Title: Deja Vu
Author: Samantha Gentry
Genre: Mystery/Romantic Suspense
Book Blurb:
When Alexandra Caldwell is hired by a reclusive author to research the thirty-year-old disappearance of a big name newspaper tycoon and his wife, she wasn't sure what she would discover. As she embarks on this project, she finds herself in the middle of a series of frightening events and an unexpected attraction to Gable Talbot, the current owner of Skull Island where the disappearances occurred...a man with a magnetic sex appeal and a past as mysterious as the case she's researching. Will she be able to do the job she was hired for, or has she stumbled too close to the truth?
Excerpt:
Alexandra Caldwell shivered, hunching her shoulders against the stiff ocean breeze as the boat pulled up to the dock at Skull Island. Even the name left her uneasy…Skull Island. It sounded like a sinister place inhabited by pirates, thugs, and other undesirables.
She glanced up at the angry storm clouds darkening the sky to the point where it seemed more like evening than eleven o’clock in the morning. Another tremor of apprehension washed through her body. Ever since she was a little girl, thunder and lightning had frightened her. But as much as she wanted to blame the approaching storm for her uneasiness, it wasn’t solely responsible.
She forced her attention to the tall man standing dockside as he grabbed the line thrown to him and secured the vessel. He extended his hand to help her out of the boat. The instant they made physical contact, a potent arc of energy raced through her body followed by a moment of panic. The hair on her arms stood on end. Her mouth went dry and her throat tried to close.
The vision exploded in her mind. Mud…a wall of mud sliding down an embankment toward her. A fleeting glance of an out-of-focus face that turned into a human skull. Then a skeleton. And a second skeleton. She jerked her hand from his grasp while trying to force a calm to her momentary panic.
She didn’t know how to control her psychic abilities and didn’t always understand what the strange images, feelings, and dreams meant. However, she did know when they tried to tell her something important and this was definitely one of those times.
The man cocked his head to one side. A slight frown wrinkled across his brow as he stared at her with a quizzical expression. “Is something wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
She quickly recovered her composure, at least outwardly, and extended a businesslike smile. “No, nothing is wrong. Just a little spark of static electricity, I guess. It must have something to do with…” she glanced up at the threatening sky as a shiver of anxiety swept through her. “…uh, this approaching storm.”
She returned her attention to the man, her demeanor all business. “I’m Alexandra Caldwell. Mr. Talbot is expecting me.”
“I’m Gable Talbot.”
“You’re Gable Talbot?” She couldn’t hide her surprise. This man whose touch had sparked a disturbing sequence of frightening images was not at all what she had anticipated the owner of Skull Island would look like.
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Alexander Caldwell is a freelance researcher. Her favorite clients are writers because they provide her with a wide variety of very interesting topics where she always learns fascinating new facts that she soaks up like a trivia sponge. Her current client is a best selling and very reclusive horror and mystery author who has hired her to research the thirty year old disappearance of a newspaper tycoon and his wife who were last seen on privately owned Skull Island, off the coast of Washington State. A hindrance to her work, rather than a help, is a psychic ability that goes back to her childhood, something that she doesn't understand and can't control. Something that seems to come from out of nowhere in the form of images—real from the past or a portent of things to come? She never knows.
Gable Talbot, the current owner of Skull Island, sets off her senses, something about him says he isn't who or what he pretends to be. Strange images of two buried skeletons. A frightening sensation of someone watching her. What's real and what isn't? The more she digs into her missing persons case, she uncovers information that wasn't in the newspaper accounts of the disappearances at the time. Things aren't making sense. She and Gable form an alliance, uneasy at first but it quickly turns to one of trust. Each are searching for the same truth, but for different reasons. Will they be able to discover what really happened on Skull Island thirty years ago?
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Author Biography:
Samantha Gentry's typical day
As soon as I wake up, Harrison (my houseboy) draws my scented bath. By the time I've finished bathing and am dressed he has prepared a champagne brunch which he serves on the terrace next to the swimming pool. I spend the next two hours reading the morning newspaper and working on my tan.
Promptly at the stroke of noon I adjourn to my home office and begin writing. I spend a grueling four hours slaving away over my computer keyboard creating brilliant prose filled with exciting characters, entertaining plots and highly sensual encounters. I emerge from seclusion at four o'clock having written the next chapter of my current work-in-progress.
Harrison's talented touch soothes my tight shoulder muscles with an expert massage. He pours me a glass of wine before going to prepare a gourmet dinner. And the rest of the evening is better left to your imagination.
Oops…I just lost my hold on reality for a moment. Sorry.
I'm a morning person and am usually at my computer by six o'clock with a cup of hot coffee which I keep at a safe distance from my keyboard (been through the spilled coffee on the keyboard before, don't need to do it again). The first thing I do is go through my email. Then I get to work—either writing or revising on my current work in progress, or doing the edits on my next release. I usually run errands in the early afternoon.
Hmm…I think I like the first version of what my typical day consists of better than the reality.
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