Thank you for joining us on the Virtual Book Tour for Affected, a Suspense Mystery Thriller by Randi Lee (29 April 2015, Abuzz Press, 292 pages). PREVIEW: Check out the book's synopsis and excerpt below, as well as our Q&A with author Randi Lee. Read the first three chapters with Amazon Look Inside.
Please do take part: comment on our post and follow the tour where you will be able to read other excerpts (☀), interviews (ℚ) and guest blog posts (✉).
Synopsis | Teaser | Author Q&A | About the Author | Tour Stops
Synopsis
Eight years ago, there was no World Government. There were no agents, no carts. The fear of a nosebleed did not exist. Then came The Affection—an incurable disease that ran rampant across the planet, killing off roughly 60% of the human population. Two years later—with order in shambles and governments all over the world in ruins—the World Government formed. That’s when the real trouble began. The WG made it its mission to segregate the sick (known as “Affected”) from the rest of the population in an attempt to keep the disease from spreading. Agents were put into place to corral the ill and the God-forsaken carts were introduced.For the past six years, Ethan has lived a quiet life. He has done his best to remain out of the public eye and, more importantly, off of the agents’ radars. However, when his ex-girlfriend, daughter of the famous scientist who first discovered the disease, is captured by agents and taken to World Government headquarters to be experimented upon, Ethan can no longer pretend the world around him doesn’t exist. On his way to save her, Ethan is thrust into a place of turmoil, espionage and conspiracies. Will he be able to handle the pressures of reality? Will he be able to save her in time?
Teaser: Excerpt
It begins with a nosebleed. That’s what the official press release said. There’s no need to be alarmed until you sneeze red. When the Leader of the Free World announced that first symptom, people everywhere believed him without argument. After all, what reason did he have to lie?
Agent Matthew Cameron didn’t trust him, however. A smart man, Cameron was, a thinker. He didn’t believe The Leader’s words. Cameron knew it began far sooner than that— he knew a conspiracy was upon them. Cameron would prove it one day, his theory, but not quite yet. There was work to be done and no one better suited to do it than he. A newfound filth now covered the world. Looting. Riots. Murder abound. In order to restore civility a cleansing was needed. That cleansing superseded the truth.
Someday I’ll get him, Cameron thought. Just not tonight.
A loose section of rusted chain link fence captured Cameron’s suit jacket and tugged as he leapt over it, tearing the arm clean off. Cameron cursed, hit the ground and reached for his gun. He wanted to ignore what the Chief said about shooting to kill— the jacket was an Armani, Goddamn it— but he was on his third strike and couldn’t afford an unpaid suspension. He’d give a warning this time, but not much of one.
Cameron ran up a dirt trail flanked on either side by static tree trunks and windswept branches. A rotting log disintegrated under the pressure of his foot, causing him to stumble. Shrubs full of thorns caught him and ripped nasty little lines into his palms. He reached for the low hanging bough of a river birch and pulled himself out of the bristled mess with one hand. The other hand held firmly onto his standard issue Grandpower K100 Slovak with itchy fingers.
Cameron landed on the other side of the bushes and fired a warning shot into an upcoming clearing. Tawny deer, an array of birds and a pair of black bears scattered in every direction like an explosion making its way outward— however, no human cries were heard. The forest quieted. He stopped and looked round, his keen brown eyes searching the lines of oaks for any hint of a clue.
Their goldenrod leaves provided no assistance.
Think, Cameron. What would you do?
He always asked himself this question when chasing a target. Connecting with their fear and motivation gave him clarity, a view into their world. Where would he go if the tables were turned? Into the browning field ahead? No, he wouldn’t be stupid enough to expose himself out there. So if not then—
—The Horse Caves: a series of interconnecting boulders southwest of The Notch. That’s where Cameron would hide. If this target of his was smart enough— and he had to be given how long he’d avoided Cameron— that’s where he’d go, too. Cameron turned left and headed uphill.
Not longer after, he hit the Robert Frost Trail. It led him through a series of muddy springs and up a flight of stairs made of tree roots before popping him out on the mountain’s main trail. Running up that trail for five minutes brought him to The Horse Caves— several massive rocks carrying one another with crevices hanging between them.
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way, Mr. Johnson.” Cameron pointed his gun at the center of the row of boulders. “However, I should warn you: I don’t mind the hard way.”
The gunfire resounded unexpectedly, as did the bullet that grazed Cameron’s right arm. He dropped his gun, slid down against a nearby boulder and clutched the wound. Forcefully cussing Johnson’s name, he did the best he could to right himself while keeping his arms and legs tucked behind the safety of the massive round slab.
The hard way it is.
Another bullet fired past, this time just above Cameron’s head. He dove to the ground, grabbed his gun with his good arm and wildly shot at The Caves. This strategy didn’t result in Cameron hitting his target, but it stopped the shooting on the other end long enough for him to stand up and hide behind a tree, a little closer to the boulders— and Johnson.
“Just leave me alone!” Johnson’s chattering voice hit the resounding walls of the caves and multiplied. “I haven’t done anything wrong!”
“You know that isn’t the truth, Mr. Johnson.” Cameron’s ears perked and searched for the origin of his target’s voice. He had to keep him talking in order to discern his exact location. If he could get one clear shot… “You “You know what you’ve done. You know whom it is you have killed! Your family, your friends. Your—”
“— It isn’t true. It isn’t true!”
“Give it up, Mr. Johnson. We can still end this peacefully.” “We both know that there’s no way this’ll end peacefully!”
Keep talking, Johnson. “I assure you, there is a comfortable way out of this, Mr. Johnson. If you turn yourself in peacefully I will forgive you for my shoulder, and my jacket.”
“You’re lying!” Johnson shouted clearly.
Yes. The echo in his voice is gone; he’s out in the open.
“Why would you tell me the truth?” Johnson continued. “You’re ly—” The bullet pierced Johnson’s heart with a surgeon’s precision. When he fell it was unceremonious. There was no small inkling of life left in him, no meaningful final words. He simply fell— as they all did.
Clutching his shoulder, Cameron walked to his target’s body. He used his Allen Edmonds capped-toe shoe to roll Johnson over.
Spit hit the dead man’s face. “That was my favorite jacket.” Cameron pulled out his newly released, sixty-four gig iPhone Twelve, called headquarters and prepared to explain why he’d killed another one. Hopefully the Chief wouldn’t be too pissed. He did have a legitimate reason this time.
Agent Matthew Cameron didn’t trust him, however. A smart man, Cameron was, a thinker. He didn’t believe The Leader’s words. Cameron knew it began far sooner than that— he knew a conspiracy was upon them. Cameron would prove it one day, his theory, but not quite yet. There was work to be done and no one better suited to do it than he. A newfound filth now covered the world. Looting. Riots. Murder abound. In order to restore civility a cleansing was needed. That cleansing superseded the truth.
A loose section of rusted chain link fence captured Cameron’s suit jacket and tugged as he leapt over it, tearing the arm clean off. Cameron cursed, hit the ground and reached for his gun. He wanted to ignore what the Chief said about shooting to kill— the jacket was an Armani, Goddamn it— but he was on his third strike and couldn’t afford an unpaid suspension. He’d give a warning this time, but not much of one.
Cameron ran up a dirt trail flanked on either side by static tree trunks and windswept branches. A rotting log disintegrated under the pressure of his foot, causing him to stumble. Shrubs full of thorns caught him and ripped nasty little lines into his palms. He reached for the low hanging bough of a river birch and pulled himself out of the bristled mess with one hand. The other hand held firmly onto his standard issue Grandpower K100 Slovak with itchy fingers.
Cameron landed on the other side of the bushes and fired a warning shot into an upcoming clearing. Tawny deer, an array of birds and a pair of black bears scattered in every direction like an explosion making its way outward— however, no human cries were heard. The forest quieted. He stopped and looked round, his keen brown eyes searching the lines of oaks for any hint of a clue.
Their goldenrod leaves provided no assistance.
Think, Cameron. What would you do?
He always asked himself this question when chasing a target. Connecting with their fear and motivation gave him clarity, a view into their world. Where would he go if the tables were turned? Into the browning field ahead? No, he wouldn’t be stupid enough to expose himself out there. So if not then—
—The Horse Caves: a series of interconnecting boulders southwest of The Notch. That’s where Cameron would hide. If this target of his was smart enough— and he had to be given how long he’d avoided Cameron— that’s where he’d go, too. Cameron turned left and headed uphill.
Not longer after, he hit the Robert Frost Trail. It led him through a series of muddy springs and up a flight of stairs made of tree roots before popping him out on the mountain’s main trail. Running up that trail for five minutes brought him to The Horse Caves— several massive rocks carrying one another with crevices hanging between them.
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way, Mr. Johnson.” Cameron pointed his gun at the center of the row of boulders. “However, I should warn you: I don’t mind the hard way.”
The gunfire resounded unexpectedly, as did the bullet that grazed Cameron’s right arm. He dropped his gun, slid down against a nearby boulder and clutched the wound. Forcefully cussing Johnson’s name, he did the best he could to right himself while keeping his arms and legs tucked behind the safety of the massive round slab.
The hard way it is.
“Just leave me alone!” Johnson’s chattering voice hit the resounding walls of the caves and multiplied. “I haven’t done anything wrong!”
“You know that isn’t the truth, Mr. Johnson.” Cameron’s ears perked and searched for the origin of his target’s voice. He had to keep him talking in order to discern his exact location. If he could get one clear shot… “You “You know what you’ve done. You know whom it is you have killed! Your family, your friends. Your—”
“— It isn’t true. It isn’t true!”
“Give it up, Mr. Johnson. We can still end this peacefully.” “We both know that there’s no way this’ll end peacefully!”
Keep talking, Johnson. “I assure you, there is a comfortable way out of this, Mr. Johnson. If you turn yourself in peacefully I will forgive you for my shoulder, and my jacket.”
“You’re lying!” Johnson shouted clearly.
Yes. The echo in his voice is gone; he’s out in the open.
“Why would you tell me the truth?” Johnson continued. “You’re ly—” The bullet pierced Johnson’s heart with a surgeon’s precision. When he fell it was unceremonious. There was no small inkling of life left in him, no meaningful final words. He simply fell— as they all did.
Clutching his shoulder, Cameron walked to his target’s body. He used his Allen Edmonds capped-toe shoe to roll Johnson over.
Spit hit the dead man’s face. “That was my favorite jacket.” Cameron pulled out his newly released, sixty-four gig iPhone Twelve, called headquarters and prepared to explain why he’d killed another one. Hopefully the Chief wouldn’t be too pissed. He did have a legitimate reason this time.
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About the Author
Randi Lee is, first and foremost, a writer. She has many years of experience in both the creative and professional writing fields. Her creative portfolio includes two short story/poetry collections, a full-length novel and numerous short stories and poems published independently. Professionally, Randi has written copy, content, and many articles for the companies she has worked for and with. Having worked in several different fields, Randi has a clear understanding of how to write for a variety of clients and situations. Randi’s adaptability and virtuosity lend themselves well to any project.
Randi is also a successful editor and proofreader. Again, her talents carry across a broad spectrum of projects, from editing individual manuscripts to proofreading copy for professional companies.
Knowing what is needed for a multitude of writing projects provides Randi with a keen sense of how to best approach each challenge she is presented with.
The benefits of working in a vast array of markets, from insurance to architecture and beyond, are evident in Randi’s unique ability to provide support in numerous ways. She is well versed in several different types of software and web-design applications, including Sharepoint, Wordpress, Squarespace, GoDaddy and more. Randi is also proficient with the Adobe Creative Suite, including Photoshop and InDesign. Web content development, formatting and management are just a few tricks she has hidden up her resilient and malleable sleeve
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Sep 23: I Heart Reading
Sep 23: Stormy Night Reviewing
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Sep 23: Stormy Night Reviewing
Sep 25: Indy Book Fairy ☀
Sep 26: BooksChatter ☀ℚ
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