There was something in the summary of Laney Wylde’s If She Were Blind that instantly caught my attention. Maybe it was the idea of someone unknowingly trying to hire an assassin to target herself. Maybe it was promise of a tense mix of suspense and romance.
Then again, maybe it was the comparison to Veronica Mars. I do love that show, after all.
Regardless, something drew me in, and I couldn’t wait to read at least a little of this promising book. Today, we’re all lucky enough to check out an excerpt. Before we do, though, take a moment to enter Laney’s rafflecopter, where she’s giving away a Justice Always t-shirt.
Alright, ready?
Book excerpt
Fear. It’s how all of us justify what happened that night. Fear and reason can’t overlap. Fear isn’t higher level thinking. It isn’t logical. It’s primal. It’s a response so basic, every animal has it. And crucially, it’s the fire that tests the deepest beliefs, reveals the truest character of the human species.
Not that fear is wrong. It isn’t something to blame anyone for. Just like anger or jealousy or sadness, it springs forth from a place in the mind no one can control. But anger doesn’t excuse violence. Jealousy doesn’t excuse abuse. Sadness doesn’t excuse self-destruction. And fear will never excuse the four bullets that killed Michael.
So, yes, Mom and Dad, I do understand. I understand more than they do because they won’t stare down their own fear long enough to crush it. Because they’re too ashamed to admit their fear of men like Michael, men like my dad, men whose skin is darker than their daughter’s. They shouldn’t be ashamed that they’re afraid. They should be ashamed for pretending they aren’t.
About If She Were Blind
Not everyone can get justice the traditional way—that’s where Estlyn Collins comes in. A young lawyer in Santa Monica, her “legal” service, After Twelve, works outside the courtroom to tip the scales when the justice system has failed.
For a price.
Thanks to her powerful underground network, Estlyn’s success rate is stellar, and her inbox stays filled with inquires from the desperate and vengeful. But when one of those names is a ghost from her past seeking vengeance against her, she’s shaken to her core. Off balance and scared to be alone, she makes an impulsive move for a guy. He’s a complication she doesn’t have time for, but it turns out he may also be an unlikely—if unwitting—asset.
Treading the rapidly thinning line between personal and professional, Estlyn pursues her target while outrunning the one on her own back—only to find she may be running into a lot more than she bargained for.
IF SHE WERE BLIND is the first book in the engaging New Adult series AFTER TWELVE by author Laney Wylde. Perfect for fans of the television shows REVENGE, SCANDAL, and VERONICA MARS, the AFTER TWELVE Series is a gritty social-issue drama that delivers steamy romance, intrigue, and the most bittersweet revenge plots. Estlyn’s determination to right every wrong is sure to quench your thirst for justice, yet leave you wanting more.
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About Laney Wylde
Laney Wylde is enamored with all things southern California–the traffic, smog, surprise earthquakes, and nonindigenous palm trees. Consequently, it’s the landscape her strong and sometimes lovable female leads paint their stories on. Her New Adult novels Never Touched and the After Twelve series are bright with provocative themes, steamy romance, and inappropriately timed humor.
When Laney isn’t writing, she’s singing Taylor Swift with her little boy or asking her husband not to tell her about his work as a surgical resident while she’s eating. She daydreams about using her math degree to get into law school, then realizes that would be too much work and that she should just play pretend court on paper instead. While she loves a good book, nothing beats 30 Rock with a bag of popcorn and M&Ms.
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Miranda Burski 
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