Author Bio: Renee' Novelle is
preceded by a long line of published family members, including Pulitzer Prize
nominated author and Poet Laureate of Kentucky Jesse Stuart.
As a child, Novelle was
already gaining recognition for several of her works, and in her formative
years, she continued this trend by earning local awards for her short stories
and poems.
Inspired to cultivate her
talent, Novelle pursued freelance journalism and has found placement of 75 of
her pieces in both online and print publications since 2008. Additionally, she
has written multiple screenplays, and contributed her savvy, effective writing
style to many non-profit and for profit organizations. She launched several
blogs over the years, which garnered international attention.
In 2013, Novelle returned
to her first love - fiction. Writing under the names Renee Novelle and R.S.
Novelle, she has a publication schedule that includes psychological thrillers,
suspense, paranormal fiction, contemporary women's fiction, chick lit, and new
adult.
Though she received her
Bachelor's of Science in Communication, Summa Cum Laude, she considers herself
a constant student of the written word. She's an avid reader, an enthusiastic
quote poster, and rarely takes "no" as a final answer. She has an
unhealthy obsession for theater, dance, music and art, and strongly believes
that wine is simultaneously the beginning of, and resolution to, all of life's
problems. She believes in following dreams, and that in the end, you always end
up where you meant to be.
Calculated
Book #1 in the Discovered Series
An investigative
journalist gets an unlikely tip from a mysterious informant. Dismissing it as
impossible, she disregards the information and drops the story. Until the
informant turns up dead, as predicted.
Plunged into the murky
waters of a seedy underground prostitution ring, this psychological thriller
provides twist upon dark twist in a story that would ultimately pin the church
and several government officials in the largest murder cover-up the city has
ever witnessed.
But is it true, or has
the journalist merely been used as a pawn in a greater scheme? And how many
people is she willing to sacrifice trying to figure it out?
Purchase on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EW6J7G6
Excerpt
Impatience
took over and Ana couldn’t resist any longer. She turned her head to glance at
the alarm clock. 5:03am. Exactly
three minutes after the last time she’d checked. Pressing her fingers against
her eyes, she released a long, loud sigh.
At that
point, it had been over an hour that she’d been lying there, tossing around in
her thoughts, urging her body to slip back into sleep. She’d tried to read a
book, but hadn’t been able to focus enough to stay in the pages. Watching
television hadn’t proven any better of a deterrent either. All that was left
was to lay there in her silence – thinking, wondering, planning...willing hers
eyes to just get even a little bit sleepy again. But she had no such luck
It
frustrated her to the core that Mara and her insinuation of a good story had
affected her like that. It’d been years since she’d become so intrigued she’d
actually lost sleep over it. Never mind the threat of reassignment looming in
the background as well.
Fuck it, Ana thought as
she whipped off the sheets from her silk clad body. Might as well make use of the morning. Landing her feet on the
floor, she made quick time of pulling her long hair into a braid and splashing
some water on her face. Next she pulled on her sweatpants, then headed to the
gym to work out her inner thoughts.
When she
arrived at the little facility her building provided, a quick look around confirmed
she was the only one there. Just as she’d hoped, and exactly how she liked it
to be. Smiling in satisfaction, she flipped on the television that was perched
on the wall, and turned up the music on her iPod as loud as she could handle
it. The multiple distractions would help her get through the extra mile she was
planning to conquer. With chilled water bottle in place, she cranked up the
treadmill to a nice brisk pace.
As her
breathing picked up speed and her muscles began to warm, Ana’s eye caught a red
flash along the bottom of the screen. Breaking
News filled the bar, and the too-chipper-for-their-own-good reporters were
suddenly getting serious. Since the volume was still muted, Ana couldn’t
understand exactly what was going on, only that they were showing the wide
stretch of river that ran along the outskirts of the city. She wiped the first
beads of sweat from her brow, and used the remote to turn the volume of the
television higher while simultaneously adjusting her music.
As the
reporters spoke, home-video footage of something floating in the water rolled
before her eyes. The camera zoomed in, the frame ever so shaky, and it became
clearly apparent that the “something” was a person - face down with long brown
hair spread out like a Catholic halo. It appeared another victim had been
pulled out of the water; the count was quickly tallying up. A young woman this
time, and possibly one who had gone missing the night before.
Ana’s
pulse skipped a few beats as they replayed the video over and over. There was
something familiar about the long, lean body. Slowing the treadmill to a stop,
she ripped the ear buds from her head to give the segment her entire attention.
...it appears at first glance that the victim suffered
from a deep cut to the throat, and received multiple stab wounds to the chest...
The beads
of accumulated sweat turned cold on Ana’s brow. She immediately reached for her
phone and dialed Kylie’s number.
“What the
hell, Ana?” Came her friend’s groggy voice.
“Turn
your TV on. Channel four. Hurry.” Ana said, eyes transfixed to the screen in
front of her. “Recognize that face?”
...It’s thought the victim may be one of the young
girls recently reported missing. The screen flashed
candids of three possible women. All brunettes. All tall and thin. All roughly
the same age. Among them was a photo of Mara, just as Ana had expected there
would be.
But the
body was too bloated and disfigured to be absolutely certain, and an autopsy
would be needed.
... The body will be taken in for processing where
officials hope to shed more light on the case in the near future. In the mean
time, they’re cautioning residents to avoid....
“Did you
see that?” Ana’s voice escaped in more of a demand than a question. “Please
tell me I’m seeing things.”
“Oh my
god...” Kylie whispered into the receiver, confirming the dread that was
building in Ana’s stomach. “Do you really think it’s her?”
“I know
for a fact it is.” Ana declared, the pull in her gut getting stronger by the
minute. “The autopsy will confirm it.”
“So, what
does this mean exactly now?”
“That
maybe I should have been listening a little closer when I was talking to Mara.”
She said with regret as she swiped her forehead with the back of her hand. “And
maybe I should have asked more questions. There’s a story here, I’m sure of it
now.”
“What are
you going to do?” Kylie’s voice was decidedly more alert now.
Ana shook
her head. “I have no idea.”
Though if
she were to be truthful with herself in that moment, she’d already made up her
mind. Ana flipped off the television, and left the little gym to get started.
For more information, to
view pictures, read blog posts and see the upcoming release schedule, please
visit the website at www.RSNovelle.com
http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B00EWLOKIG
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