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Saturday, October 9, 2021

#SaturdaySpotlight is on Carol James @CarolJamesAuth & No Longer Captive!

Good Morning!

It's been a busy few days since I drove home from my son's house in Nacogdoches, TX Wednesday. The weather is beautiful. Still hot days but cooler nights and dry for a change. There's a lot going on but I'll wait to catch up with you a little later in the month. Meanwhile, our guest today is not new. Carol James has visited many times but please WELCOME her back with her new release, No Longer Captive. Take it away, Carol.....


When Ethne O'Connor's brother, Sean, tells her of father's unexpected death, he asks her to do something she promised herself she'd never do. Come back home.

A victim of childhood abuse, Ethne left her father and the small Texas town of Crescent Bluff ten years ago on the night of her high school graduation. She's determined to end the cycle of abuse and believes the only way to do that is remain single. If she has no husband, she'll never have children that can be abused.

Then she meets Daniel Spenser, a handsome doctor with chocolate-kiss eyes. Daniel understands her past in a way no one else does. He's lived it.

Will Daniel be able to help Ethne break the chains of captivity around her heart?

And will God release her from her past, to be free to trust the man she comes to love? 

Excerpt

So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.”

John 8:36

            The gravel crunched beneath the tires as Ethne OConnor steered the box truck onto the shoulder of the narrow country road. Today would be a scorcher. The clock hadnt yet reached nine in the morning, and already the numbers on her dashboard read ninety-two. The birth of another lovely summer day in Central Texas.

            The heat waves rising from the pavement in front of her mirrored the waves of nausea that had steadily intensified since shed left Fort Worth. She shifted the truck into park, flipped on the emergency flashers, and turned the air conditioning on high. Closing her eyes, she pushed her head back against the seat and begged the cold air to rush across her face and relieve her churning stomach.

            She couldnt believe she was doing this. One May evening ten years ago, with her suitcase already packed in the trunk of her car, she walked across the stage in the high school auditorium, received her diploma, and made a promise to herself, a vow that had never been broken…until today. Seans pleading phone call on Monday had changed everything. She was returning home.

            The nausea somewhat under control, she shifted the truck into drive, pulled back onto the roadway, and turned off the emergency flashers. One last mile to go. Anticipation was a funny thing. When she wanted something to happen, it took forever to come. If she dreaded an event, it arrived before she knew it. These last several days had gone by way too fast.

            Slowing the truck, she turned left and began the journey down a meandering river of asphalt. As she rounded the final curve and her childhood home came into view, she gasped. In the ten years shed been gone, absolutely nothing had changed. The two-story farm house was still painted white with black shutters. Large Boston ferns hung from under the edges of the front porch and swayed in the ever-present Texas wind. Even the flowers waving in the pots beneath them were the same—purple petunias.

            Nine oclock and no Sean, but she wasn't surprised. Punctuality had never been expected of him. On the other hand, Vaughn had always demanded she be on time. Even early. That requirement had served her well over the years, birthing in her the organizational skills that helped her successfully start and run her business.

            She parked the truck at the top of the circular drive, and despite the heat, slipped on her sweater, and inched across the pavement and up onto the porch. She grasped the doorknob. As she expected, it was locked, and she didnt have a key. Years ago, shed thrown hers away because she would never need it again. If shed kept it, she could have at least gone inside and escaped the heat.

            She turned and walked toward one of the rocking chairs. A forgotten green turtle with a chipped front leg smiled at her from underneath one of the pots of flowers. She picked it up and slid back the door on its belly. A key fell out into her hand. When she was a little girl, she always believed the key was there for Sean and her—in case they got locked out and Vaughn was still at the office. That was certainly one of the reasons, but when she was eleven, shed discovered another.

            She returned the oblivious little turtle to his home and then inserted the key into the lock. Taking a deep breath, she turned the key and pushed the door open. Cool, silent darkness greeted her as she stepped into the spotless—Vaughn would have it no other way— foyer.

            She set the key on the console table beside the door and then tiptoed, for some unexplainable reason, further in. She paused and glanced first toward the living room to her right and then toward Vaughns home office to her left. There was only one choice to make. She headed right and walked to the wingback chair next to the fireplace. Sitting, she nestled into the cushions. She pressed her nose against the fabric. Even after all these years, she could imagine the soft fragrance of Mothers perfume lingering in the ivory brocade.

            Heavy draperies hung closed over the living room windows. A shaft of light shot out from the middle space where the panels failed to meet completely and illuminated a flock of dust motes as they floated in the bright morning sun. When she was five, Mother told her the particles were tiny fairies dancing in the sunshine, but they were usually invisible. Only the magic of the sun unveiled them.

            One day, Ethne had asked Vaughn if she could borrow his magnifying glass to see the fairies, but hed refused, saying Mother had filled her head with nonsense. Fairies werent real.

            Turns out, that was one of the few truthful statements hed ever made to her. She now knew the ‘fairies’ were nothing more than a combination of dead skin cells, fabric fibers, pollen, and dirt. He was right. Nothing magical about that.

            As she walked over to the window and threw open the curtains, the fairies disappeared.

            “So, the prodigal sister hath returned.”

            She jumped and spun to face the foyer. Her little brother spanned the doorway. He had grown up. The last time shed seen him at his college graduation three years ago, he was at that stage where the calendar said he was a man, but his body was trying to catch up. He had certainly filled out, and he now sported a short, precisely-trimmed, chestnut beard. His hair, unlike hers, had deepened from bright copper to rich auburn.

            “Sean. Youre late,” she snipped. This was not the way shed envisioned their first meeting after all this time. She took a deep breath, reined in her emotions, and smiled. “Or maybe Im a little early. I have a reputation for that.” She pulled him into a sisterly hug.

            His grin answered hers. “Early, late, whatever. Im just glad you came. I was beginning to wonder if Id ever see you again.”

            “The road runs both ways, you know.”

            “Yeah. Sorry.” He held up the key shed placed on the console table. “I see you remembered the turtle. I figured Id find you sitting on the porch in one of the rockers.”

            He set a small, black gym bag on the floor. “Wheres your suitcase? Need me to get it out of the truck?”

            “Im not staying here. Ive got a room in town.”

            “Eth, I can see how hard this must be for you.” Tears filled his eyes. “Believe me. I know.”

            He really had no idea. The man he knew as Dad was not the same one she knew as Vaughn.

 

Links to the Book:

Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/56pdpzmy

Pelican: https://bit.ly/3lve7NN

B&N: https://tinyurl.com/4jnj8u7p

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/no-longer-a-captive

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/books/no-longer-a-captive-by-carol-james

GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/58857487-no-longer-a-captive


Carol James is an author of inspirational fiction. She lives in a small town outside of Atlanta, Georgia with her husband, Jim, and a perky Jack Russell "Terrorist," Zoe.

Having always loved intriguing stories with happy endings, she was moved to begin writing to encourage others as she'd been encouraged by the works of other authors of inspirational fiction.

Carol enjoys spending time with her husband, children, and grandchildren, traveling with friends, and serving in the production department at her church. And, most days in the late hours of the night or the wee hours of the morning, she can be found bringing her newest novel to life.

Connect with Carol via her WebsiteFacebookInstagram & Twitter. Read Carol's previous posts HERE.

No Longer Captive sounds like another great book, doesn't it, Friends?

Thank you, Carol for sharing with us. We certainly wish you the best of luck and God's blessings.

Until next time take care and God Bless, Everyone!

PamT

10 comments:

Carol James said...

Pam, thanks so much for letting me tell about my new release.

Kara O'Neal said...

Beautiful sounding story. I love her name. Thank you for sharing and I wish you many sales!

Barbara Britton said...

I enjoyed your novel, Carol. Congratulations on the new release.

Carol James said...

Thanks so much for your encouragement.

Carol James said...

Thanks, Kara. I had a customer from New Zealand named Ethne. That was the first time I had heard the name and knew I wanted to name a character that. So, several years later, here she is.

Suzy Parish said...

Reading this right now and loving it! If you want to know what Carol James' puppy Zoe thinks about the book, visit her on Instagram at 3dogsandtheirauthors.

Alina K. Field said...

Congratulations on the book!

Mary Preston said...

This sounds like such an emotional read.

Carol James said...

Thanks so much.

Alicia Dean said...

This sounds like a fantastic read. Really great excerpt. Congrats and best wishes!