Good morning everyone! Please welcome author Phoenix Blackwood to Full Moon Dreaming! They are here today to tell us about their new release, The Love That Binds Us. Phoenix will be awarding a $10 Amazon/BN GC to one randomly drawn commenter via Rafflecopter during the tour. The more you comment, the better your chances of winning. To find the other stops on their tour, go here. Don't forget to look for the Rafflecopter at the end of this post!
The Love that Binds Us
by Phoenix Blackwood
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GENRE: LGBTQIA+ Coming of Age
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BLURB:
From the outside, Alex has a perfect life. She
has a partner who loves her, gets good grades in school, excels at most sports,
and has a big heart. From the inside, Alex’s life is anything but perfect. She
hasn’t spoken to her father in years. She’s hiding the fact that her
once-best-friend now-romantic-partner Theo is trans and nonbinary from her
homophobic mother. Bullies are harassing her and Theo at school, taunting and
shoving. It’s all becoming too much for Alex to bear.
Things take a surprising turn when Alex’s mother
discovers her relationship with Theo. After Alex is thrown out of her house and
taken in by Theo’s foster family, Alex can live honestly. For a while, things
start to feel manageable. Alex finds a new group of friends. She navigates what
“family” means beyond her mother and sister. She even considers forgiving her
mother’s past mistakes. But forgiveness requires honesty. Secrets Alex’s mother
has been keeping are surfacing, trying to bind Alex to misery. As Alex learns
the full truth of her mother’s past mistakes, she will need the love of her
chosen family and friends to gently bind her life into a shape that keeps her whole.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EXCERPT:
I sat on my bed and pulled Theo down to my level, kissing
them on the forehead. They sat down with me and kissed me on the lips until
they were leaning over me and my hands were wrapped around the back of their
neck, pulling them closer. They were so soft, always so tender. I focused all
my attention on the kiss, so much so that I didn’t hear the small squeak of my
door opening. Theo pulled away suddenly, jarring me and forcing me to look in
the direction of their gaze.
Leah had opened the door. She stood there with her mouth
open, her face frozen in wonder and confusion. She’d known Theo since we’d
become friends, I bet she had never imagined finding us kissing when she opened
my door.
Theo and I looked at each other in horror. The secret was
out, how were we going to get her to keep quiet? We should’ve been more
careful. We’d gotten too comfortable.
I signed for Leah to come sit between us on the bed. My face
got hot as she sat and tears brimmed in my eyes. My mom could never, ever find
out - Leah knowing was so dangerous. She looked up at me with wide eyes
and signed, “Boyfriend?”
Theo must’ve seen the panic rising up in me, because they
took over. They gently rested one hand on her shoulder to get her attention and
then explained, “We love each other. I’m not a boy, but I’m still her partner.
I’m like a boyfriend, just minus the boy part.”
Walking through the threshold of Theo’s house was like a
weight lifting off my shoulders, all the tension of home and school falling
away. This was what home was supposed to feel like. I flopped down on the couch
and Theo joined me a couple minutes later with two mugs of tea, handing me one.
I leaned into them as they wrapped an arm around my shoulders after turning the
television on to the latest show we’d been binging. This felt so safe, so calm.
A feeling I rarely got in my own home. Always on edge, an internal dissonance
telling me that I wasn’t good enough. Here, I was everything I was supposed to
be.
We watched television until Seth–Theo’s brother–made his way
down the stairs and started rummaging through the kitchen to start dinner. The
house was quickly filled with smells that made my mouth water - meat searing in
a pan, vegetables being chopped, pasta water boiling. I sat in the scents until
I couldn’t take it any longer and my stomach growled, causing me to get up and
make my way into the kitchen.
Seth shot me a sly smile. “Probably another ten minutes.”
I pouted, staring at the food and willing it to cook faster.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
AUTHOR Bio and Links:
Born
and raised in New England, Phoenix has always been a creative – whether it’s
painting or writing. From a very young age, Phoenix has envisioned and created
characters, writing them into existence and exploring them through visual arts.
Having graduated to first-time short story author, Phoenix is embarking on a
journey towards novel writing as they finally bring characters they’ve known
for years into the world. Phoenix is neurodiverse and intersex and hopes to
bring more representation to both topics with their writing. They believe in
creating relatable characters that people can find themselves in and empathize
with.
Amazon
buy link: https://www.amazon.com/Love-that-Binds-Us-ebook/dp/B0BNC6VFPD/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1) You’re marooned on a
small island with one person and one item of your choice—who is that person and
what item do you have?
The
“who” is difficult, I have two very close friends that I’d want to see.
However, I think one of them is better suited to the solitary life that would
come with living on a deserted island, so I’d likely choose her. My other
friend can blossom and become a social butterfly, and I fear he’d miss that.
Assuming
one cannot get any kind of signal for various electronics that would facilitate
rescue, I would choose, well, would my dog count as an “item”? She’s not a
person, at least. I’d definitely want her. If not, maybe my bow for hunting,
although I’m not very good with it. I’d have all the time in the world to
practice.
2) Take these three
words and give me a 100 word or less scene using them: hammer, saucer, traffic
lights
Sitting
at a set of traffic lights, my mind wanders and remembers how you took a hammer
to my heart. The world shatters around me, like a saucer dropped out of
surprise, out of anguish. I begin to shake and don’t notice the tears flowing
from my eyes, down my face, a fresh wound still bleeding. No one can fix this.
No one. I’m left with the searing loneliness and contemplate what life will be
like without you. A life empty, meaningless.
The
light turns green, but I don’t move; stuck in the echo chamber of my mind.
3) When you start a new
story, do you begin with a character, or a plot?
Usually,
a character. My characters all have very strong voices and drive their stories
forward. Sometimes, the stories start with a feeling, and words just tumble
from my mind onto the paper. Plot almost never comes first, it’s something
cobbled together along the way.
4) Who’s your favorite
horror villain and why?
Any of
Guillermo Del Toro’s creature designs. They’re beautiful to look at, and some
of my favorite designs I’ve ever seen. Pan’s Labyrinth sticks out in my head
for its beautiful artwork, but I’m sure there’s many more – Cabinet of
Curiosities, The Shape of Water, I haven’t seen Pinnochio yet, but from the
previews it looks gorgeous.
5) Is there a story that
you’d like to tell but you think the world isn’t ready to receive it?
A story
of the rage I feel for the injustice towards intersex people in the world. I
feel as though the world wouldn’t listen, and it’s one I’m definitely not ready
to write at this time. The Love that
Binds Us touches on it briefly, but nowhere near as much as I’d like to
explore it in my mind. I want people to feel the pain that they’ve caused
someone like me, like Alex. The alienation due to things we can’t – or don’t
want to – change.
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