Showing posts with label #1920s. Show all posts

Teaser Tuesday!

Teaser Tuesday!

Ameerah
Genre: Paranormal/Fantasy
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Rebekkah Ford draws you in and holds you so tight you feel breathless~Chloe Thurlow author of Katie in Love

Ameerah is a ghostly paranormal with a historical twist. Well-researched, well-written, and fun to read~Amazon reader.

In life, Ameerah is a rebellious flapper gal from the 1920s. In death, she's a vengeful ghost~Amazon reader.

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Excerpt:
After the horrid bath, Norma threw a towel at me, along with a gray and black checkered cotton dress, white undergarments, gray socks, and black slippers. I put the clothes on, refusing to look at my tormentors. Afterward, Florence took a comb to my hair. Closing my eyes, I endured the rough tugging the best I could, but when the teeth of the comb touched the sore spot on the back of my head, along with Florence’s rough pulling, I hollered, “Ow!” and my hand automatically knocked her hand away, my palm covering that sensitive area. The next thing I knew, I was being yanked backward by my hair.
“You will not disrespect me,” Florence said, gripping my tresses harder. “You will take what I dish out. Period!”
Something snapped inside my brain. The fear of all the consequences I’d have to bear for my actions was gone.
I had enough.
I backed into her in quick steps, and with all my strength, I shoved her into a wall, driving my elbow as hard as I could into her stomach. She let out a sharp gasp and released her grip. Norma charged me, her manly features contorted into a mask of anger. I dodged her and went to grab a wooden chair near the tub. I could have run out of the room, but then what? I had no way of unlocking the doors, so my plan was simple: knock Norma and Florence out with the chair, take the keys and everything else from them, and bust out of here. But when I picked it up, I could hardly lift it. I hadn’t realized how weak I was from the lack of nutrition. I turned and was met with a hard blow square in the face. A loud crunching noise came from my nose, and blood poured out like a running faucet. My hands immediately went up in front of me, and I couldn’t see anything because my eyes were watering from Norma’s punch. The sudden pain almost blinded me.
“We need to teach Sixty-four to respect her elders,” I heard Florence say.
I was roughly shoved backward into the bathtub. The sound of water splashing onto the floor surrounded me when I fell in. I was sitting sideways in the middle, my feet sticking up, my clothes soaked.
I swung my feet in while flinging water at them. “Get away from me!”
“It’s too late for this one,” Norma said, pushing my shoulders down into the soiled liquid and then my head.
My arms flung up to stop her, but Florence snatched my wrists and locked them to my sides. I kicked my feet as hard as I could and in panic, my body twisted back and forth in a struggle to survive. I ran out of breath, and my mouth opened, allowing the water to pour inside me. My chest and lungs were on fire, and everything became yellow and started to fade.
Some birds cannot be caged, and I’m one of them.
A sudden blackness followed, along with a fierce hate that swelled in my heart toward humanity. I detested humans, and mark my words, I would get my revenge on those who wronged me.  
                          ***     
I was in a black void.
One Mississippi.
Two Mississippi.
Three Mississippi.
Three seconds later, everything turned bright white, but it didn’t harm my eyes. Silhouettes of people stood in the distance. There were a couple fellas wearing top hats among the group. I could hear them inside my head; their voices were much clearer and brighter than on earth. It was as if the sun shined on each spoken word. They were talking about my arrival. Curious. But then someone said murder when another asked how I died. The anger in me boiled when sharp images of my demise took hold of me, and the thread of communication between us distorted. The air swirled around me. A grayish, black funnel formed, encasing me inside its belly.
Don’t be afraid.
I wasn’t, I told the phantom voice. The resentment I harbored was too intense to bother with such frivolities. My state of being was wound tightly with sinews of hate, revenge, disgust, and the like.
Good.
 In a matter of seconds, I found myself in a dreary realm, standing on a wooden bridge. A wrought iron lamp post was positioned on both ends. A golden hue lit its glass case. Mist rose from the dark water below, and tall ebony trees stretched across the landscape, their bare limbs webbing the greenish, yellowish sky.
“Where am I?” I wondered out loud, more intrigued than scared. In fact, I felt a sense of elation rather than doom, like I was on the cusp of a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that could elevate me in ways I’d never imagined.
“You’re at a recruiting station.”
My eyes darted around me, looking for the owner of the voice I heard. A tall fella appeared through a break between the trees. I crossed the bridge and met him halfway. His attire reminded me of the bartender at Slim’s speakeasy: brown trousers, matching suspenders, newsboy hat, and an off-white long sleeved button-up shirt—a familiar sight that warmed my heart. I instantly liked him.
“Recruiting station?” I was off the trolley, because I didn’t understand what he meant. “I see no one here but us?”
His welcoming smile reached his deep blue eyes. “I have a lot to teach you, lass, but before my manners run away from me, I’m Aidan Cain Logan to be precise. If you accept my offer, I’ll help you along.” I opened my mouth to introduce myself, but he spoke before I could, his Irish accent sprinkling each word. “Ameerah Arrowood. No middle name. I know all about you, so there is no need for you to layout your biography.”
“How?” I was dumbfounded he had knowledge of my existence and wondered if he really did know everything about me and my life on earth or if he was fooling me.
He moved his hand above his head clockwise. The trees vanished, revealing a vast, endless field of crushed wheat. Groups of shadowy figures in pairs were scattered across the planes. He repeated his gesture; only, this time his hand went counterclockwise instead. The image disappeared, replaced by the prior one.
“Just because your eyes cannot see what’s around you, doesn’t mean it’s not there,” he simply stated. “On the matter of me knowing who you are, the best way I can explain it is each recruiter is assigned a certain area on earth. When a spirit harbors and emits an energy, much like our own, we’re drawn to it. We watch it.”
I wasn’t sure how I felt about his admission. Was he the cause of all the turmoil in my life? “Did you have a hand in my demise?”
His brown hair brushed back and forth against his collar when he shook his head. “Nah, I’ve never toyed with your life. I like your spunk. Besides, recruiters can’t possess soulless humans or humans who allow us passage into their bodies unless we’re on duty with a newbie.”
“Soulless humans?”
“There are people born without a soul,” he said as if it were old news. “Dark spirits can dwell in these soulless humans, live the life they desire, and enjoy the pleasures of being back in the flesh, such as sex, alcohol, drugs, food, and whatnot. It’s quite fun actually. I’m looking forward to jumping into the game again.”
My thoughts spun.
Dark spirits?
Soulless humans?
Possession?
Normally, I would think he was full of baloney, but considering where I was and what I’d seen thus far, I had no reason not to believe him.
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Who is #Ameerah Arrowood?

If you’ve been following these weekly posts, you’ll understand the next ones. If you haven’t, check out my previous posts to get caught up. It’s worth it. :)


I left you last week with Ameerah being murdered in an insane asylum. She dies with hate in her heart towards humanity and then finds herself at a recruiting station for the dark spirits. An Irish lad named Aidan, approaches her and gives her details about his world. Ameerah decides to become a dark spirit so she can have her revenge on the people who double-crossed her. 



Dark spirits can possess soulless humans or humans who allow them to dwell inside their flesh. So imagine living whatever life you want and experience everything your heart desires. 

A soulless human emits, a dull, low humming noise that dark spirits can hear. When Aidan teaches Ameerah to possess one of these hosts, he says, “Step into her energy field and imagine being inside that voluptuous body. Her vitality can be yours if you take it.” With a bit of hesitation and after asking Aidan a few questions about possessing a human, Ameerah does what she’s told and BAM, she’s inside a human body where she can experience whatever the hell she wants. Of course, she  has to get used to inhabiting a vessel, and she shares her struggles with the reader.





Ameerah’s journey begins as a dark spirit, and she excels at it. She makes loyal friends and loves this new existence. They party at speakeasies. They drink, they smoke, have sex, fulfilling their hedonistic desires. With the help of her two friends, Ameerah gets her revenge on those who took everything from her when she was alive. 


Ameerah’s story is an adult thriller, similar to Interview with the Vampire. 

How? 

Like Louis who told his tale to a reporter about his life as a vampire, Ameerah tells hers to her dark spirit friend, Derek, wheeling us back into time and through the timelines—the stock market crash, the depression, World War II, etc.—to present day. Sometimes the dead seek salvation, and by divulging her tale to Derek, she hopes he can help her get what she wants.


This book is due to release on January 28th. If the stars are aligned right, it’ll go live that day. I will do one more of these posts next weekend, to share with you something fun I’m planning, to celebrate this release. :)



Who Is #Ameerah Arrowood?

If you have been following these posts, you know that Ameerah was the only child born into a prominent family in 1907. In 1925, she decided to rebel against her high-hat, prejudice parents and show them who she really was . . .  a flapper gal.


In the summer of 1925, when her parents were away on a business trip, Ameerah had the time of her life. She was offered a job as the head dancer at a speakeasy, and she fell in love in an unconventional way. You’ll have to read the story to find out. ;) She loved to dance, drink, smoke, and have a good time.




Ameerah had two deep dark secrets that were used against her. She was betrayed in the worst way ever.

Again, if you have been following the weekly posts, you know that she was wrongfully admitted into an insane asylum where she was mistreated and then murdered.



With hate in her heart towards humanity, Ameerah found herself on a bridge in a dreary realm that ended up being a recruiting station.


Aidan Logan is an Irish recruiter. He’s cute, charming, and fun.




Find out next week more about what Aidan was recruiting for.

Btw, I'll be announcing Ameerah's release date in the near future. If you haven't joined my newsletter, what are you waiting for? My subscribers will be the first to know when this epic tale will be published. You can join in the upper right hand corner of this blog. Easy peasy. :) 



Who is Ameerah Arrowood and What Does #Prohibition Have To Do With Her?


Ameerah was born in 1907 in Manhattan, New York. She was the only child born to a prominent family. Her parents were elitist high-hats, who only cared about their social status. In 1925, at the age of eighteen, she finally had enough of them treating her like a puppet. She detested their snobbish attitudes and rebelled against them.



Ameerah was a flapper gal. She drank, she smoked and was the best hoofer in town. Because she knew how to dance so well, she was offered a job at a speakeasy, making a lot of dough. Of course, this was during prohibition when drinking was illegal and women who smoked were frowned upon. Ameerah didn't give a shit about that.




Some birds cannot be caged, and I'm one of them.

Prohibition:



Prohibition began on January 16, 1920. From then on, it was illegal to have alcohol.

America went dry.





The 18th amendment prohibited the manufacture, sale, and possession of alcohol in the U.S. This law was an epic failure. Overnight people became criminals, hiding liquor in false books, eggshells, hollow canes, baby carriages, teddy bears . . . Women even hid alcohol beneath their dresses with a garter flask.






Yes, folks, civil disobedience was born.

Prohibition was difficult to enforce because of the widespread smuggling of illicit liquor. Law enforcement was unable to suppress it. People drank more during this time. Organized crime increased and gangsters got richer. A whole underworld of mobsters grew and big city mob bosses, such as Al Capone, rose to power. They fought over the control of liquor sales and other illegal activities such as prostitution and gambling. Violence was on the rise, all because of a stupid law. 



Did you know, doctors were allowed to give their patients a prescription for whiskey? 

Here's an actual prescription.



This was during Ameerah’s time when she was on the cusp of having her dreams come true before everything was taken away from her. 

Her freedom. 

Her dignity. 

Her life.

Stay tuned to find out more about Ameerah and what Al Capone’s favorite cocktail was that Ameerah tried at the speakeasy she worked at.




Ameerah. Cover Reveal and More! #Author Rebekkah Ford

Ameerah will be coming out at the beginning of 2016. The manuscript is in edits right now, but the peeps who have read the story so far has loved it and all say that this story will take you on one hell of a ride, which of course delights me.

If you haven’t signed-up for my newsletter, now is the chance to do so. I just sent the first chapter of Ameerah’s story to the peeps who have joined, and less than an hour later, I received feedback from one member that she loves it and wants to read more.

I’ll be sending a hilarious chapter in the future to my subscribers, along with updates and news on my other books.


Anyway, I thought I’d share with you the cover and some teasers. Btw, Ameerah was a flapper gal in 1925, I plan to do a post on that era, so stay tuned. J










#Ameerah's cover. Check It Out!


Are you ready for the cover reveal for Ameerah? It’s a little premature being that her story won’t be published until probably towards the end of the year; however, I had to share it with y’all.

Why you ask?

Because you’re awesome, and I appreciate all of you.

Here it is.



Stephanie Flint is the cover artist, and she rocks.

I don’t have the blurb written for Ameerah’s story yet, and I’m still working on her tale, I mean, she has a lot to say. I have to be honest . . . it’s cool.

Anyway, here’s something I whipped up to give you an idea of what her story is about. It’s not edited, though, so keep that in mind.

Ameerah Arrowood is eighteen-years-old when she tragically dies in an insane asylum in 1926. She finds herself in a dreary realm that happens to be a recruiting station. With animosity in her heart towards humanity, she becomes a dark spirit. For 89 years, Ameerah dwells in soulless humans, living a hedonistic, mischievous and sometimes vengeful existence. But now she’s seeking salvation so she can crossover. She enlists the help of her British, snarky friend Derek, who is straddling the line between heaven and hell. She tells him how it all began—weaving between historical timelines to now, hoping to gain understanding and forgiveness. But in the end, the unexpected unfolds, throwing Ameerah for a loop, which changes her forever.