Publication date: July 18th 2013
Genre: YA Contemporary w/light supernatural element
A "good boy" will do anything for vengeance when a gang rite kills his twin sister. Will Lucas win, or follow his sister Silver into the darkness?
After a hideous car wreck, Lucas wakes from a coma to find that his world is gutted. Not only is his beloved twin sister, Silver, gone forever, but Lucas is broken in body and spirit. He will never be a college athlete, and is robbed of what he now realizes was the most important bond of his life. Although they weren't identical twins, Lucas and Silver shared a bond so fierce it defied reason, and was nearly supernatural.
After her death, that bond seems to endure when Lucas sees Silver everywhere he turns. Either he's crazy, or Silver is trying to tell him something about the California gang initiation they stumbled into that cost Silver her life. Lucas is bent on revenge, turning on Raymond, Silver's former boyfriend; the one Lucas never wanted her to date. He forms a posse of vigilantes to take out the gangsters responsible for Silver's death, but he risks not only his own life, but the love of the new girl on his block, who knows more about Lucas and Silver than can be accounted for by mere chance.
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EXCERPT:
Silver’s
babbling continued at racecar speed. Seriously, I didn’t want to hear about the
new target of my sister’s lust. The
fallout of her last crush with one of my
friends still jacked me up. Memories surged and my gut pinched. Ex-friend now.
A blissful moment of silence descended.
I peeked at my twin in the passenger seat. Brow puckered, she sucked on the
straw to her daily iced mocha. My gaze slid past the speedometer clocking me at
ten over in a fifty-five zone.
“Something feels weird tonight, Lucas.”
Her tone turned somber. “Maybe you ought to slow down.”
“Meaning?” I felt her apprehension, a
feeling I’d grown used to over the last week since she’d kicked Raymond—our
collective ex—to the curb.
She shrugged. “Just a weird vibe I’ve
had since we left the mall.”
“Raymond still bothering you?”
Silver looked out the passenger window.
She didn’t have to hide the tears I felt
from her in our weirdo twin bond. Hoping to lighten the mood, I gunned the car
on a clear stretch of the frontage road. Despite her heebie-jeebies, I knew she
loved the speed as much as I did.
Night had sneaked up on us as we left
Monterey behind. We zoomed past the dimly lit Welcome to Sea Haven, California sign. Population 28,342, give or
take ten million in an influx of farm workers from the inland counties, yearly
tourists, and summer resort peeps.
The thumping drone of the Red
Renegade’s new headers oozed ’68 perfection. Or as sweet as the Camaro SS
should’ve sounded back in 1968. “Camaro sounds badass, you think?”
“I guess.” Silver sighed, knocking her
cup on her thigh. “Do you think I did the right thing?”
“Dumping Raymond?” Incredulous, I
glanced at her. “Hell, yes.”
“He’s still your friend. He keeps
calling me.”
“We’re football teammates. Nothing
more. I’ll make sure he stays away from you.” I tweaked her hair. “You know
he’s gunning for my spot.”
“You’re the best quarterback the
school’s ever had. Coach would never,” Silver said thoughtfully, jingling her
silver bangle bracelets.
Good enough to get three scholarships
to killer schools. “I am perfect, aren’t I?” I teased, wanting to slide her
mind off douche bag Raymond. He’d never know how much I hated him for the way
he treated my twin. If I didn’t continue to keep the peace, he’d get all
vindictive on her, like he did with other girls who quit taking his crap. I’d
bite my tongue into pieces before I let on how much I knew about
him . . . pressuring her . . . before she was
ready. A slow burn spiraled up my chest. Screw him.
Dropping my speed, I felt for the
glassy shift of the four-speed transmission. I’d spent junior year restoring
the Camaro, using all the money from my weekend gopher job for my mom at the
resort. I finished the last engine mods in time for summer break in two weeks.
I was raring to open up the Red Renegade on the public track.
“I’m still ticked about my cell,”
Silver said, her long blonde hair streaming out the open window, her mind
already switching gears as usual. “Karma’s like a boomerang.” She swished her
drink. “It always comes back ’round.”
I snorted. “In your case, it always
bites you in the butt, and I gotta wipe up the mess.”
“Not always, Lucas.” I deflected her
playful backhanded slap. “You owed me a trip to the mall. Besides, I didn’t lose my cell. Someone stole it out of my
purse.” She danced her fingers on her silver bangles into a tinkling vibration.
“I needed a new phone anyway. Screen was shot.” A giggle slipped out. “Karma’s
a bitch.”
As we neared the speed trap on County
Coast Road, I eased up on the gas. The small-block engine thumped and growled,
the exhaust burbling defiantly. Few cars zipped past, driving south toward
Monterey. Cops wouldn’t clock me going more than seven over north of the Sea
Haven sign. This stretch of the frontage road had already earned me a speed
warning. Lucky for me, I weaseled my way out of a ticket by promising to
install a Borla exhaust on the sheriff’s Corvette. Killer small town bribery.
Silver traded my quick grin with her
evil squint. Her evil squint was one of her poker “tells.” That particular tell
meant the hard drive was spinning in her head. Which led me to believe she knew
who nicked her cell. Man, I felt sorry for the poor sucker.
She slurped down the dregs of her mocha
and tossed the empty cup in the pristine backseat, missing the trash bag by a
mile. “Oops.”
“Silver! My car’s not a trash bin.” I
knocked my fist on the gearshift, glowered for half a tick. We approached the
STOP sign at the Ocean Avenue intersection. I downshifted and rolled to a full
stop. The streetlight across the intersection bathed the red car in amber fire
and ghosted the stickweeds along the side of the road. Light glinted off a
small spot in the ditch to our right.
“Jeez, go find your happy place, will
ya? I’ll get it when we . . .” Silver cranked up her window so
fast I thought she’d just discovered that sea air killed genius brain cells.
She mashed her elbow on the door lock. “Someone’s hunched over in the ditch.” The
seat harness squeaked as she squeezed closer to the center console. “Oh. My.
God. A body’s lying down there, too.”
About this Author:
After bemoaning the lack of young adult books to read, Erin
wrote her first novel at the age of eighteen hoping to shift the tide.
Then everyday life took its toll on her writerly dreams until 2003 when
she couldn’t ignore the writing bug any longer. By then, she
had immersed herself in reading adult fantasy and romance novels.
Writing paranormal & fantasy romance was a no brainer. Erin
has published two adult romance novels: CHASING SHADOWS, a paranormal
romantic suspense (EPPIE award finalist and Night Owl Romance 5-Star Top
Pick) and WICKED PARADISE, a fantasy romance, released in August 2012.
Erin will finally realize her lifelong dream of publishing a young adult
novel when VIGILANTE NIGHTS debuts in July 2013.Erin Richards lives in Northern California. In her spare time, she enjoys reading, photography, and American muscle cars.
Pre-Order your copy of Vigilante Nights before its official hardcover release date of July 18, 2013 and get an exclusive gift! Details at: http://www.erinrichards.com
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Thanks for hosting me and Vigilante Nights on your blog today! I really appreciate it!
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