Oliana Mercer Series Book Tour & Giveaway

High
school senior Oliana Mercer dreams of attending the prestigious
Reyersen Drama Academy and pursue her acting career. But when tragedy
strikes, Oliana discovers secrets hidden from her by her adopted
parents, dimming the lights on her perfect world.

 

As
the sins of the past surface, Oliana finds herself caught up in a
tug-of-war between two families while the love for her boyfriend is
tested.

Determined
to find some form of happiness in life, Oliana becomes student
director in the high school’s senior play. When her best friend,
Devin Worthy, dies during dress rehearsal, Oliana is re-cast as the
lead.

Everyone
thinks the death was a suicide, except Oliana, whose search for clues
may be enough motive for the killer to murder again.

Austin
wants Oliana to stay and not attend Reyersen Drama Academy, a
relative from the past wants her forgiveness, the custody battle for
her little brother moves forward…and then there’s James whose
recent drug habit landed him in trouble. Now he’s missing. After a
charred body, believed to be James is found in a dumpster behind the
high school, Oliana receives a text from James’ phone.

When
Oliana turns to the police for help, she is pulled into a conflict
that makes her question whether to obey the law while fighting with
the family who abandoned her.

As
Oliana learns more about the school’s past, she begins to suspect
people around her might be involved and becomes obsessed with finding
out what really happened. When another body is discovered, Oliana
finds out that acting will be her best chance for survival.

Prequel
to the Oliana Mercer Series

Sealed
by a shared bond, and unaware there is more to the secret than what
she was told, Collins feels honor-bound to protect her friend when a
confrontation between Olivia and her childhood tormentor turns
deadly.

A
mysterious text forces Traci to question Olivia’s actions and
re-examine her loyalties. When the answers to Traci’s questions
endanger a life she treasures more than her own, she must decide if
friendship has a limit. For a bridge once burnt severs ties
forever…

Goodreads* Amazon

She’s
a workaholic who hides in her writer’s attic, plotting out her next
book and stalking Pinterest for the next avocado recipe.

A
member of Sisters in Crime, Marguerite grew up in Colorado, but is
now happily living in Wisconsin and playing as much golf as possible.
She can be found on Twitter and Facebook.

Instagram
* Bookbub* Amazon* Goodreads

CHAPTER 1
For the last forty-two days, Duran’s coffeehouse had served as my refuge from the temptation of the dark piss
colored brew that had slowly eaten away at the lining of my gullet year after year. Alcohol had stopped being
my best friend, and it was now my worst enemy. Popping a little white pill to settle the rogue waves of acid
reflux was a daily reminder of what I had done to my already marred body.
Therefore, paying $4.50 for a 16 oz. cup of gourmet coffee meant that even my wallet had to do penance for
my troubled addiction. On the upside, however, Duran’s served good food, had a glorious view of the distant
Rocky Mountains and was just ten minutes outside of Denver, in Cherry Creek. I enjoyed the ambiance and
welcomed the conversations affording access to others’ semi-private lives.
For a Sunday afternoon, it was unusually quiet. No line of impatient customers jockeyed for position at the
counter; the only people there were we four and a couple sitting across the room talking in hushed voices.
Dark clouds spread across the skyline as a heavy thunderstorm brewed outside. My grandmother used to say
thunderstorms washed away bad memories and made room for new ones. With every storm, I wished I could
prove Grandma right. I wanted my turn to come so I could erase the memory of my car accident. It was only
one of the many putrid recollections I had of my mother.
A month and a half ago, after fifteen years of polluting my liver, I had hit bottom. Sipping on the long neck
bottles that housed my favorite beer seven days a week had finally lost its allure. I woke up one Saturday
evening from a drunken slumber on the floor, my computer desk chair at my side, with a bruise on my
shoulder, thinking it was Sunday.
It was nice to see the world more clearly instead of the usual old blur after a night of drinking. It was a
difficult choice, but I could already feel a difference.
Even my co-workers at the law firm noticed and had begun complimenting me on how much happier I looked.
In a way, I was envious of the other paralegals in my section. Before I stopped drinking, the ladies and I would
go to the bar once or twice a week to unwind. Now, I had to politely decline every time they asked. An upside
to my new sobriety was that I made three new friends: Olivia Durning, Norman Mercer, and Kevin Walsh. I
thought it was odd that I could feel closer to a group of strangers than I could to my own mother. It reminded
me of my college days where finding a connection was so easy, so fast, so necessary.
The first time I had a good look at Norman was when he stepped out of his black Lexus GS at the coffee shop.
He struck me as the kind of guy who was a knight in shining armor to any female in distress. Blond, with a
manicured scruff of stubble, he wore a v-neck shirt with long sleeves and dark wide leg jeans. It was like
seeing my favorite Hollywood actor, Roy Majors, back in his heyday, only Norman was more reserved, and
nothing overwhelmed him. His Texas accent was as strong as his political opinions while his southern
manners showed he was a true gentleman.
“Okay. What’s your count?” Norman asked, interrupting my thoughts, pointing his finger
at me.
“Forty-two days.”
“Twenty days,” Olivia said.
“I’m closer to sixty and still going strong,” said Kevin.
“You never give me the exact day, my friend.”
“I believe in setting a mental goal and striving to make it happen.”
“All right,” Norman said. “I’m at ninety-seven days.”
“Hey, Traci,” Kevin said, pulling out a deck of cards, “did you forget you owe me a game of Crazy Eights?”
“No, but if you insist on losing another round, I’m ready.”
When I met Kevin, he threw me off balance with his tough guy exterior, raunchy humor, and bright intellect.
Some of the things that dribbled from his mouth should’ve stayed put, locked behind the chinstrap beard
outlining his narrow jaw. Approaching his forties, Kevin’s feet were grounded firmly as a single father. Two
minutes with him was enough for anyone to realize that his twin daughters were his focus in life. To show his
love, he sported different style vests to display his pledge tattoo that bore the names of his little girls spelled
out in blue ink flanking a pair of angel wings across his shoulder blades. He dared for anyone to challenge that
love. Kevin dealt the cards while Norman tapped away on his notepad.
“Olivia, do you want to play?” I asked.
“I guess so.”
Kevin stopped dealing out cards. Norman looked up.
I turned in my chair to face her. “Is something the matter?”
“My birthday is coming up, and it’s not something that I’m looking forward to.”

Kevin laughed. “Who doesn’t like celebrating their birthday?”
Norman shook his head, pressing his index finger to his lips. Olivia noticed and her eyes widened. “Jesus. You
told Norman?” she asked, hurling her cards at me.
I picked them up and laid them neatly on the table.
Olivia was a sweet girl with a thin rail frame who took pride in the long chestnut brown hair she kept in a
ponytail held with multiple decorative hair ties. She had small eyes like black dots printed on fabric that
resisted being a set of the three primary colors. They were lonely and dim. The only time they flickered with
life was when she sang. Her voice was as smooth as a saxophone. When she spoke, her words fell from her
lips with grace, and when she belted out a song she’d written, her listeners held their breath, enchanted. I
believed her songs were telling her story, spilling out her soul of great heartache and dreams.
“I only told Norman because I thought you trusted him. You’ve told me as much yourself.”
“When did this happen?”
“A couple days ago.”
“She’d left her reading glasses here last Sunday, and I ran them over to her,” Norman said.
“I was bothered by what you told me,” I said, knowing how lame I sounded. “Believe me, I regretted it
immediately after I said it.”
“It’s a good thing I didn’t tell you my entire story.”
“What story?” Kevin said.
“Olivia–” Norman began.
“It’s okay,” I told him. “I deserved that. I promise not to betray your trust again.”
Olivia snatched the cards off the table and fanned them in her hand. “Can we just play?”
Kevin dealt the rest of the cards. “I hope you know you can talk to me, too.” He placed the remaining stack of
cards in the middle of the table.
Olivia pursed her thin lips and pulled from the deck. “I’m not mad. I’m embarrassed.” She laid out her first
spread of three fives.
“What happened to you was not your fault,” Norman said.
“Thanks.”
I played from my hand and waited for Kevin to make his move as he concentrated on what to play next. Olivia
retreated into her own world, tracing the sinew strands of her dream catcher.
“Is that a new one?” I asked.
“Yes. I love the feathers on it.”
“Does it really stop bad dreams?” Kevin wondered.
“Most of the time, but I think some of my dreams are too horrid even for a dream catcher.”
“You’re not alone,” Norman said.
“Drinking used to help me sleep. Forget the past for a night.” Olivia placed the dream catcher in her lap. “It
didn’t take long for it to stop working.”
“That’s how it was for me,” Kevin said. “Then I began using anything I could as an excuse to drink.”
“Same here,” I said. “One thing I’m certain of – it feels good not to wake up with a pounding headache.”
We all laughed and finished our game, which I lost. Kevin ordered another round of javas to go, and we
packed our things.”
“Are we still doing our Thursday dinner?” Olivia asked.
“At six,” I confirmed.
“I have to stop by the hospital first, to pick up my reinstatement papers,” said Norman.
“Congratulations! We’ll make it a celebratory dinner.”
“I’d like that.”
“I’ll pick up the food after my counseling appointment,” Olivia offered.
Everyone else got up and waited for me to stand.
I grabbed my onyx cane and struggled to get out of my chair. My knee ached more than usual, which meant a
change in the weather was coming. A storm — a big one — was brewing.

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