Hello Readers,
Please welcome Jessica to the blog!
The
Linked Through Time series
By
Jessica Tornese
Linked
Through Time- the first of the Linked trilogy Lost Through Time- the
second in the series Amazon
and Barnes and Noble Bestseller!
Linked
Through Time-
Fifteen
year old Kate Christenson is pretty sure she’s about to experience
the worst possible summer at her grandparent’s farm in rural
Baudette, Minnesota. Without cable, cell phones, or computers, Kate
is headed for total isolation and six tedious weeks of boredom. Until
the storm.
A
freak lightning accident has Kate waking up in 1960. But she is not
herself. She is the aunt she never met, but has eerily resembled her
entire life. Thrust into living a dirt poor, rural farm life, Kate
struggles to make sense of her situation- a boyfriend with a dark
side, a “townie” who steals her heart, and the knowledge that
1960 is the very summer her aunt drowns in the local river.
Even
with every precaution, Kate cannot stop fate, and an unexpected twist
adds to her dilemma. To her horror, Kate finds out firsthand her
aunt’s death was not an accident or a suicide, but something much,
much worse.
Lost
Through Time-
“There
never was a body, you know.”
Such
is the bizarre statement from Gran only weeks after Kate has returned
from an accidental time traveling incident, surviving certain
death…twice. Capturing Sarah’s killer seemed to be the reason for
Kate’s disappearance, but Gran believes otherwise.
Learning
of Kate’s power to time travel loosens memories and desires Gran
has long since buried. Gran is set on finding Sarah, who she believes
never died the night Dave Slater threw her in the river, but instead,
went back in time through the Rapid River portal. With rudimentary
research and analysis, Gran thinks she has unlocked the secrets to
controlling the time traveling link that she and Kate share with
their ancestors and she plans to use Kate to bring Sarah back.
When
Kate agrees, she is shocked to find out that in the more aggressive
form of time travel, she doesn’t become Sarah, but trades places
with her, sending Kate to Baudette, Minnesota in the year of 1910,
and Sarah ahead to the year 2000.
Baudette’s
catastrophic 1910 fire and typhoid epidemic are the least of Kate’s
worries once she discovers what has happened. Her chances of a return
trip are thwarted with the struggle just to survive, and Sarah,
reliving her lost childhood in the ease of current day life, decides
to never return to the past, leaving Kate to suffer the life she has
left behind.
Gran
is torn- get rid of the daughter she has dreamed of finding for four
decades, or rescue the precious granddaughter who risked everything
for her selfish dream? And to what lengths will Sarah go to destroy
any chances of Kate coming back? Will Sarah succeed in severing the
link?
EXCERPT
FROM -LINKED THROUGH TIME
Steering
carefully into the gravel drive of the Rapid River parking lot, I
swore under my breath as the bike’s rear wheel slid on loose
gravel. Trying to right the bike too quickly, I ended up swerving
sharply to the left and crashing into the brush at the side of the
gravel lot. Flying over the handlebars, I landed in a patch of
overgrown weeds, my knee striking a rock hidden in the ground. Pain
radiated from my knee, paralyzing me for a moment. I lay sprawled
face first in the grass, breathing in the smell of earth and dry
grass, cursing myself and everything on the planet.
Emotions
overwhelmed my frazzled, fragile mind and I let loose with a string
of profanities that would have definitely earned me a whipping.
Rubbing my throbbing knee, I groaned.
Lightning
flashed and the breeze picked up as if on cue, sending the cattails
above my head into an agitated dance.
With
great effort, I stood and flexed my leg. I could feel the slightest
trickle of blood dripping a warm path down my shin. Perfect, I
grimaced. Can anything else possibly go wrong tonight?
My
vision had adjusted slightly to the moonless night, but I still had
to partly feel my way to the place Travis and I spent the evening.
Pushing through the brush, I couldn’t help but sense that uneasy,
creepy feeling that comes from wandering in the dark, as though eyes
watched you and monster hands waited to grab at your feet. My heart
pounded loudly in my ears, the tingling creep of fear working its way
from my head down through my limbs. I forced myself to keep my eyes
forward, ignoring the nagging feeling that someone or something
watched me from the shadows of the rocky shore.
Limbs
of the interlocking pines poked and prodded my bare arms as I
threaded my way through the trees. The pounding of the rapids had
increased with the coming of the storm; the wind tossed the water
upon the rocks, sending spray high into the air.
When
I broke through the tree line, I stood mesmerized by the awesome
power of the roaring water. It looked as if the rapids were fighting
to break free of their rocky channel, its watery fingers washing over
the rocks, reaching far down the wall, only to withdraw and try
again.
Above
the churning waters, a simple two-lane bridge hung defiantly in the
air, its thick concrete arches planted firmly around the dangerous
rocks. Suddenly, a semi loaded with logs thundered across the bridge
overhead; its headlights lighting up the darkness for a matter of
seconds. I used the momentary help to break my gaze from the water
and search the outer banks for my sweater.
A
flicker of movement amidst the trees caught my line of sight, and I
focused in on a ring of pines to my right; the very place Travis and
I had been a few hours earlier.
“Travis?”
I called out hopefully, thinking he had remembered to retrieve my
sweater.
EXCERPT
FROM- LOST THROUGH TIME
I
felt the exact moment my heart stopped beating in my chest.
“Where’s
Mary?” I said, trying to keep the alarm from rising in my voice.
The group looked around, stunned.
Vivie
handed Gracie to James. “She was just here. I swear it.” Frantic,
we strained to see across the wagon bridge into Spooner. The
brilliant blond tresses of Mary’s head were nowhere to be seen.
Ruth
spoke up. “That man took her to the depot.”
I
stared hard at Ruth, trying to process the words, but not
understanding. “What man?”
I said, confused. There were dozens of
people crossing the bridge rushing in all directions. Like ants on a
collapsing anthill, the twin towns were alive with chaos, the people
coming and going with what looked like little purpose. “What man?”
I said again, the panic seizing my voice and pushing it another
octave higher. I grasped Ruth’s arms in a painful, panicked grip.
Ruth
shrank away, afraid I might lash out. “I don’t know. I was
watching John. Aunt Vivie told me to watch John.” Her eyes welled
with tears. “I had John,” she insisted again, afraid of taking
the blame.
“What
did the man look like? What was he doing?” I demanded.
“He
was that man from the backyard. The big man who touched Mary’s
hair. I heard him say he could help her run faster. For her to take
his hand.”
Sickness
heaved inside and I clenched my jaw.
“You
were getting sick over the bridge,” Ruth accused. “You weren’t
helping at all! Mary couldn’t keep up and she was crying!”
Vivie
reached out and gripped my shoulders. Without saying a word, we
stared hard into each other’s eyes, the truth of the situation
passing between us as though we were speaking aloud. McGraw had bided
his time, watched us from afar and waited for a weak moment.
He couldn’t
possibly know the danger he faced. Was it a ploy? Would he really
take Mary? Or was he just trying to get me alone to give chase and
play his twisted game of revenge?
“I’ll
go,” Vivie said, the sacrifice evident in the firm line of her
mouth. “You can’t fall for his trap, Kate. He won’t do anything
to me.”
“No,”
I argued. “Too dangerous. If something happens to you, then Gran
will never be born, and then, neither will I.”
Now about Jessia,
Jessica
was recently voted Solstice Publishing’s 2012 Author of the Year!
Jessica
Tornese’s debut novel, Linked Through Time, was inspired by her
home town Baudette, MN. She graduated from high school there and
continued her education at Minnesota State University – Moorhead
where she earned a degree in education. She spent several years
coaching in the Junior Olympic volleyball program in Minnesota as
well as the junior varsity team for Lake of the Woods High School in
2010.
Her
favorite hobbies include reading, scrapbooking, playing volleyball,
and extreme outdoor sports like caving, ziplining, and white water
rafting. Jessica is also active in her church and has run several
Vacation Bible School programs and Sunday school programs. She enjoys
working with kids of all ages!
She
hopes to finish her Linked trilogy soon, and continue writing.
Recently, she self-published her first juvenile fiction book for kids
online. (see M&M Twins)
Jessica
is married and has three children. Her family recently relocated to a
small town in south Florida.
Links:
Facebook-
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Linked-Through-Time/392292227468460?fref=ts
Twitter-
@jltornese
Blog/Website-
http://www.jessicatornese.com
