An unexpected murder. A suspect with a reason. The power of unwavering
belief.
A murder has been committed in an office in Jerusalem. That’s for sure. The
rest is not as clear-cut as it might seem.
Asaf languishes in his cell, unable to tell his story even to himself. How
can he tell it to someone who elicits such fear within him?
His colleague, Nathalie, has studied Beauty and the Beast. She understands
its moral. Maybe that’s why she’s the only one who believes in Asaf, the
suspect. But she’s new in the company – and in the country. Would anyone
take her opinion seriously?
She coerces her flatmates, Yarden and Tehila, into helping her investigate.
As they uncover new trails, will they be able to reverse popular
opinion?
In the end, will Beauty’s belief be strong enough to waken the Beast? Or,
in this case, can Style waken the Solitary?
Purchase Link -
mybook.to/styleandthesolitary
Excerpt
He
drew a hand across his aching head and blinked to focus his eyes. The living
room came into view, though still obscure. He blinked again and winced at the
random objects strewn all over the dusty floor. A towel, a shaver, a sweater, a
book, loose pages torn from a folder in a fit of frustration, a needle, a coat.
Iris would have hated the mess. So would he…once.
Memory
flashed over him. He’d thrown down the coat and picked up a blanket before
falling asleep on the sofa. It had been daytime. Day, night – what did it
matter? It was all the same to him.
Once,
it was important. They had a schedule, he and Iris. Getting up, breakfast, the
short walk to the campus. They did it all together, every day, for thirty
years. Children weren’t to be, but they had each other. It was all they needed.
He
was the poet, but she, the historian, was the one who discovered that Shelley’s
wife kept Percy’s heart for thirty years. “Let’s do that,” she said. Her eyes
lit up with inspiration. She was so beautiful, so perfect. “Whoever is left
will keep the other one’s heart in a drawer of their desk. Then we’ll never be
apart. Okay?”
It
was easy to talk of dying when they were young and that prospect was – had to
be – a long way into the future. Without hesitation, he agreed to her request,
never imagining that he would be the one left behind, or that it would come to
pass so soon.
They
didn’t let him keep the heart. It didn’t fit Jewish tradition, they said.
Instead, he used a brooch he’d given her for an anniversary. Surely, that was
in the tradition, like all the symbols of the first night of Passover – the
blend of apple, cinnamon and wine called charoseth symbolising mortar, wine for
blood, and so on. He and Iris weren’t religious, but they’d continued the
tradition of the seder night, often celebrating with Guy and his family. Their
parents had unfortunately died too soon, but that had made the brothers more
aware of the importance of family and keeping close.
The
brooch was made of silver and in the shape of a heart. She’d kissed him and
thanked him when he presented it to her, and he’d drawn her in close for a hug.
Now, it lived in a transparent plastic box in the top drawer of his desk, in a
corner of the living room. The box had a rectangular cross-section, like a
coffin. He often opened the drawer and talked to it, but she never responded,
probably angry that it wasn’t her real heart. “I did what I could,” he wailed
to her. But
answer came there none. And when he thought of those words, he wept again. For
relaxation, they often used to read nonsense rhymes together, and The Walrus and the
Carpenter was
one of Iris’s favourites.
Author Bio –
When Miriam Drori says she loves to perform, people don’t believe her. When
she says she’s not shy, they think she’s delusional. The fact is, things
ain’t what they seem. A witch called social anxiety took away her ability to
be spontaneous, but it didn’t change her exhibitionist nature. You need to
watch her dancing or speaking before an audience to understand that.
Fortunately, she has found an outlet for her thoughts in writing, a
solitary activity with multiple recipients. She never doubted her ability to
write, but only in recent years has she managed to gather her views and
observations together into papier-mâché balls worth throwing far and
wide.
If you ignore the witch, life has been good to Miriam, especially since she
made the decision to move from the UK to Israel. She has a wonderful
husband, three lovely children and a delightful house. She loves to read,
travel, hike and dance. She has worked in computer programming and technical
writing, and now enjoys the freedom and versatility of creative writing. And
she believes passionately in raising awareness of social anxiety.
Social Media Links –
Facebook, Twitter, Goodreads, Pinterest, Instagram, Wattpad
and website/blog.
Amazon page: Author.to/MiriamDroriAtAmazon
Giveaway to Win 5 x PB copies of Cultivating a Fuji by Miriam Drori (Open
INT)
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