A Love Meant To Be?
Who are Ben Fieldstone and Laura Armstrong from the paranormal suspense novel A Human Element? Laura is the woman who can't escape death that follows her. Ben is an unlikely hero whose only chance to be saved may be through love. Take a closer look at them. A match or not? Even if they are, can their steam overcome the danger that stalks them? You decide ...
Ben's Fabulous Features
Tall at 6'1"
Lean and tough
Dark looks, brooding
Intense gray eyes
Broken by evil influence
A loner
Closed off from love
Feisty. Can go looking for a fight, for no reason at all.
A haze of rage hit Ben and he punched the smaller Marine in the mouth. He got another shot in across the grunt's nose when the big marine lifted him up and carried him out the door, crushing him against the crowd. Ben forgot about the girls as he landed on hard asphalt and staggered up. The street reeled around him as blow upon blow hit him.
He had found that fight.
Not sure about this love thing, even with Laura.
"I haven't known love since my parents died. I guess I forgot what it was."
Ben stared at the ceiling with his hands under his head.
Laura could see his profile clearer now as the room grew lighter with sunrise. She felt him freezing up on her. "Love remembers."
"Does it?" He twitched his mouth and shook his head. "I don't know if I believe it. What if you discover me, the real me. Things I've done, things that have happened to me and decide you don't want me? Will you help me remember love then?"
A survivor who chooses to live.
The flames burst up from the sheets and fanned along the comforter, framing Frank in a soft glow. They licked with hungry abandon through the old bedspread until Frank's image blurred. Why didn't Frank wake up? But he looked so serene, so harmless. Ben felt free and safe seeing him like that.
And he knew. He had to live. He wanted to live.
He ran.
Fiercely loyal, especially to the one who has shown him love again.
Ben swore under his breath and struggled to break free from Felix. "What the hell is wrong with you? Why didn't you stop her? She's gonna die. I need to be there. I need to protect her."
"This is the only way, Ben. Trust me."
"She's the one person I've cared about in a long, long time. Please, don't let her die."
Knows what he wants and never gives up trying to get it.
Why did she leave when she was the only woman he ever loved? The first woman he wanted to give all of himself to. He flashed back to all the years wasted, taking from women what he wanted but not giving himself to them. He was lost then without purpose and lost now, in Laura. She gave him purpose. He wanted to be lost in her. He needed it. He needed her. Why couldn't she need him? He watched the sun rise on another day, determined to find her.
Laura's Fabulous Features
Tall at 5'8"
Long, chestnut hair
Perky, upturned nose
Lithe and trim
Large, brown eyes
Brave heart
Open to love although she suffered much tragedy
Feisty and a fighter:
She had to go this alone. She hoped to draw her twin to the crash site. There they could meet face to face. Just the two of them. She knew it was her destiny. No one else's. He sought her out all these years and killed those she loved. Now it was her turn.
Drawn to the brooding Ben.
She took in every part of Ben's face. It was the most handsome face she had known. His gray streaked hair fell over his lined forehead. He looked so peaceful. His lean angles carved themselves into her bed as he had carved himself into her the night before. She knew she would never forget this man.
Forgiving and hopeful, even with the one who stalks her.
"Let me help you." Laura cradled X-10's hand on her cheek. "We can disappear together, you and I. It's not our fault we are who we are. We can take care of one another. Just leave the others alone."
She took his hands and clutched them to her chest. Sunflowers wafted over him. "Don't you see, Laura? If I become like you, then how can I live with all the things I've done?" It felt strange to say her name out loud to her. It felt good.
Laura kissed his deformed face, stroked his cheeks. "Hate and love come from the same place."
Independent and willing to sacrifice to save the one she loves.
"I couldn't give you a chance back then, Ben, because I was afraid."
"Afraid of what?"
"Afraid if I stayed, somehow you would die too. You were the one person left that I loved and I wanted you to live. If just one person I loved lives, then I could be okay with that. So I set you free so you could live."
Ben pulled her face back to his. "I am free. You did set me free, but not in the way you think."
So, do Ben and Laura make a great match or are they doomed?
About The Author:
Donna Galanti is the author of the dark paranormal suspense novel A Human Element (Echelon Press). She won first place for Words on the Wall Fiction at the 2011 Philadelphia Writer's Conference. Donna has a B.A. in English and a background in marketing. She is a member of International Thriller Writers, The Greater Lehigh Valley Writer's Group and Pennwriters. She lives with her family in an old farmhouse in PA with lots of nooks, fireplaces, and stinkbugs.
BUY THE BOOK: A Human Element
Book Description: A Human Element
One by one, Laura Armstrong's friends and adoptive family members are being murdered, and despite her special healing powers, there is nothing she can do to stop it. The killer haunts her dreams and leaves cryptic notes advising her to use her powers to save herself because she's next.
Determined to find the killer, she follows her visions to her hometown and the site of a crashed meteorite. There she meets Ben Fieldstone, who seeks answers about his parent's death the night the meteorite struck. In a race to stop a mad man, they unravel a frightening mystery that binds them together.
But the killer's desire to destroy Laura face-to-face leads to a showdown that puts her relationship with Ben in jeopardy and her pure spirit to the test. With the killer closing in, Laura discovers her destiny is linked to the stranger and she has two choices - redeem him or kill him.
Readers who devour paranormal books with a smidge of horror and steam will enjoy A Human Element, the new novel about loss, redemption, and love.
Reviewers are saying ...
"A Human Element is an elegant and haunting first novel. Unrelenting, devious but full of heart. Highly recommended." - Jonathan Maberry, New York Times best-selling author of Assassin's Code and Dead of Night.
"A Human Element is a haunting look at what it means to be human. It's a suspenseful ride through life and love ... and death, with a killer so evil you can't help but be afraid. An excellent read." - Janice Gable Bashman, author of Wanted Undead or Alive, nominated for a Bram Stoker Award.
Book Contest Giveaway: A Human Element
Win one (1) paperback copy of A Human Element by Donna Galanti during her virtual book tour from March 19 - April 11, 2012.
Post a comment below or click the link to the Book Contest Giveaway Page, and post a comment there.
A Human Element Virtual Book Tour
March 19 - April 11, 2012
Click on the link below to see the full tour schedule! Guest posts, author interviews, book giveaways and a chance to win the big prize giveaway!
Kathleen, thanks so much for having me on! This was super fun!
ReplyDeleteDonna, thank you for the opportunity to host your virtual book tour event. I loved your author guest post, it gave us a peak into Laura's and Ben's lives and their relationship. :)
ReplyDelete