Author and mother of three makes her novel “Dead Again” for teens free on April 13th in hopes of lessening the stigma attached to self-mutilation and opening the door to treatment options available for those suffering.
California-residing author and mother of three Linda Rey will make her young adult novel "Dead Again" free on April 13th. The book deals with the issue of teens and cutting, a sensitive topic that the author hopes to raise awareness about, and the book also tells the stories of some of the bravest, trail-blazing teens in history.
Maybe dreams aren't really dreams at all--maybe they are memories. This was a question Linda Rey asked herself one morning as she struggled to emerge from the shadows of a dream--a dream so vivid she wondered if it wasn't more than just a string of random images and emotions created in her over-active mind. Not long after that day, while vacationing in Italy, Linda had the oddest sense of déjà vu as she walked along the cobbled streets in Venice, as if she had walked them some other time before. Some other lifetime--to be exact. Thus was born Linda's idea of a writing a book about a troubled teen, one plagued by vivid nightmares of her gruesome deaths, whose life transforms after she catapults back in time to re-live the final weeks of her life--and her martyr-style deaths, as three of the most heroic teens in the history of the world.
In "Dead Again," Joan Portman’s nightmares are killing her— literally.
Each evening, this troubled seventeen-year-old meets a painful demise in one of three horrific ways – by bullet, by fire or by attack of a pack of ferocious beasts. So authentic are these dreams, that Joan resorts to cutting herself upon waking, just to prove she’s still alive.
Tired of her meds and weary of being misunderstood, Joan accompanies her family on a European excursion in hopes of breaking this crazy cycle. But matters soon go from strange to surreal when Joan is thrust back in time in each country she visits – at once realizing that her frightening nightly visions are actually genuine memories of her former lives. Now, forced to re-live her harrowing experiences as a female gladiator in ancient Rome, a prisoner of Auschwitz in WWII Germany, and as heroine Joan of Arc in medieval France, Joan believes she may finally be able to put this torment behind her.
But the key to Joan’s recovery may lie in a final act of bravery – one that will require her to risk her life once again, and this time it just may be her last.
A reader wrote in her review: "One aspect that I particularly enjoyed is how mundane and ordinary the book portrays Joan as it starts out. Linda Rey does a great job setting up Joan's personality and daily life that involves hot topic issues such as teen anxiety, depression, medication, and having experiences that cause the main character to resort to being a cutter. These might seem like topical devices used for the sake of differentiating this protagonist out from any others, but I thought this aspect of the character was done respectfully and authentically. Never once did any of these elements of the story come off as a gimmick used to exploit current issues. I also enjoyed how the author constantly increases the suspense by upping the ante and giving more twists than I expected when first going in. Linda Rey’s writing is consistently good that provides unique and realistic voices to all her characters."
Rey will make her young adult suspense novel "Dead Again" free on April 13th. It can be found on Amazon here: https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Again-Dark-Dreams-Book...
Borrowing from a tear-stained page of Linda's past, her character, Joan, struggles with "cutting," a hot-topic issue Linda hopes to bring out of the shadows. As the mother of a teen who battled this disorder, Linda hopes to initiate the dialogue and lessen the stigma attached to self-mutilation, opening the door to treatment options available for those suffering.
Linda Rey writes young adult and middle grade books from her home in Orange County, CA, where she lives with her husband and a dog named Dude. A former teen beauty queen now more tarnished than her old tiaras, Linda is a grandma of five grandchildren--but she's a cool grandma who has a Harley Davidson motorcycle and a tattoo on her wrist that says Believe. Her favorite books as a child were The Secret Garden, Charlotte's Web, and anything by Judy Blume. To receive news about upcoming releases, deleted scenes, and other cool stuff, sign up for Linda's newsletter at http://www.lindareybooks.com, facebook.com or LindaReyBooksinstagram.com/lindareybooks/
Be sure to download a free copy of the intense, page-turning "Dead Again" on April 13th. Warning: Do not start this book at night before going to sleep. Pick up a copy here: https://www.amazon.com/Dead-Again-Dark-Dreams-Book...
