“You shall stay here until you bear me a child. Then you can stay or go, the choice shall be mine!”
A bride is sent off into the unknown to marry a stranger on All Hollows Eve, October 31, 1749. What she finds on her arrival is enough to make her skin crawl. Limping footsteps, blood-curdling screams, smoking torches, and a house built on a cliff…a man she only sees in the dark, his breathing labored behind a mask.
“A betrothal is as good as the wedding vows. You cannot leave.” “Am I your prisoner?”
Maggie Tideswell
Give us the one to two sentence tagline for your book.
A bride is met by a darkly mysterious man, presumably her betrothed. The vows was to be spoken on the morning of All Hallows Eve.
What is your favorite scene/moment in your book?
When the truth is revealed
How do you use magic in your book?
As a scare tactic. One of the characters uses magic to spy on her nemesis and to confuse her.
Would your hero enjoy pumpkin spice lattes, candy corn, or apple bobbing?
Apple bobbing
What costume would your heroine (or hero if MM) wear to a halloween party?
A deep blue velvet gown adorned with seed pearls around the neckline and cuffs, and a black lacy mask that offset her flawless complexion.
What scene did you adore writing in this book?
The one where the lies are revealed, and becomes clear that they were not that far off the truth.
Is this book a spooky/scary PNR, or a cozy/snuggling with a monster PNR?
Spooky/scary PNR
Halloween’s coming. Do you do anything special to celebrate?
Oh yes, the three days of All Hallows Tide
Excerpt from Finders Keepers – Exclusively available in the Soul’s Day Anthology
The cat was still there beside her, though, his purring a soothing sound. It was good to know she wasn’t completely alone.
Then she heard it. Tap, thump…scrape, tap, thump…scrape, tap, thump…
Oh, God! It sounded like uneven footsteps on a hollow floor.
Where was it coming from?
Tap, thump…scrape, tap, thump…scrape.
It was coming closer, but where was it going? The limping footsteps might be coming from the very walls of the house itself.
She didn’t see the cat lifted its head when she yanked the covers over her head. Her heart hammered against her ribs, her mouth too dry to swallow her fear. What was that? Was it human?
Holding her breath, she waited for whatever was to come next. The halting footsteps had stopped, heavens only knew where. She pushed the blankets off one ear better to hear.
A sudden draft stirred the edges the bed hangings. Her fingers clutched the blankets until they cramped. She peered over the protective covering, her eyes stiff in her head.
And then her worst fears became reality.
Tap, thump…scrape, tap, thump…scrape…
It is inside my room!
How did it get in? She had locked the door as Henry instructed her to do. She’d left the big brass key in the lock on the inside of the door.
She hadn’t heard the door opening.
Tap, thump…scrape… It was coming closer to the bed.
Tap, thump…scrape, tap, thump…scrape, tap, thump… Now it was circling around the foot of the bed.
Lenora barely dared to breathe. Someone was in her room! Rain drummed against the window, but the drapes hung motionless around the bed again.
The silence, when it came, was deafening.
Oh. My. God.
She was locked in a room with…with…kept prisoner by… Who or what was in her bedroom?
Tap, thump…scrape, tap, thump…scrape…
Rustling reached her from beyond the bed hangings, then a log was tossed into the grate. Slowly, Lenora pushed herself into a sitting position, her shawl clutched tightly around her. That was very much a human in the room.
Tap, thump…scrape, tap, thump…scrape…
That was not her imagination playing tricks on her!
Scooting down under the blankets, she held her breath, trying to be as still as possible. In the dark, he might think the bed unoccupied.
But she knew he wouldn’t. He was looking for her, and he knew exactly where to find her—ensconced in the big bed.
Tap, thump…scrape, tap, thump…scrape.
The footsteps stopped beside the bed. The breathing was loud enough to wake the chickens.
Her eyes, stiff in her head, pierced the gloom, waiting.
Henry! Henreeee! You are supposed to protect me. You told me I’d be safe in this room!
Fingers curled around the edge of the drapes.
A scream drowned out the horrible breathing, hurting her ears.
It took a moment for her to realize the screaming was coming from her own throat.
Maggie Tideswell is a bestselling international author with a passion for romance. Ghosts just can’t seem to leave her alone. She combines things that can’t be explained, sweaty bodies and rumpled beds in a way that will make your toes curl and your hair stand on end.
Maggie just can’t do without perfume, coffee and the internet. She is nearly as passionate about food as she is about creating alpha heroes every woman will fall in love with, just as she does, every time.
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Ellen Mint 