Wednesday, August 27, 2014

"Deceitful Truths" by Maggie Thom

EXCERPT and GIVEAWAY
Deceitful Truths
(Caspian Wine Book 2)
by Maggie Thom


Deceitful Truths is the second book in Maggie Thom's Caspian Wine series. Also available: Captured Lies (see my blog post).


Deceitful Truths is currently on tour with Reading Addiction Book Tours. The tour stops here today for an excerpt and a giveaway. Please be sure to visit the other tour stops as well.


For another book by Maggie Thom, check out my blog post on Tainted Waters.

Description
He created a legacy that no one could imagine…
Tarin has lost a week of her life. She doesn't know what happened but not long after she returns to work she is suspended from her job. Confused and pregnant, she quits and agrees to marry Stephen, only to be thrown into a whole new nightmare. Desperate, she grabs her son and moves across the country to get away from her abusive husband and to avoid her unforgiving father. Thrilled at getting the Tech assistant job at Knights Associates, not only will she be helping them solve cyber crimes but she'll be able to use their connections and resources to solve her own mystery. Who stole a week of her life? And will they return to steal the secret she is now protecting?
Graham and his partner Guy can't keep up with the demand. They are being flooded with requests at Knights Associates, where they offer a combined service of private investigator and that of solving cyber crimes. It appears that someone wants to get their attention, not only have they been hacked but Guy's family business, Caspian Winery, seems to be under attack as well. Hiring an assistant seems to be the answer but when Graham discovers she's been accessing their high-security accounts, he decides the cause of their predicament might be closer than he thought. Is their new assistant behind the problems they're having? If she's so innocent, why is someone after her?
Tarin and Graham discover that although they don't trust each other, they are forced to work together to solve several seemingly unrelated crimes that may lead to one disastrous conclusion. Can they figure it all out before Tarin's nightmare plays out? Before an eighty-year-old woman pays with her life? Or before Tarin learns a truth that may seal her fate, a truth that will keep her and Graham apart, a truth that neither one of them may be able to forgive or forget...

Excerpt
Unloading, she hauled as much as she could and headed out into the hallway, once she'd checked to make sure there was no one there. She grabbed Chance's free hand, his other one was hugging his big green rabbit.
The trip down in the elevator to the garage was uneventful but it didn't ease her nerves or stop her from feeling there was someone watching her. Once the doors opened she walked quickly across the underground parkade, her heels clicking loudly, making her wince at the noise. Once at Stephen's Mercedes which she was borrowing, she stuffed all she'd hauled down into the trunk and was just closing the lid when the guard came by.
"Mrs. Roth. How are you today?"
"Tarin, please. I'm good Dale and you?" During one of their many chats, he'd told her he'd been the guard there for over ten years. He was a bit of a gruff old guy but he'd taken a liking to her. The one time he'd seen her with a bruise on her forehead, he hadn't said anything but he'd let her know he didn't believe it was from a cupboard door. Which had been the truth, she just wasn't sure herself it hadn't been deliberate on Stephen's part. Since then Dale had checked on her regularly and hinted many times that if she ever needed a place just for a short vacation, he had the best place for her. She knew he meant with him and his wife.
"Good. Good. The missus wants me to go on a cruise but I'm not sure I have the legs to be at sea for a week. I like solid ground under my feet. She's trying to get me into retirement mode. I'm done in a couple of months."
She laughed. "Oh but it'll be fun. You probably stop at a lot of islands and get off the ship, right?"
"Yes but we have to get to them islands first." He smiled at her. "Anyway can I help you? I saw you were packing a lot of stuff. I'd be more than happy to help you bring it down."
She tried hard not to react but she knew she hadn't succeeded when the color bleached out of her face and she saw his look of concern.
"Are you all right?"
"Yeah. Yeah. Just have a few things to do. Thanks but I... uh... don't need help. I'm good. But thanks."
"Hungry. Hungry," Chance who had hidden behind her leg chanted just loud enough for her to hear.
"I know, love. We just have to go up and get a few more things and then we'll go out for breakfast, okay?"
"Now, Mommy. Now."
"How did his birthday turn out?"
Tarin smiled. Dale had bought him a present since he'd been born. She wondered who'd be there to give him a present when he turned three. "He loved it. Thank you so much for the car, he barely puts it down. He plays with it all the time." She didn't know how to tell him his gift was the only one that hadn't come from her. Stephen hadn't wanted any other kids over. Not that she knew any, anyway.

Praise for the Book
"This book is even more captivating than her first two! Maggie really knows how to weave a tale and to draw the reader in. I loved the intrigue and how you really never knew who was behind it all until the very end!" ~ peace51965
"Maggie Thom’s talent for mixing mystery, intrigue and romance becomes a masterpiece begging to be read..." ~ Dii at Tome Tender
"Captivating and intense. Full of twists and turns." ~ Read Your Writes Book Reviews

About the Author
Award winning author Maggie Thom took the challenge and leapt off, leaving a fulltime, twenty year career in management, to write full time. Her first suspense/thriller book, Captured Lies (October 2012), won Book of the Month through LAS Reviews (February 2014). Her second novel, Tainted Waters (April 2013), went on to win 2013 Suspense and Thriller Book of the Year through Turning the Pages Magazine. She published her third novel, Deceitful Truths (The Caspian Wine Series Book 2), March 2014.
An avid reader and writer her whole life, she decided to break the monotony of wishing to be an author by making it happen. She is a wholehearted nature lover and likes nothing better than to take a book, hike to a remote spot by a river or waterfalls, and read. Married to her best friend, she is learning that humor, love, and patience help her navigate her way through her twins’ teen years. Her motto: Escape to read and read to escape.

Giveaway
Enter the tour-wide giveaway for a chance to win some great prizes.

Links