BooksChatter: ☀ Love, Alchemy

Thank you for joining us on the Virtual Book Tour for Love, Alchemy, a New Adult Paranormal Romance stand-alone novel by Eden Ashley (1 July 2016, Eden Ashley, 326 pages).

PREVIEW: Check out the book's synopsis and excerpt below. Read the first seven chapters with Amazon Look Inside.

Love, Alchemy is FREE on Kindle Unlimited and Kindle Owner's Lending Library.

Author Eden Ashley will be awarding a $10 Starbucks gift card to two randomly drawn winners via Rafflecopter during the tour. Please do take part: comment on our post and follow the tour where you will be able to read other excerpts (☀), and reviews (✍).

Synopsis | Teaser | About the Author | Giveaway & Tour Stops

Synopsis

Daveigh Little is preparing for college, planning to leave behind the tiny hick town she’s spent her entire life in once and for all. But plagued by troubles at home and school, Daveigh makes a series of bad choices that land her in hot water with a local kingpin. Suddenly, people around her are dying and Daveigh finds herself on the run.

And then there’s Ethan. Fresh out of the academy, Ethan Remington represents the authority Daveigh has come to despise, but she is inexplicably drawn to the handsome rookie of few words. From the first moment she laid eyes on him, Daveigh knew Ethan was different. She just didn’t realize how different. Reasons of his own have led Ethan into the tangled strands of danger within the town of Harpey…but those reasons aren’t nearly as mysterious as Ethan’s origins or the irresistible passion between them.

**Contains Mature Content**

Teaser: Excerpt

1

“Don’t push me.”
      “I saw how you looked at my boyfriend.” The cheerleader stabbed one perfectly manicured finger into her classmate’s chest. “You’re a tramp, Davey.” She ignored the dark look that came across the girl’s face, too snobbish to believe there was any way a reject like Daveigh Little would dare touch her. She was co-captain of the squad, her daddy owned the most successful car dealership in Harpey, South Carolina, and she was the lead in the senior play. The things which made her popular also made her invincible.
      “Did you really think he’d want you? You’re ridiculous.” The cheerleader looked around smugly. Likely sensing the impending fight, students had gathered around to become a crowd of would-be witnesses to Davey’s humiliation.
      “Hey, Jessie, that’s enough. Maybe you should lay off?” Lana, captain of the cheer squad and Jessie’s best friend, looked around nervously.
      Rolling her eyes, Jessie smirked. Lana’s reprimand only served to fuel her hostility toward Davey. “I asked you a question,” she said, thrusting her finger into Davey’s shoulder again. “Did you actually think Kevin wanted a tramp like you?”
      “Touch me again and I will snap your finger in half,” Davey said. Venom dripped from each word.
      Flashing two rows of perfect teeth in a vicious smile, Jessie called what she thought was a bluff and gave Davey another rough jab. As promised, Davey grabbed the cheerleader’s finger and twisted as hard as she could. Everyone close enough heard the unmistakable crunch of bone giving way under pressure. Everyone who heard uttered a collective gasp, and Jessie’s smile became a horrified grimace. She howled in pain.
      “Oh shit,” Lana exclaimed as a sickened expression twisted her features.
      Out of nowhere, the hall monitor and resource officer appeared, seizing both girls by their arms. “That’s enough, you two. Break it up.”
      Clutching her mangled hand, Jessie burst into tears and screamed. “She broke my finger!”
      Taking a moment to examine the disfigured digit, both men turned to Davey. She could see their consideration and subsequent judgment of her pink-streaked hair, dark eyeliner, and ripped jean shorts. “Go see the school nurse,” the hall monitor told Jessie. He pointed to one of the gawking senior football players. “Escort Ms. Sullivan, and make sure she gets there without any more trouble.”
      The resource officer held onto Davey with a none-too-gentle grip. “Come with me,” he ordered and marched her to the principal’s office where Davey was left to wait outside while the rent-a-cop spoke with the principal. Board straight and rock hard, the chairs seemed intentionally designed to deliver the lowest level of comfort possible. Throughout a given school year, Davey’s ass had warmed the seats of those chairs many times. So she knew all too well that after a fifteen-minute wait, a painful limp was unavoidable when the time came to enter Principal Wardlaw’s quarters.
      Henrich Wardlaw, a former Army sniper and two-time divorcee, seemed to get a sort of twisted satisfaction from seeing students walk into his carpeted office with wounded strides. But when the office door opened and Daveigh Little sauntered in for the sixth time this school year, a jolt of disappointment flickered across his stern features. Her last visit had only transpired two days ago, ending with the threat to expel her if she got into any more trouble. If he was shocked because his warning had no effect, she couldn’t blame him.
      “Ms. Little.” With a sigh, Principal Wardlaw, aka “the Ward,” leaned back into his plush leather chair. “Have a seat.”
      Davey sat down again. It was hard to decide if the chairs in the office were worse than the ones outside. Aware of the Ward’s fondness for watching students suffer, she settled quickly. Then Davey folded her arms and waited. Nothing interesting would happen until the idiot resource officer left.
      He stared at Davey for a while, trying and failing to intimidate her. Finally, Ward nodded toward the rent-a-cop. “Mr. Wade tells me that you’ve started another fight—”
      “I didn’t start anything.”
      “… and broke a fellow student’s finger,” Ward continued. “SATs are timed tests, you know. This injury may very well affect Ms. Sullivan’s scores and gravely impact her future.”
      Resisting the urge to roll her eyes, Davey blinked slowly and watched the principal through her long, dark eyelashes with practiced indifference. She said nothing.
      “I warned you. Any more problems and expulsion would be necessary.” He let the threat hang in the air, likely expecting some show of emotion. He really should have known better. “It’s your senior year, Ms. Little,” the Ward finally dragged on. “You are one of the top students in your class, but no college is going to touch you with this kind of record. And now you could quite possibly face charges for assault.” He paused. “Would you like to tell your side of the story?”
      Davey shrugged her slender shoulders. “I’m sure your guy, Wade, has painted you a pretty decent picture.” She noted the Ward’s calculating gaze to the left. Then he said, “That will be all, Mr. Wade. Have your report on my desk by tomorrow afternoon.”
      When the resource officer left, Ward stood and walked to the other side of the large, mahogany desk that took up most of the office. As he pulled a chair next to Davey, she saw his gaze linger over her long legs. Somewhat unsettled, she uncrossed them and regretted the outfit that showcased her lean but well-muscled thighs. Ward leaned forward, allowing his knee to bump hers. Davey steeled herself. She wouldn’t flinch away.
      “Do you understand how serious your situation has become? You’re eighteen years old with graduation only a few months away. High school is hard, but it doesn’t have to be a waste. Don’t ruin the bright future in front of you, kid.” His voice softened. “Daveigh, you have to let someone help you. I want to do that.”
      She moved so her face was inches from his and tried not to sneer. “And how can you help me, Principal Wardlaw?”
      “Your road doesn’t have to end where it’s going, Davey. You could stay in school and graduate with honors.” Sliding his gaze to her thighs again, his eyes eventually returned to her face. The Principal scowled slightly as he considered her hair. The debut of pink streaks hadn’t been popular at home either.
      Clenching her teeth, Davey forced herself to relax and not run away, to remain in the chair. She looked at the Principal. His eyes were full of concern, and something else that made her stomach turn.
      “Do you want my help?”
      She couldn’t get kicked out of school, not when she was so close to finishing and getting the hell outta this town forever. Closing her eyes, Davey nodded stiffly.
      “Then say it.”
      “I want your help.”
      “Good.” Ward slid his chair back. The space between them was breath of fresh air and Davey felt safe again. Ward folded his arms as he perched behind the huge desk. “You will enroll in after school counseling, twice a week, with student services. I’m giving you one more chance, Davey. Fuck this up and you’re out of my school for good.”

Love, Alchemy
Available NOW!

About the Author

Cynic, realist, and hopeless romantic all rolled into one, Eden was born and raised in a small, sunny town in South Carolina where thunderstorms helped inspire her best ideas.

There are few things she loves more than curling up with a good book and a cup of coffee on a rainy day (except maybe chocolate cake, she loves cake), often reading into the wee hours of morning when something really grabs her.

Eden enjoys reading or watching anything with supernatural elements, so writing paranormal and fantasy romance is a natural fit.

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