Three
Army veteran misfits, a college dropout, an unmotivated high school
graduate accused of murder, a controversial warden of a women's prison,
and a little girl with the gift of prophesy – these are the people
31-year-old Lara Kruger invites into her life after suffering a
miscarriage, a divorce from an abusive husband, and unemployment.
******** EXCERPT *********
The
young child skipped through the tall trees and underbrush, unaware of
the puddles created by recent rains or the low-lying tree branches and
vines that swiped at her coveralls and scratched her bare arms. Hugging
a doll that showed the wear of a favorite toy and a faint smudge of
chocolate ice cream, the child pushed forward with determination. She
knew where she wanted to go, and her face showed the intensity and
resolve of a person much older than her five years. The black woman
wearing the uniform of a prison guard struggled to keep up with her
young charge. The thick green tangle of natural forest growth and
uneven turf was more of a challenge to a woman her size and stature.
The
child stopped when she reached a clearing, that place in the woods that
wasn’t quite so overgrown and where the wild vegetation had been
pressed from previous visits. In front of her was a tree, magnificent
in size, ancient in age. She had reached her destination. She called
it, quite simply, “the place.” Quietly, reverently, she approached the
tree, reaching out and touching the familiar rough surface and its many
irregular crevices. She squatted where some roots had pushed upward and
were now gnarled and covered in bark before extending downward again
deep into the soil. It was between
two of these large root formations that the child placed the doll – a
throne. Her hand explored the curvature of one darkened root, first
touching the soft green moss, and then the small indented place that
held water whenever it rained. It was moist. Satisfied, she knelt.
Then, lowering her head and folding her dimpled hands together, she
started to pray.
Barbara
Casey is president of the Barbara Casey Agency, representing adult
fiction and nonfiction for authors throughout the United States, Great
Britain, and Japan. She is also the author of numerous articles, poems,
and short stories. Her award-winning novels have received national
recognition, including the Independent Publishers Book Award, the Dana
Award for Best Novel, and the Publisher’s Best Seller Award. Her
novel, The House of Kane, released in 2008, was considered for a Pulitzer nomination, and her novel Just Like Family received special recognition by the 7-Eleven Corporation. Her latest young adult novel, The Cadence of Gypsies, was reviewed by the Smithsonian for its list of 2011 Best Books. The Gospel According to Prissy, a contemporary adult novel, was released in the spring of 2013.
In addition to being a frequent guest lecturer at universities and writers’ conferences, Ms.
Casey served as judge for the Pathfinder Literary Awards in Palm Beach
and Martin Counties, Florida, and was the Florida Regional Advisor for
the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators from 1991
through 2003.
LINKS:
******** GIVEAWAY ********
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