Title: The Passenger
Author: Joie Lesin
Genre: Historical Paranormal Romance / Fantasy
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Book Blurb:
Burdened with her empathic gift, Elizabeth Reilly wants to be free of it and fit in with normal people. Nevertheless, when the spirit of an old man asks for her help, she travels across the country to help him return home. Gio Clemente is still angry with his father who abandoned him as a child. To help the father pass on, Elizabeth must persuade Gio to let go of his anger. Though he resents her intrusion, they are both stunned to find themselves fighting a profound attraction. Elizabeth can accept his headstrong brand of love, but can Gio accept her gift—and believe in her?
The Passenger, a 1940s ghost story set in the California wine country, tells a tale of family connections, life-changing choices, and love—lost and found.
Excerpt:
The same day in East Boston, twenty-five-year-old Elizabeth Reilly climbed the streetcar steps and deposited her dime. Holding onto the seat handles, she strode to the middle of the car where her sister, Anna, already sat sideways with her legs folded beneath her. Sketchpad open, Anna peered at a new subject.
“Sit back there.” Anna pointed over her shoulder to the seat behind her and swept a loose auburn curl behind her ear.
“Fine,” Elizabeth said, amused at the nineteen-year-old’s authoritative tone, and slumped into the seat. “Don’t get too comfortable,” Elizabeth said. “We don’t have far to go.”
Leaning back against the cool metal seat, she let her heavy lids close to the clink of the streetcar gliding over the rail. An image of a vine-filled forest fluttered into place in her mind’s eye. Stepping forward, she walked deeper into the maze.
All around Elizabeth, dark green vines climbed an invisible wall, cutting off the sun’s light. Plump, burgundy fruit hung in clusters from the branches. She plucked a single grape and smashed the juicy fruit between her fingers as she brought the berry to her lips.
Shaking her head clear, Elizabeth opened her eyes. The flavor of the sour-sweet fruit was like a lingering phantom on her tongue. The vision struck her sporadically over the last few months and was part of her gift. The ability she’d fought hard to block out at fourteen years old. She opened herself fully again only to receive the spirit of her dead husband, Patrick, four months earlier.
When her husband was on his way to her to say goodbye, she’d sweated through the cries of soldiers falling into the mud around her and the deafening noise of battle.
Don’t go there, Elizabeth. You couldn’t help him.
She’d known the only help she could provide was to help him pass on in peace.
Elizabeth had expected Patrick’s ghost to visit her. For weeks, she braved the early spring chill to await his arrival. Bundled in layers, she waited on the beach for him. Their special place. When he finally came, he met her there. Patrick sat next to her on the blanket he’d given her as a birthday present when they were younger. The one with the purple daffodils. When she thought of his final goodbye, she thought of the daffodils she’d stared down at while he talked—as if the color of the flowers were the most important detail of the day.
Yet the broken dead man who sat beside her was.
Patrick’s once handsome face wore sadness like a caul. He’d wished she would remember him as the whole and healthy man who she clung to and kissed before he shipped off to war. When she pictured the delicate purple flowers imprinted on the fabric, she overlooked the bloodied gash in his side where he’d taken the bullet.
Buy Links (including Goodreads and BookBub):
The Wild Rose Press Book Page: https://wildrosepress.com/product/the-passenger/
Amazon (E-book): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D6WBVJB9/
Amazon (Paperback): https://www.amazon.com/Passenger-Joie-Lesin/dp/1509256644
Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-passenger-joie-lesin/1008401528?ean=2940185717905
Goodreads BookPage: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/214564853-the-passenger
Author Biography:
Minnesota-based author, Joie Lesin is a life-long fiction writer and the author of The Passenger. She has long been fascinated by anything otherworldly including ghosts. She loves to write a good ghost story—especially when it includes a touch of romance.
Originally from Massachusetts, at six years old, Joie moved to her mother’s birthplace, Minnesota. By eight, Joie lost her New England accent, however, it's gradually returning as the years go by. She grew up in Minneapolis but now resides in St. Paul with her husband and their blended family—which includes a rambunctious grand-corgi.
Joie misses the ocean, but she often finds herself walking by one of Minnesota’s many lakes and travels to one of the coasts as often as she can. In fact, she considers California her home away from home. When she’s not writing, reading, or walking, you can find her listening to music. She absolutely loves music—especially live—and songs have sparked most of her story ideas.
Social Media Links:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorjoielesin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JoieLesin
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoieLesin