Excerpt, Giveaway, and Tour: Leah's Wake

Today I'm hosting Terri Giuliano Long on her tour of her new novel, In Leah's Wake.

About

A Story of Love, Loss, Connection, and Grace

The Tylers have a perfect life—beautiful home, established careers, two sweet and talented daughters. Their eldest, Leah, an exceptional soccer player, is on track for a prestigious scholarship. Their youngest, Justine—more responsible than seems possible for her 12 years—just wants her sister’s approval. With Leah nearing the end of high school and Justine a seemingly “together” kid, the parents are set to enjoy a peaceful life…until Leah meets Todd, a high school dropout and former roadie for a rock band.

As Leah's parents fight to save their daughter from a world of drugs, sex, wild parties, their divided approach drives their daughter out of their home and a wedge into their marriage. Meanwhile, 12-year-old Justine observes her sister's rebellion from the shadows of their fragmented family - leaving her to question whether anyone loves her and if God even knows she exists.

Can this family survive in Leah’s wake?

Tracy Riva, Midwest Reviews, calls In Leah's Wake "an astounding story of a family in transition.”

When happens when love just isn't enough?

ISBN 9781456310547 | Published October 1st 2010 by Createspace | Amazon | Goodreads

In Lea's Wake is available on Amazon Kindle for $0.99!

Reviewer-Nominated for Global eBook Award, 2012
Recipient of the CTRR Award for excellence
2011 Book Bundlz Book Pick
Book Bundlz 2011 Favorites, First Place

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Excerpt

“There are weeds in every garden.” On her flip chart, Leah’s mother drew weeds, invading a patch of roughly sketched daisies. “We must learn to deal with disappointment.”

The hall, with its speckled linoleum floor and pallid blue walls, resembled the emergency room at St. John’s, where Leah had worked last summer, running errands for Cissy’s mom. In place of the hospital odors of rubbing alcohol, medication, and disease, the hall smelled of incense and candles. A wooden cross behind the podium gave an impression of a crucifixion, not at all like the life-sized suffering Jesus above the altar in St. Theresa’s Catholic Church, where Leah’s family worshiped.

A woman in the front row raised her hand. As soon as Leah’s mom completed her sentence, she called on her. The woman’s polyester slacks crackled as she stood. “Deal with disappointment?” The woman sighed. “Sounds easy. But how do you do it?”

“We’re here,” Leah’s mother replied, with a sweep of her hand. “That’s the first step.”

Beaming, the woman took her seat.

Leah was proud of her mom. She looked so professional standing by the podium with her flip chart. As she talked, she jotted down bullets, her audience scribbling furiously on their notepads.

Weeds in every garden? The advice was cheesy, unoriginal, and yet, maybe because she put so much of herself in her words, her mother sounded totally convincing.

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Author

Terri Giuliano Long has written guest posts for nearly 100 blogs. A contributing writer for IndieReader, she’s written for news and feature articles for numerous publications, including IndieReader, the Boston Globe and the Huffington Post. She lives with her family on the East Coast and teaches at Boston College. Her debut novel, In Leah's Wake, has been an Amazon Kindle bestseller since August 2011. For more information, please visit her website: www.tglong.com

Website: www.tglong.com
Blog: http://terriglong.com/blog/
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/tglongwrites
Twitter: @tglong

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Giveaway

Terri will award three eBook copies of In Leah's Wake to randomly drawn commenters at every stop, plus a grand prize of a $25 Amazon GC and an autographed copy of In Leah's Wake to one randomly drawn commenter during the tour. She will also award a $25 Amazon GC to the host with the most comments (excluding hers and the hosts). Don't forget to comment at other tour stops!