Title: Fear Justice (The Fear Chronicles Book 1)
Author: C.C. Bolick
Genre: YA Urban Fantasy
Book Blurb:
Her power will make her the ultimate weapon. His power means they can never touch.
Seventeen-year-old Rena Mason counts the days until she can leave for college. Every night her father drinks himself to sleep, leaving her to care for her younger brother. When her father is kidnapped by terrorists, her dreams of freedom become a nightmare.
Stunned that her father has a history with these terrorists, Rena knows she must run or be their next victim. She learns the tough guy at school has a reason to look after her. He works for a government agency with the same goal as the terrorists - find a woman who disappeared eighteen years ago. Time is running out since only this woman's special gift can save the world from a nuclear attack.
Rena can't trust the agent who saves her. Nothing about him seems real except for his fight to find justice for his own missing dad. That and the gloves he never takes off. Even while pushing him away, she longs to touch his hand.
Can they work together to save lives after Rena learns his real mission is to unlock her power?
Excerpt:
Thick air clung to my skin as my sneakers bounded along the road. My heart slammed in my chest. I took a deep breath. What a mistake.
Before I passed the laundry building and reached the last section of road near our camper, I stopped and leaned over, coughing. Gnats caught in my eyes. I tossed the strap of my purse over my head to keep it from sliding down my arm as I ran.
Up ahead, the camper came into view. The spot next to us was empty. The older couple with the dog must have left. Barely any light escaped the blinds which were closed tight over all our windows. The bad feeling hit me again. Dad always kept the lower part of one window clear so he could see who was coming down the road. He’d always insisted the reason had to do with his time in the Army.
I took another deep breath and ran the rest of the way. My feet slid on the gravel next to the camper’s door. By grabbing the metal steps, I kept myself from falling. Without a second thought, I jumped onto the steps and opened the door.
A single light burned over the stove. Dad stood next to the table, which was covered with a stack of papers including what looked like a passport. Next to the passport was a gun.
“Is that a passport?”
“That’s the first thing you ask about?” Shock crossed his face as he glanced from the table to me. “How would you know what a passport looks like?”
“Everyone at school who wants to take the senior trip needs one.”
“What are you doing home?”
“I wanted to make sure Alfie’s okay.”
“He’s not here,” Dad said.
My insides shook, but he wouldn’t see fear from me. “Where is Alfie?”
“Rena, I told you not to come home.”
I approached the table. “Is that your gun? The one from your lock box?”
“My three-fifty-seven revolver. How did you know I had this gun?”
“I didn’t.” My hand passed over the metal barrel and black handle, but didn’t touch the smooth surface. “If Alfie’s not home, where is he?”
“Somewhere safe. Same place you should be.”
I looked up at his face, split by lines that I couldn’t remember. How had he aged years since this afternoon?
His hands shook. “They’re coming for me.”
It was finally happening. Either Dad had lost his mind or he owed more money than he could afford to pay and someone was coming to collect.
“What’s wrong? Do you need money?” I went to my bed and opened the small compartment at the corner of the ceiling. Below me, Alfie’s bed sat empty. Behind the tiny wooden door was a hard-bound book Mama bought after our move to Florida. She once read the dozen or so fairy tale stories at bedtime—a different one for each night.
Pressed between worn pages of The Little Mermaid were bills ranging from dollars up to twenties. I breathed in the smell of this old book, along with the fresh smell of money.
Dad sounded hoarse. “I don’t think…”
I held out the book, opened to a crisp twenty. “I’ve saved for a long time. Whenever I had a little extra money, I put it away here. Take this money and pay off whatever you owe.”
Moisture hinted at the corners of his eyes. “Rena, you are the most amazing child I’ve ever known. I don’t deserve you.”
“Take the money,” I said.
“Money won’t help us this time. These people can’t be bought.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I never wanted you to find out about my past like this. They’ve offered me a job and given us an out; I must take them up on the deal.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat. “What kind of job?”
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
What makes your featured book a must-read?
Fear Justice is first in a series of fast-paced action, dialogue, and a love story between two people who can’t even hold hands. It’s urban fantasy plus a little sci-fi and paranormal thrown in the mix. All books in the series are available through Kindle Unlimited.
Giveaway –
Enter to win a $25 Amazon gift card:
Open Internationally.
Runs November 12 – November 21, 2024.
Winner will be drawn on November 22, 2024.
Author Biography:
C.C. Bolick grew up in south Alabama, where she’s happy to still reside. She’s an engineer by day and a writer by night—too bad she could never do one without the other.
Camping, fishing… she loves the outdoors and the warm Alabama weather. For years she thought up stories to write and finally started putting them on paper back in 2006. If you hear her talking with no one to answer, don’t think she’s crazy. Since talking through her stories works best, a library is her worst place to write… even though it’s her favorite!
C.C. loves to mix sci-fi and paranormal—throw in a little romance and adventure and you’ve got her kind of story. She’s written a dozen books including the Leftover Girl series, The Agency series, and The Fear Chronicles.
Social Media Links: