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Village Books
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What is lurking in the shadows? When did these footprints appear outside her house? Anna is sure she’s being followed again in Courtney Leigh Pahlke’s mystery thriller, Life Force Preserve.
What is it that follows her? She’s still recovering from the last dire, grave accident. Now Anna can only wonder if that dark day, the worst day of her life, even was an accident. Someone or something is after her. With no idea why, Anna doesn’t know where to turn for help. How will she find her way, now that something beyond her control has knocked the life she loved out from under her?
Anna is suffering from disabling injuries after a shocking car accident that killed her beloved mother. Her father, brother, and best friend are all a phone call away and dedicated to helping Anna recover. Sometimes it’s surprising how far away that phone call can be. When Anna takes a terrible fall in the snow outside her house and regains consciousness, there’s a figure rushing nearby her, moving erratically and watching her. She can’t get a good look at it. Is it her imagination? She has to get away, to find safety. She has to get herself back to the hospital where they can help her.
Anna is able to make it to a cab and the hospital. What she discovers there is good news and bad news.
Tests reveal that her healing is miraculously ahead of schedule. It’s truly a mystery to the doctors how she is mending. They order more tests and procedures to be sure what they’re seeing is real. For Anna, this heartening news is quickly overshadowed by suspicious strangers in the hospital corridors. An ominous movement in her direction, a watchful stare, several others giving her too much attention and Anna is once again on the alert and on the run.
Anna’s fears are confirmed when she’s approached by Bryan. He’s a stranger yet knows about her situation. His concern and his actions to help are puzzling, but he convinces her to trust him. They leave for a safe place where Bryan introduces his associates. That’s when he explains what is after Anna and why. Her only hope, according to Bryan, is to join them in their own desperate fight against these brutal beings. Their efforts are the last chance to stop these villains from achieving their terrifying goal. Bryan offers no guarantees, and Anna must decide if she can trust him.
Author Courtney Leigh Pahlke’s Anna is a most thoughtful and courageous protagonist confronting a life altering crisis.
Now we see how Anna has to rethink what remains of her life and gather her remaining strength and judgement to find her way forward into a turbulent future. The author skillfully immerses the reader deep into Anna’s point of view so we can see the world around her as she does, feel her emotions, and weigh her choices right along with her. Anna is surrounded by an engaging group of characters. The plot pacing builds subtly at first, then intensifies with the suspense of what may be following Anna. The excitement compounds with the revelation that the risk is even bigger than Anna ever imagined. As threats close in, Life Force Preserve stands guard.
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