Padlocked by p.m. terrell

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Things People Might Not Know about p.m. terrel

Thank you for hosting me here today! You’ve asked me to share a few things that people would never guess about me, which is a fun topic. Here goes:

I see ghosts. The first time I saw one, I was in my mother’s bedroom with several siblings when we saw a man there. We all saw him. As my mother called for my father, he disappeared into thin air. It turned out to be someone she had dated for years before meeting my father. He had never married, always holding a torch for my mother, and he died the evening that we saw him. My mother always believed he passed through to say goodbye to her.

I believe all creatures have souls. And in the afterlife, I want to go where my dogs went.

I have an insatiable appetite for knowledge. I love history, research, and exploring a variety of topics. I used to read everything I could get my hands on, but these days I limit my news intake, preferring to delve into history, science, and less stressful topics.

I love to cook. I have become a one-pot wonder. I enjoy stews and soups in the winter, and I cook and then refrigerate my own salad pasta recipe that includes Asian vegetables, tuna, and shrimp in a lemon vinaigrette. I could live on salad pasta all summer.

I love bright flowers, and my favorites are neon pink crepe myrtles. They look like flowers in the sky to me as the trees grow taller. I enjoy low-maintenance gardens. I always start off the spring season highly motivated, but once the North Carolina summer heat sets in, I fear becoming like the Wicked Witch of the West and melting away!

Padlocked is an epic historical and visionary novel that follows the lives of a group of ordinary people who find themselves in extraordinary, life-altering circumstances as Nazi Germany invades Poland in 1939.

Two foreign photojournalists, an American and a Spaniard, are trapped between armies at Festungsfront Oder-Warthe-Bogen, along Poland’s western border with Germany. It is Hank’s last overseas assignment, and he’s been counting the days until he can go home to North Carolina to be with his family. Rafe fled Spain after the dictator, Francisco Franco, targeted his family. The experience changed him, and he now sees the rise of fascism in Europe as a battle between good and evil. They will find themselves embedded with the Polish, Nazi, and Soviet forces at varying times, forcing them to face moral and ethical decisions in their struggles to survive.

A young woman is separated from her sister in Warsaw as the Nazis encircle it. Agata made a vow that she would return to take Elsa to safety, but soldiers and barbed wire prevent her from entering the newly established Jewish sector. She is consumed with guilt over their separation, and when she discovers her sister was taken by train to a work camp near Krakow, she navigates her dangerous, war-torn country in search of her. Her quest will force her to confront a Hell on Earth to find her.

A young man joins the Jungdeutsche Partei, or the Young German Party. Once bullied as a child, Max’s new affiliations promote him to a position where he can dictate life or death and settle scores. In order to thrive under Nazi occupation, he makes daily choices that legitimize brutality and erode humanitarian principles and scruples.

While they don’t know one another at the start of their journeys, each will make decisions that have the power to transform them and place them on paths that ultimately converge on January 27, 1945, as the 60th Army of the First Ukrainian Front opened the gates to Auschwitz-Birkenau for all the world to witness.

This is ultimately a story about the strength of love, courage, faith, and resilience in the face of unimaginable hatred and obsession with power, and how every decision we make places us further along specific paths.

Read an Excerpt

Max was unprepared for the pandemonium as he stepped outside the building. He supposed it made sense as he could hear the voices from his office even if he hadn’t been able to make out the words. Still, it was jarring to see people who would normally walk with controlled purpose now rushing this way and that, as though the sky were falling. It made him hasten his steps, his heartbeat quickening as he joined the throngs. Many stopped along the way to cheer on the passing army vehicles, but he dodged around them, eager to get his book and get back to work. He didn’t want the soldiers to give his office to anyone else in his absence.

“Max! Max!”

At the sound of his name, he almost hid, thinking his ruse was discovered, but he quickly realized the voice was female. His eyes darted around the crowded faces. After a moment, the horde parted, and Stella rushed through to him.

“They’re on our doorstep!” she shouted excitedly. Her face was aglow, and he wanted nothing more than to scoop her into his arms and kiss her.

But, as others glanced their way, he grabbed her hand and led her to a quieter area. “Stop smiling,” he directed, swinging her around to face him.

“Why?” she demanded.

“They are not here yet. Do you want the Polish Army to pick you up?”

“Why would they? I have done nothing wrong.”

“Oh? Now that they are here and we are locked in a battle with them, you and I are collaborators.”

“Huh! That is not true.”

“Isn’t it?”

“It is not. We knew nothing of their plans to invade. We only know that we like their system of government.”

“And you don’t think they are here to change our system of government to their own?”

“Isn’t it exciting?”

“Stop it, I say. Stop it!” Max wiped his forehead. “What are you doing here, anyway?”

“The shop where I worked closed.”

“Closed? Why?”

Stella shrugged. “Excitement. Fear. Maybe a little of both.” She peered at him, her eyes narrowing. “Why are you here and not in the mayor’s office? I would have thought you’d be very busy there.”

“I am very busy.” He pulled at his suit jacket as if straightening it. “I have been promoted.”

“Promoted! To what?”

“I am now a liaison to the military.”

“The Polish military?”

“Do you see another here?” He waved his hand toward the tanks passing by them.

“What are you doing for them?” she breathed, her brow furrowing.

“English translation.”

“You don’t speak English!”

“How do you know that? I do, actually. And I am on a mission, and you are delaying me.”

“Be that way, then.” She pouted briefly before adding, “What will you do when the Nazis arrive in Będzin?”

“How do you know that they will?”

She shrugged. “I am hedging my bets.”

“For right this moment, today, I am a military liaison. That is all I know for now.” He waved as though pushing her away. “Now, go.”

As she started to leave him, he pulled her back into an embrace and kissed her. Startled, he thought she might pull away, but she didn’t. She leaned into him, her tongue flicking inside his mouth and her body pressing against him. She smelled of flowers and musk, and he held her more tightly as he inhaled her essence. Then she abruptly stepped back. “Call on me later,” she said, “when you are no longer working your military liaison shift.”

Then she was gone, as if she had never been there; her petite figure disappeared among the taller men and women crowding the sidewalk. He stared in the direction she’d gone, but when he didn’t spot her among the cluster of people, he turned back in the direction of home.

About the Author:

My full name is Patricia McClelland Terrell, and I have been writing under the pen name p.m.terrell ever since a publisher presented me with my first fiction book cover. The graphic designer had also entered my name in lower-case letters; my editor hated it, and I loved it. It’s been p.m.terrell ever since.

I began writing when I was nine years old, inspired by a schoolteacher and elementary school principal. Scott-Foresman published my first book, a computer instructional for universities, in 1984. Scott-Foresman, Dow-Jones (Richard D. Irwin branch), Palari Publishing, Paralee Press, and Drake Valley Press have published 27 books to date.

Before embarking on a full-time writing career, I founded McClelland Enterprises, Inc., in the Washington, D.C., area in 1984, specializing in workplace computer instruction. I opened another business, Continental Software Development Corporation, in 1994, which focused on custom application development, programming, website design and development, and cybersecurity.

I was honored to be the first female President of the Chesterfield County/Colonial Heights Crime Solvers. Since moving to North Carolina, I served on the boards of the Robeson County Friends of the Library and the Robeson County Arts Council.

I launched The Book ‘Em Foundation with Waynesboro, Virginia, Police Officer Mark Kearney, and assisted in Virginia, New Hampshire, and South Carolina events before establishing the Annual Book ‘Em North Carolina Writers Conference and Book Fair, chairing it for several years before turning it over to Robeson Community College in Lumberton, NC.

Padlocked is available in all eBook formats, trade paperback, hardcover, and large print editions.

Website: https://pmterrell.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pmterrell.author/
Apple: https://books.apple.com/us/book/padlocked/id6759671735
Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/padlocked-pm-terrell/1149563468
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0GPWWNBFN
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/padlocked-2
In France: https://shop.vivlio.com/product/9781935970569_9781935970569_10020/padlocked
In Germany: https://www.thalia.de/shop/home/artikeldetails/A1078388459
All other eBook formats: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1977075

Cloaks and Mirrors by p.m. terrell - Guest Blog and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. p.m. terrell will be awarding Celtic necklace containing the Tree of Life. USA only to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

FOR THE LOVE OF IRELAND

I began to fall in love with Ireland when I wrote Vicki’s Key, the second book in the Black Swamp Mysteries series. That book introduced Dylan Maguire, an Irishman who had only recently moved to America. I delved deep into the Irish culture, discovering their speech mannerisms, their history and their traditions. I had heard about Ireland throughout my life, as both my mother’s and father’s families had emigrated from Ireland to America. And when I had the opportunity to return there, it turned into something magical.

I had family records about a village called Ballygawley in County Tyrone but I never expected the people there to remember the Neely family. When they discovered that I was a Neely descendent, their reaction was always the same: “So you’ve come home again, have you now?” It felt as if I had been the one that had lived on the hill overlooking the valley; that I had only recently traveled to America and I was truly “back home again”.

I stood on the land my ancestors once owned. I was taken to a school upon which my family had donated the land; the school had celebrated more than a hundred and fifty years there and had only recently published a book that chronicled the gift of land from my ancestors. I was brought to a Catholic church that was also on land donated by my Protestant ancestors. And time and again, I heard stories of them and their generosity. It made me proud of where I had come from.

I stood in the middle of the cemetery where their bodies were buried; the gravestones had been damaged severely and one rumor had it that during The Troubles, the British soldiers had destroyed the cemetery because they had been told there were weapons hidden there by the IRA, though they never found any evidence of that. Ironically, the last person to die near Ballygawley during The Troubles was a Neely son, a soldier who had been killed by a roadside bomb.

I stood on the stoop of a tall brownstone and took pictures of my ancestor’s initials engraved above the door, along with the date he built it. I stood in the stables that he once owned and watched the cows in the meadows. I felt as though I had been transported back in time.

I did not want to leave Ireland. Unfortunately, when I applied to relocate there, I was told I could only receive a one-year visa and there was no guarantee it would be renewed after that. At one time, it was a haven for retirees—the fresh air, the friendly people and the breathtaking landscapes drew people home. But there are restrictions now requiring a minimum of £50,000 in an annual government guaranteed pension and they do not count income made from writing or through the internet. So alas, my dream of writing in a white cottage overlooking the sea has been dashed—for now. I will always hold out hope that someday I will truly go home again.

CIA operatives Vicki Boyd and Dylan Maguire are back in the 6th book of the award-winning Black Swamp Mysteries Series. Vicki and Dylan journey to Ireland for their honeymoon and while they are there, they agree to pick up a package from a Russian spy containing plans for Russia's latest stealth technology. But when the Russian decides to defect, they find themselves trying to get him safely out of the country. They also discover the Kremlin has uncovered their identities and now Vicki and Dylan flee across the island. With breathtaking descriptions of Ireland's rugged coast and the Northern Lights, romance and suspense come together again.

Read an excerpt:

“Nettie O’Connelly,” Jack began, “was the mother o’ nine children and a widow to boot. She lived in west Belfast within a stone’s throw o’ The Falls Road and within full view o’ the Divis Tower. It would have been the early 1970’s, so it would.” Jack shook his head. “There was violence every blasted day and night. The Catholics lived on one side o’ the road—divided by the Protestants by what is now known as the Peace Wall.”

He fell silent for a moment as he collected his thoughts. “Divis Tower was manned by British soldiers. Not much was done about violence against the Catholics—” he snorted for effect “—but violence against the Protestants, even in retribution or defense, was dealt a heavy hand. A heavy hand indeed.

“So it didn’t go unnoticed when one o’ the British soldiers stood at Divis Tower and looked down at Nettie’s home. Not once, mind ya; not twice. Every blasted day. She spent time each day washin’ and hangin’ her clothes in the yard—nine children can dirty a lot. She was still attractive, children or no; hair the color of a sunset and eyes snappin’ green. Petite thing she was.”

A gust of wind howled through the night, sounding like a woman’s protracted moan. Ciara began to paw the ground and Dougal snorted.

“We began to suspect a spy in our midst. Oh, it was a bad time, to be sure. Neighbors watchin’ neighbors. No trust, even for brothers. The slightest thing could set off the neighborhood like a powder keg just waitin’ to blow. There were brawls a’plenty. Boys gone missing overnight. Anyone suspected of cavortin’ with the Brits was dealt with severely.”

He rose and stepped to Ciara, stroking her mane in a gentle effort to calm her. “Then the ladies along the block began to notice a correlation between the colors o’ the clothes Nettie washed and hung and what happened afterward… When she washed her whites, she always seemed to leave her home at a particular time and always went a round-about ways. No one knew where she went. It wasn’t to the neighborhood butcher or grocer or any of the usual places a woman would go. Then one day she was spotted in the center of Belfast—an area declared to be accessible to both Catholics and Protestants, unionists and loyalists, which was laughable indeed.”

“So Nettie O’Connelly was a spy?” Alexei asked.

“We’ll never know, boy. That very night she was hauled from her home, right in front of her nine children. And never seen again.” Just as they thought the story was over, he continued. “My brothers were there. They told me about it afterward, I think as a warnin’ to keep my own mouth shut and my head down. They drove Nettie O’Connelly to the very spot where we were to meet the plane. Three carloads o’ men, at the least, and Nettie beggin’ for her life and for her children’s safety. A woman could scream till her throat grew bloody and not a soul would hear her out at the old lighthouse. And so it went on for hour after hour.”

Jack looked at the skies. “It would have been just about this time o’ year, I’d wager. The skies grew black around four or five o’clock and the sun wouldn’t make its appearance until nigh on ten o’clock the next morn. Long nights, they were. They said that Nettie was tortured until the witching hour approached, but she never confessed, never admitted to giving any one of us up. Not even when her children’s lives were threatened. She always maintained her innocence.” His voice grew quiet and then stopped.

After a long moment, Alexei asked, “What became of her?”

“They thought she was dead. Her body was laid out on a flat rock whilst the men debated what to do with her. Some wanted her buried, others brought out to sea. It wasn’t a night like this one, you see. There were no Northern Lights that night. No stars, not even a moon. Just a thick fog that rolled in from the sea, uncanny it was. It was so murky that the men carried a lantern from the cars to the water’s edge; otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to find their way. My brothers said they set the lantern beside Nettie’s body while they huddled just a few feet away. They realized everythin’ had gone black around them and when they looked back, she and the lantern were gone.”

Jack inspected Ciara’s bridle for a moment before continuing. “It was easy to see which direction she’d gone; the lantern was bobbin’ along one o’ the paths, around the brambles and the rocks and along the ridgeline. They followed it for a bit, shoutin’ as those men did—” he nodded his head toward the east “—and then the lantern was snuffed out.”

He wiped his nose. “They continued searchin’ for her but it was too dark. Black as pitch, it was. They left sentinels along the main roads to Belfast and left others in charge o’ watchin’ her home and her children. It wasn’t until summer that they found her at the base o’ a cliff, her neck broken. It’s said they brought her body—ravaged by time and the elements—into the ocean some three hours out and dropped her overboard.”

Alexei joined the two men. “And that was the end of the story?”

“Oh, no,” Jack chuckled but his eyes held no mirth. “That was only the beginning. For it’s said that Nettie O’Connelly still haunts these parts after all these years, carryin’ her lantern at the witchin’ hour, lurin’ men to their deaths.”

About the Author:

p.m.terrell is the pen name for Patricia McClelland Terrell, the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than 20 books in several genres, including suspense, historical and non-fiction. Prior to becoming a writer, she owned two computer companies in the Washington, DC with a specialty in combatting computer crime. Her clients included the CIA, Secret Service and Department of Defense. Technology is often woven through her suspense thrillers. Terrell is of Irish descent, and Ireland often figures prominently in her books as well. She has been a full-time author since 2002 and currently travels between her home in North Carolina and Northern Ireland, the home of her ancestors. She is also the founder of Book ‘Em North Carolina’s Writers Conference and Book Fair (http://bookemnc.org) and The Novel Business (http://thenovelbusiness.com).

Website: http://pmterrell.com
Blog: http://pmterrell.blogspot.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/pmterrell
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pmterrell.author/
YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/terrellpm
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/pmterrell/books
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pmterrell

Buy the book at Amazon

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A Thin Slice of Heaven by p.m. terrell - Q&A and Giveaway

This post is part of a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. p.m.terrell will be awarding a Celtic Butterfly Suncatcher similar to the one mentioned in the book, symbolizing both the never-ending cycle of life and the metamorphosis of a butterfly to a randomly drawn winner via rafflecopter during the tour. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Welcome back to It's Raining Books, p.m. If someone were writing a story about you, what would your blurb say?

I hope it would say that I always tried to bloom where I was planted. My life has been the opposite of a well-planned one; it’s been filled with unexpected twists and turns, seemingly insurmountable challenges and devastating heartbreak. But with each detour I’ve encountered, I have tried to remain positive; I’ve looked for the possibilities in every place and circumstance I’ve found myself in, and I have tried to make the world a better place because I’ve been here.

Would you tell us a little about your newest release that isn't in the blurb?

If you believe in life beyond what we can see with the naked eye, this story will capture your imagination. I wasn’t prepared for the number of people who had lost loved ones and told me how comforting the story was to them. They had all felt their loved ones once they had passed on; they’d heard a whisper of a voice, saw a fleeting, filmy image, or felt their presence in dozens of different ways. Reading A Thin Slice of Heaven, especially Sean’s explanations of passing to the other side and communicating with those who had been left behind, spoke to them—and I hope it speaks to you as well.

What was your favorite scene to write in this story?

It was when Sean showed Charleigh how ghosts can become visible and even physical. He began slowly, explaining the field of energy around each person, but the scene progresses to a fever pitch. I had great dreams for weeks after writing that scene! I researched reported physical contacts with spirit entities, ranging from haunted houses to visits in the night; how living beings displayed evidence of having been touched—from finger indentions in their skin to scratch marks—and I also reviewed scientific evidence supporting the theory of parallel universes. It is a fascinating subject for me, and taking Charleigh and Sean to dramatic, sensuous heights was something I’d never written before.

If you could trade places with one of your characters, who would it be and why?

I’d trade places with Charleigh; Sean loves her so unconditionally and so deeply that any woman would be crazy not to want to be in her shoes.

She had arranged to meet her husband in Northern Ireland for a second honeymoon, but when Charleigh arrives at the remote castle, she receives a message that he won’t be coming—and that he’s leaving her for another woman.

Stranded for the weekend by a snowstorm that has blocked all access to the castle, she finds herself three thousand miles from home in a country she knows nothing about.

She is soon joined by Sean Bracken, the great-grandson of Laird Bracken, the original owner of the castle, and she finds herself falling quickly and madly in love with him. There’s just one problem: he’s dead.

As the castle begins to come alive with secrets from centuries past, she finds herself trapped between parallel worlds. Caught up in a mass haunting, she can no longer recognize the line between the living and the dead. Now she’s discovering that her appearance there wasn’t by accident—and her life is about to change forever.

Enjoy an excerpt:

A movement caught her eye and Charleigh started, whirling around. No one was there. She laughed nervously; no doubt, it had been a bird outside the window, its reflection caught in the mirror. Still, she returned to the door. There was a simple doorknob lock which seemed woefully inept, but she quickly recognized a thick piece of wood standing against the wall as an old-fashioned bar, and slipped it into place. It was better than a deadbolt, she reasoned.

She kicked off her shoes and checked her cell phone again. Finding no reception, she returned to the window and held it aloft until a weak bar appeared.

The phone beeped, causing her to jump, as a text message appeared.

She stared at it, not realizing that she’d been holding her breath until it expelled in a whoosh that left her dizzy.

“Charleigh,” it read, “I can’t do this. I’m not in love with you. I’m in love with someone else.”

“The feckin’ arse.”

The sound of the man’s deep, rich voice startled her and she spun around. No one was there. The bar remained across the door. There were no blind spots in the room; it was circular and plainly, though tastefully, furnished. She strode purposefully to the bathroom. A set of candles blazed on the countertop and though the shadows danced in the corners of the room, she could clearly see that she was alone.

Yet she could not have imagined it. The tone had been resonant and almost gravelly, the timber of a man’s voice upon first arising. The brogue had been both commanding and melodious.

But as her heart stilled and her mind allowed the words in the message to sink in, she realized that Ethan was not coming. He perhaps had never intended to join her. And now she was stuck in Ireland as a snowstorm raged outside her windows, three thousand miles from home.



About the Author:

p.m.terrell is the pen name for Patricia McClelland Terrell, a multi-award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than twenty books in five genres: contemporary suspense, historical suspense, romance, computer how-to and non-fiction.

Prior to writing full-time, she founded two computer companies in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area. Among her clients were the Central Intelligence Agency, United States Secret Service, U.S. Information Agency, and Department of Defense. Her specialties were in white collar computer crimes and computer intelligence, themes that have carried forward to her suspense.

She is also 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 is the organizer and chairperson of Book ‘Em North Carolina, an annual event held in the real town of Lumberton, North Carolina, to raise funds to increase literacy and reduce crime. For more information on this event and the literacy campaigns funded by it, visit www.bookemnc.org.

Author’s website: www.pmterrell.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/pmterrell
Blog: www.pmterrell.blogspot.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/author.p.m.terrell

Buy the book at Amazon (paperback), Amazon (Kindle), Barnes and Noble (print), Barnes and Noble (Nook), or Smashwords.

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Dylan's Song by p.m. terrell --Review and Giveaway

This review is in conjunction with a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. One randomly drawn commenter will win a $25 Amazon gift certificate. Click on the tour banner to see the other stops on the tour.

Dylan Maguire returns to his native Ireland with psychic spy Vicki Boyd. Their mission: to locate and extract a CIA Agent who disappeared in Dublin while on the trail of a known terrorist. But when Dylan receives word that his grandmother is dying, he is plunged into a past he thought he’d left behind forever. His mission and the dark secrets he’d sought to keep hidden begin to merge into an underworld that could cost him his life. He must now confront his past demons and the real reason he left Ireland—while Vicki harbors a secret of her own.

Suspense Magazine says, “p.m.terrell’s writing is powerfully written and masterfully suspenseful; you have to hang on for the ride of your life.” Midwest Book Review says the Black Swamp Mysteries series is “page-turning action, unforgettable characters, breathtaking descriptions and unexpected plot twists.” And syndicated reviewer Marcia Freespirit says the series is “riveting, spell-binding, sexy and intense!”



Jump right into the action from the first page!  I expected excitement from this book and wasn't disappointed.  There's lots going on and not just in the spy business. 

I haven't read any other books in the series, and admit to being a bit lost at first. There is history and backstory I wasn't familiar with so it took awhile for me to understand who was who and how they mattered to one another.  I'm sure that fans of the series will be thrilled to see so many familiar faces, but it was a bit difficult to get the gist of things at the start.

That didn't diminish my overall enjoyment of the book, however. Once I got things figure out a bit, it was full steam ahead and off to Ireland (over Dylan's very vocal objections).  Once there, secrets abound ... from Dylan's past, to Vicki's present.  I was fascinated by the look into some WWII history from an Irish point of view as well, since I had no idea of what was going on there at that time. 

The book has a great mix of action, romance, paranormal, suspense and more.  I loved Brenda's role in this, though I suspect she wasn't always a nice character.  It made me want to go back and read earlier books to find out who she was then.

I admit to some disappointment at the "big reveal" of Vicki's secret.  I think it was resolved far too easy for all the build up behind why she was so worried. 

Overall, though, Dylan's Song is a book that hit all my happy buttons.  Good suspense, good romance, good characters and good writing. Who could ask for more?

4 Flowers - This was a very good book! I'd recommend it to my friends.



Enjoy this excerpt:

The thunder and lightning grew and intensified and the mist began to turn to more solid precipitation, though it stopped short of becoming a rainstorm. It was well known that one had no business being in a bog when it rained. It often came fast and furious and often the peat was buried beneath ponds that could suck men into them in mere seconds. Dylan found himself wondering whether the water would pour into the castle remains. It would be a horrific way to die.

He turned in his saddle and peered behind him.

“What is it?” Rich asked.

Dylan shook his head. “Just feel eyes on me, tis all.”

“I’ve been feeling that same way ever since we left,” Perry said. He spoke in a stage whisper and his voice sounded strained and dry.

Rich stopped his horse and began to pull something out of his bag.

“Don’t stop,” Dylan cautioned as he went past him.

“My night vision goggles—”

“Don’t stop. The horse could begin to sink. Keep movin’. Get anythin’ you need while you’re movin’.”

“I don’t like this place,” Rich said but he allowed his horse to fall in line behind Dylan and Perry.

The sky was ablaze now with lightning; it glowed blue over the bogs instead of the yellow or white he was accustomed to in the village. He couldn’t imagine Stephen Anders being brought here in cuffs or shackles and being led down the ancient steps to a forgotten ruin. He must have felt as though he was being buried alive.

And maybe that was their intent.

p.m.terrell is the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than 16 books. Vicki's Key, one of the first books in the Black Swamp Mysteries series, was one of five finalists in the 2012 International Book Awards (Mystery/Suspense) and 2012 USA Best Book Awards (Mystery/Suspense.) River Passage, an historical work based on her ancestor's migration to Fort Nashborough in 1779-1780, won the 2010 Best Fiction & Drama Award. The Nashville (TN) Metropolitan Government Archives determined it to be so historically accurate that they entered the original manuscript into their Archives for future researchers and historians.

Prior to becoming a full-time author in 2002, terrell founded and operated two computer companies in the Washington, DC area. Her clients included the United States Secret Service, CIA, Department of Defense and federal and local law enforcement. Her specialty is in the areas of computer crime and computer intelligence. Her experience in these areas have greatly influenced her books' plots.

She is the co-founder of The Book 'Em Foundation, whose slogan is "Buy a Book and Stop a Crook" and whose mission is to raise awareness of the link between high crime rates and high illiteracy rates. She founded Book 'Em North Carolina Writers Conference and Book Fair, an annual event to raise money to increase literacy and reduce crime.

For more information on Book 'Em North Carolina, visit www.bookemnc.org and www.bookemnc.blogspot.com.

p.m.terrell's website is www.pmterrell.com and her blog is www.pmterrell.blogspot.com. She can be found on Twitter @pmterrell, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/author.p.m.terrell and https://www.facebook.com/pages/pmterrell/129318810431554.

Secrets of a Dangerous Woman by p.m. terrell -- Review and Giveaway

(Suspense, Paranormal)

This review is in conjunction with a virtual book tour organized by Goddess Fish Promotions. The author will award a $20 Amazon gift card to one randomly drawn commenter--you can see the other stops by clicking the tour banner.




Dylan Maguire is back and in his first mission with the CIA he must interrogate a recently captured Brenda Carnegie. But when she escapes again, it’s obvious that she’s had help from within the CIA’s own ranks. With Vicki Boyd’s psychic help, he must locate her again—and find out why some in the highest levels of government want her dead while others will risk everything to help her. And when he finds out her true identity, his mission has just become very personal.




p.m. terrell draws, once again, upon her father's life as an FBI agent and her own work in computers to bring us the third book in the Black Swamp Mystery Series, Secrets of a Dangerous Woman-- a book that pulls together the main characters from Book 1, Exit 22, and Book 2, Vicki's Key, in an explosive combination that shakes the foundation of Vicki Boyd's life--not to mention her relationship with Dylan Maguire.

There are many secrets at work here--and p.m. does a tremendous job at weaving them together seamlessly.

The action is non-stop and the reader barely has time to catch her breathe from one crisis before being plunged right into another one. Reading these books remind me of being on a roller-coaster ride... and I love roller-coasters!!!

I hope there are many many more books in store for this cast of characters!!





About the Author:

p.m.terrell is the award-winning, internationally acclaimed author of more than 18 books in 4 genres. A full-time author since 2002, she previously opened and operated two computer companies in the Washington, DC area. Her specialties were in the areas of computer crime and computer intelligence and her clients included the Secret Service, CIA and Department of Defense as well as local law enforcement. Computer and spy technology are two themes that recur throughout her books. She is the co-founder of The Book 'Em Foundation, whose mission is to raise awareness of the link between high illiteracy rates and high crime rates. And she founded the annual Book 'Em North Carolina Writers Conference and Book Fair which takes place each February.

Author's website: www.pmterrell.com
Author's blogs: www.pmterrell.blogspot.com and www.vickisangelfish.com (inspired by the angelfish "front" used by the CIA in the Black Swamp Mysteries series)
Twitter: @pmterrell
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/author.p.m.terrell
Amazon Links: Paperback: http://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Dangerous-Woman-p-m-terrell/dp/1935970054/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1366639398&sr=8-1&keywords=secrets+of+a+dangerous+woman
Ebook: http://www.amazon.com/Secrets-Dangerous-Woman-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B008RAYYWU/ref=tmm_kin_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1366639398&sr=8-1
Smashwords: http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/210269
Nook (Barnes and Noble): http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/secrets-of-a-dangerous-woman-p-m-terrell/1106764783?ean=2940044754027
iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/secrets-of-a-dangerous-woman/id550852837?mt=11