Book Blast, Giveaway & Author Cage: Breaking the Bond by Patricia Proctor

 

 

 

Breaking the Bond

The Witches of Spring Hill

Book 2

Patricia Proctor

Genre: YA Paranormal Fiction

Date of Publication: June 2013

ISBN: 1490577068

ASIN: B00DPP00DE

Number of pages: 291

Word Count: 90,655

Book Description:

Follow the lives of two sets of fraternal triplets, Rowan, Chloe, and Kaiden Alexander and Xavier, Cian, and Brianna Silvan as they spend the summer immersed in witchcraft in the second book of the Witches of Spring Hill series.

Now that the Alexanders and Silvans have seen what they are capable of together, they believe that they are prepared for anything. But when a sexy stranger shows up at a party, Rowan is the first to suspect that there is more to this girl than meets the eye. With her newfound abilities, Rowan hopes to uncover the mystery of the new girl, while protecting Chloe and Cian from whatever… or whoever is breaking their bond. And although Kaiden can tell there’s something going on with his sisters, he’s having a hard time focusing on anything but Brianna Silvan.

Determined to unlock the secrets of their past, Brianna and Cian Silvan open the books that were left to them. In doing so, they raise more questions than answers and open themselves up to more than just their history. In searching for the missing third book, they encounter someone who has a vested interest in them and their books. Liam Alexander remains focused on protecting his family, but between dealing with two break-ins and coping with Rowan’s new abilities, he is forced to put his trust in Xavier… until one of them breaks their agreement.

The Silvans and the Alexanders must join together again, this time to stop the forces that threaten to separate them for good. But they won’t have to do it alone… they’ll get help from someone whose arrival in town will change all of their lives forever. Bonds will be broken, new relationships will begin, and new abilities will manifest, making this a summer no one will ever forget.

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Rowan comes back to the present and quickly pulls her hand away, eyeing the new girl, who smiles wickedly at her. She looks at her friends to see if they noticed anything, but they are absorbed in a conversation and unaware of Rowan and Amber’s interaction. Thankfully, whatever just happened between them was obviously not big enough to garner attention. Rowan wonders if Amber even knows what happened or if she just thinks she won the social competition between them, which is a total laugh, Rowan thinks to herself.

Rowan glares at the new girl, looks her up and down one more time and walks away. She searches the crowd for Chloe and Cian and finds them standing close together, whispering to one another. She makes her way over to them and is not at all surprised when they don’t even notice her. She clears her throat and they separate just enough to let her into their space.

“Hey, Rowan,” Chloe says, smiling when she sees her sister. The smile quickly fades when she sees the look on her sister’s face.

“I need to ask you guys about what happens when you have a vision, because I think another one of my abilities just manifested.”

Cian and Chloe pull Rowan away from the crowd and over to the dark side of the house. “What happened, Rowan? Did you just have a vision?” Chloe asks.

“I was just talking to the new girl – have you been lucky enough to meet that one?” Rowan asks, rolling her eyes. When both Cian and Chloe shake their heads, Rowan continues, describing what happened. “As soon as I touched her hand, I went into the vision. And it just so happened to be a vision of the night we killed Selene,” Rowan finishes in an angry whisper.

“Whoa, Rowan! Our visions don’t work that way. Our visions take us into the future, never into the past,” Cian says, looking to Chloe who nods her head in agreement.

“Well, this is just great!” Rowan exclaims, exasperated. “I wonder what the hell this means.”

“What what means?” Xavier asks, stepping around the corner, startling Chloe, Cian, and Rowan.

“God! You scared the shit out of us, Xavier!” Rowan says, breathless. “Couldn’t you have at least warned us you were there? And stop lurking, already, and get over here.”

“And where would be the fun in that?” Xavier replies, stepping out from the dark corner. He can’t help but think about how much he loves how quick Rowan is to anger. He’d much rather see this temper and attitude on her than see the sad girl who felt left out when everyone else’s abilities were manifesting and hers weren’t. This Rowan is strong, confident, and sexy as hell.

“You won’t love my attitude when I start swinging, Jet,” Rowan replies, returning to the nickname she gave to him the day they met. When he first moved to town, he started calling her ‘Red’ because of her auburn hair. She immediately nixed it, but he didn’t seem to mind that she never dropped her nickname of ‘Jet’ for him, referring to his black hair and black eyes.

“Rowan? You just responded to my thought… when did that ability manifest?” Xavier asks, clearly surprised and wary about how much she “heard.”

“Strong, confident, and sexy as hell,” Rowan whispers in his ear, nipping at his earlobe.

“Enough, you guys,” Cian interrupts, knowing that Rowan is only playing games with Xavier while Xavier’s feelings are genuine. “So… two new abilities manifested tonight? Is that right?” Cian asks Rowan.

Rowan nods her head and looks around at the confusion on everyone’s faces. “Maybe it’s just because we’ve all been spending so much time together?” she asks hopefully.

Chloe looks at her sister skeptically, “Why would two of your abilities manifest so suddenly?”

“Maybe it’s the new girl,” Rowan answers, only half joking.

“What new girl?” Xavier asks, realizing he missed more of the conversation than he thought.

“The tall, curvy blond… Amber. She said she’s new to Spring Hill,” Rowan says, looking around the corner at the party going on in the front yard. She immediately spots her friends, but doesn’t see the blond anywhere. “That’s weird. She’s been with my friends all night, but now I don’t see her anywhere.”

Cian, Chloe, and Xavier look out, scanning the crowd for an unfamiliar face. After a moment, they all agree that everyone at the party is someone they recognize.

“Just be careful, Rowan,” Chloe warns. “Something doesn’t feel right about this. I don’t know what it is, but we can’t deny that you slipped into the vision after shaking that girl’s hand. Maybe it’s a coincidence, but just be cautious around her until we know more about her.”

“Let’s go back and look around,” Cian suggests. “Maybe she’s in the house or in the side yard.” Although he agrees that something isn’t right about what happened, he feels adrenaline coursing through his veins. He can’t deny that he is excited about meeting the new girl.

Rowan looks over at Cian and realizes he doesn’t know that she just heard his thoughts and felt his excitement about meeting Amber. Rowan looks at Chloe, who is oblivious to it all and is making her way around to the front yard where the party is in full swing. Rowan shakes her head at Cian’s back and swears that if he hurts her sister, he will pay.

Did you always wanted to be a writer? If not what did you want to be?

I’ve always been in love with the written word, so I’ve always wanted to be a writer. Though my love of books and reading also inspired me to be a librarian, so I have a degree in Library and Information Science as well. For now, I’ve decided to dedicate all of my time to writing rather than working in a library, but if I weren’t a writer, I’d definitely be a librarian.

When did you first consider yourself a “writer”?

Honestly, I didn’t think of myself as a writer until I published my first book. Something about sharing my words with others made it official in my mind. I know that a writer is still a writer without a reader, but having readers just really made it feel official to me.

How long did it take to get your first book published?

I self-published, so it took me about three months from writing my first words to publishing my first book on Amazon. I’m so grateful to Amazon for providing a platform for indie writers to self-publish!

What is the name of your latest book, and if you had to summarize it in less than 20 words what would you say?

I just finished writing the fourth book in the Witches of Spring Hill series, Distracted by Fate. It continues the story of the Alexanders and Silvans as they embark on life after high school – with more of a focus on the Silvans this time around. I left quite a teaser at the end of book three, so I won’t say more than I already have, but the book will be available the beginning of July!

How long does it usually take you to write a book, from the original idea to finishing writing it?

With the last three books, it took me about two months to write the story, and then one month of editing. The idea for the first story had been in my head for six years, but I was busy with school and work, and I just didn’t have time to sit down and write until January 2013. This fourth book in the series has taken a little longer because of some curveballs that life threw at me.  

What can we expect from you in the future?  ie More books of the same genre? Books of a different genre?

I have many exciting stories just waiting to come out! The Witches of Spring Hill series is young adult fiction, and there are a few more books to finish in this series. I’ve also started an adult fiction story, so my plan is to go back and forth between the two. My books fall into the thrillers/suspense genre, but I’d definitely like to branch out into other genres depending on where my imagination takes me.  

What genre would you place your books into?

The books in the Witches of Spring Hill series are in the young adult/paranormal/suspense genre. I think of them as coming of age stories with a paranormal twist.

What made you decide to write that genre of book?

When I initially had the idea six years ago, I didn’t plan to write a young adult book. It evolved into that when I worked at a library and had the wonderful opportunity to talk books with young adults. I read a lot of amazing YA books myself, and it made me want to be a part of that genre. I like that the YA genre reaches both teenagers and adults, and of course, the paranormal genre is exciting to both read and write!

Do you have a favorite character from your books? And why are they your favorite?

One of my favorite characters in the Witches of Spring Hill series is Kamila, who is introduced in Breaking the Bond. I don’t want to give away too much to your readers if they haven’t read After the Summerland yet, but I will say that I like her strength, wisdom, and overall personality, and I especially love the role she plays in Rowan and Liam’s lives.

How long have you been writing?, and who or what inspired you to write?

I’ve been writing my whole life in the form of journaling and poetry, but I’ve only been writing books for about a year and a half. Although it was always a dream of mine to write a book, I wasn’t sure what to write about. Then I started paying attention to my dreams, and that was where my inspiration came from. I have very vivid dreams and can remember a lot of the details when I wake up, so I jot down the details, and flesh them out into stories. I was also fortunate to have several college professors encourage me to write – it gave me the extra boost I needed to get started. 

 

Do you have a certain routine you have for writing? ie You listen to music, sit in a certain chair?

I definitely have a routine! I start at night, so I start by brewing either a cup of green tea or coffee to help me stay awake. Then I sit at my desk around 10:00pm, which faces the window where I have a view of the Space Needle (I live in Seattle and am inspired by the city everyday), and then I start re-reading what I wrote the night before and do some quick editing. I usually finish that by 11:00pm and immediately continue writing where I left off and stop around 3 or 4 in the morning (or until the ideas stop flowing). Sometimes I listen to music, jazz mostly, but also nature sounds (I especially love the rain). My “sweet spot” is between 2-3 in the morning – I call it the witching hour!

Do you read all the reviews of your book/books?

I do read all the reviews, and of course the positive reviews just make my day. On the flip side, the negative reviews break my heart. Even though I know that books are so subjective, I just want everyone to enjoy my books. I honestly didn’t consider people reviewing my books when I published them, and I’m so glad I didn’t because I think I would’ve spent way too much time worrying about it!

Do you choose a title first, or write the book then choose the title?

With the first book in the Witches of Spring Hill series, After the Summerland I wrote the first few chapters first, and then I came up with the title. But with the other three books in the series, Breaking the Bond, Crafted Truths, and Distracted by Fate, I chose the title first.

How do you come up with characters names and place names in your books?

Most of the names of characters in The Witches of Spring Hill are Pagan names chosen to reflect an aspect of their personality. To give an example, Liam means ‘protector’, and he is a guardian of witches. The witches’ and guardians’ names were chosen that way, but the other names were just randomly chosen. As far as the name of the town, Spring Hill, I chose that based on the idea that the hill where the witches live is always in bloom – with the magic that’s used there, it’s as if it’s always springtime, thus Spring Hill.

Do you decide on character traits (ie shy, quiet, tomboy girl) before writing the whole book or as you go along?

I develop character traits and the story line as I write.  I’ll have a loose idea, but it’s not until I’m in the moment that I decide on specific details. And sometimes I’ll end up changing traits as I go along, especially if the story line changes.

Are there any hidden messages or morals contained in your books? (Morals as in like Aesops Fables type of "The moral of this story is..")

Rather than specific morals, there are tidbits of wisdom in my books. I try not to make it too in your face, but I personally like a book that offers insight or a different perspective of situations that most people have experienced or may experience at some time or another. I like subtle messages when I read, so it was natural for me to write the same way.

Which format of book do you prefer, eBook, hardback, or paperback?

I can’t choose one – I love them all! Though, I haven’t always loved ebooks. When they first started becoming popular, I called myself a purist and adamantly refused to read an ebook. And then one day I realized that what I love is reading – it doesn’t matter the format the words are in, it’s the story I love.  I’ll read anything you put in front of me, including cereal boxes, so it didn’t make sense that I wouldn’t read ebooks. Now, it’s my mission to tell others how great ebooks are, especially when there are so many brilliant indie authors with amazing stories that are only available in that format.

What is your favorite book and Why?  Have you read it more than once?

I truly do not have a favorite book. I have read so many amazing books that I can’t possibly choose just one. I rarely read books more than once though, not on purpose anyway. There are just so many great books, and as it is I don’t have enough time to read them all.

Your favorite food is?

Mmmm... Spaghetti and garlic bread!

Your favorite color is?

Purple, all shades, but especially the darker, richer plums.

 

 

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Patricia Proctor lives in Seattle, Washington with her husband and cats. She has a Master's degree in Library and Information Science and has had a love of books and reading her whole life.

Visit author website: www.patriciaproctorbooks.com

https://www.facebook.com/patriciaproctorbooks

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7034090.Patricia_A_Proctor