Sandra's Book Club: Blog Tour: ALEX by Dianne Hartsock

ALEX

Dianne Hartsock

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GENRE: psychological thriller

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BLURB:

Alex is twenty and confused. He always is. The world presses on him with its horrors and pain, with scintillating auras that bewilder his eyes and drive the migraines deeper. He hears the cries of the children, sees the brutal images of tortured victims. He feels out of control and his mind slips…

Severely abused as a child, he is left with horrible scars on his body and even worse scars within his mind. Even though it puts him in danger, he’s compelled to help those who call to him. He’s driven, motivated by his visions to rescue them and hopefully uncover the killer. When he can, he helps the police; yet some detectives suspect he’s involved. Often, Alex finds himself alone and afraid in a world he doesn’t always understand.

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EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT

He hurried after her as she went inside but froze when his foot landed on the bottom step. The thought of walking into the confining space of their home made him nauseous.

He raised his head suddenly, alert, his skin crawling. Someone had called his name from the driveway behind him.

“Jane?” he managed through a constricted throat, needing her help as he stepped back into the yard. Someone called his name again from the road, drawing him irresistibly forward. He moaned, not wanting it to happen, but he broke into a stumbling jog.

His mind cleared briefly as he neared the bridge. He slowed his pace. A figure sat there with their feet dangling over the water. “Helen?”

She looked at him and smiled. “I was hoping to see you. This is nicer than going up to the house.”

He glanced around, then cautiously sat on the bridge next her. “It’s good to see you out of that place. But what are you doing here?”

“Father brought me as soon as you’d left the clinic.”

Alex scrambled up, but it was too late. Helen lunged for him, throwing him off balance. Unable to catch himself, they both went over the edge and plummeted into the icy water.

Helen clung to him as the dark, roaring water closed over his head. The current dragged them to the bottom where the numbness gripping his limbs made it impossible for Alex to break free. His chest was on fire as he kicked desperately for the surface.

The river slammed him into a boulder along the shore and he lost the last of his air. Helen’s hold slipped and she tumbled away. Alex managed a painful intake of air before the swiftly flowing water pulled him under again. He almost surrendered, but someone grabbed his arm and hauled him to the bank.

He didn’t have time to think before the person jerked him into the brush and pushed his face into the dirt. He tried to break free, but his arm was bent painfully behind his back.

“Hurry, you damn fool.”

Hearing Kramer’s voice, Alex struggled, ignoring the blinding pain in his arm. He let out an oath when he heard someone else approach and Kramer’s satisfied breath.

“Hello, Alex,” Beckett sneered and kicked him in the face.

“Enough of that shit,” Kramer hissed. “Get it done.”

“With pleasure.”

Beckett knelt and dug into his medical kit.

Alex cried out when Beckett withdrew a syringe filled with a murky liquid.

Beckett patted his bruised, aching cheek. “If you weren’t insane before, this will send you there.”

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AUTHOR Bio and Links:

Dianne grew up in one of the older homes in the middle of Los Angeles, a place of hardwood floors and secret closets and back staircases. A house where ghosts lurk in the basement and the faces in the paintings watch you walk up the front stairs. Rooms where you keep the closet doors closed tight at night. It’s where her love of the mysterious and wonderful came from. Dianne is the author of m/m romance, paranormal/suspense, fantasy adventure, the occasional thriller, and anything else that comes to mind.

She now lives in the beautiful Willamette Valley of Oregon with her incredibly patient husband, who puts up with the endless hours she spends hunched over the keyboard letting her characters play. Dianne says Oregon’s raindrops are the perfect setting in which to write. There’s something about being cooped up in the house with a fire crackling on the hearth and a cup of hot coffee in her hands, which kindles her imagination.

Currently, Dianne works as a floral designer in a locally-owned gift shop. Which is the perfect job for her. When not writing, she can express herself through the rich colors and textures of flowers and foliage.

Blog: https://diannehartsock.wordpress.com/

FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/diannehartsock

FaceBook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/diannehartsockbooks/?show_switched_toast=1&show_switched_tooltip=0&show_podcast_settings=0

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4850270.Dianne_Hartsock

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/diannehartsock/

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Alex-Dianne-Hartsock-ebook/dp/B0CSYN5Y5C/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=dianne+hartsock&qid=1706506377&sr=8-1

JMS Books: https://www.jms-books.com/dianne-hartsock-c-224_445/alex-p-4993.html

Barnes and Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/alex-dianne-hartsock/1104468927?ean=9781685506599

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/alex-76

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1519070

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