Goodreads Giveaway has ended!
Many thanks to all who entered.
Congratulations to winners, Cheryl and Brigitte!
At the Heart of the Missing is a psychological thriller about a woman’s fierce struggle to flee her abductor and a PI’s frantic search to locate her. It is a heart-wrenching tale about the ties that bind and the tragedies that break families.
(Scroll down for prologue.)
GOODREADS GIVEAWAY!
April 5 – April 12, 2017.
Goodreads Book Giveaway
At the Heart of the Missing
by Annie Daylon
Giveaway ends April 12, 2017.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
Prologue
Friday, May 6
Rose stands in the center of the living room, staring at the opaque, indestructible glass of the window nearest the fire escape. She smirks. Escape. There is no escape: the window is painted shut. She fingers her breakout tools—a pair of manicure scissors and a jagged cuticle pusher: scrape paint, raise window, crawl through. But her legs are leaden. It is all she can do to raise an arm to wipe her brow. A whiff of sweat triggers a wave of nausea. Swallowing hard, she glances toward the door.
Time is limited. Yes, he is gone overnight, but at dawn, a jangle of keys will assault her eardrums. She has gotten away with a few tiny deviations from his set of rules, from his idea of perfectionism. But this? This will not go unnoticed. What if she fails? She flinches as she flashes on yesterday: the setting of the table, the misplacement of a water goblet, and the blow to her ribcage.
A sob explodes from Rose’s throat. How the hell did she end up here? In this situation? Anxious, she thrusts forward, first one foot, then the other. She is making headway now, inching toward the window, almost there. At the window, she stalls again. What the hell is she waiting for? There is no time for hesitation, no time to question how she got here. But she has to think things through. All her life, she’s been completely in control, spiraling upward. All her life, she’s maintained independence. Needing no one. Accessorizing with and then casting aside lovers and friends. Her only true allies were blood: her sister and her mother.
But three years ago, her sister Margo vanished. Not a word, not a trace. Gone.
Three months ago, Rose’s mother died. Her body battered by cancer, her heart shattered by grief, Violet Harrington just gave up.
The losses left Rose out of touch, alone. Just Rose. A solo, independent woman. Now, imprisoned in front of the opaque window with her makeshift tools in hand, reality knifes her. What she created was not independence; it was vulnerability. Without a support system, she was a target. She was prey. With her porthole of time eroding, with every nerve stretched taut, Rose stares at the window.
How long had he hunted her?
Goodreads Book Giveaway
At the Heart of the Missing
by Annie Daylon
Giveaway ends April 12, 2017.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
My best to you,
Hi Annie
I just came back from Mexico and while I was away for the week, I read your “At the Heart of the Missing”. I rarely get the chance to read fiction, but had saved up your book for my week away. I have to tell you how much I absolutely loved your book. I could hardly put it down. I could not get over how clever you had to be to write all those tiny little details that weave throughout the story. I sure was surprised to find out at the end that …. (Note from Annie: Loved comments here; removed the spoilers!) Love that book and will highly recommend it to my friends! I already had to pass it on to a friend because it was so good and she wanted to read it. Your questions at the end are very thought provoking and one could see your teacher strengths there.
Last summer, I read the short stories book. I found those stories fascinating too. Each one of them left me wondering what ever happened to the characters when the stories ended.
You are an incredibly good writer, Annie. If you write another mystery, I definitely want to read it.
Thank you so much for your wonderful letter. I’m thrilled that you enjoyed this book.
As for more mysteries…I’m currently engulfed in writing Book II of the Kerrigan Chronicles. It is historical fiction, certainly suspenseful and if you’ve read and enjoyed Book I of this series Of Sea and Seed, I think you will enjoy Book II. But it, as I said, is in development.
In the meantime, Have you read Castles in the Sand? It certainly has a mystery element to it and, like At the Heart of the Missing, is set in Vancouver. Castles in the Sand is available in Chilliwack at The Book Man.
Thanks again for taking the time to share your feelings about the book. Readers are everything in this writing world. Your kind words are greatly appreciated.