Tori L. Ridgewood’s new book Wind
and Shadow: Book One of the Talbot Trilogy, published by Melange Books,
was released on June 20, 2013.
After a series of misadventures including being accused of attempted murder in high school, Rayvin Woods, a photographer and natural witch, left her hometown of Talbot in Northeastern Ontario, hoping to start her life over and never return. Ten years later, circumstances force her back to face her past and her former crush Grant Michaels.
Malcolm de Sade, a cunning vampire, escapes from an underground prison looking for vengeance. His accidental release unleashes his hunger and ambition on a small, sleepy town. Rayvin’s power is all that stands between de Sade and his domination of Talbot, and beyond.
Grant Michaels, a police officer, thought Rayvin was a murderer. He will do whatever it takes to protect the community he loves from danger... but will he learn to trust his heart, and the word of a witch, before it's too late?
Rayvin didn't count on rekindling a lost love or battling a malevolent vampire and his coven for her life when she came home to Talbot. Facing the past can be a nightmare… It’s worse when a vampire is stalking you.
Wind and Shadow is available for sale on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Wind-Shadow-Talbot-Trilogy-ebook/dp/B00DYCH64Y
“During a period of writer’s block on Wind
and Shadow, I wrote a prequel novella titled Mist and Midnight to help myself find answers to questions about
how my vampire was trapped, and why he had come to the small town of Talbot in
the first place. Mist and Midnight
was released in 2011 as part of the Midnight Thirsts anthology,
published by Melange Books. It’s a stand-alone piece, but it’s a terrific
companion to The Talbot Trilogy,” said Ridgewood.
Blood and Fire: Book Two of
The Talbot Trilogy will be
released in February 2014.
Excerpt from Wind and Shadow: Book One of the Talbot
Trilogy by Tori L. Ridgewood
Rayvin’s teeth were
grinding together. The pretty little waitress, her head cocked while she
smacked her gum and smiled saucily, didn’t know with whom she was dealing.
Rayvin’s hand itched to wipe those too-red lips off her freckly face; her
magick boiled inside her, making the room spin slightly with its intensity.
Maybe the little bitch wanted those braces to be permanently glued to her
teeth? Or every freckle to spontaneously morph into ugly, enormous, oozing
pimples?
Rayvin had had enough of
being nice. She had held her tongue while Asshole Wilson had made his
insinuations, in front of everyone. She had been good, waiting with utmost
patience while Grant Michaels, of all people, had risen somewhat to her
defense. He had impressed her, just when she didn’t want to feel or be
impressed, which put her in even more of a bad mood. Everyone kept assuming
they knew everything, just like this dumb bitch behind the counter, who had smiled
blandly when Rayvin had tried explaining her relationship to Andrea.
“Sorry, I don’t know you,
I wasn’t on shift last night.” She snapped her gum. That particular habit had
always driven Rayvin crazy. “I could lose my job if I let you have the necklace.”
“Is the assistant manager
here?”
Snap. Chew. “Nope. Sorry.
She’s busy.”
“Look, maybe I haven’t
made myself clear—” Rayvin checked her name tag. “Susan.”
“Suzie.” She smiled
brightly, flipping a long brown pigtail over her shoulder and thrusting her shirt
forward.
“Whatever. You don’t seem
to understand—”
“Hey, there, Suzie-Q!”
Michaels eased his way between Rayvin and the counter. Inwardly, she seethed at
his interference and at herself for feeling relieved. She had already fought
this battle with herself; she did not need his help. So why was her breast
still tingling where his chest had brushed against it while moving her aside?
As he smoothly explained
the situation, again, Rayvin crossed her arms and scowled at the patrons
watching with interest. Once more, she was getting attention that she neither
needed nor wanted. Tapping her foot to focus some of her negativity, she looked
away as Michaels continued to flirt with the girl behind the counter.
Susie was now leaning
against her arms to reveal her assets at their best angle, beaming up at the
tall dark off-duty cop who had to be twice her age. Her giggles clawed up
Rayvin’s back. She saw a dimple flicker within the light dusting of bristle on
Michaels’ face as he grinned down on the little girl.
She couldn’t look away.
She’d seen him grin like that before, for his friends, but not for her. Her
heart ached, remembering a flash of a grin she’d thought was directed toward
her in high school. And the crushing embarrassment when she’d realized he was
looking at someone behind her. It was ridiculous, really, that the man had this
ability to affect her in this way, after ten years. Stupid.
Impatiently pacing to the
door and back, she couldn’t decide what irritated her more; the entirely
age-inappropriate crushing going on, or her reaction to it. Her hackles had
gone up in a decidedly defensive manner. It shouldn’t matter that he wasn’t
interested. He’d made the boundaries in their relationship painfully clear. She
shouldn’t even use the word, ‘relationship.’ She was essentially a subject in
an investigation, and the enemy of his best friend. And yet she needed him to
get what Andrea needed. Michaels could talk to people in a way that she could
not, and it was clearly working. She grudgingly appreciated the effort, on
Andrea’s behalf, but still . . . did he have to be so obvious?
As long as he was able to
get the necklace, then they could go their separate ways, and she wouldn’t have
to watch him smiling at a pretty girl. She wouldn’t have to pretend that he might,
in some small way, want to move forward. His offer of coffee had felt like a
truce of sorts, and for a moment she had nearly believed that they were just
two ordinary individuals, catching up after years of separation. But as much as
she wanted to believe in the possibility and enjoy something of a reunion, or
something more, because she had to admit that the man made her weak in the
knees and always had, she knew it could never happen. There was too much
history between them. Now, there was too much at stake. Whatever heartache and
loneliness she might feel, she would have to bury it, for Andrea’s sake.
Rayvin swallowed her
feelings, and resumed her post behind Grant, glowering at her former high
school crush and the flirtatious waitress.
The door opened again,
this time admitting an icy wind as well as an individual in dirty jeans and a
torn and grimy black jacket. He pulled the door shut firmly against the breeze.
Rayvin couldn’t see his face for the curtain of greasy black hair under his
dismal grey trucker’s cap.
The patrons closest to the
entrance reacted to the unexpected gust of cold air, grabbing for their coats
and scarves. The newcomer stood by the door, rubbing his grubby hands
vigorously. It was a hint of the winter to come, Rayvin reflected, shivering
through her own thick woollen sweater. If it was as cold as that wind
suggested, she was going to have an uncomfortable journey home, whether it was
walking or riding with Officer Michaels. Constable Michaels. Whatever he was
called now. She rubbed her arms, waiting for the brief burst of chill to
dissipate with the warmth of the restaurant.
It didn’t.
In fact, as waitress Suzie
twirled her hair around her finger and dipped below the counter to retrieve the
necklace for Michaels, Rayvin noticed a distinct odour pervading the room. A
couple behind her left off eating their soup, noses wrinkled wrinkling in
distaste.
“Does it seem darker in
here to you?” Michaels asked.
Before Rayvin could
respond, Suzie called out, “Do you have a penlight or something? I can’t see
down here.”
Obligingly, Michaels
removed the tool from an inner coat pocket, and turned around.
Rayvin had noticed that
the lights seemed dim, and the small votive candles on each table were giving
off faint blue hues. Not that any of the diners picked up on their supernatural
glow; they were putting on coats or sweaters against the chill that continued
to spread, or using menus and napkins to try wafting away the stink that ruined
their appetites.
She stepped toward the
stranger who had walked in, sensing the source of the problem. For a brief
instant, as he lifted his chin, her eyes met his in the shadow under the brim
of his filthy hat.
Suddenly, it felt like the
walls were closing in; the world tilted around her, her head pounded, and her
vision exploded. Sickening lights and horrifying, demonic faces leered at her
as the floor slanted under her feet. The breath left her lungs in a whoosh, as
though she’d been punched in the stomach. Rayvin reached out, blindly, hands
grasping for something solid, and found Michaels’ arm.
“We have to get out of
here, now,” she whispered, clutching his wrist.
She turned her head away
from the shadows and that elongated and loomed over her to gesture at the door,
where the decorative lights shimmered and stretched into a matrix of fantastic
threads snaking through the air to bind and trap her. They blinded her against
the dark figure, but she could hear his malevolent laughter. It echoed all
around her, drowning out the words she knew Grant was speaking; she could feel
his chest against her back, an island of stability in the chaos, rumbling
gently as he spoke. Her knees trembled, nearly giving way under the onslaught.
The arm encircling her waist took her off-guard, and she fought against it at
first, until touch revealed it to be Michaels’ muscle, sinew, and bone holding
her steady.
As one, they moved toward
the entrance. His grip tightened as Rayvin staggered under the weight of the
malevolence bearing down on her. Black, dark, evil energy sank down along her
shoulders and spine, cloaking her with icy tendrils and muffling her senses
even as her feet shuffled toward the threshold, until she felt the contours of
the door under her palms. The vile blanket lifted from her with the first
brushes of crisp, fresh air against her face; she tilted her chin up, letting
the calming breeze wash over her eyelids, her nose, and her lips. Exhaling, she
let him steer her down the sidewalk a few paces. She felt like a swimmer who’d
barely escaped drowning. Stopping at a low stone wall, Rayvin leaned her elbows
against its frosty, pitted rough surface, and immediately missed the warmth of
Michaels’ touch when his hand let go of her body.
“What the hell happened in
there?” Michaels was standing a step away, his hands fisted on his hips.
She looked up, rubbing the
back of her hand against her forehead. The pain banding her skull from temple
to temple was starting to ease, but when she opened her eyes, halos of energy
stood in bright relief around the living entities and made her head ache anew.
Michaels moved into her field of vision. She flinched, but instead of the burst
of agony she was expecting, his aura flooded her with calm. He stepped closer,
and with relief, she felt herself opening to his vibration, warm and healing.
She felt his concern, his confusion and frustration, and more.
“I . . .” Rayvin
hesitated, unable to hold his gaze. She looked back the way they had come, down
the sidewalk at the seemingly ordinary restaurant. Another couple was just
coming through the doors, holding hands and laughing, oblivious to whatever had
attacked her.
“It’s hard to explain. I
felt something . . . wrong, really wrong. Something powerful, that came at me,
like it was attacking me, or about to. It wasn’t safe to stay. I couldn’t see,
couldn’t breathe . . .” She shuddered, bowing her head, and felt him move a
step closer.
“Well, I thought you were
going to faint,” Michaels noted. “And you’re still pale. Are you on anything?
Any medications, herbs, or . . .” He cut off when she glared at him blearily.
“What you experienced could logically be the result of a hallucinogen of some
kind.”
Cradling her chin, he
pulled out the penlight again to check her pupils. She jerked her head, trying
to get away, but he refused to let go. The touch of his hand made her breath
come more quickly. The sensation of his fingers brushing against the sensitive
skin, just below her jawline, weakened her defences. Or was it his nearness,
the way his eyes met hers, his lips so close to her own that hers trembled in
response? Rayvin’s stomach was still clenching in reaction to fear, and her
fingers were numb with shock; her instinct was tearing her in three directions.
She wanted to run back in and fight the creature. She wanted to run for her own
life. And she wanted to stay right here in the safety of this man’s arms.
She would never know who
moved first.
Her eyes closed as his
mouth covered hers, yielding to the hand that cupped her face and tilted it
back. Her fingers touched his chest, exploring the contours of the warm muscle
hidden under the soft flannel work shirt. Heat blossomed between her thighs as
she felt his heartbeat quicken. He moved closer, settling into the space
between her legs as their kiss deepened.
About
Tori L. Ridgewood
After her first heartbreak, Tori found
solace in two things: reading romance novels and listening to an after-dark
radio program called Lovers and Other Strangers. Throughout the summer and fall
of 1990, the new kid in town found reading fiction and writing her own short
stories gave her a much needed creative outlet.
Determined to become a
published author, Tori amassed stacks of notebooks and boxes of filed-away
stories, most only half-finished before another idea would overtake her and
demand to be written down. Then, while on parental leave with her second baby,
one story formed and refused to be packed away. Between teaching full-time,
parenting, and life in general, it would take almost seven years before the
first novel in her first trilogy would be completed. In the process, Tori
finally found her stride as a writer.
At present, on her off-time, Tori not only
enjoys reading, but also listening to an eclectic mix of music as she walks the
family dog (Skittles), attempts to turn her thumb green, or makes needlework
gifts for her friends and family members. She loves to travel, collect and make
miniature furniture, and a good cup of tea during a thunderstorm or a blizzard.
Under it all, she is always intrigued by history, the supernatural, vampire and
shapeshifter mythology, romance, and other dangers.
Tori is currently working
on Crystal and Wand: Book Three of The
Talbot Trilogy. She lives in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada with her husband
and two children. She is a full-time teacher at a local high school.
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ToriLRidgewood
Website: http://torilridgewood.wordpress.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ToriLRidgewood
Thank you so much for having me on Love Bites and Silk Ties! And here's a bit of good news -- the second book in the trilogy, Blood and Fire, has just been released.
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Tori
Great! Congratulations, Tori. Hope we get to find out more about Blood and Fire soon.
DeleteI am completely blown away by the number of mentions Wind and Shadow is getting on Twitter, thanks to Love Bites & Silk Ties! Definitely lifting my spirits while I lie sick in bed with the flu… Thank you so much!
DeleteJust for fun, here's the blurb for Blood and Fire:
What chance does one witch have against five vampires? Alone, not much. But Rayvin’s allies are gathering...
The battle between good and evil supernatural forces heats up in the long, cold November nights of the former mining town. But how will Rayvin’s motley crew of spellcasters and shapeshifters cope when they discover the threat they face is even greater than they imagined?
Cheers,
Tori
Oh, I hope you get well soon, Tori. Flu sucks.
DeleteBlood and Fury sounds great.
Kay xx