Gwen Gardner and Ghostly Gallows

I'm ever surprised at the unique ways writers weave magic in their stories. When the term paranormal is used to describe a book or genre, that covers a lot of different plot lines. Magical ideas are limited only by the author's imagination. Today Gwen Gardner visits and explains how the protagonist's  magical gifts in her latest book work.  

Double-Edged Spark 

Thanks for hosting me today, Susan!

Susan writes both science fiction and fantasy romance, so I thought I’d share a bit about paranormal romance. Besides the romance part, the different romance genres have something else in common. Such as, what can go wrong and in how many different ways?

I write two series’ with the same protagonist. Indigo Eady is a teenage ghost-whispering, psychometry-reading psychic whose father was murdered. Not only is that a mouthful, but that is a LOT of baggage. What happens when you combine all of that with romance? Chaos, of course! It’s enough to scare any guy away.

One of Indigo’s ‘gifts’ is psychometry. If you haven’t heard of it, the short version is that it’s reading energy through touch. You may have seen on television where a psychic holds an object, such as a watch, and from that receives a vision of what may have happened to its owner.

Indigo’s psychometric ability takes it one step further, which causes all kinds of problems for her. Since she’s dealing with helping ghosts to solve their murders, violence is generally involved. That violence is passed on to Indigo through the objects she touches. When that happens, blisters erupt on her palms and they pop and fester. Her hands are often red, raw and wrapped.

Since Indigo is so often running from the current threat, whether living or dead, she tends to be a bit clumsy. Yeah, she denies it, but it’s true. Her mishaps affect other people. Like Badger, her love interest.

 Only to herself does Indigo admit the spark of the attraction between her and Badger. And that spark causes her abilities to short-circuit or backfire in some seriously inconvenient ways.

For instance, one time Indigo purposely wrapped her palm around a pint of beer belonging to a suspect to see what kind of information she could get. She learned that he wasn’t exactly telling the truth--at a cost to her. Because just touching the glass got her rip-roaring drunk. Then she proceeded to blow chunks all over Badger’s boots while wallowing on the floor and informing him through drunken eyes how cute he was--all four of him.

Then there was the time she was chasing a ghost through the house, bursting into the kitchen in pajamas and bunny slippers with six inch floppy ears. Unable to stop, she slid over the table into Badger and was left lying across the table with her bunny slippers waving in the air. But he did find her am-I-interrupting? quip quite amusing.

Through their investigations, Indigo and Badger have fallen through crumbling buildings, been trapped underground beneath a cemetery, been pinched and poked by malevolent spirits in a dilapidated prison, shot at by a killer, kidnapped by a demon and chased by all manner of beings intent on doing them harm.

 You really gotta like someone to put up with it all. A few shared kisses in between all the chaos helps.

 Luckily, there’s that spark I mentioned. Yeah, a double-edged spark.

Blurb: Ghostly Gallows:

The case of missing paranormals is far from solved.

Hundreds of Sabrina Shores’ spirits are still missing.

In Second Death, Indigo and her friends escape an eternity underground in evil clutches. Back aboveground with a few missing ghosties happily in tow, one truth is painfully clear: the size of their problem is bigger than the village cemetery itself.

Now in Ghostly Gallows, new information leads Indigo and her fellow investigators to the ruins of Gallowsgate Prison, long abandoned by everyone and everything except malevolent spirits. It’s not called Gallowsgate for nothing when the noose swings a little too close to home.

Indigo Eady:

Much to her chagrin, Indigo Eady is a celebrity among spirits. She’s the girl who can see and speak with them. She has a proven track record in helping spirits find their murderers, so it’s no surprise when she’s drafted onto the Missing Paranormal Committee. Who better to help them than the experienced teenage ghost whisperer- investigator and her friends?

Connect With Gwen Here:

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Buy Ghostly Gallows Here:

 Amazon / B&N / Google Play / iTunes

About the Author:

Gwen Gardner is a native Californian living in sunny San Diego, where her love of reading and writing led to a BA in English literature. Life is now complete with her husband, two dogs and a daily call from her daughter.

Since ghosts feature prominently in her young adult Indigo Eady Paranormal “Cozy” Mystery series and Afterlife series, she has a secret desire to meet one face to face - but will run screaming for the hills if she ever does. Gwen adores travel and experiencing the cultures and foods of different countries. She is always up for an adventure and anything involving chocolate - not necessarily in that order.

What is the strangest magic you've read about or written? Do you find yourself more attracted to ghostly or horror stories near Halloween? Do you believe in psychic abilities? Are you familiar with Gwen and her books?