Macy O'Brien's ex-husband Brett Adams in in trouble. Chance and Macy are trying to unravel his secrets in Book 3 of the Chance O'Brien Mystery Series.
Bryce Cameron is a struggling author who plans to isolate himself in the woods of Colorado to write his second novel.
He isn’t looking for anything permanent when he encounters Hannah Brody, a bright optimistic professional just beginning her career. Their chance encounter on a plane ride to Denver turns their lives upside down, because Bryce doesn’t believe in happy endings and Hannah isn’t looking for romance.
Bryce is the good son who always did what was expected to please his overbearing, dominating father and his pretentious mother while his younger brother Quinn could do nothing right. Quinn, the rebel, falls for Dixie Lee King, a girl from the wrong side of the tracks. He runs as far away as he can from his past only to come full circle for the love of his life.
Although the brothers have taken different paths in life, they reunite when a sudden tragedy strikes Bryce, and the two men begin a quest to find the truth about Hannah’s life that is shrouded in secrets.
At a restaurant, when Bryce hears laughter from across the room, he is sure that he has found Hannah, the girl of his dreams that he cannot live without.
Through a series of unexpected twists and turns, Bryce and Quinn must confront true evil to find the happiness they both deserve.
Excerpt
Bryce Cameron walked at a fast clip past the throngs of holiday travelers as he searched for gate B-70 at the JFK Airport. He’d given up his seat on the earlier flight with the promise that he would be able to fly first class non-stop on a later one.
Bryce was a thirty-year-old struggling writer. His vision of flying first class on his own dollar was so far ahead in his future he would probably be such an old man, he wouldn’t even recognize the difference.
He’d managed to acquire an agent and sell his first novel to a major publisher, but his sudden fame and fortune had fizzled before it began. The only place his novel could be found now was in the mystery section of the used bookstore gathering dust.
Out of breath and sweating, he hurried to the United Airlines counter. He handed over his boarding pass and was greeted with a smile.
“Ah, Mr. Cameron, I was hoping I wouldn’t have to give up your choice seat to someone else.” She smiled warmly at him. Bryce was a handsome man, tall and lean with light brown hair tinged with hint of red worn a little too long. His forest green eyes were fringed with lashes most women would kill for.
He rewarded her with a smile of his own and in a soft Southern drawl said, “Thank you. I appreciate your holding the seat. I got caught up with something and didn’t hear the call for the flight.” Held up, he thought. I was desperately trying to imagine something for my next chapter. Something that would set the next book apart so people who read it would ask for more.
He took the boarding pass and made his way onto the plane while murmuring hello to the flight attendant and looking for his much-anticipated seat. He’d never sat in the front rows on a plane before unless it was in one of the puddle jumpers that had only one class of seats available. He’d spent four years at the Naval Academy and then another six on active duty. His major in English had not thrilled his father, The Captain, or his mother, the queen of the Officers Wives Club. With a degree in English from Annapolis, he’d spent his time working for the Navy’s weekly newspaper and managed to fulfill his father’s wishes as well as his own. He’d spent much of his naval career in Virginia except for the time he served in the Middle East as a reporter for the Navy Times.
He found his seat and stored his carry-on case in the bin above next to a shiny silver striped one. He leaned down and looked right into a pair of smiling hazel eyes. An exceptionally pretty, young woman with long, blond hair would be his seatmate for the flight to Denver.
“Hi,” she said and then turned back to the book she had been reading.
“Hello,” he replied and settled down to fasten his seatbelt. Her pleasing, clean scent was more refreshing than the harsh perfume that some women wore. So much for the company of a gorgeous woman, he thought. As soon as the plane was in the air, he took out his laptop and began to jot down the ideas he’d been bouncing around in his head. Several moments later, he heard a book slam against the table tray and an unladylike snort.
Bryce glanced over at the woman, and for the first time noticed the title of the book she’d been reading. “Oh hell,” he mumbled. He hoped she hadn’t heard him.
To his surprise she said, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb you. I… well… I’ve wasted a few hours of my life I’ll never get back.”
“Stank pretty bad, did it?”
She looked back down at the book and said, “I’ve read worse. All and all it was okay, but the ending was pretty awful.”
“Why is that? What was wrong with it?”
“Do you read books, Mister…?”
“Cameron, Bryce Cameron, and yes I read books as a matter of fact I…”
“Well,” she interrupted, “I don’t see the point of reading a book and getting invested in the characters only to arrive at an unhappy ending. Why would anyone want to read a book that doesn’t have a happy ending?”
“The critics seem to like it, but nobody else does.”
“So, you’ve read this book?”
“Look on the inside cover.”
“What?”
“The inside back cover. Look at it. What do you see?”
She opened the cover and gasped. “Oh no. It’s you” She looked away and then back again. “I’m so sorry. I would not have said those things if I’d known you wrote it.”
“That’s okay. It’s honest criticism. I’m what you would call a one-book wonder or well, I guess, not even that. I pitched the idea, got an agent and got it published. Like I said, the critics liked it, but it didn’t sell like they hoped. I’ve been trying for the past year to come up with something people would like. What would you like, Miss…?”
“Hannah Brody, and I like to feel good after I finish a book. I want to feel sad that it’s over, and I won’t get to have the characters in my thoughts all day long.”
Professional Reviews
An Excellent Read
"Fascinating, intriguing, and absolutely an excellent read is the romantic mystery, Stolen Laughter by Tess Thompson. Starting with the prologue, the characters are believable and invite the reader to become invested in their lives. One of the many things that I like about the Tess Thompson style of writing is their ability to give the reader the amount of information needed to form a mind’s eye picture, but not so much that the reader gets bored with minutia. Sometimes the reader doesn't realize that what seems unimportant to the story line is really expertly and intricately woven into the plot.
For me, guessing the direction that the novel will take is part of the fun of reading a novel, and I love to be right, but in this case I was totally surprised ,which is a good thing. This book is truly filled with unexpected twists and turns. Although sequels are not something that I think about or hope for, but in this case, I would love to see a sequel because Juliette intrigues me."
Kept Me Rivited
"I could not put the story down. Lots of surprises and suspense, without the same old love story or mystery like so many other books available. Absolutely enjoyed this tale!"
Suspenseful Romance
"I love reading Tess Thompson's books. Stolen Laughter is no exception. The book actually contains 2 related plots both dealing with two brothers finding/keeping the love of their lives. What follows is a twisty road that's filled with excitement at every turn. Read this book and you won't be disappointed. Guaranteed."
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