the “Dreams & Reality Series” uses murder
mystery as its secondary genre. She continues to explore and expand her writing and hopes to soon
produce a comedic action/thriller.
When she isn’t busy writing or running her business, Hadena enjoys playing in a steel-tip dart
league. She also loves to travel throughout North America and Europe. Her favorite cities are
Chicago, Illinois and Berlin, Germany. She is an avid reader, reading everything from the classics
like Jane Austen to modern writers like Terry Pratchett. One of her all-time favorite books is “Good
Omens” by Neil Gaimen and Terry Pratchett. She writes all of her books while listening to music
and the bands tend to get “honorable mentions” within the pages.
AUTHOR GUEST POST
Authors that have inspired me
There are really five authors that have truly inspired me to hone my craft and follow my passion.
George Sands and Alexander Dumas are probably at the top of the list and not because I’m a huge fan of what they wrote. I actually don’t like anything they wrote, but because they did it despite what everyone thought they should be doing. Both went through serious societal ostracizing for their writing. I admire them for believing that their passion for the art was more important than what society thought of them.
Edgar Allen Poe is on the list for nearly the same reason, although I do like his works. Not only did he buck societal norms and explore the darker side of humanity, but he struggled with his own demons to do it. He also spent most of his life impoverished for following his passion (for both writing and drinking).
The struggles of the three writers mentioned above have inspired me to write because I do not face the same problems. I am free to practice my craft and spread my talent without fear of retribution, because they paved the way for it.
The final two I admire for solely for their talent.
We’ll start with HP Lovecraft. No author has ever terrified me or inspired horror in me like Lovecraft. He was truly a master of his craft. His use of exposition to set-up a tale or describe a scene is awe-inspiring. His short stories had a profound effect on me and while I will never be able to emulate him, he inspires me to write my exposition in such a way that my readers are also able to “see” what I have written.
The final author is Leo Tolstoy. I absolutely hate Tolstoy. I have read dozens of his novels and short stories while working on my degrees and found that there is no author on the planet that I hate as much as Tolstoy. But Tolstoy was a master of understanding his characters. The psychology that goes into his sordid array of tortured souls and damaged psyches is amazing. His characters are robust and full, not the flat characters so often found in novels... Of course, this is part of the reason for the epic lengths of his novels. Still, I find his character creation to be magnificent and it inspires me to create robust characters.
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