Discovery (book 1 in the Ruins Trilogy)
By Janie Franz
Anthropologist
Kate Ferguson stumbles upon desert ruins, ancient rituals, and psychic gifts,
awakening a love that could prove deadly.
EXCERPT
Though some of Kate’s fellow graduate
students would probably have noticed the superb fit of the stranger’s designer
suit, it was his black hair, beginning to gray at his temples, which caught her
eye. That was an odd quality in someone his age with his obvious Spanish
lineage and apparent refinement. She scanned his features, taking in his
sensitive mouth and a nose hinting at an Aztec hawkishness.
She quickly rejected the comparison as
she turned to Dr. Swartz, her employer as well as her faculty advisor. He had
accused her on more than one occasion of trying to find Aztecs under every rock
as she researched Aztec/Maya links with the Arizona prehistoric peoples.
Embarrassed at the memory, she turned
back to the stranger. His dark gaze concentrated on her intently for a few
seconds, and then he retreated into his thoughts as if he could only focus on
the world around him in brief glimpses. It didn’t seem like the muddleheaded
preoccupation she’d seen among physics majors. And, it definitely wasn’t
drugs—or any she had read about—since he just exhibited a piercing moment of
clarity and after that withdrew. It seemed a controlled act or one repeated so
often it had become habit. His ability to turn on a single moment of intense
interest and concentration like switching on a floodlight—and quickly turn it
off—fascinated Kate. She wondered if he had family problems preoccupying him—an
errant wife or a child flunking school.
BUY
LINKS
About Janie Franz
Janie Franz comes from a long line of Southern liars and
storytellers. She told other people’s
stories as a freelance journalist for many years. With Texas wedding DJ, Bill
Cox, she co-wrote The Ultimate Wedding Ceremony Book and The Ultimate
Wedding Reception Book, and then self-published a writing manual, Freelance
Writing: It’s a Business, Stupid! She
also published an online music publication, was an agent/publicist for a
groove/funk band, a radio announcer, and a yoga/relaxation instructor.
Currently, she is writing her tweveth novel and a
self-help book, Starting Over: Becoming a
Woman of Power.
Character
interview
1. Nickname
or name? Kate Ferguson. My full name is Kathryn but I’ve always been Kate
2. Job? I’m
currently an anthropology grad student, studying connections
between Aztec/Mayans and native cultures in Arizona
3. Most
important goal? I want to write the definitive book on ancient peoples in
Arizona.
4. Worst fear
or nightmare? I have a secret—actually two. I have a gift of psychometry. That
means I can sometimes feel things when I hold objects in my hands. But it is a
small gift now. I just get whispers, faint feelings. My fear is that I’ll be
found out and that I’ll be made fun of. The other is that even at my age, I’m
still a virgin.
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