April in the Back of Beyond by p.m. Terrell - Book Tour + Giveaway
April in the Back of Beyond
by p.m.terrell
GENRE: Romantic Suspense/Ghost Story
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BOOK TRAILER: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7TpMk4StYI
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
BLURB:
Writer Hayley Hunter has arrived in Ireland to complete a book on Irish history.
When she discovers the old carriage house she is renting is haunted,
she is determined to uncover the truth behind the burned ruins of a nearby manor house
and the abandoned British barracks it overlooks.
With the assistance of Shay Macgregor, an Irish historian,
her quest will take her to 1919 and the Irish War for Independence,
exposing the murders of two young men and why their mother, April Crutchley,
refuses to leave the back of beyond even in death.
With a budding romance and the opportunity to begin life anew,
Hayley finds her own life is now in jeopardy as she gets closer to a truth the villagers have long
sought to bury.
When she discovers the old carriage house she is renting is haunted,
she is determined to uncover the truth behind the burned ruins of a nearby manor house
and the abandoned British barracks it overlooks.
With the assistance of Shay Macgregor, an Irish historian,
her quest will take her to 1919 and the Irish War for Independence,
exposing the murders of two young men and why their mother, April Crutchley,
refuses to leave the back of beyond even in death.
With a budding romance and the opportunity to begin life anew,
Hayley finds her own life is now in jeopardy as she gets closer to a truth the villagers have long
sought to bury.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT
I could not hear the cattle though we continued to approach. I saw a head dodge this way or that,
could envision their mouths opening in snorts or grunts.
Two dogs came into the picture as though there were curtains on either side,
appearing from behind the veils to join the cattle on center stage.
They ducked and darted, their heads held low, ever on the watch for a strayed cow and yet the yips
and barks I should have heard were lost in the winds that blew through here a hundred years ago.
could envision their mouths opening in snorts or grunts.
Two dogs came into the picture as though there were curtains on either side,
appearing from behind the veils to join the cattle on center stage.
They ducked and darted, their heads held low, ever on the watch for a strayed cow and yet the yips
and barks I should have heard were lost in the winds that blew through here a hundred years ago.
The road stopped and yet Shay continued to press forward, the terrain becoming steeper and rockier
as we drew ever closer. I was panting now and my forehead was covered in perspiration
and yet I knew I could not turn back. I had to remain with Shay.
I longed to ask why we were moving steadily toward the ruins, or what he hoped we could possibly
accomplish there, but the words were frozen on my lips.
as we drew ever closer. I was panting now and my forehead was covered in perspiration
and yet I knew I could not turn back. I had to remain with Shay.
I longed to ask why we were moving steadily toward the ruins, or what he hoped we could possibly
accomplish there, but the words were frozen on my lips.
The air grew icy but there was no wind, as if time itself was suspended.
Then the herd parted to reveal two young men, boys really; and they were looking at us.
Shay stopped and I was so mesmerized that I started past him but he reached out to grab my arm.
I have no idea what amount of force he might have used because in that instant,
I barely registered his hand upon me. I only knew my feet had stopped and I was staring uphill at two
boys that stared back at me.
I have no idea what amount of force he might have used because in that instant,
I barely registered his hand upon me. I only knew my feet had stopped and I was staring uphill at two
boys that stared back at me.
Their baggy pants were dark, their shirts light, but I could see the giant tree that stood behind them.
My brain slowly registered that I could see it because I was looking through them;
the combination of their light and dark clothing was casting the tree into curious shadows.
I knew they were looking at us though I could not see their facial features,
but rather judged their stance from the position of their bodies.
Their faces glowed eerily, the outlines blurry.
They grew even hazier as I realized they were beginning to run.
My brain slowly registered that I could see it because I was looking through them;
the combination of their light and dark clothing was casting the tree into curious shadows.
I knew they were looking at us though I could not see their facial features,
but rather judged their stance from the position of their bodies.
Their faces glowed eerily, the outlines blurry.
They grew even hazier as I realized they were beginning to run.
In an instant the cattle dispersed in a panic, rushing down the hill toward the pasture from whence
they’d come while the two boys raced upward in the opposite direction toward the house.
They reached the open doorway almost at the same time, catapulting over the threshold.
As they stepped inside the walls, everything vanished: the boys, the dogs and the cattle were gone.
All that was left were the skeletal ruins, dark and forbidding against a sky filled with ominous clouds.
they’d come while the two boys raced upward in the opposite direction toward the house.
They reached the open doorway almost at the same time, catapulting over the threshold.
As they stepped inside the walls, everything vanished: the boys, the dogs and the cattle were gone.
All that was left were the skeletal ruins, dark and forbidding against a sky filled with ominous clouds.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Guest Post
Inspiration behind the story
Hayley Hunter is a writer who has discovered her rented Irish cottage is haunted by the ghost of a woman that cries every night. When the book begins, Hayley is just landing in Ireland at the beginning of April and traveling to a remote western region the Irish refer to as ‘the back of beyond’. But the title is really a play on words, as the woman that haunts the cottage is April Crutchley. Determined to find out why she can’t leave even after death, Hayley is drawn to the burned ruins beside the cottage and to the abandoned British barracks it overlooks. The past and the present converge as she gets closer to the truth of that fateful day, revealing a tragedy the villagers have long sought to bury.
Hayley has a love interest in the form of Shay Macgregor, an historian and professor from the University of Galway whose own ancestors were Irish, Scots and Vikings.
Guest Post
Inspiration behind the story
The inspiration for April
in the Back of Beyond was born out of my research into Irish history. I had
been delving deep into my genealogy, which led me to an ancestor that came from
Scotland to Ulster (now Northern Ireland) in 1608. While researching his
adventures there, I came across a true story more than three decades later. In
1919 during the Irish war for independence, two brothers were killed in the
south of Ireland. While their story didn’t fit into the book I was writing—Checkmate: Clans and Castles—their
tragedy remained with me.
I suppose the reason I couldn’t let their story go is
because they were murdered in front of their mother, and that’s where the story
truly began. I felt so much empathy for her and what she’d witnessed and how it
changed her life that I knew I had to write their story. I changed certain
facts like the location, because descendants of both the victims and the
killers are still alive.
Hayley Hunter is a writer who has discovered her rented Irish cottage is haunted by the ghost of a woman that cries every night. When the book begins, Hayley is just landing in Ireland at the beginning of April and traveling to a remote western region the Irish refer to as ‘the back of beyond’. But the title is really a play on words, as the woman that haunts the cottage is April Crutchley. Determined to find out why she can’t leave even after death, Hayley is drawn to the burned ruins beside the cottage and to the abandoned British barracks it overlooks. The past and the present converge as she gets closer to the truth of that fateful day, revealing a tragedy the villagers have long sought to bury.
Hayley has a love interest in the form of Shay Macgregor, an historian and professor from the University of Galway whose own ancestors were Irish, Scots and Vikings.
The book she is researching, the castles she visits and the
places where events took place are all from my own research into Checkmate: Clans and Castles, the story
of my ancestor who arrived in 1608 and was pulled into O’Doherty’s Rebellion,
led by the last Gaelic King of Ireland. That book was released in 2017.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
p.m.terrell is the pen name for Patricia McClelland Terrell,
the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than 23 books in multiple genres,
including contemporary suspense, historical suspense, computer instructional, non-fiction
and children’s books.
the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than 23 books in multiple genres,
including contemporary suspense, historical suspense, computer instructional, non-fiction
and children’s books.
Prior to writing full-time, she founded two computer companies in the Washington, DC Metropolitan
Area: McClelland Enterprises, Inc. and Continental Software Development Corporation.
Among her clients were the Central Intelligence Agency, United States Secret Service,
U.S. Information Agency, and Department of Defense.
Her specialties were in the detection of white collar computer crimes and computer intelligence.
Area: McClelland Enterprises, Inc. and Continental Software Development Corporation.
Among her clients were the Central Intelligence Agency, United States Secret Service,
U.S. Information Agency, and Department of Defense.
Her specialties were in the detection of white collar computer crimes and computer intelligence.
A full-time author since 2002, Black Swamp Mysteries was her first series,
inspired by the success of Exit 22, released in 2008. Vicki’s Key was a top five finalist in the 2012
International Book Awards and 2012 USA Book Awards nominee,
and The Pendulum Files was a national finalist for the Best Cover of the Year in 2014.
Her second series, Ryan O’Clery Suspense, is also award-winning.
The Tempest Murders (Book 1) was one of four finalists in the 2013 International Book Awards,
cross-genre category. Her historical suspense, River Passage,
was a 2010 Best Fiction and Drama Winner.
It was determined to be so historically accurate that a copy of the book resides at the
Nashville Government Metropolitan Archives in Nashville, Tennessee.
Songbirds are Free is her bestselling book to date; it is inspired by the true story of Mary Neely,
who was captured in 1780 by Shawnee warriors near Fort Nashborough (now Nashville, TN).
inspired by the success of Exit 22, released in 2008. Vicki’s Key was a top five finalist in the 2012
International Book Awards and 2012 USA Book Awards nominee,
and The Pendulum Files was a national finalist for the Best Cover of the Year in 2014.
Her second series, Ryan O’Clery Suspense, is also award-winning.
The Tempest Murders (Book 1) was one of four finalists in the 2013 International Book Awards,
cross-genre category. Her historical suspense, River Passage,
was a 2010 Best Fiction and Drama Winner.
It was determined to be so historically accurate that a copy of the book resides at the
Nashville Government Metropolitan Archives in Nashville, Tennessee.
Songbirds are Free is her bestselling book to date; it is inspired by the true story of Mary Neely,
who was captured in 1780 by Shawnee warriors near Fort Nashborough (now Nashville, TN).
She was the co-founder of The Book ‘Em Foundation, an organization committed to raising public
awareness of the correlation between high crime rates and high illiteracy rates.
She was the founder of Book ‘Em North Carolina, an annual event held in the town of Lumberton,
North Carolina, to raise funds to increase literacy and reduce crime and served as its chairperson
and organizer for its first four years. She also served on the boards of the Friends of the Robeson
County (NC) Public Library, the Robeson County (NC) Arts Council, Virginia Crime Stoppers
and became the first female president of the Chesterfield County-Colonial Heights Crime Solvers
in Virginia.
awareness of the correlation between high crime rates and high illiteracy rates.
She was the founder of Book ‘Em North Carolina, an annual event held in the town of Lumberton,
North Carolina, to raise funds to increase literacy and reduce crime and served as its chairperson
and organizer for its first four years. She also served on the boards of the Friends of the Robeson
County (NC) Public Library, the Robeson County (NC) Arts Council, Virginia Crime Stoppers
and became the first female president of the Chesterfield County-Colonial Heights Crime Solvers
in Virginia.
For more information, book trailers, excerpts and more, visit the author’s website at
www.pmterrell.com.
www.pmterrell.com.
Website: https://pmterrell.com/
Twitter: @pmterrell
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pmterrell.author/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/pmterrell/
https://www.amazon.com/April-Back-Beyond-p-m-terrell/dp/1935970461
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GIVEAWAY INFORMATION
p.m.terrell will be awarding a $25 Amazon/BN GC to a randomly drawn winner via
rafflecopter during the tour.
rafflecopter during the tour.
7 Comments
Thanks for hosting!
ReplyDeleteYou're welcome!
DeleteThank you so much for taking time to bring to our attention another great read. I enjoy these tours and finding out about many terrific books.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a great read.
ReplyDeleteGreat excerpt!
ReplyDeleteThank you, everyone, for following the book tour!
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this book with us.
ReplyDeletePlease try not to spam posts with the same comments over and over again. Authors like seeing thoughtful comments about their books, not the same old, "I like the cover" or "sounds good" comments. While that is nice, putting some real thought and effort in is appreciated. Thank you.