Title: The Passenger
Author: Joie Lesin
Genre: Historical Fantasy
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:
She braced her hands on the cool glass and closed her eyes. Her heart pulsed with the eagerness of youth.
She was eighteen again, unmarried, and back in Italy.
****
The searing sun flamed bright on the Clemente vineyard. She watched the married women as they laughed and stomped barefoot in the season’s first harvested grapes. They held their long skirts up to their thighs, while the men, children, and unwed women stood around and cheered them on.
Lorenzo Clemente stood to the side watching her.
Their elders did not allow them to speak in private and she was always under the guard of her aunt’s hawk like eyes. Adriana stole a sideways glance at him and smiled. He was a gallant and comely man. His dark features rested well on his heavy frame. She could be content married to him. Any woman would do well to catch one of the Clemente heirs. If her father and his got their way, she’d be married to him within the year.
If her aunt were correct, she’d learn to love him.
She inched away from her chaperone. If only the prude joined in the crush, she would have been set free.
“Where is she, little brother?” A man locked his arms around Lorenzo’s waist and lifted him off the ground.
“Put me down, Paolo,” Lorenzo said between his teeth. He laughed and broke from his brother’s grip when his feet hit the ground. “You’re the last person I would tell.” He grinned, yanking his buttoned-down shirt straight. “A man would heed well to lock his woman in when you’re around.”
“Ah, this is why I use the element of surprise.”
Adriana edged closer. This new arrival interested her. This was the eldest of the three brothers. The one her aunt warned her to avoid. He was one to ruin a woman’s virtue. Was this why neither his padre nor madre had sought a bride out for him?
Just look at him. He was not a small man by any means, but he was built of lean lines and sinewy muscle. He was not at all like Lorenzo or the youngest brother, Michael. Paolo’s features were sharper. He was an aristocrat made for Roman society, not to be the don of a country vineyard. What woman would not beat down the door for a chance at him?
“Adriana, come back here,” her aunt ordered.
Never one to do as she was told, she approached the men, taking several sideway steps, stopping to catch sight of Signora Clemente marching like a young girl in the grapes. All other times Adriana met her, the petite woman was soft-spoken and reserved. To see this frivolous side to the mistress of the vineyard amazed her.
Adriana ran her hand along the table set with covered plates of food, a feast for the daylong harvest celebration. If she bided her time, waiting for refreshments, perhaps she’d be able to sneak away.
“Now this must be Adriana.”
She turned toward the brothers, and her breath caught. Paolo leaned casually on Lorenzo’s shoulder. He wore a mischievous, lopsided grin. No other man was as appealing.
“She is much too beautiful for you.” Paolo’s eyes didn’t leave her face.
Too young to have the sense to blush, she smiled at him. “And you, Signore, are much too bold to pay such compliments to a woman. Especially when this woman is promised to your brother.” Adriana always recognized what was meant to be hers. The first of the Clemente brothers had been born for her. She’d no longer be content to marry the middle brother.
“Madre?”
Her eyes shot open, and she spun from the window.
“Are you okay?” Gio stood in the doorway, his shadowed eyes wide with worry.
“Yes. I am fine.” She cleared her throat and stepped to the stove, tightening the back straps of her apron. “I was enjoying the quiet.”
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
What makes your featured book a must-read?
The Passenger is a must read for those who enjoy emotional and heartfelt stories with themes of love, forgiveness, redemption, and second chances. Set between coastal Massachusetts and California’s wine county, the subtle yet immersive descriptions of the land and the people transport the reader to another place and time. All this along with the deeply relatable characters who navigate the challenges of long hidden family secrets, matters of the heart, and the supernatural make this an unforgettable read.
Giveaway –
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Open Internationally.
Runs March 25 – March 30, 2025.
Winner will be drawn on March 31, 2025.
Author Biography:
Award-winning author, Joie Lesin is a life-long fiction writer and poet. She has long been fascinated by anything otherworldly including mermaids and ghosts. Joie writes character-driven, emotional, atmospheric tales about heartache and hope.
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:
Website: https://www.jlesin.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorjoielesin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JoieLesin