The Ghost of Secret’s Gate
Genre: Paranormal/Contemporary Romance
Series: Loch Ness Legends #1
He wanted a home…
1861. Estranged from his family for a shocking betrayal, Highlander Lachlan MacQueen is a man who lives by his rules and no other. Reckless and rootless, he roams the border towns between Scotland and England, a mercenary for hire with an unspoken determination to regain all he’s lost. By any means necessary.
When he inadvertently saves the life of Queen Victoria, she rewards him with a royal boon, the deed to a small manse nestled along the shores of Loch Ness called Secret’s Gate and a stipend to ensure his outlaw days are over. But past sins demand payment and when the price becomes too high, Lachlan’s untimely death becomes another skeletal ghost in an unopened closet.
She wanted to heal…
2017. Verity Harper’s memories of Secret’s Gate are hazy at best. Two months spent in Scotland 25 years ago echo with remnants of a mysterious, hasty departure home to America and fresh beginnings with her mother, Pamela and new stepfather, Archibald MacQueen.
Now, she returns to claim the legacy left to her by Archie; the very manor of her erstwhile childhood summer. But the free spirited, fun loving child that roamed the grounds with innocent glee has been replaced by a heartbroken woman full of remorse and shattered by regret.
And now, she’s beginning to question her sanity when an alluringly familiar voice in her head opens the floodgates to a piece of her past long forgotten.
Can a lie that destroyed one life give another the truth it needs to be whole?
Author’s Note:
One of my all-time favorite movies is The Ghost and Mrs. Muir, starring Gene Tierney and Rex Harrison. Once a year, my mother and I watch it together, it’s our “thing”.
I’ve always wanted to write my own ghostly love story but they can be tricky in various ways. I finally bit the bullet though and began work on “The Ghost of Secret’s Gate”. It ended up turning into a much larger story than originally intended but I am so happy with the end result!
It’s got a few of my favorite things: Scotland, Hot Ghost Dude and did I mention Scotland?
So, meet my new friend Verity, a woman tottering on the brink of defeat….
Excerpt:
Ah, she couldn’t get enough of Clare’s raspberry cranachan trifle. Clearly by the feel of her skirt’s tightening waistline.
Voices, however, she’d had enough of and reached for one of the six pill bottles on the nightstand, deftly plucking one from the rest. Her auditory hallucinations weren’t a result of a psychosis, so there was no actual medicine to treat her. She refused to take anti-psychotics, scared it would do irreparable damage to her already battered brain. She noticed it only flared when she grew irritated or anxious, thus she had grudgingly accepted the doctor’s recommendation of Halcion, in its lowest doseage. Sedating her brain activity afforded pockets of relief from hearing things. Thinking things.
What’s happened to you, sweetheart?
Uncapping the bottle, she shook out a pill, popped it into her mouth and took a swig from the glass of water Clare had brought her earlier. Well, thank you for asking, Voice in My Head. Let’s see. Life. Life happened. I grew up, got a job, made a career, married, divorced. Nearly got crushed by a train while working on location. Spent a lot of time in physical therapy for my back while alternately falling in love with painkillers. Lost my mind and my job after that. Lot of fuzzy time in between in which I did some pretty shameless things to keep my fix going. Woke up one day, decided this was my story and since I was holding the pen, it was time for a rewrite. Got clean, got a new job and got engaged. But instead of planning a wedding, I ended up missing a funeral after I killed my parents. That about sums it up. Oh, and my fiancé dumped me because my face is no longer pleasing to the eye. Anything I left out can be found in the brochure. Grab one on your way out. I’m here all week, try the veal!
Release Date: 2/16/2017
Will be available on:
Author Bio:
Born on the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous,Torie is the illegitimate love child of Han Solo and Daenerys Targaryen. Rescued by Gandalf shortly before her home planet was destroyed in the last days of the Clone Wars, she was raised in relative obscurity by her foster parents, Severus Snape and Pippi Longstocking. At the tender age of 113, she inherited the best little whorehouse in Texas and is rumored to be bringing Sexy Back. A self confessed chocoholic, she’s been engaged to Willy Wonka despite gossip surrounding a lifelong affair with Bruce Wayne.
And clearly, she practices delusion on a daily basis.
The truth is, I’m just an overgrown kid with a vivid imagination who loves to write and share my crazy with the world. My future plans include, hopefully, buying a lovely Scottish castle and convincing Queen Elizabeth I that I’d make a fab addition to the Royal Family.
Four years ago, I finally got my ‘brave’ on and submitted a wee story about true love, honor, friendship and the magic within us all. That story was Timeless Night, the first book in a five book series I’ve named New Camelot. Since then, I’ve been lucky enough to have published Timeless Desire (Book 2 of New Camelot), Beauty and The Feast (A New Camelot Thanksgiving Novella) Ties That Bind (The Cloie Chronicles I), Fractured Fantasies (Valentine’s Venom), Fractured Fantasies (Volume 1-6) and slew of short stories.
I live in Southern California, a stone’s throw from Disneyland, with my family and the most ridiculously spoiled pets anyone could imagine. I wake everyday with the determination to make this life as random, quirky and beautiful as it can be.
If I haven’t scared you off yet, feel free to track me down at any of the following!
You can find/follow Torie at:
Thank you so very much for hosting me Benjamin! You rock!
Good luck with the release!